#Jealousy as a plot point isn't my favourite

[amethystina]

Hi! Thou Shalt Not Covet got me craving for more and thinking... what do you think is the difference between Ga On and Yo Han's jealousy? When would they feel most threatened? Also, how far do you think they would go in terms of their possessiveness?

Would love to read more about that 🙃

Hi there 💜

I think the biggest difference is that Ga On's jealousy is more internal while Yo Han's is more external. Like, Ga On becomes introspective, picks everything apart, and overthinks things, trying to figure out why this is happening and, not so surprisingly, what he did wrong to make it happen. Because even if Ga On would be angry and probably pretty vicious, he'd still focus a lot on his own "blame" and start wondering why he's not good enough. All those abandonment issues would kick in and he'd come up with a number of theories and what he thinks are answers — but they're all just speculations.

And, because of that, I don't think Ga On would really lash out against Yo Han and whoever's making him feel jealous. Or, well, with words and such, sure — and clearly mark the boundaries if he and Yo Han are a couple and someone is encroaching on his territory — but not by causing physical harm. Ga On's jealousy is more bark than bite, basically. Because somewhere deep down he'd be convinced he's just not good enough and that's not a reason to hurt someone else over. It's Ga On's own fault for not being lovable enough, right?

So while he'd get snappish and rude, he'd never act on it in a threatening or malicious way.

Yo Han, on the other hand — oh boy.

I did answer an ask about how Yo Han would react if he ever had a reason to suspect that Ga On was cheating on him and all of that still stands. I think Yo Han would focus all his ire outwards, the jealousy becoming a weapon to hurt others rather than himself (as opposed to Ga On who internalises it all and ends up hurting himself rather than others). That's not to say that Yo Han wouldn't have some angsty moments where he bemoans the fact that he's a monster and, clearly, no one can love him, but those aren't his main focus.

His main focus would be making life difficult for Ga On and whoever's making Yo Han jealous. And as for whether or not Yo Han would go far enough to kill? Uh, I mean... that depends on the situation? x'D

Ga On? Never.

(though Yo Han might just lock him away and throw away the key)

The other person? He'd be tempted.

But it would have to be an extreme situation, I think. Because killing someone he perceives as a romantic rival would, in some ways, be an admission of weakness. It would mean that Ga On has an incredible amount of power over Yo Han and I don't think that he'd be willing to admit that Ga On's choices can influence Yo Han's decisions to that degree. Especially if he thinks that Ga On has betrayed him by falling in love with someone else. That would mean that Yo Han has to admit to himself that he's pining after someone who's not his — which would hurt his pride something terrible.

So, in the long run, while Yo Han is certainly capable of murdering someone he considers a romantic rival, I don't think he would. Because it's beneath him. He's not that interested or invested in Ga On.

(except yes he is — he's just a grumpy old man who refuses to admit it to himself)

As for when they'd feel most threatened, I think it would be before they get together or just shortly after they get together. Once they've been a couple for years and settled down, I don't think jealousy is going to be much of an issue for them. Because they'll both know that there's no way in hell either of them is stupid enough to throw away what they have, given how well-matched they are. They know there's no one else who can give them exactly what they need.

And, like, if they have kids? Fuck no.

Both Ga On and Yo Han would go: "No, he loves the kids and me too much to cheat" and that's that. I mean, sure, there might still be brief moments when they have to get a little possessive when a third party is being too flirty, but neither of them would actually think that the other is going to respond to that flirting and start straying.

(partly because I suspect that they have an unspoken agreement of: "if you do cheat on me I'll take the kids and spend the rest of my days making your life a living hell" but that sounds a lot less romantic)

But at the beginning? Or just after they get together? There would definitely be more to worry about.

And their weak spots are connected to their overall insecurities. So Ga On would be afraid that he's not good enough, not lovable enough, not smart enough, not experienced enough etc. He's not very glamorous or suave and pretty shy and clumsy about sex at first. He'd worry that he can't give Yo Han what he needs and that he'll eventually become a burden or that Yo Han will grow bored of him. He'd feel clingy and desperate and wonder if, just maybe, Yo Han wants someone more like himself — someone calm, rational, and mature. So just the usual abandonment and self-esteem issues cranked up to a toasty fifteen, basically.

Yo Han, meanwhile, would feel threatened at the thought of not being able to give Ga On the life and love he deserves. Yo Han is nothing if not self-aware and he knows that living with him is difficult, so he'd worry that someone might come along and show Ga On that he can find a better, sweeter, and kinder life elsewhere. Yo Han would worry that he's hurting Ga On by holding on to him and that, maybe, Ga On will realise that too someday and choose someone better. Someone who can love him and support him and care for him in a way that Yo Han can't with all his jagged edges. That was probably why he felt so threatened by Soo Hyun — she could give Ga On a life full of love and light and softness, whereas Yo Han can only offer darkness. And Ga On deserves better.

Again, it all depends a bit on the situation, though. Like, different insecurities rise to the forefront depending on where they are in their relationship and what the exact situation is.

But something like that, I guess?

I admit I've debated whether or not to write a fic based on that ask about Yo Han being jealous but goddamn it would hurt so maybe not x'D I don't like hurting myself (or Ga On) like that.

I've also toyed with the idea of writing Yo Han's POV of Thou Shalt Not Covet partly because I think it's hilarious just how confused he was there for a second. But that also means I'd have to write out Yo Han's thoughts and not all of them were pretty or kind. He's not a nice man — even less so when Ga On gives him such a perfect opening for some manipulation that will result in Ga On staying by his side >_>

So we'll see. It's not very high on my list of priorities right now since I have so many other projects I want to focus on.

Thank you so much for the ask! Please take care 💜

[givemea-dam-break]

okay so, consider this: jealous George

hasn't been done much, and jealousy is one of my favourite tropes. I'm thinking friends to lovers (obv) and you're free to make it as angsty as possible, as long as we get a happy ending :))) and you know what would probably hurt him most? When he's jealous of Lockwood bc he gets along so well with reader, maybe they just have a borderline-flirty dynamic (all platonic ofc) and George just has to watch and know he's never gonna be able to be like this (angst angst angst)

AND to make it MORE angsty maybe reader is really reserved around george but only bc she is so nervous (he doesn't know that ofc!!)

AND how about George confides in Lucy at some point that he thinks lockwood and reader might be into each other and she's like "uh yeah no, lockwood and I are dating"

Just throw in whatever cliché trope you can think of in there, i love them all

a/n: I AM IN LOVE WITH THIS IDEA OMFG YES THANK YOU!!!!!! jealousy is also one of my favourite tropes it’s great but i haven't actually written it all that much so i hope you enjoy! this isn't very angsty because i actually struggled with the plot for this, but hopefully you still like it lol

warnings: mild language words: 3.9K female reader taglist: @flashbackwhenyoumetme @irisesforyoureyes @aayeroace @waitingforthesunrise @ettadear @mirrorballdickinson @ella23116 (let me know if you want added to my taglist!)

