#Mixer Streamers

[georgehopkins]

Very REAL Crying

[risingphoenixtv]

Here's my advice for anyone new to streaming and just starting out

[rainybubbles]

How COD men say the first "I love you"

Price, Gaz, Soap, Ghost, Rudy, Keegan

(Sorry in advance for my mistakes, English is not my mother tongue. So sorry if it's badly written or if they're OOC.)

-

for more context (you don't need it to read) : here how you met them

P R I C E

-He confessed with Gaz covered by whipped cream.

-Let me explain.

-After your first meeting based on a pregnant Shrek cake to his base and a misunderstanding, John became a regular of your bakery.

-So obviously for confessing his love, he thought of baking a cake.

-During the afternoon on the base, he tried to bake.

-Yes, he could have bought a cake with "I love you” on it. But John liked doing this on his own when it came to gifts.

-He liked the old-fashioned way of doing gifts himself.

-However, as the dough turned an unexpected purple hue, he wisely sought the expertise of Soap, a proficient pastry enthusiast.

-"Cap...your dough is..." Soap hesitated, unsure of how honest he could be.

-"Horrible, you can say it, son," John acknowledged.

-"I just wonder how you managed to make it turn purple?"

-"I used beetroot."

-"For a cake?"

-"Sugar is derived from beetroot."

-"Yeah, but in a Paris-Brest, you don't have beetroot."

-"...how can I fix this?"

-"Well, call Gaz. By three, we could finish the pastry in time," Soap suggested with a knowing smile.

-The collaborative baking commenced, yet Soap overlooked a crucial detail—Gaz sucked as much as Price when it came to bake.

- Entrusted with the delicate task of preparing the crème au beurre, Gaz inadvertently neglected to secure the mixer's lid.

-Chaos ensued as the cream erupted, spilling on the surroundings.

-Soap tried to stop it, but he slipped on the floor.

-Gaz couldn't see because of the cream, and John was looking at them reconsidering his life's chouce.

-Obviously, you decided to come back home at this moment.

-Yo were greeted by the sight of Gaz adorned in whipped cream, Johnny sprawled on the flour-strewn floor, and John enveloped in a cloud of flour.

-"I...is this a kinky food party, or did I miss something? Because usually, people are naked when they use whipped cream," you quipped.

-"I can explain, love," John offered.

-"Okay, what happened?"

-"I wanted to bake for you."

-"You know I don't need cakes or pastries; that's my job. If I crave a sweet tooth, I have plenty of cakes, honey."

-"I know, but this one was special. It was supposed to be a heart-shaped Paris-Brest."

-"Paris-Brest aren't heart-shaped."

-"Not when they're not employed for confessions."

-A moment of realization dawned upon you.

-"Fuck, you...you wanted to say 'I love you.'"

-"Yeah, but it's clear I messed up."

-"No, no. I mean, sure, Gaz covered in whipped cream, Johnny on the flour, and walls adorned with flour was not what I pictured, but it's perfect."

-"Good because I don't plan to cover Garrick in whipped cream every time I want to say it."

-A shared chuckle ensued as you joined Gaz and Soap in the aftermath, each contributing to the cleanup while John beamed with contentment.

G A Z :

-He confessed with a vocal.

-After your meeting and your teasing when you found out Gaz listened to your spicy ASMR as a streamer, you noticed him.

-He was a regular, one of the fans who always leave a comment under each post.

-He became more than just a familiar username.

-Your bond deepened as you sought his counsel on scenarios for your streams and videos, a virtual confidant in the ever-expanding realm of online content creation.

-As time unfolded, your relationship transcended the digital realm.

-The spark between you two ignited, an intangible force that fueled your creative musings.

-Swiftly, meetings materialized whenever Gaz found a fleeting moment of respite from his duties.

-When he was on long deployments, you sent him exclusivity audios so he could be distracted from the horror he did or saw, offering a temporary escape from the grim realities he faced.

-Your voice became a comforting melody, a beacon in the darkness, ensuring that Gaz could find solace even amid the harrowing experiences he encountered. 

- In fact you could record yourself spelling a list of grocery and he would find it awesome

-Yet, despite the kisses shared and the intimate moments experienced, Gaz had yet to formally ask you out or declare those three potent words: "I love you."

-One night, as a gentle breeze whispered through the window, he turned to his friend Soap for advice, a hint of embarrassment lingering in his tone.

-"Hey, mate, can I ask for advice?" he queried, his eyes seeking guidance from Soap.

-"Sure," Soap responded, welcoming the opportunity to lend an ear.

-"How... would you confess to someone you've been flirting with for months?" Gaz inquired, his apprehension palpable.

-"Tell them," Soap replied matter-of-factly.

-"No shit, I wanted something special. They're... they're awesome, and I really want to make the thing memorable, you know?"

-Soap smirked, teasing Gaz.

-A playful shoulder bump ensued as Gaz protested, "Shut up, mate. I just... I feel like they're the right person, you know? I mean, they saw me during my lowest moments, and for people like us, it's hard sometimes to find those who can handle a lover with PTSD."

-"Yeah, I feel that," Soap acknowledged. "Well, maybe use your first meeting or something they love. If they're into soccer, bring them to a big match and confess during it."

-"But, you know, during a match, everyone screams? It's kinda dumb."

-Soap paused.

-Gaz looked at him.

-"Well, it sounded like a good idea at that time."

-Gaz's eyes widened. "Wait, you did that?"

-"Listen, it seemed like a good idea."

-"Oh my gosh, what happened?"

-"She didn't understand what I said and answered, 'You're such a good friend.'"

-"Damn."

-"But it doesn't mean it'll be the same for you."

-"I know. I just think about things they love. I... can't confess by ASMR, honestly. It'll be cringe."

-"Maybe send an audio? No need for ASMR," Soap suggested.

-"Yeah," Gaz agreed.

-As Gaz found himself in his room, armed with his phone and ready to send a heartfelt audio message, he hesitated.

-The recorded voice sounded foreign and awkward to him, far from the eloquence he envisioned.

-Discouraged, he abandoned the attempt.

- Upon his return from deployment, sensing your unusual behavior, he confronted you about it.

-"You... sent me a vocal, but it only said 'Fuck you,' so I didn't know if I did something or not," you confessed, puzzled by the unexpected message.

-Gaz paused, the realization dawning upon him. He had forgotten to delete a frustrated attempt at confessing that slipped through the cracks.

-"No, it was not against you. I... I tried to do something, but I messed up. So I was mad at myself, and at the same time, I was recording a vocal for you," he admitted, vulnerability coloring his words.

-"Can I ask what was this thing?" you inquired, curiosity dancing in your eyes.

-"I... gear. I couldn't take off my gear," he lied, attempting to divert the conversation.

-"You're a bad liar," you chuckled.

-"Okay, I wanted to confess to you. And I tried to record something like you do, but it sounded horrible."

-"You know you could have texted?" you suggested with a playful smile.

-"Yes, I... I didn't think about it. I was so focused on voices and the perfect confession."

-"I reciprocate, if you ever wonder," you reassured him.

-A smile broke across Gaz's face as he squeezed your hands, grateful for the understanding that transcended words.

S O A P :

-He confessed by drawings.

-After drawing you like Gollum because you flustered him, Soap, determined to prove his artistic prowess, pursued every opportunity to capture your essence on paper.

- Despite attending each modeling session and receiving your compliments, he couldn't quite capture the nuances—those wrinkles when you smiled, the sparkle when you ate, the delicate mole that graced your visage.

-Unyielding, he embarked on a mission of his own, drawing you ceaselessly between military duties, on the pages of his diary, and during leaves.

-Training, a familiar concept to a soldier, became his artistic discipline.

-You willingly played muse.

-The drawing sessions evolving into intimate conversations, forging a connection that extended beyond artistry.

-As your bond deepened, so did Soap's frustration.

- The elusive perfection he sought in his drawings continued to elude him, and he longed to express his feelings through his sketches.

- One day, returning to your darkened apartment, you discovered a trail of candles illuminating your path.

- Recognizing Soap's expertise with fire and explosives, you followed the flickering lights until the room burst into brightness.

-There, on the wall, an intricately arranged collection of sketches painted a portrait of your shared moments—coffee spills, date nights, and more.

-Overwhelmed by the domestic warmth of the scene, you couldn't help but murmur, "Shit, it's so cute."

-"I hope so, because I love you, baby. I want these sketches to continue, to wake up to you every morning, to draw you, to see you, to kiss you," Johnny confessed, closing the distance between you.

-A tender embrace and a heartfelt kiss followed. "I love you too."

-"Good, because it would have been hard if you said you hate me after I spent five hours gluing these sketches," Soap admitted, a playful smile gracing his face.

-Laughter filled the room, echoing the joy of two hearts entwined in love.

G H O S T :

-He confessed with a monkey wrench.

-You were tired.

-The life of a mechanic on the base demanded a toll, and today, that toll felt almost unbearable.

- Fatigue etched lines on your face as you toiled among the clattering tools, your hands weaving intricate dances of repair.

- The camaraderie with your coworkers, usually a source of solace, had soured into an unbearable weight on your shoulders.

-Amidst the clinks and clanks, a sudden snap echoed through the air, drawing attention like an unwelcome spotlight.

-Your favorite monkey wrench, a faithful companion in countless repairs, lay shattered in your hands.

-A surge of frustration coursed through you, and against all reason, tears welled in your eyes.

- It was an odd vulnerability, shedding tears over a broken tool, but the accumulation of stress had reached a breaking point.

-Then, there he was—Simon, the enigmatic connection born from his bad driving skills and your repairing of his vehicles.

- Your eyes met, and the vulnerability you felt intensified.

-"Don't pity me, please," you whispered, a plea tinged with embarrassment.

-"I don't pity you, love," Simon responded, his voice a balm to your wounded spirit.

- He knelt beside you, his presence a comforting anchor in the chaos of the workshop.

-"I... I must look ridiculous?" you stammered, seeking reassurance.

-"No, you look quite stunning crying on the dirty floor with a broken monkey wrench," he teased, a glimmer of humor in his eyes.

- Your tears mingled with laughter, a cathartic release in the midst of chaos.

-"Yeah?" you asked, a hint of uncertainty lingering.

-"Yeah," he affirmed, his gaze sincere.

 -"Then Soap is the most stunning with his mohawk full of mud."

-"Hm, he can't beat you with your grease on the cheek," Simon remarked, using his gloved hand to wipe away a smudge.

-A quiet settled between you, broken only by the sound of tools and distant chatter.

-Simon extended his hands, a silent offer of support, and you accepted, rising from the dirt-strewn floor.

-"Thanks for... being here," you said, gratitude coloring your words.

-"I'm not always here, love," Simon admitted, a touch of vulnerability in his gaze.

-"But you're here when it counts, Simon. That's all that matters to me," you confessed, and with those words, you retreated to the solitude of your barracks.

-As you left, Simon watched you, and in that moment, an unfamiliar warmth enveloped him.

- It was the realization that he was enough—enough to be there for you, enough to be loved.

-The following day, a surprise awaited you in the form of a brand-new monkey wrench.

-A note accompanied it, bearing Simon's distinctive scrawl: "I hope to buy you more in the future."

- A subtle promise, a declaration beyond words.

- You smiled, for you understood—it was more than a tool.

-It was the promise of a connection that transcended the clangor of the workshop, a sentiment that spoke of a desire for something deeper. And for you, that was more than enough.

K E E G A N :

-He confessed with Happy Meals.

-After all, it was how you met. Keegan ordered 20 happy meals, and you were a worker for McDonalds.

-( Even though you began to write an essay about how happy meals and military men seem to be an issue)

- Keegan and you became close.

-Since you saw him each night during his leave after your shift.

-At first, it was because some teenagers were here, threatening the employees after their shift, so Keegan proposed his help.

-And after that, driving you back home became a routine when he was on leave.

-And when one night you decided to ask him to drop you somewhere else, and it ended up being a restaurant, he realized you were asking a date subtly.

-Slowly, it became flirtatious.

-Even though you still didn't know how he could flirt when you were covered in grease-smelling potatoes.

