#almost grammy worthy even.

[ihophashbrowns]

YESSS YESS ITS SO GOOD 🫶🏾🥹 EVERYTHING ABOUT IT IS PERFECT

[pinkwright]

in pieces | shuri udaku.

◘ rapper/producer!shuri udaku x fem!singer/director!reader

��ӜƷ

trope – strangers 2 enemies 2 friends 2 lovers

inspo — in pieces by chlöe.

series warnings — mean!shuri, cold!reader, reader is rlly soft in love, her ex is all she's ever known so pls be gentle w her, toxic relationships, crybaby!reader, insults, gaslighting, yall the exes face claim is brent faiyaz LMFAO (i dont keep up w men so he was the first name to pop up), touchy!shuri, reader folds so bad so easily lol, cheating, reader is petty, relapses in judgement, reader is fucking talented, smitten shuri, vv soft but only later lol, reader can get bitchy, shuri rlly gets under her skin, bitter n spiteful reader, reader's manager is so tired of them, reader has her public persona nailed down, ppl rarely ever see the real her, t'challa is alive but their parents aren't, kissing, crying, dirty talk, strap slinger!shuri, fingering, thigh riding, smau elements, studio sessions, cunnilingus, taunting, edging, slut-shaming, possessive!shuri, sub!reader, dom!shuri, the media loves to dawg on reader for nothing, cursing, humiliation kink, bratty!reader, needy!reader, desperation, sexual identity crisis, patient!shuri, shuri likes to push ppl away, mentions of marriage/engagements, alcohol, anxiety, panic attacks, manipulation, clubbing, might have an open ending idk, there's probs more but oh well.

a/n — i have so many ideas dropping consecutively my bad yall LMFAO anyway this is my first series, n um im nervous badd but we move, i rlly like this idea and the skeleton of it so hopefully it comes off the way i would like it to so my perfectionist spirit can smile LMFAO (i find myself so funny sorry), anyway here’s the masterlist before i ramble more <3

dedications — @zayswriting – i’ve always avoided writing series (hence how i came up w sets LOL) but zay’s my inspo for series like that’s her shit so while the notion is still kinda daunting, she makes me feel like i can try to tackle it at least. @mbakuetshurisprincess constantly revising ur masterlist bc ur pen is just brilliant, u were also a huge inspo in getting me to write a series n u influence my version of shuri a lot. then a few people i admire that keep me posting n make me wanna improve; @saintwrld @vixentheplanet @verachii @naomis-daydream @marsolgy @inmyheadimobsessed <3

oke, that's the end of the sappiness.

⟢˚ @letitias-fav @barkbarkbo @shurismainbxtch @rxcently @shuriszn @lppriceisright @golooktheotherway @motheroffae @vampzxi @mysticalmarss @abenomeiiii @6-noir @izrinmabel1 @vexoshuri @ilovelulu @sookiesookie @ziayamikaelson @sapphicvqmpires @locoforshuri @ventingfanfics @melanated-queens @cuddl3s4shur1

ஜ.

no matter how many times i break, i put myself back together every damn time. oh, mm, can i be honest with you?

y/n l/n, a hyper-pop sensation that is at an all-time high in her career; her two-time grammy winning album, above her oscar-nominated directing debut cemented her as a force to be reckoned with, both in the music and film industry. and soon, in a swoon-worthy show of romance, she's flaunting an envy-worthy diamond ring graciously accompanied by a viral proposal from high school sweetheart and renowned artist, christopher brent wood.

engaged and flourishing, her world is almost too perfect to be true, tainted by the pink shades of blinding love that soon violently shatter at the hands of the only love she's ever known, the fractals painfully littering her being; heavy fragments that she can't seem to even begin piecing together.

in a battle of identity, self-expression, independence, and rebirth; the international superstar finds herself in a back-and-forth battle with herself and the people around her, finding that the dark pit she falls into, may not solely be the demise of her fairytale, but also the fall of the y/n l/n that the public came to know over the years; the catalyst to the redemption arc in finding who she really is, the girl she buried years ago.

⊱ ───── .✶˖⋆࿐ ──── ⊰

➺ CHAPTERS LIST.

[ characters ]

prologue : someone’s calling (chlöe)

— after a lengthy hiatus of absolute silence, y/n drops an ominous track w an even more intriguing visualizer, unrecognizable from her usual sweet hyper pop princess look n sound, n the internet wilds; the rebrand peaking an important person's interest.

...coming soon

one : pray it away

— after facing public humiliation from a cheating scandal that had put y/n in the spotlight she comes back into the spotlight w a haunting single n performance that sparks large controversy along with its acclaim; she meets a certain face that she sasses off too in response to her attitude.

...coming soon

two : body do

— after announcing the drop of her debut album y/n is set on a artist rebrand n her manager knows just the person; so she meets world renowned director/producer shuri udaku who directs her visualiser n the bad blood cause tension to spill.

...coming soon

three : i don’t mind + worried

— y/n l/n new maneater cutthroat persona has the internet fawning over her so imagine their shock when she shows up to the grammys w the same man that was the driving factor to her vicious rebrand n shuri gets a glimpse into the real personality behind the scrutinised pop sensation.

