#Towards Peace 2015

[olderthannetfic]

Ok. Dumb question incoming, but I'd much have a 'conversation' than try to read fanlore or watch video essays or something because I want to hear individual people's contributions.

Why Star Trek?

Don't get me wrong - I like the franchise! I'm not super duper familiar with it, but I do enjoy the bits and pieces that I do know. But I am wondering why that in particular is hailed as the grandmother of all fandoms? Obviously people were fannish before Trek, but I don't think anyone can deny the impact that OG Trekkies had on fic, zines, and eventually on the internet.

I know that it's always been popular and well-liked, but it's not as if there was NO SUCH THING as popular culture/fan culture before that (I mean, come on, the term "parasocial" predates the first Star Trek episode by 10 years!) . Was it just a perfect mix of timing + popularity + etc? Is there something in particular about ST that "hit different" than other series at the time? Or is the fandom really really just that mighty and it's almost "luck" in a way? I guess I'm wondering what particular dominoes cascaded in a line in order for Star Trek to have the impact on fandom that it does today.

or am I wrong? were there just-as-big fandoms before and I simply overhype Trekkie power in my head / happen to see more talk of that than I do of other fandoms? It could definitely be a social circle bias thing.

Ugh. Asking OTNF why Star Trek is so important to fandom history feels very much like asking a Russian History major why War & Peace is so important to literature - hence why I warned you that it'd be a dumb question! But I am just so damn curious what sort of crack was in early ST fandom that made it SO widespread and SO strong.

Like, I guess the TLDR is: what was particularly 'different' about Star Trek, either as a fandom or as a franchise or both, that made it Theeeeee OG fandom, rather than something, like, i dunno, LOTR or the earliest versions of Marvel/DC comics or General Hospital or something else like that?

--

I await the hordes of angry Man from U.N.C.L.E. fans eager to prove that they were first.

And, no, it wasn't that popular. Hence the aggressive Save Our Show campaign and explosion of fan culture when it ended after three seasons.

Part of the answer to your question is that there were like three things on TV at the time. What big fandoms? 'Parasocial' was about non-subculture people feeling warmly towards news anchors or hosts of variety shows or something, wasn't it?

LOTR got rediscovered in the 60s or 70s from what I hear, but science fiction and fantasy books were for fringe weirdoes. SFF was not mainstream for the most part. There are a bunch of History of Book SF Fandom things on Youtube, and you should consult them on the complex role of LOTR in that space. LOTR wasn't a mainstream thing until there were live action movies a billion years later.

The key about Star Trek is that it was a hit with the pre-existing book SF crowd. They were an organized subculture. Some of their favorite writers wrote episodes. Other shit on TV was for people who did not form subcultures in that way. Other shit for SF fans had an audience 1/10,00th the size.

MFU was insanely popular. Illya Kuryakin was the heartthrob of a certain era of girl and inspired many a Russian major. (Seriously, there are soooo many Russia-boos of a certain age who probably still have a poster of him somewhere.) The actor set a record for fanmail. The show may have more influence on fandom history than we think now, but it also didn't rerun the way Trek did, at least in some eras, and it didn't have sequel series in a franchise. I'm always finding 2015 movie fans shocked that there's a still extant and semi-active fandom—or even shocked that the movie is based on something.

Starsky & Hutch was also hugely important and is the moment slash fandom and "Media Fandom" really split from book SF fandom. As Trek fans moved on to buddy cops, they were into a completely mainstream show but in a non-mainstream way. Trek was an awkward bedfellow at SF cons, but S&H just didn't fit at all.

Of course, while Trek is the grandma of AO3 type fandom, don't forget that a shitton of modern fans who are doing "research" just look at the same few sources. Enterprising Women is great and all, but even other fans of the same stuff are like "Oh, that was just X's friends. Where's [thing] and [thing] and [thing]?" Ditto Textual Poachers and the other scant early sources that people think have academic weight.

While Trek would still be central, the picture of what was going on in the late 60s-early 80s would look a bit different if you just found a bunch of 70-something nerds and asked them than if you regurgitate other people's research, you know?

If you want an idea of what else was going on in SF fandom back in the day, check out Galactic Journey, where they roleplay that it's 55 years ago and review SF things "as they come out".

If you want to understand MFU, here's a vid of Illya:

--

What say you, readers?

What have acafandom and fandom history and meta left out?

[kanmom51]

Are you sure? Main trailer

And Poster.

Is this JK protecting JM from the sharks?

He did say he'd fight them, didn't he?

Fun fun fun. But then again, what didn't we know already? Those two are the most chaotic duo there is. Lovers of chaos (JM showed us that himself with his folio, lol),

but more so when it's the combination of the two of them.

They love spending time together, they love having fun together, and now they are sharing it with us. Not a snippet, not a couple of seconds worth of mayhem having to be edited in due to a chaos related injury (if you aren't getting the reference, than I'll spit it out - ITS mosquito net debacle). A full on 8 episode series (with behind episodes to follow, may I add) of Jikook fun and chaos.

We also got another JM grabbing JK's clothes moment.

This here is what I call peace.

We also got confirmation. There will be grocery store pizza eaten, dare I say, as I have been told, not very good grocery store pizza at that, lol:

JK's reaction to the question if they know BTS. That JK giggle. Adorable. And JM. He does tell us constantly that JK makes him laugh...

I can just picture it. Us sitting there in front of our screens, huge ass grin on our faces just enjoying this unadulterated joy they are experiencing. Every single second of it.

Chaos plus fun plus giggles, plus a whole lot of Jikookery. What more can we ask for?

Well, lots. But let's not be greedy, shall we...

So here, that giggle from JM. Why? What's so funny about choice of bed?

Unless if the giggle is because it's a mute question. Seeing that they basically end up in the same one. I mean, they have been sleeping in the same bed since practically debut, JM telling us back in 2015 already how JK hugs him to sleep (JK saying JM is saying something weird, not denying it by a long shot).

JM kind of made it clear since forever that he wants us to know that JK chooses to sleep in his (JM's) bed.

Can we discuss this for one second ?

Again, this is a very Jikook thing. Walking, talking, no personal space what so ever between them, because why would they need any, right?

This here:

To which JM replies:

But you see, that's the thing about JK. There is him and JM, and then there are the members. He loves them, make no mistake, but JM by now is an intricate part of him. He's the one that he feels one with. We have seen it with his actions over the years. We have seen it with comments he made over the years, like who his heart is connected with on stage. We saw it now once again with his choice (their choice) to go through their military service together even if it meant a more difficult, even dangerous seeing the tensions with NK at the moment, placement as the price to be paid (not to mention the hate some parts of the fandom towards either of them for this decision).

JM telling JK he's a member as a response to JK's comment is funny, because he knows exactly what JK means.

So to JK there is JM and there is the members. It's obvious to him that JM is a member, and JM knows that. He's not saying, like I'm sure there are already those that are loving to claim, that JM is not important to him and he wishes the others were there instead. He's basically having the time of his life and missing the others that aren't there with them. Their friends, their practically family. Bandmates that they have went on many adventures with in the past, bandmates that JK himself stated in one of his last lives that after coming back he would love to do a BV style show again, travelling with them all. Remember that this is in Sapporo, a second and a half before enlistment. They are having the time of their lives. Emotions might be catching up. Realizations that they won't be with the others for the next 18+ months. At this point he knows he's going to be with JM, they are SAFE, but the others, 2 of whom he hasn't seen for ages already, he knows he'll miss them, he already does.

And this here, it looks so ever familiar, no?

Oh yeah, from here:

I do find the the choice of soundtrack to the trailer interesting as well. Intro: Skool luv affair. Hobi and RM's parts.

Interesting choice indeed!!

Let's talk about the poster for a sec here.

So basically, what we got is all summer posters. And that is a little curious given that the first poster said Summer version. I was sure that this one would be Winter related. Now I am curious indeed. Does it mean something? Does it mean we do have a Winter version? How so, when the 8 episodes being released have Summer, Autumn and Winter episodes? Or, perhaps the behind episodes will be the Winter version? Hmm... Idk...

Anyway, unless we get another surprise on the way, we are now anxiously, or more so excitedly, waiting for 8 August 2024.

D-9

[lurkiestvoid]

You're being targeted by disinformation networks that are vastly more effective than you realize. And they're making you more hateful and depressed.

(This essay was originally by u/walkandtalkk and posted to r/GenZ on Reddit two months ago, and I've crossposted here on Tumblr for convenience because it's relevant and well-written.)

TL;DR: You know that Russia and other governments try to manipulate people online. But you almost certainly don't how just how effectively orchestrated influence networks are using social media platforms to make you -- individually-- angry, depressed, and hateful toward each other. Those networks' goal is simple: to cause Americans and other Westerners -- especially young ones -- to give up on social cohesion and to give up on learning the truth, so that Western countries lack the will to stand up to authoritarians and extremists.

And you probably don't realize how well it's working on you.

This is a long post, but I wrote it because this problem is real, and it's much scarier than you think.

How Russian networks fuel racial and gender wars to make Americans fight one another

In September 2018, a video went viral after being posted by In the Now, a social media news channel. It featured a feminist activist pouring bleach on a male subway passenger for manspreading. It got instant attention, with millions of views and wide social media outrage. Reddit users wrote that it had turned them against feminism.

There was one problem: The video was staged. And In the Now, which publicized it, is a subsidiary of RT, formerly Russia Today, the Kremlin TV channel aimed at foreign, English-speaking audiences.

