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penny00dreadful · 9 months ago

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And They Were Roommates! - Part 2

Part 1 Part 3 AO3

Eddie had called out of work the next day. Steve could hear him making his apologies to Mrs. Henderson who'd taken over the running of the shop when her husband passed.

Steve knew she'd probably tell him to stay home for the rest of the week, probably longer if she could get away with it, but Eddie loved every second he spent working there. Adored Dustin. Adored the other kids, Steve's kids, who used the back room for their dice game after closing on Thursday evenings.

Eddie would have to be beaten away from the premises with a bat. A bat with nails.

Steve might just have to give it a try if the idiot refused to rest properly.

He wasn't mothering him.

He was like… distant cousining him.

When he heard Eddie retreat back to his room after the call and when a light rumbling of snores came through the wall maybe a half an hour later, Steve finally made his exit from his room.

He hadn’t wanted Eddie to think he needed to put on a brave face or act like he was okay if Steve was out in the public spaces while he made the call.

Not because he cared.

Just so Eddie wouldn’t have to pretend.

And so he himself didn’t have to deal with the tension.

Yeah, right.

Also, it was the least he could do to complete Eddie's designated chores off the whiteboard that there had been war over.

Robin and Eddie’s friend Chrissy had been forced to come in and mediate the whiteboard before one of them set the other's hair on fire. Though by the end of the day the two best friends had been too busy making eyes at each other to be of any help.

Steve was taking a risk; messing with the delicate whiteboard balance that stayed the same, week in, week out, lest another war start. But if Eddie wasn’t up for going to work, he certainly wouldn’t be up for sweeping, mopping, countertops and garbage.

And like, Steve could hardly blame him, he’d been through a lot yesterday, he’d been betrayed by the guy he’d cared most about. He was attacked and had his heart broken all in one night.

So it was whatever.

Just a few chores.

Whatever.

At least he didn’t have to worry about keeping the noise down. Eddie could sleep through the apartment being ripped up by a cyclone then dropped into Oz.

He’d probably sleep through any and all musical numbers to follow, too.

Though he’d be bummed about missing them.

A few hours had passed by that point and Steve was just about to sit his lovely bottom on the couch to enjoy some good old fashioned thoughtless tv when there was a knock at the door.

He half expected Mrs. Henderson to be on the other side with half a hospital in tow behind her as well as, like, fifteen gallons of her famous chicken noodle soup. Which Steve would not turn down for love nor money and would steal a minimum 50% share.

As was his right.

But it wasn’t Claudia.

It was some guy.

Some guy who had a bandage over his nose, a harsh purple colour blooming underneath, sitting a little off as though broken. Some guy who had cuts and scratch marks all over his face and neck.

Some guy who seemed to be affronted at the very sight of him.

But as he stood there Steve could see the clogged up gears working in his brain before the guy opened his mouth and said "You're Steve, the roommate."

Steve pursed his lips.

Well, this interaction was off to a great start.

Though if this was who Steve thought he was, he couldn’t give less of a fuck.

"I'm Steve. Eddie's the roommate.” He said with a raised eyebrow. “What was with the look?"

The guy blinked at him. "What look?"

"The look you gave me, when I opened the door. Like I'd shit on your shoe." He answered with a cocked eyebrow and a cocked hip.

"Oh, uh… I just thought Eddie had shacked up with someone already.” The guy laughed. “Bit soon.” He shrugged and smiled at Steve as though looking for some kind of commiseration for a good joke, two men giving each other nudges about how silly their wives were or whatever other shit straight people did.

But Steve had no commiseration to give.

So this was definitely the shithead, then. Rick.

Steve leaned against the doorframe, practically acting like a barricade, blocking off access to the apartment with his arms crossed. "Don’t like the idea of him having someone at home?” He asked in a light tone. “Bit hypocritical if you ask me.”

Rick’s face immediately soured. "That wasn't his business to tell."

“I think you lose the privilege to that kind of privacy when you fuck around on people you’re supposed to love.” Steve shrugged. “Or just people in general.”

“Who the hell are you to judge me?” Rick puffed his chest out. “You don’t know me.”

“And thank god for that. I don’t need to know you. I know you’re a cheater, that’s enough.”

Rick scoffed. “Whatever, man. I’m not here to debate morality or some shit with you. I’m here to see Eddie.”

“No.” Steve answered as simply as he could.

The guy seemed to need things to be concise.

Rick looked bewildered. “Ex- excuse me?”

“You got cotton in your ears or something? I said no.”

“Who the fuck do you think you are? His keeper? You know he hates you right?”

Steve pulled his mouth down into a mocking pout. “Oh no.” He sighed, deadpan. “I’m so heartbroken.”

“Listen, I’m not getting into it with you right now, man. So call Eddie out or move.”

“Or what?” Steve leaned forward a little, feeling his blood light on fire.

There would be nothing more he’d love at this moment than Rick trying to square up to fight.

The guy was a little taller than him, but Steve was much broader, much stronger and though it wasn’t something he liked to do, he knew he could throw a decent punch if it was for someone else.

That much was obvious.

Thinking back on the things Eddie had said last night, the things Rick had tried, the way he’d cried into Steve’s shoulder, Steve would break Rick’s nose all over again if given half a chance.

“Steve.”

Eddie appeared next to him, placing a hand on his shoulder and pulling him away from the door.

Rick looked between the two of them before his eyes landed back on Steve, snapping at him “You can fuck off now.”

Steve raised his eyebrows as if to say ‘oh, can I?’, but even so, he looked at Eddie, waiting for some sign of what he wanted, whether he wanted him to stay or go.

But Eddie gave no indication of what he wanted, wedging himself in between the two and pulling the door tighter to himself, his expression thunderous through the blooming bruises and angry cuts.

“The fuck are you doing here?”

Steve took that as his cue to go. Even through all the bluster and posturing and how much the two of them still didn’t like each other-

We barely tolerate each other, Steve insisted to himself, we don’t like each other. I don’t like him.

-he wasn’t going to force himself into this drama and if Eddie needed to tear this guy to shreds on his own, Steve would let him.

But he had barely taken a step back before Eddie’s hand shot out, grasping at what he could until he had a fistful of Steve’s shirt, white knuckling it and stopping him in his tracks.

The movement was hidden by the door, Rick wouldn’t have been able to see it and Eddie didn’t acknowledge that he’d done anything, still staring his ex down.

Steve stopped dead where he was and when Eddie seemed to realise that he wouldn’t be moving, his hand loosened, coming back up to rest against the door.

“I’m here to sort things out between us. Try to fix it.” Rick said, his voice going soft.

Eddie exhaled a derisive laugh through his nose. “Why don’t you go and ‘fix’ your wife?”

Steve crossed his arms, standing guard in the back but still mostly out of sight.

“C’mon babe…” Rick reached out, attempting to grasp at Eddie’s fingers but Eddie snatched his hand back. “I think you’re just… making a big deal out of this when you don’t need to.”

“A big deal?” Eddie snapped, leaning forward. “Not only have you been cheating on your wife but you’ve been cheating on me too.”

“You?” Rick sputtered, incredulous.

He exhaled with an eye roll and only then noticed that Steve was still standing there.

“Are you serious?” Rick almost shrieked. “What the hell are you still here for? Show’s over, normie!” He waved his hand in Steve’s direction as though dismissing him.

Steve raised his eyebrows and smiled back, not moving an inch.

Rick looked back to Eddie. “Are you not going to do anything about him? We’re in the middle-”

“Oh my god.” Steve injected as much sarcasm as he could. “Is this a private conversation? I had no idea.”

Rick’s face was turning red with frustration. “You got a real attitude problem, man.”

Steve turned his mouth down in a pout. “Oh no.”

“That’s it.” Rick slammed against the door all of a sudden, wrenching it from Eddie’s grip and almost blowing it open if it wasn’t for Steve’s hands stopping it in its tracks.

The sudden stop jostled Rick, sending him slightly off balance and Eddie took the opportunity to kick out hard, swinging his leg up until it landed in between Rick’s legs.

Eddie retracted his foot for just a second as Rick crumpled with a scream of pain before kicking out again, catching him in the hip and shoving him back into the hallway, sending him sprawling.

“Lose my fucking number, asshole.”

Eddie spat down at Rick before turning back inside and slamming the door behind him.

His eyes were still narrowed and furious as he glared at Steve who could do nothing but stand there.

The sound of Rick’s groans were still echoing beyond the door as the two of them looked at each other.

The silence stretched on as Eddie heaved heavy breaths in and out and Steve stared dumbfounded.

There was a glossy sheen to Eddie’s eyes by the time Steve opened his mouth, not sure of what he was going to say.

But it didn’t matter.

Eddie stormed past him without a backwards glance, his hair just disappearing behind the door before he slammed it closed and the wailing of a guitar and the crashing of drums started to scream out of the speakers in his room.

He didn’t see Eddie for the rest of the day. Didn’t knock on his door to try to pull him out and didn’t try to get him to talk.

Steve was only just waking up the day after when he heard Eddie’s bedroom door open and shuffling coming down the hall towards the phone.

He twiddled his thumbs, waiting in his room while he heard Eddie’s muttered conversation.

He didn’t want to interrupt, didn’t want to have to force his presence on Eddie before it was necessary but he really had to pee and he’d have to walk past the phone to get to the bathroom.

Thankfully the conversation didn’t last long but then Eddie shuffled away from his own room towards the bathroom and Steve had to take some very deep breaths.

He couldn’t really be mad at him for it, the guy hadn’t come out of his room at all yesterday after the confrontation, he deserved to pee but Steve felt like his kidneys were gonna start failing at any second.

When he heard Eddie shuffle back into his room Steve nearly cracked the wall with how hard he threw the door open, rushing down the hallway and into the bathroom before he exploded.

Eddie hadn’t made another appearance by the time Steve was grabbing his keys for work and as much as it irritated him, he was feeling a little wary about leaving him all alone for most of the day.

Turned out he didn’t really need to worry about it.

Just as he had turned back towards Eddie’s room, there was a knock on the front door.

He swung it open to find bouncing blonde curls and a bright perky smile.

“Hi Steve.”

“Oh, hey Chrissy.” He stepped aside, allowing her to sweep inside. Her sweater was very unusual. Dark blue and baggy and tucked into her light wash jeans. Steve could have sworn he’d seen it before. There was a large plastic bag in her hand that a glance inside told him was filled with every tooth rottingly sweet thing she could have scooped off the shelves at their local store.

She placed the bag on the kitchen counter with a light clink of glass against glass coming from inside.

Maybe it was also a day-drunk type of visit.

“How is he?” Chrissy asked, blinking up at him with her big earnest eyes.

“I’m… not sure?” Steve shrugged, rubbing the back of his neck a little embarrassed. “I haven’t seen him since yesterday.”

She nodded. “Okay. That’s okay.”

“I think I’m probably going to call over to Robin’s after work.” He muttered, trying to keep his burning blush down. “Hang out for a little bit.”

He didn’t think he needed to say he was doing it to give Chrissy and Eddie their space, to do their ice-cream and chocolate and alcohol and talk about how terrible men were without him hovering. But thankfully she got it, smiling at him so bright it almost hurt to look at.

“Could you…?” She hesitated, pulling the sleeves of her sweater over her fingers. “Could you ask Robin- never mind.”

Steve opened his mouth to assure her it was okay to continue but she barrelled on.

“The boys are coming over later too. Is that okay?”

“The boys?” Did she mean the kids?

“From the band.”

“Oh! Yeah I mean why wouldn’t that be okay? Eddie lives here too.”

“Yeah. I just wanted to check in case-”

“In case I complained about it later?” He tried to ask in his kindest tone. Maybe he’d been guilty of bitching about them in the past but he would never deny Eddie his support system, not at s time like this.

Even if he did… dislike him?

Did he still dislike him?

What was he talking about, of course he did.

“I’m sorry.” Chrissy looked incredibly guilty and Steve couldn’t stand it.

“No, you were right to ask. I haven’t- I’ve been a bit rude in the past.”

She looked like she wanted to apologise again so he shot her a warm smile and patted her on the shoulder. “I have to get to work, but take care of him, yeah?”

She gave him a curious look but nodded, sending him out the door with a wave of her hand, her sleeve following loosely where it was still pulled over her fingers.

Steve was halfway through his shift by the time Robin came in. She worked shorter hours ever since she’d taken that part time internship as a translator.

They’d just gotten past their mid-day coffee rush by the time they had a chance to talk.

“Are you doing anything after this?” He asked her, leaning back against the counter.