-But Keegan had rizz even at 1 AM.

-He could say the more cheesy lines while you're covered in cheddar and coke.

-That's why he wanted to confess in a cool way, the same way, his flirt could make you smile through the worst shift.

-At first, he thought of a Happy meal where the toy could be a letter saying "I love you" with a selfie of you two.

-But he wanted something fun, as fun as when Ghost ordered 40 Happy Meals just to have all the skeleton toys.

-So during one of his missions, he used his phone and ordered food for your flat.

-Surprised, you opened the door to the delivery guy, saying you hadn't ordered anything. But you noticed it had your name on it.

-You sighed and took the bags.

-The 4 bags.

-Which surprised you because, hell, you won't eat all of that.

-And then you opened the bag to see happy meals.

-20 happy meals. Like Keegan used to order.

-You chuckled.

-It was a good prank.

-You sent him a text.

-"Okay, good one, I'll take revenge, I swear"

-But then you notice the Happy Meal is empty.

-Except for one who had a little toy.

-A heart toy.

-You squeezed it like it said on it

-And the little toy spoke with a horrible voice. "I love you".

-The cheesy smile you had when you realized it.

-"fuck, you got rizz even miles away, uh ?"you texted.

- "of course" he answered.

-"well, Mr Rizz, I can't send you Happy Meals, but I love you too."

-"thanks, love"

R U D Y :

-He confessed with books. 

-After meeting Rudy in the library and realizing he was one of the few readers following your books. You ended up meeting with him when he was on leave so he could be your beta reader.

-He was a good help, he was not always saying "good", he had good remarks and ideas.

-He was the one bringing coffee during your late writing sessions.

-Even when duty called him away on missions, he sent texts 

-Texts traversed the ether, connecting your worlds despite the miles that separated you.

-In response, handwritten letters, carefully penned with the knowledge of his penchant for tangible memories, sailed back to him, becoming anchors of shared moments in his turbulent sea of duty.

-Thanks to his comments and ratings on sites, you slowly became more famous as an author, and you now live by it.

-Yet one day when you were writing, you were searching for one of the books you wanted to inspire your fight scene for, but...

-"I didn't order my library like that," you whispered.

-Your books, usually standing sentinel in perfect alignment, bore witness to an intrusion—an inexplicable disorder. 

-But you had this habit of putting in order books in a certain way. But it seemed someone messed it up.

-And it would be so strange for a stalker to just break into someone's house in order to...mess up their library ?

-What kind of shitty villain could do that ?

-You sighed.

 -The only one who could come in  your flat is Rudy, and it couldn't be Rudy since the guy was kind of obsessive with it too.

-Not a soldier for nothing, after all, being clean is part of it. 

-His library was impressive, he even gave advice to his local library about archives.

-So slowly, you pulled out one book, in order to put it back where it was supposed to be.

-You sighed, knowing it would take your night to do all the books.

-Until you noticed it.

-The letters.

-The first letters of each title were aligned.

-You stepped back, and you rode it.

-"I love you"

-You bite your lips and smiled.

-'Fucking idiot", you whispered, and you sent him a selfie with you and the books aligned.

-"Me too." you had texted.

-"I had thought you would never find it."

-"What do you mean ?"

-"It's been six months, it's like that."

-"What, no"

-"si."

-"Fuck, you-"

-"I thought you didn't want to address it before I realized you just haven't seen it."

-"I'm so sorry; fuck, you must have been stressed."

-"Not really"

-False. He cried to Alejandro one month after he did it, and you didn't answer. But you would never know that.

-"Well, now you know it's reciprocated."

-"Thanks, love"

-"Have a good night, honey".

He smiled. It'll definitely be a good night, now he knows you said I love you.

If you want more : my COD masterlist

And my whole masterlist

[livelaughlovekny]

You bake with him

Notes: Modern AU, Gender neutral reader, 2nd person POV, Streamer!Reader, OOC!Muichirou

Summary: You try to bake a cake while Muichirou just watches.

a/n: ohmygod y'all its the way i tried writing muichirou as he was before he got his memories back and then halfway decided to try and write him after he got his memories back and changed it but the thing is I cant write EITHER personality well SO ITS LIKE HIM BUT NOT HIM CRIES also this is like really long and written without any er proofreading so IMSOSORRY

  “Hello everyone! Welcome back to ‘Can I Cook It? Yes I Can!’, a series in which I try to create all sorts of foods, ranging from a bowl of chicken soup to macarons! Today’s objective is to bake a simple one-tier cake. Oh and, we have a guest today! Everyone, do welcome my beloved, Muichirou! He’s just here to observe, haha.” Stepping to the side, you allow your audience a view of your lover. Muichirou looks at the camera before glancing down at the comments section. It became extremely active the moment you moved aside.

  You were by no means the most viewed streamer, though you did have a dedicated fanbase of your own. On normal days, there would be a steady stream of comments. Occasionally, there would be a large influx of comments and views, but that only happens when you’re celebrating festivals by creating challenging foods. (The last time you tried, you ended up spending the entire next day cleaning up your kitchen.) So, it was quite surprising to see the number of viewers suddenly increase. You looked at the comments section too.

————

gluedcheeks: OMG?? THATS YOUR BF ??

antidepressants98: HUHUHUH IM SUDENLY GAY

InADitch247: ahhh you two look so cute tgt!!! ><

allthingsblack: how does it feel to be gods bias?

EATINGRAMEN: @ allthingsblack right, GOD I SEE WHAT YOU DO FOR OTHERS

————

  The rest of the comments that followed had similar contents. You were stupefied. You were under no such impressions that Muichirou was anything less than gorgeous, but after being with him for so long, you naturally got used to it a little. Seeing the reactions of people who never had the chance to be graced by such a beauty for, you couldn’t help but a little smug and sneak a glance at your boyfriend. Surprisingly, he was already looking at you, having lost interest in the reactions of others earlier. Smiling a little, you moved back to block your audience’s view of him. Ignoring the flood of dismayed comments, you resumed your talk. “Now, let us get started! I’ll be sharing the link to recipe I’ll be following later. After last month’s baking incident, I decided to pick an easier recipe to follow today.”

————

OKOKOKOKOKOK: understandable as you should

LALALALALALALA: its a surprise youre still willing to bake

————

  What could you and the comments possibly be talking about? Muichirou was mystified. Still, he silently watched you curiously as you grabbed the necessary ingredients and preheated the oven. Once you were done adjusting the settings on the oven and lining the baking pan with parchment paper, you moved on to the next step. You grabbed a bowl that you deemed big enough and dumped in some flour, baking powder and salt. Seeing this, Muichirou couldn’t help but blurt out “How do you know how much to add?” He did not see you measure the ingredients beforehand and the amount of each ingredient you poured in seemed questionable.

  “I don’t.” Ah what a simple response, but it gave Muichirou a better idea and guess of how “last month’s baking incident” could’ve happened. He mentally prepared himself for a “today’s baking incident”. Perhaps he should’ve worn a raincoat? He wasn’t familiar with baking but he was familiar with your uncanny ability to mess things up ridiculously so. He watched with new found interest as you whisked the ingredients before moving on to turning on your stand mixer. After fumbling with the switch and buttons a little, you managed to turn on it and waited a few minutes for it to beat the butter and sugar.

  Muichirou moved closer to you and looked over your shoulder. The butter and sugar now looked pale and creamy, which (to Muichirou’s surprise) matched what the recipe stated. Oh, maybe you weren’t that bad at baking? Unaware of your boyfriend’s skepticism, you continued with the next steps: adding two eggs. Now this was easy. You’ve cracked many eggs before. However, it seems that today wasn’t your day. You must’ve used too much force because the moment you tried cracking the egg apart, it burst open. The slimy egg whites and yolk now stained the front of your shirt and kitchen walls. Some of it already began to drip down your kitchen counter too. Muichirou silently concluded that you couldn’t bake.

  Without hesitation, he shook his head at you, sighed, and reached over to crack both eggs for you. He then proceeded to help you wipe off the egg remains from the walls and counter. Pointing at your stained shirt, he asked, “Are you not going to change? If you don’t wash it soon, it’s going to stain forever.” You wave a hand and laughed. “Of course not, I’m too lazy. This is my streaming shirt, no matter what happens, I’ll until I’m done to wash it.” That explained why this originally-purely-white shirt had all sorts of weird patches of colours on it.

————

imachicken: AHHHHH HE LEANED OVER TO HELP YOU AJHHH

xstrxnxut: that’s literally the hottest thing i’ve ever witnessed

EATINGRAMEN: HOW TO BE EGG

whywouldiknow: taking a bath with my hairdryer rn !! :D

EATINGRAMEN: HOWTOBEEGG

allthingsblack: HOWTOBEEGG

————

  Unlike your extremely active comments section, Muichirou decided to keep his thoughts to himself and chose to observe what else would happen.

  After adding milk, oil and vanilla into the bowl (all volumes were eyeballed obviously) and mixing it, you added the entire mixture of dry flour in and beat it until all ingredients were combined. (you were supposed to add half first, beat it, then add the other half but you wanted to “save time”). You then poured the batter into the baking pan. The recipe stated that you should use a spatula to smooth out the top. You could not find yours and decided to just move on to stuffing it into the oven. The recipe stated that you had to wait a minimum of thirty minutes. No troubles arose so far, impressive! Keep up the good work!

  Proud of yourself, you grinned before turning to the camera. “Haha, guess today’s baking session will be a success! I’ll now be making the cake’s frosting.” Grabbing the bowl used to beat the butter previously, you placed more butter into it and dumped some sugar in and allowed your stand mixer to beat the mixture. With a soft smile on his face, Muichirou leaned against the counter as he watched you dump more sugar (?), milk and vanilla into the bowl.

————

OKOKOKOKOKOK: i didnt know frosting had salt in them

LALALALALALALA: thye don’t

————

  There was still a lot of time left so you decided to interact with your audience. A quick glance at your viewership left you shocked. The numbers were nearly triple of your usual viewership and it was still steadily rising! Was having a new face really that effective in gaining more viewers? Of course not, the effectiveness depended on how attractive that face was! Perhaps you should invite Muichirou to join your streams more often, it seemed your fans really liked him and were extremely interested in him.

————

coconut_972: how did you guys meet????????

user4356892: how long have you guys been tgt

lovelove: YOU TWO ARE SO CUTE WHO CONFESSED FIRST

WEEVHJ: WHATS YOUR BFS SKINCARE ROUTINE

dontclickonmyname: YEAH WHAT PROCUCTS DPES HE USW

EATINGRAMEN: what kind of ritual did you perform to be so lucky

allthingsblack: none, if youre not gods fav you obv wont get someone liek that

EATINGRAMEN: 😔

allthingsblack: 😔

————

  Wow, you were certainly not expecting so many questions. You glanced over at your lover, silently asking if he was okay with all the attention. Muichirou simply smiled at you before answering a question at random, “Everyday, I made sure to stand on my head for three minutes while reciting the following line aloud ‘I have no doubt that even if everyone in the world opposes us we will get together because our love for each other is so great that it’s greater than the universe itself’ two hundred and ninety seven times. You have to make sure that you say it two hundred and ninety seven times within three minutes. You will definitely get your soulmate if you do this. I’m living proof.” He said all that with a nonchalant look. For a moment, you couldn’t tell whether or not he was serious. In the end, you decided not to dwell on it. After all, who cares? (Your audience certainly did. The comments section exploded with multiple users commenting that line along with the cartwheel emoji repeatedly.)

  Looking through the comments, you found a question to answer. “Oh, what’s our love languages? Well, mine is all of them, HAHA. And his is probably acts of service and words of affirmation. He used to be bad with his words but he’s getting better now!” You smiled lovingly at your boyfriend and he couldn’t help but smile back. Indeed, when the two of you first met, he was cold and aloof and held great disdain for anyone who wasn’t part of his family. But slowly and surely, he warmed up to you and now, the both of you have been together for quite some time and he has learnt to express his feelings a little better.