As an MIT study found in 2019, Russia's online influence networks reached 140 million Americans every month -- the majority of U.S. social media users.

Russia began using troll farms a decade ago to incite gender and racial divisions in the United States

In 2013, Yevgeny Prigozhin, a confidante of Vladimir Putin, founded the Internet Research Agency (the IRA) in St. Petersburg. It was the Russian government's first coordinated facility to disrupt U.S. society and politics through social media.

Here's what Prigozhin had to say about the IRA's efforts to disrupt the 2022 election:

"Gentlemen, we interfered, we interfere and we will interfere. Carefully, precisely, surgically and in our own way, as we know how. During our pinpoint operations, we will remove both kidneys and the liver at once."

In 2014, the IRA and other Russian networks began establishing fake U.S. activist groups on social media. By 2015, hundreds of English-speaking young Russians worked at the IRA. Their assignment was to use those false social-media accounts, especially on Facebook and Twitter -- but also on Reddit, Tumblr, 9gag, and other platforms -- to aggressively spread conspiracy theories and mocking, ad hominem arguments that incite American users.

In 2017, U.S. intelligence found that Blacktivist, a Facebook and Twitter group with more followers than the official Black Lives Matter movement, was operated by Russia. Blacktivist regularly attacked America as racist and urged black users to rejected major candidates. On November 2, 2016, just before the 2016 election, Blacktivist's Twitter urged Black Americans: "Choose peace and vote for Jill Stein. Trust me, it's not a wasted vote."

Russia plays both sides -- on gender, race, and religion

The brilliance of the Russian influence campaign is that it convinces Americans to attack each other, worsening both misandry and misogyny, mutual racial hatred, and extreme antisemitism and Islamophobia. In short, it's not just an effort to boost the right wing; it's an effort to radicalize everybody.

Russia uses its trolling networks to aggressively attack men. According to MIT, in 2019, the most popular Black-oriented Facebook page was the charmingly named "My Baby Daddy Aint Shit." It regularly posts memes attacking Black men and government welfare workers. It serves two purposes: Make poor black women hate men, and goad black men into flame wars.

MIT found that My Baby Daddy is run by a large troll network in Eastern Europe likely financed by Russia.

But Russian influence networks are also also aggressively misogynistic and aggressively anti-LGBT.

On January 23, 2017, just after the first Women's March, the New York Times found that the Internet Research Agency began a coordinated attack on the movement. Per the Times:

More than 4,000 miles away, organizations linked to the Russian government had assigned teams to the Women’s March. At desks in bland offices in St. Petersburg, using models derived from advertising and public relations, copywriters were testing out social media messages critical of the Women’s March movement, adopting the personas of fictional Americans.

They posted as Black women critical of white feminism, conservative women who felt excluded, and men who mocked participants as hairy-legged whiners.

But the Russian PR teams realized that one attack worked better than the rest: They accused its co-founder, Arab American Linda Sarsour, of being an antisemite. Over the next 18 months, at least 152 Russian accounts regularly attacked Sarsour. That may not seem like many accounts, but it worked: They drove the Women's March movement into disarray and eventually crippled the organization.

Russia doesn't need a million accounts, or even that many likes or upvotes. It just needs to get enough attention that actual Western users begin amplifying its content.

A former federal prosecutor who investigated the Russian disinformation effort summarized it like this:

It wasn’t exclusively about Trump and Clinton anymore. It was deeper and more sinister and more diffuse in its focus on exploiting divisions within society on any number of different levels.

As the New York Times reported in 2022,

There was a routine: Arriving for a shift, [Russian disinformation] workers would scan news outlets on the ideological fringes, far left and far right, mining for extreme content that they could publish and amplify on the platforms, feeding extreme views into mainstream conversations.

China is joining in with AI

[A couple months ago], the New York Times reported on a new disinformation campaign. "Spamouflage" is an effort by China to divide Americans by combining AI with real images of the United States to exacerbate political and social tensions in the U.S. The goal appears to be to cause Americans to lose hope, by promoting exaggerated stories with fabricated photos about homeless violence and the risk of civil war.

As Ladislav Bittman, a former Czechoslovakian secret police operative, explained about Soviet disinformation, the strategy is not to invent something totally fake. Rather, it is to act like an evil doctor who expertly diagnoses the patient’s vulnerabilities and exploits them, “prolongs his illness and speeds him to an early grave instead of curing him.”

The influence networks are vastly more effective than platforms admit

Russia now runs its most sophisticated online influence efforts through a network called Fabrika. Fabrika's operators have bragged that social media platforms catch only 1% of their fake accounts across YouTube, Twitter, TikTok, and Telegram, and other platforms.

But how effective are these efforts? By 2020, Facebook's most popular pages for Christian and Black American content were run by Eastern European troll farms tied to the Kremlin. And Russia doesn't just target angry Boomers on Facebook. Russian trolls are enormously active on Twitter. And, even, on Reddit.

It's not just false facts

The term "disinformation" undersells the problem. Because much of Russia's social media activity is not trying to spread fake news. Instead, the goal is to divide and conquer by making Western audiences depressed and extreme.

Sometimes, through brigading and trolling. Other times, by posting hyper-negative or extremist posts or opinions about the U.S. the West over and over, until readers assume that's how most people feel. And sometimes, by using trolls to disrupt threads that advance Western unity.

As the RAND think tank explained, the Russian strategy is volume and repetition, from numerous accounts, to overwhelm real social media users and create the appearance that everyone disagrees with, or even hates, them. And it's not just low-quality bots. Per RAND,

Russian propaganda is produced in incredibly large volumes and is broadcast or otherwise distributed via a large number of channels. ... According to a former paid Russian Internet troll, the trolls are on duty 24 hours a day, in 12-hour shifts, and each has a daily quota of 135 posted comments of at least 200 characters.

What this means for you

You are being targeted by a sophisticated PR campaign meant to make you more resentful, bitter, and depressed. It's not just disinformation; it's also real-life human writers and advanced bot networks working hard to shift the conversation to the most negative and divisive topics and opinions.

It's why some topics seem to go from non-issues to constant controversy and discussion, with no clear reason, across social media platforms. And a lot of those trolls are actual, "professional" writers whose job is to sound real.

So what can you do? To quote WarGames: The only winning move is not to play. The reality is that you cannot distinguish disinformation accounts from real social media users. Unless you know whom you're talking to, there is a genuine chance that the post, tweet, or comment you are reading is an attempt to manipulate you -- politically or emotionally.

Here are some thoughts:

Don't accept facts from social media accounts you don't know. Russian, Chinese, and other manipulation efforts are not uniform. Some will make deranged claims, but others will tell half-truths. Or they'll spin facts about a complicated subject, be it the war in Ukraine or loneliness in young men, to give you a warped view of reality and spread division in the West.

Resist groupthink. A key element of manipulate networks is volume. People are naturally inclined to believe statements that have broad support. When a post gets 5,000 upvotes, it's easy to think the crowd is right. But "the crowd" could be fake accounts, and even if they're not, the brilliance of government manipulation campaigns is that they say things people are already predisposed to think. They'll tell conservative audiences something misleading about a Democrat, or make up a lie about Republicans that catches fire on a liberal server or subreddit.

Don't let social media warp your view of society. This is harder than it seems, but you need to accept that the facts -- and the opinions -- you see across social media are not reliable. If you want the news, do what everyone online says not to: look at serious, mainstream media. It is not always right. Sometimes, it screws up. But social media narratives are heavily manipulated by networks whose job is to ensure you are deceived, angry, and divided.

Edited for typos and clarity. (Tumblr-edited for formatting and to note a sourced article is now older than mentioned in the original post. -LV)

P.S. Apparently, this post was removed several hours ago due to a flood of reports. Thank you to the r/GenZ moderators for re-approving it.

Second edit:

This post is not meant to suggest that r/GenZ is uniquely or especially vulnerable, or to suggest that a lot of challenges people discuss here are not real. It's entirely the opposite: Growing loneliness, political polarization, and increasing social division along gender lines is real. The problem is that disinformation and influence networks expertly, and effectively, hijack those conversations and use those real, serious issues to poison the conversation. This post is not about left or right: Everyone is targeted.

(Further Tumblr notes: since this was posted, there have been several more articles detailing recent discoveries of active disinformation/influence and hacking campaigns by Russia and their allies against several countries and their respective elections, and barely touches on the numerous Tumblr blogs discovered to be troll farms/bad faith actors from pre-2016 through today. This is an ongoing and very real problem, and it's nowhere near over.

A quote from NPR article linked above from 2018 that you might find familiar today: "[A] particular hype and hatred for Trump is misleading the people and forcing Blacks to vote Killary. We cannot resort to the lesser of two devils. Then we'd surely be better off without voting AT ALL," a post from the account said.")

[brf-rumortrackinganon]

https://www.tumblr.com/brf-rumortrackinganon/767492272338223104/they-will-announce-their-divorce-on-kates?source=share

Kate's name has never had peace on her birthday since the Harkles happened.

I know Kate's all nice but do you think her relationship with Harry is still repairable? I have this thinking that when Kate's done, she's already done, the water is under the bridge for her.

I think that Harry’s relationship with Kate has been totally, utterly, and irreversibly changed. She might forgive, she might be courteous to him in the future, but she definitely won’t forget and their relationship won’t ever be the same it was back in 2006 or 2011 or 2015.

