#Specifically I'm thinking of two authors who update weekly and I love their work so much but you know how surprise can often overcome

[wanderingandfound]

Me, with a stack of [pre-ordered and library] books to read, multiple television shows I'm in the middle of, favorite fic authors I've somewhat abandoned and want to return to, and many podcasts I'm behind on and many more I have yet to start, completely sick and tired of audio input: Well, I guess I can listen to each segment one by one, episode by episode, of the 50-odd Zombies, Run! episodes I've played so far. That way when I finish the couch to 5k program in three weeks I will remember what's happening.

[jsmelodies]

🖊️Dearest Gentle Gift Recipient,

This author —

Wait a second. I'm going to put the pen down. Lady Secret Santa is gonna let her hair down and put on her sweatpants for a second.

You're so sweet for asking me questions.

I am genuinely enjoying your work! When all of this is over, I promise you'll get lots of kudos/comments, I just can't reveal myself SO soon.

To your points...yes, I agree. Elle x Emmett & Jamie x Claire are great Elucien examples. The Outlander one is very popular in fandom (for me too), but I love the Legally Blonde and support you writing that AU! The most important question being who would be Jennifer Coolidge's character 😂

For your questions...

Are there any other acotar ships you like? - Elucien is my OTP but I also particularly enjoy Nessian & Vassa/Jurian & and other canon ships.

When did you start shipping Elucien? I started shipping Elucien as soon as their bond snapped in ACOMAF. I was hooked as soon as I read the scene and may have rushed online to peek to see what happens and well ... haha I was like nooo why aren't they together yet!! But soon I hope 👀

Do you have a favorite Elucien headcanon? I love the headcanon that Elain sleeps with his jacket as well and secretly tries on the pearls/gloves he gave her when there's NO ONE around.

Okay I just read Apex Predator and I like how you consistently have Cassian call Nesta "Sweetheart" 🥺 I noticed that in your current work too. So now this author is wondering what Lucien would call Elain....

I hope your week gets better. I'm happy to pop in your ask box ~casually~ and also have Lady Secret Santa give you some weekly updates on your gift.

Your friend,

✨Lady Secret Santa

Oh my gosh it's so good to see you again so soon! And of course I'm going to ask you questions. I want to get to know you!

This is so long I'm sorry. I'll put it under a cut.

My week is getting better. For context, I'm substitute teaching right now while I'm doing this certification thing/trying to move out and some of these children were so out of control. Like two of them simply ran out of the classroom on Monday and security had to get involved and it was a whole thing. But that specific job ended on Wednesday, so I've had some peaceful quiet for the past two days as I've gotten to just do my schoolwork.

Okay but seriously, I went through such an Outlander phase a few years ago so I guess it's unsurprising that I'm such a fan of Elucien. And I think SJM said at one point that she partially modeled Lucien after Jamie, which. Makes sense, honestly.

If I had the time...I would definitely write Legally Blonde Elucien. But I don't. I already have some fics out on the horizon for after the gift exchange (and I write so very slowly so there's that). However! Elucien week exists, and if the idea is still brewing by then, then maybe😉

I don't know who Paulette would be💀 Genuinely no idea. Vassa, maybe? That's all I can think of.

Yeah I've also shipped them since then. I lowkey feel bad for all the people who have been reading the series since it first came out. It's been YEARS, Sarah. I just want them to be happy.

Elain wearing Lucien's jacket is one of my favorite headcanons 🥺 Whenever I see artwork of it, it makes me cry. I also have the headcanon that Lucien's going to be so proud of her when she snaps/holds her ground against him or somebody else. Like he's going to be holding back his smile.

I'm going to be completely honest when I say I have no idea what Lucien would call Elain. I feel like the whole "sweetheart" thing with Nessian is just iconic in fanon (even though I think he only canonically says it once? If I'm wrong feel free to correct me). But with Elucien? Not a clue.

I will say, if you're making your way through my archive: proceed into some of my older works with caution. Archive may try to convince you you'll like them, but trust me. Trust me. Some of it is quite a bit more critical than my newer stuff, and I think you'll definitely be able to tell that I was still figuring things out. And lately I've been trying to interact more with canon content I do like instead of what I don't (which, in a shocking turn of events, has been much better for me mentally).

Anyways.

Yeah, I really just rambled, didn't I? I hope your week is going well and I look forward to hearing from you again!