Touch - George Karim

George had a habit of staying up late on nights where it was unnecessary.

It wasn’t that he couldn’t sleep, but rather the fact that he didn’t want to until he was sure that everything was all right. When the agents of Lockwood and Co. returned to 35 Portland Row, safe and – mostly – unharmed, he could relax.

Well, he frankly could care less what ego-fulfilling stories Lockwood had to tell upon his returns or the colourful and new swear words Lucy had learned from Skull. It was (name) he waited up for.

Out of the three of his friends, (name) was the one who understood him most. She never pushed for him to speak when he didn’t feel comfortable. She always listened to him ramble on, whether it be for a case or purely out of interest in something, with her full attention, letting him speak for as long as he wanted, smiling and nodding as he did so. He felt most like himself with her around.

So, there he sat in the living room, glancing between the book in his lap and the front door, waiting for the familiar rattle of the doorhandle. It was cast in shadow, with only a thin streak of light cutting across it from the flickering crystal skull lamp in the hallway. Lockwood really needed to swap out the bulb.

When the tell-tale jingle of keys and the quiet clatter of the handle sounded, he sat up slightly and watched as she crept in as silently as she could. That was another thing George liked and appreciated about (name) – the fact that she was considerate for the other people in the house late at night. After a case, Lockwood would come in noisily, shutting the door behind him a little too loudly, and Lucy would be stomping around on too-creaky floorboards in her clunky boots. But (name) was always quiet.

It felt like George’s heart skipped a beat when she flashed him one of her enchanting smiles, paired with a little wave. Although the smiles were always reserved, edging on shy and nothing more than a curve of the lips and a sparkle in her eyes, it made his insides feel all warm and fluttery. The sensation had been new to him in the beginning, those first few times she’d smiled at him after she had been hired, but now it was something he yearned for. His days didn’t feel complete without it.

He opened his mouth to speak, but footsteps shook the stairs and, all of a sudden, Lockwood was there, arm draped over (name)’s shoulders.

“How was the case?” he asked, grinning.

(name) leaned against him as she tugged off her ectoplasm-spotted boots. “Couldn’t even call it that. Mrs Tilden, as sweet as she is, forgets that she can’t actually hear ghosts, and that the neighbour’s cat yowls whenever it gets too cold. I would’ve been back sooner, but all the night cabs were taken, and I didn’t feel like riding back with Kipps and his lot.”

“Well, you’re here now. Fancy some tea? Boiled the kettle not long ago.”

“That’d be great,” she said. When her eyes, sparkling in the dim light, turned on George, he found himself stuck to the spot. “Do you want some, George? I got some of that tea you really like this morning.”

And, as much as George wanted to agree, he couldn’t help but look at Lockwood and the way he so easily stood with her, holding her close and grinning. It should be George there. It should be him she leaned on after a case, him that made her tea and asked her how it went.

No, no. His feelings didn’t entitle him to her or her time. Besides, she and Lockwood had been friends since childhood, separated for a few years for educational reasons, so it was a given that they’d be close. He just wished it didn’t make his throat ache every time he saw them like they were now, standing close and laughing. Something he so longed to do, but didn’t know if he could.

So, he simply said, “No, thanks, I’m about to head up to bed.”

She smiled at him once more, the shadow of a grin hiding in the corners, and nodded before following Lockwood down to the kitchen, joking about the infamous Cat of Mead Place. Her voice seemed to reverberate through the walls and into George’s very being as he stared down at the book in his lap, the page long since lost in his distraction.

Heaving a sigh, he gently closed it and set it upon the coffee table, then trudged up the stairs to his room.

--

“So, you think that our ghost is the killer? That’s interesting. From the description, I would’ve figured it’d be the victim. Makes sense, though.”

George nodded, trying not to focus on the soft scent of lavender and something flowery as (name) leaned closer to him, studying his notes and findings. He really hoped she couldn’t hear the furious pounding of his heart.

“Well, it was the murderer’s house,” he said, pushing his glasses up his nose a little. “It’s very likely that, even if it’s the old remains of the victim, it’s the killer’s source. Remember that bit in Hackney? Old teeth in a jar, but it was the source for that murderer.”

(name) shivered. “Don’t remind me. Still have nightmares about that guy.” She shuffled her chair slightly closer, casting George a short glance, before pulling one of the newspaper copies over. “Natalie Greymouth tried and imprisoned for the murder of her six children, later to – Wait, six children? So, in between all these other murders she committed, she was also popping out babies and killing them?”

Huffing a laugh, George said, “Suppose the kids distracted people from the fact that she was a cold-blooded killer.”

At that, (name) snickered, and a spark travelled down George’s spine as he watched her. The way she grinned as she covered her mouth with the back of her hand, how her cheeks flushed for only a moment. It wasn’t until she turned her head to look at him, much closer than she had been before, that George felt stuck for breath.

Her smile slowly softened into something shyer, more private, as she became aware of the small space between them, but as quick as thought she turned away again, focusing back on the documents in front of them.

Hope had begun to form in that short moment, and it had tasted sweet, but it became bitter as Lockwood and Lucy burst through the kitchen door with bags of goods from Satchell’s. Lucy slid behind George’s seat, dumping an additional shopping bag filled with food on the kitchen counter.

“Hard at work I see,” Lockwood said with a grin. He leaned down over (name)’s shoulder, scanning the notes sprawled everywhere. “Makes no sense to me. I trust you guys have a lead on what we’re walking into later?”

George could feel his throat burn at the sight of them, but he swallowed the feeling down and looked away. “Yeah. We’ll give you the run down on the way.”

He tried his best not to look when Lockwood squeezed (name)’s arm. He tried even harder to ignore the grin she sent his way, so unlike anything she’d ever shown George, but it was impossible. It felt like trying to pretend that Skull wasn’t on the countertop making the most horrid faces ever. The action only ever drew his eye.

Her smile lit up any room she was in, and he hated that it wasn’t directed at him but instead Lockwood. Lockwood, who everyone attached themselves to – (name), Lucy, Flo Bones, the public. Everyone. Well, except for Quill Kipps and his Fittes lot, but George didn’t want them. He only wanted her.

--

“We’re splitting up.”

“Worst idea ever. I don’t like the look of this place.”

Lockwood snorted. “You never like the look of any of the places we’re hired out to.”

“Lie,” (name) said. She looked up at the towering house before them. “There was that one bit in Camden, remember? With the really nice, frosted glass windows in the door.”