Her behavior at the Windsor Walkabout and the 2020 Commonwealth Day Service (remember how she blanked the Sussexes and Meghan was caught on camera saying to Harry “she didn’t say hi to me”?) has sent, and continues to send, a very strong signal about what she thinks of all this. There’s been a lot of analysis about her behavior and body language then being about Meghan, but I think it was also about Harry too. She has animosity towards him too, especially if there was no thank you card or a message after Harry sent well wishes/flowers after her chemotherapy announcement in March.

However, all that said, I do think there’s a chance Kate could be *slightly* moved to microminutely thaw a tiny sliver of her feelings if all this was because of addiction or mental health given the kind of work she’s studied, but I think it’s very unlikely. You can be sympathetic and empathetic towards what someone is going through or has dealt with without letting them stomp all over your boundaries and your peace. I feel like that’s part of the lesson, if you will, Kate came to realize in dealing with her health crises this year.

Anyway, judging by Spare (and again, it’s been almost 2 years since I read it so I’m starting to get fuzzy on some details), I think Harry blames Kate being cold to him on Meghan. I very much think that Harry expects to waltz back into the family if it’s over with Meghan and be welcomed back by everyone - most especially Kate. He’s in for some very rude awakenings should that happen.

[scotianostra]

On November 25th 1835 Andrew Carnegie, was born in Dunfermline.

“To try to make the world in some way better than you found it is to have a noble motive in life.” - Andrew Carnegie

Today I thought we’d look into things we might not know about Andrew Carnegie

So how rich was he really? Well in 2015, the Carnegie Corporation estimated that at his peak wealth, Carnegie was worth $309 billion (accounting for inflation). For comparison, in 2022, Elon Musk is worth about $219 billion, Jeff Bezos is worth roughly $171 billion and Bill Gates comes in at $129 billion.

“To try to make the world in some way better than you found it is to have a noble motive in life.” - Andrew Carnegie

Andrew Carnegie's philanthropic career began around 1870 in his native Dunfermline and ultimately extending throughout the English-speaking world, including the United States, Australia, and New Zealand.

In 1887, Carnegie married Louise Whitfield of New York City. She supported his philanthropy, and signed a prenuptial marriage agreement stating Carnegie’s intention of giving away virtually his entire fortune during his lifetime. Two years later he wrote The Gospel of Wealth, which boldly articulated his view of the rich as trustees of their wealth who should live without extravagance, provide moderately for their families, and use their riches to promote the welfare and happiness of others. This statement of his philosophy was read all over the world, and Carnegie's intentions were widely praised.

“The man who dies thus rich dies disgraced.” - Andrew Carnegie

In 1889, Carnegie published The Gospel of Wealth, publicly extolling his beliefs that personal wealth should be distributed for community benefit once your family’s needs were taken care of.

“The problem of our age is the proper administration of wealth, so that the ties of brotherhood may still bind together the rich and poor in harmonious relationship,” - Andrew Carnegie

Want to hear the man himself reading from his Gospel of Wealth check the link below

In 1911 Andrew Carnegie established Carnegie Corporation of New York, which he dedicated to the “advancement and diffusion of knowledge and understanding.” It was the last philanthropic institution founded by Carnegie and was dedicated to the principles of “scientific philanthropy,” investing in the long-term progress of our society. Carnegie himself was the first president of the Corporation, which he endowed in perpetuity with his remaining fortune — $135 million — to be used principally to promote education and international peace. While his primary aim was to benefit the people of the United States, Carnegie later determined to use a portion of the funds for members of the British Overseas Commonwealth. For the Trustees of the Corporation, he chose his longtime friends and associates, giving them permission to adapt its programs to the times. “Conditions upon the earth inevitably change,” he wrote in the Deed of Gift, “hence no wise man will bind Trustees forever to certain paths, causes or institutions…. They shall best conform to my wishes by using their own judgment.”

By the time of his death, Andrew Carnegie, despite his best efforts, had not been able to give away his entire fortune. He had distributed $350 million, but had $30 million left, which went into the Corporation’s endowment. Toward the end of his life, Carnegie, a pacifist, had a single goal: achieving world peace. He believed in the power of international laws and trusted that future conflicts could be averted through mediation. He supported the founding of the Peace Palace in The Hague in 1903, gave $10 million to found the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in 1910 to “hasten the abolition of international war,” and worked ceaselessly for the cause until the outbreak of World War I. He died, still brokenhearted about the failure of his efforts, in August 1919, two months after the signing of the Treaty of Versailles.

Andrew Carnegie helped give the world Sesame Street -Yes really!

The Carnegie Corporation provided the American television writer and producer Joan Ganz Cooney with the funds to develop Sesame Street and the Children’s Television Workshop. According to Sherrie Westin, executive vice president of global impact and philanthropy at the Sesame Workshop, “Sesame Street literally would not be here were it not for the bold vision and audacious philanthropy of the Carnegie Corporation.”

The iconic saguaro cactus is named after him, the plant, which is found only in the Sonoran Desert in Arizona and Mexico, can live as long as 200 years and grow to be 45 feet tall. Its scientific name, Carnegiea gigantea, is a nod to Carnegie’s philanthropic contribution to botany: The Carnegie Institution, founded in 1902, helped establish the Desert Botanical Laboratory in Tucson in 1903.

One of Carnegie's major philanthropic efforts included donating 7600 of the instruments to churches across the United States. He also oversaw the installation of the 8600-pipe organ at Carnegie Music Hall in Pittsburgh in 1895 and had pipe organs in his homes in New York and Scotland.

In keeping with his wealth philosophy, Carnegie left his wife Louise a small amount of money, as well as their properties in Manhattan and Scotland, when he died. His only child, a daughter named Margaret, received nothing but a small trust. She eventually had to sell the family townhome because it was too expensive to maintain. But that was it—the rest of his immense wealth went to his charitable causes and endowments.

You might think that that would cause some resentment on the part of his heirs, but they apparently all agreed to the arrangement well before Carnegie passed away.

[imprintmoonstone]

Dear Liam,

Na bangaaram (transl. 'My Beloved' in Telugu, my native language), where do I begin?

I first became a fan of 1D in 2015, just a few months after Zayn left. My friend (she was a big fangirl!) suggested that I listen to your songs. But frankly, I was disinterested. I was like, "meh! okay.." But a week or so later, the Drag Me Down music video was in my YouTube recommendations, and I was kinda curious, so I finally watched the music video and thought to myself, "Damn! these guys are fantastic and so talented!!" And the rest is history. In no time, I had become a big fan of 1D.

Even though I liked all the boys, I always had a soft spot for you and Zayn. You were both my favorites. In 2017, I remember another friend spamming my phone with texts when the 'Strip That Down' music video was released. He and I went bonkers that day, haha (He was a big fan of you and Zayn, too! He loved 'Get Low' and 'Bedroom Floor' a lot.) I also remember waking up early to listen to LP1 while staying in bed, watching your LP shows until 3 AM during 2020, all your cute Insta lives, etc. I have so many fun memories like these that I'm eternally grateful for 💝

Liam, I have always admired your kindness, passion, strength, patience, and bravery. Even with all the noise outside from many people, you stood firm. You loved everyone loudly and were always there for them. Your music made me so happy, and your voice always had a soothing effect on me. Your musical talent (especially your live performances and acoustic versions) and artistic skills always amazed me! Your interviews and weekly round-up videos during quarantine time helped me stay sane (I still watch all these videos and instantly feel relaxed.)

You've become my comfort person, honestly. There was a time when I wanted to give up, but you gave me the strength to move forward. You inspired me to be kind and gentle with myself. I can't thank you enough for being the warmth I needed during my coldest nights. I'll love you forever, my hero ❤️

I'm sorry that the world was never nice to you. It was so painful to see all the unwarranted hate towards you. You deserved all the love and kindness you always spread. It's devastating that you didn't get to do the things you were so passionate about. I'll miss your kind eyes, voice, your warm smiles and sweet giggles, your goofiness. I'll miss you so much, Liam, and I'll forever cherish all these memories.

Rest gently, angel. I hope that wherever you are now, you find peace 🕊️❤️‍🩹

Love,

Ri

[pascallatte]

Sleepylina

Pairings: Pedro Pascal x actress!reader, Boyd Holbrook x platonic!reader

Summary: Don’t sleep when you have friends who like to make fun of you.

Warning/s: waking up those who’re asleep (yes this is a warning cause this is illegal.😤), age gap, fun teasing

Date: 2015, November

A/N:  hello, sorry for the delayed post but I tried a new thing hoping you guys won't get confused. Anywayssss, happy reading everyone!!

PROOF THAT THE Y/N L/N AND PEDRO PASCAL HAVE BEEN DATING FOR YEARS!!

this video is a fucking treasure when it comes to their so-called "friendship" cause let's be real the ending is sweet yet not-so-friend-like.

Pedro's cam:

“Guys come on. I have to show you something,” Pedro said as he started the video and walked towards the car while on a break from filming an episode of Narcos.

Moving to the back of the car, he angles the camera to show you, who was seated at the back, sleeping. With a smirk, he drops the camera for a second to open the door at the driver’s side.

“Let's see what I can do with that sleepylina at the back,” he whispered to the camera, as soon as he was seated.

He turns the radio on and switched it to play something that he knew would annoy you. Looking at the camera again, he angles it up higher to show you who was peacefully sleeping. Pedro lowers the camera to make some silly pigeon-looking expression, then slowly pans the camera to Boyd who was seated in the passenger’s seat.

