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pawsitivelymiraculous · 3 years

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Le parfum de l'amour

This is the @maribat-secret-santa-2020 piece for @saltandfluff I am so sorry for being late!

Anyway, I will be using the quantic kids, but you don't necessary have to know them to understand this fic.

The only have to know that "Melodie" is Allegra's nickname.

Ao3

It was always a bad idea to try to mess with fate. Everyone knew this. Allegra knew this, but she didn't care. Not when it was taking a toll on her sanity.

There were only so many times a person could see two literal soulmates walk past each other before they decided to take matters into their own hands.

So that's what she did.

Or well, was going to do once she could convince her friends to help her out.

"I don't know, Mel." Allan rubbed the back of his neck nervously. "These things take time you know? You cannot rush it." He glanced at the corkboard that was behind Allegra and winced, it was going to be impossible to talk her out of the crazy plan.

On the corkboard, there were two pictures. One was a selfie of Marinette Dupain-cheng. A twenty-year-old who was a regular at the café where Allegra and Claude worked at. After chatting with her in the mornings, Allegra decided to adopt the girl, and she introduced her to the rest of the group. She quickly became friends with Allan and surprisingly enough, with Felix as well.

The second picture was a rather blurry photo that was clearly taken from afar. You could sort of make out the image of Timothy Drake. The sleep-deprived twenty-one-year-old who had started going to the café for about a month. All the employees loved him because he never failed to amuse everyone with his half-asleep antics.

The one thing that both pictures had in common was a coffee cup.

On Marinette's collarbone, there was a small tattoo-like mark that looked like a coffee cup. The same one that was on Tim's wrist. Soul marks . Granted, they looked a bit plain compared to most people's soul marks, but in Allegra's eyes, they were the excuse she needed to get them together.

Allegra had shipped her two favorite customers long before she noticed their soul marks. But now that she knew they were soulmates . Well, she was not going to rest until they finally met.

"I'm not trying to rush things!" Allegra insisted. "I just want to push them in the right direction."

Allan looked at her, doubtful. "That's basically the same thing. Plus do actually think that," he squinted to read the list of plans that was tacked on the corkboard. "'Locking them inside a room with no escape' is merely pushing them in the right direction? 'Cause I think that sounds more like a hostage situation."

Allegra glared at him. "You know what? I don't need your help. Claude will help me. Right, Claude?"

Claude looked at her with wide eyes. "Oh no no no. Sorry Melodie but I can't."

"Uh, I'm sorry what?" Allegra blinked. It was very out of character for Claude to turn down the opportunity to help her with one of her elaborate plans. Not to mention that in this case, they were doing it to help Marinette.

"Allegra," he said solemnly, "this is a destiny thing. We just can't interfere."

Allegra facepalmed. "You can't be serious."

Claude looked at her dead in the eye. "If we interfere we might end up," he leaned towards her and whispered " cursed"

"Oh give me a break." Allegra pushed Claude away. "Are you guys kidding me? This is Marinette we're talking about. You all can't possibly think that Marinette wouldn't want to meet her soulmate, and as her friends, we have to help her."

"I agree with Allegra."

Everyone spun around in surprise.

Felix rolled his eyes at his friends' incredulous expressions. "What? Marinette is my friend as well. Is it really that shocking that I want to see her happy?" The three of them nodded. He ignored them. "Besides, I've heard Marinette ramble about soulmates nonstop, so it's clear that meeting hers is what she would want."

Allegra was the first to react "See guys? Even Felix agrees with me!"

Felix huffed. "Yes, but I also think that your plans are ridiculous and ineffective."

"Ouch"

"I think the best thing we can do to help is to get them to interact and we-"

"That's literally what my plans are for!" Allegra interrupted.

Claude crossed his arms. "And what do you mean by 'we'? I haven't agreed to do anything."

Shooting both of them a glare, Felix continued. "- can do that without needing to kidnap them. We simply have to make it so that they have no other choice but to sit at the same table at the café. You all know how friendly Marinette is, it will only be a matter of time before they start talking."

There was a beat of silence.

"That… that might actually work," Allan admitted. "Soulmates are naturally drawn to each other so once they actually have a conversation we won't have to do anything else. They can figure out that they're soulmates by themselves." He paused and then chuckled. "We'll just have to push them in the right direction."

"But how are we going to get them in the café at the same time?" Allegra asked. "Tim always comes in right after Mari has left."

"Pft that's easy!" Claude exclaimed. "Just tell her that you need help with something and that you'll need for her to stay a while longer at the café. Since Mari doesn't have early classes on Wednesday she'll agree and- oh!" Claude suddenly slapped his hand over his mouth as his eyes widened with horror. "This does not mean that I'm helping." He mumbled from underneath his hand.

Allan laughed. "I think you just did."

"Looks like someone's going to end up cursed." Allegra singed songed. "Not even ladybug is going to be able to help you with that bad luck that's to come." She teased.

Claude pouted. "Haha, laugh all you want." He then looked up at the corkboard and grimaced. "But you're right, there's no turning back now. What do you need me to do?"

Allegra clapped her hands in glee.

"Okay so here's the plan."

~♡~♡~♡~

Just like Claude had predicted, it was incredibly easy to convince Marinette to stay at the café. All that was left to do was orchestrate everything just so that the two soulmates had to sit at the same table.

It was easier said than done but after enlisting more people to help out, they were able to make sure that the café was full for that morning.

Everything was going according to plan…

Until…

"WHERE. IS. TIM?"

Claude looked around. "He hasn't arrived yet?"

"No!" Allegra cried. She glanced down at her watch and winced. They were running out of time.

Claude frowned. "And you know, it would have been nice if Marinette hadn't chosen today to wear a turtleneck."

Allegra couldn't help but agree. Sure, Marinette looked amazing with the turtleneck and skirt outfit but did she really have to wear it today? When they needed for her to show off her soul mark?

It was like the universe was against them.

But finally, Allegra heard a tinkling sound at the door. She spun around praying that it was Tim.

And it was!

He looked more tired than usual as he stumbled around trying to find a seat.

Allegra watched as Tim danced around the tables that were being occupied just as he was about to take a seat.

One after the other until finally, a good push later, he ended up at Marinette's table.

~♡~♡~♡~

Tim was too tired to deal with this.

All he wanted was to sit down, have a couple of cups of coffee at his favorite coffee shop and finally be awake enough to continue investigating the moth guy.

But apparently, that was too much to ask because almost all the tables were full.

"Sorry man," Claude whispered as he guided a couple and motioned them to sit at the table that Tim had beelined for.

"Oh, actually I'm waiting for Adam." Felix had said when Tim asked if he could sit with him. Which was strange since Adam had said that he was waiting for Felix when he asked him.

But he could barely comprehend what they were saying, so he was not conscious enough to complain.

Tim continued on his journey when he felt someone push him from behind. In his half-asleep haze, Tim lunged at the chair that was in front of him hoping that it would break his fall.

It took him a few seconds to recover. He wanted nothing more than to pass out right then and there, splayed out on a coffee shop chair as everyone stared at him wondering if he was drunk.

He too wondered if he was drunk, but he couldn't remember the last time he'd slept so if he was drunk, he was not going to figure it out on his own.

When he finally looked up, his eyes met with a pair of beautiful bluebell eyes.

~♡~♡~♡~

Marinette watched as a guy stumbled around the café until finally flopping onto the other chair at her table.

It was clear that he was sleep-deprived. She had seen enough videos that her evil friends had taken when she was in a similar state to know the poor guy probably hadn't slept at all for the last week or so.

Marinette wanted nothing more than to drag the guy to the nearest bed or couch and wrap him up in a bunch of blankets. Just because she didn't comprehend the term "self-care" for herself didn't make Marinette any less of a "mom friend"

But she had to remind herself that she didn't know the guy, so it might be considered kidnapping to drag someone somewhere against their will.

Too bad.

The best she could do was offer him her own coffee.

"Hey, I think you need this more than I do at the moment." She said, pushing the drink his way as he stood up.

He mumbled something that could be interpreted as a "thank you" and eagerly took the drink. His eyes lit up when the heavenly liquid touched his tongue.

It was almost miraculous how quickly the caffeine took effect.

Actually, it was Marinette may or may not have mixed a little concoction she made with Tikki that helped her when she stayed up late with her regular coffee.

The guy blinked. "This. Is. Incredible."

Marinette laughed "Yeah, it's what I always get. Though you still look like you need to sleep."

"Yeah, yeah whatever." He waved her off. "But seriously, what is this called? I need a gallon of this."

"Sorry," Marinette said sheepishly "but I'm afraid that's a secret, you know, I'm kind of everyone's favorite, so I get the miracle coffee." Okay so that was a lie but what else could she say?

The guy pouted. Marinette had to admit that he looked adorable.

"Well, then I'm sure you can get me some then... um"

"Marinette."

"Ah, nice to meet you, coffee goddess, I'm Tim."

Marinette's cheeks heated up. "Uh, coffee goddess? Shouldn't they be the coffee gods and goddesses?" She pointed at Allegra, Claude, and the others.

"Nah, you have blessed me with this amazing coffee. Claude didn't even help me in my time of need."

"You know Claude?" Marinette asked, surprised.

"Yep, I've been coming here since I arrived in Paris, so I've gotten to know Allegra and Claude a bit."

"That's funny, I've never seen you. And I come here every day." Marinette said.

"Huh, that's weird. I've never seen you either. "

And from there they kept talking. Like they were old friends and not just acquaintances. Marinette found out that Tim had come from Gotham city. That he was in Paris because of business. Meanwhile, Tim learned that Marinette was an aspiring fashion designer and a college student who was close friends with almost everyone from the café.

Hours passed and the two were still deep in conversation completely oblivious to the crowd that had gathered behind the cafe's counter to watch the soulmates.

"I can't believe you didn't tell me about this before." Adrien, who had arrived after Tim, whispered to his cousin.

"I was under the impression that your father needed your assistance for the upcoming fashion show. I was not about to ask my dear uncle Gabe if I could steal you so that we could set up our friend and his future competitor, Marinette Dupain-cheng, with her soulmate."

Adrien hated to admit that he had a point. "Fine, but can you at least catch me up to date? Who is he?"

"He's a rich guy from Gotham city. He's pretty cool though he's basically Marinette when it comes to coffee which is honestly kinda scary now that I'm seeing them interact." Allegra whispered.

Adrien looked down to look at her. "Alright, I guess I'm going to have to do my own research since you guys are useless. What's his job? Why is he rich? If his from Gotham then who knows, maybe this guy is actually dangerous and wants to take Marinette as ransom for-"

"Oh please Adrien, stop with your theatrics. Do you honestly think that I would allow this if he was dangerous?" Felix interrupted.

"I mean-"

Felix glared at him.

"No?"

Felix sighed. "Timothy Drake is Marinette's soulmate, and I can assure you that he's clean. So don't worry about Marinette."

Allegra shushed the cousins. "Guys, I'm trying to listen here you know?"

"Um, you could probably hear better from up here" Felix nodded in agreement.

"Thanks, Adrien, but I don't want to risk Marinette seeing me and then remembering about time and stuff."

"Ah"

"Speaking of time, it's been years since I last ate, I'm hungry." Claude cut in.

"Claude! You're supposed to be with the customers!" Allegra whisper-shouted.

"Whoops."

~♡~♡~♡~

Unfortunately, all good things come to an end. Marinette eventually remembered the reason she had stayed in the cafe. Not only that but when she looked at her watch she realized that she was running late for class.

After Marinette's rushed exit, Tim went back to investigating Hawkmoth. But while they were trying to concentrate on their own thing. Marinette with her class and Tim with his research they found themselves zoning out and thinking about each other.

It was strange, they had quite literally just met.

Why had they made such an impact on each other?

~♡~♡~♡~

It wasn't until Marinette was getting ready to go to bed that she found the answer.

"Tikki is… is that what I think it is." Marinette's voice trembled as she stared at her reflection on the mirror.

Tikki gasped. "Oh Marinette, I think it is!"

Staring back at her was her soul mark, which no longer was a regular coffee cup but rather a gorgeous cup with beautiful red flowers that surrounded a somewhat familiar symbol.

"But, how? I mean they're not supposed to change… right? And why?" Marinette's eyes widened. "Does this mean that I met my soulmate? Who is it?"

Tikki giggled, "You seriously don't know?"

"Umm no? Should I?" Tikki continued to giggle as her holder looked at her confused. "Who is it Tikki?"

"Oh Marinette, how many new people did you meet today?"

"Uh, I don't know? I mean surely I must've passed by lots of strangers in the street." Marinette panicked. "Oh no Tikki! What if one of them is my soulmate? I'll never find out who they are!"

"So you don't remember meeting anyone else?"

"I don't think so, well other than ohhh- "

"Exactly"

~♡~♡~♡~

Tim could not believe what he was seeing. Gone was the plain coffee cup he was used to seeing, the daily reminder of the fact that he was still painfully single, it now had an intricate flower pattern that surrounded a symbol.

He recognized that symbol.

After weeks of researching and tailing the red Parisian heroine, he knew that it was the Ladybug symbol.

But why was it on his soul mark?

Unless…

No, the heroine couldn't be his soulmate, Tim hasn't even officially met her. Nor had he even seen her today.

The only blue-eyed girl he had met was Marinette.

Marinette

No, it was impossible. Except it wasn't. Tim had only known the girl for a couple of hours, but he knew that Marinette would make a great heroine or vigilante.

But, he… he was probably hallucinating, right? Tim hadn't slept for weeks, so surely he was just seeing things and his soul mark was still a plain coffee cup and the Marinette conclusion was just wishful thinking.

Right?

Because otherwise, his first meeting with his soulmate was him acting like a sleep-deprived zombie and Tim could not allow that.

Well, one thing was for sure, he really needed to get some sleep.

~♡~♡~♡~

Three days.

It took three days for Marinette to find Tim.

She looked everywhere. The coffee shop, Le Grand Paris Hotel, the tourist areas, and when she was ladybug she looked down from all the rooftops trying to find him.

But he had vanished, leaving Marinette worried sick that he had either A. Gone back to Gotham B. Died or C. Been so horrified that she was his soulmate that he decided to move to a remote island and changed his name in hopes of never seeing her again.

Gosh, she was starting to sound like her fourteen-year-old self.

But finally, she saw him, sitting on a bench, not far from her own home, looking down at his wrist.

He looked at his wrist like it was some puzzle he needed to solve. Marinette also noticed that he looked a lot more refreshed, so he must've finally gotten some sleep.

Marinette cleared her throat. "Well, you've been a very hard person to find Mr. Drake."

Tim looked up. "Ma- Marinette!"

"We need to talk."

Tim nodded his mouth hanging wide open as he stared at her soul mark.

"How do you feel about coffee? There's a coffee shop that's not very far from here, I hear their coffee is divine.

~♡~♡~♡~

Bonus:

(this was going to be a scene on the fic but I didn't know how to add it but it has important info sooo)

*They are at the coffee shop*

Marinette: So you're red robin.

Tim: And you're Ladybug

Marinette: Should I be worried? Like doesn't this compromise our secret identities?

*Claude and Allegra appear with some pastries*

Claude: Yooo Marinette! So you found your soulmate! Crazy right? We totally didn't have anything to do with it!

*Allegra elbows him*

Claude: So uh, congratulations! I um feel happy for you.