“Before Lucy crashed into it and smashed the glass.”

Lucy went bright pink. “I don’t think that’s our focus for today.”

George watched as Lockwood nudged (name) with his elbow, eliciting a laugh from her, and tightly said, “Lucy’s right. We need to get this case over with. And pairs sound good – too much room to cover as one group. (name), I’ll go with you.”

For a moment, the rush of blood in his ears was all he could hear. What if she said no; that she wanted to pair up with Lockwood instead? George didn’t have anything against Lucy, but it got  unnerving hearing her one-sided conversations with Skull. He was never sure if she was insulting him or the glowing ghost in the jar. And they’d probably end up bickering as they often did which wouldn’t help this case run smoothly at all.

But (name) nodded and offered him that delicate smile. “Sounds good. Think I’ve got some ideas of where we might find our source.”

“Care to share?” Lockwood asked, quirking an eyebrow.

“No.”

“I’m your boss. You’ve got to tell me.”

“I don’t have to tell you anything.”

“Yes, you –“

“Let’s go,” George interrupted. His fingers were beginning to twitch. “Before it gets dark.”

And so, they did. While Lucy and Lockwood trudged inside and up the looming staircase in the centre of the house, George and (name) crept through the ground floor, taking temperatures and using their Talents. He did try, really he did, to not linger on thoughts of her and Lockwood, of their lingering laughs and smiles, but it became increasingly harder the quieter they stayed.

“So, what are your ideas for finding the source?” he asked, trying to break the silence that had grown between them.

Usually, George would’ve preferred the quiet, but this was choking. Every moment his mind strayed from the task at hand, it drifted over to the horrible ache in his chest and the twitching of his fingers caused by what could only be described as jealousy. Jealousy! God, even thinking it made him mad.

Why was he jealous? Because someone he had never explicitly admitted to liking was showing an interest in someone else? Because someone else would squeeze her arm or nudge her, when even tapping her shoulder to get her attention felt like it would make George implode?

(name)’s fingers brushed over an old vase, and she lifted it up, turning it in her hands. “Going to use my Touch on very specific things. This lady died, what, five years ago? And her nephew took this house, so he likely would’ve thrown out most, if not all, of the things belonging to her. So, we need to find the obscure things.”

“Like that restaurant with the porcelain egg cup as a source?”

“Exactly like that. The stuff no one would expect a ghost to connect to.” Her grin then was unlike the ones she shared with Lockwood, and though it was rather self-approving, George found himself drawn to it. It was something he experienced that Lockwood might not have. “Georgie, you’re going to find the strangest things in this room, and I’ll have a feel. This was one of our theories for the primary haunting, right?”

The words clogged in his throat. Georgie. It repeated over and over and over in his head as he swallowed the feelings that were building up. “Yeah.”

He glanced around the office they had ended up in and took the temperature, finding it as the lowest on the ground floor. It was a moderately sized room with a massive desk cutting through the centre with chairs either side. The desk itself was neatly organised with folders and pens all gathered in holders. An expensive-looking computer had gathered dust since the owner’s rushed departure a few days ago. Rather unassuming, on the whole, but that was exactly what she wanted.

“We’ve got an hour until sundown,” he said, peeking out of the large window. “I’ll watch your back.”

Together, they picked out a selection of seemingly strange things from around the office. An envelope rack; a rather rusty metal pen; a little glass horse ornament plucked from a display case, among many other things. But (name)’s hands lingered over a photo frame. It was a simple thing made from light-coloured wood, and the picture inside showed the owner of the house and his partner, so it was the last thing George would’ve suspected. This was what she was for, though, he remembered. Her gut instinct was much better than the rest of Lockwood and Co.’s.

“Be careful,” George murmured. “We don’t want another repeat of Lucy and Annabelle Ward.”

There was that delicate smile again, and his heart skipped a beat.

With a firm grip, (name) took the frame in her hands and shut her eyes. George could only watch in silence as she used her Talent, unused to having nothing to do in the meantime, and found himself staring. She was wearing the jumper Lockwood had gotten her for her birthday a few months ago, which had George chewing the inside of his cheek, but it was hardly his main focus. Not when the sunlight peeking through the curtains was highlighting her skin just so, emphasising little details he had only ever seen when they would research together, and he’d get distracted and stare. The implication of another smile in the corners of her lips, the curl of her lashes against slightly rosy cheeks.

After a few moments of frowning in such a way that left George with a smile tugging on his lips, her eyes fluttered open, and a proud grin split her mouth. George’s knees felt a little weak.

“Bingo. This used to have a photo of our ghost Natalie with her six kids before she killed them inside. Who’d have thought?”

It took George a minute to reply. His brain felt muddled, what with the brightness of her smile and the feeling in his chest. “I’ll go get the silver net. Our bags are still in the hall.”

“Lockwood will be well chuffed we found the source so quick.”

A moment of hesitation. One George hoped she hadn’t caught, but as he stepped towards the door, (name)’s smile melted into something more concerned.

“Are you all right?”

“Hmm? I’m fine.”

“George, what’s wrong? You were fine literally ten seconds ago and now you, well, you look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

George shook his head. “(name), honestly, I’m fine.”

“Did I say something? God, what have I said in the last, what, two minutes? Um…”

She muttered under her breath as she tried to think, and George really did try to push the burning feeling in his throat down. The embarrassment that, even though it was the two of them working down there on the case, she immediately thought of Lockwood. What more did he expect? He was nothing more than the second choice to most people – no, third. Fourth even. Hell, he was the last choice, and he should’ve realised that (name) would see him that way, too.

“It’s you and Lockwood,” he blurted.

And he regretted it immediately.

(name) looked over at him then, eyes slightly widened, and mouth parted. “What?”

He could only shrug as he looked away from her. “I just – I don’t know. Lockwood is the one everyone finds the most interesting, and I’d hoped that for once that someone might choose me.”

“You thought I would…”

She didn’t need to finish the sentence for him to know what she meant. George didn’t know how to explain the feeling that encompassed his very soul at that moment. It felt like drowning, in a way. Like these feelings he’d fought so hard to keep at bay were filling his lungs rapidly and stopping him from breathing. His head was submerged, and he couldn’t think clearly. He couldn’t do anything but feel these horrible emotions so acutely that it was painful.

“I’m sorry. I get that you and Lockwood are close. Well, you’re probably together and I’ve just never realised!”

He didn’t realise how much saying the words out loud could hurt. But he was right, wasn’t he? With all of their shared smiles and jokes and how they always stood close, there was no way they weren’t… a thing. George had just been too blind to see it.

“George.”

“Don’t. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said anything.”

“George! Shut. Up,” she hissed.

Words caught in his throat, shocked by the harsh tone and the expression on her face. Brows furrowed; eyes narrowed – she was angry at him!