He stills for a moment then once again angles the camera to you. With a soft chuckle, turns the camera back to his partner before saying,” BOYD!!,” quite loudly.

Pedro laughs at that and a “WHAT!”, was heard coming from Boyd.

At this moment, you who were peacefully sleeping, shuffled a bit and decided to lay on your back seeing as there was enough space for you. But this just pushed your co-actors to do the indescribable to you.

With the music still playing (which surprisingly matches the vibe), the two looked at each other with similar smirks before simultaneously exiting the car to open those in your area.

Chuckling, the guys stood at each end of you, Pedro at your feet and Boyd towards your head, who was seen already recording your “situation.”

Boyd’s cam:

Pedro was seen opposite of him leaning towards you to get a better view of your face, chuckling he decides to do the same but makes sure that both his friends were seen.

He released a small laugh as he moved your hair to be more sprawled out in the car seat. Boyd separated your hair and a horn-like shape was seen as he tried to “perfect his creation.”

“Aye, Pedro.” He whisper shouted. Pedro looked at him with a questioning look.

“Do the thing…” he said, you can tell that he was grinning by the sound of his voice.

“Do the same thing that she did to you that one time.” He continued, a look of recognition flashed on Pedro’s face as he laughed and move his phone nearer to you.

Pedro was seen pinching your cheeks with a soft smile and booped your nose. Annoyed that something was bothering you, you swatted at the hand that was touching your face, still asleep. In doing that some of the hair that Boyd laid out moved back to their previous position which was resting on your face.

Boyd took deep breaths to stop himself from laughing and once again tried to still the camera to record whatever was happening properly. He zooms in a little to see Pedro, who was now moving the stray hair out of your face, gently, but of course, fixing it like how it was earlier.....horn-like.

Squishing your cheeks with one hand he tried to make it as if you were talking as he sputtered out things that Boyd’s phone wasn’t able to get.

Pedro’s cam:

Your appearance from his point of view looked way nicer than what was seen above your head. From this angle, you looked like a very calm and peaceful person, which was sadly the opposite of you once you’d awakened.

But of course, Pedro would not let this moment pass.

Gently moving the hair out of your face after you moved, he caressed your cheeks before proceeding to squish them making you look like a puffer fish with how soft your cheeks looked.

Laughing quietly he moved closer before whispering, in the most feminine voice he can do, “Hola soy Sleepylina y les quiero decir que perdono a Pedro por comerse el burrito que hice esta mañana.” (hi, I'm sleepylina and I'd like to tell you that I forgive Pedro for eating the burrito I made this morning)

He accidentally let out a loud laugh after that, which fortunately for him didn’t bother you by any bit. And by how much shaking he was making in trying to stifle his laughs, Pedro was surprised to see that you have not woken up yet. Shrugging, he now then pinches your already pouted lips and squeezes them.

“I’d also like to say how much I adore working with Boyd and Pe-“ his imitation of you was cut off when you swatted his hands and looked at him confused. Only this time, he realized that you were awake as soon as he began pinching your lips.

Sitting up, still dazed, you looked around as if you were trying to figure out where you are. Looking behind you, Boyd was seen laughing while covering his mouth to lessen the noise he was making.

It clicked to you all of a sudden that they were making fun of you, something that is not new to you, throwing a glare and the middle finger toward Boyd. 

"Stop!! What did I ever do to youuuu, "you slurred to him, still half asleep.

“Well, you didn’t do anything to me, but you did do something to our dear Pedro over there, who by the way, planned ALL of this,” Boyd said softly, due to him being out of breath after all that laughing.

Looking back towards Pedro who you’ve now just registered, was recording you, you looked at him angrily while crossing your arms, demanding an explanation. To which, he understood and moved closer, with the camera of course closer than it was before.

Now laughing loudly at your state, he moved the hair out of your face first before squishing your cheeks once again.

“I, my dear sleepylina, am getting revenge for that stunt you did last time.”

“But that was weeks ago, Pedro. And you already ate my burrito this morning why’d you have to go do that revenge thing” you murmured, as it was all you can do with your face in Pedro’s hand and a camera pointed at your face.

“Oh! I know it was weeks ago and you already forgave me for eating your food.” He said with a smirk.

Raising your brow, you let out a soft “Huh?” That was followed by a belly laugh coming from Pedro before the camera went dark.

Boyd’s cam:

The loud belly laugh from Pedro was seen and heard from his view. As well as the reason why Pedro’s camera went black before it ended.

There in front of him, Pedro was hugging you ever so tightly still laughing as he told you to watch the video. A groan was heard from you before you leaned on him and rested your head on his chest.

The video ended with Pedro snuggling closer to you and moving a hand to place it on the back of your head, while of course still laughing his ass off.

A/N: oh for those who don't know sleepylina is a nickname given to y/n by the producers after being caught asleep on set, multiple times. sleepy + Catalina "lina", her character name.

[obaex]

dying to tell you - jj maybank

summary: after a normal beach day takes an unexpected turn, jj has something he needs to say.

word count: 3.7k

tw: 🦈

a/n: inspired by real events that happened to professional surfer mick fanning in 2015 - it is wild to watch!! (see above trigger warning before taking a peek!)

It was the perfect beach day.

You pulled off your flipflops and the bottom of your feet and your toes were tickled by the warm sand. You could hear the woosh of the waves rushing to meet the shore and receding again, a familiar melody. It was early, so the beach was quiet but for the waves and the occasional call of the seagulls flying overhead as the breeze kicked strands of your hair up around your face and made the seagrass in the dunes shake. You smiled to yourself - home for you was this place and the person next to you. You snuck a glance at JJ only to find the same smile on his face, his surfboard tucked under his arm. The beach, and its overwhelming sense of calm, peace, rightness was a love you both share. Your friends were running up ahead of you, dragging coolers, chairs and more surfboards, but the two of you hung back, walking side by side, enjoying the moment. JJ reached out and tangled his fingers lazily in yours and you squeezed back.

A few other locals dotted the shore and several surfers bobbed in the sizable waves. This part of the beach was a revered locals spot, tucked far enough away from the hotels and tourists to remain untouched by their noise and disruptions.

You helped set everything up before unfurling your large blanket, pulling off your clothes and collapsing on top if it, ready to spend the entire day squeezing every bit of sunshine and vitamin D you could into your skin. You loved the hot weather, the way the sun's rays baked ten times hotter off the glinting ocean, the way your skin would feel salty and sticky by the end of the day. You would live here if you could.

The boys were eager to get in the water, haphazardly chucking their backpacks and tearing off their shirts, John B and Pope making a beeline for the water as Kie chased after them yelling something about sunscreen, a lost cause. JJ eyed the water eagerly but his eyes wandered back to you, outstretched in his favorite bikini, the shape accentuating every curve of your body and the color amplifying your tan skin and bright eyes. He wrestled with his choice for only a second before flopping onto the blanket beside you, eyes glimmering mischievously as he reached for you. He couldn't keep his hands off of you on any day, but you looked so tantalizing he couldn't help himself as he pulled you into him and you giggled. His lips found yours and you were immediately lost in each other, lost to the world. Sarah took one look at you both and rolled her eyes. "Every time" she muttered to herself as she walked away to give you some semblance of privacy, wanting to be salty but secretly so stinking happy that the two of you finally got over the stolen glances and dancing around each other to go from friends to more than friends.

He tasted like peppermint from his toothpaste, salt and sunscreen as pushed his tongue in your mouth and you ran your fingers through his tangled blonde hair, a small involuntary moan escaping you at the feeling of his body crushed against yours, his muscular arms around you. JJ responded immediately, and without missing a beat, he lifted you off the blanket, and began walking back towards the Twinkie, never breaking your kiss. "JJ!" you laughed in surprise.

"Can't make noises like that without me wanting to do something absolutely indecent to you, sweetheart. M'taking you back to the Twinkie to spare everyone on this beach the show of a lifetime."

"We just got here!" you said, swatting him playfully on the shoulder. "The boys are waiting for you, we can pick this up later, promise." You pressed your lips to his cheek, sealing the deal.

With a resigned sigh, he placed you back on your feet in the sand, a mischievous smirk resting on his lips as his eyes searched your face, the flirtatious energy lingering but something deeper now running under the surface of his expression. He cupped your face, running a thumb gently over your cheek and his lips parted like he was going to say something. You looked at him inquisitively, unused to him being so serious. As he met your gaze, he stopped himself and smiled warmly. You wanted to ask, wanted to know what he was going to say, but as his lips found yours again, your brain scrambled.

You had been together for a few months but neither of you had said those three little words. Big words, really. You had felt them for a long time, longer than you'd even been together, but you were still trying to navigate this whole thing. Your feelings were overwhelmingly strong but what you had with him felt so special you didn't want to disrupt the balance. The words were on the tip of your tongue, dangerously close to spilling over, like your body's involuntary reaction to his proximity; when you fell asleep in each other's arms, each time you hung up the phone and every time he kissed you and then gave you that look, that smoldering, soul-crushing, heart-squeezing smirk that he was giving you now. And then he was off, peeling off his shirt, grabbing his board and running towards the water, leaving you breathless.

Kie and Sarah made their way back to you as JJ crashed into the waves. They shared knowing glances at you and made sneaky comments. They loved to tease you even though they were your biggest supporters. The boys could surf for hours and that was fine for the three of you, it gave you much needed girl time to catch up and discuss all the things the boys would roll their eyes at. You were comfortably seated in your chairs, facing the water and passing around fruit and snacks chatting idly as you watched the boys surf. They were spread far enough apart in the water to give each other opportunities to catch the waves. It amazed you to watch them surf. You didn't know a lot about surfing, but you knew JJ was good, very good. You could see it in his practiced confidence on the board and the ease with which he navigated each wave. You loved to see him so happy and in his element.