*looks nervously at Allegra who is glaring at him*

Claude: Bummer about the soul mark though…

*Allegra keeps glaring*

~♡~♡~♡~ Permanent tag list ~♡~♡~♡~

Claude: What? It's just a plain white cup!

Bonus bonus:

(here's a bad doodle and my crappy handwriting)

(If you want to be added or removed please let me know!)

@charme-de-malchan, @theatreandcomicfreak, @m3owww, @elliebelliegirl, @genevieve-the-demonologist, @vixen-uchiha, @t1dwarrior-of-earth, @waffleyunsure, @technicallyburninggarden, @azuremayscarlet, @vroomtaka, @emimar7, @ichigorose, @maskedpainter, @art-is-hard-to-do-sorry

#maribat #timari #tim x marinette #maribat secret santa #ml x dc #mlb x dc #quantic kids #My writing #my trash writing #my art #my trash art

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secretshinigami · 3 years

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Tangle

Author: @hazblogs For: @beyondplusultra Pairings/Characters: Near/Mello/Matt Rating/Warnings: G Prompt: “mello with even longer hair, braided in some cool style” + “mello x matt x near college AU shenanigans (can be ship or gen)” Author’s notes: ok so you have no idea how hard i hand flapped when i saw your prompt - and then your name. aka i wrote a thing for you last sse which was a very very perfect companion piece for the one i’m gifting you rn. lots of love <333333333

————————

“Matt. Are you trying to tell me something ?” Mello asks.

“Me ? Communicating ? I’ll have you know that hasn’t happened since the great fire of the library of Alexandria. I was devastated and vowed to never speak again, which I would have fully respected had you not decided to spawn a few centuries later to torment me.”

Mello is tempted to chuck the pair of scissors to his face, but that would probably be dangerous. They are adorned with a little bow and a note that says “Put them to good use !” in tidy, loopy letters.

A snicker rises from the then-two-now-triple bed, a small white head emerging from under the blanket. “I see you’ve found my present.”

“Near, I’ll ask this once and once only: why in hell would you ever think I’d cut my hair ?”

They’ve been growing it out very, very patiently ! It took months ! After the incident and the fact that the hospital had to shave most of it off, adding to the fact there’s now a bald scar patch on the side of their head, Mello tried really really hard to gain a sense of… self-love ? Looking at their face in the mirror was never a chore before.

Feeling the wind blow through their now quite long hair had been amazing.

“It goes into my mouth when we sleep,” Near answers. “I’m tired of waking up and having to spit it all out.”

Mello has half a mind to tell him that if he doesn’t like it that much, he just has to not cuddle up to them in his sleep, but that’s unfair - and also unwanted. Mello quite likes waking up to Matt and Near snuggled up so close to them that they feel loved in a way only kids can feel, with their utmost certainty in the good of this world. It’s a nice warmth, spreading from their chest to their toes.

“Ugh. Fine, I’ll tie them up.”

“What ?” Matt almost yells from his place on the floor, a true cave troll. “I’ve been trying to make you do that for months and you always said you hated it ! And Near doesn’t even have to ask ? I haven’t lived that long to be disrespected in this way. I am appalled, I am betrayed, in my own home-”

“You don’t even go to this uni,” Mello usefully provides.

“Fiend. Rascal. I’m looking up hair braiding tutorials right this instant.”

“Oh, let me join,” Near asks, and soon enough, the two friends are completely ignoring Mello’s fuming, too busy looking at EveryDayHairInspiration videos on Youtube, her chipper voice filling the room with detailed instructions.

Nothing more comes of it. Or at least, that’s what Mello thinks, because they haven’t been jumped on and tied to a chair, where Matt’s deft fingers - and Near’s less deft fingers but keen memory - will wreak havoc on their admittedly finicky strands. They have thin, blond hair, though they know not who in their family passed on those genes. The woes of being adopted. It is almost impossible to comb, in spite of their best efforts and the KeraCare Hydrating Detangling Shampoo that Matt surreptitiously bought and sneaked into the bathroom, but that does not deter them.

Nor does the ever growing “Mello’s hair collection” that Matt keeps, like a creep, “So I can sell it when you become a best-selling author of course !” Mello thinks it’s for doll-making purposes, should he take offence to something they did and want to stab them in a more discreet fashion.

In any case, it’s been a few weeks when Mello comes back to the dorm room to find it in a state of upheaval it hasn’t known since Near arrived. There’s at least three cans of hairspray, a million and a half elastic ties of various shapes and sizes, and an office chair. Mello has been complaining about not having a chair to be able to work at the table, but Matt had always whined that it was “unnecessary, and would take up too much space”.

“Mels ! You’re here !” says the obvious culprit. “I borrowed Mikami’s chair, I hope he doesn’t mind.”

Incredible. The chair isn’t even going to stay !

“Will you come in ?” Near smiles, absolutely delighted at Mello’s crumpled features. “We’ve set up the hair salon.”

“Wow, you two have ambition,” they mock. Mello does feel a little bit of terror at the twin gleams in their eyes.

Near simply ushers them towards the seat, detangling lotion ready, and he begins applying ungodly amounts of it while Matt combs through their hair with vigour. It does feel quite nice, Mello muses, to be pampered like they’re worth it. The amount of sappiness can be felt in the air, the love pouring from their friends right onto them making them feel giddy.

“You okay, Mello ?”

They don’t even know who said it. They startle awake, wondering when they even started to doze off, and Matt laughs heartily at their dazed-out face.

“Oh my god, Mels, you look like you’re in heaven.”

“Mrrgh,” they muster the courage to say.

“Eloquent.”

“Shut up, Near…”

The energy isn’t quite there, though.

A few moments pass by while Near and Matt keep twisting their hair in weird ways, the tingling sensation on their scalp never nearing pain with how careful they are. And then-

“Ta-da !” Matt says, happy as can be.

“We did good work,” Near concurs. “Wait, I have a mirror.”

Mello sure hopes so. Truth be told, they’re quite curious to see what the other two managed to do. Matt makes them close their eyes, spinning the chair for good measure, and Near laughs airily in the background, hands flapping a little.

“Open your eyes !”

They do. At first, they almost don’t see it - their hair is gathered on their right side, as usual. But then they notice the subtle ways in which their hair glows under the light, a small black hair tie at the bottom keeping it together.

Somehow, they manage not to let those annoying tears flow.

“They like it !” Matt whoops.

Near relaxes - he seemed unsure of their reaction, but Matt knows how to read them perfectly, and he knows, he just knows. The force of habit.

The braid stays on for about two days. Mello keeps forgetting it’s there and running their fingers through their hair only to have them tangled in the braid, or turning too fast and flinging it in someone’s face. Near eventually undoes it when they whine about washing their hair, though it returns soon after. He cuddles closer now - Mello feels their heart jump each time they wake up to their two loves, if they can say the word, and they remember that moment throughout the day when they play with the twists.

#fanfiction #death note #submission #near #mello #matt #nearlymellodramattic #ratings: general #hazblogs #beyondplusultra #Near's Bday Finale 2k21

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kissinginkitchens · 3 years

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You Bring Me Home—Chapter Nine: Friday

a/n: happy friday lovies!! I am soooo excited for y’all to read this one bc it was my favvv chapter to write and I still get emo over it :’) also I think I should maybe let you all know that we only have two more chapters left in this series, and I can not thank you enough for all of the love and support you have shown it. It has been such a blast hearing your thoughts and sharing Halani with all of you lovely people, and I can’t believe the fun is almost over :( BUT we still have some time before we have to think about that soooo without further ado here is the next chapter, I hope you enjoy it :) Much love, Mel <3

Pairing: Hawai’i!Harry x Original Character (Halani <3)

Warnings: swearing, some suggestive humor

Word Count: 9.5k

catch up on parts one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, and eight

Monday

Harry takes a deep breath and raises his arms above his head, feeling every vertebrae stretch as he lies flat against the surfboard. The beaming sunlight warms him down to the bone and it threatens to lull him to sleep, but his attention is too occupied with the various sounds coming from each direction. Out of his right ear, he hears the waves lapping against the shore and the faint sound of children’s laughter. From his left, Mitch and Tom engage in a serious conversation about sharks. He lets one foot slide off the edge of the board and wade into the water below, all the while resisting the paranoia that he will be the next victim of Jaws thanks to his friends’ discussion.

“I’m gonna go switch out the camera.” Paul says beside him, already swimming back to the shore.

Harry gives a thumbs up in acknowledgement and lets the back of his hand rest against his forehead. He floats for a moment longer before swinging his other leg into the water and sitting up. His feet gently tread below the surface and he studies the area for any fish sightings, but his shoulders slump in disappointment when he doesn’t find any.

“I just think,” Mitch defends, legs crossed on his own surfboard. “That I would survive way longer than you,”

“It’s not a fuckin’ zombie apocalypse, survival rate depends on how severe the attack is,” Tom shoots back.

“Not if you’re smart,”

“Right, good thinking, mate. Just yell the Pythagorean theorem and swim away while the bloody thing tries to solve it,”

“You just don’t get it.”

“Stop bein’ a coward, then, and put your feet in the water.”

Harry shakes his head in amusement and continues scanning the scene for something else to occupy his attention. His eyes momentarily land on a couple in the distance, the pair facing each other on their shared surfboard and laughing. He smiles softly and glances back to the shore where his group has set up camp for the afternoon. Squinting, he tries to determine the time of day using the sun’s position overhead, but quickly gives up and swims back to the beach. The sand clings to his wet toes as he jogs over to his bag and digs inside for his phone. The time reads 2:37–Alani’s shift will be over soon.

She stifles another yawn and punches in her customer’s order, re-typing it when she realizes that it’s littered with errors. Her mind had been in a permanent fog since she woke up at 6:45 this morning. Harry had already slipped out by the time she reached over for him, but he left a note on his pillow this time.

GOOD MORNING SWEETS!

SORRY I HAD TO JET SO EARLY :( I’LL SEE YOU AFTER WORK.

H ☼

P.S. ALREADY MISSING YOUR LITTLE SNORES ♡

As if on cue, Alani’s phone vibrates in her back pocket and she slips it out to read the new text.

Harry: Meet me at Honoli’i after your shift?

She really wants to, but she’s also in desperate need of sleep.

Alani: Gonna take a power nap first, but I’ll be there

Harry: Can’t wait xx

********

In the distance, Harry hears The Cure blasting from a car in the parking lot. He hums along and picks at his bowl of fruit, saving the kiwis for Alani who once said they were her favorite. Jeff and Paul laugh about something between the two of them before the director catches Harry’s attention.

“How long you planning on staying here?” he asks.

Harry checks his phone again and the time reads 4:35. He wasn’t entirely sure how long Alani’s nap was supposed to last, but just as he’s about to answer, a text comes through.

Alani: Heading over. See you soon, sunshine💗

He smiles softly and shuts his phone off. “I actually have a surfing lesson at five. But I’ll meet you guys at the house after.”

Paul, the two Jeffs, Mitch, and Tom bid Harry farewell and decide to take a drive along the coast before heading to dinner. They mention the name of the restaurant they plan to go to, but Harry knows he’ll probably skip it and take Alani somewhere else. He sits back on his elbows, watching the palm trees sway in the breeze, when suddenly his vision goes dark when he feels hands over his eyes.

“Guess who,”

“The Queen of England?”

“Yes and I’m here to colonize your land and steal your jewels,” Alani jokes in a posh British accent. She leans over his head so they partake in an upside down kiss before settling into the sand beside him.

“You’ve already had my family jewels,” he teases with a suggestive wiggle of his brows.

Alani scoffs, rolling her eyes. “You are so insufferable sometimes, I swear to God,”

Harry lies back and rests his head in her lap with a shit-eating-grin plastered to his face. The damp locks along his hairline are curled and Alani twirls the pieces between her fingers.

“Saved y’some kiwis,” he informs her, nodding in the direction of his tote bag.

“Aw thanks, baby,”

“How was your day?”

Alani removes the lid and pops a slice of kiwi into her mouth. “Long, boring, tiring. A lot better now,”

“Feel the same way,”

“How’s your project going?” she questions, curious about his recent, mysterious whereabouts.

He shrugs. “S’fine, yeah,”

“What exactly is it, again?”

“It’s a,” Harry starts slowly. “Video thing… kind of,”

Alani narrows her eyes and lifts another piece of fruit to her lips. “Meaning?”

“It’s like—following uh.. the album ‘n stuff,”

“Ah the elusive album,” Alani nods. “Will I ever get to hear any of it?”

“Yeah,”

“When?”

“Dunno,” he blinks. “When’re you gonna let me read that article of yours?”

She smirks and taps her fork against her lower lip. “When it’s ready,”

“Then I’m withholding my thing ‘til it’s ready too,”

“That’s not fair,” she objects. “My article is contingent on your music,”

“One song,” Harry bargains, holding up his index finger. “In exchange for one paragraph. Seems fair to me,”

“Deal,”

He sits up suddenly and opens his mouth as an unspoken request for a kiwi. Alani tosses it in his direction and to her surprise, he catches it effortlessly.

“You really are a freak of nature,” she marvels. “What can’t you do?”

“Stay away from you, apparently,”

“Ditto,”

“D’you wanna head to the water for a bit?” Harry asks, his eyes landing on the board cast to the side.

Alani nods. “Sure thing,”

She strips down to the pink two piece underneath her clothes and accepts his outstretched hand. They shuffle through the sand, joint hands swinging, but Harry stops and scans her face when they reach the edge.

“What?” Alani asks, already dipping her toes in the water.

He runs his thumb over hers and starts hesitantly. “I know the water is kind of…”

“Oh,” she finishes when he trails off. “Yeah. I mean, for the most part I’m okay with it. Last time was just—I wasn’t expecting it,”

“I’m really sorry for that.” Harry apologizes with a somber look in his eye.

Alani reaches her free hand out to his cheek and offers a comforting smile. “No, it’s okay. I actually used to be pretty good at surfing,”

“Oh?”

“Haven’t really done it in years, though. I’m probably really rusty now,”

“Well maybe it’s time to get back on the horse,” Harry urges, pressing a gentle kiss to the inside of her palm before leading them further into the waves. Alani gets up on the board first and it's clear that she’s a natural despite the lack of practice. Her muscles fall into a mesmerizing rhythm as they repeat the very motions she had done thousands of times before her accident. Harry’s eyes carefully study the precision of her determined arms slicing through the water and the way her feet gracefully meet the board once she’s found a strong enough wave. She glides back to the beach and revels in the familiar feeling of the ocean breeze against her skin. Harry whistles from the distance as she reaches the shore, turning back to him with a wide grin and two thumbs up.

“Your turn,” she calls, paddling towards him on her stomach.

Harry replaces her on the board and winces. “Maybe I should’ve gone first,”

“You’re gonna do great,” Alani insists. “Tighten your core muscles. Oh! And bend your knees, not your back. Just trust your instincts and follow through,”

He follows her advice and to his surprise, does well, though not nearly as graceful as she had. Despite this, Alani cheers from the side as he glides back to the beach. Harry takes a bow once his feet have safely met the sand below.

“I knew you could do it,” she beams when he swims back to her.

“Couldn’t have done it without my amazing coach,” he shoots back, leaning down to press a salty kiss to her lips.