...coming soon

four : for the night

— a glimpse into shuri’s true thoughts about the girl she swears she can’t stand.

...coming soon

five : make it look easy

— when y/n finally tackles the song she couldn't face, the internet starts to rethink their view on the girl they've scrutinised n criticised for the entirety of her career n shuri finds it harder to cut deeper into the broken-down girl.

...coming soon

six : looze u

— y/n can’t stop the flood of emotions that overtake her when she confronts the man who broke her heart, opening the floor for hurtful truths n violent words that leave her reeling in her memories.

...coming soon

seven : told ya + cheatback

— the officially single superstar thinks she deserves a night out seeing as her album debut draws nearer by the day, n the fun night out has surprising outcomes.

...coming soon

eight : heart on my sleeve

– when shuri spits her meanest words yet to the softening star, y/n finds herself pathetically adding a track to her album minutes before its release, much to her fans’ concern n the producer feels stuck in limbo.

...coming soon

epilogue : in pieces

— while the successful album drop feels like a weight lifted off of her chest especially w/ an upcoming oscar performance; she can’t help but find the weight replaced by a certain pretty-eyed producer. 

...coming soon

⊱ ───── .✶˖⋆࿐ ──── ⊰

hold me when, hold me when i'm in pieces.

ஜ.

[foreveralwaysanauthor]

I know it’s been a while and I really didn’t want it to be this long, but here I am. A lot has happened in the last few weeks and, to summarize it all, it’s taken a lot out of me. I wanted to have everything done and be able to move onto the Hocus Pocus AU, but honestly, I haven’t even finished the halfway point of the final Camp Wanamaker chapter. I definitely still want to write it, but with October being halfway over already, it feels as though pushing it to next year might be the easiest option (though I would love nothing more than to jump into it right now haha). Anyway, I feel as though I should sort of explain why I’ve been so distant in everything, especially my writing, but it’s sort of taken a lot out of me to write it all out. I do apologize in advance for being sort of blunt; I haven’t really been taking the time to process my own emotions lately and it shows.

For starters, my grandma’s step-mom, my Great-Grammy Donna, passed away. At 94 years old, she was still doing fairly well health-wise and keeping things as interesting as possible. She was creative, always spoke her mind, and, although we weren’t technically blood relatives, I felt just as close to her as everyone else. Her house was home to everyone and she made sure that you never left her house hungry or wanting for anything. She always loved it when my mom and I visited and promised to one day teach me how to make proper Polish food, though we never got the chance. Honestly, she partially inspired me to write Vivien’s Nonna Dawn and I made their personalities fairly similar, which made it really hard to think about writing her character at all lately.

On top of that, my car was having some pretty serious - and rather expensive - issues. In total, I would have had to pay at least 3 grand out of pocket to get it all fixed. Due to being from a family full of mechanics, I managed to find a quick fix for some of it, but the car needs to be road-worthy by the end of November and I don’t have the money for it all right now, so it looks as though I’ll have to just bite the bullet and buy a used car before then. I’m holding out hope that something road-worthy will come along soon, but until then, I’ve at least got my old minivan.

Now, I’ve been working on seeing the good in things lately and one of the few bits of good news I have right now, is that my mom and I have been working out more to get ourselves out of depression. It’s been working pretty well so far. I’ve lost almost 30 pounds and dropped a size, which feels great. As I am pretty tall, my weight is more evenly distributed, but I’m still hoping to be down to my goal weight by my birthday, if not sooner. It’ll be a lot of work, but I’m determined and it’s helping me get into a better head space, which is a bonus, if you ask me.

Anyway, I’m hoping to finish the chapter soon and, if I feel up to it, maybe work on the Hocus Pocus AU. I am still determined to finish this last chapter, but I’m definitely ready to move on as I really want to get into the storylines I’ve been practically dangling in front of my face like a carrot. It might take me a while as I work through things, but I want to make sure I take my time and have things come out the way I would like them to. I don’t want to half-ass anything or give you a cruddy chapter! So, yeah, that’s where I’m at with everything and I hope to get back to writing/posting more soon!

In the meantime, I’ve made my Pinterest boards for Melaka Mystica (Hocus Pocus AU) and True Colors (The Last Of Us AU2) available. There may be other boards making appearances sooner or later as I try to figure out what to write next, but for now, that’s all I’ve got for you. I hope you enjoy them at least a little!

[rosietrace]

Melodic Misconceptions 🎹

Track 19: Filler yet again but there's a little Yuren so 👁️👁️

Synopsis: Victoria Shard was a former member of the popular idol group [ Poisoner ] from NRC corporations. After discourse with her group leader, Victoria decided it was best for her to leave and pursue her solo career in a record label run by her parents.

It had been half a year since her separation from her old group, and Victoria had never been more successful. But now she has a new problem. She must return to NRC corporations in order to mentor the seven idol groups.

Ellis Clawthorne is a member of [ (Co)-connect ] the most recent group under NRC'S belt. With no experience as an idol, Ellis must persevere in order to succeed and pursue her dreams.

Will both girls be able to adapt to their current situations?

