#It's probably TOPLINE

[theborzoiarebackintown]

Krampus’ 3rd place win photo out of AmBred! He was very tired and done by the end of our class, aka this picture could have been far worse 😂

His biggest fault is his age. He has a ton of maturing to do but I can see what he’ll become and I’m very excited. He’s RICH in topline and that, along with his shoulder, stifle, and hock angles, will settle into themselves in another year or two and I think he’ll be gorgeous.

[paradife-loft]

today's skills practiced for transportation class: being a data-manipulating gremlin

[frenchkisstheabyss]

⛧ 𝙽𝚊𝚝𝚞𝚛𝚊𝚕 𝙱𝚘𝚛𝚗 𝙺𝚒𝚕𝚕𝚎𝚛𝚜 ⛧

⛧ Pairing: poly!slasher!minsung x chubby!fem!reader

⛧ Genre: slasher au/horror/fluff/angst

⛧ Summary: It's Halloween 1996, you've just broken up with your toxic ex, and there's a killer on the loose. When you go to the local video store to find your next distraction, you run into your longtime crushes who have their hearts set on looking after you. But you must be careful. Not everyone's who they appear to be.

⛧ Word Count: 2.1k

⛧ Warnings: brief discussion of murder, implied possessive ex, intro to knife play if you squint, suggestive, psycho Minsung, you probably have a killer fetish, & that's all my loves. It's otherwise quite fluffy tbh.

⛧ A/N: I'm starting this series as my love letter to 90's slasher films aaaand because I just love Minsung. I'm writing this in "tapes" instead of chapters for ✨ ambiance ✨ so I hope the vibes come across. I'm already working on part two so I'll have my knives and fingers crossed you babes enjoy this one.

💀 >>> Go to Tape 2 >>> 💀

A bell dings overhead as you step through the door of Topline Video. A crowd of middle school kids dart by, nearly knocking you over in their excitement to get home with some cheesy slasher flick they definitely shouldn’t be watching. All are in full costume, wearing the kind of plastic masks that smell sorta funny when you put them on. 

The kid dressed as a goblin turns back for a second, peeling up the murky green mask to reveal an apologetic face. “Sorry, lady!” he shouts, taking your gentle smile as a sign of forgiveness and racing to catch up to his friends. “Lady?” you whisper to yourself, the door creaking shut behind you, “Great, now I feel ancient.” 

Lucky for you there’s no time for an existential crisis as you’re swept into the frenzy of the video store. The walls are packed with what must be a thousand VHS tapes. Double sided displays line the aisles with hundreds more. Every one of them is some brand of horror movie with even the most obscure subgenre present. 

Black and orange streamers travel from one end of the ceiling to the next with tiny spiders dangling from them. Giant skeletons lurk in the corners guarding jack o lanterns with flickering eyes. Every year people eat it up but this year is particularly spooky. It sends a shiver down your spine when you recall why. 

“I heard they found another leg” a red haired girl says, casually smacking on a piece of bright pink bubblegum. Beside her a shorter girl files through tapes under a large bloody hand drawn sign reading SERIAL KILLERS.

“I thought they already found both of his legs. A guy can’t have three legs.”

The red haired girl shakes her head, smiling mischievously. “That is not true. I hooked up with him once. You could for sure consider that thing a third leg.” The girls break into a fit of giggles. Dodging their insensitivity, you squeeze yourself into the Monster Movie section. 

“Hey Drac” you sigh, staring up at the Dracula cutout looming over you, “I live in a town of idiots.” “You don’t mean everyone, do you?” a voice answers back with the worst Dracula impersonation you’ve ever heard. Suspicious that it isn’t coming from the cardboard cutout, you peek around to see a familiar face stocking the shelves. 

Your heart immediately begins to flutter, a blanket of warmth encompassing you. Han Jisung. If you flip through the dictionary you’ll find him under D for dreamy. The glow of the setting sun kisses his dark curly hair, making it almost sparkle. And those brown eyes, they’re so…no…keep it together. 

“That’s a terrible Dracula voice” you tease, arms folded across your chest. “I don’t know what you mean. Bleh, bleh, bleh” he carries on, pretending to bare his fangs. Now it’s you who’s giggling and you can’t stand how easily he gets you to.

“You are such a dork, Han.”

Returning to his normal voice he only shrugs, “But that’s why you’re so insanely in love with me isn’t it?”

His words intensify the heat moistening your palms.��Fidgeting with the sleeves of your jean jacket, you wrack your brain for some witty response only for nonsense to tumble out. 

“No. What? I…uh…um…early.” 

Popping a copy of Megaverse Massacre 2 onto the shelf, Han raises an eyebrow at you, “Early?”

Your brain finally catches up to your mouth and you spit it out. “Uh, yeah, early. I heard you guys were closing early because of the…” 

“Body hacking psycho killer?” a voice cackles, gripping your shoulders from behind. You let out a blood curdling scream that draws the attention of a few nearby shoppers. Swinging around, your fist ready to dish out a debilitating gut punch, you come face to face with Lee Minho. You haven’t quite decided if he can be filed under “dreamy” or “asshole” yet.

Minho grins, never finding you cuter than when he’s getting on your nerves. “I’m sorry, babe. Didn’t hurt you did I?” he teases, straightening out your clothes with a gentleness you weren’t expecting. The sun’s doing that thing again. The sparkle. The glow. The radiant brown eyes searching yours, threatening to make you fall even deeper into them than you already have.

Han dips between the two of you, separating you before you rip Minho’s head off. “I’m sorry. Really. He was deprived of air in the womb. Being an asshole’s just a side effect.” 

Over Han’s shoulder Minho frowns, “Hey! Rude much?” Digging into his pocket, Han pulls out a lollipop. It’s sugar blown into the shape of a blood drenched kitchen knife. “Are you bribing me with a sugary murder weapon?” you ask, staring at it skeptically. Han flashes you a close lipped smile, his cheeks so fluffy it’d be a crime to deny him.

Snatching the lollipop you waste no time popping the wrapper off and tapping Minho on the head with it. “Hey! What was that for?” he winces, wiping lollipop residue from his head. “Sorry, babe” you grin, sucking on your tool of revenge, “Didn’t hurt you did I?” Han buries his face in his hand but it does nothing to hide the joy he takes in his best friend’s pain. 

This is nice. Laughing with someone. With them. It’s been a while since you felt this light around other people. The recent weight on you hasn’t been of some invisible boogeyman sneaking off with one of your limbs. No, your boogeyman was someone you knew well, or at least thought you did, and he’s haunted you every chance he can.

Speak of the devil…

A bell dings, drawing your attention to the door where a man in a demon mask scans the room for someone. You recognize him immediately. Those boots. Those pants. That flannel shirt you always found totally hideous on him. Your heart sinks, the lollipop in your hand tumbling to the floor.

You see Minho and Han’s hearts sink too. It’s as if they sense that any joy you’d been feeling just went down the drain that instant. Minho whispers something into Han’s ear. You can’t make out what, only the calculated tone of his voice. “Hey!” Han says, perking up again, “We’re having a movie night tonight. You should come.”

As the man in the demon mask spots you, your eyes dart back and forth between the men. “A movie night? Sure that would be…I’d like that.”

Han takes you by the hand, “Wicked. Come on, you can pick a movie from the back.” He leads you towards the backroom just as the man advances towards you. Peeking over your shoulder you spot Minho blocking his way. A quick left turn stops you from seeing what happens next, filling your vision instead with tattered old movie posters.

Passing a few of Han’s coworkers, you wave politely and they smile in return. The back room’s like a dustier, quieter version of the sales floor. The walls are still lined with tapes, only there’s no way these have been watched any time in the past decade. Through the dust you see the spine of a tape titled Camp Counselor Sleepover Murder Party 4.

“That one” you decide, stopping dead in your tracks.

Han stops too, squinting to spot what caught your eye, “A woman of taste I see.” 

Pulling it from the shelf, he blows the dust away and hands it to you. “Only the finest for you.”

You feel that lightness again. It's easy to feel it when he smiles at you like this. Such an unexpected but welcomed sense of safety. “Han, thanks for…” you start but the surprise sensation of his lips pressed to yours makes anything you were about to say feel insignificant.

With one hand still holding yours, his other hand comes to rest on your lower back. Your lips are somehow softer than he’d imagined. Even in the absence of the lingering strawberry flavored lollipop, he knows they’d taste just as sweet. Minho’s gonna kill him when he finds out that he kissed you first but nothing could be more worth it.

“Thank me by not worrying about your ex,” he says, “He won’t bother you anymore. I promise.” 

You want to tell him how much he doesn’t understand. That your ex doesn’t give up that easily. But you decide not to ruin the moment, even if letting yourself believe him feels delusional. “Jisung, we need you up front!” one of his coworkers shouts back. He hesitates, unsure if he should leave you or not.

