#Modern Standard Version

[soothsayerditty]

★I don’t know the reason why Running through this endless sky I can’t see the journey’s end Yet I swear I’ll try again Wish the world could always be Like the light that’s shining here with me★

★BNA - NIGHT RUNNING★

[athamad]

Yeah no we are not doing this today no stop stop talking get off the internet and stop rn

[violencedistrictresident]

I don't even know which felt worse, discovering the sheer amount of work and ideas this mf stole or learning what the shit he and the cowriter actually (supposedly) wrote themselves is like. wtf holy shit you cant just SAY THAT

[eileennatural]

saw a tim scott ad on behalf of the republican running for senate for PA that made me mad for two reasons 1. Please stay out of pennsylvania business, tim. 2. The ad was mostly focused on how bob casey is "racist" for not supporting school choices. Which yeah I can see how you might get there but only if you've never spent more than 5 minutes thinking abt the issue. And this is important bc philly has lots of charyer schools ofc. yes charter schools position themselves as an alternative to the overtly racist public education system (housing segregation -> low property values in urban neighborhoods-> underfunded schools) but they are not under any circumstances a solution to the problem they're barely even a bandaid. But honestly I can't even get into it i wrote a 20 ish page paper on this my junior year of college which I actually presented at a conference in philly lol

[llycaons]

most coffeeshop AU and generic rated e fanfic is bad BUT people who write it clearly enjoy it and there must be an audience for it...so that begs the question...is it really just a matter of personal taste...

[foxfinding]

I am fixing some synch issues with a subtitle track today, and...

Some GORGEOUS fucking human being chose to translate all the songs into like. Archaic, Shakespeare-style English?

(It would make sense if it was like. A period film or something, but like. It's literally about a NASA employee, so like. THE TONE SHIFT IS SO FUCKING JARRING.)

But like.

The person who did these... honestly they're SO GORGEOUS? All of them rhyme, and the language is SO lovely.

I keep finding these BEAUTIFUL lines.

"Why doth my heart impatient be?

Who longeth to meet me?

Perhaps, in the narrowing compass,

what I'd cherished is coming to pass..."

[fierykitten2]

I love how the combination of Wake and Leaves not being in any of Perrin’s photos of their trio members and the two of them being not only exclusively found outside Area Zero but also being event-exclusive kinda implies (to me at least) that the two of them escaped and decided to explore. I was having this conversation with myself while having my breakfast this morning (it’s 2 minutes past noon as I’m writing this so I’m sure I finished breakfast in the morning) and I was thinking that the two of them (as a result of being event-exclusive) have probably spent a lot of time outside Paldea but at the very least Wake (assuming it travels without Leaves, which is pretty likely given they’re version-exclusive) probably hasn’t got much further than somewhere in Kalos (not really sure how to fit this into the conversation but now feels like I good time to mention that even with the argument that there’s land between Kalos and Paldea the Teraleak showed that was meant to be in X and Y so I’m counting it as Kalos for the time being). I don’t see either of them scaling that cliff (despite Wake’s strong legs) but Wake can walk on water while Leaves is part Psychic and can probably Teleport (turns out I don’t take into account the ability to learn the move Teleport when I think about Psychic-types being able to teleport. As far as I’m concerned, they just have to be part Psychic to be able to teleport. Might explain why Jirachi and two of the Lake Guardians can use it illegally in the anime) and that thought made me realise it’s sad there’s no chance of them appearing in Z-A. What I think should happen in place of that is there should be an NPC in Z-A who mentions sightings of an unidentifiable (I mean they’re technically not in the Kalos Dex) Pokémon resembling a feminine-presenting Legendary from a far away region in either Southern Kalos or one of the seaside cities (I was thinking Shalour City because it was the first one that came to mind. I’d like to think that Wake followed the water and ended up there. Leaves probably felt like playing with its type advantage to Fighting or something). I mean the location they are rumoured to have been sighted in could vary per day and maybe sometimes they’re not mentioned to have been sighted at all (the implication there being they’ve gone back to Paldea for their event raids although this doesn’t have to coincide with a rerun of their event in SV. Would admittedly be pretty cool if it did though). I’m also thinking that because they’re version-exclusive it would make sense that only one of them has been sighted in Kalos. I’m thinking (because presumably there’ll be a “choose your version, X or Y” situation like how PLA makes you choose between the clans or something) that the NPC (or NPCs, maybe they’re spreading a whole rumour about it rather than just one person being like “I think I saw not-Suicune/not-Virizion in [insert location here]) could start off being ambiguous and describe stuff that applies to both Paradox Pokémon at first but then go into more detail after you’ve chosen a version to be loyal to (I guess colour-coordinating their original versions would mean if you choose X you get Leaves being described and if you choose Y you get Wake being described but I like the idea of doing it the other way round. Mainly because I prefer Leaves and Y but if you’re just looking at the Pokémon and not which versions they represent then Wake makes more sense with the blue X choice and Leaves makes more sense with the red Y choice plus Wake and X tend to get listed first while Leaves and Y tend to get listed second. Wake is my second-favourite Pokémon so it’s admittedly no big loss if I chose the Y option only to discover the mystery (Paradox) Pokémon was a big fluffy Walking Wake the entire time but I think I’d still prefer for Y’s Paradox Pokémon being Leaves)

It won’t happen but I can dream

[ailurinae]

It is truly mind boggling. None of the people implementing these features are dogfooding, that seems clear. And they fired all their QA people... Also. They know how these ML models work, surely they be able to predict/guess that this would happen (well, maybe not the worms-> demons one. WTF)

googledocs you are getting awfully uppity for something that can’t differentiate between “its” and “it’s” correctly

[theenglishnook]

Early Modern English: Shakespearean Era to the King James Bible (1500-1700 AD)

Early Modern English is the linguistic epoch that spans roughly from the late 15th century to the late 17th century. It represents a significant transitional phase in the evolution of the English language, bridging the gap between the Middle English period and the modern form of the language that we use today. During the Early Modern English period, several key developments profoundly influenced…

[wilwheaton]