  The two of you spent quite some time together answering the questions. It was mostly you going through the comments, picking out questions out of the sea of “🤸 I have no doubt that even if everyone in the world opposes us we will get together because our love for each other is so great that it’s greater than the universe itself 🤸”. You answered most of the questions, with Muichirou occasionally chiming in to provide some tidbits about the both of you. He didn’t talk much but whenever he had something to say, it would either be to praise you or an affectionate insult (which was actually still clearly a compliment for you!!). He did not look at the camera or the screen but rather at you. He loved watching you excitedly talk about stuff.

  It was a while until you saw the following comments:

————

OKOKOKOKOKOK: hey how long has the cake been in there already

LALALALALALALA: HAHA I THINK AN HOUR. AT LEAST.

————

  Oh no, you completely forgot about the cake! Rushing to the oven, you put on your gloves before opening it, reaching into it, and pulling out the pan. It did not look like the golden brown it should be. And while the recipe stated you wait for the cake to cool before adding frosting, you decided that at the point, time did not matter. Haphazardly, you used a large spoon to scoop out the frosting and spread it on the cake.

  The frosting looked very uneven no matter how many times you tried to smooth it out. Oh well, who cares? Definitely not you! Using the same spoon, you scooped out a large chunk of the cake and turned around to offer it to Muichirou. He saw how the cake looked when it came out the oven. In fact, he could still see black peeking out of the uneven layers of frosting. How could he deny you though? Resigned to his fate, he opened his mouth and ate the cake obediently. He paused after the first bite. He slowly chewed again.

  You watched his reaction intently but could not tell what he was thinking. Finally, you asked, “Well?” Muichirou swallowed before answering. He smiled brightly. “Really good. In fact, you should let me finish the rest.” A beautiful bright smile blossomed on your face as you excitedly took a bite for yourself. Your blossomed smile immediately wilted. It. Was. Salty. And So. Very. Very. Burnt. Really good my foot! You had added large amounts of salt into the frosting instead of sugar and the cake tasted like charcoal (you did not know how charcoal tasted like but you were positive that this was how it must taste like)!

  You couldn’t even swallow the bite and spat it out into the bin. Looks like this baking session was a fail too! How disappointing, maybe better luck next time!

————

EATINGRAMEN: im so jealous he could still smile and offer praises

allthingsblack: OHMYGOD RIGHT ?? like he even tried to make sure that only he would have to suffer

OKOKOKOKOKOK: I KNEW IT IT WAS SALT NOT SUGAR

LALALALALALALA: at least today wasn’t exactly a baking incident like last time

————

a/n: ill really do anything just so I can avoid revising omfg

[torusqif]

warnings: none

word count: 1.7k

shoko should’ve been up there, she should’ve been helping the others out, yet here she was sat next to y/n with a lollipop in her mouth.

behind the two of them, up on the stage, was geto suguru. his full sleeve of tattoos and long hair tied into a man bun made him stand out from the four volunteers that helped him with the final touches to the set design.

“this won’t do,” he said, the other four standing straight at his call. “change it back. this really won’t do.”

in a small space behind the stage was nanami kento, fixing lapel microphones on the actors who were now finished with their costumes, hair, and makeup. his glasses were on the bridge of nose, slowly but gradually slipping down, as he focused on his craft, an expert in it.

next to him, in front of the mirror and next to a row of costumes, was kaneko aiko and her assistant, working on the makeup and hair of their actors. focused and locked in, aiko, with a highlighter in her left hand and some of its shimmery power on the brush in her right hand, worked on making the female protagonist look her best as the rest waited patiently for their turn with the actress-turned-streamer.

on a set right above the main stage was haibara yu, fixing the one faulty digitek dcl-600w that refused to work. the work was dangerous for sure—one wrong move and either he falls or the light—but this was one thing he was confident about. this was the one thing he knew he could do.

“so…” y/n broke the silence that had befallen them. shoko tilted her head to spare y/n a lazy glance. she hummed, encouraging y/n to go on.

“what’s this guy’s deal?” y/n’s hand almost reached for the sound mixer on the table ahead, but she stopped before she could mess up the settings and possibly hurt everyone’s ear with a potential feedback from the machine.

she had wondered earlier what the need for microphones and a sound mixer was; why a threatre play of all things required such dedication from sound engineers. kento had been kind enough to tell her about the university’s archival policies; that anything produced by the university, in the university, for the university, was to be recorded for their records and yearly lookbacks. the sound mixer was self explanatory, kento had insinuated.

“whose?” shoko asked, as she lazily stretched her arms above her head. they had been in the same position ever since they had finished their end of the production design. it was 9am then, and 11am now. everyone had arrived here at 6am—some (suguru and satoru, from what she had heard) hadn’t left the set since the previous night.

“satoru’s?” y/n reluctantly asked. she had been meaning to ask shoko this, but she couldn’t find the right time to approach her. it was now or never.

“well, he—” shoko faintly sighed. where should she even begin from?

“he’s a litt—”

“shoko!” suguru’s smooth voice rang out in the empty theatre, interrupting shoko before she could even speak. both of the girls turned their heads towards the stage.

“how long will satoru be?” he asked. exhaustion was evident in his voice, weariness from the all nighter catching up to the poor guy. y/n pitied him, and then herself. why did they decide to join this club?

shoko groaned. “i truly believe that we should all take a collective vow to ignore his existence, really.” her exaggeration gave away the playfulness in her words. suguru rolled his eyes, fond, as his lips curled up into an amused, small smirk.

“shoko…” he gave her a pointed look.

“he’ll be here soon.” she grumbled. “he needs to be.”

“he better be.” suguru added, to which shoko shrugged.

“he should be, but… you know how he is. he absolutely needed that copy of pride and prejudice. the set was ‘so empty’ without it.” suguru nodded understandingly at her words.

‘you know how he is.’ ‘that’s how he is.’ that seemed to be the general consensus among the crew about satoru, one that y/n was still not so aware about.

“he isn’t so different from kento,” suguru sighed. “but whatever, it doesn’t matter.” he said as he approached the end of the stage and jumped, a failed attempt at waking himself up.

“i should start setting up the camera—yu?”

a man with soft and gentle features peeked his head from above the stage. “almost done with this goddamn light, sugu.” his sweet, soft voice called. “don’t wait up for me.”

that was the cue for suguru to pull out the tripod from its bag, and suguru was the cue that shoko had been waiting for.

the brunette stood up with a yawn, her lollipop momentarily in her hand before it was popped back in her mouth. y/n looked at her, waiting for her next set of instructions.

shoko had told her to stick with her for the day—kento’s orders, shoko had explained.

“let’s go.” shoko said as she began walking towards the entrance of the auditorium with y/n on her tail, confused but eager.

outside, at the gate of the auditorium, was assembled a crowd of enthusiastic audience, only held back by a tiny barrier. shoko sighed in disappointment; y/n gasped in surprise.

“alright!” that made her flinch. this was the loudest she had ever heard shoko be.

“here’s what we’re gonna do,” shoko approached the barrier and almost immediately, the people on the front took an intimidated step back. the noise began to quiet down, excited chatter turning into silent murmurs.

“line!” as if on cue, people rushed to assemble into a straight line. the person in the front approached the duo, his ticket in his hand.

“and ticket.” shoko held the ticket up to show to the crowd.

“no ticket, no entry.”

one by one, people entered the auditorium after handing their tickets to shoko, while y/n stood there in awe, having newfound respect for the first friend she had made when she joined this college.

eventually, when things began to settle down, shoko suddenly handed y/n all the tickets she held in her hand.

“i’ll get us some coffee.” she suddenly said, as she turned on her heel and began walking off. before y/n could protest, shoko said, “you’re in charge.”

“but sho—ko…” the crowd in front of her was excited—they were impatient. y/n blinked, she took a deep breath, before she opened her mouth to speak.

“uh, tickets plea—”

one, two, three, four.

did she lose count after that? she wasn’t so sure.

long gone was the tamed crowd, and long gone was the crowd tamer. people that once stood calmly in a line now pushed past y/n and rushed in, their tickets being thrown at her face, her hands, her feet.

five, six, seven, eight?

she couldn’t keep count of how many of them were slipping past her. things were getting chaotic again—more chaotic than they initially were.

enough was enough. sure, she was new and she didn’t know how things worked, and sure she was less than qualified to settle this crowd down like shoko had.

but she’d be damned if she didn’t even try.

nine and ten.

“line and tickets!” the softspoken woman yelled, blocking the path of a silver haired man who threatened to enter past her and the crowd.

the man who stood in front of her was tall—intimidatingly so; taller than kento, yu, AND suguru who, of course, were extremely tall—and he was dressed in formals much like how the rest of the crew and some of the crowd was. he wore a white shirt with black trousers, a black blazer dangling on his shoulders and an untied black tie loose around his neck. his white hair was tousled, like he had been running his fingers through his hair, and his eyes were hidden behind a pair of black sunglasses. if her memory served her well, his clothes were all branded. louis vuitton, gucci…

the man brushed his hair back with his free hand, disheveling it further. “move—”

“let me see your ticket, please.” y/n was firm in her stance. under normal circumstances, she would’ve backed down a little when she felt the man narrow his gaze. but right now, she had a duty to do—she was in charge.

“i’m late as is.” he clenched his jaw, evidently annoyed. “move.” his tone was different than before. it was icier.

y/n sighed. “listen, i can only let you in if you show me your ticket.” she glanced behind him—the crowd was beginning to form again as the line was getting longer.

“i don’t think you heard me right,” there was a twinge of sass in his voice. “move out of my way.” his grip on the book he held in his other hand tightened.

y/n turned to look at him, her stare blank. “and i don’t think you heard me right—i can only let you in if you show me your ticket.” she could be disrespectful, too. what did this man take her for?

amidst the chaos of the crowd and the two of them fell upon a moment of brief silence. he glared at her and she stared at him, both waiting for the other to make a move.

“move.” y/n made the move, breaking the silence. “you’re holding the line, move out of the way.”

the man grimaced. “and you’re holding up the play.” he argued.

from behind the line, shoko walked to the front with two cups of coffee in her hands. she was both surprised and impressed that y/n had managed to hold her own.

“great job, y/n—” she trailed off when she was greeted by the sight of the two of them.

y/n had done too good of a job.

“why aren’t you inside already?” shoko asked the question she already knew the answer to as she approached the duo. “you’re late.” she wasn’t planning on defusing the situation, only pointing out the matter of fact.

“i’m aware.” satoru answered, gritting his teeth. “now, if you’d be so kind,” he hurriedly walked past a stunned and confused y/n, but not before giving her a pointed look.

shoko got comfortable in her previous position and she offered the other cup of coffee to y/n. lazily, she motioned for the line to move ahead.

“but his ticke—” y/n got cut off.

“satoru’s the club head, cute stuff.” shoko casually stated.

“he’s WHAT?!”

02. collective vow

< masterlist >

synopsis ;;

an au where the drama club prepares a musical based on the famous shakespearean play, “the taming of the shrew,” for the national theater festival of japan to save their club from being discontinued.

alternatively,,

where gojo satoru, the head of drama club, falls for y/n l/n, the drama club fresher.

a/n: so sorry for the delayed chap, y’all!! i’ve been ridiculously sick, it’s maddening

anyway! next chapter might be a little delayed, but fret not, it won’t disappoint <3

also, would y’all like to read a sad sapphic shoko x reader? been in the mood to write one but again, i’ve been sick 😭

taglist: @the-lazyyy-artist @nonomnismoriarty @catobsessedlady @crocodilethesir @chckn-pi @faesw0rld @lemonnotade @love-me-satoru

(open! comment to get added <3)

— qiqi ♡

[saintship]

Also, i forgot to write this on my request, but if u could, i would love it if the reader is a female, since i'm a girl :).

Summary: f!reader has a journal listing ‘imperfections’ and ‘perfections’, but one category is severely lacking. König & the 141 find this journal by accident. I edited the phone to a journal for the sake of the plot

A/N: I really hope you can find people in your life to confide in, body image is a beast

Cw: discussion of body image and esteem

König & 141 x f!reader - Perfections

Your view of your body was never straightforward, every day a different perspective, a different shift of blame. Some days ran smoother than others.