You kiss him first this time, turning him loose, “Go. I’ll be fine back here. Camp Counselor Sleepover Murder Party 1-3 have gotta be rotting around here somewhere right?” One last kiss and he’s rushing back up front, clueless as to how he’s supposed to focus on anything else now.

Turning back to the shelf you realize how big of a challenge you’re in for. Maybe there’s a feather duster somewhere? Or a respirator mask?

“Give it here. That has to be wrong.” Minho approaches the kitchen counter where you sit, playfully swinging your feet. He reaches for the magazine in your hand but you clutch it tightly to your chest, refusing to fork it over.

“Live with it, Minho. You are Suspicious Boyfriend.” 

“Suspicious boyfriend” Han sings, retrieving a bag of freshly popped popcorn from the microwave, “I think it has a ring to it.”

Hopping down from the counter, you skip your way over to Han extending the magazine and the pen in your hand out to him. “Your turn, Hannie.” You see the skepticism all over his face but don’t give up. All torture must be equal after all.

“I’ll take that” Minho smiles, stealing the popcorn for himself.

“Sure. Why not?” Han surrenders, grabbing the magazine and the pen. You and Minho watch on, far more amused than you should be, as Han skims the pages checking off answers to silly personality questions. Pick a country to travel to. Pick a favorite food. Upstairs or downstairs?

After a minute or two he finishes and slides the magazine back over to you. You can barely contain yourself as you assess his results. Leaning across the counter, you share them with Minho who immediately begins to laugh. 

“What’s so funny? What did I get?” Han asks looking so genuinely concerned that you almost feel bad for telling Minho first. Minho empties the popcorn into a bright orange Halloween bowl, shoveling some into his mouth. “Comic Relief Best Friend” he mumbles. Han frowns, coming to see for himself. You hold the results page up for him. 

Which Horror Character Are You?

You point to his score beneath the headline “Comic Relief Best Friend”.

“Oh, okay. So I’m funny and I die before him. Perfect.”

“Aww, come on. Don’t be like that” you say, poking at his chin, “It’s not like I got the best result either. I’m the Final Girl.” 

“What’s so bad about that?” Minho asks, his words muffled by food, “It means you make it to the sequel.” 

“No, it means that I’m boring. Badass but boring. I wanna be the killer. They have more fun.” 

Han shakes his head, a sympathetic hand resting on your shoulder, “I hate to break it to you but you’re not really killer material.” Minho takes your hand like a doctor prepared to give you some bad news, “Yeah, you just…you don’t have it in you, kid.” 

“Don’t have it in me? I do so!” you protest, your tantrum not doing much to make you less adorable. Minho moves toward the knife rack behind him, carefully selecting the biggest, sleekest one he can find. “Okay, so kill me.” 

There’s a long, tense silence.

“Come on. It’s not that hard. Just…” Minho mimes stabbing himself in the chest, his tongue stuck out sideways. “Give it!” you shout, running to take the knife away. Minho catches you by the wrist, slipping the knife into your hand and raising the tip of the blade an inch away from his throat.

“Do it” he dares, his hand tightening around yours, “Prove us wrong.”

There’s an unnerving excitement in his eyes as he awaits your decision. An excitement that doesn’t seem to want you to back away. No, it wants you to come closer. He wants you to come closer.

“Hannie,” you plead, “Can you talk some sense into him please?” Han joins the two of you, saying nothing at first, simply observing. The way that they watch you is intensely sexual and some part of you, one you hadn’t known existed until now, seems to take pleasure in it. 

Han laughs, bringing his arms around your waist, “Oh but sweetie, we’ve played your game. Don’t you wanna play ours now?”

[hyuneskkami]

❪ ⭑ ❫ starlight: chapter 6───lee know.

06. please don’t burn down the house!

it was finally the day of the concert.

I was expecting to be nervous, but I really wasn’t. the boys’ presence had become so normal. I was only looking forward to all the fun we could have on stage today.

for our outfits, hair, and makeup, my stylist and skz’s decided to collaborate to create something more fun.

the members and I decided to surprise each other with the final looks today.

I was being fitted into slightly flared blue jeans, black doc martens and a fairy-core long black top that flared downwards like a jellyfish.

the colour palette for the stage was red and black, so I was allowed to choose my own jewellery as long as it fit the theme.

after playing off my moment of weakness against minho as a ‘won’t the STAYs love it?’ moment, I met up with the rest of the boys. all of them were decked in black and red, but my eyes kept straying to minho.

he was wearing black cargos with a black tank top, over which there was a red jacket with shiny buttons and chains. he looked like a prince reincarnated.

without a soundcheck today, it was our first time on that stage. as soon as we were on the stage, though, all my nervousness disappeared.

“STAY, we got you a surprise!” han giggled into his mic right before we got into our positions for megaverse.

the crowd screamed even louder, and I immediately felt happier.

we performed a mix of stray kids songs and mine (danceracha and I had come up with the group choreographies for my songs).

concert setlist. — stray kids music

megaverse, thunderous, cinema, charmer, district 9, venom, i like it, double knot, god’s menu, chronosaurus, escape, lalalala, boxer, back door, all in, wolfgang, jjam, truman, cheese, victory song, freeze, bounce back, maniac, domino, topline, burnin tires, super bowl, mountains, walking on water, chk chk boom.

concert setlist. — y/n y/l/n music

skkrt, hangover, vampirism, skater, lionheart, starlight.

with a total of 35 songs, and a bunch of fan interactions and games, we were exhausted.

seungmin and I splashed most of the members successfully (everyone except minho and changbin). I was surprised by the boys with their version of my skzoo (it was a black cat that looked similar to mori, my own cat).

while talking with the fans, minho mentioned, “n/n and I will probably cook a feast for the rest of the members after today’s concert.” the members’ voices rang out with ‘promise?’s.

a shout erupted suddenly from the crowd. “please don’t burn down the house!”

everyone burst out laughing, and so did I.

after the concert ended on a happy note (and by ‘happy note’, I mean jeongin slipping on water, chsngbin’s muscle-flexing show, hyunjin and chan’s slightly insane body control during the choreography for escape, etc.), we headed back to our hotel.

soonie, doongi, & dori were waiting for us; skijigi let us bring the cats to japan this time.

as promised, minho and I began cooking for the others.

correction: minho started cooking, while I stumbled around him, getting instant ramyeon to make for myself.

“smart choice, considering you would probably actually end up burning down the place if you helped me,” minho smirked.

“whatever you want to think, pretty boy,” I rolled my eyes.

he paused what he was doing and turned around to face me now. he took a few steps closer until our noses almost brushed; my breath hitched as my back hit the counter.

he extended his hand… above my head. and grabbed a huge spoon. he turned around, smiling cheekily, continuing preparing dinner.

“wanna do a live?” minho asked casually.

“like… with you?”

“no, with the spoon i’m holding,” he rolled his eyes.

“tch.”

he left his cooking to go to chan’s room and ask for permission.

he came back looking satisfied and a little red, muttering something about how chan doesn’t know anything.

“chan said we can do it,” he said triumphantly.

“wait, are we starting right away?”

“yeah, why? is something wrong?”

“I just need to change my clothes.”

“why? you look pretty like this,” he said, unaware of how his words affected me.

my stomach flipped with butterflies and I stood staring at him, wide-eyed. “…okay. thanks-?”

we ended the live by the time we finished cooking. I could feel minho’s eyes on me for most of the time, though I don’t know what his reason was.

we dropped off all the food with chan, so he could feed the kids, and came back. minho and I told them we were tired after cooking and doing a live, so we’d like to sleep it off instead of eating.

we returned to his room and fell onto the couch. I switched through the channels on the tv until I saw attack on titan playing.

“what the fuck?” I sat up suddenly. they were playing my current favourite anime at the exact time I wanted to watch the tv? “is this fate?” I mumbled.

minho startled beside me, and I ignored him. mikasa was more important.

[a/n: for those who don’t know, mikasa is a character from an anime called ‘attack on titan’ and… she’s so fine 😭]

“y/n,” minho called after a while.

I hummed in response, still focused on the tv.

“n/n.” I jolted out of my trance.

“what?” I turned to him, muting the tv.

“I wanted to tell you this before but… I couldn’t. for some reason. I need you to promise me that whatever I say next doesn’t ruin our… friendship.” he said quietly, looking into my eyes.

I nodded, not trusting myself to speak. god damn though, he looks cute in that shirt.

“the first time I saw you was a year after our debut. you were dancing to one of day6’s song. the choreography was undoubtedly difficult but you looked so effortless doing it. and you managed to teach some kids the same thing so quickly. I was genuinely in love already.”

my eyes widened slightly. he continued.

“the second time was when I hadn’t actually seen you, but we became popular for a while. fans said we were so alike, it was impossible that we were two different people.”