“Look, I am sorry, but I don’t get why you’re mad at –“

She stormed over and slapped her hand over his mouth. The touch made him jump, and the close proximity of their faces had his treacherous heart pounding in his chest. Why? Why did it have to do that?

“Listen,” she whispered, and she gestured to the side with her head.

George slowly turned his gaze to the large table where he could now hear a faint click, click, click. When he looked, his heart lurched for a moment, and he saw one of the pens in the holder move slightly. The button at the end, the one that would bring the nib out, clicked open, then shut, then open. A few papers in one of the many folders fluttered despite the absence of a draft.

“Poltergeist,” he uttered beneath her hand. He tried not to focus on how soft it was, or how the soap she’d used smelled very different from the one Lockwood had bought for him.

She nodded soundlessly, and her hand lingered for a moment before moving back to her side. “Move quietly to the door.”

It was a good plan. If they moved silently and slowly, they’d be able to make it out to their kitbags and secure the source seeing as poltergeists were essentially blind. But George could feel its invisible presence hovering over them like a horribly cold and scratchy blanket, and the house was an old one. As soon as he took a step back, a floorboard creaked.

He and (name) froze and, for a minute nothing happened. Then the clicking stopped and the pen rattled in the holder. The temperature of the room felt like it had dropped five degrees within a mere second and, although George’s Listening was nowhere near the standard of Lucy’s, he swore he could hear a faint voice calling out some names.

Another step back, and the mistake was made. The door to the office slammed shut, rattling the bones of the house. Lockwood’s voice echoed from somewhere above, calling their names.

Shit.

He should’ve paid attention to the room growing colder or the sun setting outside instead of watching (name) when she’d used her Talent. Maybe then they wouldn’t be stuck in this position, facing off with a ghost that they couldn’t see nor could they harm without securing the source. And, well, they had no way of doing that now with their bags stashed outside.

(name) was the first to move. Light-footed on the floorboards, she tugged on the door handle, but it didn’t budge. George could feel her panic as strongly as he felt his own, and he realised with dread that they were only feeding into the ghost.

The clicking resumed, and (name) shuffled over to George again, hand on her rapier. It would prove useless in this situation.

“For your information,” she whispered. “Me and Lockwood aren’t a thing. He and Lucy are.”

George’s gaze snapped over to her, and she offered a soft albeit nervous smile. “I don’t think now is the time for that conversation.”

“Oh, come on, admit you’re relieved. Also, you didn’t happen to stash a silver net in your pocket did you?”

Yes, he was relieved. He didn’t think he’d ever been more relieved in his life than he was in that moment, knowing that she wasn’t with Lockwood. He was confused for a moment, wondering how he hadn’t ever seen the connection between Lockwood and Lucy, but it was overtaken by the sheer happiness that (name) wasn’t in a relationship with their best friend. And, no, he hadn’t thought to stuff a net in his pocket.

The jealousy that had reared its ugly head in his chest dissipated entirely when her hand slipped into his, warm in the horrid freezing temperature in the office.

“How are we getting out of here?”

George wasn’t sure. He wasn’t Lockwood. He didn’t come up with reckless plans that saved their lives while inadvertently endangering them at the same time. He didn’t destroy houses in the process.

Well…

“You any good at throwing chairs?”

--

Hours later, George was still shaking glass out of his hair over the kitchen bin at 35 Portland Row.

Lockwood was standing over the kettle as water boiled, waiting to make cups of tea for everyone as Lucy slapped a plaster on a cut on his forehead. Apparently, after hearing the office door slam, the two of them had rushed down the stairs, only for the carpet the ran down the centre of them – for whatever posh, middle-class Londoner reason – slipped out of place, presumably because of the Poltergeist, sending Lockwood toppling. He whacked his head off the corner of the wall, earning a pretty nasty cut and a possible concussion. Lucy had come off scott-free, but Skull’s silverglass jar had a dent in the top.

(name) and George on the other hand were covered in little shards of glass that nicked them every now and then after sending a chair through the office window and leaping out into the flower bushes right outside. Thank god they’d been on the first floor.

Ever since that moment in the office, that one where (name) had told him about Lockwood and Lucy, the one where she held his hand, it had become blatantly obvious how wrong George had been about everything. Even now, he could tell that the energy that she and Lockwood shared was nothing like the one Lockwood had with Lucy. How hadn’t he noticed sooner?

Frankly, he didn’t really care about that now. He was too caught up on the phantom touch of her hand in his and the smiles she kept sending his way.

She’d held his hand in the taxi on the way home, claiming it was just because the poltergeist had freaked her out, but he had a feeling that wasn’t the entire truth. (name) was one of the bravest people he had ever met, so a poltergeist wasn’t going to be the thing to shake her out of the norm. But George didn’t mind.

He hadn’t ever been big on being touched, disliking the way it made his skin feel, but he found himself staying close to her, aching to hold her hand again. And, judging from the twitch of her fingers, the way they inched closer to his when he sat next to her, he figured she felt much the same.

And, with a smile, he wrapped his hand around hers, enjoying the feeling of her skin against his.

[butchhamlet]

what are your favourite things about king lear? also do you know any really good productions that i can watch online for free? asking because i didn’t really like king lear when i read it (except for edmund. i love edmund) and knowing why other people like it might let me look at it from a different angle. because i know it’s objectively a good play, and there’s a 50% chance of me having to study it next year so i want to like it

so i started writing a response to this ask and then paused to plot out my points (as if writing a goddamn essay) and then i looked at my points and i had written

fucked-up families

apocalypse vibes

women are hot

which. yeah, that's it, isn't it

anyway, to elaborate on that: i will admit that some of this is just personal preference, because i love stories about complicated nuclear-waste-toxic family dynamics, and lear is, like, one of the original Nuclear Waste Family Dynamic plays. (so is the oreisteia, incidentally.) what gets me specifically is that this is a play about power, yeah, but also about love: everybody in lear wants love, and nobody is getting enough of it. and the dynamics of the two families here get immediately more interesting if this isn't JUST a who-inherits-the-throne thing. edmund wants political sway, yeah, but maybe he also wants to be seen as more than a bastard. goneril kills her sister out of jealousy, yeah, but also, has she ever had a person care about her like edmund? (does he care about her? how much of the love triangle is about love vs lust vs calculation? these are questions that could be answered a thousand ways.)