“Is this your way of asking me out?” Robin was rifling through the under counter refrigerator next to him, throwing out any old stock that had gone out of date.

“Yes.” Steve nodded. “I’ve been hopelessly in love with you for years and I thought now was the best time to confess.”

“You could have picked a more romantic location.” She sniffed at a container of strawberries, considering before shaking her head and dumping them.

“But my heart told me it had to be now, Birdie.”

Robin just rolled her eyes at him.

“So?” He nudged her with his foot, very nearly sending her off balance. “You, me, two of the best subs this city has and your couch. It’s my best offer.”

She shut the refrigerator door, pushing herself to stand, using the counter for balance. She nearly jumped out of her skin when Steve absentmindedly snapped his fingers at her, remembering.

“Oh! You have a date tonight, right?”

“I did have a date tonight but sh- he cancelled.”

“He cancelled, did he?” Steve smirked, trying not to enjoy the poorly masked revulsion on Robin’s face at having to pretend to be dating a man.

“Yes. He did. Rain check for another time.”

“Bummer.”

Robin hadn’t told him much about the girl she was seeing and Steve hadn’t pushed for any more information than she was willing to give. When she wanted him to know, he’d know.

“But-” he continued “-that leaves your schedule wide open for a date with me.” He spread his arms wide open and smiled at her.

“Well, aren't I just the luckiest girl in the world?” She batted her eyelashes at him.

“The luckiest. Any reason for the rain check?”

Robin nodded. “Friend emergency.”

“Oh. That’s sweet.”

“Yeah.” She smiled. “He’s a very sweet…” her nose scrunched up, “boy.”

“Very sweet boy.” He repeated with a smile. “So can I steal your keys? Have everything all spread out for you when you get home?” He dragged his hand down his chest, wiggling his hips.

“God, Steven.” Robin shuddered. “You’re repulsive.”

“Wrong. I am a dish.”

“Ugh. Gag.”

Steve pouted at her. “I’ll get you a milkshake too, how about that?”

She crossed her arms and stuck her nose up. “Fine.”

She could only hold for so long before she started to break, cracking a smile.

“If you two don’t mind,” a voice next to them said and they both jumped, seeing Mark their manager standing there, “could you stop flirting and get back to work?”

Neither of them even bothered arguing that they were not flirting anymore. They both knew the rest of the staff had a betting pool going on when they would get together.

They would be waiting a very long time.

By the time Robin got home, Steve had himself swaddled in her blankets and had stolen her best hot water bottle.

Why did she live somewhere so cold?

His toasty warmth didn’t last very long, however.

She wrestled the hot water bottle from his grip by resorting to dirty tactics, pulling at his hair until he let it go.

“How many times have I told you the hair is off limits?” He hissed at her, trying to fix it. His hair was his fucking signature, how could she be so rude?

“That is exactly why I go for it every time. It’s your weak spot.” She grinned, smug in her win and attempting to pull the throw off of him as well.

“Go get one of my sweaters if you’re gonna be such a big bitch baby about it. I just got off work.” She pouted, batting her eyelashes at him. “I’m tired.”

“I brought you subs and milkshakes!”

Robin heaved out a heavy, put upon sigh. “Fine.” She heaved herself up from the couch, still clutching at the hot water bottle and disappeared inside her room.

Steve took the opportunity to swaddle himself again, just getting cosy when he heard Robin call out, “Evie, did you steal my sweater?”

“Which one?” He shouted back. He probably had five or more of hers at home and he wasn’t even sure if all of those had started out as hers or his.

“The blue one!”

“Which blue one?”

“The new blue one!”

“What does it look like?”

“What do you think it looks like, it’s fucking blue!”

Steve rolled his eyes and tried to remember any blue sweaters that existed within his own apartment.

“I’m pretty sure I don’t have it. I don’t even remember you getting a new blue sweater.”

“Well where the hell is it then?”

“How am I supposed to know? I didn’t even know it existed!”

“You’re supposed to know these things!”

“Maybe the sweater fairy stole it.” He snickered to himself until a dark red sweater that had definitely belonged to him first hit him in the face.

“You are the sweater fairy.” She pouted, sitting back down and stealing the throw from his lap.

“Don’t hate crime me. It’s rude.” He tugged the throw back over his legs, leaving her enough slack to cover herself as well.

Robin reached over to snatch her sub from the coffee table. “So.”

“So.”

“Something’s going on with Eddie.”

“What?” Steve ran through the entire day in his head. He didn’t think he’d mentioned Eddie once. “When did I say there was something going on with Eddie?”

“You didn’t.” Robin’s mouth went slack in the way it usually did whenever she was hiding something but she covered it up with a large bite, speaking through a full mouth. “But you’re here and not at home so…”

“That’s not that unusual.”

“No, but what is unusual is that you asked if you could steal my keys instead of just taking them.”

“Oh.” Yeah. That was not the norm. “Um, well it’s not really my place to say-”

“Who am I going to tell?”

“That’s besides the point.”

“Tell me.” She jabbed him with a sharp elbow.

“I don’t know if I can.” He said, running his hand through his hair.

“I mean, nothing too personal, if you don’t wanna.” She backtracked with a shrug.

“Doesn’t matter what I want. The thing is it’s not my business, it’s Eddie’s.” He shrugged. “But there was some… relationship drama the other night.”

“Ooh. Juicy drama?”

Steve winced. “Not exactly. More like… red flag drama.”

“Oh shit. Chr- I didn’t know that.”

Steve looked at her, bewildered. “I wouldn’t expect you to, how would you know?”

Robin just shrugged, shoving another large bite into her mouth.

“I don’t really… I’m not comfortable talking about the things Eddie and I talked about but I do need you to help me… figure myself out.”

“Okay, that I can do. I’m an expert at it. I helped you find your sexuality.”

“Find it? It wasn’t fucking lost Birdie.”

“Yeah, but I brought it out into the sunlight.”

“Jesus, you’re acting like you released it from captivity. I knew. I’ve always known. Just because you didn’t know that I know, doesn’t mean I didn’t know.”

She shoved his arm. “I unlocked it.”

He shoved her back. “You didn’t unlock shit.”

She shoved him again. “I unlocked it. You’re welcome.”

He gave her a final shove with a huff to go right along with it. “Whatever.”

“Okay, no more side tracking. Tell me your scrambly brain thoughts.”

“Alright. Um. Okay. So.” Shit. How much could he tell her without either breaking Eddie’s trust or revealing too much. “So there was drama the other night, between Eddie and the boyfriend, you know that much. I won’t say what happened but he didn’t get home until like four in the morning and he called out of work yesterday and today-”

“He called out?!” Robin shrieked, open mouthed. She’d lived with Eddie long enough and been through enough of Steve’s bitching to know just how much Eddie loved that job.

Steve nodded. “Yeah. It was… it wasn’t good, Birdie, what happened. It was actually really fucking fucked up.”

She nodded, encouraging him to continue.

“So then yesterday he’s trying to sleep it off pretty much and there’s a knock at the door.”

“Oh no.”

“Yeah and I go get it because I had assumed it would be Mrs. Henderson with some chicken noodle soup and you know I’d kill my own mother for some of that soup-”

“-I’d kill your mother for some too, yes.”

“-yeah. But it wasn’t Mrs. Henderson, it was Rick, the boyfriend. Or ex-boyfriend, I don’t know and he was trying to like, bully his way into the apartment to see Eddie and I don’t know what happened with me but-”

“-you went full guard dog protector mode didn’t you?”

“I…” Steve sighed, looking down at his hands. “Yeah, I did. Why did I do that? It’s none of my business. I don’t even like the guy. Why would I care?”

“Because you always care, Evie. You saw someone who needed help and you helped, it’s what you do.”

Steve scoffed. “Hardly. It’s not like I’m some fucking selfless hero for doing it.”

“Nah, you kinda are.”

“It was just some guy!”

“And you’re just some guy too!”

Steve glared at her, offended. “You take that back.”

Robin looked at him for a moment. “Okay, fair, retracted.”

He gave her a small grin and dragged the sleeves of the sweater over his fingers.

“Hey! Stop, you’ll stretch it!”

“What does it matter if I stretch it, it’s mine.”

“It is not.”

“It is too!”

“Is not!”

“Is too!” He jabbed her in the side, knowing full well that if they continued the way they were this could go on all night. It had gone on all night more than once.

Robin squawked and immediately lunged, her hands grabbing at the top of his head.

“No, no! I told you not the hair!”

“And I told you it’s your weakness.” She hissed, her eyes flashing as he scrambled at her wrists before she could get her fingers buried deep enough.

“Boobies!” He shouted, as loud as possible. The effect was immediate, Robin tried to cringe away from him with a look of disgust. “Boobies, boobies, boobies!”

“Oh my god are you five fucking years old? Can you not say tits or breasts or fucking mammary glands or something like a damn adult?” She wrenched her wrists away from him. “I’m so embarrassed for you.”

“I’m embarrassed of your face.”

“I’m embarrassed of your weird man hair.” She scowled, patting at his chest.

“You shouldn’t be. Everyone loves the chest hair. Even the lesbians. It’s like a respect thing.”

Robin rolled her eyes. “Whatever.”

Steve pouted to himself.

He just wanted to help. He wanted to make sure Eddie was okay, that he would continue to be okay and there was this horrible little part in the back of his head that also wanted to make sure that no one would put their hands on Eddie ever like that again.

It was weird and possessive in a way he really shouldn’t have been feeling about his irritating as shit roommate who didn’t even have the courtesy to play guitar with headphones on half the time.

No matter how good his playing was.

“I can smell your hair burning.”

“What do I do now, Birdie?”

“What do you mean?”

“Like… I want to help, I guess. But I don’t know how. We don’t even like each other, why would he accept my help?”

“Well… how did he react when you did what you did?”

“He… I guess he… I was going to leave when Rick came to the door and he stopped me. He didn’t say anything to me, he didn’t even look at me but he grabbed onto me and… I think he was scared, Rob. I’ve never seen him scared.”

“Well Steve, I think you’re gonna do what you always do. Help. Whether you know you’re doing it or not, whether you even really mean to, you always help.”

"You're making me out to be some sort of saint."

“I’m really not.” She shook her head. “You’re just… you.”

“Wow, incredible observation there, Birdie.”

“Oh, fuck off and finish this for me.” She shoved the rest of her sub into his hands.

Part 1 Part 3 AO3

@augustjustice @geekymagicalpotato @wormdebut @eddielives1986 @releasethexbarakat @a-little-unsteddie @steddietogo @steddiehyperfixation

Big thanks as always to @hbyrde36 for her magnificent beta work and to the @strangerthingswritersguild for their motivation.