I nodded, remembering being in awe of his skill and him, in general, during those times.

“and the third time was finally, when we could collab.”

I let out a shaky breath, not knowing where this was going.

“n/n… what i’m trying to say is… I love you. I think I always have, and little by little it just grows everyday. your dance was what brought me closer first, but now it’s you. how funny you are, smart, hardworking, and loyal. and my god, you are so beautiful, my sweet girl—”

I grabbed the collar of his shirt and roughly pulled him closer.

“shut up. just kiss me.”

without waiting for even a second longer, minho smashed his lips onto mine. there was nothing sweet or soft about it. teeth clashed, and no one cared.

my hands automatically found his neck and wrapped around it. his hands were around my waist in an instant, sliding under my shirt.

I pulled away to breathe. “so…?” he asked.

“so, what, dumbass? I love you too. I thought that was very clear right now.” I smiled at him.

he grinned back at me, and pressed another quick kiss to my lips.

“cuddle?” I asked.

“anything for my love.”

prev < m.list > next

[dogfancier]

Dux-Nassovia, wirehaired fox terrier, 1st Prize Novice in Frankfurt, 1897. At 6 months old, she had recently survived distemper. Probably as a result, she had a dip in the topline and a weakened rear.

[redistrictgirl]

As of September 8th, 2024, Kamala Harris is slightly favored (64% chance) in the race for the presidency.

So first, let's talk about that topline.

Some other forecasts have become noticeably more bullish for former President Trump, and that's because they're looking at the polling margins decline and declaring that the convention bump is still declining. But that's not the important part of the picture. Here, my polling "bins" come in handy. Let's look at the week-by-week average of national polling:

Week of August 11th: 47.7 Harris, 45.8 Trump

Week of August 18th (week of DNC): 47.9 Harris, 43.8 Trump

Week of August 25th: 47.9 Harris, 45.0 Trump

Week of September 1st: 49.0 Harris, 46.4 Trump

Notice anything? Vice President Harris held steady through the DNC- the convention bump merely took the form of a dip in polling for Mr. Trump. My personal theory as to why that is rests in the tone of the convention - the organizers clearly attempted a big-tent strategy to reach out to disaffected Republicans. But that makes undecided voters, not new voters for Democrats. And now both candidates are snatching up undecided voters - we are officially in full gear.

Now, let's break down the closest states:

Arizona (51% chance of being won by Harris) - This state had the biggest swing this week thanks to continued gains for Mr. Trump. The fundamentals of this state are still strong for Ms. Harris, however.

Georgia (62% chance of being won by Trump) - Another Romney-Trump-Biden state, the Vice President is keeping this state close, but it may not be enough given that the Deep South isn't known for its abundance of persuadable voters. Fundamentals and polling line up well here.

North Carolina (64% chance of being won by Trump) - The polls have this state being neck-and-neck, but again, the model expects Mr. Trump to have an easier time picking up undecided voters here.

Pennsylvania (67% chance of being won by Harris) - This state has the closest polling average in our dataset, but the model seems to believe we're more likely to be looking at a polling miss like 2022's instead of 2020's.

Wisconsin (69% chance of being won by Harris) - If there's any state the polls could fumble, I personally think it's this one. I just can't buy this whiter, more rural Rust Belt state voting to the left of Michigan. But even just looking at fundamentals, Ms. Harris is still a very, very slim favorite in the Badger State.

Now for some other notable swings:

Nevada (77% chance of being won by Harris) - Another massive swing in the Southwest, but this time it's bad for the former President. The model is now pretty confident that he's locked out of around 48.5% of the state's voters, which... you know... gives a narrow path for victory. He better hope that Ms. Harris doesn't gain any further here.

Texas (96% chance of being won by Trump) - Texas has leaped back off the board for a similar reason to Nevada - all indicators suggest that Mr. Trump is approaching 50% of the vote in this state. It would probably take a genuine polling miss in the Vice President's favor to make the state winnable.

So where does this leave each candidate? The Rust Belt continues to get more important for Ms. Harris, and Mr. Trump still needs Georgia and North Carolina to come through for him. So on a macro level, outside of the Southwest getting weird, things have actually been fairly unsurprising, which you'd expect from a short week. Let's see if there's a shakeup after the debate and in the coming months.

[bluestar22x]

Couch

Pairing: Joel Miller x F!Reader (slightly older than Joel)

Other Major Characters: Tommy Miller, Maria, Ellie Williams

Chapter Summary: With time, you and Joel grow close

Word Count: 3,640(ish)

Rating: 18+ Series

Warnings: Smut, oral, piv, fluff, fowl language

Author’s Note: Please don’t reblog choice posts such as this one! Please reblog main chapters instead. You can comment and like, but I’m trying to keep the choice posts off the dashboards as much as possible so not to spoil the surprises and sway people’s decisions. ;)

xxx

"My couch," you reply, taking his hand in yours again and guiding him surely through the darkness of your mudroom towards the living room to your right. Your skin is hot even though it is cool in your house and your free hand is trembling slightly, this time from excitement.

You don't stop, don't look back until your kneecaps are brushing against the couch.

When you release his hand and turn around Joel is right behind you, face half cast in the moonlight shining through a crack in the bay window's curtains. You smile softly at him, almost shyly, and he smiles back assuringly before raising one of his hands to grab your chin and gently kiss you.

It's not long before the kiss becomes something else entirely, something wild, feverish. Joel gathers you into his arms, almost crushing you to his chest, and a thrill courses through you.

This is actually happening.

In a smooth move you probably will not be able to duplicate ever again, you separate from him to yank your peach colored t-shirt over your head and drop it haphazardly onto the floor without letting your eyes wander from Joel's.

His, however, do stray - to your bare shoulders, to your chest and your lace lined black bra. It's not wired; it doesn't shape your breasts into something they no longer are, but it's probably for the best, considering how brief it is before his fingers travel to your spine and fumble with the clips at the back of the bra. He gets it after a few tries without your assistance and frees you from the fabric then takes a sharp breath as he studies your completely bared upper body. It's clear that he doesn't care that your breasts aren't perky, that he's just grateful you're allowing him to look at you; to undress you. He's not looking for anything you can't provide.

"Goddamn, you're beautiful." The comment is completely genuine. You can tell from the strain in his voice, the dilation of his pupils you can see even in the dim light of the night.

Confidence boosted, heart soaring, you grin at him and reach for the top button of his shirt, unfastening it slowly. "Can't let you have all the fun."

He grunts an agreement and helps you unmake the rest, shrugging it off his shoulders after. The t-shirt underneath is quickly removed by him as well and your eyes feast on the sight before you. Joel is a gorgeous kind of beefy, his chest and arms strong, his belly soft. A thin layer of hair covers most of his front, getting thicker towards the topline of his jeans, and seeing it makes your heart race.

You unbuckle Joel's belt and tug it out of the loops of his pants in record time, dropping it beside your feet, the belt buckle clunking on your wooden flooring.

He cocks an eyebrow at your haste, but when you unbutton his jeans, he does the same to yours with equal zeal. You remove your underwear and jeans at the same time as him and fall back on the couch as you both rid yourselves of your socks after, just before he steps forward and crawls onto the couch to hover over you.

You think you can hear one of his knees pop as he does so, but he's unfazed by it; too captivated by you to care, if not used to it.

You meet his intense gaze with your own and allow yourself to touch his chest, to trace it and run your hands over the balls of his shoulders before splaying them out on his upper back as you open up for him and spread your thighs as wide as you can, inviting him into the space you've just made for him.

He drops his head to enclose your right nipple in his warm mouth and sucks as he takes the offer, slipping between your legs, using his elbows to prop himself up and keep his weight off you.

A groan escapes him almost at the exact same time as the moan that leaves you, as pleased to taste your peak as you are to feel his lips around it. You arch into his mouth and he frees a hand from your waist to curve over your stomach as he switches to your other nipple, giving it the same treatment.

His hand starts to slide lower down your body and he parts his mouth from your breasts to peer up at you.

"Would it be alright if I put my mouth on you?"

Your mouth goes dry at the unexpected question. You've never had a man ask you that particular one the first time you slept together. You feel like you should be uncertain about it, but you're not. Being so vulnerable with Joel is new, but you've known him for long enough to trust him and now that he's mentioned it you can't imagine saying no to him.

You beam up at him and thrust your hips towards Joel eagerly, desperately wanting to know what it feels like with him.

He raises an eyebrow at that, looking amused. "Is that a yes?" He chuckles softly before you even nod to confirm it.

"Yes. Please. Joel."

You close your eyes as he slowly works his way down your body, building the anticipation, teeth scraping along your neck, tongue laving at your chest, lips peppering feathery kisses to your belly and thighs before he finally ducks his head down to drag his tongue through your folds.