i also read this play counter to old white guy traditional scholarship because i think lear (the guy) sucks. sorry. i think he sucks. i think he's terrifying and tyrannical and his daughters can do whatever they want (imo, his main problem is trying to apply his political power to his personal relationships, and that's not something caused by his senility. goneril and regan state at the end of 1.1 that, while he's going off the deep end a little more these days, "the best and soundest of his time hath been but rash." this guy has always sucked). speaking of goneril and regan, they're not evil hags--they're women trying to live with an unpredictable father, as well as trying to retain the little power they have in a male-dominated world. (notably, regan's husband is on her team, while goneril's isn't, and lear seems to have a lot of hatred for goneril specifically. which colors how both of them interact with power, edmund, and each other.)

i could actually talk about lear family dynamics forever (do cordelia's sisters love her, resent her, or both? how does edgar feel about edmund? how does edmund feel about edgar, for that matter? does he feel guilty at all for doing what he does? does edgar feel guilty about killing him? is the relationship between lear and gloucester entirely professional, or are they friends? can lear even have friends when he sees everything as some sort of zero-sum power love game? is kent gay for lear? <- yes) but i won't. because i have another point to make!

which is that it's somewhat comforting to me, in an era of [gestures at the news and broad state of the world], to read a play where people are like "holy fuck the world's going to shit and all the rules of society are inverted!" i read lear for the first time during pandemic quarantine, so. it felt fitting. your mileage may vary here (maybe you prefer escapism), but i think one could draw a lot of parallels between lear and [gestures out the window again]. this play is bleak in a way that few other shakespeare plays are bleak. (maybe timon of athens.) it's set in pre-christian britain, and the gods are invoked, but they're not really present. no one who appeals to higher powers ever seems to get any help or even comfort. and the original story of king leir didn't end Like That. shakespeare decided his play was going to end with the emotional equivalent of getting bricked in the face. cordelia's death doesn't mean anything at all! it didn't have to happen! edmund tried to stop it! she doesn't die in the original myth! and yet we're left with this horrifying apocalyptic last scene, where all the struggles for love and power come to almost nothing. maybe, if one is concerned about current events, this would make one feel worse. but i fucking love tragic catharsis and i feel bleak about the modern world so this horrible upsetting play is quite close to my heart <3

finally: i've already touched on Hot Women, but . i am a simple butch. i think goneril and regan are soooooo sexy. i love when women are mean and ruthless. i love when women kill with swords. i think conflating the two of them/treating them like two halves of the same Evil Daughter Character is a cardinal sin of shakespeare studies; you have to be reading with your eyes shut not to note stuff like regan's desire to outdo goneril, goneril's comparative lack of fulfilling relationships (re: lear fucking hates her and her husband sucks), or the differences in their dynamic with edmund (regan is still mourning cornwall at this point--does she love edmund at all, or is she just playing the political long game?). and cordelia, too, is more than just the Angelic Good Daughter; she's on stage much less frequently, but she shows a stubborn virtue that honestly borders on naivete and maybe an inclination toward martyrdom. how does she feel about her father? does she really forgive him? how does she feel about her sisters, for that matter? i'm not saying this play is, like, the most feminist shakespeare play ever written; i just really love the lear sisters.

other misc stuff: the themes are tasty! look at the authoritarianism! (is it right for one man to have this much power? see that line about the king being a wheel rolling down a hill destroying everything in his path as he destroys himself, or whatever). look at the gender dynamics! (goneril's dominance over albany and edmund in turn; the question of her womb; the mutual violence of regan and cornwall; cordelia leading an army.) look at the debate about fate and predestination! (#redditatheist edmund i love you). ++ the fact that it's set in some kind of nebulous unclear time period and the fool sings about merlin who wasn't even alive yet. i just think it's neat <3

as far as productions, i have a friend who swears by the bob jones university prod, though i haven't seen it in full (hi @lizardrosen :D). i also hav NTLive and RSC lears somewhere, i think, but shhhhh don't tell

i'd apologize for this ask being this long, but when my parents asked me to explain the plot of lear to them in 2020 i talked for 25 minutes so i guess we're all getting off lucky here

[missgoldberry]

I really enjoy your Bridgerton takes! How do you feel about the season now that it's been out for over a week? I've been warming up to it a lot more

Hi! Thank you! I love talking about it tbh. I go back and forth on it tbh - I mentioned before that I rewatched it (just Pen/Colin scenes) and overall their story was really good. They're definitely my favourite couple still and I thought romance was done well. They have great chemistry, they have a strong foundaiton for their relationship, they worked through some shit, they ultimately chose to love each other. The sex scenes were hot, love confessions were some of the best in the show, we saw both of them fight for each other. At the same time I keep getting stuck on the fact that this was their season, the only one they will ever get, and they just didn't have enough screen time. It felt very rushed.

I saw a lot of people saying that part 1 was perfect but I had many issues with it, it felt incredibly rushed as well. I feel like they should've shown more of their friendship (and yes, we have two season of set up for that but we needed to see Colin catch feelings and I'm sorry but one kiss is not enough for that), just them interacting, also more of Colin pining and being conflicted about his feelings. And part 2 started strong but they dragged on the LW reveal too long and then didn't have enough time to show them reconciling. I totally get that Colin would be mad and needed time (I'm in the minority with not wanting any angry sex scenes) but we needed to see it. Even with the excisting scenes we got, it was all just so... fast. Never enough time to just linger in a moment. Like that chin-caress-almost-kiss in dance BTS, why wasn't it in the final edit? Why didn't we see them tossing and turning while sleeping apart? They also never really tried to talk it out, we saw Pen explain LW to Portia and Eloise, and Colin talk to Cressida, but never to each other. And I know this show isn't good at showing couples communicate but these two were friends first.

And tbh a big problem is the lack of Colin. I will be the first person to admit that Pen is my favourite character and I love to see her on screen. But Colin is an equal part of this couple and they didn't do a good job with developing his character. The way he just showed up as an entirely different person wasn't really addressed well (I read an interview from Luke where he explained Colin so well, why couldn't they have done that in the show?), his desire to publish his journals came out of nowhere, he was just suddenly editing them (and apparently it was a big deal to him and a big deal to the plot because his jealousy stemmed from it). It just wasn't set up well. People kept telling him how sensitive and nice he is, and how he was pretending to be someone he isn't but I didn't really see that conflict.

Another big issue for me was the ending. I think if they reconciled earlier in the episode when Pen asks him to just stand by her, it would've been better. At that point Colin already read her letters so he could've given a similar speech like he did at the end (btw that speech is my favourite love confession in the show, it was so so good!) and then we could've seen them work together in executing Pen's plan. I liked that she addressed the Queen herself but I would've liked to see them arrive to the ball together, stand together before the Queen shows up, and he should've been the first person to embrace her after. And then give us more of them happy together (I personally would've liked a longer sex scene but it could've been them lounging in bed together, talking (!!!), kissing, ANYTHING). And as I said many times I didn't like them having a baby at the end but I could deal with it better if we just got more before, it wouldn't be so jarring.