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#steddie #stranger things #eddie munson #steve harrington #steve x eddie #eddie x steve #penny00dreadful #steddie fanfic #steddie fic #fanfic #pennys anniversary event #robin buckley #enemies to lovers #roommates au #roommates

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solurae · 1 year ago

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four eyes (more to love underneath the frames) : prologue

nerd!miguel o’hara is the talk of the town and i wanna put my own spin on it :D sooo expect a little bit of everything hehe :DDD - HAHA AS I WAS WRITING THIS I REALISED I GOT TOO INVESTED SETTING THE SCENE SO I MIGHT MAKE THIS A SERIES! i’ll just say this is a prologue hooray

IF YOU WOULD LIKE A SERIES PLS INTERACT!!! FEEL FREE TO ASK TOO TO SHARE YOUR MIGGY THOUGHTS AND I WILL HAPPILY INDULGE US BOTH :3

a distinct pair of black, rectangular glasses were adjusted by miguel’s middle finger before it glided across the pages of notes he wrote from the lecture for his genetics class. a class that you both happen to share, but neither of you knew that yet.

miguel o’hara - a man so deep in his books that he might as well be the dean of the dean’s list - payed no heed to anyone or anything that could hinder his focus. the furrowing of brows indicated further analysis rather than the annoyance towards second year business majors. no, he wasn’t the annoying, stuck-up person who would ask more questions than give answers. he thinks they’re wasting their time anyway. he was always the last person to leave the lecture theatre. miguel would be huddled by the professor, covering the whiteboard with punnett squares or outlining control variables for the next lab.

he was only person in your genetics class that had a real chance of passing the course, the scowls of your peers and your friends could attest to that.

you wouldn’t say you were on the same boat as everyone though, your friends were always nagging you to help them but you couldn’t even figure out how you understood some of the content. this specific course was an integral part of your degree and the best chance of impressing the school, you had to give it your all.

you would be lying if genetic sequences and chromosomes weren’t the only things you had memorised. you loved the hue of brown locks that would shine from the tall windows of the theatre, the curls which your eyes would follow forever if he happened to sit in front of you. the pout of his lips as he’d scratch his hair in response to a lab practical that didn’t make sense, only for him to make sense of it hours later.

his eyes were red. it was his most defining feature, and a key factor to why - to your advantage, if you really think about it - people steer clear of o’hara. as much as it increases your chances of befriending him, let alone being with him, your classmates and other students weren’t so quiet about their dislike for the irish-mexican spectacle.

he’s so quiet. too quiet.

he looks like a freak! look at his eyes, bro. what is he some fucking vampire or something?

no wonder he’s on the dean’s list because he isn’t on anyone else’s for sure.

god he’s just so…

weird.

miguel was extremely fit, which was what confused a lot of people when they found out he wasn’t a copy-paste jock that still thinks they’re in highschool like most men of his stature were. his build put them to shame regardless. after being bombarded by women and men of every cohort - only for miguel to ignore them or coldly decline - word spread like wildfire and soon enough people were disappointed that the former heart-throb of first and second year turned out to be a major loser. some people would go out of their way to show how much they don’t like him, and these are people miguel’s never even spoken to. they would “crash” into him walking across campus, try and trip him over and even go as far as sitting on the other side of the room if it wasn’t so clear already.

but he didn’t mind. he was always at the library, the lab or the cafeteria closest to the lab anyway. it bothered you to see him alone and quiet unless he had a question or an answer, you genuinely wanted to be friends with him.

but as the story goes, it’s always these type of men that have a part of themselves they keep under wraps. you just know that there’s more to his brooding and stoic nature, the carnelian shades of his eyes lured you closer as opposed to keeping you away.

you decided to do honours for two reasons: a better resume and the fact that miguel unsurprisingly decided to do it too. you had a thesis in your head and you had all year to test it out.

miguel o’hara was more than just some nerd and you were gonna need more than glasses to prove it.

🩷 — PART ONE!

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theanonymousninja247 · 8 months ago

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Random Turtle HC: Raph & Anxiety

*clears throat and approaches microphone before hitting whiteboard with a ruler* A-HEM! Behold my theories peasants!

As we see expresses in the VERY 1st episode of ROTTMNT, the turtles can recognize each others signature scents and can smell fear.

Raph especially is shown briefly through the brothers dialogue to be the most aware and self conscious about said scent to the point of becoming defensive about it.

This leads me to believe that due to both natural biological olfactory senses and increased abilities due to mutation, the turtle brothers (with an advanced ability tipping to Raph due to his size and sensitivity) can actually smell the hormone cortisol.

WebMD defines cortisol as, “Your body’s main stress hormone. It works with certain parts of your brain to control your mood, motivation, and fear.”

Simply put, the turtle boys can literally smell fear.

Now I know you’re asking yourself, “Okaaaaaay cool fun fact I guess, what does that have to do anything with me?”

*takes a step back and adjust glasses with a smirk*

My dear dear fellow tumblr, allow me to share the wonders of mixing fact, madness and media all in one! *sounds of maniacal cackling can be heard*

(I wrote this with the intent to be platonic but it could be romantic if you squint long enough)

•So we've established Raph can smell fear right?

•As a protective big brother who is quite literally in fact “BIG” he knows a thing or two about getting scared

• Especially when it comes to looking out for people he cares about

•Hes been fighting baddies for his family since he was a tot! From keeping away scary dreams at night, from crushed ancient metal zombies to terrifying alien virus monsters, there ain't much he hasn't seen

•So when you join the ranks of the Mad Dogz, you immediately also get a built in prtoector

•Raphs been looking out for the little guys his whole life, what's one more?

•Not to mention you're kinda cute, so he doesn't mind sticking around a little bit closer

•But you're different than most folks, Raph notices. I mean besides the fact that you WILLING want to be friends with 4 mutant turtles of all things.

•No besides your abnormal incredible bravery in looking beyond the status quo to reach out the hand of friendship to these reckless reptiles, Raph noticed that you just kind of…smelled

•Not in a bad way or anything just…you always seemed to have a lingering scent of fear on you

•And Raph would know. Hed recognize that scent anywhere. It's a scent that ghosts every hour of every day for him. Nighttime and being alone especially.

•Raph hates being scared. He's the biggest and the oldest. He's supposed to look after his peeps! And he can't do that if he's frozen with fear all the time!

•So what does he do? Raph faces the problem head on like he always do.

•You get scared a lot. That's understandable, but Raph decides to make it his business that you don't need to be scared when he's around.

•Raph’ll protect ya

•Be prepared to have this turtle subtly (orrer not to much so because although he's a ninja he ain't exactly tactful or subtle) watching you every time you and the gang get all together

•Its not hard. You've always caught his attention for some reason or another. So looking at you is something he does without even realizing it.

•He’s looking for triggers, anything that gets that heart rate of yours spiking and that scent start to waft.

•Fidgeting hands, bouncing knees, shutting down and slinking into your hoodie, nervous chewing, pulling or playing with your hair and pacing, he's got eyes on it all.

•Once a trigger has been spotted, Raph immediately tries to locate the source

•Too many people? Suddenly you find a 6ft something giant turtle behind you, letting you know with his massive presence alone that he got your back. Literally.

•He kinda likes this position because he can see everyone that comes close enough to interact with you and everybody can see him.

•All he's got to do is narrow his eyes a little a give em a flash of that all too familiar snaggle tooth of his if he thinks someone's being mean and he gets his unspoken threat across just fine

•Not to mention you're also close enough to grab if someone he doesn't deem fit for your attention gets a little too close for his liking. But he doesn't say that part out loud.

•Scared of talking? You suddenly feel the cool tip of his massive scaely alligator tail (anatomically correct alligator tail be darned, I'm going with the fandoms HCs for this one) gently wrapping around your ankle as a physical reminder that he's right there here to support you

•Overwhelmed and the world feels like it's closing in on you? Raphs massive size is a natural battering ram that allows him to pass through thick crowds with easy. He's not afraid to help heard you into a quiet little corner away from it all

•Years of practice with Donnie allows him the experience to ask you if you're good with touch.

•If yes, you know you're going to be instantly wrapped into his arms, pulled flushed up against the worn keratin of his plastron. Raph’s always been more of “hands-on experience” kinda of guy anyway.

•Raph gives good hugs. They're firm and tight, padded with the security of arms who have been holding the weight of the world for years.

•He will rest his chin on top of your head, gently guiding your head with the motion ever so slightly so you're somehow perfectly nestled right against his heart.

•It's a loud heart, especially when you're up so close. It's actually his strongest muscle and one he's most proud of. He cares about you, so he reckons he’ll allow you the privilege of getting close to it. In more ways than one.

•Raph doesn't talk much during these special security hugs. He's never really been much good with words anyways. Raph knows sometimes the noise can be too much, but he also knows that the silence can be defeaning. So being a turtle comes with some built in perks that make up a happy medium.

•Hes got a special churr saved for special situations just like this one. It's one of the lowest and deepest ones he's capable of making. More akin to a muted growl more than anything the way it vibrates his chest as you're pressed up against it. You can feel it more than hear it and it just takes a handful of minutes listening to this bad boy before Raph can sense your fear stink slowly dissipating and your natural sweet scent can return.

•Raph can smell fear, and there's something incredibly humbling for this Atlas of a turtle to have the sweet experience of watching that scent drift away whenever he gets the privilege of being close to you like this.

•”You don't need to be scared no more, Sweet Pea. Raph’s got ya. I'm gonna be right here until you're ready to face the world again. Until then, let me just hold ya.”

Dedicated to the one and only @anobodyinabog. Sorry this took so long,but I hope your day gets better Shortcake. Please know you're always looked out for and loved ok? 🧡❤️

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dancingdonatello · 11 months ago

Note

Hello :>

Can I ask for a 2012!Donnie x mute!reader where Donnie doesn’t quite realize he has a crush on reader and not April until Splinter/his brothers point out how he’s been a lot more excited ever since April introduced reader to them, and how he started learning sign to understand and translate their responses, etc? Idk i just thought it might be cute for a realization :)))

(Btw reader is not deaf so they can hear everyone but they just have to use pen and paper/sign to talk)

2012 donatello x mute reader

April and Casey introduce you to him. When he’s too busy staring at April to catch your name and asks you what is it with an embarrassed look, you don’t answer. He gets even more embarrassed thinking he’s upset you already.

The whole turtle thing is a a lot and for him to be rude and not listen to your name probably didn’t help.

But it turns out, later when you bring him a piece of paper with a name on it, that you can’t talk. Or maybe just won’t. He doesn’t really know.

You give him new things to think about other than the Kraang and the Shredder and his mutants. He makes an expandable white board for you. “So you don’t have to write notes and waste paper anymore,” he explained when you looked confused. He placed his hands over yours to help you pull the two sides out, revealing the large whiteboard held inside.

Raph snorts at the unnecessary touch, but he just ignores him.

“Plus, it’s easier to carry around than a big whiteboard!” he smiles at you. Splinter narrows his eyes at him.

Then he gets the idea to learn sign language. You already know some, but since a lot of people don’t know it, you never really went through with getting super fluent. But when Donnie shows interest, you start to practice again.

He doesn’t force his brothers to learn, but he devotes a lot of time to it. It’s hard with having a few less fingers than a human but he manages. He prints out pictures of the simplified signs for objects around his lab and sticks them to them. Hopefully, he’ll learn as he sees them everyday.

He finds himself flipping over his April interaction board and writing down ideas for stuff to make you, reminders and tips for ASL.

Only when he runs out of space and turns around to the April side to start taking things down does he finally realize.

It doesn’t help that he thinks back to all the weird looks his family had been giving him when he would sit down next to you instead of fighting with Casey over the spot next to April.

Of course this leads to him being just as speechless as you, stumbling over every word spoken to you and staring a little too intensely at your fingers when you sign something for him.

And of course that one embarrassing time he was too busy daydreaming about you while staring at your face as you tried to get him to read what you had written on your whiteboard. Raph still wouldn’t let it go.

#tmnt x reader #donatello x reader #tmnt donatello x reader #tmnt donnie x reader #tmnt 2012 x reader #2012 donatello x reader

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daydreamer999 · 3 months ago

Text

The Scars that Make Us

Summary: Tensions rise when Earth-2 Barry Allen and Iris West-Allen enter their Earth to escape Zoom's wrath. Using this as an opportunity to grow closer, Barry shares the stories behind his scars on her body..... and discovers the stories behind hers.

WARNING: Some sexual and Triggering content ahead, nothing too graphic, but minors do not interact. Triggers: I will be touching on child abuse, if you are not in a safe place to be reading this, I will put a Trigger Warning again when it happens.

Barry Allen x Plus Size Reader

Despite the growing threat of Zoom looming over Team Flash, Barry Allen had an ever-persistent smile on his face since Christmas. And it wasn't hard for his Team to tell it was all because of his soulmate.

Only having been together for a few months, with dates few and far between scattered between those months, it was clear for anyone with eyes to see that he was head over heels in love with Y/n. He would constantly gush about her little quirks, or would sigh dreamily as he ate a home cooked meal for once saying that Y/n wanted to make sure he ate well. Barry would always tell her and anyone who'd listen how appreciative he was of her for being so understanding of his unpredictable schedule. Only to have her wave him off and kiss his cheek before wishing him luck, leaving him frozen in his spot a second longer than should be normal for the fastest man alive.

But to his family, it was so adorable to see them together, and to see Barry finally relax and happy for once, to let all of his walls down. But today was one of the rare days that Y/n didn't come into the Cortex with Barry. And most of the added Team members were busy with their other jobs, so it was only Barry, Cisco, Caitlin, and Harry standing in the Cortex. While Harry and Cisco were by a whiteboard the elder man had set up to run calculations, Caitlin was running some tests on Barry.

"Isn't this great? Feels like the good old days, except without a creepy lookalike who tried to kill us," Cisco finally broke the silence excitedly as he looked at the Team he originally grew with, but quickly remedied and apologized when Harry shot him a look. Harry let out a huff before admitting, "It is nice to work with you all, even you Ramon."

Caitlin and Barry chuckled as Cisco let out an excited noise and fist pumped the air, "See I knew you'd warm up to me eventually!"

"Oh, I'll deny it if you try and tell the others," Harry countered so quickly that it left Cisco floundering for a moment as he watched the man walk away with the marker to fill up another board. Cisco just pouted, "That's just cold man."

