#PBP. BE OPEN TO THE GOOD / ted lasso

[arachnidiots]

⎯⎯⎯⎯ @leagueprem / keeley liked for a starter

"come in, yeah!" he opens his door wider, welcoming her inside without hesitation. the cold air hits him in the face as he does, and he can only imagine how cold she must be right now-- even with the layers. "you don't have a problem with cats right?"

[arachnidiots-a]

tag drop (redo: general & peter)

[arachnidiots-a]

mint. when jamie says it it really kinda all starts to fall into place about him, and the random various things peter's picked up over their shared time together. sure, he's never had ice cream around him, but jamie's got other things that come in mint that he does enjoy even if peter never really connected them before now. he gives a nod, “nah, mint’s alright to me. cotton candy and bumblegum? now those kinda have me confused. mostly cause cotton candy ain't really something i like. i like sugar, but that stuff is kind of crazy, and it tastes all chemical like. bubblegum just doesn't feel like it belongs as an ice cream, y'know?" there's a pause for a small spoonful, "i’d try them though. i’d probably try any flavor, but, uh, i like the ones that taste like cereal the most.” he raises a spoonful of the cookie dough ice cream, “or cookies!”

it's nice to sit like this, enjoy the good weather, and all in the company of someone whose part of what peter considers the closest thing he has to family nowadays. still, he feels compelled to offer, "we could get something you want and can actually have, just sayin'." he doesn't have to be only one eating, and he'd prefer not to be anyways. food's always been something of a shared thing-- a way of loving. it's why peter walked out of the ice cream shop with two cups, not one, and it's why he still can't really shake this.

It's not a problem, in Jamie's eyes, that Peter's eating the ice cream in front of him. He's dealt with much worse - from denying himself cake after their 1-4 loss to Crystal Palace in early 2020, to watching as Roy gleefully eats a breakfast sandwich while Jamie's sick on the Green... sitting beside Peter on a lovely day while Peter has ice cream is truly no issue to him. He stretches out on the bench, one arm draping over the back of it, turning his face up to the sun.

When Peter speaks, though, Jamie's face turns back to him, and he gives him a little smile. "Mint," he responds, lips curling up into a smirk, before he laughs. "I mean - the flavour. Mint's my favourite ice cream. But cookie dough's mint, too - the phrase. I would've taken that if y'didn't have any mint, which y'don't." It makes sense that the team wouldn't know his ice cream flavour of choice; he's never had ice cream around them before. And if they aren't paying attention to every word he says, or if they haven't asked for a piece of gum from his bum bags - spearmint - or if they haven't paid attention to the drinks he orders when he's out clubbing with them or even just at Ola's - vanilla vodka mojitos - it would make sense that they wouldn't know his preferences. "So I guess you're close - unless you're one'a those... fucking... heathens that doesn't think mint is an acceptable flavour."

[arachnidiots-a]

CEDRIC MOEDICH & PETER PARKER.

@z00miez: he's yawning, his hand covering his mouth as an afterthought of decency. surrounded by the lull of murmurs and heat from a small crowd, saturday nights at the pub have always proved themselves to be something of an anesthesiac to cedric. "you want another drink?" he nudges the other by his side, noticing the empty glass in front of them.

somewhere their conversation fizzled out. with a little moment to take in a slice of ambiance, he's been sitting quite idly-- a rare thing-- humming a light tune while watching over his shoulder how the space filled with people gradually. head turning at the nudge, he's still wearing the same smile on his face that's been there all night. "oh... oh, no." they decline the offer with a small wave of their hand before gently pushing the glass an inch away from themself. pete's not the best with alcohol quite yet, he knows that about himself. two drinks is a good place to call it in his mind. "i'm good, believe me..." plus, he's caught cedric yawn from the corner of his eye at least twice now, so he has to ask: "you alright, mate?"

[arachnidiots-a]

SOFIA LENNOX & PETER PARKER.

@heartsbreaking : "We can make it if we run."

peter’s not nearly as sure as sofia about this, eyeing the tall fence in front of them both that stands between being caught lightly trespassing on a private football field and freedom. it was foolish of them, but in peter’s defense he didn’t even know it was private when he first suggested it. the gate fully opened for them! how was he to know?

he gives a single nod, “uh, yeah, sure. okay!” and then moves towards the fence, starting to climb up it as he looks down towards the other. “i’ll climb over and then be here to catch you, yeah?”