Soo idk, I'm still conflicted. I LOVE these characters, I love their love story, I thought it was romantic and sexy (I don't understand why people say it was least romantic season, I thought their love was very evident throughout the entire thing, even when there was drama) but I'm also pissed because even if they come back next season, they will never be leads again. This was supposed to be their moment, and I feel like the creators of the show didn't trust in these two to properly lead the season and stuffed with so much unnecessary shit, their story got lost and sidelined. I just can't get over it, every time I get to a place of being happy with what we got, I remember how much more it could've been.

[malaierba]

Hi, @abyssalwyrm0 thanks for interacting with my post.

Regarding the "Abel being the bastard" thing you mentioned. We agree on all points (actually not sure why you summarised them to me?) but that one, and it happens to be one I enjoyed talking about.

SHazbin is rewrite/alternative telling of catholic lore (in general, like, there's no specific text it is subverting, not even of the Bible. We all assume this but it's never said anywhere explicitly). This means that although we can take inspiration from it, it's no guarantee that what's mentioned on it will show up on the show, let alone play out as it does in canon religious texts. Case in point, the retelling of the Creationist Myth. There's no religion where it happens as it does in Hazbin that is where Lilith is mentioned as playing a part in the apple story, and we have contextual narrative reasons (aka: it's a children's book) to believe that the story in it it's narrated unreliably.

You need to keep this in mind when you read my answer. I'm assuming that absolutely everything can be retold and subverted. The bible is baseline inaccurate in Hazbin, and I'm playing around with elements in it to find likely and/or interesting justifications to hypothetical scenarios.

So, to the points you bring up:

Point zero is that I think it's stupid to attribute innate goodness/sinfulness to either of the brothers on account of who their father is, beyond the canonical "the apple opened humans to sin". They both get sin from Eve, and you could make an argument for either likely parent being innately more corrupt/flawed than the other. Ie: "Adam is only human and bit the apple so it makes sense that Cain is his son" vs. "Cain's sin was jealousy/pride and he broke a rule that no one expected to be broken, which is very Lucifer-like. If we assume he didn't know he could kill, that on itself is reminiscent of the accidental creation of Hell".

But I think that's Genetic Reductionism (a theory that should never be taken and law and argued for in a vacuum imo) and it takes from the idea of Free Will. Both twins acting freely and without influence is consistent with the theme of Free Will. That said, having both characters act as their own person, making decisions based on their own perceptions and goals, yet having them be judged amongst other things on who their parents were... I don't think it's something that should have metanarrative validity, but I think that as a driver of plot it COULD be executed interestingly, which is what inspired my post.

So. "Abel being the bastard wouldn't make sense because he was the favourite child". Allegedly, according to biblical texts he was the one regarded most positively, that's true. You already see where this can go: Maybe he wasn't actually that good and he's just remembered as better than he was because that's how his parents spoke of him but he's in hell isn't he; Maybe he WAS that good but then why isn't he in heaven? As I said, may be that Heaven realised that he had angelic blood aka ties to Lucifer, and that alone condemned him. Unfair, but Heaven is rather hypocritical in Hazbin.

All of Eve's kids were condemned to hell: idk Rick, if the Angels noticed this pattern since generation one, and we already know they think of sinners as disposable, why didn't they just nuke all humans and start over? Evil, yes, would've had to be kept hidden from most of heaven, yyyyes I guess kinda. Depends on how the Locus Plague, the Flood etc are handled in Hazbin. But there MUST have been some good apples here and there, since humans were allowed to keep existing and since we do see human souls in heaven. Agaim, the corruption theory contradicts the Free Will one.

Hell wasn't well established when Abel died: The show says that when Lucifer and Lilith were banished from Eden they fell down. Hell must have been established when Lucifer was sent there to look over. Feels very unlikely to me, and if this was the explanation it would confirm to me that Adam being the first human in hell was a plot hole.

The thing is, just saying "Abel wasn't the first soul in heaven" and using any of the popular explanations doesn't really make the story relevant to the overarching plot of Hazbin, which is what inspired my post. I was trying to come up with a meta-relevant reason that would justify going over the Cain and Abel story on Hazbin. I mean, didn't go to heaven bcs Abel was actually a sinner? Okay, so the system is working as designed. Adam died first? Same.

Afterlife destinies weren't set up yet? I guess that could be a little bit more interesting if we assume that Heaven always thought that all human souls would go to heaven, prior to the apple? Feels so convoluted though. If everyone was meant to go to heaven, there were no filters. Abel either arrived to heaven corrupted and was cast down and only then was a system that judged souls put in place, or the system DID HAVE some undisclosed rules (that were created right after Eve bit the apple I guess?) which then begs the question. Are these selection criteria innate to the realms, is that why no soul knows what gets people in heaven? And if that's the case, how can either side (Heaven and Hell) influence the system to redeem people?

It's interesting, you can take that idea many places, only problem is that at this point there's not many actual hints in the show that support this. After all, Lucifer was cast down by Angels (so it's not like the weight of his sin dragged him down or anything), and Adam was able to kill indiscriminately without Heaven rejecting him à la The Realm Is Alive trope.

I'm not saying that Cain killing Abel because Heaven/Roo told him to is like, a LIKELY theory, I'll agree that if we get any explanation at all it'd be along the lines of "here's how the system was set up to work", where Abel will be just a footnote, like "we didn't notice we had to rework the system/the system has adjusted itself until that soul died and (whatever) happened to it". It's just a different take, another theory, and most importantly one that would actually justify giving the twins screentime.

Like, really, the reason why I thought of that it's because: 1. I haven't seen anything like that proposed before, 2. Makes the story actually relevant to viewers and in-universe characters trying to understand how the system works. Where do you start deconstructing and analysis systems? From the start of course.

After all you can't talk about Heaven finding loopholes in its own laws and going against its own back, Fake-Utopia-Authoritariam-Government-with-Paramilitary-like-organisms, without explaining WHY they singled out one guy, WHO they made get his hands dirty and WHY. Orrrr, in the case that it was Roo trying to damn human souls, how she played everyone.

Roo is her own whole thing but I like the Heaven angle better. Roo... Is not very interesting thematically to me, at least not yet. Wouldn't like to see her used to take away from Heaven's imperfect ways. Heaven is corrupt and ignorant and has been hypocritical in the way it tries to fix what it doesn't like about human souls. So having Heaven be behind a few sinful actions across realms is consistent with what we've been shown of them so far, and gives Charlie and Emily grounds to question them.

SIGH tfw you make a declaration like "I don't think Hazbin should touch the Cain or Abel are Lucifer's spawn thing" then a bit later you are like. Well if execution is everything why not try to think of a reason why it'd be plot relevant.