Feel free to casually pop in here anytime! And I'll never say no to weekly updates😊

[obsessivestar]

Steamy Love (A Tom Hiddleston x Reader) Part 21: ~Friendship~

Summary: You spend more quality time with your best friend and best man!

Warnings: None.

Read it on my Wattpad: @/HiddlesStar

Word count: 1715

Author Notes: Sorry this chapter took so long! Had to take a break to get the creativity back. Expect weekly chapter updates to resume again!

Tags: @theoneanna @midnightdragonzero @drakesfiance @kcd15 @ihthr @deviantsendbyreallife @bookgirlunicorn

"What the hell is 'Leg Day'?" Your friend asked, looking rather confused.

Your cheeks immedietly got a little pink. You had remembered in the last live stream you did with Tom, he mentioned the infamous High-Rise 'Leg Day' inside joke you two had created in regards to the first love scene where Laing lifts Charlotte's legs up. He had referenced the joke while talking about how Zero Suit Samus fights in Smash Bros. Ultimate. He didn't explain it, though, keeping the inside joke as an inside joke.

"Umm.." You paused again. You really weren't sure how to explain it, or even if you should explain it. It was a bit...personal.

"Well...it's..."

Before you could really give a response, Tom knocked at the door, walking in once he had permission.

"Are you ladies hungry at all?" He asked. You could tell your friend liked being called that from him. You weren't offended by their little crush. You understood how they were feeling, and it honestly made you feel even luckier to be with Tom.

"I am." You smiled some.

"Me too!" Your friend chirped. "I've barely eaten today."

"Shall we go out for lunch? Say, 10 minutes?.." Tom smiled some.

"In 10 minutes works!" You chirped, and your friend nodded in agreement. Tom gave a little wave and left, closing the door again. Surprisingly, your friend didn't ask about Leg Day again, thankfully. They probably just forgot about it.

After a couple minutes, the three of you left to go get some lunch. Unfortunately by now, the paparazzi knew what streets you and Tom go down to get to places like the grocery store and restaurants, so you'd spot cameras at specific areas. Tom tried not to acknowledge the cameras as you all exited the vehicle after arriving at a lunch joint, but you and your friend gave a slight wave before entering the building, knowing they couldn't follow you in. You were surprised to see that no one in this lunch place knew Tom or you, so you didn't see anyone watching you while you all ate.

"How did you two meet, again?" Your friend asked as you waited for your food.

"I'm surprised she didn't tell you.." Tom smiled, referring to you.

"No I told her. She probably just wants to hear the story again.." You chuckled, getting a little grin from Tom. "We met when he came to my hotel room asking for an extra towel. I didn't even know it was him at that moment.."

"I don't blame you. Me and Loki look nothing alike.." Tom smirked.

"Still, I should've recognized those nice eyes immedietly.." You admitted, getting another big smile from Tom. "It was actually (BF/N) that helped me remember who you were."

"Really?" Tom asked, a little surprised.

"Yeah, I had a call with her on that bus ride to the meeting. That's when she told me. After that, I met you at the meeting the director had set up. That's where I learned we would be costars.."

"Ooh, and the rest is history.." Your friend giggled, nudging you some.

"Do you think you would've realized it was me at the meeting, if she hadn't of reminded you?" Tom asked curiously.

"I mean, they said your last name in the meeting.." You nodded some. "My anxiety would've gone through the roof." You joked, Tom smirking somewhat mischievously.

"I hope you guys weren't having super obvious eye-sex at the meeting." Your friend joked with a chuckle.

"Oh not at all. Not until we got to his hotel room that day.." You admitted with a wink. Tom gave a little snicker.

"I was quite tempted to make a move then, I'll admit.." Tom smirked.

"So was I.." You grinned, seeing Tom's eyes darken and look you over.

"Hey." Your friend snapped their fingers some. "We're in public! Y'all are like rabbits. Jesus.." They shook their head, making you and Tom laugh.

"People would lose their minds if they heard this conversation, I swear.." Your friend laughed, leaning back against their seat.

It was nice reminiscing about your first couple days with Tom, before you had even begun to share a living space. You remember the dark fantasies that had been playing in your head when you went back to his hotel room with him. Now you've probably relived those fantasies twice as much as you expected in your bedroom, and now especially out of the bedroom.

"Let them hear." You shrugged, noticing Tom's slight surprise. You had started to come across paparazzi the more you and Tom have gone out. You wondered if any one of them had watched your streams to get any juicy gossip. Things have been amazing. Any gossip has been good and just excites fans.