✐ ✎_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_✐ ✎

Author's note: BAM. NEW TRACK (⁠｡⁠•̀⁠ᴗ⁠-⁠)⁠✧

I mean, sure, it's filler. But I kinda wanted to rest easy before the rest of the plot progresses, y'know?

On the other hand, I blame the "Melodic Misconceptions 🎹" discord server for making me so obsessed with Yuren 😭 Y'all have got me in a chokehold when it comes to Yuren-

Also, woo! A small glimpse of Zen and Ellis's podcast! I'm probably gonna try and do a couple segments that feature moments like that ^^

Anyway, I'mma continue revamping the SHI staff's profiles-

But other than that, please enjoy this track! Reblogs are recommended though :') gotta help out a fellow writer-

──ㅇ─────↻ ◁ II ▷ ↺───ㅇ────

"Saw your music video, and was unsurprisingly impressed."

Victoria let out a hum, gently smiling at Circe."Thank you… It seems you and Jiyoon share the same thought." She commented, making him smile a little more.

Circe chuckled."Can you blame us? That song's Grammy-worthy material." He sent her an encouraging smile that was enough to widen her ghostlike one.

"I see…."

"Anyway, I saw those posts Zenith made about you and… A certain actor."

She inhaled, knowing where the conversation was going. Circe put down his guitar and sat a little closer to Victoria.

"...."

"Listen, I'm not judging you based on the kind of guys you're seeing, but-"

"Eh? Whatever do you mean?"

Circe deadpanned at her."Vic, I'm not gonna be rude here, but your chemistry with Aguri Harper is a little too strong. It's almost unsettling."

She squinted her eyes."Circe, don't get the wrong idea…" she murmured in response.

"I'm trying, but it's kinda hard not to assume you're in a relationship with that guy." He bit his inner lip in irritation.

Victoria sighed softly, gently ruffling his hair."I can assure you that I don't have that kind of relationship with Aguri." She promised. Circe couldn't help but notice her smile.

It became even more ghostlike. Almost invisible.

He smiled awkwardly, looking away."Right…. We'll just disregard the fact that you're on a first-name basis-"

"Circe!"

"Pffft-"

──ㅇ─────↻ ◁ II ▷ ↺───ㅇ─��──

Mayuu hummed proudly, satisfied with the success of her mentor's music video. She knew she didn't need to worry since she isn't Victoria's manager, but she couldn't help but want to support her nonetheless.

Yuuta snickered, playfully leaning his head against Miren's shoulder. The latter sent him a bewildered look."Looks like Mayuu's in a good mood~" Yuuta said.

Carol didn't bat an eye, refusing to look away from her book."Can you blame her? Any type of success for our group would be able to put Mayuu in a good mood." She replied emotionlessly, continuing to read her book.

Yuuta shrugged lazily, scrolling through Twitter before he frowned."I think we gotta start deleting the hate comments…" he muttered.

Miren raised a brow and looked at the contents of Yuuta's phone. Not long after, he frowned as well. Albeit with an irritated expression.

"I agree…."

Mayuu sighed."I'll take care of that issue. In the meantime, you all rest up before our next charity concert in the next couple of weeks." She pushed up her glasses, beginning to type in her phone.

"But on the other hand…" she sent Yuuta a look of disapproval."Stop flirting with Miren on Twitter. We don't need any rumors swirling around…"

Yuuta gave her an amused smirk."Can't help it, little miss manager. He's just too cute~" he teased, giving Miren a wink.

Ignoring his words, Chizuko looked around."Huh…. Where's Ellis?" She asked, expecting no answer.

Juvia walked inside, still in her pajamas."Oh, she's hosting a podcast with Mr. Zenith…" she quickly answered, walking into the kitchen for a cup of hot cocoa.

Carol huffed."Let's hope things aren't too chaotic…"

Yuuta rolled his eyes, leaning against Miren's shoulder once more and holding him affectionately.

"We can't guarantee that, Miss Ann.."

──ㅇ─────↻ ◁ II ▷ ↺───ㅇ────

Ellis cackled from the unexpected yet utterly hilarious joke Zen cracked.

"Hahaha! True, I couldn't help but find Carol running into a wall while reading, a bit amusing too!"

"Hehe, see?"

Zen leaned against his hand, giving Ellis a playful grin and a peace sign. To which Ellis responded with a heart sign.

She liked the podcast. Very much, actually. It felt nice to have a sort of side career aside from being an idol.

Being a podcaster made her feel a little free. To express herself more widely while discussing topics that she's always wanted to talk about. Even if they were a little odd.

Hell, Ellis loved being a podcaster. She just holds back her neverending joy about being one.

As Zen ended the podcast from there, he sent Ellis a happy-go-lucky-looking grin. And she easily sent him an equally playful smile.

Zen snickered."I'm liking this podcast thing so far. I could get used to this!" He exclaimed.

Ellis nodded, equally as enthused."Mhm! It's only been a week since we first started this weekly podcast, and I already love it." She commented, taking off her headphones and preparing to leave the room.

After picking up his phone, Zen sighed almost dramatically."We gotta hurry, though… Mayuu's gonna scold us for not coming back after our usual curfew.."