So, Adam was the first human soul in heaven, implying that Abel went to hell (assuming it wasn't a plot hole, or that it won't be fixed in an easy way like "oh actually Cain killed Abel after Adam's death" or something like that).

Would be plot-relevant if it was revealed that Cain HAD to kill Abel, as in, was instructed by some other being, under the argument that Abel was a human/angel hybrid and that, for whatever reason, could become a huge problem for Heaven later on. May have something to do with not wanting to give divine strength to corruptible beings who had true free will? Meaning, Subject Zero 4B3L had to be taken out of the gene pool.

In that context, Cain's curse was really a blessing of divine protection, and could even lead to him being in Heaven. Like wow imagine the nepotism of it all.

[insomniactalks]

1/3 I saw your ask about Ricky and Ej and I wanted to point out that the "pretty boy" line shows us that they aren't really that close as (from what I've noticed) most of the fandom thinks they are. People were asking how did they become so close, but if you think more about it, you'll notice that they aren't. At this point I see them as kind of friends, superficial friends. They don't seem to interact outside the rehearsals (Ej's line about the last time being in Big Red's basement)...

2/3 There is an obvious progress in their relationship, from enemies to kind of friends. Ricky's perception of Ej changes from thinking about him as a bad guy (calling him "bad news" in homecoming episode) to seeing that he isn't, but Ricky still sees him as a superficial person ("pretty boy" line). It makes sense for Ricky to think that, based on their interactions up until that moment, that were superficial. An actual friendship act is Ej checking in on Ricky during spring break…

3/3 I find it funny how he refers to himself as "someone" not to let Ricky think that he actually cares. This friendship has so much potential to be funny, and at the same time, to have a lot of depth (both of them can help each other). Since Frozen's main theme is sisterhood, I expect s3 to focus more on friendships and family relationships. My favourite episode is Thanksgiving because is the first episode when we actually see these characters actually bonding. I really hope to see more of that

Thanks for your ask, anon!😀 I do agree that Ricky and EJ are certainly not best friends from what we’ve seen so far (same goes for Gina and Nini). The core four friendships are not the closest, but they have come a long way from where they started the school year (considering EJ/Gina are no longer actively plotting against Ricky/Nini anymore LOL). 😅 I think the “pretty boy” line is exactly as you said, more of a superficial commentary on their friendship (but they are friends nonetheless!) I think part of that comment may stem from some jealousy Ricky holds against EJ because EJ “seems to always have it together” (2.10), which he admits is not the case. (Remember, EJ has a few traits that Ricky is insecure about, like being a leading-man/theater kid, being reliable, confident, etc). So to add on to what you’re saying, the “pretty boy” comment is part superficial and part jealousy/insecurity. 🤔 I agree a Ricky/EJ friendship has so much potential to be funny, esp with how close the actors are in real life. I would imagine portraying their off-screen friendship to on-screen wouldn't be too difficult (if S3 gives them the chance to actually bond🙏🏽). Both of them can help the other esp since they each possess certain qualities they may want (like Ricky wanting to feel more comfortable as a theater kid and performing on stage). I’m also hoping S3′s central storyline is the bond between the Wildcats (the sisterhood b/t Nini, Kourt, Ash, Gina and maybe a brotherhood b/t Ricky, EJ, Carlos at camp). I really want the Wildcats to embrace their found-family and maybe have a group hug/song to solidify that (bonus points if Ricky’s the one to do that so that it parallels his speech in Big Red’s basement in 1.06). I would love another game night for the Wildcats (mostly to see competitive Portwell)😅! (Please deliver S3!!! Let these kids have FUN! They deserve it.) 🥰

[ci5mates]

Fanfic ask game

I was tagged by the lovely @tails89 & @repressedqueen

What is your total posted word count on AO3? (Go to your Works, then click Statistics.)

88,300

How often do you write?

Spasmodically! Working full time has made a big dent in my ability to write but even when I wasn't working and had all the time in the world, I wasn't disciplined enough to write regularly. Signing up for a Big Bang was the most stressful thing I have done.

Do you have a routine for writing?

I wish!

What’s your favorite tropes/pairing?

Whump/hurt/comfort and partner worry are my favs tropes but I love sweet and funny too.

Favourite 911 pairings are buddie and henren. I am partial to mcdanno as well but the ending we got, really killed that for me.

Do you have a favorite fic of yours?

I've only written one 911 fic so far so I guess I'd say that one.

Jealousy Complex (911)

Fic you are most proud of?

I am most proud of a big bang I wrote for The Professionals (Bodie & Doyle) which has amazing art and took me an age to write. Equally proud of another long (long for me) Professionals fic that took me a year to write.

Smoke & Mirrors (Professionals)

A Trophy Highly Prized (Professionals)

Your fic with the most kudos?

Ticking Time Bomb (H5O)

Anything you don’t like about your writing?

To be honest there isn't a lot I do like. I am forever editing because I am rarely happy with my sentence structure. My goal is write so it doesn't read like a 5 year old wrote it *nervous grin*

Now something you do like?

I think action scenes are my strongest point but it is a low bar and I think I do okay with plot but actually putting it down into an enjoyable story?? I guess something I do like about my writing is that like Buck, I never give up. *g*

Tagging with no pressure whatsoever: @two-cut-lines @thekristen999 @jacksadventuresinwriting @somebodytoundress @wackybuddiemewbs and anyone else keen to join in.

[hakuluv]

♡︎𝐇𝐚𝐤𝐮 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐑𝐞𝐝 𝐕𝐞𝐥𝐯𝐞𝐭♡︎

✩ 𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐥 ✩

Haku is the second youngest and everyone can notice it, the way that the oldest make fun of him is so obvious. But despite of the age, he's always taking care of the others and enjoy cooking for the members. Haku has a lovely aura that can calm everyone.

He consider himself as a positive person and very loyal. Coming from Japan alone was so difficult, and the way that the girls open her arms when he was alone without knowing anything.. they're his family after all :-(

✩ 𝐈𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐞 ✩

Haku always rescue Irene when mens comes closer so he keeps near. Savage actions and bad looks to anyone who make Irene or other member uncomfortable. this little fearless guy...

Irene seems to be kind of mean, but i swear that she loves him sm. Haku is one more child to the garden anyway

I know that Irene is always teasing him with other idols backstages, they're just gay lmaoo

No matter what, Haku's is always making her laugh. National jealousy? maybe

but despite of the sassy attitude that Irene have, he knows all the effort she puts in the group and the discrete sweatiness way to take care of him.