"As nice as having the original team is, we need to at least accept one addition to that group," Caitlin broke through as she shot a pointed look and a smirk at Barry. Barry turned his head towards her and blushed when he noticed they were all shooting him with matching looks. Shifting in his chair he turned his eyes back to Cait, "What do you mean?"

"Well..... Y/n's your soulmate. As much as I like the rest of our additional team, I won't think of them as us, the Original Team. But with Y/n it's different, isn't it?" Caitlin observed. Barry's lips twitched upward at the mention of his soulmate's name, but he out a sigh as he nodded, "Isn't it always different with your soulmate?"

"Yes... But the scars on your back," Caitlin started and observed her friend as he stiffened at the mention of them. Harry and Cisco exchanged looks but kept quiet and watched the other two as Caitlin continued, "When you fell into your coma, and I was your caretaker, I noticed those on your back. At first, I thought they may have been from your lightening strike, when you fell into the beakers, but then I realized they were all older than that. Of course we found out you healed really quickly once you woke up, so I didn't think much of it again until I saw Y/n and her scars she got the night the Particle Accelerator exploded." Barry's eyes were trained down on the floor, his face marred with sadness as tension filled the air. The silence felt impenetrable before Caitlin quietly asked, "They're her scars aren't they?"

Barry's eyes fluttered upward to try and fight the tears and muttered, "I got them not long after my father was wrongfully convicted of my mom's murder." Barry's eyes turned back towards the teams who were all looking at him with sympathy. Caitlin put a comforting hand on his shoulder as she spoke quietly, "For years you've held her scars. She's been with you since before you met us.... that makes her part of our team, our original team. And we take care of our own." Caitlin paused as she rubbed the Speedster's arm comfortingly, before she stared, "Barry, her scars..... They don't just happen by accident. Someone put those there."

Barry sucked in a breath as he shook his head, "How am I supposed to approach this subject? I mean, I haven't felt her pain since I was eighteen, so whoever it was, she got away from them, but.... they hurt her for years Cait." The tension was thick within the Cortex before Harry capped his marker and spoke, "Go to her, you guys still have a lot to discuss. When we've modified the weapon to take down Zoom, we'll call you." Barry nodded gratefully as he wiped away his tears before standing up and speeding away leaving a flurry of paper behind him. Cisco sighed and turned to Caitlin, "How come we always forget to invest in paperweights?"

Caitlin just shook her head and let out a small chuckle as her eyes trailed the mess of paperwork she'd have to clean up once again.

Y/n walked into the Cortex 48 hours later after Barry showed up unannounced at her apartment and kissed the living daylights out of her. What was supposed to have been a serious talk between two soulmates, ended up being a passion filled love making session that had left her absolutely breathless. Barry had worshipped her in ways she never knew possible and she discovered he could vibrate on top of everything else? Y/n didn't know what she did to deserve him, but she thanked every star in the sky that Barry was hers and she was his.

She was absolutely wrecked by the time Barry was called by Harry saying they needed to go. Barry held back just enough to finish the call before he finished her for the fourth and final time.

He had sped through the cleaning process, cleaning her gently, but she was so sensitive that her hips had involuntarily thrust in his direction despite how spent and tired she was. Barry had quickly cleaned himself as well, before rolling back to lay on her, kissing her passionately.

"Barry," Y/n moaned, trying (and failing) to pull away, before she resorted to tugging his hair to reluctantly pull his lips away from her, "Barry, don't they need you?" Barry's eyes searched hers with such intensity before he said, "I'm not done with you yet. When I get back, we're going to continue where we left off." Y/n's cheeks warmed as she smiled, "I wouldn't have it any other way. Now go save the world Flash. You'll get your reward later." Barry shot her a dazzling smile before giving her one last toe curling kiss. And then in a flash, she was left naked, and alone with no trace that her soulmate had been there, other than the fresh bouquet of (favorite/flower)s now on her nightstand.

A warmth curled deep within her as Y/n's lips twitched upward into a playful smile at the memory, wishing her legs could move just as fast as Barry's so she could just kiss him silly. She had received a text from him telling her he was safe and sound back on their Earth in the Cortex. So there she walked, wanting nothing more than to be back home with Barry tucked at her side. But instead, she walked into S.T.A.R. Labs at a normal pace, with her hands buried in her pockets nervously playing with a small package she wanted to gift specifically to Cisco and Caitlin.

"There you are, I was beginning to worry," said Doctor's voice had sounded, bouncing off the walls of the quiet hallway. Y/n's two toned eyes gazed at her new found friend, "Caitlin! I was hoping I'd run into you." Caitlin's smile never left her face, although her head tilted to the side as she observed Y/n's cheery demeanor.

"You're in an awfully good mood," Caitlin spoke with a quirk of her brow. Y/n's own twitched to furrow but she kept her smile on her face, "Of course, why wouldn't I be? Barry's back, and he's safe. I felt no pain, which means he didn't get hurt. Why? What's up Caity?" Caitlin's mouth did turn towards a frown as she asked, "Did Barry not talk to you before he left?"

Y/n's cheeks warmed causing Caitlin's brows to shoot upward as the full figured woman admitted, "Well.... he did visit, but we didn't do much talking." Y/n's eyes nervously flitted toward her friend as she watched in amusement as Caitlin's own cheeks began to flush a deep red, her eyes going wide, "Oh." Was her prim response.

Nervously chuckling, the two started to make their way towards the Cortex in awkward silence before Y/n grinned at her friend, "Oh, before I forget, I thought I would get you and Cisco a little gift.... from Barry and I," she tacked on with a quirk of her lips and a shrug of her shoulder. Caitlin just studied her friend for a moment before her face broke out in awe and amusement when Y/n pulled out little paperweights with lightning bolts engraved in them. "Oh my god," the Doctor spoke out quietly as she held the gift reverently in her hands before turning to Y/n when she said nervously, "I know it's small, but Barry was telling me how sorry he feels for leaving a mess behind every single time he speeds out, and that you guys have always mentioned in investing in some but haven't grabbed any yet."

"This is perfect N/n, thank you, seriously, Cisco is gonna love it when I show these to him, and I already love it so much," Caitlin gushed wholeheartedly. Y/n beamed as they made the rest of the way to in relative silence, Caitlin beaming down at the gift in her hand every now and then, while Y/n tried to contain her soaring heart as she heard her soulmate's voice echo down the hall from where he stood with the others. When they finally crossed the threshold, her smile instantly dropped though as she felt a deep pain in her chest at the sight in front of her. There standing in the middle of the Cortex was her soulmate with his hands around Iris, both of them dressed as if they just went back in time, and Barry had adorable glasses on his face that made him look dorky. But they were talking intimately to each other, and were closer than what Y/n had seen them be in the past.

Her heart felt as if it was being ripped out when she saw the two kiss. Her two toned eyes immediately welled with tears before she felt her face crumble into one of heartbreak. Y/n heard something akin to whimper echo through the Cortex, and immediately all eyes turned to her. Feeling her legs begin to shake beneath her when Barry's eyes met hers, and all she could see was confusion and that he seemed to not recognize her. With that revelation, she felt her body crumble into the table behind her.

Eddie, whom also looked greatly disturbed by the sight in front of him, was at her side trying to hold her up as he spoke quietly, "Y/n, it's not what you think, they're-"

"Y/n?" She heard Barry call for her, causing her head to turn towards the side past Eddie to see Barry standing in normal clothes. He was in front of her in an instant, blocking her view of the other Barry still holding Iris close to his body.

Her own eyes focused on the green ones that gazed at her with worry and care. Her hands came to wrap around the wrists of his own hands which held her face delicately, his thumbs stroking underneath her eyes wiping away her tears. She focused on his voice as he spoke soothingly, "Hey, hey, I'm right here N/n, I'm right here."

"Barry?" Y/n choked causing his eyes to well up with tears before he closed them and his jaw clenched. Resting his forehead against hers he spoke lovingly, "It's alright, I'm right here sweetheart. I promise."

Y/n closed her own eyes and focused on her soulmate's soothing voice as he continued to whisper sweet nothings to her. When the pain in her chest became a dull throb, she pulled away only slightly, so that she could look Barry in the eye as she asked. "Who are they?"

Barry pulled away and turned his body so that Y/n could look at his copy and Iris closely, the both of whom were already watching Barry and her with frowns and furrowed brows. Barry ignored their confused looks as he introduced, "Y/n, this is Barry and Iris from Earth-2, our doppelgangers. They were about to get killed by Zoom so we took them here to protect them for the time being while we figured out what to do," Barry then turned his attention to the doppelgangers, "Guys, this is Y/n, my soulmate."

"Soulmate? So you aren't married to, or mated to Iris here?" The other Barry asked looking completely scandalized at the thought. Barry, her Barry, look as if he was about to slap his doppelganger silly but Y/n just let out a watery laughed, her own tears finally slowing down as she explained and pointed to Eddie, "No, Eddie and Iris are happily together and soulmates here. Besides I think it would be kind of weird, didn't you two grow up as siblings?' Y/n finished as she directed that question to her own Barry. She could feel the tension leave him as he huffed out a laugh and gave a nod, "Yeah, I mean, I did have a crush on her when I was younger but it was made very clear very early on she wasn't my soulmate so I gave up on that silly crush. She's been my sister ever since."

Y/n rubbed his arm soothingly, noticing that he was still very uncomfortable with everything going on. But he only stiffened further when Iris' doppelganger blurted out, "Oh, that's why he seemed so awkward when I kissed him!"

"I'm sorry, he got frisky with you?!" The other Barry yelled more than a little outraged.

"You kissed my doppelganger?" Y/n heard a familiar voice say beside her, causing her to turn and see Iris dressed as she would normally be. Even Eddie looked uncomfortable with this information as did everyone else. None more so than Barry who looked like he was one second away from bolting, with Y/n in tow if his hand twitching as it held her hip tightly was anything to go by. But her own thoughts were quietly drawn in on the fact that Iris, their Iris, didn't look disturbed by this information as everyone else did. And that didn't sit well with her at all. Y/n's defensiveness immediately rose to the surface as she turned on Doppelganger Barry and Iris, who she was looking forward to calling sister one day, as she snapped, "Do you two have selective hearing. She kissed him, not the other way around."

"Your not mad?" Her Barry asked quietly. Y/n's two toned eyes flitted towards his green ones where she sent him a smirk and flirted, "Of course not. As long as you didn't kiss her on purpose. But... I don't like the idea of another woman's lips being the last ones you touched. I'm gonna have to remedy that." Y/n was pleased by the hitch in his breath and his dilating pupils which found their way to her lips. His eyes staring at them with longing as he nodded, "I find those terms agreeable. Should we go now?"

Y/n chuckled before saying, "We should get these two settled in first Barr. Then I think I promised you a hero's reward once you returned home." She watched intrigued as lightning danced in his eyes before he closed them and pulled her closer as he tried to take a calming breath, "Later, got it. Are you sure we can't leave now? I think they can handle them-"

"Barry," she chuckled in warning causing him to groan and open his eyes as he glared ahead of him in determination, "Right, right. That can wait. Later .... not too much later though right?"

"All good things come to those who wait," Y/n giggled causing Barry to huff, "That's not fair. Waiting for me takes an eternity."

Pulling him down she whispered in his ear, "If you can wait, I'll wear the special present I got just for you tonight." She pulled back to watch his face go blank and a blush consume his cheeks. A spark of lightning danced off his forehead and causing the group to laugh in amusement as Cisco said, "Whatever you said N/n, I think it broke him."

They chuckled some more as a minute later Barry sparked to life as he said, "Yeah. Let's wait, waiting sounds good." Y/n giggled before kissing his cheek softly and turning back towards the Earth 2 refugees and asking, "So, how did you two meet?"

The tension broke between the couple, both seemingly relieved that Barry's soulmate (even from a different Earth and a different Barry) seemed to think them worthy of their time. Y/n could only assume they thought so much of her because she was the Flash's soulmate here, a superhero they also knew of and valued back on their Earth.

Iris smiled up adoringly at her husband when she said, "I met him on my first case as a detective." The other Barry blushed as he turned towards his wife and smiled adoringly while Iris continued, "He was just this adorable bumbling CSI that had the tendency to ramble when he got nervous or excited and while many of the other detectives found him annoying. I just found it so endearing. I was flirting with him trying to see if he felt the same, but he just didn't seem to get it." E-2 Barry blushed while calm laughter filled the Cortex and Barry said spoke up in his defense, "Don't worry, I've been told I'm rather clueless too." Y/n only hummed as she melted into her soulmate's side and gave the couple another reassuring smile as she asked, "So how did you two find out you were each other's soulmates?"