Ellis snorted."True- But other than that, I can't wait for our next podcast together!!" She cheered, fighting back the urge to jump up and down in a sort of childish manner.

Zen felt a pleasant smile grace his face.

"Yeah…. Can't wait to continue working with ya, Ellis~!!"

──ㅇ─────↻ ◁ II ▷ ↺───ㅇ────

Tagging:

@starry-night-rose @windbornearchon @nem0-nee @fumikomiyasaki @sakuramidnight15 @authoruio @geminiiviolets @knights-escort @twsted-princess

[causesciencethatswhy]

“There's no 'objectively bad song' in the realm of music. Taste in music will always be subjective."

Hard disagree. Of course there’s objectivity in what’s qualitative and what it’s not, this everything-is-subjective-everything-worths-the-same ongoing debate makes no sense to me. A piece of a Mozart’symphony is objectively better than Baby by Justin Bieber, Miles Davis’s masterpieces are objectively better than most random summer hits we hear these days and I could go on forever.

Now taste is another discussion here. You can like whatever you like, it doesn’t have much to do with quality unless you’re a purist. I personally really like Seven and have listened to it a lot because it makes me in a good mood but in terms of quality, it just doesn’t compare to other releases from BTS and Jungkook himself. BTS discography isn’t equal quality either, some pieces are just meh or bad and don’t work and won’t be reminded, while others are objectively good in terms of lyrics, flow, depths, beats, etc etc.

There’s objectivity in quality, there’s objectivity in beauty. Attractiveness/taste though, vary from person to person.

I think this is a really interesting point of view. I'll still would disagree, but you have raised a fair argument.

To me what we confer to be objectively good 'quality' in 'music' and 'beauty' is informed by our tastes to a certain degree.

Even when we look at institutions like the Grammys, they were at least till a certain point in time, considered the highest conferers of quality in music, because they awarded people on the basis of this so called 'objectivity in music ' and not just popularity. That is until more people understood that this entire perception was skewed, because the idea that a commitee of people, considered to be educated in the "intricate notes and qualities" that made music 'grammy worthy' , were inherently biased due to their own experiences and exposures ( considering how a majority of them were white upper class men) and how they could in no way gauge the pulse of the changing trends in music in any way that can be considered 'objective'.

It's why poc artists as big as Beyonce still get snubbed in the major nomination categories because the people behind the scenes have their own prejudices that affect their perception of 'quality' in music.

Though of course you were not talking about the grammys, I feel like they're a good starting point to dissect why conversations around how to be 'objective' in gauging any piece of art are almost bound to fall apart.

It's not to say, that all songs ever produced are always good or something because some person out there likes it, because of course there are songs that most people would just consider noise music more than anything else.

However, I think the discourse that is so hellbent on painting Seven of not good 'quality' is skewed by people's own preference. Just because a song has a simpler structure and composition, doesn't mean that it was lazily put together to manufacture a pop song. This is still not an easy feat to reproduce. Often times you can have all the right components to create a hit and the song would still not take off. The fact that Seven has does say that it has something going for it that even locals are streaming it.

Even what you said about there being objectivity in 'beauty' is something I would disagree with, because whether we realize it or not , what we consider objectively beautiful is often defined by the standards of what is considered 'beautiful' in our society, and often that standard comes with a pretty nasty history lesson attached. Colourism as it exists in most parts of the world, is guided by euro centric beauty standards where people with lighter skin would be considered 'objectively prettier' by default.

But coming back to music, the reason why 'objectively low quality' as a concept is something that irks me is because like the examples you gave of great musicians like Mozart or Miles Davis, they not only have the advantage of time to establish their craft and music as 'legendary' and 'the standard', but they both fall into the genre of music that most people today would already consider as high brow, even if it may not always have the case. (This is not to say that both musicians haven't created absolutely incredible and beautiful compositions of music, just that the comparison itself is lacking nuance)

Pop music, literally means popular music. People were convinced at one point in time that Brittney spears made bad pop music purely because the songs were considered low brow and 'lacking real substance'. Today, most people would agree that she's made some decade defining bops.

What was once considered low quality pop is now a classic of the 90s, because most discussions around 'low quality' in music are defined by people's tastes and biases.

I think especially with people who enjoy pop music, they often feel this need to apologize for it, and go "I swear I'm not stereotypical" or "I also listen to *insert niche artist*, so I'm not basic". Even as a kpop fan, I've seen people feel embarrassed because people tend to look down on kpop as something of lesser quality , against the standard that western music has set and often call it 'cookie cutter' music, which I'm sure you too would disagree with.

So my answer to all of this in the most convulated reply possible is, that our perception of what we consider objectively 'high' quality is inherently flawed. People who Diss on seven for being 'an objectively low quality' song , need to find a better way to express that it's just simply not their cup of tea.

Maybe accept that they let their own distaste against pop music and jungkook's achievements, as well as their intense bias for one member affect their perception of the song and stop using the 'it's simply low quality and unworthy of it's achievements' as a deflection.

[sophism84]

It’s funny when you trade paint with someone. You tell them what they need to hear, advice they need, metaphors they need, you give them everything you can give them in the moment. You don’t ask for anything back, accept to push them off another year. Cause you know they don’t really love you, they only care about their career.