America’s post–World War II university system was the envy of the world, driving innovation and medical and scientific research that made the U.S. economy boom and raised standards of living around the world. But the idea that the modern government imposed the will of what Ronald Reagan called “a little intellectual elite in a far-distant capital” on the laws of God and the natural laws of the United States was a powerful tool to undermine the modern government. In a 1971 memorandum for the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, lawyer Lewis F. Powell Jr. wrote that “the American economic system,” which he defined as the “free enterprise system,” “capitalism,” and “the profit system,” “is under broad attack.” Powell identified college campuses as the center of this attack and called for setting up right-wing think tanks and speakers’ series to advance the interests of business, restoring what he called “balance” to textbooks, and for pressure on colleges to appoint right-wing faculty members, all in the name of “strengthening of both academic freedom on the campus and of the values which have made America the most productive of all societies.” As Republicans embraced economic individualism and religion, they also embraced anti-intellectualism. Their version was not unlike that of the early colonists, in which rural Americans, especially those in the West, claimed their evangelical religion made them more worthy than the urban Americans in the East who far outnumbered them. When Republican presidential candidate John McCain tapped evangelical Alaska governor Sarah Palin to be his running mate in 2008, he acknowledged the growing power of that demographic.

 Heather Cox Richardson

[demilypyro]

That post is getting too long so here's some more all time classics everyone should play for a good gaming education:

Metal gear solid 1-3

Hades

an RTS. any RTS. Warcraft 3, StarCraft, Age of Mythology, take your pick.

Rollercoaster Tycoon

Shovel Knight

a fire emblem game (one of the old ones, no newer than Awakening)

Rayman 2

One of those Lego games based on old movies

a 2D Sonic game AND a 3D Sonic game

Ace Attorney

Minecraft

an old 3D platformer that didn't hold on to its popularity (Crash Bandicoot, Spyro, Ratchet and Clank, etc)

at least 1 game that just looks BUTT UGLY by modern standards, if only to build character (I recommend Ocarina of Time)

Donkey Kong Country (one of the newer ones if you wanna go easy on yourself)

Stardew Valley

XCOM

Slay the Spire

Yakuza Zero

A Hat in Time

Resident Evil 4 (any version)

Bomb Rush Cyberfunk

Borderlands 2

Mario Galaxy

Katamari Damacy

Psychonauts 1 and 2

any Nier game

any Devil May Cry game

any 3D Fallout or Elder Scrolls game

[t00thpasteface]

alas, i've just never seen a modern au anything that actually held my interest for longer than five seconds. like as usual Sorry For Having An English Degree On Main buuuuuut if you transpose characters from a historical/fantasy/scifi setting into the modern era or some urban-fantasy version of it, you're going to inevitably lose a lot of the sociopolitical context that informs why those characters act and think the way they do. plus i think it just loses so much of the appeal and flavor and plating to completely strip away a character's natural habitat even beyond the underlying narrative bones... like it's just aesthetically very bland and boring to jump from some historical/fantastical setting into the setting i currenly occupy irl. that's probably the opposite of what i wanted to do by getting into this thing in the first place.

and in the case of historical fiction i think it just sometimes feels like someone is saying "i cannot be bothered to research the bare minimum to write within the original setting, i don't know how to write two characters hanging out in a room eating food unless i can describe a standard american kitchen and living room, and i took Write What You Know too literally and now all i write about is baristas" as if discovering and reading increasingly obscure articles/books/etc about the most hyperspecific microsubject isn't half the fun of getting way too into a work of historical fiction

[prokopetz]

I'm asking you because I've seen people ask you similar questions before. Why are kobolds, as a fantasy creature, so nebulous?

Generally when people say orc, goblin, elf, dwarf, werewolf, vampire etc. a person can have a pretty solid idea of what traits that animal will have. I guess because they're usually copying that species from the same similar source works?

What happened to kobolds? I used to know them as a kind of german folklore creature, but then also as a short lizard person, and most recently there's been Dungeon Meshi, which gives the name kobold to anthropomorphic dogs.

Well, the trick is that none of these terms have a standard definition. In folklore, the words "elf", "dwarf", "gnome", "troll", "goblin", "pixie", etc. are used more or less interchangeably – all of these words might refer to the exact same folkloric critter, and conversely, the same word might be used to refer to several completely different folkloric critters, even within the same body of regional folklore, to say nothing of how their usage varies across different regions and over time.

Literally the only reason any of these terms have "standard" definitions in modern popular culture is because one specific piece of media got mega-popular and everybody copied it. For example, Tolkien is responsible not only for the popular media stereotypes of elves and dwarves: he's responsible for popularising the idea that "elf" and "dwarf" are separate kinds of creatures to begin with. Similarly, while Bram Stoker's Dracula isn't solely responsible for cementing the idea of what a vampire is in popular culture, it did standardise what vampire magic can do, and it helped cement the idea that a "vampire" and a "werewolf" are different beasties, which hasn't always been the case.

So the short answer is that there's just never been a mega-popular work about "kobolds" to provide a standard template for the type. Most modern depictions in Anglophone popular culture ultimately point back to the interpretation set forth by Dungeons & Dragons, but D&D itself has gone back and forth on the whether they're tiny dog-people or tiny lizard-people, with the tiny dog-person version being the earlier of the two, so even folks who are directly cribbing from D&D will vary on this point depending on which particular edition they're name-checking.

[goooofy-goooober1121]

Twst Ethnicity/Nationality Headcanons (bc I can)

Also my asks are open so please send some in!!!!

Read my most recent work here!

Heartslabyul

Riddle Rosehearts

British (I hc the Kingdom of Roses as the sort of UK version of TWST)

is this even a question

Standard British Accent for sure

"Unbuhrthday pahty"

he's a crumpet eater what can i say

Trey Clover

Vietnamese idc

that is an east asian man like idk he just has the vibes

but if he were to have like an accent I'm thinking a Yorkshire-y accent

Cater Diamond

he's a ginger so he's Irish /j

Also a British white boy

But not like Standard British accent

MLE London accent!!!!

Deuce Spade

hmm I'm having trouble with him ngl

Kinda leaning towards Argentinian for him

Latino king !!