With Harry’s help, she swings her leg over the board and sits so that they face each other. Their legs paddle gently below the surface and his hand finds the top of her knee, giving it an affectionate squeeze.

“You were incredible out there,” he muses. “Can’t even tell that you’re out of practice,”

She wrings her hair out and fastens it into a low bun at the base of her neck. “Guess it’s like riding a bike—the muscle memory and all that,”

“You’re a great coach, you know. Cause I usually just wipe out,”

“That’s normal,” Alani nods. “You have to get used to falling. And wait for the right wave,”

Harry admires the way the afternoon sun sets her aglow, skin shimmering and golden under the rays. “How d’you know when it’s the right one?”

“You just feel it I guess. It’s like a gut instinct that you have to follow. And no second guessing yourself, either, cause that’s when you mess up,”

“What if you do go for it and you still wipe out?” He questions, something besides surfing in the back of his mind.

Alani sighs. “Then you wipe out,”

“You just have to trust?”

“You just have to trust,”

Harry hums as he considers this. Three burning syllables bounce around in his skull, but he suppresses them for the time being. Carefully, he lifts himself to his feet and motions for Alani to do the same. It takes them a second to find their balance on the board, but eventually they do and Harry brings her closer with a protective hand on the middle of her back.

“D’you trust me?” he murmurs.

Alani studies the different shades of green in his irises and feels a flutter deep in the pit of her belly, so she decides to take her own advice and presses a soft kiss to his warm lips before responding.

“Yes.”

Carefully, Harry takes a step back and twirls Alani before pulling her flush to his chest and swaying to the music stuck in his brain. As best they can, the pair dances on the surface of the board but Harry’s foot gets caught in a slick spot and he tumbles backwards, bringing Alani with him. When they emerge, his heart races in worry, but the knot in his chest eases when he hears her laughter.

“Y’okay?” he checks.

“Yeah,” she assures him, her legs snaking around his torso under the water. “I’m alright.”

The sky turns pink as they continue to wade peacefully in the water, and the entire time Harry finds himself fixated on the weight of the three little words nagging at the back of his brain.

********

Tuesday

“Say it again,”

“No,”

“Please?”

Harry shoots Alani an unamused look through the corner of his eye. “Dunno what’s so funny about it,”

“Just say it one more time,” she pleads with a mischievous glint in her eye.

“Tuesday,”

“Chews day,” Alani mimics and Harry rolls his eyes.

“You’re so clever,” he huffs. “Really, a true comedian,”

She giggles and leans over in her seat to press a kiss to his cheek. “It’s cute!”

“Yeah, whatever,”

“Okay, just one more—”

“Alani,” Harry chuckles, more endeared than irritated. “Don’t make me turn this car around,”

She pouts playfully and returns to watching the trees and passing cars. “At least I’m not asking you where we’re going,”

“You are so stubborn,” he shakes his head. “I told you we’re almost there,”

“I just don’t understand what it is with you and keeping secrets,”

“It’s about the mystery, darlin’, it’s romantic! Just trust me, okay? Have I ever steered you wrong?”

Alani nibbles at the skin on her lower lip and folds her arms. “No,”

“Okay, then,” Harry says finally. “Now change the song. I let you have fun with one Taylor, but it’s getting old,”

“Hater,” she grumbles, shuffling through the rest of her playlists before settling on Madonna.

Harry’s finger taps along to the beat against her thigh and his lips turn up when he hears Alani singing along. Her eyes are focused on the road ahead of them as she pretends to be in a music video of her own, creating hand gestures and choreography to accompany the lyrics. The chorus builds and she belts out the words as if her life depends on it.

“I’m crazy for you!” She performs, squishing Harry’s cheeks between her hands. “Touch me once and you’ll know it’s true. I never wanted anyone like this, it’s all brand new. You’ll feel it in my kiss,”

Alani presses a slobbery smooch to the side of his face and he groans, laughing when she continues melodramatically. The song goes on for another minute and Alani sings passionately out of tune, but it makes Harry’s heart swell. He briefly considers joining her, but decides to let her have her moment, too amused by the way she’s caught up in the emotion. When it’s finally over, she slumps down in her seat with a dazed look in her eye.

“Gotta love the 80s,”

“Maybe I should let you join the band,” Harry suggests.

“Really?

“No,”

Alani gasps in mock offense, her eyes wide. “Hey!”

“Yeah,” he smirks. “Doesn’t feel so good, does it?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she dismisses offhandedly. “I’m a sweetie,”

“A sweet pain in my arse,”

“Arse? Did you really just say arse?”

“I take it back, you’re just a regular pain.”

The two of them drive for another forty-five minutes taking playful jabs at each other and watching the lush greenery whizz by. Harry had been characteristically cryptic in his instructions the night before, an idea suddenly popping into his mind when Alani reminded him of her day off. He had told her to wear something comfortable and practical, nothing that could flow easily in the wind. Furthermore, he revealed that he would pick her up at exactly 7:00 a.m. which made her eyebrows shoot up.

“Seven?”

“It’ll be worth it, promise,”

“Can we at least get McDonald’s hash browns for the road?” Alani had bargained.

Harry chuckled to himself, too excited to deny her. “Sure thing, sweets.”

Welcome to Waikōloa Beach, the sign read and Alani wondered what could possibly have possessed Harry to drag her out of bed and across the island at the crack of dawn. Her question was quickly answered when they turned onto Keana Place where a lot full of helicopters were lined up and waiting.

“‘Big Island Tours’,” she reads aloud. “Wait a minute, we’re not—”

“Surprise!” Harry beams, reaching behind her seat for a bag.

Alani scoffs, her mind still trying to process. “Are you trying to kill me?”

“Come on,” he pleads. “Been dying to do it since I got here,”

“So bring Mitch! Or Jeff, or Tom or literally anyone else,”

Harry gives her a pout and bats his lashes. “But I’d rather be with you. Please?”

“Harry,” she sighs, taking another glance at the helicopters before her. They did seem secure enough, enclosed on all sides, and he had driven an hour and a half just to surprise her with something fun and totally outside of her comfort zone.

“Trust me?” he asks after a minute, kissing her knuckles gently.

Alani takes a deep breath and nods. “Fine.”

They exit the SUV and Harry takes her hand, slinging his bag over his shoulder. There’s a short, stocky man with dark sunglasses standing in front of one of the helicopters with a clipboard. He checks his watch when he sees the two of them approaching and reaches out a hand.

“Mr. Styles?”

“Harry,”

“Nice to meet you Harry, I’m Matt,” the pilot says with a firm handshake. “Is this your guest?”

“Alani,” she greets. “Is this…”

“It’s very safe,” Matt assures her with a warm smile.

Harry squeezes her hand gently and looks over their mode of transportation. “How long’ve you been doin’ this?”

“Almost ten years,” the pilot explains. “I was a commercial pilot for twenty-five and then started this when I retired,”

“I’m sure you’ve had your fair share of nervous fliers, then,” Alani speaks up, attempting humor to mask her jitters.

Matt nods with a knowing smile. “Oh yeah. Plenty of anxious girlfriends who kick their boyfriends for dragging them into it, but they always enjoy themselves in the end,”

Alani’s cheeks warm at his assumption of their relationship status, but neither her nor Harry address it. Instead, Harry clears his throat and asks his next question.

“So when can we go up?”

“Whenever you’re ready,” Matt offers.

Once the three of them have settled into the aircraft, he hands Harry and Alani each a headset and goes over the basic safety rules. Her heart races and stomach turns, but she takes a deep breath and wills herself to give it a chance. Beside her, Harry is enthusiastically chatting up Matt and being his usual charming self; his confidence is reassuring and she finds herself sinking deeper into his side for comfort. He drapes an arm over her shoulders protectively, sensing her nerves, and presses a firm kiss to her temple. After a few minutes of discussion with the air base over the radio, Matt gives them a thumbs up and signals that they’re ready to go. Another deep breath and they’re off, the ground growing smaller and smaller below. They skim over Waikōloa Village and head west to Waiulua Bay where the water is so clear and blue, Harry has a hard time believing it’s real. Alani peers down at the tiny people all along the coast and in the water and her throat goes dry. She feels Harry nudge her shoulder lightly and looks over to where his finger is pointed.

“Down there you can swim with dolphins,” he says. “Looked it up last night,”

“And we’re not doing that because...?”

Harry flashes a dimpled grin and laughs softly to himself. “How are you not enjoying this?”

“I am,” Alani insists, which is steadily becoming true. She watches in amazement as they hover over the expanse of the lush, green landscape along the coast.

Over the headset, Matt points out some key landmarks and answers more of Harry’s questions. They pass over an active volcano and Alani momentarily feels a rush of terror, but her curiosity takes over as she snaps a photo of the molten lava below. She captures another one of Harry looking out his window before flipping the camera to selfie mode and making a peace sign. He turns to tell her something, but flashes a cheesy grin and presses a kiss to her cheek when he notices the camera. Alani writes a mental note to make it her lock screen later.

After half an hour in the air, Matt points to the cliff on their right hand side and says they’ll be landing there for a bit as part of the tour. A 200 foot waterfall feeds into a small pool and he lands them on a ledge across the way. The three of them exit the helicopter, but Matt says that he needs to check in with the base and lets them explore the site alone for a few minutes.

“This is incredible,” Alani marvels, looking over the edge.

“Knew you’d like it,”

She turns to him and snakes her arms around his shoulders, leaving a small peck to his lips. “Thank you,”

While she had been almost one-hundred percent sure that she would never enjoy a helicopter ride, Alani is glad that she was wrong. She is even more grateful that Harry had encouraged, but hadn’t pushed, her to try it. If Alani had been absolutely against the idea, she knows that he wouldn’t have pressed it any further and would have taken her to do something more her speed, hence the dolphin back up plan. It sometimes felt like they were from entirely different worlds, Harry being more sure of himself and adventurous while Alani was careful and preferred to have things planned. But he made her feel brave and spontaneous without pressuring her to change anything about herself. Harry had seen something special in her and wanted the whole world to see it, too. So he encouraged her to break out of her comfort zone and let her true self shine, but only at her own discretion. Over the course of the past few weeks, Alani had noticed herself opening up to new experiences and loving every minute of it, but this transformative feeling was far from one sided; because of their relationship, Harry learned the value of trusting his own instincts. For so much of his life, he felt like a member of an overcrowded democracy allowing himself to go with the majority rule even if it didn’t particularly please him. From their earliest moments spent together, Harry was inspired by Alani’s determination and self-confidence. He had always cared deeply about other people’s opinion of him and felt that it was his greatest weakness, but she seemed so unapologetically herself at all times. And though Harry sometimes worried that he was simply playing a part for the rest of the world, he never had to question who he was with Alani. She understood him, she grounded him, and amidst all of the unfamiliarity in his new life, she felt familiar and safe.

“You deserve it,” Harry says gently. “To see beautiful things.”

Alani presses their foreheads together and studies his emerald eyes like they’re the rarest gems she’s ever seen. “Well I’m looking at the best damn view right now,”

“Although, I wish you would’ve told me we were going to Jurassic Park, I would’ve prepared my Laura Dern outfit.”

Harry laughs softly and slots his lips between hers, those three, pesky little words nagging at him again. Not yet, he thinks, but almost there.

********

Wednesday

Alani takes an extended lunch and heads over to the recording studio with food for Harry and his friends. He had warned her beforehand that there would be filming, so they agreed to pretend, just for the afternoon, that she was his assistant. However, their true relationship was as much of a mystery to the both of them as it was to everyone else. Alani had considered, on many occasions, asking him to officially be her boyfriend. She didn’t know how else to refer to him when her mom had started inquiring about the Range Rover mysteriously parked across the street every morning. Each time Alani had gotten up the nerve to ask, however, she secretly worried that it was too soon, or worse, that he would say no. Much to her oblivion Harry had also wrestled with this question, and many others, but also feared her response. What they shared was undeniably strong and completely foreign, so they had independently decided not to put too much weight on the situation in fear of bursting the bubble too soon. Neither of them were prepared to deal with the fallout if it all came crumbling down.

“Lunch is here!” Jeff calls from the doorway as he escorts Alani inside.

He motions her over to the table in one corner of the room and helps her lay out the food, thanking her warmly when she declines payment.

“It’s on the house,” she reassures him.

The crew all take turns grabbing their lunch, Mitch ruffling Alani’s hair in a display of gratitude while he swipes his burger, and settle into various chairs and comfortable spots around the studio. Harry is the last one to claim his food and he lingers around the table as he does so.

“Thank you, Ms. Hale,” he offers politely, itching to give her an appreciative kiss.

She nods and returns the professionalism. “You’re very welcome, Mr. Styles,”

“How’s the weather?”

By now, Alani has come to recognize this as his go-to inquiry when he’s really asking for her attention or affection.

“Full of sunshine,”

“Glad to hear it.” he smiles softly. The casual slip of his nickname isn’t lost on him.

“Hey Harry,” the director calls. “Show Jason that Bob Dylan thing you were doing—watch, you’ll love this.”

Harry musters up a pleasant smile and quickly glances at Alani, wanting nothing more than to escape with her for the precious few moments she has left to spare.

“Occupational hazard.” she shrugs as her cue of permission. His fond look turns apologetic before he saunters over to the rest of the group.

Alani watches, amused, as he lifts a guitar and starts strumming a tune that she hadn’t heard before with a Dylan-esque lilt in his voice. The crew all laugh and encourage his impression, but she still wonders what the song is and reminds herself to ask later. After a few moments with the rest of the group, Harry’s eyes wander to Alani munching on a french fry and scrolling on her phone. Jeff notices this too and decides to help his friend out.

“Hey Alani,” he calls. “Come sit with us,”

She looks over to Harry and he grins eagerly, making room on the couch between him and Mitch.

“Alani makes the best smoothies in the world.” Jeff comments to the film crew.

“It’s true,” Mitch adds. “Harry loves ‘em.”

A subtle glare radiates from the singer, but Mitch simply winks in response.

“Well, you guys are my favorite customers,” Alani offers. “But don’t tell the others,”

The whole team makes Alani feel welcome and she’s endlessly thankful for it, making an effort to engage every crew member in some sort of small talk as evidence of her gratitude. Harry enjoys her presence among his friends and how easily she fits in. It serves as further proof of what his gut already knew: she was a missing puzzle piece in the image of his ideal life slowly coming together before his eyes. Alani checks the time an hour later and starts bidding farewell to the group, much to their disappointment. As she slips out the door and over to the Bronco, a familiar accented voice calls from behind. Before she has time to respond, a pair of warm lips meet hers and she hums.

“They’re all goin’ out for dinner at 5,” Harry explains gently. “Come back to the studio then, I have somethin’ I wanna show you.”

********

It’s 5:10 when Alani makes her way back to Napua. Harry had texted her beforehand to say that the door would be open, so she lets herself in and scans the quiet room. She hears the soft keys of a piano, but the room is dim and she has to get closer to see that it’s Harry seated there. Candles are perched around the room and Alani watches her step, reaching a hand to Harry’s shoulder when she reaches him. He stops playing and flashes a soft smile, inviting her to join him on the bench.

“Digging the ambience,” Alani remarks lightly, not entirely reading his mood.