The thing that annoys me the most. When you have money, you can hide. You can lock yourself away in a castle and no one can see or hear from you again. You have choices.

And then there’s the rest of us. Who have to wake up and show up everyday. We don’t get to hide, we don’t get to decide who sees us when. We’re out here everyday.

The thing that bothers me the most about most of these trading paint situations. Is it’s never enough. They’re always checking up on you. Wanting another lyric, more advice, they want to remember what it was like. It’s never enough. You could give until you had not a thing left. They would just ask anyway.

Take, they will just come back to take more. It’s exhausting. When all you wanna do is just be free of them.

Have you gotten enough? Have you picked over my soul with a fine tooth comb? You want me to help you find your sound? Okay I did, Oh shit look at you now! Selling out stadiums huh?

Oh it leaked? you don’t know what to do!? You’re freaking out? Well I was there, Well now you have a Grammy shut your fukcing mouth.

God damn and I was there wasn’t I? Just at the right time. After car accidents getting my car fixed, in my apartment on a messaging app, at the art show and you brought your car and all your friends, on the beach before or after I died it’s blurry, on the beach again talking about surfboards, at a thrift shop where I never go so I could point to something, by the vape shop where your dog almost ate my kids. Every. Fucking time, I’m just living my life! And you want me to scrape the vin number off? Wtf is a vin number!?

This stuff will only make sense to the people it’s about. If they even read it.

But fuck.

Like you have everything. Find someone else to take from.

Fuck hell for once why don’t you try reaching out to someone? Be for them what I was to you?

Get on your knees pray like I did. No I didn’t pray for this all specifically to happen.

I prayed god would direct my steps and give me divine appts to talk into peoples lives. Cause mine was so bleak, I needed light at the end of my tunnel.

But mostly

I’m just living my life.

I did not cause any of these interactions. They happened. Because apparently god has a fucking plan.

But don’t come fucking ask me.

I’m so sick of it.

I want something genuine I can find. Something that sweeps my soul away. I wanna have had no hand in it. I want no knowledge of anything before I find it. Everything that is anything is worth fighting for. But I’m so bewildered I can’t even pick up my sword.

I wanna scream.

I would gladly go to my forever sleep if I could erase me from your memory. I’m pissed, I don’t feel you’re worthy to remember me. I don’t think it’s fair all those times I yelled advice at you when you were too deaf to hear, and all you could do was do you.

All the times I could’ve saved you from yourself. But you wanted to be bigger than you could conceive. An ego so hungry the buffet just wasn’t enough.

It’s frustrating to try to live your life so quietly and still managing to be so loud. A bull in a china shop, not proud.

It makes me wanna build something beautiful just to set it on fire.

[crjupdates]

How Carly Rae Jepsen Found Strength And Freedom With New Album 'The Loneliest Time': "It's Surrendering To Everything"

On her fifth album, 'The Loneliest Time,' Carly Rae Jepsen dances her way through the "hard-hitting lessons" of life — celebrating growth as both a person and an artist.

Grammys • Lior Phillips • Oct. 20, 2022 • Photos: Meredith Jenks

"Rather than free falling, I'm free-flying," Carly Rae Jepsen says, the warmth of that untethered freedom radiating in her smile. That artistic liberty fuels the pop star's fifth studio LP, The Loneliest Time. 

The album weaves in and out of pure danceable joy, but with the lyrical prowess of a pop artist who has fully embraced every emotion she feels — even if it doesn't spawn a feel-good earworm. With a catalog full of delightful hits like "I Really Like You," "Run Away With Me," and "Call Me Maybe," Jepsen felt it was time to stop trying to figure out her place in the greater pop landscape and just chase the songs that felt right in the moment — and that felt true to herself.

But thanks to Jepsen's pop genius, The Loneliest Time still brims with memorable hooks and candid emotional resonance. There's the sweet and earthy "Western Wind" and the sincere soft folk of "Go Find Yourself or Whatever." Add in the epic title track's expansive disco strings and sloping melody, and it feels as if Jepsen has explored the full spectrum of both pop music and human nature.

"I feel a little less constrained by this idea of what type of pop I'm making," Jepsen says with a calm certainty. "My loneliness made me do some of the bravest and craziest and wildest things of my life. And I loved the reactions that it caused, because they're so dramatic, and I felt it was worthy of an album." 

With The Loneliest Time, Jepsen isn't denying or rejecting her past, nor is she ignoring it. This isn't Carly Rae Jepsen reinvented, it's Carly Rae Jepsen in this moment. That's a powerful step for any artist in pop, a genre prone to pigeonholing stars, especially after a runaway hit.

Ahead of the album's release, Jepsen spoke with GRAMMY.com about the emotionally empowering process of The Loneliest Time, maturing as a pop star, and building genuine longevity.

Do you have any tricks for keeping yourself focused and healthy on tour? Personally, I now judge my day by how much water I've had.

So funny, this age that we're in. We've started so many different clubs on this tour. One is Book Club, where we all get ourselves scooched together reading on the bus. We wanna read Dracula for Halloween month!