The sensation sends a jolt of pleasure through your body and you cry out at the suddenness of it. You desperately dig your nails into the fabric of the couch to cope, tilt your pelvis to give him better access, and he devours you.

He isn't the most precise lover you've ever had, but he makes up for it with enthusiasm and attentiveness. When you take in a sharp breath and tense after he hits a particularly sensitive spot, he makes note of it, repeats the motions he did to get there, movements that get smoother every time he does them.

You rake your fingers through the short silvery curls on his head and twist on the strands when he plunges his tongue into you, and he in turn tightens the grip he has on your thighs.

"Fuck, Joel," you whine as you writhe in place, overwhelmed by how good it feels. "Like that. More. Oh!"

He doesn't need any true verbal pointers, but your words do encourage him to go all in, to be more firm with you, to suck on your bud more passionately. Your climax builds fast and all real thought abandons your mind; a true blessing. You've learned from past experience that for this to work at your age, for the pleasure to consume you, you can't think about it too much, and that mindlessness helps more than anything else ever has with your ever changing body.

When Joel sees that you are close to tipping over the edge, he curls one, two, then three fingers inside you and just like that you fall with a gasp; a pleasant heat flooding your entire body as you do, fully relaxing you.

You'd been dry when he first started working on you, but due to his assiduity you're now soaked, entirely ready for him. It's all you can think about as you lay there sucking in quick breaths, as your heart pounds in your chest. All you want is him inside you. And you don't want to imagine it any longer when he's right there.

You lift your head to crush your mouth against Joel's when he positions himself back over you, and he responds immediately, cupping both sides of your face to keep you there for longer.

Your heart is still beating wildly in your chest when you grind your hips purposely against his to feel the way he is thickening against the skin of your thigh, and he groans again.

"Shit, you might just be the death of me," he mutters.

You chuckle as you reach down to stroke his length and he presses his forehead to the center of your chest, groaning loudly as you do so.

"Might?"

"Fuck."

You grin proudly at the way he hisses the word out, and begin to work him faster, not slowing until he's hard and as equally ready for you.

"You sure about this, honey?" he inquires, giving you one last chance to change your mind.

"Never been more sure," you promise him, releasing his cock to push your hand against his chest firmly, wordlessly directing him into a sit.

He's briefly confused by your action but it dawns on him that you want to take control, and he gladly gives it to you.

He sits so that he is leaning against the back of the couch and you stand so you can get down on your knees more easily and straddle his hips.

He takes hold of your waist firmly to help you keep your balance and watches with wonder in his eyes as you palm his cock and with a cant of your hips steadily drop down onto him, sheathing him entirely within you.

You both moan as you settle on top of him, and you squeeze your eyes shut to relish the feeling of fullness having him this way brings you. It's been too long since you were with anyone like this.

When you open your eyes again you find Joel's staring back into yours, intimately, a vulnerability in them that almost breaks you.

You quickly kiss the heart shaped bare patch in his beard as you wrap your arms around his neck to keep him close. At the same time his hands wander up the curve of your back to cradle you more securely, and once they are in place you start moving slowly up and down on him, making sure you can feel every inch of him along the way. It's the best feeling you've had in ages. The drag of his cock inside you steals your breath and makes you groan. It makes you forget where you are, where you've been. It like you are in your own little world, where only you and Joel exist.

You bury your hands into his hair again and he grunts as your nails scratch at his scalp, as you bend your head to kiss him deeply. Every noise he makes is like music to your ears, urging you to keep going, to keep ignoring the ache in your knees that you get every time you are on them for more than a few seconds.

You soon pick up speed, rolling your hips towards him as he begins to rut up into you, and it's just enough for you to both break out in a sweat, for your moans and groans to grow longer, louder.

You want it to last for hours, but your body has other plans, blindsighting you with your orgasm, sending you into a pitch forward against Joel's chest as you convulse around him.

You cling tightly to him by his shoulders as you come down, and bliss consumes you, clouds your mind in a haze as you continue to move your hips, not ready to be done quite yet.

"Want you to come inside me," you confess in his ear, voice low and thick.

He nods, grunts an affirmative, and yanks you down on him by the shoulders suddenly, causing you to lose your breath and clench hard around him.

It's then that he unravels, giving you what you want, jaw tight as he groans lowly into the crook of your neck and pulses inside you. You hold him close as it overtakes him and try to commit the moment to memory. You never want to forget this; whatever the future may bring. You know this world is too uncertain; too dark to not fully appreciate memories like this. Even in a place as safe as Jackson.

Afterwards you tug your couch blanket off one of its arms and cover both you and Joel with it before resting your head on his thigh. You gaze up at him, studying his handsome face, and he smiles down at you fondly, kisses each of your fingertips, simple acts of affection that speak louder than words ever could.

It's too early to put a label on what you are now to each other, but the moment feels profound. Like it's the beginning of something special.

Some time later, as you're about to doze off, Joel checks his watch and sighs. "It's getting late; I should go," he whispers before kissing your forehead lightly and caressing your arm. "Ellie will be worried if I'm not home when she wakes in the morning."

You want to protest, to suggest that he at least stay until sunrise, but you decide it best to respect his decision, to let him go. Your relationship is all too new after all. You haven't even had a proper date yet, whatever that would look like in the apocalypse. You don't want to overstep; to pressure him into anything he might not want yet. And you refuse to act like a clingy or jealous girlfriend. Wherever your relationship ends up, there would be no time where you would ever insist he stay with you instead of being there for Ellie.

"Okay," you respond, trying to make the word sound light.

"Meet me at the Bison tomorrow night at seven?" he questions as he stands up, and you break out into a warm smile. You love that he's already forming a plan to see you again.

"Of course."

"I know it's not the most romantic place for a date..."

Your smile broadens at his concern. "You don't need to worry, Joel. You've clocked me right. I'm not the kind of girl who needs a fancy restaurant and a millionaire in a suit."

He laughs. "That's good, cause Jackson doesn't have either of those currently."

"Damn shame." You kneel to kiss him one last time on the lips, then fall back onto the couch. "Go on. Go get some sleep."

Joel nods. "You too."

He doesn't say goodbye, and you don't expect him to. You close your eyes as he walks away from the couch and inhale the scent he's left behind on your throw blanket.

You end up falling asleep to it.

x

There are many dates between you and Joel in the following weeks, some planned by him and some by you. You're inventive about it, about how you hide it being a date; neither of you ready to expose your newfound relationship to the rest of the town.

Jeanine knows, you tell her a lot of the details, of what you talk about, of where you go, and Tommy knows, because of the conversation you'd with him in the mess hall, and because he's observant. It's not even a day before he approaches you and gets you to admit it, because Joel happened to be in a 'real good mood' on patrol that day.

Maria might know because of him, but you aren't sure, you haven't asked. You are sure nobody else knows, though you're also sure there is some suspicion, some rumors floating around. Jeanine for once hasn't heard anything, probably cause everyone else knows she is your best friend, but more than once you have seen people stop mid conversation just because you stepped into a room.

You don't concern yourself with it, too busy daydreaming about the previous or upcoming date. There were a few at the Tipsy Bison but after that Joel seemed determined to mix things up, having you over at his house whenever Ellie was out late with friends, spending time with you while you cleaned the stables, sitting next to you on movie nights. He'd even asked Tommy to set up some patrols so that you were scheduled for it at the same time he was.

It was on one of those patrols closely boarding the walls of Jackson, that Joel brought it up, back when your relationship was still very fresh, barely two weeks old.

"I won't be able to go watch you sing tomorrow night," he tells you.

"Oh, why?" you inquire curiously.

"Ellie's sixteenth birthday's in a few days and I need to get ready for it," he explains. "You know how she loves space and dinosaurs?"

"Yeah." Ellie barely goes a day without talking about one or another. It is endearing. She reminds you of you and your passion for horses, which she seems to also share with you. She hung out around the stables a lot, especially after Shimmer, the chestnut filly she had demanded to be assigned to her, had begun to be trained to saddle. You'd seen her ride the young horse a few times since then, and Ellie looked like a natural on her. Their partnership rivaled yours with June.

"Well, I found a museum not too far from here, less than a day's hike, and it's got both, can you believe it?" Joel asks incredulously. "I wanna take her there on her birthday, but I've got to clear it out, make sure it's safe, and repair a few things first."

"That's amazing," you say wholeheartedly. "However big or small it is, I'm sure she's going to love it."

"I hope so."

You give him a look. "She will. Ellie's a lot of things but ungrateful is not one of them."

"Would you like to come with us?" he offers.

You shake your head. "Her birthday is not the time to reveal our relationship to Ellie. Visiting the museum is something you should do alone with her anyway. It'll be more special if it's just you and her."

He nods and returns to focusing on the path ahead of your horses.