He shrugs. “Just felt right,”

Harry’s fingers return to the keys and he starts with a somber chord that makes Alani’s breath hitch. His vocals are raw and gritty, but stronger than she had ever heard him sing and it nearly moves her to tears. She hangs on every word and burns them into her mind for safe keeping, though she doubts that she could ever forget this moment even if she tried. Harry picks up into the chorus and leaves nothing behind, diving straight into the wave without fear of wiping out. Alani tries, but she can’t contain the tears that spill over her cheek. It’s as if every ounce of apprehension and anxiety, every doubt and moment of insecurity is cleansed from her soul right in this very moment. When the song comes to an end, she immediately wishes to relive it and tries to find the right words in response.

“That was incredible,” Alani clears her throat. “What’s it called?”

“Sign of the Times,” he responds. “Not really sure about it,”

She furrows her brows in confusion, but quickly realizes that he’s being honest and not fishing for compliments.

“Why?”

“It’s… different,”

“Than?”

He thinks for a moment and chooses his next words carefully. “Anything I‘ve ever done before,”

“And why’s that bad?” Alani questions with a comforting hand weaving its way into his hair.

“Dunno,” Harry sighs, leaning into her touch. “I just don’t wanna get it wrong,”

At this moment, “it” isn’t just the song. Everything about his new solo career, and his life in general, is a toss up, and one that he isn’t sure will land in his favor. Alani has no doubts, though, not when it comes to her faith in Harry’s abilities.

“Are you happy?” she asks.

He looks over to her and thinks that he couldn’t possibly be more content. “Yeah,”

“Then you’re already succeeding. If you’re happy with what you’re doing, then no one can tell you that you’re not successful,”

Harry feels his own wave of emotions pooling at the bottom of his lash line and he’s grateful that the low lighting conceals it. He closes the gap between their lips, palm secure against the side of Alani’s face as he keeps her close.

“There’s somethin’ else I wanted to talk to you about,” Harry says gently and Alani feels her heartbeat pick up.

“Okay,”

He isn’t sure how to approach the subject, despite the fact that it’s been the only thing on his mind for days, so he decides to trust his gut and speak from the heart.

“These past few weeks with you,” he starts slowly. “Have been the best of my entire life. When I’m with you, it’s like nothing else in the entire world matters, and nothing bad could ever happen to me because there’s you,”

Another tear rolls down Alani’s face and Harry wipes it away with the pad of his thumb.

“All I asked for was a chance,” he continues. “And it feels like you’ve given me the entire world. Do you remember the day when we saw that rainbow?”

“Yes,” Alani nods, voice small.

“You told me to wish for something, and I did. I wished for a home. I didn’t know why, but that word wouldn’t leave me alone after you said it. But I think I understand it now, because I’m in a place I’ve never been before, physically and in my life generally, but you make it feel like home. You bring me home,”

Alani feels as if all of the air inside her lungs has been sucked out, and her grip on Harry’s wrist tightens because she worries that if he lets go, she’ll float away like a helium balloon.

“I know I’m not perfect,” Harry continues, voice wavering. “But this thing we have feels like it could set the world on fire, and I’d gladly walk in the flames for you. So would you please say you’ll be mine and let me prove it?”

“Yes,” Alani breathes, tears of relief and joy still streaming down her face. “But I need a moment to compose an appropriate girlfriend acceptance speech,”

Harry grins and presses their lips together as if she’s the only source of air.

“Seriously,” Alani chuckles when they pull apart. “Cause how the fuck could I top that?”

“Y’don’t need to. Saying yes was all I needed,”

She unclasps her fingers from his, draping her arms around his shoulders instead, and takes a deep breath. “You’re everything, you know that? You’re the sun and the whole universe revolves around you.”

“And you’re the most heavenly moon,” Harry responds thinking back to the meaning of her name. “Mahealani.”

********

Thursday

When Alani’s father had asked for her help setting up a wedding that was taking place at the resort this weekend, she jumped at the chance. It wasn’t often that she got to be involved in the events at Honu, but she adored the luxurious five star hotel and all of its amenities. She had helped her dad cater numerous events over the years and weddings were her absolute favorite, especially because of the beautiful gowns and all of the blissfully happy couples. It felt like a privilege to glimpse into the most special moments in the lives of strangers she would probably never see again. Alani had been tasked with meeting the bride and collecting any last minute meal cards or notes of dietary restrictions from guests. The wedding was to take place the following night, but all the food prep would begin that afternoon in order to adequately prepare.

“I think that’s all. There were just a few last minute adjustments,” the bride, Mila, says pulling out an envelope from her bag.

“No offense,” Alani starts. “But shouldn’t you be resting? I mean isn’t the maid of honor supposed to do all this? Or a wedding planner?”

Mila sighs, an embarrassed smile spreading across her rosy lips. “I know, I’m just a bit of a control freak. I like things done a certain way,”

“Totally understandable,”

“Like the music thing,” Mila rolls her eyes. “It was my fiancé’s idea. He said that DJs were boring and wanted to let the guests choose their own songs, instead. So that was my compromise. I’m trying,”

Alani offers a chuckle and shuffles the last of the cards into her stack. “Sounds like you’re already mastering this whole marriage thing,”

“Are you married?” the bride asks, curiously.

“Oh, no I’m not,”

“Got a boyfriend?”

Alani’s cheeks warm and her lips curl. “Yes,”

“Knew it,” Mila comments with a knowing smirk. “You’re too pretty to be single. And you’ve got the look,”

“What look?” Alani questions.

Mila flutters her lashes and sighs. “The ‘I’m in love and I don’t care who knows it’ look. Like a Disney princess,”

Alani laughs shyly and focuses her attention back to the envelopes in front of her.

“What’s his name?” the bride pries.

“Harry,”

“That’s a good one,” Mila considers tapping her lower lip. “Like the Prince of England. Maybe you will be a princess, after all,”

Alani is amused by the irony of her statement, but she chooses not to disclose the fact that her boyfriend actually is British, albeit, not a Royal. Instead, she chooses to deflect the attention back onto the bride.

“And what’s your lucky guy’s name?”

“Chad,”

“Like the country,”

“Yeah,” Mila giggles. “Like the country,”

“And what’s he like?”

Mila rests her chin in her hand and a dreamy look settles into her hazel eyes. “Funny. He wanted to be a comedian, but he became a lawyer, instead. That’s how we met— law school,”

“What kind of law do you practice?”

“Ironic enough,” Mila chuckles. “Family and divorce law. I never thought I’d get married, I mean I literally hear about people falling out of love every day. But the thing about love is that it’s effort, and a lot of people aren’t willing to put in the work. It doesn’t feel like work when it’s the right person, though. Just feels like ‘how can I be the best possible partner to this human that I love so much?’”

Alani considers this, her mind immediately wandering to Harry and all of his thoughtful gestures. “Makes sense,”

“Chad is a patent lawyer,” Mila continues. “He’s the more creative, outgoing one, I guess. He makes things light when it gets too heavy, you know? It’s good to have someone like that,”

“Yeah, definitely,”

“What’s your guy like? What does he do?” Mila asks with a flirty grin.

“He’s, uh,” Alani thinks for a second trying to be as vague as possible. “A musician,”

Mila gives an approving nod. “Dreamy. Bet he writes lots of songs about you,”

“Maybe,”

“Don’t be shy,” Mila urges. “Come on, it’s just us girls. Spill,”

Alani thinks for a moment and imagines that the same dream cloud must be present over her own features.

“Well he’s kind, thoughtful, romantic, and wise. Really funny, too. I don’t know he just—he makes me wanna be a better person, really,”

“Wow,” the bride marvels. “Sounds like a hell of a guy,”

“He is,”

Mila leans in conspiratorially and Alani does the same. “Speaking as an expert, I think it’s gonna last forever,”

“You think?” Alani asks.

“Oh yeah,” Mila assures her. “When you’re so used to studying fake love, you get really good at recognizing the real deal,”

Alani offers her an appreciative smile and nods. “Thank you,”

Mila’s eyes light up suddenly and she grabs Alani by both hands. “Hey you should bring him! Yeah, you two should come, I insist,”

“Oh, I—”

“Please, say you will! Maybe he can throw in some good music recommendations to offset the terrible ones,”

Alani chuckles and she knows immediately that Harry would leap at the chance to do so. “Okay, sure.”

“Yay!” Mila cheers, reaching into her planner and jotting a note down. “Harry and Alani at the lovebird’s table.”

********

“Hey, sweets,” Harry beams, pulling up to the front of the hotel in the Cadillac. “Waiting on your boyfriend or are you just in the habit of standing on sidewalks lookin’ cute?”

“The former,” Alani responds coyly. “He’ll be here any minute,”

“And he’s got a pretty girl like you waiting outside like this? You should dump him,”

She shrugs and turns on her heel for a stroll while Harry gently eases off the breaks to follow. “I don’t know, I’m kinda fond of him,”

“S’that so?” he continues with a smirk.

“Yup,” she sighs. “He’s kind of a dork, but I like that about him,”

“Heyyy—”

“And he’s a good kisser. The best at cuddling, too,”

“Sounds like a catch,”

“He is. You two should meet sometime,”

The car comes to a halt and Alani slips inside, scooting all the way down the bench seat next to Harry.

“Funny, you should be a comedian,” he quips.

Alani’s brow furrows and she shoots him a doe-eyed look. “What’s the joke?”

Harry laughs dryly, ignoring the pang of irrational jealousy that strikes him in the chest. “You’re a little too good at this bit, it’s starting to feel like we're not talkin’ about me anymore,”

“Oh, were we supposed to be talking about you?”

His head whips over to Alani who clutches her stomach with laughter. “I’m kidding, baby, of course I’m talking about you,”

“No, who is he?” Harry demands playfully with a deep furrow between his brows. “Tell me, I’ll hurt him,”

Alani slots their lips together and his pout eases into a grin.

“Hey what are you doing tomorrow night?” she asks, feeling the ocean breeze through her hair.

Harry flashes a dimple in her direction. “Anything you want, s’long as we’re together,”

“Will you be my plus one?”

“To?”

“A wedding,” Alani explains. “The one my dad’s catering at Honu,”

His eyebrows raise and he smiles wide. “Are we crashing it?”

“No,” she laughs. “We were invited. I was hanging out with the bride today and she added us to the list,”

“‘Kay, but I’m still gonna pretend we crashed it,”

Alani drapes her arms around his shoulders and leans her head against his. “Where are we going?”

“Damn, I thought I had you distracted,”

“Boyfriend rule #1: You have to tell me where we’re going always,”

Harry narrows his eyes. “That’s not a real rule because surprises are romantic,”

“Too bad,” Alani shrugs.

“But don’t you enjoy my surprises?”

“Usually,”

“Then I’m adding a new rule,” Harry bargains. “The girlfriend can not ask the boyfriend to disclose the location of a date if they’re already in the car,”

“That’s not fair, I was already in the car when the rule was made!”

“Too bad.”

Alani pinches his cheek and slinks back into her own seat. She tells him about the bride and the groom, what she knows, at least, and about the decision to have their guests RSVP with a song of their choice to play at the reception.

“D’you know what you’re gonna pick?” Harry asks.

“Yeah,” Alani nods. “I Wanna Dance with Somebody by Whitney Houston, obviously,”

“Obviously,” he agrees.

“You?”

“Dunno, yet. Have to narrow it down,”

Alani admires the heart-shaped glasses perched on the bridge of his nose. “Well you better make it good, cause Mila knows that you’re a musician and she’s expecting you to balance out her friends’ shitty music taste,”

“You were talkin’ about me?” he teases.

“Well, yeah, how else do you think you got invited?”

“You have such a crush on me, s’cute,”

Alani playfully pokes his cheek. “We’re literally dating, dummy,”

“Don’t get defensive,” Harry jokes. “Cause I’ve got a crush on you too.”

“God, we’re so annoying.”

Harry grins and presses a kiss to her temple. They pull into the Port of Hilo and he magically produces a picnic basket from the backseat, a bottle of Moët et Chandon rosé peeking out. Alani slips her fingers between his and follows as he leads them to a sizable speed boat anchored and waiting for them.

“The Carolina,” Alani reads, admiring the golden cursive on the side.

“Like someone else I know,” Harry winks.

He escorts her onto the vessel and she waits to see when the captain will join them, but confusion washes over her when she sees Harry poking around with the equipment.

“What are you doing?”

“As much fun as it would be to eat at the dock,” he begins. “I think it would be more fun to take ole Carolina for a spin,”

“You mean you’re gonna drive this thing?” Alani questions, though she doesn’t know why she’s surprised by him anymore.

“Pilot,” Harry corrects. “But yes,”

Alani blinks and tries to wrap her head around the idea of Harry piloting a boat. “And you’re allowed to do that?”

“Sure.”

“Wow,” she marvels to herself with an incredulous laugh. “I’m dating a sailor.”

Harry flashes Alani a wink over his shoulder and before she knows it, they’re heading away from the dock. She carefully stands from the lounging area at the back and sneaks over to Harry, arms wrapping around his torso with her chin propped on his shoulder. He steers with one hand and extends the other, recreating the iconic Titanic boat scene.

“I’m flying, Jack!” he calls over his shoulder and Alani giggles, responding with her best improvised rendition of My Heart Will Go On.

They sail out for a bit longer before Harry stops the boat and turns to her. “Ta da!”

“By jove, he’s done it!” Alani praises.

Harry takes a bow and reaches over for the picnic basket, pulling out the rosé and two champagne flutes. He hands them to Alani and spreads their meal on the lounging area at the back: vegetable stir fry and noodles with chocolate covered strawberries for desert.

“You did all this?” Alani muses.

He takes each flute from her hand and fills them halfway. “It’s a special occasion,”

“I feel like an asshole for not knowing what it is,”

“Don’t,” Harry chuckles, handing her the wine. “I mean it’s not really like—I just realized it,”

“What is it?”

Harry raises his glass and clears his throat. “Exactly three months ago, I got off a plane and I stumbled into a little café where the most beautiful and funny and smart waitress served me about twenty glasses of water until I nearly pissed my pants in front of her,”

Alani giggles at the memory, disbelief settling in when she considers how fast the time had flown.

“And despite all of the embarrassing and idiotic things I’ve done since,” he continues. “She agreed to be my girlfriend, for reasons I have yet to understand. So today I celebrate her, and us, and all of lucky stars that brought our paths together,”

They clink their glasses together and Alani presses a cool kiss to his lips. “Cheers, baby,”

“There’s one more thing,” Harry says, holding a finger up.

Alani scoffs. “It’s like fucking Pandora’s box in there!”

He pulls out a velvet box and her heart stops.

“Wait, what are you—”

“It’s not what you think,” he explains quickly. “Sorry, maybe should’ve thought this through better,”

Harry opens the lid and lifts a gold chain with a crescent moon pendant and a smaller sun in the center.

“Saw it in a shop this morning,” he says softly. “Seemed like fate, so I got it,”

“Harry,” Alani breathes, eyes already glossy.

“D’you like it?”

“I love it! It’s beautiful,” she says, pressing a sweet kiss to his lips. “Thank you so much.”

He fastens the necklace for her and she admires it with gentle fingers. The sun and the moon, a piece of them cast in gold and resting against her beating heart forever.

********

Friday

“Wow,” Harry gawks, his eyes raking in Alani’s appearance. A baby pink tulle dress falls just above her knee with puffy sleeves and a sweetheart neckline, all cinched at the waist with a small bow. Tiny velvet hearts are speckled all over the dress, in true Alani fashion, and a pair of sparkling, pink heels accentuate her toned calves.