Yeah now that i think about it Argentinian Deuce is real

But he's also from the Queendom of Roses so I think he's got a Cockney accent lol

Ace Trappola

Ginger so he's Irish /hj

Maybe not about the ginger part but like idk he's giving Irish

Specifically South Dublin

I'm thinking Korean-Irish I don't make the rules

Savanaclaw

Leona Kingscholar

Kenyan

Have you seen that one event card? I did a lil research and apparently it was based majorly on Kenyan clothing

So yeah that mf is Kenyan I don't make the rules

Ruggie Bucchi

BRAZILIAN.

sorry idc he's Brazilian

LATINO KING #2

See the thing about Brazil is that it's extremely diverse so like genetically he could be anything

But I'm thinking Indigenous/Lebanese/African mix mostly! (Brazil has an INSANE amount of Lebanese people bro)

If I had to name a specific state it would either be São Paulo (going back on the Lebanese thing, São Paulo has the largest Lebanese population out of all Brazilian states) or Minas Gerais

Jack Howl

Grrr this is hard because he isn't like based off an actual character yk so I don't have a point of reference

But then again I pulled Brazilian Ruggie out my ass (and also because I'm Brazilian and am biased)

He's from the Shaftlands, so I'm getting Hungarian vibes from him

Also works because grey wolves are found in mainly Central European areas

fuck it he's ethnically Brazilian too, Bahia

Brazilian mom and Hungarian dad

Mixed Indigenous/African/Hungarian (in that order)

They're all Latino. Every one of them.

Octavinelle

Azul Ashengrotto

"Azul" means blue in Spanish and Portuguese

I'm thinking he's Spanish and Italian

Ethpañol

(sorry i had to bring up the 'say 'th' instead of 's' dialect pattern in Spain Spanish)

Jade Leech

'Jade' as a word has its origins in Spanish

Moray eels are most commonly found in tropical, warm waters and coral reefs

"The green moray is found in the western Atlantic Ocean, from New Jersey to Bermuda, and the northern Gulf of Mexico southward to Brazil" - Google

BRAZIL MENTIONED

Yeah he's Puerto Rican/Brazilian

LMFAO what if i make the Leech twins Floridians

OK OK he's Puerto Rican/Brazilian but him and Floyd are Florida residents

Floyd Leech

As mentioned before he's also Puerto Rican/Brazilian

90% of all Florida Man headlines are because of him

Bilingual and randomly breaks into Portuñol to fuck with Azul

"Me gusta comer pedras e tambem tenho vontade de morder a la gente, mano"

Puerto Rican mom and Brazilian dad

Glares at Azul whenever he hears "Ethpaña" instead of "España"

'speaks Spanish with a th' Azul vs. 'no S at the end of words' Floyd

Scarabia

Kalim Al-Asim

Okay so I'm referencing the Qasr Sultan card to build my hc

I'm mainly looking at his turban, lots of anthropologists think those originated in Ancient Persia (modern-day Iran) but of course cultural dispersion is a thing and they are also commonly found in Indian records of rulers

But the word 'Sultan' is Arabic, not Persian

There's a description about the Scalding Sands that says "tea is considered a customary with every meal"

Considering this tradition and the clothing items, I'm led to believe he is Arab-- but that's a pretty big generalization considering "Arab" is a broad term for people living in a specific part of the Middle East

Therefore he's Omani i think!

The climate matches the description of the Scalding Sands (dry and arid, subtropical); tea is also their national beverage and from my understanding is widely served with meals

Jamil Viper

Pakistani/Bangladesh/Omani mix

Nationality is Omani (would have been born there if we follow the canon)

Oman has a majority Arab population but it also has a large South Asian population

Idk how to describe it he just has Pakistan/Bangladesh vibes

Pomefiore

Vil Schoenheit

Take one look at that last name and tell me he isn't German

Definitely also speaks French

Maybe he's German/French, German dad and French mom

The first film screening, fun fact, was in Berlin in 1894, but the first commercial public screening was in Paris 1895!

Kinda fits with his movie star status

Slays the house boots down

Rook Hunt

South African and French

I can't with his fuckass bob I'm sorry

Ethnically cooked by his barber

Generationally chopped

Lord Farquad ass

Dora the explorer ass

Edna mode ass

PLEASE let him grow out his hair again IM BEGGING YOU

Cute freckles tho :3

Epel Felmier

My boy Apple Farmer is Finnish

Harveston is apparently based on Finnish architecture so like

I'm thinking there's some German in there too, because "Felmier" is the German word for farmer

CORRECTION from someone who reblogged (ty pookie for letting me know) Felmier probably comes from the German surname Feldmier which is the job title (and a German surname) for someone who manages open fields for nobility (the actual word for farmer in German is Bauer)

Thank you reblogger I repent for my mistake

so manly

Ignihyde

Idia Shroud

Greek are we even debating this?

The guy based on the Greek god Hades? Hmm he's gotta be from Russia

No bro

Greek man from Macedonia

The irl Mount Olympus is located on the border between Macedonia and Thessaly so I figured if he's gonna be based an Olympian it would be only fair to place him around that area

Ortho Shroud

Macedonian like Idia!

Silly little guy

He's my baby

Little Greek dude

Diasomnia

Malleus Draconia

Hmm okay so I'm thinking Chinese/French

Sleeping Beauty is set in France and Briar Valley does seem to have European architecture

old French architecture also does incorporate lots of gargoyles, and we all know he's a gargoyle fiend

And there are some vignette lines that hint at Chinese influences/heritage such as in his Halloween card

I think ethnically/racially Chinese but nationality-wise he's French

Lillia Vanrouge

The "van-" prefix in surnames can be traced back to the Netherlands

Like Vincent Van Gogh

Lilia as a name has Spanish origins

I think he's Dutch/Spanish mix

He also gives me Japanese vibes so let's also add that

Sebek Zigvolt

Sebek as a name is a version of Sobek, an Egyptian crocodile deity

Since his mom is a fae from Briar Valley, I'm thinking 50% Egyptian (mom) and 50% French (dad)

but 100% unable to stfu why is he always yelling bro

I love him tho

Silver Vanrouge

Swedish

Don't ask me why

I just look at him and see Swedish

One more white boy to add to my collection

----

A/N: I'm so tired bro it's midnight and I'm out here making fictional men Latino and/or French