"But, I do have a solution for tomorrow," you declare.

His head swivels in your direction again, curious.

"I could help you clear the museum," you suggest. "Two sets of hands are better than one, and bonus, we will get to spend some time together. You might even make it to my show."

He grins at you then. "That sounds perfect. I'd greatly appreciate the help and it won't feel like work if you're there."

"No need to thank me," you say, "I'm doing it for Ellie and me. Just promise me you won't tell her that I assisted. I don't want the credit."

"I promise."

x

Your work date at the museum with Joel goes smoothly and so does his trip to it with Ellie. You catch sight of them dismounting their horses at the front of the stable as the sun is setting on her birthday, and even from a distance you can tell she is flying high, so excited she's barely keeping in her skin.

While you'd insisted Joel spend Ellie's birthday just with her, you start accepting more and more offers from him to hang out with them, whether at the movies or at their house on a game night. Sometimes he even invited you over for supper and sometimes you invited them. There was always an excuse of course. The game plays better with 3. The recipe makes too much for just one or two people.

You know Ellie's too smart not to figure out what's actually going on but she doesn't say anything, and you don't ask.

You eventually get your answer in October.

It's the third Tuesday of the month and you wake up to a chill in the air that can only mean one thing - your heating system has failed sometime during the night. Again.

Joel is one of the few guys in town who knows a little about a lot of things when it comes to doing repairs on homes, so you naturally stroll over to his house to ask him if he can fix it for what is probably the tenth time this year.

"Think it's going to need a little more than just a repair," Joel tells you after you explain the situation to him while standing in the middle of his kitchen. "Last one was temporary. There's no other fixes to be made that I know of. We're going to have to find you a replacement."

You deflate at his conclusion. "That might take ages. I'm going to freeze."

"You could ask Jeanine if you can stay a while," he suggests.

You sigh. "She's already got a roommate and their house is small. I'd hate to bother them."

"Or you could just stay here," Ellie says from her spot at the table behind you.

Both your head and Joel's snap in her direction, mouths slightly ajar at her proposal.

She rolls her eyes. "Why not? You're here all the time anyway. You're dating. It makes the most sense, doesn't it?"

Busted.

"Stop looking so shocked," she huffs. "The whole town knows. You haven't exactly been subtitle, you know, even though you both clearly think you have been. Which is cool. Wish you would've just told me, but whatever. Just spare me the details, okay?"

You and Joel don't react, both unsure of what to say.

She takes a huge bite out of the green apple in her hand and heads for the door. "You’re making this really fuckin’ weird guys," she mutters. "I'm going over to Cat's."

She ambles out the front door and you and Joel immediately relax.

"That went better than I expected," he eventually admits.

"Guess that means I should consider her offer," you say, side-eying him.

He shakes his head. "Our offer. Do you wanna move in with us?"

It only takes an instant before you're beaming joyfully at him.

"Thought you'd never ask."

…

Next: Chapter 2 - The Lie

Current Chapter: Can't Help Falling In Love

…

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xxx

[five-star-stay]

Saw your post about Han's ships. My favorite is Minsung withouth a doubt. They just make me so happy. I love how much they just naturally gravitate thowards each other and how much silent communication they have. They really feel like soulmates.

I also need more Jilix, I love them and I need a jilix duet more then I need air. Also there is way too many instances of Jilix being super ready to share a bed in one of the codes and then them not ending up sharing :( - give me jilix bed sharing!!

I do like the other dynamics as well. But those two are my favorites. My interest in the hynjin and seungmin dynamics with Han has been growing [your post about the hynsung with hynjin throwing away han's fake rose and the head pat is still in my head, lol].

There is not enough Han and I.N content, both in the official channel and in the fandom space.

I saw a couple of compilations calling Han the Maknea of 3Racha and you can really see how much they threat Han like their little guy. Does that make sense?

Anywayy. Sorry for the mini novel in your ask box.

Hi hi I welcome all the mini novels about Han in my ask box, tysm for responding 🥹🥹

Minsung are amazing, like you mentioned their gravitational pull is truly something spectacular to witness. They're so so fond of each other, it makes me so soft and goey inside. I love how they take care of each other. They really are perfect together, han always indulges every whim lee know has and lee know is so whipped for han, its like he's always falling in love with him by just standing next to him. 🥹💓

Jilix, I think literally everyone is a jilix enjoyer because it's just impossible to see them together and not go awww. I've wanted jisung to do a duet w every member, and I think a jilix one would be amazing. A lot of han's songs, I think he does a really good job with directing felix, like it gives us a new side of him. Also they're always singing together backstage! Get in a booth! I want to see them cuddle in skz code now too, I love seeing their skinship.😔 Its really a relief that those two have each other. Their open affection is so so sweet. A squirrel and a little chick in this big big world, they need to stay together!

I think those are great picks, especially if you want to see cuteness overload.

Hyunsung JSJSJS Topline and I Like It are songs where hyunsung decide to just woo each other hahaha. I think before since hyunjin and hannie were living together I could see them recharging together at home n have an easy thing going which didn't take much thought on their side but now that they do not live together n do not share a literal bathroom together they're probably getting their clingyness quote fulfilled in public haha so we get to witness more of their cuteness.

Seungsung is the most different out of all of hannie's dynamics I think. They respect each other a lot and usually when asked to speak together they compliment each other, but I would also be interested to hear thoughts they have! I think admiration is very big in this dynamic tho. It's funny when I think back to their 2kids show, seungmin remembering when they hung out and han having to really try hard to recall but then seungmin is also quick to tease han in that one skz code with "I didn't miss you" when they'd first split into 2 dorms haha. I think I recall seungmin saying that he didn't know how to open up to same age friends, which makes sense there's a set expectation for how you're supposed to act w older and younger people in kr but same age you kinda I guess get to decide so maybe it's why there's more of trial and error process haha.

3racha: Ah this is a top tier dynamic, Maknae of 3racha, he's truly their baby. Like from everything like making him usually stand in the center, and letting him tease them and ganging up with him to tease the third member but never truly ganging up as binchan on hannie because he's their precious little guy!👏👏👏 I really love it, they respect him, encourage him, acknowledge his talent and then han always returns that respect and encouragement, always modest and saying he learns a lot from them. 3racha has a bond like no other. Perfect trio bound by blood, I love you please do more vlogs together 😭💓.

Jeongsung: I know there needs to be so much more content and hype with these two, ugh. If you know anything about me as a stay, it's that I fucking love jeongsung. There's a couple fanartists and kr stays I have found who tweet about them regularly so if you want more crumbs LET ME KNOW! I think it's one of the dynamics that has a lot to it under the surface of the bit they play up of being I.n denying hannie's kisses hahaha. Like, these 2 used to share a room, much Like han being the group member channie has known the longest, that's also true for I.n. These two have seen each other go through so much so up close!! I think they live for being silly together on stage and offline these two do seem to spend a fair bit of time together but it's not mentioned until months later like "oh we went out to shopping and then" or " l was bored so I called innie over" even in the Australia talker for dominate the first person hannie tries to ring when he was bored was innie 😭 or how innie was the one who took the video of hannie singing in the car for his ig. They keep it lowkey but then out of NOWHERE last year innie thanks hannie in his ending ment for showing him how much strength the words "I love you" can give!? Like. HELLO?! WHY ARE YOU MAKING ME CRY LIKE THIS!!! Anyways, as you can see, I'm very normal about them!!

I'm sorry for this not so mini novel as well, I just love them all especially when they are soft with hannie my heart explodes. All January my mind has been whirring on about binsung and how fun they're, I can't catch a break. I will try to manifest jilix and jeongsung duets for skz records😭😭

[murkystarlight]

I did a analysis on Jesse. Or.. I'm trying to. But there are... a lot of variables. But. While I was working on that, I found some differences in the Jesse's designs. And... I just wanted to write this down to start working on analyzing Jesse some more. So... analyzing clothes! Yay

I thought it was fun. And... entertaining. (But in case you can't read it all, I have a summary prepared at the very bottom)

Enjoy!

So- the Jesse's all look like the same height(except yellow clip Jesse. I'll tell you all why, later). And something fun I found out is that, while all the m!jesses jaws don't move, the f!jesses jaws do move. And it's different for every other character apperantly?(I'm not sure though. Don't have the time to go through an entire episode to make sure of this fact. Sorry.)

Okay. So if you look at these photos

You can see the difference of their jaw(chin? Is it chin?)s.

And now

The actual clothing analysis

Yeah- so... we know they have different shirt designs. Red suspenders(? I think that's the name) Jesse has a... button. You can also see more of his skin around the neck. Green suspenders doesn't seem to have buttons, but has a design that... looks like it would have buttons on that middle part. Yellow suspenders has two stripes on each arms, the color connecting around the neck. All male Jesse's have long sleeves.