You had turned your attention back to Sarah's story when you heard a loud splash. You had been coming to the beach your whole life, your mind and body in tune with every kind of noise and this one was not one you had heard before. It wasn't the splash of the waves, the splash of children playing, the splash of a surfer at the end of their run, this was loud, aggressive... foreboding. Your eyes scanned the water fast enough to see JJ seated and bobbing alone on his board, his back to you as he faced the oncoming waves before his head snapped back to look behind him as a large fin crested the water.

You were on your feet before you knew what was happening. It was probably only seconds but it felt like a lifetime, like one of those dreams you have when you're running but don't actually go anywhere, your feet pounding the sand, your lungs burning as you shouted for John B and Pope, JJ never leaving your sight. JJ's eyes found yours momentarily before the large fin resurfaced and he got knocked off of his board and you couldn't see him anymore.

JJ didn’t think he could ask for a more perfect day as he bobbed in the waves, feet dangling in the cool water beneath his board. In fact, ever since he had gotten the courage to tell you how he really felt, heavily aided by beer, his friends, and an unrelenting pounding in his chest every time you were close to him, it was like his life had gotten exponentially better.

He stared into middle space as he ran his thumb over his lips, deep in thought at the feeling of yours pressed against them, and reveled in the fact that he could still taste you. He didn’t know how he went without you for so long, now he couldn’t get enough. He loved you. He knew he did, and he’d almost said it to you. Today, and about a hundred times now, including the night he first confessed his feelings. He knew it then. He’d known it for awhile. In truth, he was dying to tell you, dying to get it off his chest. He almost word-vomited it on a daily basis, when you curled into his chest as you fell asleep, every time you scrunched your nose and bit your lip when you were focusing, the way you looked at him when he kissed you, eyes glazed with desire for him. Goddddd, he thought. But a part of him was still insecure. What did he ever do to deserve you? In what realm of possibility could you love him back? He was deep in thought when heard a loud splash behind him that snapped him back to reality as chills ran down his spine.

He knew before he saw the fin. He had been in the water when other surfers spotted sharks, and he John B and Pope did occasionally get that unexplainable sense of foreboding that pulled them out of the water, the intangible surfer’s sense that something simply wasn’t right and the risk wasn’t worth it. That feeling washed so quickly over him now that it felt like someone had poured a bucket of ice water over his head. He turned to see a large fin breaking the water behind his board as a dark shape moved beneath him, and that’s when he heard you. He turned to see you running towards the water and met your eyes just as the dark shape crested the waves and he was knocked off his board, into darkness.

John B saw you running towards the water and his first instinct was to laugh. You weren't unathletic but he'd never seen you move that fast before. He'd wanted to laugh until he heard the tone of your voice as you called his name. It wasn't joking, it wasn't fun, it was pure terror and his brain began piecing the puzzle together as he saw Sarah and Kie running towards other people on the beach, calling them out of the water and as you pointed desperately at JJ. John B turned his head quickly enough to see his best friend, the one person that had been there through every high and every low alongside him get knocked off his board by a tailfin as a large shape loomed in the water and he crashed into the sea.

He could hear Pope shouting at him but his heart was pounding and the blood rushing in his head made everything sound like he was underwater. Pope was paddling towards the shore.

"We have to help him!" John B cried, his voice high-pitched with emotion, knowing already that their efforts would be fruitless. What were they supposed to do? As far away as he was, he was already shaking as he tucked his own limbs onto his board, like this thin piece of fiberglass would do anything to protect him. He had seen the size of that shark, they were fucked.

JJ swam quickly to the surface, his body pulsing with fear, trying to get a sense of his surroundings, wanting to know what was around him but terrified to find out at the same time. He crested the surface, searching for his board, for any lifeline before deciding it didn't matter and he needed to get the fuck out of there. He began swimming strongly towards the shore, but panicked at the idea of the shark attacking him from behind so he stopped and turned around, frantically searching the water around him, kicking his legs and trying to swim backwards. He couldn't see a thing. He was hyperventilating and as he tried to suck in deep breaths water filled his mouth, causing him to cough. He continued to swim backwards, his eyes never leaving the dark water.

You had never felt as helpless in your entire life as you did standing on that beach, screaming, screaming for JJ, for John B, for Pope, for God, for anyone to intervene as your eyes searched the water for him, stomach roiling and mind churning with the worst possible outcomes. When you saw his head emerge from the waves, you began to run into the water.

"What are you doing?!" Kie shouted, exasperated as she threw her arms around you to pull you back.

"I have to go! I have to get to him!" you shouted back, trying to wrench yourself from her grip as you gestured to the waves. Wasn't if obvious? JJ needed you. Your whole heart was out there alone, bobbing in the water alongside an eight-foot shark. You wrestled in her arms, eyes never leaving the water as you watched him swim, heart catching each time a wave crested and you momentarily lost sight of him. He looked okay? Could that be possible? Was the universe that good? That he could look death in the face and still come back to you? Suddenly he stopped swimming for the shore and turned around, looking back in the murky depths, trying to backpedal, to backstroke. Did he see something? Was it coming back?

John B and Pope caught up to you both and Sarah put her arms tightly around John B as you watched. The group was stone silent.

Finally, it was too much for you, you shoved Kie off of you and sprinted into the water despite her shouts and the gasps of the crowd that had gathered. You were about waist-deep in the rough current, getting rocked by each wave when JJ finally turned to see you standing there, wading towards him.

"N-NO!" he shouted, motioning you back, moving as quickly as he could to force you back into shallower water, but his limbs were sluggish and tired and the current tugged him deeper. "GET OUT OF THE WATER!" He shouted, surprised at the anger and fear in his voice. You jumped slightly at that, never having been the object of JJ's anger before, but you didn't listen, you didn't care. You needed to know he was okay more than you needed to be okay yourself. You met him in chest-high water, your body crashing into his. He held you tightly, he wanted to enjoy this moment, but his brain and his body were still tightly wound in survival mode as he tugged you forward with him, needing to get you to safety, needing to know you were okay more than he needed to be okay. He wouldn't feel good about that until you were both firmly on dry land. When you were in ankle deep water, your friends converged on you, pulling you both into a hug as the small crowd that had gathered clapped and cheered, murmuring with disbelief at what had just occurred.

Everything thereafter was a blur. The beach day was over, no one wanting to spend any more time here after what had happened. Your friends buzzed around you, packing up the coolers and chairs and walking back to the Twinkie. You didn't leave JJ's side, didn't bother getting dressed or picking up your blanket, you stayed tucked into him, with his arms wrapped around you and he couldn't have been more grateful for the feeling of your body pressed to his, grounding him, a constant reminder that he was safe. The car ride home was mostly silent, the radio scratching in the background as JJ sat hunched over, his head in his hands, your head on his shoulder. You caught John B's eyes in the rearview mirror from his spot in the front seat, where he shared a brief, knowing smile with you. He's here, he's with us, it said. It's going to be okay, and I'm glad he has you.

By the time you got back to the chateau the mood was shifting slightly. There was still a heaviness in the air, thick with all that could have been, but the fog was parting and JJ couldn't stand the tension anymore. "I'm sensing a real heavy vibe right now" he said jokingly. "I don't know about y'all but I could use a fucking drink" and with that everyone cheered and his face lit up in a smile.

The night passed in typical pogue fashion with beers around the bonfire. Everyone was eager to shed the events of the day and relax, yourself included. You joined in on the fun but kept one eye trained on JJ, tracing his every move with your gaze. You told yourself it was to make sure he was okay, but a part of you couldn't stop staring, afraid that if you looked away for too long he would disappear again under a dark wave. He hadn't left your side, a hand resting on your thigh, an arm around your shoulders or tugging you to sit on his lap. He was always handsy with you, but this felt different, like you were a lifeline, a buoy he didn't want to let go of. You were in his lap, your head resting against his with his arms around you, his fingers tracing patters on your leg when he nuzzled into your ear, pressing a kiss along your jaw. "Hammock?" he whispered and you nodded, smiling as you hopped off his lap and the two of you made your way to the secluded spot amidst catcalls and whistles from your friends.

He settled into the swinging fabric first, holding it steady for you to crawl in to lay beside him. Your bodies fit perfectly together as the hammock swung gently back and forth, your head tucked into his neck, your arm around his chest. You felt him breath a deep sigh as his arms tugged you impossibly closer to him and he planted a kiss on your head. You turned to look at him and met his eyes, midnight blue in the starlight as he looked down at you.

"Are you okay?" you whispered. A simple question that had ten other questions behind it.

He nodded sincerely but didn't say anything. You had been hoping for more. Hoping to talk to him about this. If he wasn't going to say anything, you were going to have to break the silence.

"Jayj, I-I was really scared" you said, your voice quivering a little as you spoke. "I'm so glad you're okay. All I could think as I watched you out there was what I was going to do if something happened to you, I was out of my mind."

"I gathered that when you were sprinting into shark infested water while everyone was running out of it" he said, smirking as he pinched your arm playfully. You could tell he was trying to lighten the mood and that maybe he didn't want to talk about this, but you didn't want to talk about it with anyone else, you didn't think they'd understand.