We also started this thing with me and Josephine, my glam girl, Scott, our merch guy, and Chris, our tour manager, called Water Club. When we see each other we're like, "Have a water". We literally are just helping each other stay hydrated on the road. What does that say about touring in your thirties, that we started a group called The Water Club? 

I can only imagine that reflecting on and comparing to how you toured in your twenties is an interesting experience for you. 

I've always felt a little like I'm floundering in the good graces of some luck that came my way. That "Where am I?" energy is always with me. But I do feel like this era, being 36 now, and almost 37, I do feel more confident and excited and a little less shocked all of the time. It's kind of registered that this is my life. Which is great. 

If anything, I just feel a little bit more purposeful with every decision. A little bit more confident, even with our stage show. I play it like a little boss lady within the group dynamic that we have, where I used to ask questions like, "Why do we do it that way? Could we do it this way?" Having enough meetings to get to the bottom of things that always were big question marks for me. That part's really empowering and exciting.

Lyrically, there is this acknowledgement throughout The Loneliest Time that the softer, gentler version of you is still accessible, even when you're tapping into larger, more powerful emotions. You alluded to intention earlier, which is so appropriate.

Definitely. This album is very much about taking away the things that Scorpios love, the controlling factor or whatever. It is surrendering to everything — whether happiness, love, hardships or grief, taking on the full experience of life and not trying to avoid any of the hard stuff, or fast forward to the good stuff. It's feeling all of the things. 

This is what this album really was for me, but that's also very much in line with what my life experience has been over the last few years while working on this. It's a lot of hard-hitting lessons about all of that growth.

Carly Rae Jepsen via Instagram: THE LONELIEST TIME 💌 Oct 21. I’m quite fascinated by loneliness. It can be really beautiful when you turn it over and look at it. Just like love, it can cause some extreme human reactions. Preorder now. 💖🖤🌛🍇

I love that you started the album with "Surrender My Heart". When moments are intense and you surrender to it, things are just so much clearer.

Absolutely. It was a very true sentiment when I first started going to therapy — for a lot of reasons. My whole family had dealt with a ton of tragedy all at once. You know that thing, when it rains it pours. I felt like that really happened to us, and my solution to it was so pragmatic. "I'll go to therapy, she'll tell me how to be tougher in life. I will leave with an extra layer of skin and armor and I'll just know how to handle things because life's gonna get harder. I fell apart, let's fix me." And it was just so enlightening to be there in the room. After one session I was like, "Here, take all my money." [Laughs]

She said, "Maybe you need to soften up. Maybe you have to feel all the things." It's so funny, because I'm sitting there being like, "Wait, I wrote an album about being in touch with your emotions. I should be in touch with them." But no, it's still hard to take it in all the time. 

I was kind of avoiding some of the experiences of life. And I don't think that's how you get to feel any of the highs or the lows. Being less frightened of both of those things can make you feel a little bit more stabilized. You continue on without denying any of the highs or the lows as they happen. That's a really huge part of it for me. 

I see other people who walk through life just doing things that I admire so much. I have a girlfriend right now who's going through some big grief and every time I hang out with her she's just like, "I'm sad." And I'm like, "Cool, well be sad with me. Let's be sad and have a sad day together." Just seeing her being brave enough to do that makes me feel braver when I'm having an off day. 

There's power in not wanting to fix everything at every point. And while I don't necessarily think it stems from control, it can stem from this sense of perfection and ideas that we've all been sold, which you cover a lot in your music — of how things are meant to be, how love is meant to be, and sometimes it isn't.

Yes! I think that tension between how it's "supposed" to be and what it is, there's some real dissonance in there that gets to be worked out. But if you can let go of how it's supposed to be and just be really accepting of how it is, I think you're off to a good start.

Emotion was about fusing together everything you had learned on Kiss and Tug of War, and Dedicated started going into heartbreak and creating that new story. Now that you're on your fifth studio album, where do you feel like you're at now? What was the guidepost for you while writing the album?

Rather than free falling, I'm free-flying! I feel a little less constrained by this idea of what type of pop I'm making. Is it '80s? '70s? '90s? Am I sad or happy? What am I emoting as a message? It's like, screw all of that. At this point, being 10 years into the business and change, I am a woman. There are many different things I feel. I can be very playful, I can be hurt and resentful and confused, and I can also have a disco ballad that's five minutes long, and indulgent, and is my opus. And all on the same album, because I contain multitudes. 

I believe that people are ready to expand this pigeonholed idea of what a pop artist can be, which is a genre that's very tricky to break out of the mold of. You can be all of the things. And I've felt that desire in this genre that is so playful in the types of music that you can do. 

But I wanna also break the perception of, "Am I the sexy pop artist?" I just don't wanna have to fight that fight anymore. For The Loneliest Time, the main theme of it is just loneliness and how that can cause such extreme reactions within you. Because my loneliness made me do some of the bravest and craziest and wildest things of my life. And I loved the reactions that it caused, because they're so dramatic, and I felt it was worthy of an album. 

I was less concerned with, "Are they all gonna fit?" and a little bit more excited that they would be as diverse as they were meant to be — and to let the songs speak for themselves.

There's this intriguing blend between pure fragility and super confidence. You just sound like you're having the time of your life. 