For the days that left you wishing to crawl out of your skin, it felt like your options were scarce.

You started writing.

The morning after New Year's; murmured goodbyes and pounding heads. You knew you'd be finding glitter in your hair for a week, but considered the night a success anyway. It was a silent victory to have celebrated as a host in the first place; it took confidence to house your closest friends and colleagues, let alone with alcohol involved.

Simon left first; he had woken before you and sent a sweet text before slipping out the door. Gaz and Johnny left together nearly clinging to each other for stability with quiet grumbles of their mysterious bruises. Konig rose heavily, his accent thicker with sleep when he hugged you goodbye and thanked you for the lovely night.

But John hadn't slept there; he'd stayed up past everyone along with you, helping you with the trash and streamers before sitting with you and just talking for hours. He told you about his family; his nieces and nephews that he missed so much, he told you how people like you are what allow him to bend and not break. But just before he left, he remarked he'd left his leather-bound notepad in the other room. He hadn't gotten to his feet before you were on your way to retrieve it for him, afraid that if you let him do another kind thing for you, you might start crying.

Carefully walking through the sleeping forms of your friends, you saw a faded journal on the desk that John had sat near for some of the party, retrieved it, and pulled a blanket over a shivering Simon before returning to the living room and seeing your Captain out the door.

It wasn’t until the first day back from your leave that you realized your mistake. You’d packed nearly everything to return to your on-base living space, but were tearing apart the apartment trying to find your journal. Images of an inspector or your landlord finding the pages where you’d laid your heart out flitted anxiously behind your eyes. That page. A neat T-chart you’d created on a whim, both to try a more organized method of expression, and to hide it all away on a physical copy. For yours eyes only.

One side, a list of attributes that kept you awake,

Stomach, thighs,

and also kept you in bed.

Voice -> too deep, cheeks,

A tangible admission.

The other half was meant to house what you did enjoy about yourself; the small things, the things you took solace in, the acts you did just because you knew it was the right thing to do. What you’re proud of.

But it only bore the marks of the times the ball of the pen had tapped the paper as you fidgeted. It was as empty as you felt when you tried to answer that question. ‘What do you like about yourself?’

Finally, beside the stand mixer, you saw a journal. But as you inspected it, it proved to not be yours. It was smaller, more pristine. Looking on the inside cover, your heart dropped.

J.P.

It had been days. He saw it. There was hardly any chance he hadn’t.

You sped on your way to the base, the horror and embarrassment feeling like fireworks being set off in your ribcage. You abandoned your luggage, first racing inside and impatiently tapping your FOB key to gain access to the office building and sprinting to his office, his rightful notepad in your hand.

Your heart pounded as you collected yourself enough to knock inconspicuously.

“It’s open.”

He was sitting in his mess of paperwork, one hand flipping through a folder in front of him while the other cradled a pen between his middle and forefinger.

“Bright and early, huh? You even moved back in yet?”

His eyes wavered briefly from what laid in front of him.

“Uh—no. No, I wanted to.. you left this.” You set down his notepad, your heart in your throat.

“Right.. got a bit switched up that night, didn’t ya?”

He reached into a drawer, handing you what was yours.

“Thanks. Can’t keep my head screwed on without writin’ shit down.”

You nodded, but still felt a tightness in your abdomen as you spoke.

“Did you happen to.. open this?” You faintly held up the journal.

His eyes flickered to you, then to the wall, then to his desk, his hand fidgeting uncomfortably.

“You should get settled in.”

You knew to accept his tone; the conversation was over.

The walk back to your car felt heavy, like you’d just been scolded by the principal. He hadn’t even done anything to criticize you, and yet you couldn’t shake the tension that stiffened your hand as you grasped the journal at your side. You shoved the journal between the tightened straps of a duffel bag, shouldering that and carrying the rest of your things to your room. Normally you would have one headphone in as you unpacked, taking breaks to visit with the people you hadn’t seen in weeks before wandering back into your space and setting up for another year of your service. But you’d gotten there early; you didn’t feel like music, you didn’t feel like turning the light on, you didn’t feel like doing anything. You opened your journal.

Stomach, thighs,

He’d crossed it.

Voice -> too deep, cheeks,

Why?

What was next to it seemed to release every tensed muscle in your concerned expression, an airy feeling rising in your head.

Perfections

Eyes like stars, soft cheeks

-K

Cute smile, soothing voice

-J.M.

Gorgeous face, stunning top to bottom

-K.G.

Body of a protector, mind of a friend

-S.R.

Wits of steel, feats of a mad woman

-J.P.

There were more, scattered down the page and into the next, the first column forgotten in a crashing sea of praising anecdotes, messages, and love.

Even if you couldn’t see the parts of yourself that were beautiful and important, they were still there.

[skitteringjunbug]

Still so much work to be done on it! But will be fully functional and people can come play with Suave, Mixer, Crow, Hound, And The Girls (that keep the club running..we all. Know they do! Lol)

@kertneyk @valkyrieofsmut @goodgollymissmeli

No opening date yet but it is being worked on in my spare time!

@skitteringjunbug is streaming! Building @nightsongtale s The Lab :D

[belltari]

Happy (early) Halloween!!

I finished editing this today but I couldn't wait until Halloween to post it so here it is, an EXTREMELY self indulgent ghoap sex-in-the-closet Halloween fic.

If you're under 18, you shouldn't be reading it.

warnings & tags: plot with porn (a halloween party, its what the boys deserve), terrible dad jokes, flirty banter, established relationship (I'm imagining that it's still new, like only Price knows and Gaz is putting the pieces together), some dom!ghost tones (nothing too dominant), pleasure dom!Simon (that man just wants Johnny to feel good), public sex (it's a blowjob in a closet), face rutting, cum eating, someone gets called a "good boy" a couple of times

it's about 3 thousand-ish words

This was my first time writing something this explicit, so please keep in mind that I have a lot to learn. The other writers in the cod fandom are excellent teachers and inspire me a great deal.

If you just want to read the porn, start reading after the ' -- '

Anyways, I hope you enjoy and have a great rest of your spooky season!

Approaching the mess hall, Johnny chuckles at the purple and orange 'Happy Halloween!' banner hanging above the doorway, it's very clearly homemade with streaky paint and clumpy glitter making up the words and what looks like an old, tattered tarp as the banner. He wonders if it was a team-building exercise for the recruits, as this whole party was a mixer for them to get to know each other better.

Paper party streamers act as a curtain on the wide doorframe, blocking Johnny's view of the interior of the mess hall, he can feel the bass of the music thumping in his chest and hear cheerful laughter from the other side. Pushing the curtain aside, he steps through to see the short corridor has been decorated. Plastic bats with light-up red eyes hang on strings from the ceiling, jack-o'-lantern string lights flickering along the walls accompanied with signs with sayings like "enter if you dare" and "turn back" written on them. When he gets to the end, he surveys the now-repurposed dining hall, more streamers, banners, and cheap plastic decorations decorate the room. The lights have been turned off and the windows covered, floodlights and spotlights covered with coloured transparent pieces of plastic are the only lights illuminating the room creating a dramatic scene.

Several tables are being used as pumpkin carving stations, one of the recruits is ripping the guts out and complaining about the smell, and another is stabbing their pumpkin with a hunting knife. Gaz is there, dressed as a vampire with a long cape and plastic fangs in his mouth, to supervise. He's laughing with them telling them they need to work on their techniques a bit more when he catches Soap's eye giving him a smile and a quick wave, he returns the gesture and continues scanning the room.

He turns to where the music is coming from, tables cleared from the corner creating a makeshift dancefloor. Recruits dressed as ghouls, goblins, witches, and all sorts of different costumes grind and dance together to the music, drinks in hand, and smiles on their faces. 'No better team bonding than getting absolutely shit-faced together' Soap thinks to himself with a grin across his face. He notices Price standing with a group of other captains and lieutenants, he's got a glass of whiskey in one hand and is using the other to help animate whatever story he's got everyone laughing at. Price is dressed in a tri-corn hat with a tall feather sticking out of the side and a knee-length red coat with gold adornments on the sleeves and lapels. 'Gotta be Captain Morgan' Soap smiles, shaking his head. Price notices him, giving Soap a smile and a quick nod which Soap returns.

Finally, he spots the man he was looking for, his broad back facing away from him. Soap approaches walking up to grab a drink next to Ghost. He has his balaclava rolled up to his nose, a half-eaten cupcake in one hand, and a plate of other confections in the other. "Thought you'd put a little more effort in L.T.." Soap says as twists open the bottle of beer he's picked up and turns to smile at Ghost.

Ghost is wearing his normal skull balaclava and skeletal gloves, but his 'costume' has the addition of a hoodie with the skeletal system of a torso and arms.

"Didn’t put much effort in 'cause my heart just wasn’t in it." Ghost response points to his chest where his heart would be.

 Soap snorts. "Bet you've been waiting to say that all night."

"Gotta 'nother one for ya."

"Go on then."

"Why are skeletons so calm?" He pauses. "Because nothing gets under their skin."

"Ugh please no more." Soap says in a playful tone shaking his head.

"What are you supposed to be then?" Ghost asks, pointing to Soap while eating the rest of his cupcake.

"Thought it was obvious? The fluffy tail and ears, the roguishly good looks?" Soap pauses, looking at Ghost with a wolfish grin. "C'mon Ghost, I thought you were good at this?"

Ghost eyes rake over Soap’s form. Starting at his furry-eared headband, then down to his bright red collar around his neck. He pauses there for a second, Soap can see his Adam’s apple bob under his balaclava, before continuing further down to his distressed dress shirt that he’s left open at the top exposing his chest, he’s half tucked in his shirt to his jeans that he often wears on ops, the ones that hug his hips and thighs just right. And between his legs, a dark furry tail hangs ending just above his knees.

"Oh, I see you're one of those yappy little lap dogs."

"Oh aye. I'm very territorial and I never shut up. Watch your ankles L.T., I always go for those." Soap says stepping closer to Ghost. He looks down at the collar he's wearing, lifting his eyes back up, over Johnny's chin, to his smirking lips then setting on his bright blue eyes.

"Hmm" Ghost hums. "And is he a good boy too?" He said as he bites into a ghost-shaped sugar cookie.

"Depends on who's giving the orders, sir." Soap looks up through his lashes at Ghost, taking a swig of his drink.

Ghost looks around to make sure no one is paying any mind to them. When he's sure no one is, he hooks a finger under the collar pulling Soap even closer. He then leans into Soap's ear and whispers "Be a good boy then and go to the utility closet, lock the door, and don't open it until you hear three knocks of a beating heart." He doesn't wait for Johnny to respond before pulling away and walking over to Price, where Gaz has now joined him at the other end of the room.

Soap takes a deep breath, downing the rest of his drink, and grabs another one before joining the rest of 141.

When he approaches, Gaz is in the middle of telling Price about the pumpkin carving recruits and their 'interesting' techniques. But Soap's not listening, he's watching Ghost eat another cookie, licking the crumbs from the corner of his lip, laughing at something Price had said.

Soap's face gets hot, he downs a couple mouthfuls of his beer to try and cool down. "You good, Soap?" Gaz asks smiling at him.

"Aye, but this beer isn't. Has to be the weakest thing I've ever drank."

"It's probably a lot better than at piss tequila you drink." Ghost jokes.

"Think I'll go find ya some then LT. Maybe I can get you to come round to it." Soap winks at Ghost and turns to leave, only to be stopped by another captain holding a camera. "Group shot for the books, boys?" She asks. Soap looks over his shoulder at Price as he answers "Alright, come on then," waving the boys closer.

Price throws his arms over Gaz and Ghost's shoulders, Ghost rolls his balaclava back down over his jaw and Soap takes his place on the end next to him, snaking an arm around his back placing his hand on Ghost's waist.

"Say 'Happy Halloween!" The captain says as she readies to take the picture. Soap throws up the peace sign and the boys say the words the captain wanted when the camera flashes.

She comes over to show them the picture, they all look happy, even Ghost looks like he's smiling under his mask. They deserve a break like this after their last op. They move apart and Soap tells them he is going to find that drink for Ghost and excuses himself.