"I'm serious, JJ. I guess I don't know how to explain it, I don't have the words for it. It was more than just the idea of not being able to reach you, of losing you, it was the idea of all the things we wouldn't get to do together. Like never having another bonfire night or taking a ride on your bike, or w-waking up in your arms or g-getting to k-kiss you or --" you could have kept going but your tears bubbled over and JJ's heart broke at the sight of you unravelling in his arms. He was holding himself together as best he could and he knew you were too.

"C'mere pretty girl, it's okay, I'm okay" he said as he wrapped you deeper in his arms and your tears left wet marks on his shirt.

"I'm sorry Jayj" you said, trying to collect yourself. "I know I'm probably blowing this out of proportion--" and hearing you apologize was the last straw.

"-- You're not" he said softly. "I felt the exact same way." He sighed. He didn't want to relive it, like maybe if you didn't talk about it, you could pretend it never happened.

"Really?" you asked.

"100%" he replied. "When I turned and saw you before I got knocked off my board all I could think is how far away you were and what I would have to do to get back to you. I was going to wrestle that thing if I needed to." You both laughed at that. "But for real, I know what you mean, I had the same thoughts. Even though I was absolutely shitting myself, it was like flashes in my head of you and all the things I still wanted to do and experience together... all the things I should have said..." he paused and fidgeted a little.

"Hey, look at me" he said finally, putting a finger gently under your chin and tilting it towards him. He smiled and met your eyes, wiping a tear off your cheek. "If I was shark bait today, my biggest regret would have been not telling you how I felt, how I feel. I-I love you. A lot. A whole hell of a lot. I have since before we were together. You're the first thing I think about in the morning and my last thought before bed. You're the girl of my damn dreams Y/N and I never want to do life without you. You're it for me, gorgeous. Full stop. No one else." He said it with more confidence than he felt as it came pouring out of him, relieved to finally have it off of his chest.

Now he was desperately trying to read your response. She's smiling, that's a good thing, right?

Yes, you were smiling. Grinning from ear to ear as you listened to the boy of your dreams absolutely gushing over you. You were speechless for a moment, grasping at the words to say, words you'd wanted to say for so long.

"I love you too" you said finally, "So much, JJ" you were able to eke out before he crushed his lips to yours.

ps: sharks are friends and are so important to our ecosystem and our lil' planet! you are more likely to get bit by another human than you a shark (fact), more likely to die from ants, elephants, hotdogs and texting than a shark attack (also fact), and they only bite because they are curious, they do not want to eat you (also fact). so, be kind, be respectful, support sharks. #endrant

taglist: @ietss, @gillybear17, @palmwinemami, @sweetestdesire, @softcoremaybank, @m-indkiller, @maybankslover, @sickyrat

[chefbuck]

what are you doing new years?

wc: 1.7k, eddie's winter of abandonment on new year's, for @mayslipgloss

--

Eddie’s going to blame it on Sophia for putting on High School Musical. 

Look, it was a lovely party. It was no 118, but his aunt knew how to throw a New Year’s party, all things considered. Her house was all decked out with the cheesy decorations they’ve held onto since 2015. There were scattered headbands and sunglasses to celebrate the upcoming year with plastic “NEW YEAR!” and “HAPPY 2025” adorned across. Mole had been eaten, ponche had been drunk, and still there was enough food littering the table to send home for leftovers. Adriana’s laughter carried across the hall and family chatter was loud enough to make up for the months Eddie spent in a silent house. It’s good enough to feel like home. 

It should feel like home. Chris is here with his cousins, all of them insisting that they’re old enough now to stay up with the rest of them; they can make it. He’s been staying with Eddie in his apartment for a month now and they’ve been talking, really talking. It’s not back to normal, but Eddie’s started to make peace that maybe they’ll never get back to normal. Made peace with the fact that maybe that’s okay, better even. They’ve been talking and Eddie’s been squaring away his place here and back in LA. They’re set to move back within the next week, so Eddie should feel at home. 

There’s just a lot of talk. His family are a chatty bunch. Sophia would say Eddie fits right in with the gossip—Eddie wouldn’t call it gossip but rather keeping himself informed. And, okay, Eddie can admit his family likes to gossip, him excluded, but this time it’s not gossip. There’s just been a lot of talk from them about how nice it is to have Eddie and Chris back home, how lovely to have them around for Wednesday dinners, how it’s good for Chris to be with his cousins, with his family, how they’re all so excited for them to stick around. 

They are not sticking around. Chris has been adamant about that. He’s itching to move back to LA, back to their old house (he’s made sure many times Eddie didn’t sell the place), back to his old school, and back to his friends. Back to Buck. Chris can talk about Buck like it’s easy. Eddie can…

Eddie’s not making a big announcement about him moving. The right people know and he’s not exactly going to stand on a chair and shout at a New Year’s party, no matter how suffocating these people make him. Look, once upon a time El Paso was home. And it was. It’s where his baseball bat lived, where he and Sophia covered the scuff marks against the wall with a framed photo of Abuelo, where he first learned the lyrics to “Te Lo Pido por Favor”, where he first kissed Shannon against the side of his parents’ house. Then, one day, he’s not sure exactly when, it felt so suffocating to the point that if Eddie didn’t get out he wasn’t sure he would last another day alive. One day El Paso was home and another day it was the place he was from. 

He’s coping. It’s probably not up to the standards of his therapist’s desires (his new therapist, Dr. Rose, not Frank. Fuck Frank. Okay, no that’s a bit brash. Maybe not full fuck Frank, he did refer Eddie to this new therapist who is a much better fit. Sorry Frank.) But Eddie’s coping. He’s nodding along, eating Tía Luciana’s bacalao, making sympathetic smiles when necessary. He’s not letting himself mope and he’s certainly not biting any relatives hands off, even when he kind of almost wants to. 

But then, Sophia puts on High School Musical. She insists on it in fact, and it’s just enough to make him drop his composure. 

Eddie remembers it. He remembers his sisters’ obsession with the franchise, their comments here and there, them singing throughout the house, but that’s really the extent of his knowledge. He’s never seen the movies themselves, so he’s kind of thought whatever towards them. But now, as he’s heading to the kitchen to steal some more buñuelos, his eyes are pulled towards the tv. 

“What’s this?”

“High School Musical,” the kids respond, without tearing their eyes away.

The screen focuses on two characters, one guy with sandy hair that covers a good portion of his neck and face, and a girl with dark brown curly hair. Both look fairly young. They’re singing karaoke, of all things, and it seems to be the end of the song as they hold out their last notes, mics the only thing separating them from each other. But it’s not the singing that makes Eddie stop walking; it’s the look. They’re holding each others gaze like they’re the only two people in the world, like they’re communicating something that only their eyes can say, like they’re inventing something. 

Eddie knows that feeling, not the karaoke—he only remembers a disjointed montage of snippets of the night—but the look. He’s done that look. It makes his stomach fall far too fast. 

And there’s a new scene. They’ve made their way outside, making conversation that matches the youthful cringe of their age, but they can’t stop stumbling over each other’s words, too hungry to miss a beat. Then finally, a pause. A moment where they’re just making eye contact, but this time it’s both of them waiting for the other to say what they both want to be said. Until one of them breaks, and then there’s fireworks. 

It’s so ironic, they way the scene goes beat for beat with Eddie’s memory, even though the details are a bit different. (Ambulance bomb explosion doesn’t really look the same as fireworks, but semantics, really.) The kind of thing that lives in the back of his mind with the one person he can’t really talk about. Not that it matters; his absence further cements his presence. 

The scene changes again and the moment disappears. Eddie continues to the kitchen, but by now he’s dead on his feet. His shoes are by the door but every step still sounds like what’s the point? What’s the point? What’s the point in celebrating when he’s lonely at his Tía’s place, no one to make biting comments with that makes the night bearable? Eddie’s stopped turning his head to tell Buck something, forgetting he’s not here, but that doesn’t mean the feeling goes away.Christopher will fall asleep and Eddie will wait for five minutes till midnight to wake him up and Tío Alejandro will make them watch the ball drop. Chris will eat his twelve grapes before diverting back to his grumpy, tired self (although he might insist that he is not tired), and Eddie will give him a laugh because that is definitely his kid. Then, he’ll close his eyes while he leans against Eddie’s leg and Eddie can go back to pretending like something isn’t severely missing. 

-

Surprisingly, it’s Adriana who’s dragging him and Chris out to the front yard. The neighbors set off the fireworks, every year like clockwork, because it will never be done at a Diaz house. For every relative that might want to suggest it, there will be three to snap at you, “Don’t be stupid.” 

A good amount of the adults around him are coupled up, so they’re out here, kissing and proving to the moon how much they love each other. Because his brain hates him, it makes Eddie think of a conversation between him and Buck a few years back. 

Buck’s sliding in so fast next to Eddie on the couch that he almost sits on top of him. He’s got that puppy dog twinkle about him lately, the kind he gets whenever he’s in a relationship, because he loves the fact that someone wants him, no—that he belongs to someone. Even if that person happens to be Taylor Kelly. 

But whatever. Because Buck’s here. With Eddie. His partner, his work partner, but still his partner. Narrowly missing his lap for the couch, looking at him giddy at work where there’s no Taylor Kelly to be seen. Unfortunately, Eddie barely has time to be smug about it before Buck’s saying: 

“I kissed Taylor on New Year’s.” 

Eddie breathes normally. The most his face does is raise a singular eyebrow at Buck. 