[taevescence]

She's All I Wanna Be | Kim Seokjin x Reader

Summary: You've loved Jin in silence for years. You’ve been his best friend, his safe place, the one constant in his life. You waited patiently, reading between the lines, believing that one day he’d finally see you as something more. And just when you thought that moment had come, he introduced you to his girlfriend—the first one since you’ve known him. Now, with your heart wavering between habit and longing, you don’t know whether to give up��� or fight for him. Author’s note: PLEASE READ BEFORE STARTING! This is the first chapter of the BOTN series (where all 7 members have their own story). Now, if you happened to read the old version—let me tell you, it has nothing to do with this one. I deleted it. It no longer exists. I wanted to make some changes (especially to the narration), so I started from scratch. That’s something I’m planning to do with most of the things I’ve published (except for the ones in the old masterlist). With that said, I really hope you enjoy the fic! I’d love to know what you think 💕 My asks are always open for you! Pairing: Bassist!Jin x Fem!Reader AUs: Band!AU Word count: 6.3k Warnings/tags: Childhood best friends. It’s actually very angsty (not sorry). The reader is a seamstress. There’s subtle, implicit workplace sexism. Jin sends very mixed signals. Oh, and there's a love triangle.  Status: Ongoing. Permanent Taglist: @thunderg @minjianhyung @queenv1997 @yoongtism @lizzymizzy-blogg @superbbananananana @drpepperobsessed @themwordsblog @taekritimin123 @bluecloudss @yooglefics @tan-veee@angellekookie @madussthougths @meadowsweetskoo You can join the taglist here! Dividers by @sisterlucifergraphics

You looked at your reflection through the stained-glass window of the small café where Jin had asked to meet you a few hours earlier. It was tucked behind several large corporate buildings, hidden away by their modern and excessive architecture—a stark contrast that was almost laughable. The café walls mimicked the look of wood, and hundreds of fake vines adorned the interior, giving it a rustic, wild touch. The tables, which you were sure were made of mahogany, were just big enough to seat two people, and the chairs were spacious and comfortable enough to sit in for hours.

It was the perfect place to read on a sunny afternoon—or to sip a warm cup of hot chocolate on a rainy evening. The perfect place for quiet confessions between people who had known each other all their lives.

The thought made your cheeks warm, and your heart skip a few beats in joy.

It was Saturday—the only day you allowed yourself to wake up a bit later than usual. Sleeping in until 9 a.m. was “late” by your standards, especially since you normally got up at 5 on weekdays. Just an hour after your alarm went off, Yellow by Coldplay began to play. You immediately knew it was Jin. He was the only person in your contacts with a personalized ringtone.

You thought he’d say something silly, maybe make a joke, or even call to complain about one of the guys in the band. But he didn’t. His voice was soft, broken up by small, nervous laughs as he mumbled something about meeting in two hours at your usual café—the one you always went to when you needed to catch up or just be with each other.

And you said yes.

Your voice was calm and steady, just as certain as the hundreds of other times you’d said “yes” to Jin over the course of your life. But inside, you were a mess of nerves. Sure, it was normal for Jin to call you on weekends. Yes, it was normal for you two to meet at that old but cozy café. But he’d never sounded like that before. Never that nervous about asking you to hang out.

That made your mind race with possibilities—each one ending with the two of you walking out of that café no longer just childhood friends… but something more.

So, you got dressed up—more than usual. You used the most expensive makeup in your kit, careful to keep the look subtle enough for a coffee shop, but still soft and captivating. You wore a simple yet elegant dress—one that Jin himself had bought for your birthday (and nearly gave you a heart attack when you found out how much it cost). You wore brand-new shoes that you'd originally planned to debut at your sister’s wedding, and you straightened your hair with care, adding a special lotion to make it shinier and softer.

You looked beautiful. You felt beautiful.

You’d arrived about ten minutes ago—almost eleven now—and all you could do was stare at your reflection in the glass, fidgeting with your hair over and over again, trying to fix invisible flaws, trying to calm the rising anxiety with each passing second.

And then Jin arrived.

Your entire body responded to his presence instantly. Your back straightened, your lips parted slightly, and your eyes lit up in a way they hadn’t before.

He wore a simple cream-colored suit that only made his delicate features stand out more. His hair, as always, was perfect—now a rich, dark brown that framed his face beautifully. He spotted you immediately and made his way over with that quiet confidence he always had.

“Before you scold me for being late—it wasn’t my fault,” he said quickly, sitting across from you with that effortlessly elegant air that was so uniquely his. “I had to take a few detours to shake off some reporters who… You know what? Doesn’t matter. What matters is we’re both here—and there’s a killer deal on Saturdays.”

You laughed at the sight of his annoyed expression as he rummaged through his bag—because Jin couldn’t care less if the media called him feminine for carrying a bag—in search of what you assumed was his wallet. You could hear him mumbling under his breath. You couldn’t quite make out the words, but you were sure they were complaints and insults aimed at those ‘lifeless’ people obsessed with him and the other members.

You simply nodded, resting your chin on your hand as you watched every little detail of his face, every small change in expression. You knew the way he’d jerk his head back when something startled or annoyed him. You knew he covered his face when he was embarrassed. You knew his voice got higher and faster when he was upset. You guessed that was the result of a friendship that had lasted over twenty years, born from the affection your mothers had for each other.

“Have you ordered yet? This one’s on me,” he said once he’d finally found his wallet and placed it gently on the table. It had a cute sticker of a little plant with a face. You gave it to him five years ago when you joined a botany club. He stuck it on right away, and it was still there.

“Ah, no, not yet,” you said, clearing your throat as a blush crept up your cheeks. “I wanted to wait for you,” you added quietly. You weren’t sure if he heard you or not. But it didn’t matter—not when you were so sure that today, everything would change.

“Great! Then I’ll get the usual,” he said, turning his head in search of the waitress who usually served you both. She always wore a bright smile, her hair decorated with colorful clips shaped like cats and bunnies that stood out almost as much as her vibrant red hair.

You didn’t catch most of the small talk. You knew both of you had greeted her politely, and that she said something about how lovely you two looked today. Then things got blurry.