“Wow yourself,” she counters, drinking in the peek of exposed skin behind his cream colored blazer. The blue dress shirt underneath is unbuttoned just above the butterfly on his stomach and a cross is nestled in the valley between his pecs. He holds out a bouquet of sunflowers between his ringed fingers and Alani accepts them gratefully, moving to the side so he can step into the house.

“These are gorgeous, thank you,” she says, lifting them to her nose.

“Welcome,” he smiles softly, swiping the pad of his thumb against her chin. “You are gorgeous,”

Alani presses her rose tinted lips to his carefully and pulls back to admire him again. “And you are so good looking it actually makes me mad.”

Harry laughs and pulls her closer for another sweet kiss before he hears the clearing of another person’s throat.

“Have her back by midnight,” Pua teases with her arms crossed. “Or I’ll hunt you down.”

“Yes, ma’am.” Harry salutes before bending down to address Freddie.

Alani passes the sunflowers to her sister with a kiss to her cheek before hooking an arm under Harry’s and heading out. They hop into the convertible and the sun catches the golden pendant around her neck, bringing a soft smile to his face.

“Hope those are your dancin’ shoes,” Harry remarks. “Cause we’re goin’ full Dirty Dancing tonight,”

“Lift and all?”

“Lift and all,”

She runs her fingers over the silver rose on his ring finger. “You know, I think we’re finally gonna nail it this time.”

“Oh yeah,” Harry agrees. “They won’t know what hit ‘em.”

When they arrive at Honu, the other guests are shuffling from the parking lot and onto the private beach where the reception will take place. Alani plucks a card from her bag to drop into the box at the entrance while Harry pulls a medium sized box from behind his seat.

“You got a real gift?” Alani questions, a light laugh erupting. “We don’t even know these people,”

Harry tucks the gift under his arm and shrugs. “I put your name on it too, don’t worry,”

“Well now they’ll have a giftcard to Ikea and whatever’s in your mystery box.”

“It’s also a giftcard to Ikea, but wrapped in a big box.”

Alani nudges his shoulder playfully and scans the groups mingling and flocking to the mini bar. She waves to a member of her dad’s kitchen staff attending to the hors d’oeuvres before they are greeted by the manager of the guest list.

“Alani and Harry,” she says to the tall woman behind the podium.

“Ah yes,” the woman responds. “The Lovebirds table, number 9.”

“Guess Mila wasn’t joking about that.” Alani chuckles lightly, taking both of their name cards.

Harry locates their table and to his surprise, no one else is present yet, but he pulls Alani’s chair out for her and pushes it back in once she’s seated.

“Champagne?” he asks, nodding to the bar.

“Oui, s'il vous plaît."

He plants a kiss to the top of her head and makes his way to collect their drinks. Alani’s eyes follow the stringed lights overhead and she quickly realizes that they lead to a disco ball hanging above the center of the dance floor. Well done, Mila. She thinks to herself with an approving nod. The colors, she gathers, are lilac and periwinkle, incorporated into all of the floral arrangements and cloth details. They match the color of the sky above and Alani knows that the bride must be ecstatic over this detail. Harry returns with their drinks and sets them down gently onto the white tablecloth.

“None of our fellow lovebirds have arrived yet, huh?” he muses, taking a sip of his champagne.

Alani shakes her head and brings the glass to her lips. “Must be too busy making out in the parking lot,”

“You told me we didn’t have time for that.”

“I’m not gonna ruin my lipstick before we’ve even arrived.”

Harry shakes his fist to the sky and Alani giggles. They both admire the view and the children in the wedding party who are testing how close they can get to the water before an adult drags them away. The sky turns to a shade of cotton candy above them and someone announces that the bride and groom are arriving. Harry and Alani stand and welcome the newly weds with applause and whistles. Mila and Chad share a sweet kiss and the crowd goes wild. One man, most likely a friend of the groom, shouts “I love you Chad!” and laughter erupts. They take their seats and the rest of the wedding party follows suit, which means that the rest of the guests are free to return to their chatting and socializing.

“I’m beginning to think we were put in the time out table.” Harry jokes when they are still not joined by any other guests.

A light laugh escapes Alani’s lips and she looks around. “Yeah I guess so.”

The servers arrive with their meal and the pair eat happily, exchanging witty banter and observations of the scene around them. Harry sucks a piece of linguine between his lips and turns to Alani with a mischievous smirk.

“No,” Alani says, already knowing what he’s up to.

“Don’t leave me hangin’,”

“Eat your food.”

“Alaniii,”

She shakes her head gently and rolls her eyes, but decides to indulge him anyway. Their lips meet in the middle of the shared noodle and Harry smiles.

“Always wanted to try that.”

A few moments later, he notices a card in the middle of the table and lifts it.

“‘Trivia,’” he reads. “‘Test your knowledge of the bride and groom and win a prize.’ Let’s play, shall we?”

“What’s the first question?” Alani asks, peering over to read the small font.

“‘What year did Mila and Chad meet?”

Alani hums, thinking back to her previous conversation with the bride. “They met in law school, that’s all I know,”

“2009,” Harry guesses. “Who said ‘I love you’ first?”

“Definitely Chad,” she replies firmly. “Mila didn’t think she’d ever get married,”

“I thought you said you didn’t know these people,”

“I guess I was wrong,”

Harry squints at the next one. “What are their zodiac signs?”

“I wanna say Virgo for Mila,” Alani suggests. “Maybe… Aquarius for Chad?”

“That’s my sign,” Harry comments, writing down her guesses.

Alani’s brows raise. “No kidding. Makes a lot of sense,”

“What’s yours?”

“Taurus,”

“I don’t know anythin’ about astrology. Are we compatible?”

“Probably not,” Alani teases.

Harry shoots her a disapproving look and reads the next question. “Where did they go on their first date?”

“The movies,” she predicts. “Safe bet,”

“‘Akaka Falls,” Harry writes. “That was ours,”

Alani’s head tilts. “We weren’t even dating then,”

“Yeah but I was tryin’ to win you over, so it counts,”

“Sneaky.”

“Who is the bride’s celebrity crush?” Harry continues. “Hopefully not James Marsden or this guy’s fucked.”

Alani laughs and she pulls him in for a playful kiss to his cheek. The pink sunset dims into a deep navy and the stringed lights twinkle above, setting the whole scene in a romantic, golden glow. Guests walk past their table holding strips of photo booth pictures and Harry’s neck cranes to search for the source. His eyes land on a small line at the other end of the beach and he stands quickly.

“Let’s go,”

“Where?”

“Photo booth!”

To Alani’s surprise it’s an actual booth, curtains and all, and not just some poor sucker tasked with operating a polaroid camera the whole night. They stand in line eagerly behind two groomsmen and brainstorm poses. Once they’re inside, Alani settles onto Harry’s knee and watches as he operates the machine. The screen counts down from ten and they decide to flash a proper smile for the first one. After it’s snapped, Harry sticks his tongue out and Alani widens her eyes in mock surprise. The third one is a candid, slightly blurry one of them laughing after she accidentally poked him in the eye. A lipstick kiss is stamped to Harry’s cheek in the fourth one, but the pair innocently look away in opposite directions. The fifth and final image captures their affection mid kiss. They swipe the two sets of photos and Alani awes, admiring the black and white film strip. Before they make it back to their table, Alani feels a hand on her arm.

“Alani!” Mila beams.

“Hi!” Alani greets, pulling the bride into a hug. “You look gorgeous,”

“I’m so glad you came! I love your dress,”

Mila turns her attention towards Harry and gives him a warm embrace, too. “You must be Harry! So nice to meet you,”

“Thank you for having us!” he says over the music.

“I see you guys put the photo booth to good use,” Mila comments. “Now go dance! There’s an ipad next to the stage, just queue up your songs.”

Alani and Harry bid the bride farewell, but before they leave, Mila leans into Alani’s ear and whispers “he’s a hottie!” with a wink. They set their photos down inside Alani’s purse and Harry leads her towards the dance floor. She punches in her request and he secretly types the song that’s been stuck in his head all week. Fantasy by Mariah Carey is already playing when they reach the floor, so they join in excitedly. Alani’s hips sway and Harry’s head bobs, both of them mouthing the lyrics. The song fades and Alani’s pick begins, which makes the crowd roar.

“The people have spoken and they love Whitney!” she cheers.

Harry twirls her and shuffles his feet. Alani shimmies and sings along, the lyrics falling from her lips like a prayer.

I wanna dance with somebody

I wanna feel the heat with somebody

Yeah, I wanna dance with somebody

With somebody who loves me

The dance floor is flooded with bodies jumping and swaying, and the disco ball shimmers above the euphoric scene. Alani and Harry spin, making their way through the crowd and letting the music sweep over them like a magical spell. Beads of sweat form at the back of her neck and she lifts her wavy locks to let the ocean breeze cool her down, but her feet don’t stop moving. Eventually, her song peters out and a familiar guitar fills its place.

“I love this song!” Alani cries, immediately recognizing The Cure.

Harry pulls her closer, despite the warmth radiating from both of their bodies, and presses a passionate kiss to her lips. They are surrounded on every side, but in this very moment under the full moon and shimmering disco ball, Harry and Alani feel like the only two people alive. Their foreheads meet and they sway gently, his hands secure at her waist while her fingers toy with the hair at the base of his neck.

It’s Friday, I’m in love.

#harry styles #harry styles imagine #harry styles fanfiction #harry styles fanfic #harry styles fic #harry styles writing #ybmh #ALSO i would just like it to be known that I wrote this before *those* photos so harry get your own romantic gestures >:(#kidding bae <3

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tellthemeerkatsitsfine · 3 years

Text

Thoughts on Taskmaster s04e05, written as I re-watch it:

- Love the “cutest thing” prize task for season four. Every contestant could have just brought in a picture of themselves.

- Love that the first contestant to share their prize, Lolly, actually did that:

- I would argue that Hugh has been unfairly marked down in some of the prize tasks. But for this one, Greg is absolutely right to call it the antithesis of cute. I really want to know the thought process that went into bringing this in for that category. Whether he was going for the genuinely cutest thing or an ironic joke, either way I have trouble imagining what made him decide to do this.

The noise it makes is sort of cute, though. He should have gotten credit for that.

- I would argue that the peas should have beaten the googly eyes, as a plate of googly eyes by itself, which is what Noel brought in, is not quite and in fact looks mildly creepy. I certainly think it’s ridiculous that Greg said it almost beat Joe’s adorable little dog. But I still think they’d have done better if they’d all just gone the Lolly route and brought in pictures of themselves. Baby pictures, school-age pictures, or pictures that they all took the day they brought it in. It doesn’t matter.

- Joe’s attempt at the sliding task looks really bad compared to the three people who did the task well, but I can understand it. Sometimes, when you’re on a time limit, you just don’t think of alternative ways to look at things. And I can certainly see how easy it would be to just look at the instructions, see that Route One is to cover oneself in slippery stuff and throw oneself across a slippery surface, and do that.

This does not excuse Lolly’s attempt, because even if it’s reasonable to not think of any idea beyond that initial one, I don’t how someone would decide to throw themselves across concrete when there’s grass right next to it.

- Love the steady confidence Hugh has while setting up his idea, compared to the lack of dignity in how executing it actually looked.

- I could make some arguments about how if you’re going to let Noel have unlimited “practice attempts” - but you still record the length of the practice attempt and it will count if it’s good enough - then there’s no point in limiting it to one attempt.

But I’m more interested in pointing out the athletic skill involved in staying balanced on that board while moving it forward across uneven ground, and wearing those heels:

- I love that Mel had the foresight to give herself a cushion to lay on while being pulled around the yard. Even if I’d thought of her sleeping back idea (which I probably wouldn’t have, it was very creative), I doubt I’d thought of a cushion so I’d have ended up hurting my back and having to stop. But Mel thought of everything. She was born for this task.

- Greg was absolutely right to say that Mel being pulled around in that sleeping back was cuter than the peas she brought in for her prize task. To be fair, Mel Giedroyc doing anything at all is cuter than the peas she brought it. But Mel getting pulled around the yard was incredibly cute, even for her. What really made the difference was her running commentary, the constant exclamations about how well it was going.

“Oh, this feels excellent. This feels absolutely marvelous. Keep it going, team. Use the hill! Now we’re back on grass. Keep going, round the corner if you can. And back! Back up the hill! Oh my God. Guys. This is, you’re doing amazing work. Stay on the grass. You are incredible. Oh. My. God. I think that’s the most fun I’ve had, sliding.”

- Greg: Do you think the next task might do something to rekindle our relationship with Europe?

Me: All right, Fred the fucking Swede! Let’s fucking go!!

- Love the differences (split mostly, but not completely, along generational lines) in how the different contestants reacted to walking into a room and seeing someone on video chat.

Hugh: Is that an actual person?

Noel, with a big grin and no hesitation: Hello.

Mel: [steps out of view of the webcam, points it with trepidation, and mouths a question at the camera operators like she doesn’t want to offend the computer by letting it know about her concern but she does want to know what is going on with it]

Joe: [nervously pokes his head into the view of the webcam]

Lolly: [smiles and says hello like a normal person, weirdly joining Noel as the two most normal people in this situation]

- It was way too recent when I found out that Fred the Swede was not just some guy in the Taskmaster crew who got roped into those tasks; he used to be a drummer in The Horne Section. This is the first time I’ve watched this episode since learning that fact, and I enjoy picking up on a little thing I didn’t before, when he tells Joe that when does for a living is “a painter/decorator, and a musician”.

Weirdly, that also means we know from Taskmaster s02e01 that he does the same job as his father.

- It took me a while to work out why I kept thinking Fred the Swede reminds me of someone, especially because I’ve never thought that about him before. Until I realized this is also the first time I’ve seen this episode since watching The Last Leg, which featured Paralympian Jonnie Peacock a lot. Fred’s face and mannerisms remind me a lot of Jonnie Peacock. The sort of awkward smiling and going along with what the comedians are doing but looking like he doesn’t really feel in his element. That isn’t a particularly interesting observation or anything, but it is a thought I’m having while watching the episode so I’m recording it here.

- I love how flustered Mel got by the entire concept of talking over a webcam. It seemed to be genuine when she said she was looking for her zip, and then looked mortified and immediately clarified that she was trying to do it up.

It’s quite a contrast, because after that it immediately cuts to Joe saying, “I like you, are you single?” And then smiled and fluttered his eyelashes at the guy in a way that Greg described as “genuinely flirting”:

- I love Joe’s line when imitating his own attempt at “small talk” in this task: “What’s your favourite yoghurt? How do you feel about death?” If I lived in Britain, I would go into every dating app conversation with that as the opening line and keep trying until someone got the reference, and then that person would become my wife, but it’s my understanding that that’s how relationships works.

- Fucking love some of the quotes from Hugh’s conversation with Fred the Swede. “I’m maintaining eye contact with you.” “Do you go to IKEA a lot?” “I am wearing this now, so...”

- Another good potential entry for the “cutest thing” prize task:

- I’ve thought a few times during this season that Noel got scored too highly, but I disagree with disqualifying him from the wetsuit task. The wording as “put on the wetsuit, flippers, mask, and snorkel.” He did that. It was lateral thinking that absolutely followed the letter of the law.