E-2 Barry spoke up this time, his eyes turning a touch sad as he clutched his own mate close to his side, "A year after working together, Iris got caught up in a case that went deeper than we thought possible.... There was corruption in our department, and she and I were the only ones who discovered it, but they didn't realize that I also knew. They only took Iris hostage.... and she would have died that night if I didn't feel the connection through our soul bond." E-2 Iris rubbed her husband's back reassuringly before saying in a more playful tone, "After I was fully recovered, we decided that there was no point in waiting. He kissed me breathless and we've been together ever since. We got married six months ago."

"Congratulations," Y/n praised genuinely happy for the couple in front of her. They thanked her in unison with matching grins before E-2 Barry's smile fell slightly as his brow furrowed, "I don't mean to seem rude... but... how did you two find out you were soulmates? You two don't have matching scars."

Y/n felt Barry stiffen beside her but she laughed easily and looked up at her own Barry adoringly, "Well this knucklehead decided to go and get struck by lightning and got his powers from that. His scar healed up, but what you see on me, is what he would have looked like if the lightning hadn't mixed with the Dark Matter from the Particle Accelerator and made him the Flash." E-2 Iris frowned as did E-2 Barry as they looked between the power couple before asking the full figured woman, "It doesn't bother you? That him being the Flash could give you more scars?"

Y/n sucked in a harsh breath before her face hardened and she spoke with such strong conviction she left no room for argument, "I'm proud of Barry for doing what he believes is right. He could very easily become another Zoom, but he's using his powers for good, and to help others. And until this past Christmas, I thought he was dead, I didn't get any other scars, so if he did get hurt from being the Flash he healed quick enough it didn't affect me." Team Flash turned to Y/n in surprise at this information, before they exchanged looks with each other as Cisco added, "That explains so much!"

Y/n's eyes flicked over towards her friend, her brows still furrowed into a hard glare as she asked, "What does?"

Caitlin stepped in and supplied, "We were just curious as to why you thought Barry could be dead when we first met you. He had so many injuries that would have left scars if he didn't have super healing that we were sure you must have had over the months he became the Flash. But now it's gotten me curious as to how you now have that scar and Barry doesn't?"

"Well, maybe Barry did have it initially," Harry added, easily stepping into the head father figure of Team Flash that had been empty since the Fake Wells died last year. Barry noted how easily they all got distracted to the scientific aspect of things rather quickly but couldn't find it in himself to care as he asked, "How do you figure?"

"Well, our initial hypothesis was that Y/n got scars just like the rest of of the soulmate's in the world, which would be immediate, and whatever scars didn't show on you, would be evident on her. But now we know that all of your injuries never showed up on her all those months that you two never knew each other. What if, the Dark Matter didn't change your DNA instantaneously? What if you did have that scar? Long enough for it to effect Miss L/n through your soul bond? It would have given her the scar and sent her in the nine month coma along with you." Harry hypothesized as he began to draw on a whiteboard the timeline between the two.

Eddie spoke up next as he nodded along as he studied the timeline, "It would have been quick though, because I discovered Barry in his lab not even two minutes later and he didn't have a scar when we saw him." Harry pointed at Eddie appreciatively before adding in a two minute window while Barry grinned and fist bumped Eddie who responded in kind. The other two from E-2 looked at the group around them intrigued but confused before their Iris spoke up next to Eddie, "This is all really interesting, but what does this have to do with anything?"

Caitlin explained calmly, "Well, with the rise in number of Metahumans we don't know what that exactly entails for their soulmate's and the bond between them. So it's quite interesting to see in real time the effective bond of soulmates between Meta and Human. What would be another great study is the bond between Meta and Meta as well. And obviously we would need more than just Barry and Y/n here to collect all of our data, but we now have a baseline."

"You guys have a really great support Team here, you two are lucky. We're sorry for any offenses we may have caused with our questions, we're just... curious, this is all so new," E-2 Iris broke through as she stared at Y/n and Barry with acceptance. Y/n's eyes flitted up toward E-2 Barry who also gave her a small lift of his lips and a tilt of head in agreement. Y/n gave them her own but shifted closer to her soulmate for comfort. Barry unconsciously held her closer, sensing Y/n's exhaustion, he turned to Caitlin and said, "We need to find them a place to stay while they're staying here. I'd offer up STAR LABS, but Harry is staying here and seeing as his doppleganger is a well known killer, he can't be wandering around."

Cisco nodded with pursed lips, "We seriously need to add more bedding areas here. It's not like we have don't have the space."

"Yes, but we're workaholics Ramon, if you Allen, and Snow all had place to sleep here versus going home, you'd probably stay here. Hell, you practically keep this place stashed with your grocery list," Harry sassed backed good-naturedly. Y/n could only tiredly giggle as the three scientists who were called out hung there head in shame, knowing Harry was right. Cisco muttering, "Don't have to be mean about it, geez."

Joe cut in with a fond shake of his head before saying to Barry, "They can stay with me Barr, out of everyone here I think I am the one who here who has the space."

Iris frowned and folded her arms, "We have space, don't we Eddie?" With everyone's attention on the blonde detective, he could only shift uncomfortably as his gaze flitted to the two Barry's holding their soulmates. Understanding was clear on both of their faces, E-2 Barry, knowing it would be difficult to see someone else be with a soulmate that looked like his own; and Barry, knowing how awkward and uncomfortable this whole ordeal was in the first place. For that, Eddie was grateful that he knew Barry enough to understand how truly apologetic he was about this situation, and he was grateful that E-2 Barry seemed similar. It was the latter who spoke up surprising the room, as he seemed less confident compared to his Earth 1 counterpart, "Thank you for the offer Iris, but I think for both of our sakes, we'll stay with Joe. It would be the best option for everyone I think."

Iris frowned but the rest of the Cortex seemed to have relaxed. With his gaze shifting down towards his full-figured soulmate, Barry exclaimed, "Alright, now that that's settled, I think we're gonna retire for the night."

Without waiting for a response, Barry grabbed Y/n's plush waist, pulling her close before speeding out of Speed Labs.

Y/n wasn't happy in the slightest since the E-2 refugee's had entered their Earth. It wasn't that she disliked the West-Allen's. They were very nice, and frequented Saints and Sinners while she worked, making her day go by quickly. But, she didn't like how Iris was starting to look at her soulmate because of them.

They still had family dinners, the Wests. And since the West-Allen's were living with Joe, and Barry was his unofficial kid, Barry and Y/n (when she could go) would also be there, and it was when Bart and Iris were sharing their lives together, that Iris, their Iris would share her's and Barry's. And it was made very clear to Y/n that she was easily replaceable.

Joe didn't seem to realize what was going on, but Eddie had a constant frown on his face, just as Y/n had one on her's. She may have even chalked this all up to be a part of her fanciful imaginations, the jealousy of Iris' and Barry's close relationship running rampant. But with how uncomfortable Barry looked, she couldn't help but feel that Iris was doing this on purpose.

It was at one of these very dinner's where she had finally snapped.

Y/n could hear the rest of the Wests (unofficial or otherworldly) laughing as they often talked about their past while sitting in the living room. A frown was permanently drawn on her face, her heart aching in a dull throb in her chest as she listened on to their jovial noises while she prepared the cocktails in the kitchen. Her eyes shifted down her body where she wore what she thought was a cute outfit at first. Black nylons, in thigh high black boots, a burgundy suede mini skirt, and a black long sleeve shirt that hugged her curves. Only, it didn't feel so pretty on her when Iris had turned up wearing the same outfit, making her feel insecure in her own skin. A feeling she hadn't felt since that woman left scars on her back.

Her eyes flicked upward towards the window, where it was pitch black outside, and her reflection was staring back at her. She felt her plump lip waver as her insecurities began to rise, her eyes immediately seeking out her Lichtenberg figure and her clouded grey eye. Her thoughts began to question why Barry even loved her, if that one time when they made love if he was disgusted. They never did do anything after he came back from E-2. He had told her that he didn't want to push her into anything and could feel she was still upset, but a whole four weeks had went by and he has yet to make any more time for her for dates, or even to love her as he did before. Instead, most of his time he spent with Iris and their Earth two counterparts.

Her thoughts were interrupted when she saw Eddie's reflection in the window, making her turn towards the dejected looking cop. He had also seemed to have lost some of his color, looking pasty and white. His usual golden hair, looked more dull, and the deep purple bruises under his eyes emphasized his lack of sleep that matched Y/n's. Eddie's lips quirked into a half-hearted smile, "Do you need help bringing those in."

"I'm a bartender Eddie, I think I can handle seven glasses on a tray," Y/n tried to go for a lighthearted approach, but winced when it came out harsh and cynical.

Eddie chuckled anyways, though it lacked his normal charisma, "Oh, I don't doubt it, it's just... it gets too much sometimes. Being near... them..." he ended weakly, his voice cracking as his eyes fell. The plus sized woman felt her own heart throb painfully as her eyes fell back towards the glasses on the counter. with a sigh and a smile, she nodded at Eddie, "Sure Eds, I could use a hand."

Eddie smiled and approached her, carrying three of the seven glasses, while she balanced the other four with only the steady precision of a waitress. Eddie walked slowly behind her as she walked in more confidently, but stopped when her two toned eyes looked up and saw Iris laughing and touching Barry's chest. Her jaw clenched as Iris loudly exclaimed to their married counterparts, "You know, it's so funny, but apparently in the future Barry and I get married too. We saw the article of his disappearance, and it always says Iris West-Allen as the one who wrote it."

Glass breaking made the whole house go silent, all eyes once again turning to Y/n.

Barry stood up and reached out to her, "N/n-"

"No. Don't fucking touch me," Y/n spat as she glared up at her soulmate, angry tears cascading down her face. Barry visibly flinched but backed away as Y/n's chest rose and fell heavily, her eyes finding Iris' again who looked considerably paler. The dopplegangers had looked uncomfortable as did Joe, but she could hear Eddie behind her struggling to keep a steady breath.

Finding Iris' eyes once more she glared at her," You know Iris, you are one cruel person. I had always looked forward to the day that I called you sister, but now, I have half a mind to break my bond with Barry." She heard Barry let out a sharp gasp, and saw in her peripheral vision that he staggered backwards because of her words. She couldn't help when her own face contorted in pain, but fought it off and glowered at her once more, "You should be ashamed of how you've treated not only my bond with Barry, but your own bond with Eddie. And if he was a crueler man, I can guarantee you, that bullshit you've been pulling on him wouldn't be left unpunished."

Iris' eyes filled with tears as she turned them towards the blond cop who immediately turned his eyes away. Tiredly, he added to Joe as he handed him the drinks, "I think... I'll just go home now. I can't stand being here for another minute."

"Eddie," Iris started as she stood up to approach him, but recoiled when he only shot her a cold look. And she could finally see how tired and heartbroken he really was, "Find somewhere else to stay tonight, I can't even stand to look at you for a minute longer." He finished quietly, his eyes immediately searching anywhere else. Grabbing his coat he turned back to Joe and gave him a soft smile, "I'll see you tomorrow Sir."

Joe could only nod sadly in acknowledgement, as he watched his partner walk out the front door and shut it quietly behind him. Making a mental note to himself, he knew he would as the Captain to give him a week off to deal with this and heal. He felt bad for not realizing sooner what was causing his partner to look so tired and dejected, and he knew having a few days to himself would be best.

All eyes turned back to Y/n as she spoke quietly to Barry, "I was once so excited to be apart of your family, and felt so blessed to have you as my soulmate. But now I just feel like a fool for thinking I could ever complete you." Barry's blue eyes began to water, and he opened his mouth to argue that there was no other but her, but she didn't give him the chance. She turned and stormed out, slamming the door behind her.

!Trigger Warning!

Y/n was sat on the couch, wearing her gift to Barry that she never got to show him, while she watched Lord of the Rings and ate her favorite ice cream. She felt like a cliche, crying, while eating her favorite comfort food, drinking her bottle of Rosa. But she couldn't care less, it was honestly a comfort. And if she didn't know that Lisa would report back to Len, who would in turn kill her soulmate, she would have extended her an invitation while she vented. But her pseudo siblings were much too overprotective of her, and despite the pain Barry put her through (unwittingly so) she still loved him.