Yellow clip has a red sleeve shirt with the color connecting only around the neck. Red clip has the turquoise color down to her.... I think somewhere around her chest. And blue(navy?) clip has a yellow stripe shirt. All female Jesse's have short sleeves.

They also have different eye colors.

Green for the red suspenders and yellow clip. Dark brown(?) for green suspenders and red clip. And black for yellow suspenders and blue clip.

And the color of their overalls are all different.

Now. This is the more... uhmm... not easily seen part(I think)

Let's start with yellow clip Jesse.

Her jeans are rolled up higher than the rest. (The folds are small though) You can see her skin at the bottom. We can't see her socks.(or maybe those are her socks? It looks a bit darker than her skin tone... I'm still debating on that) And her shoes seem to have a... higher topline(?) than all the other Jesse's shoes. And guess what. If you look closely, she has a darker color at the bottom of her shoes. (That one extra brown line)

I think. It is so that she looks taller. (Insoles? I think they're called?) To look the same height as the rest. (Considering that mcsm has a 'behind the scenes' and in the Netflix version, they literally.. y'know. Petra comes up and asks us to choose. Then she does a quick explanation. Stuff like that. Maybe.... just maybe- this "actor" of Jesse was shorter than the rest.) (Just having some fun during this long boring writing.)(I'm sorry if you're getting bored of this. We still have lots more to read! 😃)

Next we have red clip Jesse!

So.. this one has the jeans rolled up just above her ankles. And the fold is small. Can't see her skin, has black socks on. Also!! Red clip Jesse and blue clip Jesse has the same color highlights in their hair as their hair clips! (Well... at least to me. But if it is. That's pretty cool. Right?)

Alr. Speaking of which...

Next is blue clip Jesse!

Her jeans are rolled up higher than red clip Jesse. But lower than yellow clip Jesse(like.. you can barely see the difference in that photo but.. it is. ..probably). So-you can see her skin. And she either has black socks on with black shoes. Or they're like... boots.

Now. Time for the male Jesse's.

Starting off with red suspenders

He is the only one with the jeans all the way down to his ankles. And yet! He has the biggest folds. Either that's part of the design in his clothes, or the suspenders are too long/big for him.

Green suspenders

Uh.. actually... his jeans are done the same way as red clip Jesse's. Even the socks are black.

And finally, yellow suspenders!

He has the same jean roll-ups as blue clip. But he doesn't have any socks visible to us. Nor does it look like he has high a topline.

I know. Not much for the male Jesse's. But it's true! I worked hard to find out about these small details. And there isn't much to say about them. Unless I try and go look for the exact names and designs for their shirts. So.. I'm sorry for that.

But thank you for reading it this far! It probably would've been a waste of your time but- I have a summary prepared. In case you don't want to read the long paragraphs, or had trouble understanding what I meant.

Summary

What the different genders have in common to eachother

F!jesse

Has moving jaw/chin.

Short sleeves.

M!jesse

Does not have moving jaw/chin.

Long sleeves

Yellow clip Jesse

Jeans are rolled up higher than everyone else.

Small folds

Either wearing socks, or it's her skin. (The color is a bit.. confusing)

The shoe has a high topline.

Cross the fourth one. It's not a high topline. She has high soles.(outsoles? Insoles?)(aka. She's probably a shorter "actor" than all the other Jesse's)

Can see her skin

Red clip Jesse

Her hair is highlighted in red

Jeans are rolled up just above the ankles.

Small folds

We can see that she has black socks on

Top line of the shoe is low

Blue clip Jesse

Her hair highlights are done in blue

Jeans are rolled up higher than red clip Jesse. But lower than yellow clip Jesse.

Small folds

Either the shoes have a high top line(maybe boots?) or she is wearing black socks

Can see her skin

Red suspenders Jesse

Jeans go down to his ankles.

The only one with big folds actually. (But he still has his jeans reaching his ankles. Which could be seen as... a design of his clothes. Or his jeans are too big for him)

Low shoe top line

Can't see his socks

Green suspenders Jesse

Jeans rolled down just before ankles(like red clip Jesse)

Small folds

Black socks

Low shoe top line

Yellow suspenders Jesse

Jeans are rolled up above ankles. But higher than green suspenders. Lower than yellow clip Jesse(like blue clip Jesse)

Small folds

Can't see his socks

Skin visible

And that! Is all. Thank you

(Well- that was dramatic..)

[angstea]

crawl into bed (just bundle up and cry)

Fandom: Doctor Who/Torchwood

Ship: 15Andy

Series: Auctober 2024

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i like it when you hold me tight

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Summary: Andy despises being ill with a passion

AN: Title is from Dance With Me by Topline Addicts

Written for Auctober Day 26: Fidgeting

This is probably the one that follows the prompt the least. It's there! But it's not a major focus. Sorry!

TW: Vomiting

Read on AO3

To say Andy's morning didn't start off well was an understatement. A violent coughing fit jarred him awake, the sound ripping from his lungs. He reached across the bed to grab a pillow from what he unofficially thought of as the Doctor's side of the bed. He hugged it tightly to his chest, just to hold onto something while waiting for it to subside. After a few painfully long seconds, it died down.

He lay there, catching his breath. Where was the Doctor? He had some vague blurry memories of the night before, of the Doctor supporting him while he wobbled unsteadily on his feet and of them stroking his hair while he lay with his head on their lap (although now that he thought about it, that all sounded more like a pleasant dream than reality).

A shiver ran through him and he pulled the blankets further round himself. He dragged himself off the bed, the blanket staying wrapped around his shoulders as he stood shakily. Too hot. Too cold. The sudden shift to upright made the heavy ache in his head intensify. It was all he could do not to collapse to the floor.

He walked slowly out of his bedroom, one foot in front of the other so he didn't fall. He was dizzy and uncoordinated but it was fine. It's not like he had to navigate any stairs in his flat.

As soon as he was through his bedroom door, he heard sound coming from the kitchen. He slumped against the wall for support, not fully trusting himself to stay standing. He'd be alright. He was fine.

"Doctor?" he called out, the words scraping along the back of his throat and coming out coarse and rough.

The Doctor was out in the hallway instantly, concern written across their features. They gently took Andy by the arm.

"Andy, are you alright?" they asked, flitting about nervously.

"Yeah, fine." he quickly reassured them he was fine as he twisted away from their grasp, though that statement was rather immediately undercut when his uncoordinated feet overbalanced and his entire tall frame crumpled to the ground. The Doctor immediately dropped to the floor next to him.

"No, you're not fine honey. You're going back to bed."

And before Andy could protest, they had scooped him up into their arms. All he could do was wrap his arms around them out of surprise. He wasn't sure if his face was burning because he was potentially ill or if it was because the Doctor's face was so close to his.

He was unceremoniously deposited on his bed once more, much to his annoyance.

"Doc, what are you doing?"

"Making sure you get some rest."

"But-!" he was interrupted by a harsh series of coughs. The Doctor gave him a stern look.

When he could breathe clearly again, Andy huffed unhappily, hugging the blankets tighter to himself as another tremor wracked his body.

"Okay...maybe I don't feel great..."

"That's what I thought, babes." The Doctor responded gently. The back of their hand rested gently against his forehead. Their hands were always cold but they felt positively freezing now. He leaned into the soothing cold.

"Yeah, you're definitely staying home." there was a hint of a laugh in their voice. "I'm gonna make you something to eat and you're gonna stay right here."

A small childish part of Andy wanted to keep arguing, pout at the Doctor and claim to be perfectly alright, actually. He didn't like sitting in one place, doing nothing and being a useless lump all day. Instead, he reluctantly flopped back onto the pillows and felt a warm glow in his chest when the Doctor smiled.

-

The Doctor deposited a tray with a bowl of soup on Andy's lap as they settled onto the bed by his side. He hesitantly picked up the spoon, glancing over at the Doctor.

"Is something wrong?" they asked, already in problem solving mode once more. He wanted to find the hovering annoying but really it was...surprisingly endearing.

He wasn't used to being cared for this intently when he was ill. Ever since he was a kid, he remembered coughing and crying in his bed as quietly as possible to not disturb anyone, shuffling into the kitchen to satisfy his nauseating hunger only to find everything out of his reach or too complicated to prepare for his muddled brain. Hunger and illness seemed to go hand in hand in his life.

"No. 'M fine." he choked out. He hoped the Doctor put the wobble and crack in his voice down to the illness rather than emotion. He brought the spoonful of soup up to his lips with a shaking hand. It tasted like warmth and care and love.

The Doctor shuffled even closer, wrapping an arm around Andy's shoulders and gently covering Andy's hand with their free one. Andy's confused expression did not prompt an explanation.

Andy went back to eating his soup. The Doctor's hand moved with his, merely steadying it as not to spill anything.