- Okay. So in August 2020, just after I first started this blog, I made four posts about the four panel shows I’d watched in their entirety at the time. Each post was dedicated to my favourite episode of each show: WILTY, 8 Out of 10 Cats, Catsdown, and Taskmaster. For Taskmaster, I had trouble choosing a favourite episode because within a season, all the episodes sort of run together and I think of the show as being split up by tasks. So instead of choosing a favourite episode, I chose a favourite task. I chose: the bath-based team task from s04e05.

I wrote a long post at the time about why I considered this my favourite task in Taskmaster history, and here is that post. What I’m going to do now is reread that post (probably cringe a little at something I wrote nearly a year ago, but I’m going to avoid editing it and will leave it as a record of my thoughts from when I first started this blog) before I watch the task. Then, as I watch the task, I’ll write down thoughts I have that were not recorded in the original post. If you want to know my extended thoughts on this task, additional material is in that post from last August.

- I just re-read my post from last August, and I didn’t cringe all that much at the post itself but I don’t know why my list of honorable mentions at the end included so little from season 9. There should have been much more season 9 on there, and also I would now think of season 9 as up there with seasons 4 and 7 in vying for my favourite. But not becoming my very favourite. This re-watch during the podcast has made me remember why nothing beats season 4.

- When you watch the way Mel and Hugh looked at each other from across the yard at the beginning of this task, I need you to remember what Mel said on last week’s Taskmaster podcast. That while they were filming this, Hugh was helping her plan a bike trip and going over maps in the dressing room during breaks. This is the sweetest thing in the world.

Get you a friend who will break his usual grumpiness to indulge your relentless positivity by smiling at you across a yard, help you plan a bike trip, and help you cover a bath in Saran Wrap.

- I love the, “Oh no, Hugh, no, no!” out of Mel so much. Because it means she saw Hugh throwing Alex’s shoes into the bath tub, and instead of assuming that meant he had different instructions than she did (which should be fairly obvious, given that they both just had to whisper them to Alex), she just thought Hugh was really bad at covering a bath in Saran Wrap.

- This task has so many amazing adorable moments and so many amazing comedic moments that if you blink you can miss them. Like how fucking hilarious it was to see Hugh toss a bunch of balls out of a bin and into the tub, start to run off with the bin, then think twice and throw the bin into the tub as well.

- To be fair, Mel might have assumed Hugh was really bad at covering a bath in Saran Wrap because Mel is really bad at covering a bath in Saran Wrap. She fell apart in most of that task, I’m not sure she’d have accomplished it even if it had been an individual task and she’d just had to cover an empty bathtub with no one and nothing getting in the way.

- Luckily, Hugh came in to save the day. What an absolute, as Mel said on the podcast last week, good egg. And Hugh taking over the bath tub covering left Mel free to cover Alex’s feet. I love Hugh’s bemusement at what she was doing and Mel’s explanation of, “His feet are cold.” Why don’t these two have a sitcom together?

- Fucking love the looks exchanged by Joe, Lolly, and Noel when Greg said he was impressed with Mel and Hugh’s teamwork.

- Alex: Everyone ready? Noel: Um... are we all working together? Alex: [blows his whistle] All three younger contestants: [absolutely lose their fucking minds for three minutes straight]

- I just. I can’t describe how fucking funny those next few minutes are. It’s one of the funniest fucking things I’ve ever seen on television. It opens with Noel running for the hose and Joe throwing a table into the tub and then Lolly immediately grabbing it and taking it out:

From there, I lose the ability to form coherent thoughts and just laugh hysterically until they’re done.

- Okay. I’m going to try to grab a few of the funniest seconds of the time that followed the previous gif, and put them into another gif. It’s not going to come close to doing this task justice. You need to watch a video of the whole thing.

- “I think I got the easiest part of this task.” - Noel Fielding

“Fucking cling film!” - Joe Lycett

“Thanks, guys. Great teamwork.” - Alex Horne

“We should have told each other our tasks.” - Joe Lycett, as they walked away afterward

- This is incidental to the comedy, but Joe is much better than Mel at covering a bath tub with Saran Wrap. If he hadn’t had Lolly getting in his way, he could have completed his task very well.

- “I thought the table would stop the cling film from ruining my journey.” - Lolly Adefope

- Ed Gamble has expressed a belief on the Taskmaster podcast that Noel Fielding is not competitive, and in response to that I would like to share this screenshot of the moment Alex announced that the table had dislodged the bath tub’s plug and therefore most of the water Noel put in came back out again and his efforts were for nothing:

- It’s well known that every season at least one contestant tries to go up on the roof of the Taskmaster house, and they’re not allowed to because of health and safety. Hugh Denis is probably one contestant who asked multiple times and was upset about his request being denied. I feel like he chose to put that toaster on the roof and throw toast into it in protest of this. As a way to get the roof somehow involved in his performance.

- Again, Noel displays genuine athleticism in catching that ball on the tennis racket. Most people would not have the coordination to do that. And then he got so excited that he succeeded that he forgot he also had to be careful about actually getting it into the bucket.

- I’m really enjoying Greg and Alex’s roleplay as meat exporters.

- Joe definitely got screwed over in this task. Throwing that nut into that little hole was difficult and impressive. It didn’t look impressive, but that wasn’t the task. It just had to be impressive.

- In the studio task, Mel took off her blindfold and then immediately asked if it had messed up her mascara. Noel replied that it looked “a bit Alice Cooper”. I mean, pot kettle.

- Lolly Adefope, before being asked to make a long continuous noise: I have asthma. Alex Horne: Me too. Ready?

- I love how Lolly’s noise was 1) funny, 2) loud and overpowering, and 3) very good at fulfilling the task’s mandate of being a long continuous noise. I think she’s the only person on that stage who’s actually trained in acting, and I feel like her wail from deep within her soul is probably an acting exercise of some sort.

- I love how Joe’s attempt at the studio task goes from the cute little moment of Alex kissing him on the cheek, to the genuinely nice bunch of moments of Joe hitting a note (I don’t know if he’s trained as a singer or anything and I don’t know nearly enough about singing to know what was going on there, but it sounded very pretty), to Joe breaking into gurgling and sputtering.

- Hugh’s determination to keep rotating his belt for as long as possible reminds me of how hard he worked in an episode of Duck Quacks Don’t Echo when he had to test his own strength by holding up columns. I feel like Hugh doesn’t have the competitiveness that a lot of contestants do in terms of caring whether he wins Taskmaster points. But he does seem to get really into just challenging himself to do physically and mentally difficult things. And he does them well. He was impressive with that belt.

- I think the point I just made was proved again in Hugh’s approach to the tiebreaker task. No hesitation with those peas.

- I love that Hugh won an episode. I don’t think he really deserves his place on the list of disaster contestants, since he got under-scored a lot in this season. I’m glad he’s not on that list of contestants who’ve never won an episode.

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justlookfrightened · 4 years

Text

How hard could it be? Part 30

Start from the beginning

Part 29

Bitty closed his laptop and groaned. His eyes were gritty and his neck ached. But he thought he was finally done.

Why had he thought it was a good idea to do a Great British Bake Off-style event with a dozen hockey players (baker’s dozen, including Jack, who wasn’t competing)?

He was no Mary Berry or Paul Hollywood or even Prue Leith, and Jack was not Mel or Sue or Noel or Sandy. Most of all, the players were not the top amateur bakers in the country.

Given the circumstances, Bitty couldn’t even taste their food, which meant Jack had to be a judge, collecting the entries from doorsteps and lobbies across the greater Providence area. He would bring them back, sit in his kitchen on a video chat with Bitty, and hold the entry up for Bitty’s inspection. Then he would slice into it or break it apart so Bitty could see the inside before he finally took a bite.

“It’s good,” Jack had said, words muffled through a mouthful of cookie, for the first three entrants in the first round. Bitty had to stop him and ask for more description.

“Is it tender? Crunchy? Crumbly? Is it sweet? Too sweet? Can you taste ingredients besides sugar and butter?”

“I don’t know,” Jack had answered. “Should I?”

Once the judging was done, they would do a video conference with all the bakers and Bitty would announce the decision.

The players had been instructed to bake a batch of their favorite classic-style cookies, on camera, with Bitty watching and answering questions, but not volunteering advice. Jack could volunteer as much advice as he wanted, but he’d never made any sort of cookie before last week.

The Falcs PR department had sent some basic ring lights and external mics to the players to help, but the resulting videos were still amateurish, which was supposed to be part of their charm.

Bitty had scheduled the baking sessions three players at a time, and he had some good reaction shots of himself looking horrified as Tater tried to cream — by hand — unsoftened butter and cream cheese together for his kolacky, and Meyer dug his measuring cup straight into the flour.

Jack has shaken his head and said, “That’s not how you do that,” so everyone on the call could hear, causing Meyer, Poots and Grimaldi all to look up and say, “What?”

Neither Jack nor Bitty (or, apparently, Thirdy) had realized Thirdy rolled his ginger snaps in salt instead of sugar until Jack took a bite during the judging session and quickly ducked off camera to spit it out.

At the end of the cookie-baking sessions, which took a week to get through, Bitty and Jack had narrowed the field to six. Bitty then told them all to produce twelve cupcakes.

“You only need to give Jack two,” Bitty said. “Save the rest for your families or your neighbors or whoever will take them. But you need to show us the whole dozen, with icing, on camera so we know you made them.”

The group did better than Bitty had hoped with the cupcakes. Well, all except Marty, who got distracted by his daughter and put in twice as much baking powder as the recipe called for, creating a chocolate mess.

“The challenge wasn’t mudpies,” Jack said when Marty held the pan up to the camera.

“Shut up,” Marty said. “We’re only doing this for you.”

Others overfilled their cups, making their cupcakes merge, or over-beat the batter, leading to concave cupcakes.

“That’s the way they’re supposed to be,” Fitz said to the camera. “Like cups for the frosting.”

In the end, Fitz’s cupcakes were more frosting than cake. He did not move on to the final.

The three finalists had been Tater, Snowy and, to everyone’s surprise, Poots. They were given the ultimate challenge: producing a homemade double-crust fruit pie, their choice of flavor.

Snowy chose cherry, Poots went with peach (“Isn’t Bitty in Georgia?” he asked), and Tater went for blueberry.

For the final, Bitty did a crust tutorial for all of them before they started, which Jack thought was generous. All of them produced pies better than Jack’s first effort, but not quite up to the standard of the ones he had made with Bitty baking along with him on the computer.

Tater and Snowy attempted lattices and Poots tried to do hockey-stick shaped cutouts on the top. Jack thought they looked more like boomerangs.

In the end, Tater took top honors. “Now I bring pie to you, Zimmboni,” he crowed.

Bitty had ended more than 30 hours of video into three half-hour installments and sent them to the Falcs PR department for approval.

Then he started making the care packages for all the players who participated and all the staff involved, because really, no one had to do this.

“You know they all really like you,” Bitty told Jack, chatting while he baked and Jack sat in Providence, flicking through his photos. “I’m pretty sure they agreed because you asked.”

“They agreed because George asked,” Jack said. “And they’re bored silly.”

“Silly is right,” Bitty said. “I pity whoever has to clean their kitchens.”

“They really liked you, though,” Jack said. “They keep asking me if they can meet you, you know, when you come back north.”

“Hmmm, let me think, do I want to hang out with members of a professional hockey team who might actually respect my baking?” Bitty said. “But why ask you? They all have my contact information.”

“Um, theymightthinkwe’retogether?” Jack mumbled.

“What was that, sweetpea?” Bitty asked, stopping to peer at the screen.

Jack was looking down at his keyboard instead of whatever photo was up in the open window.

“They might think we’re together,” Jack said, looking up at Bitty’s face with those incredibly blue eyes. He looked almost sad.

“I didn’t say we were, and nobody came out and asked, so it would have been weird if I came out and said we weren’t dating,” Jack continued. “But I think that’s what they thought, because they can tell I like you. Sorry.”

“Sorry?” Bitty asked, suddenly worried. “Why sorry?”

“In case you wanted … something else,” Jack said. “Since we never …”

“Of course I like you too,” Bitty said. “I mean, I like you as a friend, too, you Canadian moose, but I’d love to date you. I thought we were just waiting to say something until we meet in person to see if we actually have chemistry.”

“Are you worried about that?” Jack said. “Like … that I’ll smell like a moose or something?”

“Remember, I’m a hockey player too,” Bitty said. “Or I was. I know you smell like a moose when you get off the ice. But I’m pretty sure you clean up well. The bigger question is whether you can put up with me.”

“Not worried,” Jack said. “So … want to try this? How hard could it be?”

Now posting on AO3

A/N: Hey, y’all. This is it for now. There may be an epilogue in a week or so.

#omgcheckplease #omg check please #zimbits #my fic

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tbtssstuff · 4 years

Text

First Kiss - Maknae Line

(A/N): Hi everyone Cinnamon Admin here! I’ve finally been able to write, and as promised here is The Maknae Line First Kiss Imagine! So sorry it took so long, I hope you all enjoy it!

Masterlist | Hyung Line

-Mel/ CinnamonAdmin

Jimin:

Such a sweetheart

He only has eyes for you and is so blessed to be able to call you his

Your friendship goes back so far, you were one of the backup dancers for BTS for one of their earlier shows

When you met, you instantly hit it off and for years you texted back and forth and met up to practice together and other times just to hang out

When he asked you to go out with him, it was precious, he bought you flowers and brought you your favorite coffee drink that said “Words cannot espresso how much you mean to me” on the label

Obviously you said yes and it’s been a few months since you’ve been dating now

The boys are already used to you being around because you and Jimin were always hanging out when you both had some free time between schedules

You loved them and looked to all of them like they were your own brothers

Jimin loved that you were all comfortable with each other because that was one less thing to worry about

While Jimin fully trusts you and the boys, sometimes he could be a little ball of anxiety and his thoughts would run wild sometimes

He was in love with you and was always worried that you would find someone better than him, but he tried his best to push down those thoughts

Sometimes when he saw you talking with one of the guys that was on your dance team he would freak out a little inside

There was one guy in particular that you seemed to be particularly close with and he didn’t know who the guy was because he didn’t want it to seem like he was watching you because that’s creepy

But he couldn’t help himself. He knew that you would never cheat on him because that isn’t the kind of person you are. His issue was with the other guys because he didn’t want them flirting with you.

He never told you this because he wanted you to see him as confident with no flaws even though his insecurities could be so strong

One day he went to go practice dancing with you and when he got to the practice room he saw you finishing up your practice with the other guy from the dance team

Instantly his insecurities hit him and he started thinking about how much better he must be at dancing than him and that you probably enjoyed practicing with your teammate more than with him

He was startled when the door opened revealing the guy walking out of the door.

As soon as he saw Jimin he bowed and said “Jimin Sunbaenim, it’s good to see you.” And turned to you and said “Bye (Y/N) thanks for helping me with those moves, see you later.”

You smiled and waved and greeted Jimin with a hug “Hey Babe you ready to practice?” You asked him with an excited smile

He returned your hug and smiled back “Yeah (Y/N) let’s go!” He said pushing down his thoughts from before

As you were dancing though, he couldn’t stop the thoughts of you and your teammate from barraging his mind.