To Buck’s credit, fair enough. He’s definitely done more with Taylor in the past, especially now that she’s his girlfriend. Not that Eddie’s heard more than the bare details, which probably isn’t great best friend behavior, but it stops him from saying his real opinion about her, so wouldn’t that really be a testament to Eddie’s best friendship? 

“Wow, moving fast, huh?” 

Buck whines. “Eddie, be serious.” 

“I am!” But Eddie’s smile says otherwise. 

“Come on, Eddie,” Buck nudges him with his elbow. “Don’t you know that superstition?” 

Eddie doesn’t even need to make the face for Buck to know his answer. 

“When you kiss someone on New Year’s, it’s for good luck. Because you want to spend the whole next year with them.”

Buck’s wish ended up coming true. Granted, they should have broken up around month eight and a half, but they lasted a few weeks shy of a year. Buck called it a pretty lousy year. 

Eddie’s never kissed Buck, and he’s certainly never kissed Buck on New Year’s. But they’ve been together for a solid seven years now, and they’ve been some of the best years of Eddie’s life. Of course, that was then. That was before Eddie pushed his son away and had to chase him back to his childhood home. That was before Eddie did what he does best and ruined the best things he could ever have. 

Meanwhile Buck stays in LA, probably at some bar in WeHo or celebrating New Year’s at the Han’s place. He’ll probably be kissing some new face that Eddie’s never met and they’ll spend a lovely new year together, and nothing about Eddie will matter because he’ll simply be too late. He doesn’t know. Lately, it seems like he’s only getting half of Buck’s life in his ears, missing out on anything worthwhile. Everything about Buck is worthwhile. 

There’s a poking in his side, one that hadn’t been there before. Eddie looks down and Chris is already looking up at him. He leans down and hums to let Chris know he’s listening. 

“I miss Buck,” Chris mumbles. 

Eddie sighs and rubs his son’s back unhelpfully. “Yeah. Me too, kiddo.” 

[furorsopher]

realistic “hamilton watches hamilton” 🫡😭

*reanimated/timetraveled AHam on his 10th day alive in 2015, curled up on the couch in LMM’s apartment, hugging a huge dog plushie, watching the 47th documentary (this one is about plato)*

LMM: hey, uh, i’m performing my musical about you tonight… wanna come?

AHam: you said it was like theater, right?

LMM: kinda yeah!

AHam: ah, then i would much rather stay here to learn about these fascinating subjects! these documentaries are incredible… did you know a group of species used to exist called dinosaurs?

LMM: dinosaurs are common knowledge now. are you sure you dont wanna come?

AHam: *eyes still glued to the screen* i have lived my life, dear friend, what point is it to see it again? and i must admit my aversion towards theater and the likes.. i much prefer the peace of the written over the noise of the recited. *a moment of silence*i am sure you have done and excellent job though!

LMM: alright then! you have fun there, i’ll be back around midnight. don’t burn something down…

AHam: yes, yes, hurry, you will run late if you continue to question me like a suspect!

LMM: want me to grab you something from the store while i’m out?

AHam: *holding up an empty packet of liquid IV* could you grab more of this?

LMM: sure *to himself while turning around and walking out the front door* i should be this guy to a doctor

AHam: what was that?

LMM: nothing don’t worry i’m practically gone already! don’t try to touch stuff i haven’t told you what it is yet!

AHam: yes yes hurry already!!!

LMM: fine i’m going, goodness!

— the end

[euphorajeon]

twenty-seven.

You turn twenty-seven this year.

The first time I had known of you, it was from a birthday live in 2015. I clicked on the video randomly, with zero knowledge about you and Bangtan, and I was confused. Why are these boys so loud but not the birthday boy? I didn’t know anyone’s names back then. Didn’t know your personality. Didn’t know how much you’d mean to me in the coming years.

You turn twenty-seven this year.

You were nineteen when I saw you in concert for the first time in my life. Twenty that year, actually, but still nineteen in April—the month of the concert. Your hair was so different back then, the style the one we used to say coconut head, but your smile remains the same. Wide, bright, and the light still reaches your eyes where they twinkle in glee. My memories of that night are a blur—but the brightness of your smile while being on stage, I’ll never forget.

You turn twenty-seven this year.

For the next couple of years, I watched you struggle before my eyes. You used to be so hard on yourself about your performance, crying over a minuscule mistake that no one but you noticed. It was heartbreaking to watch, especially knowing how hard you work for those performances. But over time, I watched you be more gentle towards yourself, now being able to laugh off the mistake that you do on stage. It was nice to see that you’re able to be at peace about those mistakes.

You turn twenty-seven this year.

Over the years, I have watched you go from someone who’s closed off to someone who’s not afraid of showing who you are. You used to hold onto fans’ requests and complaints like a lifeline, thinking they will leave you the second you say no. Now, you just tell those who complain to fuck off. (Not in those words, exactly. You were more gentle. Sorry that I’m not.) Also, this paragraph won’t be complete without mentioning the cursed green dishwashing gloves—that you ditched in favor of short-sleeved t-shirts two years later. Then two years after that, you let us in on the meaning of the art covering your arm. I couldn’t be more proud (and thankful.)

You turn twenty-seven this year.

And yet, your childlike wonder is still intact. For the past few weeks, I watched you feel excited over the smallest bit of things some people find mundane. The snack you’d found in an American supermarket. The kimchi and grilled fish in that Jeju restaurant. That climbing place that has you jumping around in joy. It’s refreshing to see you enjoy those small things, makes me feel like it wouldn’t take a lot to be happy. I hope you stay happy like this every day (even when Jimin scolds you for running around the supermarket searching for guacamole and tortilla chips instead of the sponge you initially planned to get.)

You turn twenty-seven today.

I hope your smile never dims. I hope your happiness doesn’t falter. I hope you have a great time today. I hope you know that we’re still here, staying with you, holding your hand, even when you’re currently away. We’ll never let go.

Happy twenty-seventh birthday, Jeongguk.

september 1st, 2024.

a/n: it's a veryveryvery late post but still, happy 27th birthday, ggukie!

masterlist

[colonna-durruti]

Carlo Rovelli

In 1999, NATO bombed Belgrade for 78 days with the goal of breaking Serbia apart and giving rise to an independent Kosovo, now home to a major NATO base in the Balkans.

In 2001, the US invaded Afghanistan, leading to 200,000 people killed, a country devastated and no political result whatsoever.

In 2002, the US unilaterally withdrew from the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty over Russia’s strenuous objections, dramatically increasing the nuclear risk.

In 2003, the US and NATO allies repudiated the UN Security Council by going to war in Iraq on false pretenses. Iraq is now devastated, no real political pacification has been achieved and the elected parliament has a pro-Iran majority.

In 2004, betraying engagements, the US continued with NATO enlargement, this time to the Baltic States and countries in the Black Sea region (Bulgaria and Romania) and the Balkans.

In 2008, over Russia’s urgent and strenuous objections, the US pledged to expand NATO to Georgia and Ukraine. �

In 2011, the US tasked the CIA to overthrow Syria’s Bashar al-Assad, an ally of Russia. Syria is devastated by war. No political gain achieved for the US.

In 2011, NATO bombed Libya in order to overthrow Moammar Qaddafi. The country, that was prosperous, peaceful, and stable, is now devastated, in civil war, in ruin.

In 2014, the US conspired with Ukrainian nationalist forces to overthrow Ukraine’s President Viktor Yanukovych. The country is now in a bitter war.

In 2015, the US began to place Aegis anti-ballistic missiles in Eastern Europe (Romania), a short distance from Russia.

In 2016-2020, the US supported Ukraine in undermining the Minsk II agreement, despite its unanimous backing by the UN Security Council. The country is now in a bitter war.

In 2021, the new Biden Administration refused to negotiate with Russia over the question of NATO enlargement to Ukraine, prompting the invasion.

In April 2022, the US called on Ukraine to withdraw from peace negotiations with Russia. The result is the useless prolongation of war, with more territory gained by Russia.

After the fall of the Soviet Union, the US sought and until today is seeking, without succeeding, and constantly failing, a unipolar world led by a hegemonic US, in which Russia, China, Iran and other great nations have to be subservient.

In this US-led world order (this is the phrase commonly used in the US), the US and the US alone has determine the utilization of the dollar-based banking system, the placement of overseas US military bases, the extent of NATO membership, and the deployment of US missile systems, without any veto or say by other countries.

This arrogant foreign policy has led to constant war, countries devastated, millions killed, a widening rupture of relations between the US-led bloc of nations -a small minority in the planet and now not even anymore economically dominating- and the rest of the world, a global skyrocketing of military expenses, and is slowly leading us towards WWIII.

The wise, decade-long, European effort to engage Russia and China into a strategical economical and political collaboration, enthusiastically supported by the Russian and Chinese leadership, has been shattered by the ferocious US opposition, worried that this could have undermined the US dominance.

Is this the world we want?

[batsplat]

Vale's long-time mechanic Alex Briggs agrees that his rider was let down by his inner circle. "My feeling is that the Yamaha team's press group let him down," said Briggs. "They never asked him what he was going to say in the press conference at Sepang. Or what are you doing with this paperwork? Because he had some time sheets as ammo. I think it all could've been stopped, because they knew to a degree something was going to happen." Briggs has vivid memories of that season. “I thought Valentino was going to win it - I thought we were good enough.” However, Briggs noticed that Vale did change during 2015. “Towards the end of the season he got very concerned with everything, he was trying to control everything. I remember the last few races he wanted War and Peace on the pit-board - he wanted to know who was behind him, how many people were behind him, the groups and so on. I don’t think you need all that - just look in front! “I think part of it was that there were a few people around him that were a bit weaker than him, like the crew chief and the Italians in the team had become a bit ‘yessy’. “I think he would’ve been better off just riding. Things got a little bit cloudy and he wasn’t quite as, I don’t know… It’s like when you’re playing golf; if you’re in the middle of your backswing and you start thinking about what you’re doing, you’re not being instinctive.”