"Ma'am, could I get a copy of that picture?" Soap taps the captain with the camera on her shoulder on his way out. "Of course, hun! I'll make sure to give Price a few extra copies once I get them printed."

"Cheers!" Soap says raising his bottle in response "Enjoy the rest of your night."

"You too!" She says, giving a short wave to Soap.

'Oh, I will.' Soap thinks as he makes his way out of the mess hall and into the corridor leading to the utility closet Ghost wants him to wait in. He walks as fast as he can without looking suspicious, a tightness growing in his stomach and a heart wanting to break free of his ribs in excited anticipation of what's to come.

Rounding a corner, he meets a group of recruits.

"Leaving the party already Sarg?"

"Don't cha worry I'll be back, I'm only out looking for a little something stronger to drink." Soap responds with a wink as he walks backward down the hall coming to a corner. "You lads better get back there, don't want the captain to catch you out here." He turns the corner, hearing the recruits retreating footsteps as he approaches the utility closet door.

When he's standing in front of the door, he grips the handle, checking both ends of the hallway to make sure he won't be seen entering. Taking a deep breath through his nose, he opens the door and steps inside, reaching to his left to flick on the light and shutting the door behind him locking himself in.

--

He waits for what feels like ages. He finished the last of his drink a while ago and is now pacing around the small room.

"The things I do for this man." Soap signs. "This is ridiculous, what am I even doing in here?"

He checks his watch, 20 minutes have passed.

He's been waiting in a closet for Ghosts for twenty minutes.

"Oh, I'm so making you pay for this LT." He leans against the wall, readjusting his headband to distract him from the tightness in his pants that has been there for the last 15 minutes.

'Fuck it' he thinks, 'I'm not waiting any longer.' He reaches to palm himself through his jeans, moaning at the feeling of finally being touched. His briefs are wet with precum and creating a slick surface that his cock twitches against earning another sign from him. He reaches into his shirt to grab his nipple when a knock from the door startles him.

Knock-knock

Knock-knock

Knock-knock

Soap takes two long strides to the door, unlocking it and flinging it open. Ghost pushes his way in, closing and locking the door behind him.

"Jesus Simon, I thought you were going to make me wait here all night," Johnny says moving to stand chest to chest with Simon. He places one hand on Simon's waist and moves his other to take off Simon's mask.

Simon grabs his wrist and moves away. "Thought you were being a good boy? Think you need to learn some patience."

"My patience ran out 15 minutes ago." Johnny groans, freeing his wrist and ripping Simon’s mask off, throwing it somewhere on the floor behind him. His hair is an absolute mess, sticking up in all directions and a smirk is plaster across his face, he's looking down at Johnny hungerly.

Johnny smashes his lips onto Simon's in a desperate sloppy kiss, tongue and saliva pushing into Simon's mouth. A moan escapes Johnny. Simon reaches one of his hands up to the back of Johnny's head, caressing his nape first then gripping the back of his mohawk to deepen the kiss.

Johnny pulls away breathing hard when Simon's other hand touches his cock through his jeans. "Fuuuuck" he moans into Simon's neck, placing several open-mouthed kisses there and bringing his hands to wrap around Simon's broad back grabbing fist fulls of his hoodie.

Johnny ruts against Simon's hand earning a chuckle from Simon, "Desperation looks good on you, Johnny."

"Can think of a couple other things that might look even better."

Simon pulls away from Johnny, placing a hand on his chest pushing him away, "Stay." He says as looks down at him with half-lidded eyes. His gaze wanders down Johnny's face to the collar he wears on his neck, then to his chest that heaves in excitement, shirt half unbuttoned showing off his well-defined pecs that are covered in dark hair. Simon takes his hand and brushes Johnny's shirt where he knows his nipple sits underneath, drawing a shutter out of him. He smiles, looking up to Johnny's eyes that are already staring back at him. Simon looks down to see Johnny has clenched his fists that hang by his sides and sees that he's straining against his jeans, a wet spot has formed where the head of his cock has been twitching, wishing to be free from the confines of his jeans.

"You gonna me show how good you are?" He asks Johnny.

"Simon, please I-"

Simon walks Johnny backward until his back meets the shelf full of cleaning supplies behind them, shaking when they collide with it. Simon goes to plant a kiss on Johnny's mouth when Johnny tries to meet him halfway, "Ah-ah, I said stay" he scolds as he grabs Johnny's jaw with a firm grip. He places a gentle kiss on the corner of his mouth, then on the scar on his chin, and then one more on the pulse on his neck, he can feel it racing under his lips.

He suddenly pulls away and crouches down to settle on his knees in front of Johnny. Simon reaches for Johnny's belt unbuckling it, he unbuttons his jeans pulling them and his boxer briefs halfway down his thighs in one fluid motion, letting Johnny's cock spring free in front of his face.

A string of precum hangs from the half-covered head of his cock, creating a string that connects to the inside of his briefs. It twitches and another pearl forms under Simon's gaze. The pearl drops to the floor when Simon's gloved hand connects with his shaft, slowly moving his foreskin back to reveal his glistening, swollen head.

"Ahh, fuck" Johnny sighs, throwing his head back to smack against the self with a bang, knocking over a couple of the bottles.

"Careful, Johnny. Need to stay quiet, don't want anyone finding us do ya?" Simon teases as he starts lazily stroking his cock. He gets a hiss from Johnny, as he slides his gloved hand down his shaft to the base, creating a rough sensation for Johnny.

Simon's hand slides back up to his leaking head, thumb going to Johnny's frenulum drawing agonizingly slow circles on it. Simon looks up at Johnny to see his face contorted in pleasure with the overstimulation he's causing and that his headband has been knocked out of place. He brings his other hand to grip Johnny's balls, pulling them down gently. Johnny's chest heaves in when he releases a heavy breath, his hand shooting out to grip the edge of the shelf he's leaning on, his other hand hovering over Simon's head, hesitating to grip his hair. He looks down to Simon for permission, to which Simon responds by releasing his hand from Johnny's cock and catching it on his tongue.

"Yer gonna kill me." He breathes, getting a open-mouthed grin out of Simon. He wraps his lips around him before sucking on his head, flicking his tongue on the underside.

"Simon." Johnny warns.

Simon sinks his whole cock into his mouth, nose pushing into Johnny's pubic bone, a burning feeling in the back of his throat. He sticks his tongue out to caress his balls while he starts messaging them with his hand. Drool drops into his palm helping ease the rough feeling of his glove for Johnny. He slides Johnny's cock out of his mouth to take a deep breath.

"Think yer enjoying this more than me." Johnny chuckles at Simon looking down at the saliva dripping from his wet lips. Simon only looks up at him in response before pulling his cock back into his mouth, sucking and bobbing up and down his cock with a relentless pace this time. He never breaks eye contact with Johnny as he starts playing with his balls and moving his forefinger to brush against his taint. This makes Johnny buck forward deep into Simon's mouth and grip his own pec, wanting to place pressure on his nipple. Simon pulls Johnny's hand away, ripping his shirt open making a couple of the buttons fly free. He finds Johnny's nipple and pinches. Hard.

"I'm- I’m gunna-!" Johnny pants out. Bucking forward once again, pushing his cock farther down Simon’s throat, making his eyes water.

Simon can feel him twitching and pulsing inside his throat. He pulls his head away quickly just as Johnny starts to come, he tastes it briefly on his tongue before releasing his cock with a pop and feels Johnny's cum land on his face. One release squirts up his cheek stopping on his cheekbone and another across the bridge of his nose just missing his eye. More oozes out as Johnny grips the sides of Simon’s head to rut through his orgasm, rubbing and grinding his cock against Simon's face, his balls slapping against his jaw with a wet sticky sound. Simon closes one of his eyes as Johnny’s cock gets dangerously close to it, even more cum is leaking out of the tip as Johnny overstimulates himself. When he stops, he's breathing hard and hunching over, shaking from his orgasm, his cock jumps against the bridge of Simon’s nose. The cum pooled there drips down his face and over his chin, dripping onto his neck and disappearing under his shirt.

"Good boy." Simon says as he pats Johnny's thigh.

"Lemme be even better than,” he says, as he unsteadily crouches down in front of Simon, “and help clean you up." He sticks his tongue out, licking the cum off Simon’s neck, trailing up to his chin, then up and over his cheek. After he's collected it all in his mouth he kisses Simon, holding eye contact when he pushes it into his mouth with his tongue, smiling when he accepts it. Johnny pulls away, looking very impressed with himself, a string of saliva connects them and Simon swallows what he’s given him. Wiping his mouth with the back of this hand, Simon stands them both up, pulling Johnny's pants up, tucking him back in his briefs, and making his best attempt to fix his shirt.

Johnny places an arm around Simon's neck pulling him into a sweet tender kiss. "Let's get you sorted then." He smiles into Simon's lips, he reaches underneath his hoodie to brush along Simon’s abdomen, running his fingers through his happy trail, flattening his hand to slide into the top of his cargo pants.

Simon pulls away slightly, reaching up to fix Johnny’s fluffy-eared headband. "You know I don't need that."

"I know" he pauses "but I want too," Johnny whispers into his cheek. "I'll come to your room later. This time you'll have to wait for me." He smirks looking up at him.

"I'll be waiting." Simon kisses Johnny one last time, then steps out of his reach, picking up his discarded mask from the floor and slipping it over his head back into place. He grabs Soap's long-forgotten empty bottle and says, "Wait five minutes before leaving, yeah?"

"I know, Ghost. This isn't my first time." He smiles.

"And remember that piss tequila you were supposed to be findin'."

"You won't be callin' it that by the end of the night."

"Mmm, I doubt that." Ghost opens the door quietly to listen for anyone outside, when he hears nothing, he looks back at Soap over his shoulder and nods a 'see you' then steps out closing the door behind him.

Soap takes in a deep breath. 'Think I gotta start wearing a collar more often.' He thinks. 'Maybe I should start wearing the throat mic again?'

[mrghostrat]

Hello! I am new to your blog and was curious if you have talked about your experience as a twitch streamer?

Do you prefer that platform over alternatives like LiveSpace and Kick?

Love the art, and stories 💛

no i haven’t really! twitch is indeed my favourite platform, after years of jumping around more basic websites like Livestream, joinme, ustream and picarto.

its gotten a little complicated with all the features added over time, but i understand the culture, like all the monetisation options, and have invested heaps of time into it like all the bits and emotes unlocked over the years.

its certainly not perfect, but it’s certainly robust and works really well for how i like to stream. i don’t really have the desire to check out all these new platforms popping up (though mixer and kick are an easy No for me). plus all my communities are there too and it’s nice keeping everything in one place 💛

if you have any other specific questions about streaming/my stream i’m happy to answer 🥰

[blazehedgehog]

Another Million Dollar Idea

So lately I've been doing lots of listed and unlisted streams from the Playstation 5. Mostly unlisted. Previously, when I wanted to stream something to my friends, I'd have to open the Elgato on my desktop and pipe that in through Discord, which works but isn't ideal.

For one, my PC is rapidly showing its age, so I have to dump the Elgato down to 720p30 because Discord chugs when capturing this window. Mostly it's good at auto-cropping to only the gameplay, but sometimes it gets confused and will capture the entire window, where you see the settings and buttons. So it kinda sucks.

The easier way to do that is to start up an unlisted YouTube live stream to my dump channel and link it to my friends on Discord. Whatever resolution I want, 60fps, no muss, no fuss. Quick and painless. Here's a stream from the other day where I showed a friend the new version of Asphalt 9 for PS5. It's just raw gameplay footage, no mic:

And, when I want to do a bigger stream, with all my alerts, pop-ups, sounds and rewards, I can always warm up OBS and stream to Twitch properly.

Recently, I house sat for a cousin for eight days. I treat this like a vacation. I can't really work on videos or games or podcasts very much, so I just kick back and chill out. And since these consoles can stream, I can do very long (like 6+ hour) streams easy-peasy.