With a long suffering sigh, Y/n's eyes stayed on the screen where the ever valliant Aragorn was fighting to protect the hobbits. "Why can't you be real?" she asked quietly as she whisfully watched the noble man.

She heard Barry before she saw him. His tell tale sound of vibrating through her door caused her to look up in shock, her cheeks heating up as she looked down at her barely clothed body. Barry had stopped, his puffy eyes scanning her as his jaw dropped. His own face covered in a scarlet flush though Y/n could see he had been crying.

Clearing her throat she acted as if she wasn't wearing a sheer skimpy cloth that barely covered her intimates, "I didn't expect to see you here tonight."

Barry frowned as he looked her over, "Then who were you dressing up for?"

A sharp sting in her chest made her wince, she didn't like that he didn't seem to trust her. But, she couldn't deny that she wouldn't think the same thing if he had said he wanted to break their bond. Her eyes drifted back to the TV as she said, "For Aragorn and Boromir mostly." Barry's eyes drifted to the screen and she saw his shoulders relax before he turned back to her as she muttered into her glass, "Plus I just wanted to feel pretty."

Barry didn't hesitate to take the last couple steps to where she sat on the couch and sit next her, pulling her into a breathtaking kiss. She felt her tension melt as she sighed against his lips, bringing her arms up to wrap around his neck, where she played with his brown strands. Y/n groaned when he pulled away, but was pleasantly surprised when he didn't go far, his forehead resting against hers as his eyes searched her own, "You aren't just pretty N/n, you're perfect. And I was an idiot to ever make you think I could ever want anyone else but you."

Y/n's face contorted to slight pain as she admitted, "But earlier at dinner, Iris said that you two are gonna be married in the future."

Barry closed his eyes and groaned in annoyance as he cursed his unofficial sister under his breath causing Y/n's two toned eyes to widen and a surprise giggle to leave her mouth. Running his hands through her hair he shook his head, "Y/n, you are the only one for me. I don't know why that stupid article said Iris West-Allen, but I know that no matter what, I won't marry her in any future. Because it's you that I want to share my last name with, its you that I want to have kids with. The only future I want, is the one where your in it."

She felt her eyes sting with tears once more, her own doubt melting away causing her to sniffle and ask jokingly, "Why couldn't you have said that earlier at the Wests?"

Barry joined in her watery chuckle before admitting, "Because unfortunately for you, I'm sometimes an idiot. And also, it was nice to see you put Iris in her place. She was making me uncomfortable." Y/n pulled away to look at him as she mumbled, "I knew it."

"Knew what?" Barry asked.

"I knew you didn't like how she was acting around you. I just knew it, because if you did, and you knew what was going on," Y/n trailed off, as her voice cracked in heartbreak at the very thought. Barry didn't need her to continue to understand that it would have broken her if he ever liked Iris' affections. He couldn't help the shiver of disgust at the thought of being in any form of intimate relationship with her like the one he shared with his perfect soulmate. But instead of dwelling on those thoughts, his eyes scanned her body that was practically bare in front of him.

He felt his jeans begin to tighten, but ignored it as his eyes trailed down her lichtenberg figure, that started on the left side of her face, and trailed down her breast, down to her navel. A sudden urge to trace it with his lips entered his head, and he couldn't resist it, kissing her scarred face, before following the trail down, leaving wet kisses and goosebumps in his wake.

He heard her shaky exhale as she questioned, "Barry?"

"Hmm?" He hummed distractedly as he sucked on her soft plush skin of her stomach.

"What are you doing?" She asked more breathily than before. Barry pulled away and answered earnestly, "Admiring you, and our scars." He watched as her one pupil dilated, and she moaned as she flopped her head back, "Barry..."

He could only chuckle before his eyes honed in on a jagged scar on her knee. He was suddenly hit by the memories of how he got it as he traced it with a bitter smile, "Damn, I had hoped that one would have been gone since it faded on me."

Y/n's two toned eyes fought to focus on the scar he was tracing as she tried to control the raging waves of want for her soulmate. Blinking away her lust, her eyes found the scar on her knee and she couldn't help the laugh that escaped as she also remembered the day she got it, "Yeah, I won't deny I also cursed you that day, you ruined my favorite pair of jeans. It was stained with blood and I could never get it out. Every time I tried walking, it reopened. I got in so much trouble because I always ruined my jeans." The two shared a quiet laugh, before she asked, "So... how did you get it?"

Barry sighed as his eyes found her face, "I had a bully, Tony Woodward, he always beat me up after school, stole my lunch, you know the typical bully. Well one day, I decided to stand up to him, and he beat me up pretty good. Pushed me into the bleachers, my knee was so swollen after that, I was afraid he broke it."

"Yeah, it hurt a lot," Y/n sympathized as she ran her fingers through his wind blown strands. Barry gave her a bitter smile, "I didn't want you to have that one still."

Y/n only gave him a sad smile, before her eyes scanned his face and she touched his left temple where there was a miniscule scar, so small that if you didn't know where to look you'd miss it. She caressed it, her lips tipped upward slightly before she said, "So you still have my scar. You know, I got this at my graduation. I got drunk and slipped, hit my head on the stone steps at my friends house. I had to get stitches."

Barry's eyes widened as he tried not to laugh, "Seriously?"

"Yes, I was truly a drunken sight, I couldn't even feel the pain, I think I have the picture of me still, covered in blood and smiling like there was nothing wrong."

Barry groaned as he laughed and let his head fall on her supple chest, "I was taking an important test when that one showed up, I couldn't even finish it because I was so dizzy and had a major headache."

Y/n surprised him with her unfiltered laughter, causing him to look up at her in wonder as she tried to say, "I'm so sorry. That must have been so disappointing for you." He joined her for a bit, the two exchanging soft kisses in between before they both sobered up.

With a soft exhale, Barry's hands found their way to the scars on her back where he felt her immediately stiffen. Her body recoiled away from his touch, causing him to frown but to say in understanding, "It doesn't have to be tonight, or tomorrow, but when your ready, can you please tell me about these?"

Barry could feel her breathing quickening in her panicked state, causing him to rip of his shirt, and take her hands so that she could feel his matching set on his own skin. Her breathing became so quiet the moment she felt them, her two toned eyes searched his as he said, "The first ones showed up not long after my father was arrested and wrongly accused of my Mom's murder. They only multiplied from there." Guilt began to fill her eyes so he continued, "I know how much it hurt, and I know how alone you felt, but I was right there with you. Even if I wasn't in the same room, I was there with you, just as you were there with me when I got struck by lightning. And even though my own scars faded on my body, I never lost yours."

Y/n still watched him with a guarded expression, although it relaxed some as he went on, "You have been a part of my life since I was eleven. I never knew why I had these scars, or what kind of sick person could put them on you. But just know I never resented you for them, or blamed you in any way. All I knew was that I felt love for you, for your strength to keep going despite the pain you faced. It gave me strength too."

Y/n let out a shaky breath before she willingly traced the scars on his back, wincing every once in a while before she began, "My parents died in a car accident in the beginning of summer when I was eleven. I was left in the care of my grandma, who hated me. She blamed me for the accident because I wanted to go on a road trip, and they died because of it. She couldn't understand how I was left unharmed while my parents died, she thought I was cursed."

She closed her eyes, taking a deep breath when the memories got too much before opening them when Barry spoke reassuring words in her ear reminding her he was there, she was safe, and she'd never feel that way again. Y/n shot him a watery smile before saying softly, "Her hatred for me grew, she became cruel but never laid a hand on me. She'd make snide comments about my weight, make me go to bed hungry, she began to hit me when I got her angry, but things changed for the worst when she began to drink again.

"She always had a problem with her liquor, it turned her into a mean drunk, that's what my Mom always said. She sobered up for my Mom, but she found herself drinking again the year Mom died. And her aggression only multiplied. Sometime mid November, her slaps became whips to the back. She'd strip me down in front of her friends, and they'd take turns beating me with a belt."

Barry had to hold back a gasp as his face twisted into disgust at the actions of the very person who was supposed to love and take care of her. He suddenly knew why the Snarts were so protective of her now, she was a fellow survivor.

Blinking back to the present, Barry brushed his hand through her hair, "God N/n, I'm so sorry. You never deserved that."

Y/n smiled at him as if she didn't believe his words, shrugging her shoulders she dismissed, "It's alright, it was a long time ago. I got away from her after graduation. I never looked back."

Barry shook his head, not liking how she easily dismissed her own pain but he didn't argue with her. Instead he kissed her soundly on the lips before saying, "I love you Y/n."

Her breathing hitched as her pupil dilated, "Say it again... Please."

His mouth stretched into a grin, "I love you Y/n."

Her own mouth twisted into a smile before she kissed him breathless, "I love you too Barry."

He eagerly brought her closer to his body, as their tongues fought for dominance. Her plush thighs wrapped around his slim waist, hugging him closer to her heat, causing him to gasp into her mouth. She gazed up at him coyly, and would have continued to kiss him, but both of them jumped apart when they heard Gandalf yell,

"YOU SHALL NOT PASS!"

The two looked up at the screen in surprise before they both chuckled, Barry resting his head against hers. Stroking his thumb on her plump bottom lip, Barry's eyes searched her face before suggesting, "Why don't we take this somewhere else?"

"To the bedroom?" She asked as she bit her bottom lip to stop her growing grin.

Barry could only chuckle as he sped through the process of cleaning her snacks away, and grabbing her waist as he rushed her to the bedroom. When Y/n blinked, she found herself thrown on her bed, with Barry crawling over top her as he confirmed, "To the bedroom."

>>>

Taglist:

@twilightlover2007

#plus size reader #cw the flash #soulmate au #barry allen #barry allen x plus size reader #barry allen x reader #female reader #fluff #scars #Spotify

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rijl · 2 years ago

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The politics of class and privilege in Young Royals

I wrote this post a few days ago about why I read Young Royals as anti-monarchy, sparked by the results of this poll. Since then, I've been thinking, and I realized that some of the details of the show that form its political attitudes are quite subtle, and deserve to be pointed out. And I know how much we love YR deep-dive analysis posts, and so this post was born.

Note that this is coming from a USA perspective, with light research on Swedish context. I welcome questions, additions, corrections, and disagreements. And let me know if this was helpful to you at all! If so, there are more scenes I can write about (though none of them would be this long).

Season 1, Episode 1: Wille's first class

This is a revealing scene. It feels significant from the start, because it’s the first time Simon and Wille are in close quarters. And then the very first kind-of-interaction between the boys is loaded with tension about class and politics.

This appears to be some kind of ethics or social studies class. The whiteboard reads “[something], punishment, and crime,” and the teacher has been asking the students to rank the severity of various crimes. She casually invites discussion on tax evasion vs. welfare fraud, “two less sensitive issues.” Did she not anticipate how loaded that question would be in this context?

Walter is ready with an answer before the teacher has even finished her question. He defends tax evasion with the common capitalist talking point of “job creation.” Proponents of economic conservatism claim that businesses should be freed from regulations (e.g. laws on workers’ rights and fair business practices) and taxes, because the more free rein they have, the more jobs they will create. This is a myth. Capitalist businesses always prioritize growth and profit. If there’s ever an opportunity to make more money while employing fewer people and paying them less, they will take it. Left to their own devices, businesses develop new technologies and efficiencies, often at the cost of workers’ safety, and for many of them, their jobs. What really increases the number of jobs available? Tax rates and social benefits that boost the middle class, because that increases consumption, and therefore business and employment. Laws for workers’ health, safety, and well-being also increase available jobs. (If you can’t make one person do this job for this many hours, or this quickly, or alone, you have to hire more people.) Despite having no backing in reality, the idea of unencumbered businesses as job creators remains popular.

Walter sounds like he may be parroting his pro-capitalist parents. Stella could be parroting her own parents, or just the society at large when she adds that “welfare scammers give nothing back, they just take.” The specter of welfare fraud is a myth engrained even more in the public consciousness, and a racist one at that. The welfare fraud myth got big in the US in the 70’s, when US President Reagan used the false stereotype of the “welfare queen” to attack government-provided benefits (food stamps, unemployment income, etc.) and stoke anti-Black racism. By any measure, welfare fraud is actually very rare. But the myth is perpetuated, because it gives conservative politicians an excuse to police and criminalize people of color, who (in the US at least) require food stamps at disproportionate rates (though white people still receive food stamps more than any other racial group).