Oh.

He didn't even necessarily need the help, it's not like he was majorly struggling. But the Doctor was going out of their way to do something to make his life just a little easier. And without making him feel utterly humiliated. They could have just as easily snatched the spoon from his hand and spoon fed him like he was an infant. But it was like they knew he'd respond poorly without him having to say so.

He wasn't sure if he liked feeling seen like that.

-

Andy was not having a good time to say the least. Every bone in his body was burning cold, all the muscles in his body involuntarily tensing as he shook. The Doctor held him tight, fingers combing through his hair just like the night before, although this time Andy was shivering feverishly and holding back tears rather than giving them an exhausted groan before immediately flaking out.

He sniffed, tears covering his vision. He was not about to cry in front of the Doctor. He already felt far too exposed and vulnerable just from the fact he felt sick and gross. He had never fared well with being ill but usually he was alone when he hit the point of frustrated tears, too overwhelmed with it all to do anything else.

"I've got you, Andy. You'll be alright." the Doctor whispered in his ear before pressing a gentle kiss to his temple. Maybe it should have been a comforting gesture. It probably was.

A new wave of feelings crashed into him. He couldn't breathe, he was drowning in it. He gripped at the soft fabric of the Doctor's t-shirt, pulling it through his hand, tugging and running it through his fingers. They responded by holding him tighter. Despite his best efforts, the dam broke.

The tears began to fall, his breaths hitched and stuttered uncomfortably as he burrowed himself into the Doctor's embrace. He was exhausted and just wanted to hang onto the comfort as long as it would last (because of course it would be over soon, surely the Doctor had better things to do, somewhere else they'd rather be. Something would come up and they'd flee out the door leaving Andy by himself, just like always).

The Doctor barely acknowledged Andy's tears, just quietly increased their efforts to soothe him. They were talking to him and Andy couldn't really parse a single word, his foggy aching head refusing to, but their voice still filled his mind and helped a little.

He coughed and gasped, trying to catch his breath but failing miserably. His ribs ached, nausea swirled in his stomach and creeped up his chest and throat.

And suddenly he was gagging and heaving, folded over the side of the bed and narrowly managing to vomit into the small bin stashed away nearby rather than on the carpet or his bedsheets. It felt like something inside him was violently shoving and pushing, trying to escape. Each cough and breath was painful.

He spat out the last of his stomach contents and took as deep a breath as he could manage, the acidic taste of bile clogging his throat. He suddenly became aware of the Doctor's hands, holding him steady so he didn't fall off the bed and rubbing gentle circles into his back.

Carefully, like they were handling something priceless and fragile, they pulled him back up to rest against them. A plastic water bottle was held up to his lips and he drank it gratefully, washing away the taste of vomit and shame. A few drops of water spilled on his t-shirt as the bottle was drawn away. Cold.

"Sorry." he rasped unsteadily, tear stained face hiding itself in the Doctor's shoulder once more.

"Don't apologise. I'm gonna help for as long as you need me."

[fuglyhorses]

i dont know anything about horses why did i scroll through this blog for so long. i have seen so many bad horses, what makes a good horse

Because it's interesting! Depends on the horse and what you want it to do. Overall basic conformation rules that apply to every horse:

The back should appear relatively level from shoulder to butt, with a slight dip in the middle. Too much of a dip is a swayback, no dip is a roach back, both are probably painful and bad. The shoulders can appear higher, but the butt should not be the obvious high point. There's some leeway on this last point for young horses who usually grow into it at least a little.

The neck should be a smooth line on top and bottom. It shouldn't appear to dip in front of the shoulders, and the horse should carry it in a smoothly arched posture while moving around, especially while moving faster than a walk. There should be visible muscle in the neck. It should be long enough that the horse can easily arch it enough so that the forehead is vertical. The head should never be longer than the neck, but in some heavy draft breeds and stocky ponies they'll sometimes look about the same.

All four legs should be vertical and straight when viewed from directly in front or behind. The joints should be as close to in line as possible. When viewed from the side, the long bones of the front legs should be in line above and below the knee. The knee will bulge out a bit, but any joint that looks abnormally large or out of line is an issue.

When looking at the hind legs, the long bone in the lower leg should be as vertical as possible, but this varies with posture. Judge this when a horse is standing calmly on level ground and bearing its weight evenly. The upper long bone in the hind leg absolutely should not be vertical in a neutral weight-bearing posture (when the lower bone is vertical). The closer to vertical, the more wrong it is. If it looks like the horse can easily bend and flex all joints in the hind leg, and the lower bone is often held comfortably vertical but the upper one isn't, you're good. If the movement, legs, and topline are fine, the hip is also probably fine, but you can get really technical with hip angles if you want. It should look like a triangle. Don't worry about it yet.

The feet should all be pointing straight forward, not facing each other or out. The pastern, the short bone just above the hoof, should be long enough to flex as they walk, but not so long that it looks like it's sagging. All four pasterns should be at about the same angle (though they can appear slightly more vertical in the back without issues) and that angle should match the angle of the base of the neck at the shoulder. This is a pretty easily visible line. Generally speaking, longer pasterns and a deeply sloped shoulder angle indicate smoother gaits and a more comfortable ride, and vice versa. Neither is necessarily more desirable, it depends on what activities you're doing. Steeper angles are better for jumping, for example, even if it'll mean a bumpier trot.

Overall, the horse should appear balanced and move freely. There should be visible muscle throughout the body and the coat should appear healthy. There's a wide range of acceptable body types specialized for different tasks, and the horse you choose should have a body type that lets it perform what you ask comfortably.

This is kind of off the top of my head but these rules should be pretty universal (and a perfectly achievable bar for any intentional breeding imo).

[mandana-the-service-pup]

Update to the update…

We had one big snow & Mandana decided to blow her coat already 🙄

Our decompression walk yesterday at the living history museum was great! Mandana has been doing physical therapy for about a month now and it’s really starting to show! For a long time she has been wanting to cut our walks down to 45 minutes and even then her back is usually sore afterwards. This time we were there for an hour and she was still having fun running around and exploring. I think she might have been able to go another hour if I didn’t stop her because it was getting dark. She also wasn’t sore afterwards and she’s been carrying herself a lot better too. I knew she had a weak topline we were trying to strengthen, but until the rehab vet got her hands on her I didn’t realize she had a thigh discrepancy and weak core that was making that so difficult.

We had our follow-up appointment at the Animal Rehabilitation Center today and the vet was very pleased with the results. Besides core exercises and general fitness, I’ve been working her right side extra hard. Our first appointment, there was a two centimeter difference between her thighs and this time it was only one centimeter! The vet and I theorize it’s because she has been heeling on my left side for four years which evolved into her default for which way she likes to turn and shift her weight during activities so she’s not getting equal movement on both sides of her body. She has a “switch” command that I use when passing people but I don’t usually have her walk long distances on my right because neither of us are very fluent with that position so it’s inconvenient. Now I know how important it is to make sure she’s using her whole body properly and not just whatever is easiest for her!

Speaking of improvements on our walk, the Fludrocortisone has been AMAZING. Like combined with the Midodrine it’s truly life altering. Low blood pressure, nocturia and muscle wasting wasn’t as big of an issue until after the Cardiologist took me off Fludrocortisone in 2022 but after just being on a low dose of it for one day I was able to walk a long distance without too much fatigue and even jog to the car without searing pain in my chest, neck and head! I haven’t jogged since…checking my notes…2022 😒

It technically shouldn’t have worked that fast or been that influential if it was just a blood pressure issue so my Rheumatologist was really interested in the effects. I thought maybe because it’s a steroid it helped with the autoimmune disease but the Rheumatologist said it doesn’t really work on inflammation in the way we use other steroids to get out of a flare so it’s way more likely that I have some sort of hormone deficiency. She doesn’t speak English well so it was hard to understand but it sounds like she was suggesting adrenal insufficiency. Which again, is not surprising at all because that was my theory many years ago and is actually what led to my POTS & EDS diagnosis (which are all very comorbid with each other) I’m not super enthusiastic about chasing that diagnosis right now though. Unless things have changed a lot since then, it’s hard to get a doctor to take you seriously enough to explore it and the test is generally unreliable and I would probably have to go off all of my treatments to do it. But for now Fludrocortisone is working and my Rheumatologist suggests I might have to adjust the dose periodically to accommodate different seasons, flares, etc.

Puppy update…you don’t get one…yet 😈

[pawsitivevibe]

No luck in the breed ring again today. But he looked good. I think this is the best groom I've done.

I think this is our last dog show of the year. Hopefully we can come back next year and actually get some points.