You blamed Jin—for looking that good while talking.

There was something about the way he smiled and laughed at his own nonsense that you found utterly endearing. Everything about him was enchanting to you, if we’re being honest—but his smile? Seeing him happy? That’s what you loved the most.

“Let me guess—one slice of cheesecake, one lemon pie, and two cups of coffee?” Saeyoung asked, glancing between the two of you with a knowing look, waiting for confirmation so she could head to the counter.

“You read my mind,” Jin replied with a soft laugh as he pulled out his card. “That, and a tiramisu.”

Saeyoung blinked, confused. You straightened in your seat. The two of you exchanged a silent look, one that said exactly the same thing. Confusion.

In all the years you’d been coming here, Jin had never invited anyone else. Not even the guys from the band. You’d both agreed—this place was your little escape from the world, a hidden corner just for the two of you.

So who was he inviting?

Right then, the soft bell above the door chimed, followed by a gentle click and quick footsteps heading straight toward your table.

Only then did you actually notice the person who had just arrived—now walking toward you both with a bright smile and a hand raised in greeting.

You’d seen hundreds of beautiful women in your life. You went to a school full of wealthy people, the kind who could afford a level of self-care others couldn’t. You’d seen models, actresses, and singers at the events hosted by BOTN. You’d even designed clothes for emerging models—each one stunning.

But her?

She was on a whole different level.

She was much shorter than both you and Jin. With those pink heels, she was probably just barely 5'3". Her skin looked soft and flawless, with a hint of blush on her cheeks. Her nose was small and upturned, and her lips were full and a gorgeous rosy pink that perfectly matched her pale rose suit—which you swore was from Celine. But the most beautiful thing about her? Her eyes. Large, dark, with long lashes that fluttered like butterflies every time she blinked.

In short, she looked like an angel.

“Yeji! You made it,” Jin said, standing up the second he saw her approaching. He stepped aside and pulled a chair over from another table, placing it in the empty spot between you both. He held it open until she sat down, then finally sat again himself.

“Yeah, I got a bit lost getting here. All the streets looked the same,” She adjusted herself in the chair with a clumsy gesture, fixing a strand of blonde hair—which obviously wasn't natural, but suited her so well she could have been born with that color—pushing it behind her ear. You noticed how her cheeks turned even redder when she mentioned getting lost. Oh, and of course, you noticed that her voice was one of the softest and warmest you had heard in at least the last two years.

Was everything about her really this… sweet and beautiful?

“Y/N, this is Yeji.” He was looking at you. But his hand was resting on Yeji’s on the table, his thumb gently stroking her hand. All of this while his gaze remained fixed on you. Warm. Soft. In love. But not with you. “My girlfriend.”

Everything stopped for a second. The air in your lungs seemed to vanish, your heart seemed to stop beating, and your head went completely blank. You were sure your whole body was tense, your hands, which were now clasped together on the table, were gripping way too tightly, and your eyes were fixed on ‘Yeji’ with tears threatening to spill at any moment.

But it was only for a second.

You took a breath. It was a little shaky, probably too close to a sob, but no tears came. You wouldn’t let yourself cry—not now, not with both of them here. Not after hearing that.

You cleared your throat, counted to three, and put on the same smile you always gave Jin. And to Yeji.

“Your girlfriend? You never told me about her. How long have you been together?” You subtly lowered your hands, afraid Jin would see them trembling, afraid he would notice that crack the news had just made. He couldn’t see it. He couldn’t know how you felt about him.

Why had you thought today would change things?

Why did you believe it was mutual?

“We’ve been together for three months!” Yeji answered, her eyes quickly moving to Jin, sparkling in a way you knew all too well. Your eyes sparkled that way when you looked at him. “Jin has told me so much about you over these past few months that I couldn’t help but beg him to introduce us.”

Now all her attention was on you. She took your hands from under the table, holding them between hers, smiling at you with so much emotion that you almost felt guilty. Why did you feel guilty?

“Jin always mentioned how beautiful you were, but seeing you in person is really something else.”

You tried to smile. You tried to be as polite as possible. But it was hard. There were so many questions running through your head, so many things you couldn’t understand. Why had he told her about you? Because you were his best friend, of course—his parents knew you too—but why had he told her he thought you were beautiful?

Did it matter? The answer was simple. No. Because even if he spoke about you, even if he told her you were beautiful, it was her who was by his side.

And you’d have to watch from afar. Again.

Jin wasn’t a womanizer, at least not the type you saw in movies. During his teenage years, he never had a girlfriend. You knew this because you were inseparable, nobody could separate you, and you spent most of your time together, hardly talking to anyone else.

Things changed when he started his band project, specifically when they released their first album. It was a huge success, playing on every local radio station, and all the young people seemed to love the songs. And the members.

It was after a month of releasing the first album that this “womanizer phase” began. He went out with several girls, not for just one night, but for short periods—one month, maybe three. It had never been serious. He had never introduced you to any of them. You knew from rumors, from women’s clothes in his apartment, from the loving calls and messages you sometimes saw by accident on his phone.

Jin had never given any hints about his love life with you, and for some reason, that gave you hope.

Because despite being able to be with any of those beautiful and talented women, he always came back to you. You were always by his side.

But it wasn’t until this moment that you realized; you were always there because he considered you his best friend, not because he was in love with you.

And Yeji was the perfect example of that realization.

“Thank you, Yeji. Can I call you that?” You kept your eyes locked on hers, afraid to face Jin right now, afraid he would notice your fear, your shame, your sadness. You wanted to run. You wanted to disappear completely.

But you wouldn’t. Because Jin’s happiness came before your selfish desires. Because before being in love with him, you were his friend.

“Oh, of course! We’re the same age anyway.” She nodded quickly before relaxing her smile a little. No, it wasn’t relaxed. It was a shy smile, embarrassed, fearful. “Ah, sorry, am I being too forward? We’ve just met, and I already took your hands like this, how rude of me!” She let go of your hands, leaving them gently on your lap. You noticed how hers were shaking, how, despite her cheerful expression, there seemed to be a hint of fear hidden beneath.