[arachnidiots-a]

CEDRIC MOEDICH & PETER PARKER.

it was a rough match to say the least. 90 minutes of constant and relentless effort from the richmond team. the first half was strong, they’d managed to score twice and the confidence was through the roof, only for the opposing team to manage and slip in their own two goals just before the halfway mark. the second half was full of constant flips with who had the ball. during an effort keep pushing further up the field to keep the pressure on, pete found himself further up the field than usual, in a rare goal-scoring position. 

he keeps pressing on, and when the ball ends up between his feet, they’re all but prepared to go for it. what they don’t see coming is the collision between themself and one of the opposing players that completely lands them on the ground and ball far gone in another direction. he got up just fine, continued on with the match, but at the end of the second half the score was still 2-2. he should be happy, proud.

@moedich3 : “you did good. you know that, right?”

but, peter was taking it rough. he can’t help but think that maybe just maybe he could’ve done more. he’s moving slow, his eyes stare nowhere in particular, obviously replaying the scene in his head until he can meet cedric’s eyes with a small nod. “yeah, i know. i just— could’ve,” their voice trails off, before the nods picked up again and they put on a braver face. “nah, it was good. i didn’t break anything— me aunt will be very happy about that.” 

[arachnidiots-a]

WILL KITMAN & PETER PARKER.

when pete comes to he’s surprised to see a face directly over his— flinching backward, or as backward as someone can while laying down. with a glance and patting of his hands against his chest, it becomes apparent that he’s still in his kit. couple that with the locker room ceiling above him, they’re much more confused. a groggy, “what happened?” slipping out. 

@kitmans: ❝  you pushed yourself too hard.  you passed out,  i thought you were dead.  ❞

“DEAD?” they sit up quickly, too quickly for their head’s liking as light ache sets in once upright. “how long have i been out?” he’s relieved for it to only have been a practice day for a number of reasons— far less embarrassing, far less detrimental, and may’s not here to storm the club. 

[arachnidiots-a]

another tag drop

[arachnidiots]

general + peter tag drop

[arachnidiots-a]

[ SMS : so-fi ] i saw a clip of it on instagram and then got mad confused why it was called the price is right

[ SMS : so-fi ] what does that even mean?

[ MSG : peter parker ] why are you thinking about it if you've never seen it? [ MSG : peter parker ] it's not very good, by the way, i don't recommend it.

[arachnidiots-a]

REBECCA WELTON & PETER PARKER.

“for what it’s worth, my aunt always thought you were a badass. she was right, OF COURSE. and that was— that was kind of her thing, y’know? she was always right about people and she believed a good deal in ‘em too.”

@afuckinglion liked for a starter !

[arachnidiots-a]

tag redo

[arachnidiots-a]

peter doesn't see it in any certain way. he thinks so little about any fame or title he might have. sure, he's a professional footballer, but he's also just peter. sometimes connecting the two as one in the same is hard. kitchen work is not so outlandish when he really only sees himself the latter way.

"dishes, you got it," he moves without much of a complaint for the assignment, eyes running down the stack of things waiting for him. damn, it's a lot, but he'll get through it, he thinks. sleeves rolled, sink turned on, he starts working, shifting lightly on his feet in a small sway as he does. "oh yeah! yeah, me aunt did this stuff all the time. sort of. she wasn't a chef, not really, she just, uh, liked to help people and did a lot of stuff with shelters and kitchens. that sort of... i went with 'er a lot."

bianca  cannot  help  but  rise  her  eyebrows  at  him.    it’s  not  that  she  doesn’t  believe  him    –    she’s  been  around  long  enough  to  know  sincerity  when  she  sees  it.    it’s  just  the  absurdity  of  having  one  of  the  football  players,  of  the  men’s  team  no  less,  doing  the  dishes  in  her  kitchen.    maybe  the  lasso  and   beard  duo  were  as  good  an  influence  as  they  appeared  to  be  and   bianca  had  been  a  bit  harsher  on  them  than  she’d  needed  to  be.    maybe  peter  parker  is  just  a  good  kid.