But let's be real: streaming to Twitch through the PS5 (and the PS4) sucks. I'd have to go in and turn off all my alerts and buttons and overlays, because none of that works on the console stream. The whole thing feels extremely limited, and it's even worse on PS5, where it will automatically end your broadcast if you try to switch games.

But this time around I tried to get something going where I could still get all of my fancy notifications and graphics and still stream from the PS5. The hope was to use remote play on my laptop with the PS5 in the same room, but remote play is too thirsty on the bandwidth for that. Or my 13 year old laptop just can't hang running both OBS and Remote Play at the same time.

But it made me wonder: why should it have to be like this? Game consoles now are more like computers than ever before. There's nothing stopping these systems from supporting real streaming features, like overlays and pop-ups.

And it feels like a deeply untapped market, when you think about it. Imagine if, say, Microsoft came out swinging that the Xbox Series X was the one stop box for professional streamers. Full support for customizable Twitch alerts and overlays, a way to set up soundboards, browser sources, trigger ad breaks, run polls, etc. etc. etc.

Like, think about Elgato. Elgato sells streaming hardware for the PC. Capture cards, lights, cameras, shortcut decks, teleprompters, the works. Streaming and video production is a huge business for them.

If Microsoft or Sony cut in on that market a little bit and rebranded their console as The Only Streaming Hardware You'll Ever Need? Imagine branded streams and the loyalty that could generate.

And these systems have USB ports, obviously. They support common headset protocols through the headphone jack. You can plug professional equipment into them already. Why not have built-in hardware support for that?

The answer is that Microsoft and Sony probably only support Twitch begrudgingly, because some bean counter is annoyed they're "giving money away." After all, Microsoft owned and shut down Mixer. For a time they'd much rather you stay off of Twitch. When you see ads and buy subs they want some of that cut going their way, not to Amazon.

Which is ultimately very short sighted. Microsoft in particular has been rolling over and giving up a lot of ground the last three to five years. If they rebranded as the Xbox being the console for streamers to start and maintain a career over the long term, they could lock in a market that only exists on the PC right now.

If anyone at Microsoft or Playstation is reading this and uses this as inspiration I will take a one time payment of $250,000 for being the world's best ideas guy.

[heisttheblackflag]

Happy @pr1-appreciation-month-2023 !! First prompt is favorite streamer, so of course I had to pick Scooter Dooley. His little hands are perfect for pressing mixer buttons and knocking over piles of Pokémon cards, and his loud yet pitiful meows make for excellent streaming content. In respect and appreciation, let’s all say it together: DO IT, SCOOTER!

[drops-of-june]

CHAPTER IX: TOM SAWYER

I don’t own the characters, this fanfic is based on the TV-Show Stranger Things (second season) from a Hargrove!Reader POV.

Quick reminder to readers, I'm not a english native speaker, so I'm sorry if there are any mistakes. Hope you understand.

You are not allowed to translate/repost inside or outside tumblr this fanfic. I will upload the fanfic in ao3, in my account.

Sorry for the shortness of this chapter compared to the previous ones and sorry for the delay.

Summary: Without the dangers of upside down running around town, y/n spends time with her friends, and maybe opens up the possibility of something more with one of them.

Words: 2,5K

CHAPTER IX: TOM SAWYER

The night of the 1984 Hawkins Middle School Winter Formal was filled with lights, laughter and vibrant music. Y/n, as a senior, could not officially attend the event, but had volunteered to play the music. As she adjusted the mixer controls, she watched with satisfaction as the gymnasium filled with excited teenagers. She, Nancy and Jonathan had arrived earlier in the day to help finish decorating the gym. All three were volunteers. While she played music, Nancy would be in charge of helping with the drinks, and Jonathan would be in charge of taking pictures for the school yearbooks.

The decorations were lovely: twinkle lights hung from the ceiling, and silver and blue streamers adorned every corner, creating a festive atmosphere at winter ball. Y/n, with her headphones on, carefully selected each song, keeping the energy high and the smiles on the students' faces. Although she couldn't play the rock songs she normally enjoyed, she had fun watching the kids move to the pop hits of the moment.

After an hour and a half, it was time to play some slower tunes. Nancy had left her post for a moment and appeared next to y/n with a glass of punch in her hand. y/n thanked her with a smile as she took a refreshing sip. 'It's turning out great,' Nancy commented, looking at the sea of couples beginning to form on the dance floor.

'Yeah, it is,' replied y/n. 'Although it would have been more fun if I could play some Metallica,' she joked with a laugh. Nancy frowned, amused. 'I don't think it would work, would it?' she added with a narrowing of her eyes. 'No. I don't think so.' Agreed Nancy letting out a small laugh.

Suddenly, they both noticed Dustin walking towards a group of girls, clearly nervous. With his curly hair styled with hairspray, surely having taken advice from Steve, and wearing his best suit, he approached to ask one of them to dance with him. However, he was turned down. Not giving up he tried other girls, but got the same result. Y/n and Nancy looked at each other with pity. 'Such dicks.', muttered y/n, referring to the girls. Nancy nodded, her eyes full of empathy. 'Maybe he needs a little help.' Y/n nudged Nancy a little, encouraging her. Nancy understood immediately. They seemed to be thinking the same thing. 'See you later.'

Y/n could see everything from there, though she couldn't hear what they were saying. Nancy walked over to the boy and extended a hand toward him. It took Dustin a few seconds to understand, but then he smiled broadly and accepted the offer. The blonde watched as they walked holding hands to the center of the dance floor and began to groove to the music.

The group of girls who had rejected Dustin, as well as other students around them, looked at the pair in awe, jealousy, or regret. As the second song began, y/n pulled down her headphones and looked at Ellis, the band boy who had been helping out when she needed a break. 'Will you cover for me?' y/n asked. Ellis nodded and took her place. The girl walked with determined steps to where Nancy and Dustin were standing, and gently touched Nancy's shoulder. 'Can I steal him from you?' she asked with a smile. Nancy smiled back and, winking at Dustin, gave the place to Y/n. 'It's all yours,' she said before returning to the drink station.

Y/n smiled at Dustin, who still looked a little surprised at the attention he was getting. 'Shall we dance?' She asked him. Dustin, visibly more animated, nodded and shyly placed his hands on her waist. Y/n placed her hands on his shoulders and they began to move to the beat of the song. She didn't necessarily have to follow the winter ball dress code, but that day to blend in a bit, she had worn a simple dress, black with silver accents. It was one of the few dresses she kept in her dresser, and she had worn it a few years ago for winter formal at her school in California. However, she didn't quite achieve her goal of not looking different, as she wore her leather jacket and combat boots on top of the dress. The contrast between her outfit and Dustin's were odd, but neither of them seemed to care. Y/n, in a soft, encouraging tone, told him. 'Don't be discouraged, Dustin. Like I told you the other day, at some point the right girl for you is going to show up.' She paused and added. 'You look very handsome tonight, but the most important thing is that you stay true to who you are. You don't need any more advice, just keep being yourself.' Dustin smiled admiringly, his eyes sparkling.

'Thank you, y/n.' She smiled back, feeling a deep fraternal affection for the boy. 'Got your back, bud.' When the song ended, Ellis put on a more up-tempo one, and all of Dustin's friends came dancing toward them. The girl noticed Max and Lucas holding hands, and smiled at the little girl, causing her to blush slightly. Y/n kissed Dustin on the cheek goodbye. The boy, now more confident and happy, joined his friends with a smirk and began to dance. Y/n returned to her post at the mixer, watching the dance floor with satisfaction. Just like Lucas and Max, Mike and Eleven were also holding hands. Will and Dustin were dancing happily with their friends. A mark of her red lipstick was on Dustin's cheek. Y/n couldn't help but smile, knowing she had made a small but significant difference in the younger boy's night.

A few days before the dance, y/n had asked Max to accompany her to a nearby town so they could shop for Christmas gifts, and so she could choose hers personally. As they wandered from store to store, they filled y/n's trunk with gifts. Now, Wicca was stopping by her friends' houses to drop off a couple of gifts. After passing Jeff's, Grant's, Eddie's, and Dustin's house (who was surprised to have received a gift) she only had two stops left before heading home. As she drove down the street in her car, she looked around. The houses were decorated with colored lights that twinkled in sync, creating a festive atmosphere. Downtown stores drape garlands and decorations in their windows, while lampposts and trees are wrapped in bright lights. When she reached her destination, she grabbed one of the gifts waiting in the back seat and climbed out of the vehicle.

Arriving at the entrance, she rang the doorbell and waited patiently. A woman, probably Gareth's mother, opened the door with a warm smile. 'Hello, Mrs. Emerson. I'm y/n, Gareth's classmate from school Is he home?' y/n asked, trying to sound relaxed. 'Hello, y/n! Yes, yes, he's here. Hang on a minute.' Replied the woman politely, before turning and heading to another room. 'Gareth! There's a girl at the door asking for you. So that's y/n? You were right when you said she was pretty.' Right away, the girl could hear Gareth squeak asking her to keep her voice down. She smiled shyly at hearing this, and then noticed two girls watching her from behind a wall. She smiled back at the girls, who quickly hid, chuckling. A few seconds later, Gareth appeared in the doorway, his cheeks visibly flushed. He tried to disguise his surprise and nervousness. 'Y/n/n! I didn't expect to see you around' he said, scratching the back of his neck. 'Hey, Gar. I just came to hang out for a while.' she replied, hiding the bag behind her back.

'Oh, come in, please. Let's go to my room.' said Gareth, stepping aside to let her in. As they climbed the stairs, Gareth's little sisters came out of hiding and began to chant in mocking tones. 'Gareth has a girlfriend, Gareth has a girlfriend.' Chloe and Ella sang, laughing mischievously. 'Girls! Stop it!' said Gareth, visibly embarrassed, hurrying towards his room.

Entering, Gareth quickly picked up a few items of clothing from the floor and threw them into the bathroom. 'I wasn't expecting visitors.' he admitted, a little embarrassed. When y/n entered Gareth's room, her eyes encountered a space that spoke volumes about him. The walls were covered with vibrant posters of Metallica and Iron Maiden, creating an intense and passionate atmosphere. In one corner, an electric guitar rested next to an amplifier, making Gareth's love of music clear.

The desk, slightly cluttered, was filled with notebooks and pencils, and a desk lamp shed warm light on everything. A shelf crammed with vinyls, cassettes and books on rock history dominated one wall, proudly displaying his collection.

The bed, with dark sheets, had a pile of clothes on it that he quickly threw on the floor and kicked under the bed, causing her to laugh lightly. Everything in the room, from the smallest details to the largest elements, reflected Gareth's essence, making her feel curious and fascinated by this little universe of his.

'Don't worry, it's not a problem.' y/n said with a reassuring smile. 'And sorry about my sisters. I've never had a girl come to see me before and so they misunderstand the…' He started to apologize but she interrupted him.

' 'Really, it's no problem.' She repeated, lightly touching his arm to calm him down.

Gareth nodded, taking a deep breath to relax. 'Make yourself comfortable, please.' He said, pointing to the bed. She sat on the edge of the bed and just as she was about to give him the gift, someone knocked on the door and when Gareth told her to come in, his mother came in with a tray with two cups of chocolate. 'I brought you something hot to drink.' Mrs. Emerson said, placing the tray on the small table. 'Thanks, Mom.' Gareth said, visibly embarrassed. 'Thank you.' Added y/n, helping to place the cups. Mrs. Emerson smiled and walked out, leaving them alone again. Gareth sat down next to her, trying to look normal, but not quite succeeding. You could tell he was nervous, and y/n thought it was kinda cute.

'It's… for me?' He asked curiously, pointing to the gift. She nodded. 'Well, can I open it now or should I wait until Christmas?' Gareth asked, trying to sound calm. ' Of course, Santa won't get mad.' Joked the girl, taking a sip of her chocolate. Seeing that he was looking for where to put the cup down so he could open the bag, she grabbed the cup, unintentionally brushing against his hand. The boy blushed again but focused his attention on the present. He smiled and began to open the gift. Inside he found a red shirt and an AC/DC t-shirt. Gareth let out a laugh, got up and went to the dressing room. He returned with a wrapped gift and handed it to her.