“Don’t worry, I have a friend who’s much, um, more expressive with her affection.” You said softly, as if trying to calm her. You were trying to, weren’t you? “You can call me Y/N if you want,” you leaned in a little closer to her, lowering your voice just enough to make it seem like a secret between you two, though you were sure Jin would hear it perfectly. “Between us, I’m not a big fan of honorifics.”

You smiled faintly when you heard her laugh at your comment. It hurt. It hurt seeing her be so beautiful and speaking harmoniously, it hurt that even her personality at first glance seemed kind. It hurt because you couldn’t hate her.

When you looked at Jin again, his eyes were fixed on yours. The warmth from before was still there, you could feel it, from his smile, from his relaxed posture. Why did he have to look at you with that gaze that seemed to want to give everything, if he’d never give it all to you?

Maybe that was what hurt the most.

“And he told you she was his girlfriend? Seriously?” Chaeyoung, who was barely managing to stuff more food into her mouth, frowned at you. She was wearing a T-shirt you were pretty sure belonged to Yoongi, and a pair of shorts way too short for how cold it was at this hour. “That’s so weird. Who sets up a breakfast meeting to introduce their girlfriend? Like, couldn’t he have just called you at, I don’t know, four or something?”

“You’re totally missing the point of this conversation, Chaeyoung,” Sooah mumbled. Her lilac iPad —the one she took everywhere— sat on her side of the table, screen filled with rows of meetings and deadlines. Her phone displayed a bunch of agency contacts she was quickly scribbling down on one of the napkins they’d gotten with their order. “Though, she’s not wrong. It is weird. He didn’t even tell us he was seeing someone. Maybe I should talk to him tomorrow.” The last part was more to herself than to either of you.

Sooah had been the boys’ manager not long after they debuted. She was organized, level-headed, and ridiculously smart. She was, in short, the perfect woman to put opportunistic companies in their place and demand proper pay and treatment for the boys. She’d been one of the group’s biggest pillars, and everyone —from the members to the fans— knew that a good part of their success came from her relentless work and effort to get people to see them.

“So this is the first time he’s ever introduced one of his girlfriends to you?” She grabbed one of the soju bottles on the table, opened it effortlessly, and took a sip. Her eyes stayed on you the entire time, like she was waiting for an answer you couldn’t give her. At least not right now. You were still way too shocked to even process the news. “She must be someone really special if he did that.” She paused, registering what she’d just said. Realizing she’d just hit a nerve.

Sooah gave her a raised eyebrow. You covered your face with both hands. She looked between the two of you and let out a short, awkward laugh.

“But he told you first! That makes you special too!” Chaeyoung turned to Sooah with pleading eyes, silently begging her to help smooth things over, to say something that would lighten the mood.

She didn’t.

“He took her to our special place,” you mumbled, still hiding your face in your hands. You could hear your voice —how it sounded like a child throwing a tantrum because someone else had just played in the sandbox you’d guarded your whole life. You remembered reading somewhere that when sadness and heartbreak overwhelm you, you tend to regress a little. Act younger than you are. And now you got it. You got it so well it made you feel embarrassed.

You were better than this.

But here you were, one second away from crying because a sweet, beautiful girl had stolen the heart of the man you thought was the love of your life.

Both Chaeyoung and Sooah exchanged a look. They’d spent years around you; by this point, they were almost your best friends —though Sooah would never admit that out loud. You and Sooah had known each other since 2013, the year BOTN debuted. Chaeyoung joined the circle three years later, and the three of you had been practically inseparable ever since. How could you not be? You saw each other more than anyone else in your lives.

Sooah was always wherever the group was —constantly keeping things in check, making sure everything ran smoothly. Chaeyoung… well, she was wherever Yoongi was. Every concert, every shoot —always there to support him. Perks of being your own boss. And you, you’d always been there for Jin. To remind him he was doing amazing work when he felt down, to be in the crowd at every show just so he wouldn’t feel alone.

Now you weren’t even sure if you had the right to do that anymore. Was it even okay, when he had a girlfriend who was probably ready to do all of that for him?

“Y/N,” Sooah started, letting out a soft sigh before turning off her iPad and giving you her full attention, “have you thought that maybe… it’s time to let him go?”

“Wait, what?” Chaeyoung shook her head like she’d just heard the dumbest thing ever. “No way. Absolutely not. She’s been in love with him for years! You can’t just let go after spending over a decade trying to win him over —that would be such a waste of time!”

“Exactly. She’s already wasted enough time chasing someone who never loved her back. She’s 25 now. It’s time to move on. There are hundreds of men out there who could replace him,” she crossed her arms, eyes locked on you even though her words were aimed at Chaeyoung.

You were pretty sure their argument went on for a while, but you were too focused on your untouched plate to care about what they were saying.

Everything around you started to blur, fade out —the noise, the smell of grilled meat and smoke, the faint music playing from an old radio, the soft rustling of the tent’s plastic flaps.

All you could hear now was Jin’s voice introducing you to his girlfriend. Yeji’s voice, greeting you like she genuinely liked you. Like she expected the two of you to be friends. And all you could see was the way Jin’s eyes sparkled. The way he sparkled.

You frowned. Closed your eyes. Counted to ten.

You weren’t going to cry.

“I’m not going to do anything,” you whispered. But you knew they both heard it, because their voices fell silent instantly. You didn’t look at them. You couldn’t. “I don’t want to replace him, because I know no one could ever take Jin’s place.” You took a breath, straightened your posture, and looked at your two friends —hoping that just doing that might make it easier to carry the weight on your chest. “But I’m not going to get in the middle of his relationship either. That girl… Yeji… she doesn’t deserve that. And Jin doesn’t either.”

Sooah sighed. Chaeyoung looked at you with sympathy. And you… you just tried your best to finish the food on your plate despite the lump in your throat.

A week.

It had been a week since Jin's confession, and the world kept turning.

People still walked from work to their homes, the sun still rose in the morning, time kept moving forward—but not in the same way it used to.

You got up at five, did your workout routine, took a shower, had breakfast. By eight, you were on your way to work; you arrived, worked on your designs, followed your boss’s orders, ate lunch, went back to work. At seven, you went home, had dinner, changed into your pajamas, watered your plants, went to bed. By eleven thirty, you were fast asleep.