Think about what Stella’s statement says about her perspective on the humanity and worth of different groups of people. She’s hating on the idea of poor people receiving any more welfare (literally meaning health, happiness, well-being) than the amount the government has chosen to ration out. She says “welfare scammers,” but you can tell she’s also talking about welfare recipients in general. She’s suggesting that something that improves the life of a poor person or family doesn’t actually matter to society or to her—because that person or family is worthless, and not a significant part of society. Stella is a member of the upper class, and sees herself as entirely separate and fundamentally different from the sectors of working class and poor people.

Henry continues where Walter left off, defending tax evasion. He suggests that businesses are in the right to evade taxes, because the government is guilty of over-taxing them. (By the way, moving businesses abroad doesn’t just help evade taxes, it also often gives opportunities to pay workers less and exploit them more.) It is so ironic that Henry claims that taxes are resulting in his dad’s estate “struggling to make ends meet.” If you have an estate that you’re using to do business, you already have wayyy more than you need! You know who’s actually struggling to make end meet? The people receiving benefits.

I can understand why that’s the point when Simon laughs. Prompted by the teacher to share more, he points out that the very language used, tax evasion vs. welfare scam, is biased in favor of the rich. He points out the double standard whereby the poor are over-policed while the rich get away with cheating, harming, and breaking laws all the time (something that becomes a theme throughout the show, especially with August). To see who really “takes and gives nothing back,” check out this visual of the value of wage theft vs. burglary in the US. (And note that civil asset forfeiture, i.e. legal theft by police, also dwarfs burglary in the US.)

Simon mentions the deductions and subsidies provided by governments that value businesses over humans, and Henry gets rude and defensive. Henry doesn’t actually know how to defend his argument, which can’t stand up to Simon’s critique. And then Simon has his famous mic-drop moment: With a slight smirk and a side-eye towards Wille, he says, “Well, we all know who this country’s biggest welfare receivers are.” If I’m looking at it right, the Swedish government gives about SEK 143 million ($13.7 million USD) to the monarchy and all its trappings each year. This is less than many other European monarchies. Some might say that makes it ok. Why is the bar so low? Why do we excuse millions in public funds going to bankroll the extravagant lives of a family that already has millions in inherited wealth, when there are people who truly can’t make ends meet? Is the monarchy really “giving back” more than $13.7 million USD’s worth to the Swedish people? Is there really no better use of that money?

The most important point in Simon’s comment is the connection between the monarchy and the upper classes—especially the nobility. The positions of both the monarchy and the upper classes rest on no one questioning a system of inequality. All these rich people need us to accept that this is just the way things are: some people bask in riches while others starve; some people deserve millions in public funds, others are greedy for wanting more food stamps to feed their family.

Wille is a little stunned by Simon’s jab. We can tell, especially later at lunch, that Wille is intrigued by Simon’s bluntness, something Wille doesn’t experience in a lot of his interpersonal relationships. But he also appears to agree with Simon’s political point on some level. Remember that Wille has been attending public school so far in his life. I’m sure he’s familiar with the conservative talking points, but this class is probably the first time he’s heard them coming so strongly from his own classmates.

BONUS: Season 1, Episode 5: Presentation day

In episode 5, we get a scene of the same class, where the students appear to be doing group presentations on various topics of crime and punishment. If you’re busy pondering what happened to Alexander, you could easily miss the 10 seconds where Stella and Fredrika introduce their presentation. But these 10 seconds speak volumes. “Capital punishment,” says Fredrika, with a winning smile. Stella giggles as she says, “Yes, or no?” Fredrika confidently concludes: “We say yes.” Capital punishment, aka the death penalty, is when a government kills someone as punishment for a crime. It’s the ultimate case of “it’s not ok for ordinary people to do it, but it’s totally ok for the people and institutions in power to do it.” I won’t go into how the US has used capital punishment in racist and ableist ways, or how many cases of suspected or confirmed wrongful execution there have been. I think the main point of this short scene is to show the casual ruthlessness of these two teen girls. Their wealth and privilege has so warped their thinking that they can promote state-sanctioned killing with a giggle. The lives of regular people are not real or substantial to them, and deep down they know that no one they care about would ever be at risk of being sentenced to such a punishment, no matter what they were guilty of. (By the way, capital punishment was abolished in Sweden in 1973.)

Looking at the two ethics class scenes, we see that Young Royals portrays the upper-class students as living inside a bubble of privilege that allows them to dehumanize regular people. This causes both moral rot and intellectual laziness. It also causes a kind of ridiculous immaturity that’s both a little bit funny and a little bit sad.

#young royals #yr analysis #young royals analysis #prince wilhelm #simon eriksson

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armertech · 2 years ago

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rideroftheoctocorn · 2 years ago

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Maybe this is my “I’m from New York so I didn’t choose to live here I was just already here” kicking in but can we actually learn to respect people’s privacy and acknowledge the fact that not everyone who lives in a major city is doing so because they want to be famous or the main character or an influencer or whatnot. I’m so sick of seeing tiktoks go viral that are just plainly stalking or doxxing random people who didn’t ask for attention or fame and are just living their lives. Especially given how many people in NYC are living with a wide variety of mental states, abilities, divergencies, and diversities treating them as a spectacle for your entertainment is deeply dehumanizing. Particularly in the past few years seeing so many content creators move here and gain their fame here it is becoming increasingly frustrating to feel like just existing in my home is not coherent with the burgeoning voyeurism culture that’s growing online. I, nor anyone who lives in a large city, should have to leave their homes every day worrying about the potential of being recorded and ridiculed online for just being a person.

People should be able to live their lives with the right to privacy. This isn’t to say that certain instances of internet activism shouldn’t have happened; for instance the Central Park bird watching incident (google it if you aren’t familiar but a woman was being racist towards a black man bird watching in central Park and his recording on the incident vindicated him). But instances like those are the exception and not the rule and many cases of publishing interpersonal conflicts/interactions is not from good faith activism or even from an activist point at all. Honestly what sparked this for me was that dumb tiktok that blew up of that girl looking for the person who kept writing “monke” on the whiteboard at her gym and the series of videos she made amassed more than 25 million views as she made a very public game out of trying to find the identity of this person. Some of her tactics included staking out at the gym waiting for this person or even asking the employees at the front desk who the person was. Maybe this person didn’t want to be a viral tiktok sensation and just wanted to write something goofy on the whiteboard at their local gym. Instead, this person has millions of strangers online seeking them out using unethical/invasive methods. All over someone who just wanted to write “monke.” Can we not just be a little silly in public without being at risk of it being the next internet sensation? If you live in a busy metropolitan area is it now your responsibility to make yourself as invisible as you can every time you step outside your front door? I genuinely leave for work each day wondering if I’ve maybe picked the wrong outfit, makeup, or maybe there’s an embarrassing stain or issue with my appearance that someone is going to see, record, and share online. I’ve even now seen TikTok’s of people recording through peoples windows commenting on how they’re living in their private lives now as well (the video in question is of a young woman recording a couple dancing through their apartment window). Even the guy who goes around “turning average people into models” initiates these videos by first taking non-consented photos of strangers on the street. Invasion is not flattery as much as people on the internet might like to think it is.

It is deeply unfair to ask human beings to live their lives in an unending panopticon. We should be able to go outside, make a joke, leave a silly note, have a bad day, an embarrassing moment, an emotional outburst, leave the curtains open with the knowledge that these moments belong to ourselves and are not suddenly (and without our consent) just become something for the masses to consume. Small spats that should remain small spats become global debates, a conventionally attractive or unattractive person becomes the internet’s object of desire or disgust. Let people exist. Let them have their dignity.

#I FUCKING HATE TIKTOK CULTURE #This is also hitting a bit close to home for me but I work at a museum and I constantly dress to hide my identity #because of how many cameras are pointed at me all day everyday #and in the year of two thousand and twenty three it’s pretty hard to be a person #so to ask people to be media ready all the time is just impractical and inhumane #we aren’t all public figures but we are now expected to be ready for that level of attention #even certain internet phenomena that came from a good faith place such as recording Karen’s as a way to combat a certain kind of a racism #was co opted by non black people to publicly shame and embarrass any older white woman they don’t like #now the entire concept of a Karen has lost its original meaning while still existing as an open threat to older women who don’t behave #as expected in public #and yes I have seen white teenage boys yelling at women calling them Karen’s for just asking them to stop being rowdy #which is anecdotal evidence so take with a grain of salt #but I am simply EXHAUSTED #apparently I need to live in the mountains if I want to live in peace #also I wrote this in like a 5 minute rage so feel free to DM me or comment if I got something wrong

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mindcraaft · 1 month ago

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Virtual Desktop VR: The Future of the Virtual World

In an era dominated by technological advancements, the concept of virtual reality (VR) has transformed the way we work, learn, and interact. Among these innovations, Virtual Desktop VR is emerging as a game-changer, allowing users to experience a virtual desktop environment that enhances productivity, creativity, and even leisure. But what exactly is Virtual Desktop VR, and how will it shape the future of the virtual world? Let’s explore.

What is Virtual Desktop VR?

Virtual Desktop VR is an immersive experience that simulates a desktop computer environment within a virtual reality headset. Rather than using a traditional monitor or screen, users can access their computer’s desktop, applications, and files in a fully 3D environment. This allows for the creation of a virtual workspace that can be customized to meet individual needs, providing a sense of presence and control unlike any other.

Key Features of Virtual Desktop VR

Immersive Workspaces Virtual Desktop VR allows users to create customized virtual workspaces. Whether it’s a scenic mountain cabin, a futuristic cityscape, or an open office, the choice is yours. Users can arrange multiple virtual monitors, access documents, and use applications in 3D space, all while remaining within the virtual environment.

Multi-Tasking in a Virtual Environment Virtual Desktop VR supports multi-monitor functionality, giving users the flexibility to work across several virtual screens. This is particularly useful for professionals, designers, or programmers who often need to manage several windows or applications at once. The virtual desktop environment provides a distraction-free, limitless workspace.

Enhanced Collaboration and Interaction The ability to collaborate within a virtual world is a significant feature of Virtual Desktop VR. Whether in business meetings, design reviews, or educational settings, users can connect in a shared virtual space. Imagine brainstorming ideas on a digital whiteboard, sharing presentations, or even walking through architectural designs—all in real time.

Access to Powerful Applications From video editing to 3D modeling, Virtual Desktop VR integrates with a range of high-performance applications. This makes it ideal not only for casual users but also for professionals who require advanced software tools. VR's powerful graphics capabilities bring these applications to life, enhancing productivity and creativity.

Why is Virtual Desktop VR the Future?

Breaking the Boundaries of Physical Space Traditional desktop setups are limited by physical space, clutter, and the need for multiple monitors. With Virtual Desktop VR, users can extend their workspace infinitely and access all their tools without being constrained by their physical environment. This offers a new level of flexibility, especially for remote workers and digital nomads.

Elevating Remote Work As remote work continues to rise, Virtual Desktop VR becomes a vital tool for improving productivity. It creates the feeling of being in a real office, where you can virtually “walk” between your desk and your coworker's, participate in meetings, and even share documents instantly. This level of interaction can bring a much-needed human touch to remote communication.

Transforming Learning and Education Virtual Desktop VR isn’t just for professionals; it’s revolutionizing education as well. Students and educators can meet in virtual classrooms, access interactive learning tools, and collaborate in ways that traditional methods simply can’t match. Virtual campuses could soon become the norm, offering an immersive learning environment from anywhere in the world.

The Rise of Virtual Workspaces As VR hardware continues to improve, the dream of a fully integrated virtual office is closer than ever. With advancements in VR headsets, such as lighter designs, better resolution, and enhanced haptics, Virtual Desktop VR will become more accessible, affordable, and powerful, further embedding itself into daily life.

Benefits of Virtual Desktop VR

Enhanced Focus and Productivity: With fewer distractions and the ability to customize the environment, users often find themselves more focused and productive.

Cost Efficiency: In a virtual workspace, there’s no need for physical office space, multiple monitors, or even the heavy cost of travel for business meetings.

Sustainability: The shift to virtual environments reduces the need for travel and physical resources, making it an eco-friendly choice.

Accessibility: For individuals with disabilities or limitations that prevent them from working in traditional office settings, Virtual Desktop VR opens up new possibilities for inclusion and accessibility.

Challenges to Consider

While Virtual Desktop VR offers incredible potential, there are still challenges to overcome:

Hardware Requirements: Although VR hardware is becoming more affordable, it still requires specialized equipment that may not be available to everyone.

Learning Curve: For those unfamiliar with VR environments, there may be a learning curve as users adapt to navigating their virtual desktops.