Thank you. I really overwrite. Even last night I was with my A&R talking about what we could potentially consider if we were to do a B-side [record]. And we were laughing, like, "Let's bring up the folders again." 

So much thought goes into these things. It's a little bit of a Beautiful Mind mapping. By the time I'm done I'm like, "Oh my God, I seem insane." But it was a method to the madness, and I swear I feel that way every time. When I know it feels done and the order feels good, it was some puzzle I had to unlock. But as much as I'm like, "This is not cohesive," it, to me, is meant to be together. 

Maybe I rebel because of having a song like "Call Me Maybe". I've just so desired to be [putting] all of my attention into being an album artist since then, not a single artist. And that's maybe why I put out B-sides that aren't even counted at the label. They're just gifts.

There's something of a gift with The Loneliest Time, too — people are really coming to understand that you want to be understood. I like the immediacy here. 

Thank you. You know how you can only gush to certain people about the things that you're secretly really excited or a little proud of? I almost feel guilty saying that word, like it should be shameful. But I'm embracing it. Like, "What am I happy about?" I said it to my boyfriend last night, because we just did the final cut and color [for a video], and I'm like, "It's so lovely." 

You can look back on a career with nostalgia, and like Björk said once, "I don't wanna be a nostalgic artist." I really loved that. I love that we're constantly pushing forward, especially for a woman in pop music. 

There was a time where I thought, "It's a young woman's game." So for me to be 36, almost 37 and feel like I'm about to put out my favorite video of my career? It's not so much about anything other than the growth. I've learned how to communicate. And to have the trust of a team at the label now.

It took me a long time to have that confidence, but also to feel like I have a team of people who trust that we can do this together. We can find the right pieces. For the first time in a hot minute, I was like, "Well, I don't wanna be stale. I don't wanna just be putting out music because I'm chasing a thing that was a dream when I was a teen. I'm just as invigorated and as excited now. Why not take all the lessons I've learned and keep growing?" 

For pop artists that I look at — there's a few, like Cyndi Lauper — but I would love to be a part of that catalog that gets to have some longevity with this thing. That'd feel fantastic. That's my secret goal and I'm saying it out loud to you.

I appreciate that, and when you are having fun — the raw, pure, sugar-rush fun — even in a song that covers really wobbly moments, your artistry has legs. It makes the listener excited for what's to come. 

You're so right. Joy is the spot. I had a child come into a VIP Q&A session, and she asked, "Do you write when you're sad or when you're happy?" And I was like, "It's interesting because when I'm sad, I wanna eat a tub of ice cream and do nothing." But I know that there are artists that go to those places they wanna emote to get through. When I get out of my sadness is when I might be able to start talking about my sadness. Then there's a spark, a curiosity I have about it. 

I think that's where "Bends" came from. I think that's where "Surrender My Heart" and "Go Find Yourself" [came from]. My creativity is sparked around a really limitless possibility, a free-flying feeling where you're like, "I'm here to catch this feeling in a way and document it." And it does feel quite joyful.

You have this ease and comfortability because you use pop as an escape, to a degree, but you're also not running away from these feelings.

Oh yeah. I think that's a real difference with even how I'm looking at shows lately. It was, "Come to my show. We're gonna forget how scary the world is for a night. I'm here to help you." And now I'm looking at it in the way that I experience the best shows that I go to. 

I recently saw James Taylor and I said to my boyfriend, "Just so you know, I grew up on James Taylor, and he's this link between my divorced parents. I'm gonna cry a lot, Maybe I'll be fine." He hadn't seen me cry, so I was thinking it was gonna be super embarrassing if it happened. 

I make it through the first half of the set dry-eyed. And then [James] comes out and he's like, "Fire and Rain," "Sweet Baby James," "The Secret of Life." And my neck is wet. It was just a wet neck situation. [Laughs]

[My boyfriend] was putting his arm around me, and James was telling these stories, and by the time it was done, I was like, "I'm so sorry. I can't stop." There was clearly some stuff I needed to feel. 

"The Secret of Life" is the last song that my mom heard in the car the day my grandmother died. I wasn't there because of COVID, but I knew that experience. So I got to feel some things in a safe place that I needed to feel, really safely, really comfortably. And it felt wonderful. I had been needing that night. And it was so cathartic that when I left, I felt 10 pounds lighter. 

That's what the best, most joyful experiences can make me feel. When I saw David Byrne's "American Utopia," my brain got twisted about what a concert could be. Holy s—, I felt better about life. I thought, "God, I've been looking at this all wrong. I've been thinking my job is to help people escape, but what if my job is to help people feel whatever it is they need to? Or a little bit of both?" 

That's where I got the idea for the moon mascot who comes at the beginning of our show on this tour and goes, "Tonight is for you to feel what you need to in a safe place, to escape if you need to." Hopefully it can be that for some people. 

Feeling the confidence that you can be the type of artist that you look at and are inspired by, that's the ultimate achievement, right?

It is the best feeling. That's the dream, the goal. Some joy, some happiness, but also some real in-touch-ness with yourself, and maybe some sadness too — all in a cathartic way.