Life went on. But you felt more stuck than ever.

You tried to distract yourself with work, tried to take extra hours, avoid Jin’s calls, reply to his messages as dryly as possible. You tried to set a boundary—for your own good, and for the sake of Jin’s relationship.

But it wasn’t easy to ignore your best friend.

“Ugh, that meeting was so boring. I don’t know why Mr. Lee can’t just give us a summary,” said Soojin, a young intern who’d been hired a few months ago. She had a wild fashion sense and wasn’t what you’d call “subtle” when it came to complaining about work. But she was good company.

You weren’t really listening to the rest of her rant. You were too focused on your phone’s inbox.

25 messages. You had 25 messages from Jin. Most of them were him telling you about his day—he always did that, you always talked about your days at work. Your shared chat was like a diary, one filled with references only the two of you understood, full of thoughts and feelings neither of you could share with anyone else because they belonged to just the two of you.

You turned off your phone.

“You can leave early if you want, I’ve got something to discuss with Mr. Lee before heading out,” you said suddenly, cutting off Soojin’s verbal vomit. She just blinked and shrugged before kissing you on the cheek and wishing you “good luck.”

You slipped your phone into one of your coat pockets and walked to your desk to grab a lime green folder. Your name was written on it in delicate, elegant handwriting. You’d made it when you graduated college, determined to use it one day to show your designs to your future boss. Determined to chase your dream.

You hadn’t dared to use it until now. Maybe because, in a way, you felt like you couldn’t possibly feel worse than you already did.

Your heart had been broken less than a week ago. If it broke again now, while the wound was still fresh, maybe it would save you from suffering later. Did that logic make sense? Probably not.

You walked toward Mr. Lee’s office, clutching the folder to your chest, head held high. Confidence is everything. If you believe in what you do—even if it’s stupid—you’ll convince anyone. Or at least that’s what your mom always said.

You knocked on the glass door with your knuckles—two soft taps—and Mr. Lee, already in his 60s, looked up from the stack of papers on his desk to give you a cold, sharp stare. Your whole body froze, and the only thing left inside you was regret and the urge to run away.

But you didn’t. It was too late now.

You walked in quietly, deliberately looking around the office to avoid his gaze. The shelves sparkled, the floor looked like a mirror, and his desk was so clean that if it weren’t for the metal supports, you wouldn’t even see it.

“Miss Y/N, care to explain why you’re in my office at this hour?” His raspy voice and condescending tone made you shrink where you stood. He had always seemed like a serious, intimidating man; no one ever dared speak up in meetings, no one ever looked him in the eye, and you didn’t think you’d ever heard anyone say they’d had a friendly chat with him after work.

The last time you saw someone come out of his office, the guy had tears all over his face.

“I’m sorry for bothering you so late, Mr. Lee,” you murmured, head down, eyes on your nails—painted the same color as your folder. You took a breath. Tried to think of something that would calm you. Plants. You loved plants. How about a field? A field full of exotic flowers and the smell of wet soil. You, sitting on a hill in the middle of it. Jin beside you. The weight in your chest eased just a bit. “I know you’re a busy man, so I’ll be brief.”

You reached out and handed him your folder. This time, you ignored his disapproving look.

“I’d like you to take a look at my designs,” you said in the firmest tone you could muster. You were surprised you didn’t stutter at all.

Mr. Lee’s eyes fell on the folder. Your heart nearly stopped when he took it from your hands, opened it, and flipped through the pages in silence. You had spent years working on those designs. He took less than a minute to glance through them and toss them into the corner of his desk.

“The next time you waste my time, I hope it’s for something actually worth it, Miss Y/N.”

He didn’t even look at them. Not really.

“I’m sorry for wasting your time,” you whispered, gathering your things, bowing at a perfect ninety degrees, and walking out of his office.

You didn’t start crying until you got back to your desk. But it wasn’t the loud, sobbing, throat-burning kind of crying. It was the silent kind. The kind of crying that comes when you’re resigned. When you just accept what happened because you weren’t expecting anything better.

Because deep down, you knew he was going to reject you.

And you weren’t sure if you were crying over your boss’s rejection, or Jin’s.

You didn’t bother wiping your tears away—there was no point. They’d keep falling until you found at least a little bit of relief. You packed up your things, much slower than usual. Not like you had anything else to do afterward.

You don’t remember exactly how you got to the company’s entrance, but you knew you’d looked down when you passed Mr. Lee’s office again. You remembered getting into the elevator and seeing your reflection—broken, sad, empty. That only made you cry harder.

But no one said anything. Because people are like that. They can see someone crying their eyes out in the middle of the street and still do nothing to help.

And you were really, really grateful for that right now.

The walk from the elevator to the exit was a bit clearer. You remembered saying goodbye to the security guards, hearing the sound of your heels echoing with every step, watching your tears hit the floor, and the tightness in your chest making it hard to breathe properly.

And then you heard his voice. That’s the part you remember the clearest.

“Y/N?”

You looked up, biting the inside of your lip when you saw Jin standing at the entrance, wearing a wool hat you’d given him back when you finished school and a black face mask barely covering his chin. His phone was in his hands. You felt your pocket vibrate.

He was calling you.

“Are you crying?” He already knew the answer. Of course he did—that’s why he didn’t wait for a reply. He rushed over to you, cupping your face in his hands, checking you carefully, with that worried look that made your heart skip because it meant he cared. “What happened? Did you get hurt? Did some jerk try to touch you? Because if someone—swear to God I’ll—”

You didn’t let him finish. You couldn’t. You wrapped your arms around his waist and let everything you’d been holding in that week pour out. The guilt was still there, eating you up inside, but the pain—and the need to feel him close, to get even the tiniest bit of comfort—was stronger.

You felt his body relax in your arms, and almost instantly, his arms wrapped around you. He buried his face in your shoulder, held you like he was the one who needed the hug, like he was the one who had missed you the way you missed him.

“I want to go home,” you whispered against his chest, gripping his jacket like your life depended on it. Maybe because, in that moment, it kind of did.