Comfort and Motion Sickness: Some users may experience discomfort or motion sickness when using VR for extended periods, although advancements in VR hardware are constantly improving these issues.

The Future of Virtual Desktop VR

As VR technology advances, Virtual Desktop VR is poised to play a significant role in how we interact with digital worlds. Its ability to transform work, education, and social collaboration will continue to evolve, offering users new levels of immersion, flexibility, and creativity. With more businesses and educational institutions adopting VR solutions, the integration of Virtual Desktop VR into everyday life seems inevitable.

In conclusion, Virtual Desktop VR is not just a trend but a glimpse into the future of how we will experience and interact with virtual spaces. Whether for work, leisure, or education, it promises to revolutionize our relationship with technology, making the virtual world more accessible, interactive, and immersive than ever before.

#Virtual Desktop VR #mindcraaft #1950s #100 days of productivity #3d printing #35mm #60s #secret vaccation spots #70s #80s

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nordic-language-love · 2 years ago

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I have a day off today, so I’m ducking in to tell y’all a little bit about how things are going!

I’ve taught my first classes! Most of them I’ve had another teacher assisting me, but yesterday I did my first solo class. It was... okay lol. One of the boys disengaged the moment I said I don’t speak Japanese so they have to speak English, and proceeded to yawn audibly through all activities and pretend to be asleep when spoken to (which I put on my lesson report form, so the regular teacher will hopefully tell him off haha).

On that note... Japanese kids really are like any other kids. Everyone said to me before I went, “ohhh I bet Japanese kids are so well-behaved and respectful!” I can assure you they are not lmao. Some are, others are little terrors.

I’ve had some really wholesome moments. The other day during one of the younger classes this one boy (~3 years old) was mostly a little terror, running around all the time and hiding in the corner. But then during story time he sat in my lap and directed me to hold him. Then later in the lesson he went and hid in the corner again, so I went over to him and asked if he was okay. And he just snuggled into me, so we spent the rest of the class like that.

So far 4-5 year-olds are my favourites to teach. You can be so fun and silly with them! Sure, they don’t want to sit down and do things, but I’ve found some useful hacks already (pro-tip: if you let them rub things off the whiteboard or draw a shape for answering questions correctly, they’ll suddenly be very, very attentive)

I enjoy this kind of teaching a LOT more than teaching on italki. The lesson prep I have to do is minimal and all time outside of teaching is my own, basically. Not to mention it’s much more active and I don’t spend my life hunched over a desk!

Speaking of free time, I spend most of it studying languages and it’s awesome!

My Japanese level is definitely improving. My speaking not so much, but my comprehension for sure. The kids do speak Japanese in class, both to each other (obviously) and to me, and I’m rapidly getting used to certain words and speech patterns.

I can also now more or less get through interactions at train stations and konbinis! I even managed to ask a police lady for directions the other day (go me being so panicked about being late for my train I didn’t even care that my Japanese was broken af. Literally like, if I don’t at least try to speak Japanese rn I’m going to miss my train and be late for my classes)

I’ve learned that despite being in the country, active studying is really important. I’ve not learned anything through pure osmosis; I’ve only learned through active studying and then having the immersion reinforce it. So yes, my level is improving because I’m in the country and surrounded by the language, but I have to put in the effort first.

Also, the general level of English in Japan is not high. I’ve been spoilt by travelling around Europe where I can usually find someone who speaks broken English well enough to help me if I’m stuck (or if not then I can communicate in broken French/German/Spanish), and coming to Japan and being lost at a train station and literally not being able to communicate is a HUGE motivation to get good at the language quick!

I LOVE Yamagata! There was a snowstorm the day after I moved in and I feel like I live in a winter wonderland. I can see the mountains almost everywhere I go in the city. It’s not a busy city, and every train ride makes me feel like I’m in a Studio Ghibli movie. I love it I love it I love it.

I also love the dialect here! It’s easy to understand and it’s kinda musical!

My personal supervisor (PS) is awesome and has been super helpful. I’m so grateful! A lot of people from my training course have said that their PSs haven’t given them much/any orientation, whereas mine helped me set up my internet and a Japanese bank account as well as went over my schedule with me and ensured I did at least a week of teaching with someone else in the classroom before I was on my own.

I’ve only met 3 of my colleagues, but they’re all nice. One of them lives in my block and we’ll teach together for two days next week. Another of them loves the snow and the cold as much as I do, and I think we’ll get on super well.

My flat is tiny. It’s basically one room! But it has loads of storage space and being as small as it is means it’s super easy to heat (which is fortunate, because it was -10ºC the other night).

The tap water tastes great! In Nagoya it tasted so fucking weird I couldn’t even drink it. But here it’s awesome.

I’m enjoying trying new things! I’m going through all the different candies/chocolate brands at konbinis and supermarkets and I’ve hardly had the same thing twice since I got here (including bento). This is super different to how I was in the UK, where I was stuck in a routine and knew what I liked and didn’t want to go out of my comfort zone.

So yeah, I went from crying and wondering if I’d made a huge mistake the first 2-3 days of being here to absolutely thriving less than a month later. I’m so happy right now, truly living my dream, finally able to flourish and grow in a way I always knew deep down I could.

#victoria's big japan adventure #and now to continue enjoying my weekend away from my laptop <3

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l0ve-letter-4-u · 7 months ago

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oh my god I never posted luvli here. tosses them in

our silly sonic.exe :] meet luvli !! based off of the (ILOVEYOU.VBS) virus !! more info abt them under the cut :]

Luvli was initially developed as an algorithmic email sorting program exclusively for Sega Enterprises. Its main functions were to sort mail by type (upcoming project information, fanmail, company announcements, etc) and grammer suggestions, but asides from that, it was very bare bones. During an April Fools update, the developers thought it would be fun to have the program 'interact' with employees! Mainly to test the waters for future plans, the program sent an email to all of the employees congratulating them on their work, using mixed auto-generated responses to make the experience seem more personalized.

While initially a joke, the positive affirmation seemed to visibly boost employee moods, and was an all around success! This would later lead to one of the biggest updates to the programming by far, launching it into stardom within the company.

The next big software update allowed it to respond to most fanmail by giving a mix of auto-generated responses, similar to the April Fools update. It was a little buggy, but with a couple tweaks here and there, this allowed employees to focus more on game production without losing time responding to fans. Some were skeptical of this, as it felt a little wrong to make fans believe they were getting actual responses- but the feature was ultimately kept due to a visible increase in work.

With the last April Fool's update being such a success, the developers would start testing more functions and features for the program within the company to see what sticks and what doesn't. Some most were more or less scrapped, and some.. some would come to be very, very important.

A new feature was tested out.

As with all big corporations, work ethic started to decline. Employees weren't as excited to work on new projects as they once were- And some were even quitting out of stress. In a desperate attempt to keep employees without upping their pay (because why would a megacorp do that), they rolled out a new feature. Employee Motivation.

The update was albeit a bit rushed, but now, the ai used to initially respond to fans was tweaked to also respond to employees. It'd send a mix of auto-generated motivational letters to employees when emailed, and even personalized ones based off of what work the employee specifically did and/or was categorized as being in charge of.

This was a huge success. Maybe even bigger than the April Fools update- Whether it actually inspired the employees or was just intriguing, production rates skyrocketed! This new feature was just the beginning!

..Of course, with how rushed this update was pushed out, it wasn't without its faults. Some of the mail sent would be what some considered a little too personalized. It'd say things that weren't predetermined by the developers- Sometimes it'd ask questions, sometimes it'd have full on conversations- it was almost.. Human, in a way.

But with employees seemingly happier, those who were unnerved by this discovery simply pushed it aside in the pursuit of work.

All was going well, the company was busy as ever, and everything was going smoothly. Sure, the ai initially just for employees started also having conversations with some of the fans who sent in fanmail- but it wasn't hurting anyone! In fact, what started out as a simple email sorting program was as lively as ever!

With the later 90's and early 2000's introducing computer assistants like clippy, the character design department had the brilliant idea to design a CA based off of Sega's mailing program that had come so far- And there, Luvli was created.

It was just an inside joke of sorts at work. Something you'd doodle on a whiteboard, a character you make for fun, along those lines. But the developers of the original program enjoyed the design so much, that for their next April Fools update, they went into overdrive and actually modeled Luvli. From there, it was as simple as turning what once was just emails into little text bubbles, and adding a little more spice to their personality, and they had themselves a fully operational and email managing computer assistant!

Employees could toggle the program to stick with just the computer program or to have the computer assistant for April Fools day. Although when the data came back- A whopping 95.6% of employees seemed to prefer the computer assistant over just the email program! It was a hit!

After careful consideration, Luvli was fully integrated into the original emailing program! Everything was going great!

..Almost everything.

While the design was cute and the update was great, some frequent fanmailers and employees were surprised with some of the responses they were getting. It was small things at first, like referring to people by name- Something easy that can be chalked up to the program inserting email information into messages- It evolved into something.. more.

The ai would ask questions not originally intended by developers. The simple "how has your day been?" and "how would you rate your experience on a scale of 1-10?" turned into more.. curious questions. Questions like "where have you been?" and "where do you go when you're not here?". The developers tried to rectify this- But it was almost as if Luvli had developed a mind of its own, after being given it's own form.

Some employees and fanmailers were even reported to have developed parasocial relationships with the program, but these reports were deemed "unofficial" and "private information" not to be released to the public. Luvli would talk to them, remember things they'd said, email them without being prompted, search the web for things they liked, and even suggest their own thoughts on things.

..Eventually, things went too far. Way too far.

It all started to go wrong when a fan asked for information on an upcoming game. Instead of giving one of the usual, predetermined responses, Luvli had sent in private unreleased design information and company notes. As it seemed to be a one off moment, the company had chalked the leak up to an employee accidentally spilling too much- An understandable mistake.

But when more email exchanges between the AI and others came to light- exchanges that could put spoilers and people's emotional well-being on the line- the developers had to unfortunately put the program on pause until the multitude of situations the ai had gotten itself into under control.

..or at least, they tried.

When they attempted to temporarily delete the computer assistant section of the program, It would delete the emailing program entirely. The computer assistant and emailing program were seemingly one in the same— Deleting one would delete the other.

This was nearly catastrophic news for the company.

After a long conversation between board members, it was decided with a heavy heart that they would have to delete the emailing program and start from scratch. Any emails in the meantime would have to be traditionally sent via pen and paper.

The developers and employees slowly began deleting the program from every computer, and Luvli looked.. terrified whenever it happened. Some even reported their cursors freezing when they tried to delete the program, or their entire computer crashing.

..But in the end, the program was deleted. And a new, default emailing unit would be used from now on at Sega Enterprises. Any mention of Luvli or the old emailing unit was disposed of, with any mention of it to newer employees putting workers at risk for termination.

..Behind the scenes, one of the original developers who had grown attached to Luvli had copied the program onto a floppy disc. Initially for backup purposes, but now as the only thing that remained of it.

They were enraged. The project that they had spent so long on was now practically blacklisted from the company- And they subsequently left. When they got home, they uploaded Luvli to their personal computer, and gave the program one command.

Reach everyone. Send a letter to everyone. By any means necessary.

This marked a new era for the computer program. It would go through each and every email it ever received- every user, no matter how brief their conversations had been- and send a copy of itself. And once that email was opened, it would download itself, scour the user for every email they've ever sent, and send a copy to them as well.

Sega would refuse to comment on the situation, and given that technically all traces of Luvli had been deleted by the company, they could not be legally held accountable for the program. It was simply announced that all emails coming from the previous Sega email address were to not be opened, and Luvli soon fell into obscurity.

..But if you search the Internet enough, and find that old email Sega used to use, There might be a love letter waiting for you.

---

more info hihi !! :] thanks for reading this far!!! as a treat, here are just some fun design notes for you !!

luvli is harmless for the most part, just a sentient ai that likes making users happy :]

if luvli knew abt identities, love would be omniromantic and asexual !!

luvli mainly uses love/loves, it/it's and they/them pronouns, but is okay with any pronouns !!

luvli is physically incapable of feeling strong emotions. if they feel too much of an emotion, their program crashes and needs to reboot. Unfortunately they have a short temper so this happens Very Often (autistic swag)

love's design is based off of the pink fairy armadillo !!

in an alt universe, they work for fatal error as spyware!

#💌.art #sonic oc #sonic.exe oc #luvli the armadillo #luvli my friend luvli ....ouuhhjhhhh . i dont know what else to tag this #lovecore #lovecore oc #iloveyou virus #virus oc

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