You could tell something was bothering him because he wasn’t as into the practice as he typically would be. So you stop the music and walk over to him

“Jimin what’s wrong?” You asked him concerned.

“I don’t what you mean everything is fine.” he said focusing on breathing and not looking up at you

Not satisfied with that answer you lifted his head up to make eye contact with you and gasped when you saw the tears in his eyes “Baby are you okay, did you hurt yourself while dancing?!” You asked beginning to look for bruises

He stopped you and crouched down and said “No (Y/N) I’m not hurt I promise… well at least not physically. But it’s not a big deal.”

You frowned and sat kneeled in front of him “Jimin it’s obviously a big deal if you’re about to cry. You know you can tell me anything that’s upsetting you.”

He looked at you and nodded with tears starting to fall and said “Okay, it’s something that shouldn’t bother me because I obviously trust you. But I just get so insecure about myself and can’t help but think there is somebody out there who is so much better than me and better for you than I am. I know I shouldn’t think that way, but when I see you with your teammate I can’t help but wonder if he is better for you than I am.”

When you start laughing he looks at you like you’ve gone crazy

“I’m sorry, I’m so sorry Jimin, I promise I’m taking you seriously. I understand how you’re feeling because I feel that way too about the other idols and fans you see all the time that may be better for you than I am, but you definitely don’t have to worry about my team mate, that’s my cousin Sung-Ho!” You say holding his hand giggling.

His expression shifts to one of embarrassment, his face getting so red “Oh… I- I’m sorry I feel stupid” He said scratching the back of his head.

You smile and lean forward pressing a kiss to his lips, totally catching him off guard, but quickly melting into it one of his hands moving to your cheek.

After you pulled back from the kiss you hugged him and said “Jimin I love you so much, and there is no one in this world I would rather be with than you.”

Hugging you back he said “I love you too (Y/N) and I can’t see myself with anyone but you. I’m sorry for being jealous of your cousin.”

“Don’t be sorry silly, I should have told you before, I’ll have to introduce you two later, but for now I want to spend time with you my wonderful boyfriend, now come on lets try this number again!” You said jumping up to your feet reaching out for his hand

He grinned, taking your hand and said “Yeah! I’m fired up!” (where my fairytail fans at? Sorry xD)

Tae Hyung:

You and Tae have been best friends since you were in diapers.

Your families lived right next door to each other so growing up you were very close so you were always with each other and you were very comfortable with each other

To the point where after graduating high school, you two got an apartment together as roommates

You were both part time students with part time jobs. Your schedules didn’t line up a lot but you made sure that every Saturday when both of you were free to hang out

You would usually just hang out at home ordering take out, and cuddling while watching Netflix

You were both always so comfortable with each other that when anyone would ask if you were dating you would just brush it off because it’s just you and Tae

Little did he know that you have been in love with him since senior year in high school

You don’t remember when it happened exactly, but you suddenly became more aware of Tae as a man rather than your best friend

You were never going to do anything about it though because you treasure your friendship too much and you would do a anything to protect it, even if it meant suppressing your feelings for him

It’s your typical Saturday, both of you are wearing your comfy clothes, yours consisting of shorts and a tshirt, his is sweats and a hoodie

You would switch between rooms when you hung out, this week it was Tae’s room

You both settle in snuggled up against each other and watch this show you’ve been binging called Romance is a Bonus Book (this is a great k-drama I love it so much and 100 % recommend anyways back to the story >.>)

As you’re watching, you start shivering and Tae notices. He takes off his hoodie wearing a black t underneath “Arms up” he said suddenly , confused you lift your arms and he slides his hoodie on you.

“Better?” He asked with a playful smile on his face. Not facing him, you give a nod leaning back against his chest with a blush on your face, thankful he can’t see you

A few episodes later, the main characters in the show kiss and you get so excited because you’ve been rooting for them, that you turn around to gush with Tae and you find your face inches away from his

You stare into his eyes, frozen in place

His eyes wide from your proximity, you can swear you heard his breath hitch

You don’t know who moves first, but the next thing you know his lips are pressed against yours, his hand reaching up to cup your face

When you separate you both look at each other faces flushed both afraid to move

He is the first one to speak “(Y/N) I love you, I have been for years” he says while looking straight into your eyes a shy smile on his face

Never in a million years did you think you would hear those words come from your best friends mouth. All those years of what you thought was an unrequited love, turns out he’s felt the same way.

You grin and say “Tae I love you too! I didn’t want to say anything because I was too scared.”

He pulls you into him hugging you tight, “Thank goodness, I don’t know what I would have done if I lost you because of this.”

You laugh “Silly boy, you’d never be able to lose me that easily. You’re stuck with me forever!”

He pulled back from the hug eyes sparkling, “Do you mean that? You’d stay with me forever?”

“Of course, I wouldn’t want to be with anyone else.” You say snuggling back into his chest.

Jungkook:

You and Kookie have been friends for years, but you recently started dating

It has been so much fun, you both have very childish personalities, which means you get along great and enjoy hyping each other up

You go on the cutest dates, sometimes to cafes, arcades, karaoke bars, and you both enjoy stay at home dates too

One of his favorite things to do is tease you, seeing you flustered because he compliments you or joking with you over silly things makes him incredibly happy

You love seeing him smile and you don’t mind his teasing at all

Occasionally you’ll find the opportunity to tease him back

Today would make a great example of that

You were watching him play his favorite video game and he kept dying during a boss fight and you could tell he was getting irritated

While you loved watching him, you really just wanted to cuddle with him

So of course being the wonderful person you are, you decided to tease your boyfriend

“Kookie I thought you were good at video games? This boss seems to be kicking your butt.” You said watching his face a grin spreading across your face when you see his eyebrows quirk up still focused on the screen

He kept playing and when he died again you decided to stir the pot again “Ah man Kookie I thought you had it this time, you’ve died the same way like 3 times now” You say in a teasing manner

This time he sighed knowing you were trying to get his goat and smiled saying “Haha very funny (Y/N), I was so close this time, I think I know how to beat him now.”

His confidence was short lived because right as he thought he was about to make the finishing blow, the boss killed him.

He put his controller down and flopped back in his chair in defeat. So you decided to push it one more time

“Kookie I thought you said you knew how to beat him?” You said poking his cheek

His lips twitched up into a smile “Alright that’s it Princess no more mr nice Kookie” He said taking his headphones off and turning to the bed where you were sitting

“Uh oh” You said eyes going wide seeing him walk towards you

He tackled you onto the bed and started tickling you, you laughing hysterically

He was laughing with you and said “You think it’s all fun and games to tease me, now face the wrath of my tickles!”

You were laughing so hard there were tears streaming down your face “Kookie, I’m sorry I teased you, I just couldn’t help myself. You’re just so cute when you get mad.” You manage to get out between fits of laughter

After a few more moments of your tickle punishment he stops and looks at you, you are still giggling trying to catch your breath, face pink from laughing so hard, your eyelashes wet from the happy tears, and he thinks you are absolutely beautiful.

When you open your eyes you see that his face is inches above yours looking right down at you with pure adoration

Then he leans down and kisses you

The moment was so sweet and when he lifts his face you are just awestruck, so much so that a “wow” slips its way out of your mouth

Kookie snickers at you and presses another kiss to your lips and then flops down beside you to cuddle

Which you are more than happy to oblige so you snuggle up to him

“I love you so much (Y/N)” he says squeezing you tightly

“Even when I tease you?” You ask jokingly

He smirks and rolls his eyes playfully “Yes even when you tease me”

#bts scenarios #bts imagines #first kiss #jungkook #kim taehyung #jimin #fluff #bts fluff #cute #tbtssstuff #cinnamonadmin #First Kiss Maknae Line

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technicallysideacc · 3 years

Note

"I am curious - what are your favourite fics?" Oh honey, this is a tough question! Mmmh, let me think. I usually prefer to read long fics, just because I really really like discover the story and the characters, and have the time to come to know the characters and why they are how they are in "the present", what made them that way and how they deal with who they are. So, obviously it's hard to squeeze all these informations in a, lets say, 20-40K words story. So many of the fics I’ve read since now are long fics. That been said, I’ve read some short fics that I really loved. Now, in no particular order, and just because I can’t choose one, I think my favorites (those stories that have let me like I was missing something once I finished reading them) are, for the long fics: young and beautiful (classic, but really, the way it’s written and the entire plot and the characterizations OH MY GOD, I loved loved loved that story), Strawberry Milk Fic (the author treat the argument of deal with trauma in such a way that sometimes I had to stop reading because like…it was so emotionally intense! The Harry in this fic is one of my favorites Harry and the line between his strength and his fragility is so thin! And Louis’ character here is…just wonderful. It was really well written and every little thing is treated with the right amount of respect, every little detail), Mine Would Be You (just the entire story here is something else. I loved how it jumps between present and past and how the flashback are not in a chronological order. I loved this and I really also loved Own the Scars, also from the same author, but I HAVE to choose, and I choose this one). I feel like I could go on and on. So I’ll add Tired Tired Sea and For As Long As I Can Remember because I LOVED both of the stories but, really, I love how both green feelings and mediawhore writes, and how their plot are always original or originally developed! I might add to my favorites also “You are in Love”, I think it’s not so well known as the others I mentioned, but it was really beautiful. I wanted to re-read it but I suffered too much at some point (of course there is a happy endings, I couldn’t bare an unhappy ending, my heart is not ready for that hahah), so I wait till I’m ready to re-read it because it was a really beautiful story. That said, I have to add some of the shorts fics I love, because I would feel guilty not to: A house built out of stone, sadly it’s been deleted, but OH MY GOD my feelings have never been the same, after. So well written, and a really beautiful characterization of Louis (and Louis here owns an old book shop, I LOVE OLD BOOK SHOPS!). And, LAST I PROMISE! (Quite the Pandora's box you've opened with that question, I’m sorry if I have gone on for too long!) The last short fic I loved (like really, really loved) was “to live on the moon with you”. Really beautiful, I found myself smiling at my phone when I finished to read it. So that’s it, I think. Please, forgive me for how much I have written and for my English. Probably there are many mistakes…😰🙏 anyway, it’s almost midnight here, so… I’ll hope you a reaaaally good Sunday, and if you want to, and if you have time, I would love to know what are YOUR favorite fics! ♥️♥️♥️

Hiiii, Mels!🥰❤️ Omg thank you so much for telling me about your favourite fics, I was really curious to know which ones you had on your list, and I’ve loved getting to know about them a bit more!💕 I must say that you’ve also mentioned some of my absolute favourites in there (”Own the Scars” and “Mine Would be You” are both such an incredible journeyyyyy, and tbh two of the only instances in which I have actually *cried* while reading fic, which is not very easy to do! Both stories are so well-written, so intense and so satisfactory in their evolution+ending that they always leave me in awe!). And same for “Tired Tired Sea” and “For As Long as I can Remember”, it’s INCREDIBLE and definitely also on my favs list! (From green feelings, I also have “Nameless Night” on my favs list, which is... WOW!💕). I’ve also read and liked the Strawberry Milk series a lot, I totally agree with what you were saying about the characterisations - in both cases, really well-done and lovely!🌺 I think I haven’t read the others you were mentioning, but I’m definitely taking note and adding them to my To Read list (we seem to have pretty similar tastes, so I’m sure that I’ll love them to pieces when I get around to reading them!)

I coincide with what you were saying about prefering long fics, since there’s more room for knowing the characters in depth and include their backstory/trajectory and, of course, their development and evolution - I also love stories like that, and I also have a soft spot for plot-driven fics (investigation, thrillers... fics in which there’s a plot, apart from their relationship development!). As for my favourites!❤️ We’ve already talked about two from the top of my list: “These Inconvenient Fireworks” and “You are the blood”, and, as I was saying, you have also already mentioned some of the others (hahaha I love how we coincide so much in fic taste!🥰), but apart from those I also want to mention some of the others in my favourite list: “Hiding Place” (it’s Canon Compliant with a twist, and one of the first I read in the fandom and WOW! I couldn’t put it down, I loved iiiit, and also all the video links so that you can see what the fic is refering to!), “For Reasons Wretched and Divine” (a lovely story in two time periods, incredibly well-developed and so EMOTIVE!), “And Down the long and silent street” (it’s a bit of a thriller, and loveeeed the Jack the Ripper vibes and the characterisations!), and an absolute classic, “Wear it like a crown” (loveeed how the enemies-to-lovers was handled here, and also how interesting the backstory and plot was!).

Thank you again for your lovely message, Mels, this was such a nice thing to wake up to!💞 And please, there’s no need to apologise at all - I like long messages and this is such a broad topic that I’d be really hard to speak about it in few words, absolutely!🥰 (And your English was perfect!).

Hope that you’re gonna have a lovely Sunday as well! Big hug!🥰💕🌺✨

#Thank you again for your message!#I always enjoy talking about such lovely fics #asks #littleprincepleasedontgo #lovely mutuals #about me #fanfic: You Are The Blood #fanfic; These Inconvenient Fireworks #fanfic: Hiding Place #fanfic: Own the Scars #fanfic: Mine Would Be You #fanfic: For Reasons Wretched and Divine #fanfic: And Down the long and silent street #fanfic: Wear it like a crown

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zelskzerker · 4 years

Text

Why Natsuiro Matsuri IS Hololive

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RcOjygrjBlQ)

What is Hololive? It is one of two most popular japanese vtuber agencies with the other being Nijisanji. More importantly than that simple functional explanation or any AK47 similarity meme given by Yagoo, Hololive has a perceived image online as something between a group of youtubers and an idol group. And Natusiro Matsuri exemplifies this the best.

Vtubers aren’t inherently idols, yet one Hololive’s strongest branding points is its idol imagery. Hololivers aren’t technically idols (I promise I will qualify this statement) and merely use the mask of idol culture. The benefits of this themeing come in a multiple important ways. First is group synergy. A large boon to Hololive becoming popular rather than an individual in Hololive becoming popular is their close knit groups’ interactivity under a single concept. One second you are watching a dog playing DOOM and then somehow you end up watching a vampire and a succubus making out and it is somehow all people that know, like, and interact with each other in fun ways via a chain of connections. This isn’t to say other places like Nijisanji don’t have webs of interactions; they do. The difference is simply seen in that there is an image like this exists in a near-complete form for Hololive but not Nijisanji. Instead of each member being the king of their own island, Hololive unites in a single continent.

The second boon to idol theming is a crucial one to Hololive’s growth in Japan, but not necessarily overseas. Understandability. The idea of an idol is an understandable and pre-established concept in Japan and otaku circles. VTubers were not. Therefore, a simple description of Hololive is an idol agency, but the idols are virtual characters. The real benefits of this are shown in all the ads Hololive can get with other companies such as curry and physical posters in Japan that expand the fanbase through channels commonly used by real idols and other pre-established entities.