“I brought my car.” He didn’t move. If anything, he held you tighter. One of his hands slid into your hair, gently stroking it—just like he always did when you cried. “I’ll take you.”

"I can’t believe he did that. What’s his problem?" Jin said, his voice slightly higher and more irritated than usual. His brows were furrowed and his lips formed an almost imperceptible pout. He was angry. He was angry because your boss had dismissed your effort. You’d be lying if you said that didn’t feel good. "Your work is seriously amazing. Our fans always go crazy when you design our outfits."

You let out a soft laugh. Faint. Jin wasn’t wrong—his fans had always appreciated the style you gave the boys because you cared about their comfort and essence. You weren’t just looking for something that looked cool—you wanted their outfits to scream their personalities. You wanted them to be iconic, memorable, something that felt like part of who they were.

So far, you’d done a great job.

"I need that party pooper’s approval, not your fans’, you know?" you muttered, looking at the coffee mug resting on the glass coffee table. You really liked glass tables, and you loved decorating them with small plants in pastel-colored pots. There was something about those things—clean, natural, fragrant—that calmed you, even just a little.

They gave you peace. The kind of peace you could only find at home.

"My fans are way more important than that bald guy," he shook his head, as if he was genuinely confused about how you could even compare them to his sweet little Stars. You’d never fully liked the name they gave their fandom. But you never said anything.

"I wish it felt that way," you pulled your legs up, hugging them tightly enough to rest your chin on your knees. The coffee was still on the table. The steam had nearly stopped rising.

You both shared a silence. Long. Peaceful. Without the same tension that had lingered between you ever since Jin introduced you to Yeji. For the first time in these seven days, you finally stopped feeling that weight in your chest that seemed to freeze time.

For once, it was just you and him.

"Jokes aside," Jin set his own mug next to yours. His was a lovely pastel pink. Yours was cream-colored. "You’re incredible, Y/N. Seriously. And the only one losing here is him." He placed a hand on your back. His fingers tangled in your hair again, his eyes lost somewhere in the blank space on your back. "He has no idea what an amazing woman he’s letting go of."

Your heart skipped a beat. Your breath caught. And you couldn’t resist lifting your gaze to meet his face.

It didn’t feel like he was talking about your boss. It felt far too personal. You felt it too personally.

You didn’t know when it had happened exactly, but his face was much closer to yours now. Barely a breath separated you. You both stared in silence, and the tension you thought had been left behind wrapped around you again, suffocating. And this time, you were sure you weren’t the only one feeling it.

His eyes looked darker, his lips were pressed together, and you could see his Adam’s apple move nervously every few seconds.

Before you could think, before you could even question what was happening between the two of you, you opened your mouth, the doubt planted in you since meeting Yeji finally breaking free.

"Why didn’t you ever mention her?" you whispered, afraid that speaking louder would shatter the atmosphere and lead you both to make a mistake you’d regret the next day.

"Why have you been ignoring me?" he replied, his eyes scanning every inch of your face, studying it carefully. You were sure they lingered a little longer on your lips.

"I didn’t want to overstep."

"I didn’t want you to meet her."

You swallowed hard. Bit the inside of your cheek. Spoke again.

"Why?"

"Because that makes it real."

You wanted to look away, to hold on to your principles, to remind yourself that this was all in your head—that he wasn’t really looking at you with that intense gleam in his eyes, that he wasn’t actually glancing at your lips every five seconds.

You wanted to remind yourself that none of those gestures belonged to you.

But it was too hard.

"Then why did you introduce me to her in the first place?" Why are you with her? That was the real question you wanted to ask—the one that gnawed at you so much it made your heart ache. But you couldn’t say it out loud.

That question seemed to shatter the moment entirely. Jin looked away and ran a hand through his hair. His eyes blinked fast, his head tilted back, and he looked so confused and hurt—like he wasn’t even sure of the answer himself, like saying it out loud would sting.

"She wanted to meet you," he murmured, his voice a little hoarser, his eyes avoiding yours completely. "She really liked you."

You let your legs fall, stretching them across the floor. You looked back at the coffee; this time, there wasn’t a single trace of steam left.

"Why were you talking to her about me?"

"Because you’re the most important person to me."

The words came out too easily, too fast, like they’d been dancing on his tongue for a long time before he finally said them. You wished it were just as easy not to react to them.

"It’s late," you stood up carefully, wincing as a tingling sensation rushed through your legs. They felt shaky and numb, but you had to force them to move. You had to get out of here. "I’m going to bed—you know where everything is."

You both said goodnight. You both lay down in separate rooms. But neither of you managed to fall asleep—not when you were both too aware of the other’s presence. Not after nearly ruining everything.

That night, you found yourself remembering your conversation with Chaeyoung and Sooah again—wondering, just for a moment, if you could really let him go after tonight.

Masterlist.

[tvickiesims]

Myshunosun's Witching Hour Set 4t2 Conversion

A 4t2 conversion of Witching Hour set made by @myshunosun. Includes a functional cauldron, a functional spell book (1 slot), a deco spell book (1 slot), a cabinet (6 slots), a rug, 2 functional book piles, deco herbs and 3 deco potion bottles.

Cauldron comes in 4 versions:

Tvickiesims_Myshunosun_ClassicCauldron - standard version.

Tvickiesims_Myshunosun_ClassicCauldron_CustomPotions - incorporates @midgethetree's Better CC potions mod (you still need her mods).

Tvickiesims_Myshunosun_ClassicCauldron_CustomPotionsFasterReagents - incorporates Midge's Better CC potions mod (you still need her mods) and her edited version of CJ's Faster Reagents mod.

Tvickiesims_Myshunosun_ClassicCauldron_FasterReagents - incorporates CJ's Faster Reagents mod.

Spellbook Stand incorporates @lamare-sims material fix for spellbook.

All objects are quarter tile placeable.

To have nicer looking water inside the cauldron, I recommend this water replacement by @pforestsims.

Special thank you goes to @lottes-little-place who made a very cool modern witch set that inspired me to convert cauldrons and spell books as custom objects.

Compressed, clearly labelled, picture and collection file are included.

✨🪄🧙🏻‍♀️Download at SFS🧙🏻‍♀️🪄✨