During lunch, you talked a lot about your streams. Tom's been really interested in the technical side of it. He's almost been a regular guest. You guys can't even count how many inside jokes you've created.

Leg Day will always be your favourite, of course. It was practically the first.

After dinner, you all returned back to Tom's house. You all decided to stream together. It would probably be a while until the three of you get together again. Now's a good time for it. You all got to play a game together too, deciding to pick Smash Ultimate since it had just come out. Helping Tom figure out these games is one of the best parts of streaming with him. He could be so old sometimes.

"Oh my God, enough with the legs!" You chuckled as you fought against your best friend. They're good with Zero Suit Samus, and they use the Up B attack when you're about 100% to get a stock off you. They're really good.

"What, I thought you liked Leg Day?" Tom commented with a smirk, getting a shy but playful chuckle out of you.

"I don't wanna hear any of that shit, big dog." You chuckled. You could practically hear Tom's big grin as he gave out that iconic 'ehehehe' laugh.

"Y'all still have to tell me what that means." Your friend commented. You gave a slight playful glance to Tom, and he returned the expression. This is very entertaining.

Further into the stream, you were letting your friend teach Tom how to play. He wanted to get better with Joker.

"Joker is a pretty cool character." You admitted with a little smile, keeping an eye on chat while watching Tom and your friend play.

"He seems cool.." Tom smiled. He liked using the white school uniform skin, rather than the mask skins.

"I like his mask. It suits him." Your friend added. "Do you think Loki would ever wear a mask?"

"I don't think he'd want anything to cover his face.." Tom replied. "He may wear one to a Ball, as like a disguise.."

"Who would want to cover those eyes?" You smiled, getting a bashful smile from Tom.

"Very true.." Tom nodded.

As Tom was learning to play, you kept an eye on chat. In a quick moment, something caught your eye.

"Someone sent in a donation and just wrote in 'Nut Hiddleston' and it's really confusing.."

Your friend laughed. "Tom Nut Hiddleston.." They spoke, making you laugh as well.

"Nut? What? What does that mean?" Tom asked, a little confused. "Like a peanut?"

Oh God. That just made you laugh more. How can this man be so innocent in public, but a freak under the bed sheets?

"Sure. A peanut.." You nodded, though you could tell Tom didn't believe that's what it actually meant.

"What? What does it mean?" He asked again, getting all confused when you and your friend giggled. "What does nut mean?"

Him repeating the question just made you laugh more. Hearing it with such a concern tone in his voice was just hilarious. You were starting to notice that little small things he did were funnier than you'd normally think, like him giving little smiles or dropping something. It would give you a warm feeling in your chest, too.

You finally leaned in close to his ear to whisper what it meant. His expression went from slight confusion, to complete embarrassment.

"O-Oh my.." Tom blushed heavily, fixing his glasses. "I-I see.." You giggled again, shaking your head.

"How did you not know what it means?" Your friend asked Tom with a little laugh.

"I don't keep up with today's lingo!" Tom chuckled. "I just learned of what TikTok was the other day..."

"Oh God, TikTok.." Your friend cringed some, making you laugh. "Stay far away from that App, Tom.."

"From what I've heard, I can understand that.." Tom agreed.

After the stream was over, you all got ready for bed. You helped your friend get settled in the guest room, your former bedroom, before going back to your new room to lay down with Tom. You crawled into bed and nuzzled up to his half naked figure. He smiled and wrapped an arm around you.

"I nearly forget the times we slept in separate beds.." Tom admitted.

"I nearly forget what it's like not to wake up with jelly legs.." You added with a shy blush, getting a chuckle from Tom.

"It's not too much, is it?" He asked. "I'm a bit of an...adventurous lover."

"No, it's great.." You smiled, pecking Tom's chest. "You're great.."

Tom smiled, turning off the little side lamp so the room would get dark, laying down on his pillow and closing his eyes to fall asleep.

"...I'm gonna miss this.." You admitted, making him open his eyes again. "After March, you're headed back to the UK and I'm headed home.."

Tom detected the sadness in your voice. Truthfully, he would miss this too, but he couldn't possibly ask you to move in with him, or at the very least, spend another couple months away from home.

"...Hey now, that's not for another couple months.." Tom spoke up, trying to lighten the mood. "Let's enjoy the time we still have together.." He pecked your forehead, making you smile a bit.

"I know.." You spoke in a soft tone, nuzzling close before closing your eyes and falling asleep.

You can't keep delaying this conversation forever, though.