Irene's #2 fan (the first is Seulgi ofc), the ice princess is so cool. He doesn't know how she can be comfortable with him.. Haku is such a sweetheart bye:-(

Irene in a few words: dedicated, serious but sweet and scolding, i know I'm a mess but irene noona is so strict ㅠㅠ I'm going to do my best so I'll can tease her too

✩ 𝐒𝐞𝐮𝐥𝐠𝐢 ✩

Haku's first friend in the company, introduce him to Irene cause he was so afraid of her

This boy was really amazed at her dancing skills when their met, Haku really wanted to be good as her. So when seulgi teach him he was really nervous, their passion for dance really connect them.

seulgi x irene shipper since the beginning, he's the founder actually

Have you seen the instagram of those two?? aesthetic af (actually haku's is a real mess, but a nice mess), and seulgi is always commenting

dance queen and king, Haku always forcing her to play Just dance. At this point Seulgi knows every choreo and even has her own favourites, but no more until just dance 2022

Anytime Haku is having a bad time, he naturally go to her. Seulgi can understand really well and has the best councils, Haku isn't a sad person actually, but his breakdowns are hard to trait

they have a shared playlist and spend the time watching movies or anime until 3 am

she's like the only one who don't treat him like a child with Yeri, everytime Joy or irene are laughing he just go behind her :-(

seulgi in a few words: inspiring, talented and caring, she's the only that don't make fun of me so maybe seulgi is my favourite.. sorry Irene noona hehe

✩ 𝐖𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐲 ✩

at first it was so awkward, they don't know why, but through the time they turn comfortable with eachothers!!

Wendy likes to be with Haku cause she thinks about him as a fresh person with enthusiasm to make new things.

always talking in english so members are ?? they have a million of intern jokes about everything. In variety shows, Wendy usually cheer Haku to talk more cause his english is so cute

ultimate gossips grandmothers, they know everything about idols

loves to make english covers on vlive, they have one for Christmas, birthday and a million dedicates to reveluvs

she loves haku so much, he made a lot of food and go to see her regularly. Haku was really happy when Wendy was for the first time on the stage shinning like always

wendy and Joy are Haku's nightmare, he feels so shy but actually it isn't that bad. Unless he make something dumb like all the time

wendy in a few words: funny, super teasing and supportive, she's always helping me and cheer me but I'm too shy, please have mercy ㅠㅠ

✩ 𝐉𝐨𝐲 ✩

haku talked at first cause she was so nervous but here's the plot twist: haku was more shy than she thought.

Joy bring him to shopping together cause she says that Haku dress so simple and he can look so much better if he don't wear the same clothes as always. Since then haku has to pass the Joy's fashion code or they don't go out

they're always hanging out to new places or visiting thematic cafeterias, he took almost all the photos of joy's ig and she took his too

haku's seronotine, she's always happy around him and making Haku flustered. Litteraly his Joy, what more can i say? she just wants Haku to be more confident and convince him that he's a very talented and sweet person.

Joy is really like his older sister, she treat him like a baby and makes him get mad. He say that grew up, mm yea as if

their stage presence? chef kiss, please another collaboration sir sm please!

Joy's favorite food is when haku make Japanese food after a full schedule day, it's just like medicine

Joy in a few words: trusted, posivite and even if i really try, she always make ME flush. she's shameless >:-(

✩ 𝐘𝐞𝐫𝐢 ✩

childish siblings energy

super loud, you really can hear their voices miles away

ig lives when they're bored and Yeri inviting him to Yeri's room, hope the company let him>:-(

Yeri knew he's solitary and bad at social things so a few days of being friends, she took him and introduce haku at almost the entire company. Haku naturally put effort to be more confident, and he's so grateful for that.

the social butterflies, you can tell when they're on stage and a lot of idols gets near to greet or talk. Maybe is because of Yeri but Haku has the power that anyone can be whipped for him. You can expect a few fans crazy about being close of this shiny boy when he is on stage, but Haku really can't notice it and gets shy anyway

Haku is always supporting in everytime she does, Yeri is gonna have her own show? a thousand of gifts in the set, Yeri actress? sending her a truck and flowers. She's very supportive to him too, sharing his photoshoots and dramas. actors siblings who?

they have match things like accessories or phone cases, spending money like kids buying candies

Yeri in a few words: baby, chaotic and bad cause she always let me alone in hallways cause she knows everyone :(

𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐭𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐡𝐨𝐭𝐨𝐬

i hope that u notice the spoilers? about Hakuʕ·ᴥ·ʔ

[spindleprick]

hi taryn! i need your help a little! over the past few months, i've become pretty close with this one player in the same rp. i really like them as a friend, but the thing is, i can't stop feeling a little jealous when i see them replying to other people more than me. i know this isn't right so how can i stop myself from being this foolish?

hey!! i’d like to apologize again for the delay in response and hope this coming a few days late hasn’t been too annoying! i think firstly it’s always important to acknowledge and accept your feelings -- a friendship is a relationship like any other, and can be susceptible to feelings of envy or jealousy, so let yourself breath and remember we’ve all felt similarly at one point or another.  the best coping system i’ve found for these situations is to turn inward! you’re clearly logical and respectful enough to understand that the feelings of jealousy are something negative + unnecessary to shed, but to get rid of them you’ll have to actually figure out why it’s there to begin with in order to extract it! is there a part of your friendship you’re especially insecure about “losing” to other people? is it the IC interactions you’re jealous of, or OOC talk you feel you’re missing out on? does this correlate at all to something you’re troubled over separately? ( which is not me trying to get real ~deep, but i think it’s helpful. to make an example, a good friend and i were spending decreasing amounts of time together pre-covid measures, but she seemed to be hanging out a lot with her boyfriend and other couples. i’m single. while my observation was founded, i was conflating this envy/worry with my insecurity over being single and projecting that onto this friend. ) if so, take time to think over and work on that!  distract yourself! try plotting with someone new, coming up with a juicy new connection or super fun thread. if you let yourself stew and fixate, the negative feelings are more likely to multiply. this should also serve the dual purpose of showing you what it is your friend is doing -- not ignoring you for others, but likely just getting lost in the fun and diverse appeal of rp! focus on the wonderful, unique parts of your relationship and try not to make comparisons -- you can’t lose where you don’t compare. reread your favourite old/current thread, watch a movie with them online, send them a random text/DM just to say you’re thinking of them. your relationship is special and unique to you, don’t let that get lost! and above all if you’re still left feeling unsure, communication is key! just because a relationship is platonic and/or online doesn’t mean it isn’t important to talk when you are feeling insecure about something. i think in this case it would be important to frame the dialogue carefully (eg. things like using “i feel” statements in place of “you are” statements -- you want to explain yourself, not be accusatory), but so long as you do it with care there’s no reason you can’t have a talk with the friend.  i’m still not at full brain capacity so this looks a bit meh to me but i wanted to get you an answer -- hope it helps at least a bit !!