Part of me says "at what point do we give up?" But another part says "follow his breeder's advice, that he'll only get better as he matures." It's disheartening going on 2 seasons with no points. Other people I know have easily championed their puppies. But I know he's a nice dog. I've read the breed standard! But I'm still very new to this. And I'm going against the grain not getting a pro handler for him. I picked one of the hardest breeds for my first show dog. He's probably the hardest colour to show. And judges keep thinking he's still a puppy, so clearly he has some maturing to do. But he has a good front! Nice topline! Good muscle in the rear! Pretty shoulders! A big blocky head with good muzzle width. Perfect tail set. The judges are seeing something wrong with him, but it might be something he grows out of, or something we learn to compensate for. Ahhh I wish you got critiques here like you do in a lot of European shows. I want to know what's wrong with my dog? People keep saying he has "a good front" and "good substance." I've been told by people in the breed after losing in the ring that basically the judge was wrong not to recognize Arthur's good bone and substance over the incorrect dainty dogs. But it's not like his "type" doesn't win in the ring, because I would say that the #1 ECS in the country and this year's national BOB are both the same "type" as Arthur.

[bloomingstay]

favorite kpop group tag~ thank you @binniesbang!

who is your favorite kpop group?

stray kids, if that was any surprise

which member sparked your interest first?

hyunjin! i've almost always been pulled in by the dancer (lee know i know but) specifically the style of dance hyunjin excels in. the isolation is so satisfying and cool. for some reason choreo always gets a song stuck in my head??

But also!! I had heard they produced their own music and that really got me interested in kpop again

who was your first bias?

chris bang 🤍 went from zero to ult within no more than two days tbh…

what makes them your current bias?

oh god. um. i'll put this in the least embarrassing way possible. (this is a kpop tumblr blog I should probably get over it)

it was a particularly bad year. i stumbled upon their silly videos (thank you stay for the edits<3) and they made me laugh. then i started seeing clips of chans room and him interacting with the boys and just like... he's so wonderful. he's generous and kind and loving and thoughtful. just a shy lil guy who also happens to be a flirt and a fucking dork and it's cute man idk shut upp

who is your bias wrecker?

i was certain i'd never have one, i truly adore each of those boys so so much.

i was however proven wrong after a very sweet, silly compilation of binnie being ridiculous. followed by a face cam of his sclass performance in the supreme jersey?? and the curls?? he has such amazing stage presence and he's a great dancer. but he kept going from his cute sweet binnie expressions looking like he was just so into it and having fun, to the "dark rapper" eyes and commanding stage presence. and like, wow. 🖤 i am a sucker for that kind of duality.

which members are you currently obsessing over that aren't your bias/wrecker?

in another reality han is my wrecker. that boy is the epitome of what i used to look for in guys: babygirl. lol. well, and insanely talented and funny and everything. I adore him

after befriending a couple seungmin stans, i started looking for pics and clips to send them and found myself so incredibly impressed with him and touched by some of the things he's said and done. plus he’s a funny little shit.

hwang hyunjin is such a sweet boy. since we got producer jinnie on the last album i have been looking back and just so impressed with his growth 🤍

when did you first discover the group?

(Upon editing I realize I read this as ‘how’ but oh well)

okokok so

i was a kpop fan 2014-2017 and went all in. kcon and concerts the whole thing

but then i was just on my usual 6 hour yt shorts binge as i tried to fall asleep and saw skz reacting to the "your eyes" mv, specifically felix's part, obviously. i watched it like 12 times just cry laughing at han screaming, hyunjin trying to escape, channie hiding behind his hands and squealing. it was just so funny to see a group kind of clowning their own shit? i thought they were hilarious.

then i saw julien (solomita) had reacted to 'topline' and i was soooo into it. immediately went to watch some mvs and decided cool i'll be a totally normal casual fan of this group’s music….. :)

THEN a lovely lady i'd followed on my 10 year old tumblr account posted about skz. i messaged her that I’d finally decided to check them out and she was kind enough to answer questions and entertain my onslaught of messages as I screamed about how much I love these boys. and she still does everyday so. thank you hana 🌸

have you ever been to one of their concerts?

not yet~

what are some of your favorite songs by them?

THIS SECTION TOOK ME WAY TOO LONG. disclaimer: I absolutely could not include non ot8 this would’ve been 30 songs (I’m probably going to cheat)

Hall of fame. bitch ever since that live stage (which was the first time I’d heard it) I’ve listened to the sclass album 3 times a week no joke, goddamn it’s so good. so just know, i pulled almost every song from that album off this list when i made cuts

levanter. a hard pill to swallow mid relationship struggles and holds a lot of meaning for me.

secret secret. i can't get over how professional this song sounds and how it was just a few years in?

leave. where i got my username~ like I said, relationship stuff. You have not yet really bloomed When the new season comes I hope the warmth will make you bloom Into a flower that never dies

sclass. *bling bling* HIPHOPSTEP. such a fucking chaotic mess of a jam.

megaverse. the breakdown? MEGAPHONE. Han, bitch? We make the rules nobody can hold me yeaaahhh. Your body shakes - STRAY KIDS EVERYWHERE ALL AROUND THE WORLD. Sorry, flawless.

gods menu. ate, bitch. chan was something the fuck else

domino. neeed I say more

social path is bomb

grow up. read lyrics for the first time just now ow

eternity. told u I’d cheat.

love poem. big cheat my list worth it

I am going to be so mad when I realize I missed a song I listen to 7 times a day but been doin this for 2 hours so I’m calling it. Also forgive me I’m still working through the discography (backwards) and haven’t listened to the full first couple albums.

the adhd is allowing no further focus or thought so i will be tagging the same friends as my last tag post no pressure <3

@channieblossoms @skzms @roseykat @thefantasyden @seungsungracha @astraysis @channieswife

Thank you again @binniesbang for tagging me~!

[redistrictgirl]

2016 vs. 2020 vs. 2024 Polling Comparisons

The provided polling averages are the raw numbers from Nate Silver's averages. For ease of interpretation, I calculated win probabilities based purely on those toplines.

Wisconsin:

September 27th, 2016: Clinton 43.4%, Trump 37.8% (~68% chance for Clinton)

September 22nd, 2020: Biden 50.2%, Trump 43.7% (~95% chance for Biden)

September 24th, 2024: Harris 49.6%, Trump 47.5% (~87% chance for Harris)

Pennsylvania:

September 27th, 2016: Clinton 44.5%, Trump 40.3% (~66% chance for Clinton)

September 22nd, 2020: Biden 49.7%, Trump 45.2% (~91% chance for Biden)

September 24th, 2024: Harris 49.0%, Trump 47.4% (~76% chance for Harris)

Michigan:

September 25th, 2016: Clinton 41.2%, Trump 36.5% (~62% chance for Clinton)

September 22nd, 2020: Biden 49.7%, Trump 45.2% (~92% chance for Biden)

September 24th, 2024: Harris 49.2%, Trump 46.8% (~79% chance for Harris)

North Carolina:

September 27th, 2016: Clinton 42.7%, Trump 42.5% (~51% chance for Clinton)

September 22nd, 2020: Biden 47.7%, Trump 46.5% (~62% chance for Biden)

September 24th, 2024: Harris 47.7%, Trump 48.0% (~47% chance for Harris)

The main thing that sticks out to me is that 2020 and 2024 look astonishingly similar for Democrats and a slight improvement for Mr. Trump. Whether this means that undecideds and leaners will break like they did in 2020 to produce a 2022-like environment or that Mr. Trump's base is being properly captured in a way it wasn't during COVID is an exercise left up to the reader's speculation. In the Rust Belt, Ms. Harris' odds of winning here lay right between those of her two predecessors, which will probably cause the people who believe in the Shy Trump Voter to take this as a sign that the election is VERY close. Finally, note how many undecideds existed in 2016 and how those deflated the impact of ~5 point spreads, whereas that was decisively not the case during COVID and even less so today.

You're free to reach your own conclusions about what will happen between now and election day, but understand that the spread, the vote share for each candidate, and the probability distribution all mean very different things (even though they're all related) and can be interpreted in very different ways, even individually!

[dhaaruni]

Im feeling about as hopeful for this race as i was for the 2022 midterms (not very) and im obviously doing everything in my power - donating, phone banking - to be pleasantly surprised again but im looking at SO many conflicting pieces of data that this year im genuinely unsure of what's going on. I'm not even talking about ~the polls~ or 538 (which unlike some people i do think is a very good aggregator no matter how you feel about nate silver) I mean just the electorate. It feels like the center IS hedging towards trump slightly while minority men are also flocking towards him? And IDK if she can gain more w women than lose men. Am i even on the right track here??

I really think the election will be decided by less than 100k votes across multiple states, that's all I feel lol.

I don't normally crosstab dive because they're never as accurate as the toplines but I agree that they're probably directionally correct (i.e. Trump is going to do better than ever with men of color), which isn't ideal, so it's really a matter if the results end up balanced in a way that tips Harris the W.