Mat Oxley’s Valentino Rossi: All His Races

[sharonccrter]

I was and always will be a one direction fan. Liam was (I hate saying was.. fuck) my favorite. I was around 11 or 12 years old (in 2011) when I first discovered one direction and so I literally spent my teenage years growing up with the boys. Their impact was huge. Towards the end of 2015 and in 2016 when they started their hiatus I guess I was listening to different music and honestly just growing up i guess. Not to say I didn't still love or listen to 1D I definitely did but I didn't spend time on fandom Twitter or Tumblr anymore (which naturally means you drift from what's going on). When they released their solo work I heard strip that down/polaroid and a few others I think and it wasn't the music genre I was listening to at the time. My regret is not listening to the rest of Liam's music that I would have resonated more with. He deserved better. The last few weeks I had seen so much hate towards him which I didn't understand. None of it to do with Maya. It was all about how cringe or attention seeking he was. Heard of the Logan Paul interview (fuck him) and all the hate Liam was getting for that. I was disappointed he said the things he did but it wasn't coming from a place of malice, he was suffering. We all say things we don't mean when we are suffering.

I'm sad and angry and heartbroken. Liam deserved more. I hope he's at peace and in heaven.

I think it's unfortunate that Liam didn't have a good, solid team around him when he first went solo. It's not that I didn't like Strip That Down, but I don't think that should have been his sound completely. Yes, come out with that right away - but then tone it down. Teardrops and his unreleased stuff sound way more like the sort of stuff Liam should have been doing from the get-go. And I think that comes down to not having a good mentor or team/label guiding him.

Then there is obviously the fans, I wish they'd turned up before. Teardrops has been out for a while; what do you mean, you think it's great now? Not to mention that the majority of the 1D fandom just didn't turn up for his solo stuff.

Here's the thing about the Logan Paul interview: maybe he said it in the wrong way. But it truly wasn't that bad. And if Harry had said the exact same thing, there would be no backlash. If Zayn had said it, there would have been no backlash. That's the reality. It's because he wasn't most people's favourite. So they weren't prepared to give him the grace they gave the others. It was very obvious to me back then that he was not doing well.

There's no point in rewriting history, what's done is done at this point. We can't change it. There's no going back. Try not to be too hard on yourself.

[bones4thecats]

Shadow Raker x Fembot spider reader, both are Conjux, the reader has the same personality as her and acted like a mother towards Slipstream and Jetstrom, the reader always told them that stealing is good, on earth she is also upset with Drift for taking Slipstream and Jetstrom, also that Shadow Raker and Reader were Airachnid's parents, (I have a Headcanons that Shadow Raker is Airachnid's father and I had to say it)

Shadow Raker's F! S/O Being A 🕷️Mother

Characters: Shadow Raker Requester: @zinnia1506 A/N: PEOPLE GIVE THIS GUY SOME LOVE. HE MAY BE A MANIPULATIVE ASSHOLE, BUT HE'S A LOVEABLE ONE. ⚠️ Spoilers/Trigger Warnings for: War, insinuated horrible parenting/teaching, kidnapping, and fighting. Also, spoilers for Robots in Disguise (2015) S3 Ep9 ⚠️

╔══════════════════════════════════════════╗

╚═════ Shadow Raker ═══════════════════════════╝

🗡️ As fellow Mentors to many young Cybertronians, you and Shadow Raker began your friendship fairly early, specifically just before the war began

🗡️ When it started, the two of you and your students were affiliated with the 'Cons, before leaving the planet to find some more prizes you could come across. Whether it be another student or a thing, living or not, worthy of a cost

🗡️ It took quite a while before you actually bonded, since you had high demands to meet with making sure your students stayed in line with your ideals. But, once bonded, the others could tell you two were far from easy when it came to harming the other. Even if someone tried to touch your shoulder in reassurance, Shadow Raker would be right there, glaring at whomever it was, student or not

🗡️ Once again, it was a while before you became a Carrier and he a Sire. Your sparkling, whom you named Airachnid, was destined to be just as 'amazing' as you both. Maybe she would even lead her own group of students. Highly unlikely, but still

🗡️ In honor of yours and Shadow's closest student, you nicknamed Deadlock, now known as Drift, the 'older brother' of the young spider 'Con

🗡️ Unfortunately, the peaceful life you both lead went to Hell when Deadlock ran off with the two minicons that Shadow Raker was teaching and you were practically raising alongside Airachnid

🗡️ You were pissed when he left. It wasn't that much earlier that your child had left the ship in pursuit of her own life during the war, heading more towards Megatron than her parents did. And you were proud, but got even worse when you lost all contact with her

🗡️ So, having the only two beings that could've come close to replacing the female just get taken and cut off from you got you to the brink of insanity. Thankfully for you, Shadow Raker pledged he would find the boys and bring them back, dealing a proper punishment for the egregious actions taken by Deadlock

🗡️ Searching for the minicons and older one took far longer than anticipated. And in that time, you were made aware of Airachnid's banishment for attempting a mutiny against Megatron not once, but multiple times, and you were appalled. How did you raise that beast?! You taught her to always succeed, failure was never allowed

🗡️ Shadow Raker, during your search, was your only consultant, since the rest of your students had either left your holds and passed, or had just been gone after being called upon by another high-ranking commander in the cause

🗡️ As you landed on Earth and came across the trio of brightly-colored bots, you were shocked to see how different they looked. Drift was far more emotionally attached than you believed, and the boys were so, so much more vulnerable than how they were with you

"Deadlock, my boy, do please allow us to raise the boys once again. Come now, we were the ones who practically raised you to be what you are. You can't hate us now because you side with those brainwashed and corrupt hierarchy Autobots." You said, a memory of picking the then youthful Deadlock up from the ashes of the self-destructing planet.

"My name is not Deadlock, Y/N. And the Autobots do not believe in such a horrific cause. They believe in justice and honesty, in the name of not a tyrannical and energon-thirsty mech, but a honor-filled and benevolent leader. And you did not raise me into what I am now. You made me into a monster, I made myself into a being deserving of two well-meaning students."

🗡️ Shadow Raker cocked an eyebrow and laughed before declaring a punishment was well-earned in the fake scenario he was placing in your children's mindsets

🗡️ As the past mentor and student fought, you aimed for your boys. Allowing yourself to become the form similar to your daughter's and picked them up with webbing around them, keeping them balled up before they could hit your Conjunx

"Now, now, Jetstorm and Slipstream. I'm sure you two will be right at home back on Mother's ship, right?"

"You are not their Mother!"

"Oh, do hush up, Deadlock. You know how much the two matter to Y/N. Wouldn't want to hurt her feelings, now would we?"

I'm to lazy to write the rest of the episode, but the rundown is that Shadow Raker and the Reader escaped onto their ship before being arrested and put into a stasis pod. So, in the end their whereabouts and unknown and the trio of boys get closer than before! Cute I know~

Also, this is how I imagined the reader looking like (credits to art_retr0 on Twitter/X or retr0inactive on Instagram)

[23fallencomets]

📓

Hey, here's a fun new game. Put "📓" or some other version of a book emoji into my inbox and I'll explain the plot of a fanfiction that I haven't written but daydream about.

A sargebon zombie apocalypse au except it’s in the aftermath of everything.

logan and alex had survived the five out of six~ years of the apocalypse together. logan was actually with oscar for the first year but had been brutally separated when their camp was overran by a horde.

the two found each other and survived, and had even fallen in love while on the move. by the fourth year of the apocalypse, most of the zombies had died out with one or two occasionally being seen, but the world was more or less free of zombies.

on what should have been a routine trip became a nightmare for both when logan gets kidnapped and alex can’t find him for roughly two years and in that time he finds a refuge (the grid basically) and they take him in.

alex never gives up looking for him even if the others believe it’s a lost cause except oscar. a friendship blooms between the two when they realize that oscar’s logan is the same as alex’s.

one night, the refuge (which is not evil i promise they’re just sort of desperate to get humanity back on track) bring out a group of people they had captured a while back and the group itself was pretty violent (with good reason) and threatened to upset the peace they had so desperately needed.

alex was never really interested in these sort of events but something made him watch and he’s watching the marshals (because the marshals are sort of like the police, hospital personnel, public service workers, the stewards being the government personnel you get the gist) drag this group and line them up.

it’s then that he notices logan, and he’s beat up and leaning heavily against one of the guys. he’s already moving towards him as the public calls for their execution (because you gotta do what you gotta do) and he’s screaming logan’s name.

it sends everything kinda into a frenzy as alex puts himself in between logan and the marshal as he begs for logan’s life. it causes the founders of the refuge (in my mind it’s lewis and like half of the 2015 f1 grid, why? idk either) to intervene.

everything works out and logan gets to recover from the last two years of being in another refuge ran by someone whose names rhymes with bowels

slight sub-plot being that they only get caught because logan refused to leave the william junior academy drivers (lia, franco, luke, zak)