The idol theming of Hololive is not always beneficial however. The concept of an idol is highly based on “purity” culture, or the idea that said idol is wholly nonsexual, apolitical, a cute girl, and a virgin without a boyfriend to form a parasocial relationship with the viewer in which the viewer may imagine themselves as the boyfriend to this otherworldly perfect girl who is detached from the grueling real world. Of course, people who buy into this parasocial relationship too much end up capable of performing horrible acts when the illusion is broken. Although any community is capable of having individuals that perform deplorable acts, the acts in the idol industry stand out for the incredibly large amount of triggers possible that any average person would stumble into that may incite illusion shattering. From the targeted harassment towards Mel, Towa accidentally allowing a male voice to be heard, the dreaded T(aiwan) word (although this wasn’t directly caused by idol culture, the cascade effect ending with Hololive China being forced to retire was boosted thanks to the unification effect the idol theming was previously described to give), and of course Mano Aloe, being an idol comes with restrictions. But this is where the fact that Hololive isn’t really an idol agency comes into play. An idol in the typical sense could never be as crude as Coco or as lewd as Marine yet these two exists in the same unified group as the utterly pure Tokina Sora. So if Hololivers aren’t really idols then it must mean that…

VTubers are inherently Youtubers. Youtuber, content creator, etc, etc. In this case imagine all those terms to be equivalent. Their status as youtubers offers them all the benefits of stronger connections to their fans, freedom to do as they wish as long as fans directly like it, whatever work hours they self-prescribe and so on. Every benefit applied to a Youtuber compared to traditional media is also applied to a Vtuber. The special nature of being “virtual” adds an additional layer of indirectness ontop of already being an online entity. The major benefit, directness, is also a major downside. Fan love may reach youtubers quickly but so does fan hatred. Onotop of that, the emotions of the fandom are that of a constantly undulating wave. Said wave is not only affected by that of the tuber themselves. Outside entities such as the vtuber equivalent of keemstar serve as the vtuber version of drama/commentary hounds that have a large amount of influence in affecting the wave of emotions. Festering rumors can be harmful to the trust of a community and the mental health of its head.

Hololive’s image as a group of psuedo-idol Vtubers has a large amount of diversity. Everything from the perfect image idols like Sora to the crude and causual Coco. Amongst them all though, Natsuiro Matsuri is the one that stands perfectly in the center. She self-describes as an idol otaku and had a variety of useful idol skills upon joining Hololive that it begs the question why she wasn’t already an idol. Although there could be any number of actual answers, Matsuri says something very interesting in this video with Marine.

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yfINi8K7k5s)

Matsuri states the reason that she loves Hoshikawa so much is because “she does whatever she wants.” Matsuri also self-describes as a person who “stops when she is told to stop by others” which is an odd thing to say as someone who is a frequent guest to the pee-holding streams of Inuyama Tamaki and professed lover of the loli hentai doujin “Love is Blind” by Quzilax. All of these disparate details paint the picture of who Matsuri is. She is inspired by others and looks up to those who have no fear about doing what they love, so much so that she seeks to imitate their fearlessness in her own activities. She loves idols, but would feel restricted by the strict purity restrictions of being one. On the other hand, being just a youtuber would never all for her colors to truly bloom; it would never allow for her idol skills to be shown off to their fullest. Thusly, the only possible option for Matsuri to be true to herself is to be a Hololive member. A place inbetween an idol and a youtuber. Hololive exists on the lighter side amidst the chiaroscuro of VTubers, but Natsuiro Matsuri’s seiso voice is full of the technicolor explosions that light a dark canvas of loli degeneracy.

May Hololive always remember this summer festival.

#hololive #natsuiro matsuri

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thejudgingtrash · 4 years

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Mel, my darling! ❤️ Mel's little cookout: model Percy/makeup artist Annabeth pretty please (ILYSM ❤️❤️)

Beccaaaa YOU HAD ME SCREAMING WITH THAT REQUEST!!!

I have an ENTIRE headcanon for Model!Percy and edits to make for it!!

Do you know how much I love you? This isn’t funny!

Okay! Enjoy your prompt!! (also thank you Torie @percyheartsannabeth for being an amazing beta!)

The Model (WC: 2,3k)

Annabeth Chase had a secret passion. Makeup. Most of her classmates would’ve never thought that she would enjoy the art of the daily enhancements, but she secretly did. Techniques, palettes, brushes, sponges… Everything was kept in boxes at home, all neat and tidy.

Annabeth Chase also never thought that she would actually get the gig at MAC to work there. She aced the multiple interview rounds, impressed her future employer with her skills and diverse approach in makeup and was nearly hired on the spot. And now she was a fairly skilled makeup artist. One of the best.

There was another thing that Annabeth Chase never would have guessed. That it would take only one random afternoon to change her life forever.

A man entered the store. He was tall, wore sunglasses and an expensive Italian suit. He chatted with Drew, Annabeth’s supervisor.

“Oh, yes!” said Drew with a polite smile. “Annabeth?”

The blonde turned around and approached them. “He wishes for something natural for the day to cover the circles under the eyes,” Drew explained. “Can you do that quickly?”

“Of course, I can. Please follow me, sir!” Annabeth rarely worked with men, but there was a first for anything.

Her client took a seat and removed his sunglasses. Despite having rich dark skin, blemishes and fatigue ruined an otherwise fairly handsome face. The man took care of himself. Mostly. Sleep apparently wasn’t important enough.

Annabeth took her arsenal of makeup and other supplies and put them in front of the large mirror the client was facing. “You are warm toned,” she softly spoke and grabbed foundations to mix them together.

“Skin is already primed,” the man added. He also sounded Italian.

“Oh yes, I can see that!” she smiled. Then she started her work. She grabbed her sponge and placed the mixed foundation. Slow buildup, little by little. She used the concealer to smooth the surface and brighten the under eye area a little bit. Highlighter for a little pop. The customer didn’t want a full eye look, just curled lashes and mascara and sharpened eyebrows. Roughly twenty minutes passed, and Annabeth stepped aside so that the man could see the magic she had worked.

“Oh wow!” the client sounded impressed and tilted his head.

“Very natural. I like that!”

Annabeth smiled. “Oh yes. A full face can be so expressive and fun but not something for the day to day. A natural look should enhance your beauty, make spots disappear, not turn you into something you aren’t.”

“Very true,” the client agreed.

“Can I book you again?” he then asked. Annabeth nodded to Drew.

“Oh sure, just ask my boss!”

The man laughed and shook his head. “No, no, honey. Can I book you?”

His hand wandered into his suit and pulled a business card out. He handed the card to Annabeth.

Charon Bianchi. Casting director. Paris – NYC - Milano. DMFASHIONSTUDIO.

Annabeth looked up to Mr. Bianchi. “Uh…sure?”

The following four years changed everything for her. Gone was the job at MAC after she had signed with Charon. Hello flourishing career as an international MUA that got booked for galas, editorial shootings and runway gigs. Even certain celebrities and YouTubers hired her.

Annabeth had seen it all in those short years and had worked with all of them. She had been in Shanghai and then in Greece two days later. Flights from Paris to Kabul, New York to London. Annabeth had crossed paths with famous makeup artists like Pat McGrath, Charlotte Tilbury or Lisa Eldridge. She had been on the sets of photo shootings with incredible photographers such as Lara Jade, Lina Tesch, Cass Bird and even the famous Peter Lindbergh before he had passed. But the more recent things she had been booked for were runway gigs. Less pay, but more fun and definitely more stress.

Paris 2020. Dior Men, the new fall/winter 2020/21 collection. Designer Kim Jones wanted Annabeth to return to the set, so she did. The venue was beautiful. That was all Annabeth could think before she and a dozen others were sent backstage to prep their own little areas before models, videographers and photographers would swarm the place. Four hours until the show began, and everybody was already stressed out. The first few models showed up. Annabeth had been given a set card with faces she would work with on that particular day. 47 looks in total with 37 male models. Second looks, great Annabeth thought. More stress.

Malick Bodian, Ludwig Wilsdorff and Perseus Jackson were the models that were assigned to her. Perseus Jackson. A handsome young man, not much older than Annabeth came to her mind. Long curls, brown skin, light eyes and a beautiful grin. Annabeth had seen Perseus multiple times, but she had not worked with him directly before. Whereas many designers or their agents chose models because they had an interesting look or a beautiful symmetrical face, Perseus had both. The IT factor. His walk was among the best of his generation.

Annabeth was done with Ludwig’s look as she saw how Perseus stepped into the hectic atmosphere. He was two hours early which meant that he was four hours too late in the fashion world.

“You’re good to go,” said Annabeth to the young man next to her.

“Thanks,” he laughed and got up to get dressed.

Annabeth waved Perseus over to her. His lips formed an “Oh,” before he sat down next to her.

“I think we’ve never worked together before, haven’t we?” he asked. She shook her head.

“Well, Percy,” he introduced himself.

“Annabeth,” she smiled.

“Annabeth?”

“Don’t ask,” she rolled her eyes. “A southern thing.”

That made him roar with laughter. Annabeth had the entire Dior makeup arsenal next to her and was supposed to focus on enhancing his looks, but she couldn’t. He was way too charming, way too funny, way too charismatic. They talked about life before fashion. Percy got scouted at the age of sixteen as he was working at his mother’s bakery in NYC. At first, he thought it was a joke and his mother also had been very skeptical, but after the first few gigs, they realized that Percy had the potential of making it big in the scene.

Annabeth could sense that he was one of the few male models that could actually live a fairly comfortable life with his runway, video and editorial income. He was way too relaxed, and Annabeth knew how struggling models looked like.

Percy had seen Annabeth’s work before. They’ve crossed looks behind the scenes of Prada, Valentino and Isabel Marant. At first, he had thought she had been a model herself with her height and gorgeous looks. The fact that she had been hired as a makeup artist came as a total surprise to him. The blonde set the foundation. He paid close attention to the movement of her hand. That is how he saw her diamond for the first time.

“Oh, wait you’re engaged?” His eyes widened.

“What?” Annabeth looked at the ring on her finger. A birthday gift to herself.

“Oh that,” she laughed.

“I think I might have missed the memo, but I’m pretty sure that I’m single.”

“Oh,” Percy laughed. He almost sounded relieved.

The makeup was a soft look that should set focus on the grooming of the models. A glow on the cheekbones. Smooth skin. Little crystals that were set around the eyes functioned as little highlights. A black earring dangled from his left ear. Then Annabeth moved further to his lips.

Annabeth used neutral brown tones that were supposed to enhance his looks. She applied the color and slowly worked on his bottom lip. His lips slightly parted and his intense stare made Annabeth blush. Her gray eyes wandered back to his lips to finish her work.

“I think you’re good to go,” Annabeth said.

“Already?” he pouted. It was unfair. How could someone shift from fierce to seal eyes in less than a second? Features that could shift from humor to almost anger so easily from the shoots Annabeth had seen from him.

“Move,” she laughed.

Perseus got up. “See you around,” he winked. A warm feeling spread through Annabeth. He’s just cheeky. That’s all.

*****

The collection had a touch of British fashion. Percy grabbed his stuff and was placed into a changing room by a stylist. As soon as he left, he had been swarmed by people that corrected everything. From the way the tie was sitting to the way the white jersey was stuffed into his pants. Someone actually got on their knees to work on the socks. His first look was a gray wool coat which was accompanied by a dark set of pants, a white jersey which had a silver shirt underneath. A fitting white tie and white gloves were set as highlights.

“We need someone to do a little retouch!” one of the stylists yelled. Percy turned around to see if Annabeth was around somewhere. She was not. She still sat in her niche and worked her magic on his colleague Malick. They were laughing. A pang to his heart. Disappointment.

“Hey Percy!” Makeup artist and great friend Piper McLean greeted him and redid some of Annabeth’s layers.

“All models must be ready in the next ten minutes!” yelled director Luke Castellan over the noise and busy people. “First Looks and then get in line! Ten minutes everybody!”

Percy got to the small corner where photographers were ready to take the first pictures of the entire looks. Posing, demonstrating, not getting blinded by the flashing lights. Percy stood in a group with Jason Grace, Ethan Nakamura and Taemin Park. They broke the formation after a few minutes to make room for the next set of models with other looks. Percy got in line for the runway. He wasn’t going to open the show; he was the fourth look. But he would have the honor of closing the show. A key highlight. He made a silent prayer and then it was time.

Assistant Grover Underwood gave the opening model Nico di Angelo the go to walk out. Everyone stared at the screen backstage in anticipation.

“Go!” Charles Beckendorf left.

“Go!” Jason Grace moved forward.

“Go!” It was Percy’s turn.

*****

Annabeth was in awe of his work. Percy walked upright. The right amount of poise and elegance. A hint of arrogance. A lot of determination. He did not move his hips too much and he accentuated the movement of his shoulders. A strong masculine walk and on beat with the music too. A beautiful strut. A neutral game face but his sea green eyes were set aflame.

Percy focused the minute he had reached the middle of the runway. He could do a sloppier walk in the beginning but not anymore. Eyes open, be casual but attentive. The camera that would capture the picture for Vogue Runway which would be sent all over the world in a few minutes caught his gaze. He worked around the crowd of celebrities and fashionistas that captured his looks with their own smartphones and made his way backstage. The coat got taken off immediately. A stylist handed him the final outfit which he had to change in less than a minute. Then Piper caught up with him and did small retouches before he went to Second Looks.

Percy wore a black coat which was embroidered with silver elements. The strong silver started from the collar and was reduced by the chest area. The streaks got less and less, like feathers that were falling and captured. The black fabric of the coat took over and created an interesting silhouette.

Percy was surprised. Annabeth stood next to him and actually did his retouching again. Her thumb brushed the fallout off. A small gesture he truly enjoyed.

“What? No good luck kiss for me?” Percy asked innocently. Annabeth’s jaw dropped. She actually laughed. Cheeky. He was very cheeky.

“What would you need a good luck kiss for?” He was more than just professional. Percy didn’t need luck. He just worked and did so perfectly each and every single time.

“Go!” said Grover and pushed him out. A last cocky grin and wink to Annabeth and then he was back on stage.

Annabeth stood next to designer Kim and watched how Percy worked his magic on the runway again. All 37 models were set in a row and did one final round one after another after Grover’s go. After that, the designer went on stage and bowed to the crashing applause.

The crew backstage cheered as well. Another gig was done and over and the fashion world knew what the man would wear in the coming fall season.

Annabeth helped collect the makeup and clean the area. She turned around and nearly walked into Percy. Percy almost looked nervous.

“Oh. Is everything okay?” she asked him.

“Yeah, I wanted to ask you whether you had makeup wipes,” he said lamely.

Annabeth grabbed a few and handed them to him. He was already changed back into his casual jeans and black hoodie. It almost broke the makeup artist’s heart to see the model cleaning the canvas. But with or without makeup, Percy was a handsome man.

“Thank you,” he smiled. And he did not move an inch. A question rested on his lips.

“Would you like to drink some coffee with me?” Annabeth halted her movements and looked up to Percy.

“What?”

Percy was surprised at her surprised reaction. The fact that top model Percy Jackson was single and actually had asked her out blew her mind. Annabeth nearly dropped the brushes.

“Are you serious?” Annabeth asked him. He was confused.

“Why wouldn’t I be serious? I like you,” he explained. A man that was direct. That was something Annabeth certainly liked.

“So. Coffee or not?”

“Sure,” she said and shared his smile.

The End

The looks I’ve chosen are looks 4 and 47 from Dior Men!

And of course! The letter! I haven’t forgotten!

Thank you so much for the prompt, Becca! Writing this was so much fun!

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#pjo #Percy Jackson #mel's little cookout #Annabeth chase #percabeth #pjo fanfic #percabeth fanfiction #percy jackson fanfiction #percy jackson and the olympians #mel writes

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