'This is for you.' He said, taking the two cups so she could open it. 'I didn't know when I was going to see you to give it to you…' Y/n, curious about that reaction, opened the gift and let out a laugh when she saw that it was the exact same AC/DC t-shirt. 'Hey! We can go matching!' She joked, making Gareth blush even more. 'I g-guess so.' said Gareth, laughing nervously. They both sat on the bed and started chatting while enjoying hot chocolate. They talked about school, music, and plans for the vacations. They spent a few pleasant minutes together until y/n finished her drink and realized she had to leave. 'Well, I think it's time for me to go.' She said getting up. 'Let me walk you to the door.' Gareth said, following her.

After introducing herself and saying goodbye to Chloe and Ella, and thanking Mrs. Emerson for the chocolate, Gareth walked her to the front door. ' 'See you later.' Gareth said, smiling. She, following an impulse, leaned over and gave him a quick kiss on the lips, leaving Gareth frozen in place. ' 'See you later.' She repeated, with a smile before getting into her car. As she drove back to her last destination, she couldn't stop thinking about Max's words during the road trip. 'And you'll find someone for you, and he's waiting for you in Hawkins.'

She smiled, knowing those words might be coming true.

Y/n stopped at the last stop on her route, without stopping the car's engine. The night is cool and clear, illuminated by the house lights. In the distance, she can see Steve waiting for her in front of the door. He was holding something wrapped in a newspaper, with a smile on his face. He got into the vehicle and settled into the passenger seat. As soon as he got in, y/n threw a hand toward the back seat and pulled out a paper bag, handing it to Steve. He looks at her curiously and in turn, he gives her the long object wrapped in newspaper.

Steve watched her reaction when she discovered the gift was an aluminum bat. 'Tada! Now you have your own.' Y/n nose scrunched up, somewhere between puzzled and horrified. Steve laughed at her reaction. 'I hope I don't see any more upside down creatures, but thanks.’

Y/n took the wheel and began driving, heading downtown, while Steve opened his own gift. When he pulled the Farrah Fawcett spray from the bag, his expression changed to an almost murderous look, though y/n could recognize underneath, some amusement. 'Really? I knew you were listening!' He accused her. 'There's more.' She laughed. Steve reaches back into the bag and his expression changed to surprise when he found the next item in the bag: a mixtape labeled 'To improve your musical taste' and a T-shirt of the style he used to wear. 'Thank you! About the mixtape…' 'I thought you could use a little musical upgrade. Later we'll see if we'll buy you a Metallica t-shirt too.' She joked, Steve smiled awkwardly not knowing if it was true but not wanting to make her feel bad. ' I'm just kidding.' Steve looked much more relieved. 'Thanks.’

The conversation continued as they drove to the movie theater. Arriving downtown, they parked. Getting out of the car, y/n and Steve walked to the movie theater, where the sign at the entrance announced that "Gremlins" was playing. Y/n wanted to see it before they took it off the billboard.

After buying tickets and drinks, and briefly greeting Kyle, her co-worker, they entered the darkened theater, finding their seats as the noise of the movie began to fill the atmosphere. Sitting together, y/n leaned back against the back of the seat, thinking about how her perception of Hawkins had changed, and how different it turned out to be from what she had imagined. It wasn't California. But behind the small-town boringness, she had managed to find its charm. Perhaps, too dangerous and scary at times. But though she hadn't expected it, she had found a new place to call home.

SEASON 2 - COMING SOON

[4kmangopng]

my dreams feel like i smoked a ton of crack i’ll just warn ya, sometimes there’s images attracted that my stupid half-asleep brain makes but there aren’t for this one, i have a folder full of dreams anyways so there’s plenty to go around…

-mangoes…- 10 / 07 / 2024

so it’s kinda like there’s a live stream and this guys asks what he should do and someone recommends “play the mango board game” (iirc) so they walk off screen and come back with a board game where the premise is to collect mangoes and meet god (when you do a full turn around the board… like monopoly style… THATS when you meet them) and some other people walk in from off screen and sit to play with the streamer so now they’re all in a circle playing the mango game (time skip, it’s blurry here) so now there’s holes in the floor and people who lose fall through it like that one game w/ the penguin (icebreaker?) and the streamer wins (other time skip, fuzzy memory egh…) so now this guys… making music?? completely different person btw and they have this sorta DJ thing (like. those mixers with knobs and a keyboard but this one didn’t have the record / cd scratching stuff) and they get asked to play a song (don’t remember what it was) so they do and the chat asks them to play in… L? my dream ends shortly after that what the hell

yep, idk, it’s weird (help)

incomprehensible just how i like it...im the god they get to meet at the end of the game btw

[shallow-wordsalad]

new streaming platform Kick has given $100 million to xQc in a brand deal to stream on Kick exclusively, and I'm confused because I feel like this was tried before.

didn't Mixer try to do the same thing with Ninja and achieve such resounding success that you probably didn't even remember Mixer was a thing until I mentioned it? why do streaming platforms think Twitch is made up of six extremely successful loud white guys shouting profanity at teenagers over cartoon guns, and not a collection of a bunch of people with varied interests and styles working to make an extremely diverse platform of entertainment? yes, Ninja and xQc and the like pull major views, but Twitch is popular because you can watch *either* some screaming white boy get mad about video games, or you can watch some chill dude with no camera play his favorite SNES game over a weekend, or you can watch two Alexas talk to each other, or you can watch a bot play Pokemon.

instead of spending $100,000,000 on one dude, why not ofer $5,000 to the first 20,000 steamers on your platform to reach a certain follower/subscriber milestone? it'd create varied content, invite lots of people who might be on the fence about streaming to start, and build loyalty to your platform. that $5,000 seed is enough to change someone's cheap setup into a comfy one, so you might even homegrow a new major streamer that way and they'd love your platform for getting them started. and even if half of the people actually claim the money, you've saved millions. even if half of those people botted to get fake followers/subs, you've still only invested $5k in each one.

but what do I know, I'm not a billionaire idiot.

[gwacha]

Chapter 12 of Clip it, Baby! SNS streamer!AU snippet

hello dear readers and also people who saw my art and followed me and now have to put up with me panicking about my fic <3 >D

chapter 12 is about 2.5k words done. I think it'll be standard length, or maybe even on the shorter side (7.5k words is what i'm aiming for! edit maybe 9k)

I'll try and have it up on the 6th, (edit: possibly 7 or 8th very latest) which clocks me in about a week and a half? Usual stuff. anyways, have two snort snippets below! take care <3

 “Chat asks what we’re baking today, Sas,” Naruto calls. “We decided on brownies, didn’t we?”

“Two batches,” Sasuke chimes in, spreading the ingredients they’d topped up on across the counter and knotting the plastic bag to save for later. “One with almonds in it for me, and the other one with a fucking disgusting overload of caramel and Oreos for you.”

“He doesn’t get it, guys,” Naruto looks at the camera, shaking his head gravely. “Only old people put nuts in their brownies. I’m just enjoying my youth.”

“Enjoy your youth while you take out a mixing bowl. Stop standing around, lazy ass.” ---

“Naruto, what the fuck are you doing?”

“Cracking eggs! We need two of them for the recipe.”

“Obviously,” Sasuke snipes, squinting. “So why are there five eggs on the counter?”

Naruto squints at him. “In case any of them break. Obviously.”

Sasuke picks up three of the eggs with one hand and places them back in the refrigerator. “If you manage to break five eggs on the counter without getting any of it into the stand mixer, I’m taking you to the hospital.”

[breakingarrows]

Games Media in Review: Ninja

Though Tyler “Ninja” Blevins remains the most followed Twitch streamer on the platform, his active viewership has dropped significantly from the heights of his past. He maintains a consistent schedule streaming Fortnite Battle Royale on every major platform available: Twitch, YouTube, and TikTok. Despite multi-million dollar deals done in the past and a litany of controversies, Tyler shows no signs of stopping doing what he has been doing for the past twelve years as both his Florida and Illinois houses have their own dedicated streaming areas.

Tyler Blevins was born on June 5, 1991 to Chuck and Cynthia Blevins, and welcomed by his two older brothers, Jon and Chris. Chuck Blevins had a love for gaming that was shared by all three of his sons, though Tyler excelled out of all of them from a very young age. At 18 years old in 2009, Tyler joined Major League Gaming competitions for Halo 3. He met his future wife Jessica Goch at a tournament in 2010 and the two began dating in 2013 and married in 2017.  Sometime in 2014 Tyler experienced pain in his right eye that led to being diagnosed with a retinal detachment. He recovered after surgeries and continued to stream on Twitch as he had to a modest but unremarkable viewership. Tyler moved on from Halo to H1Z1 and then PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds in 2017 due to frustration with the professional Halo tournament direction. This same year he got into Fortnite and began ascending to Twitch stardom, slowly growing over time until he hit 100,000 subscribers on Twitch in March of 2018. This all culminated in a stream in which he played Fortnite with Drake (as well as Travis Scott and JuJu Smith-Schuster) on March 14, 2018, breaking the non-tournament record at 635,000 concurrent viewers. In August of 2019 it was announced Tyler had signed an exclusivity deal with Microsoft’s Mixer livestream platform that potentially earned him between $20-30 million. Mixer was unceremoniously shut down only eleven months later on July 22, 2020 Microsoft would shut Mixer down, transferring all partners to Facebook Gaming, though Tyler chose not to (though he does still sport Mixer merch on recent live streams). Instead he returned to Twitch on August 4, 2020, before announcing on September 10, 2020 that he would be exclusively streaming on Twitch. This deal ended on September 1, 2022 when Tyler announced he was taking a break on Twitter changing up his profile in a dramatic fashion to appear as if it was abandoned before returning on September 9 to announce he would begin streaming on all platforms going forward, which has continued to this day.

Being so popular and streaming for many many hours for weeks and months and years on end also means Tyler’s comments and statements and actions have earned him much criticism over the years. In December 2016 prior to his big blow up he released the address of someone who had donated to his stream and left a racist message. He was only banned for 48 hours and apologized. Both his apology and Twitch deciding to only ban him for a limited time earned a lot of criticism for being lackluster. The same month he streamed with Drake and broke records he later used the n-word while singing along to Logic’s “44 More,” which does not actually contain the word in its lyrics. Blevins apologized claiming to be tongue tied, which of course led to more discourse online about both his behavior and the usage of the word online. Later in August of 2018 he infamously stated he does not play with female gamers on stream to avoid rumors and gossip that might damage his relationship with his wife. In November of 2018 he believed a player to be stream sniping (in which someone watches a livestream of a game in order to hunt down and harass the streamer) and attempted to have the player banned from Fortnite despite the player ultimately being innocent. Another Twitch streamer, Imane “pokimane” Anys was the subject of a hate raid in 2022 by Jidion “JiDion” Adams who was subsequently banned for two weeks by Twitch before being permanently banned for his actions. Tyler supported Jidion, claiming to attempt to intervene with Twitch staff to prevent his ban and referred to Pokimane offhandedly as a bitch. Pokimane sharing this information led to Blevin’s wife Jessica direct messaging Pokimane to threaten a lawsuit over defamation, though that has never materialized and Jessica Blevins stepped down as Tyler’s manager later that year.

What is Tyler, aka Ninja, like now, in 2023? Well he seems relatively complacent and comfortable. These past two weeks he has only streamed for about four hours a day during weekdays, generally from morning to afternoon for his current timezone as he is residing in his house located in Illinois as opposed to his house in Florida. He recently had a team come by his house to redo his streaming room setup and commented about the gameplay feeling much smoother than ever before after they finished. Fortnite Chapter 4 Season 4 just dropped on Friday, August 25 and its additions and changes and returning items were good enough to keep Tyler streaming for almost seven hours as opposed to his average of four. His demeanor was noticeably improved as well while streaming the new season, and he even commented that he was very happy playing the game now as opposed to the previous season.