“ i  could  really  use  some  help  with  the  dishes. ”    bianca  turns  around,  a  bit  ashamed  to  see  that  they’re  already  quite  the  pile  waiting.    she  turns  to  face  peter  again,  a  shrug  and  a  sigh  following.    “ i’ll  help  you  as  soon  as  i’m  done  chopping  these  for  soup,  okay? ”    she  continues  chopping  for  a  while  before  she  talks  again.    “ it’s  kind  of  you  to  help ” ,  she  says,  look  half  thrown  over  her  shoulder,  “ you  help  out  in  the  kitchen  often,  peter? ”

[arachnidiots-a]

"well on your venn diagram, d'ya mind scooting me back over to the left? or the right? i don't know which side is which for you," a pause, "whichever side is the hopeful one." peter's shoulders come up in a shrug, he's not necessarily beaming with optimism but he's certainly got his share of daydreams and occasional fantasies for how the season might turn out. he knows well enough though that it takes more than just hope-- and that katrina does have a point, sometimes the odds are against you, but it's worth a try. it always is and it always will be worth every single try that they have. "you can be both. you can be realistic and still have some hope, dream of something better... i used to have a, uh, friend, she'd always say, 'if you expect disappointment, then you can never really get disappointed'. you sound like her."

@arachnidiots (peter) sent: "since when did "hopeful” and “naive” become the same thing?”

“They’re not always the same thing. It’s more of a venn diagram.”  She says it simply, with a small shrug, as if it’s just common sense. An easy fact that she’s sure of. Even if it isn’t really a fact, it’s more of an opinion or a perspective that she’s formed. Cynical, sure, but she’d rather be cynical than get hurt. Which sounds a bit ridiculous coming from someone who plays a game for a living. Why everyone on Richmond's mens' side seems to have this strangely optimistic outlook, she still can't entirely understand. A few people, fine, but honestly, it's like this whole place is a children's show about the power of friendship or some shit like that.  “I’m just saying it’s important to know when the odds are against you. Sometimes it’s good to be realistic.”

[arachnidiots-a]

"waters probably for the best for me. thanks." leaning forward, he puts both arms on the counter, one elbow propping up his head to better turn towards his teammate. his eyes flash towards the doors of the pub, where even through dark windows he can make out some parts of the street. a stray curious thought pops into his mind, and then of course of his mouth. "don't tell me you're plannin' on bikin' home with how much you been yawning." cedric's a biker-- a fact peter's always found quite interesting. he's not much of a driver himself. when he can, he walks, and when it's convenient may drops him off. he's told her so many times its early for her schedule, and every time she's thrown some excuse out about needing to run an errand.

cedric  intends  to  say  i’m  fine,  but  instead  the  words  get  lost  in  a  yawn.    late  nights  at  the  pub  have  never  been  his  strongest  suit.    he’s  always  been  the  type  of  person  that  enjoys  long  evenings  on  the  couch,  watching  television  or  deep  in  an  audiobook  until  he  feels  himself  falling  asleep  and  switches  his  couch  to  his  bed.    that’s  not  to  say  he  didn’t  enjoy  nights  out    –    he  appreciates  the  company,  the  camaraderie  created  during  those  nights,  a  feeling  only  produced  when  sharing  a  drink  with  your  mate  at  the  bar.    “ was  going  to  get  another  coke,  really ” ,  cedric  points  at  his  own  drink,  “ can  get  you  some  water,  if  you  need  one. ”

[arachnidiots-a]

jamie's being so unbelievably supportive in the moment, already having peter's back, and so he feels there's only one thing he can do: double down on the lie. "right skills," nodding, his mouth opens, grasping for some idea of what to say-- what would someone who hasn't played ask? "but, i don't know much about this game at all though, i mean, what's the objective? what am i supposed to be doing besides..." raising the controller in his hands slightly, "being coordinated." peter's trying his best to sound new but as words tumble out he can't help but wonder if he just kinda sounds dumb. maybe he's over corrected this. "daily?" he's surprised, "how often d'you play?"

A competitive spirit lives in Jamie. It's a part of the reason he's as good a footballer as he is. But that doesn't mean he's about to get off on the stats that'd come with carrying Peter to a win. He's a good teacher - or, well, he likes to think he's a good teacher - and he can't let Peter look sloppy when team Fortnite matches start up later this season. "I get you, but it's all about coordination, man, if you've played video games before, you've already got the basic skills. It's like dribbling. Y'already know how t'do that, so you're off to a good start," Jamie tells him. "And, when we play duos, or squads, I'll put you with some of the better players. Declan plays this with his nephews, like, daily, so he's stupid good at it. You'll be sound by the end of this, swear down." He also didn't grow up with many video games, but it's all about the effort, just like football. If you put in the time, you'll get better.