Tyler’s streams on Twitch in the past month have only pulled in an average of nearly 9,000 viewers, very low when you consider his follower count of +18 million. On YouTube the VOD’s of his stream average 160k views for the past 24 VODs. His regular YouTube uploads average 200k views for the past 20 uploads. There is a noticeable dip in views whenever the game being played is not Fortnite, showing how pigeonholed Tyler is into playing the game above all others, despite his forays into Valorant and Call of Duty: Warzone. These videos are also not edited by Tyler but instead by a third party contractor, though you wouldn't know this or who actually did the edits without looking it up yourself as they are not credited in any form in his uploads. The videos are edited by the group known as Grumbae. I also have to believe he has a social team handling clipping and posting all these YouTube Shorts and Instagram Reels and TikToks on his many social media accounts but who knows who is handling that. 

Streamcharts.com is reputedly the best Twitch tracker online currently and shows Tyler’s airtime per month has steadily declined as time has gone on. This makes sense as Tyler no longer has to stream for 8 hours a day everyday in order to earn, he has reached the top, and if he was smart with his multimillion dollar deals, can live comfortably for the rest of his life. He has even acknowledged the lack of concurrent viewership compared to his earlier days, speaking to The Washington Post in 2021, ““No one’s gonna stay on top forever, especially when it comes to live-streaming; there’s always somebody new and hot,” Blevins said in a recent interview with The Washington Post. “I have no intention of being that guy anymore. I know I’m not going to pull 100,000 viewers on [Twitch] anymore. I don’t have time to do that. I have a wife, I have a family.”” On a recent stream a commenter also asked why he continues to stream if he’s so rich, to which Tyler responded that its because he enjoys it. He has separately commented about not wanting to get back into competitive esports due to both his age and the time required to actively participate and perform, he would rather spend that time with his friends and family nowadays at the age of 32. So he streams for a few hours each weekday, lives his life, and has been doing the livestream career for so long that it is likely a clockwork routine for him to perform, reading out donations, responding to select portions of his chat, spouting out random SpongeBob quotes, and partying up with his brother Jon and other livestreamers. His reading of paid comment submissions can be pretty robotic, and I’m sure years of getting the same questions and comments have grinded away any enthusiasm he has for engaging with his audience, which I think is true for any long standing face who finds themselves in parasocial relationships, from RedLetterMedia to Giant Bomb (pre-2021). Tyler being the subject of attention of so many naturally will lead to a subdued form of antagonism towards your viewers.

As a public figure in 2023, especially one whose income is reliant on active viewership while livestreaming, Tyler can’t be openly antagonistic towards his viewership. He also can’t and doesn’t engage with subjects or ideologies that might cut off a particular crowd of his viewers. He recently talked openly about believing in Jesus Christ as his lord and savior but at the same time downplayed any desire he has to proselytize the viewers. Is this a personal decision or a business decision? Given that his brother whom he often streams with is active in the church and has a masters in theology, I have to think it is purely a business decision to not attempt to convert his audience. Additionally, a good large portion of the New Testament are letters from Paul the Apostle basically talking about going out and converting non believers. Christianity is pretty concerned with evangelizing, though I will admit a good majority of Christians are content to evangelize silently by being a “light on the hill” that doesn't actively engage with the larger non-believing community in any way.

The public, especially the younger public, constantly want to party up, befriend, or use Tyler’s platform to launch their own stardom, all of which I don’t believe Tyler has any interest in engaging with himself. With such a large public eye you also get invasive people who try to get involved in your private life either out of pure social ignorance or malice. On a recent stream Jon Blevins commented that he was getting phone calls from an unknown number followed by a donation to his livestream from someone asking him to answer the phone. This is the kind of privacy invasion public figures fall into, and this is just the male portion of Twitch stardom, the female portion is exponentially worse and more toxic.

All of this has me thinking, expanding beyond Tyler as an individual, but how much grace are we willing to give to individuals who find themselves under a microscope by so many people for so long a time. This isn’t meant as an excuse for Tyler’s many dumb and hurtful actions and comments in the past, but more a general thought on how much time livestreamers devote to being under watch by thousands upon thousands of people at one time, all of their comments and vocalizations subject to being the next top post on r/livestreamfail or some other online forum to be shared and mocked and eventually written up on a more mainstream website. Again, this isn’t as an absolving of using the n-word in a song where it doesn’t exist, but more an acknowledgement of the recurring joke I will find online of people admitting if their group chats were released to the public they would be unanimously executed by the larger public.

During the years prior to this observation, Tyler only came across my view during the Drake stream, and whenever his dumb comments would make the rounds, most notably both the “it’s just a game” tweet and the “I don’t game with women” comments. Then there is also just plain harmless dumb stuff (or cringe), such as his “braless wife” tweet. Taken as a whole, I can’t muster much anger towards Tyler. Out of all of the previously listed controversies the actions regarding Anys remain the worst, but also involve his wife and delves into Twitch drama which is such an abyss that I don’t have the time or interest to get deeper into than crawling r/livestreamfails and corresponding comments to attempt to understand the situation. What he did and said regarding Anys are wrong, and as far as my searching went I could find no real apology ever being offered.

In comparison, something like Cecilia D’Anastasio lying to and ignoring Nathalie Lawhead is something I will continue to be angry about and all those involved: D’Anastasio, Stephen Totilo, all those subtweeting Lawhead on Twitter for no reason than to satisfy their own pride and inability to admit wrongdoing in the press, are forever on my shit list. Patricia Hernandez, whose tenure as editor in chief started with the removal of the article in question, after over two years of requests and begging by Lawhead to have it removed, will forever be highly regarded and respected, even before her firing by G/O Media. This is the kind of online action that I will carry with me and continually remind others of. Taken as a whole, I think Tyler can be very stupid with what he says and does, but I don’t view him as intentionally cruel or hateful, which cannot be said for some of the other larger Twitch streamers.

Watching Tyler is pretty similar to any popular livestream. They are pretty damn good at the game, and generally mistakes are chalked up to: lag (both on OBS and the game), stream snipers, sweaty players, rat players, campers, and cheaters. Despite these complaints towards his complaints, watching Tyler play Fortnite is still probably the best PR for getting into the game itself, something I ended up doing myself and that I’ll talk about. Nothing quite seems to have the draw to play a game yourself as watching someone on Twitch play it. It doesn’t quite work for everything, as I’ll watch plenty of people play whatever the latest big new game is without so much as touching it myself, but the combination of the amount of time I was spending watching Tyler kill people in Zero Build mode, the remainder of Zero Build mode’s existence (which drops the building aspect of Fortnite, something intimidating for older newbies such as myself) and that the game itself is free to play was enough to get me on the Xbox store downloading and booting it up after I thought I would never do it again.

Due to games being something you can control directly, watching someone else play instantly has you thinking of what you would do differently (and superiorly). Movies often cause the viewer to think about what they would do differently were they placed in that situation, and watching someone else play a game causes the same reaction, except with games you can play it and perform differently as you have control and a game isn’t a linear sequence of images. I’ve had this occur before, mostly with watching Twitch people play Apex Legends which would make me want to go home and play Apex Legends myself, as its been the live service game of choice since release for me. Twitch streamers also have their own habits, rotations, and item preferences which you can adapt into your own play style. I know once I booted up Fortnite I was pretty much adopting Tyler’s preferred weapons into my loadouts as they were both familiar in terms of handling as I had watched him use these weapons for multiple hours, and they come with the bonus of likely being some of the best weapons, as someone who has played this game more than I ever will and has a handle on how the game works prefers these weapons, so I probably should stick to them as well. It also helped that my in-laws also play the game quite often, and once they found out I was dipping into the game, they instantly began inviting and playing with me online.

Tyler’s success is symbolic of that American Dream mindset, that if you simply work hard, put in the time, have the required skill, you too can become a multi-million dollar Twitch streamer, though even here, where a Twitch success story seemingly is the individual working his way into massive success and wealth, is a myth. Tyler’s success came after years of toiling away, yes, but the ability to toil away at live streaming for years without any return on investment is not something available to everyone. There is also the issue of whether his momentum at the beginning of 2018, where his meteoric rise began, was potentially aided by a mass influx of bots. Though this is unconfirmed, the fact remains that in 2021 Twitch did admit to taking action against 7.5 million bot accounts, and it was widely acknowledged that these bots long existed within the Twitch community. In 2018, when Tyler received an unprecedented growth of 50,000 subscribers in a little over a week, it was speculated some of this may be Amazon Prime subscription bots utilizing hacked accounts. Not that this ultimately mattered to the bottom line, as streamers would still be paid regardless of whether the subscription was subject to a bot or not.

Another major factor is that Tyler is simply just really good at the game. While some streamers have found success in being mid at a game (TimTheTatman in Warzone), it remains that more people are going to be more entertained by watching someone win than lose, and Tyler regularly wins his matches. Coming from the professional Halo scene set the foundation for his ability in most all multiplayer games, which was furthered by both his participation in tournaments for H1Z1, PUBG, and then dominating most all games in Fortnite. A hard lesson for aspiring Twitch streamers is that much like the battle royale genre, there can only be one winner, and very frequently you will find yourself the loser.

While Tyler’s enthusiasm for the new season may just be the usual, “Last content drop was trash, this new content drop is fresh!” cycle that every live service game audience appears to go through, playing Fortnite myself for about a week before the new season dropped really placed the differences in the light. The changes this season do seem to favor mobility much more, despite the removal of the grapple gloves that let you Spider-Man swing your way from Point A to B. The rechargeable battering ram that shoots you through the air and the seemingly increase of finding shockwave grenades makes moving around much easier and faster than before. Engaging with Fortnite has also reminded me of the game’s status as the seemingly symbol of the End of Games.

By this I mean that video games may very well end with Fortnite. The way this game acts as a black hole for IP, sucking in not only popular brands, franchises, and iconography in everything from its character skins, emotes, and various other cosmetic aspects, it can also be modified to capture popular trends in other games. Among Us exploded post Covid and so Fortnite debuted its own knockoff but official Epic Games-created game mode called Fortnite: Imposters, which came after a fan creation mode called “The Spy Within”. Most recently the success of Only Up, an indie game that found success thanks to Twitch streaming, was also copied into Fortnite as a custom game mode, and became even more popular online than the original.

These examples call to mind one of the earlier criticisms of Fortnite concerning its usage of popular dances as purchasable emotes in-game. Essentially, Epic Games was commercializing and profiting off of dances created by, and whose ownership largely belonged to, the public, specifically the black community. This is a larger problem with copyright and IP law, in that what is ideally supposed to help the original individual creator(s) retain the rights for profits really just favors the larger companies who can exploit it to punish criticism on YouTube or simply continue to own exclusive rights to a media’s existence despite never doing anything to make it widely available to the public.

Much as its replication of dance moves without any accreditation, these new game modes essentially are replications of existing games within Fortnite but lack any acknowledgement of where this idea came from. This sort of game clone is so widespread as to be expected within the mobile game space, in which any successful phone game is instantly copied and reproduced by every other soulless game company looking to make a quick buck off of free-to-play advertisements of their knockoff. For Epic Games to apply the same methodology to Fortnite is just sickening. 

Fortnite as the black hole of IP, sucking in anything and everything around it, also ensures players are constantly building their investment within the Fortnite ecosystem as they continually add recognizable skins to their collection and look forward to the next season’s addition of even more opportunities to buy into the game, a perpetual motion machine of Bender the Robot and Ahsoka skins that will seemingly continue forever until there is no more IP.

Ninja in 2023 is a known quantity. He’s not going anywhere, and he doesn’t have a top spot to chase after anymore. He’s achieved all he could likely dream of already before hitting 30. Even if his one Mixer contract was the minimum reported number of 20 million (pre-tax) that is the equivalent of 400 years of my current annual salary (pre-tax) which he earned in less than 12 months. Despite his wealth and consistency at saying/doing stupid things at least annually, I bear no real ill will towards him. I think his former popularity and well recorded mistakes make him an easy figure to mock, but watching him for the past two weeks has been enlightening and entertaining, and pushed me to play the game that has me partying with family members. What little Twitch drama I have followed and looked into after starting this observation has already told me that there are worse figures to follow along with than Tyler “Ninja” Blevins.