[watchmegetobsessed]

Never Have I Ever - Harry Styles (part 4)

i hope yall enjoyed the last part, we took a sudden and quite dirty turn ther,e but we are heading down romantic street and its all sweet and cute with a little hotness. let me know what you thought about the part!

pairing: Harry x actress!reader

word count: 4.7k

SERIES MASTERPOST

masterlist

Harry Styles managed to leave quite the impression in you following his late night visit after the Emmys. He surely surprised you with not only the unbelievable orgasm he gave you with his talented fingers, but also with how big of a gentleman he really was, so keen on taking you out on a date first before he would kiss you. The timeline got a little messed up and he did apologize before he left at two in the morning for getting too carried away, but you assured him he didn’t do anything you didn’t want him to. To be honest, you wouldn’t have had a word against him kissing you right away, but you liked the respect he had for you, not something you’ve had plenty of lately. The men you dealt with in the past year were eager to get into your pants without the respect part, only hungry to earn fame through you, trying to blind you with sex so you wouldn’t realize their ugly motives.

This was not a threat when it came to Harry, he was just as famous as you, maybe even more. He had his own career, his own money, his own life apart from yours and he clearly wasn’t trying to use you and it was quite a refreshing change for you.

He stayed and the two of you talked so much, just sharing crazy stories from your life before and after fame, enjoying that you had someone who shared more or less the same background as you. Apart from Florence, you pretty much kept your old friends when your career took off, afraid to make new ones, always feeling a little paranoid that new people would have unholy motives when they try to befriend you.

Though you truly love your friends, they don’t really see behind the life you are living, while Harry completely does. His company is the best you’ve had in a long time, he is able to make you completely forget about everything outside the room you two are in.

You tried your best to hide your disappointment when he left that night. After offering him to stay in one of your guest bedrooms, he politely turned it down, and even though you could tell he wanted to stay, the urge to be a gentleman was greater in him, something you admire him for.

He left with the promise to see you soon on a real date and he got you as excited as a little school girl on the day of a fieldtrip.

However, given the lifestyles you two were living, finding a suitable evening for the both of you turns out to be a bigger struggle than you expected. Harry reaches out right the next day after his little visit. A good morning text waits for you by the time you open your eyes in the noon and by the evening he asks you out, however you have to realize the date has to wait a little.

You have two trip outside the city upcoming in the next two weeks and he is also planning to fly back to London for a while, the trips totally crashing in the timeline, not even having just the smallest window that would fit the both of you.

Accepting the fact that it would have to wait a little longer, you keep in close touch, eager to find the date that would finally be suitable for you and him as well. Endless texts, sweet calls and sneaky FaceTimes scatter through the days you spend apart and you find it hard to think of a time when he wasn’t hitting you up all the time.

On a Thursday evening, after a long day of fittings for upcoming events, you find yourself sitting on your couch with a sweet glass of wine, scrolling through your social media feeds when something catches your eyes.

Harry has been away in Los Angeles in the past few days and he mentioned having an interview the other day, but you didn’t think it would be out so soon, but here it was, a short video clip cut out by some random page that had a rather interesting title.

“Harry Styles talks about next album and mystery girl in his life.”

Your curiosity is way too strong not to click on it and have a look at it, so taking a sip from your wine you tap on the link and let the video load.

“It’s been some time since your last album came out, have you been working on new music lately?” the interviewer asked from behind the camera as Harry sat on a lilac sofa, wearing black high-waisted pants with a pink and white floral printed shirt tugged into it, his suspenders topping the look perfectly. His green eyes are fixed on the person asking him as he nods.

“Yeah, I think I never really stop making new music. I do have sessions when I’m trying to put a new album together, but I also write in the meantime as well, whenever I have an idea or inspiration. I don’t hold back,” he adds with a cheeky smile.

“Have you found any inspiration lately?” the question is heard and Harry nods once again.

“I have, actually,” he answers shortly, but his smirk gives it away that there’s a lot more behind his words and you feel your heart flutter in your chest. Is he talking about you?

“Has it been a person?” the reporter inquires, making Harry’s smile grow wider.

“A lot of things and people inspire me.”

“Alright, and is your latest inspiration something or someone new in your life?” the guy tries again, even though it’s well known that Harry likes to give vague answers instead of straight yeses and nos.

“Kind of new,” he simply answers and the reporter realizes he won’t be sharing more about the topic so he moves on with the next question and the video cuts out right there.

Though it wasn’t mentioned that he was talking about someone in particular, his fans drew the assumption that he is definitely seeing someone who has been his inspiration behind his new music. Feeling bold and a little flirty, you open up your messages and send him a quick text.

“A kind of new inspiration, huh?”

His reply comes almost right away, as always.

“Have you been stalking fanpages about me?”

“Would it be weird?”

“From you? It’s flattering. Little scary, but in a good way.”

You can’t help but chuckle reading his words. He never fails to make you laugh, you find his humor your favorite kind, never hurtful, but a little spicy, if you could say that, a lot of irony laced into it.

“Back to the topic: what’s your inspiration? Or should I ask… who is your inspiration?”

“Not gonna beat around the bush and just admit it…”

You wait and wait… and wait, but nothing comes afterwards and you are dying to have him admit that it’s been you, but not even the three dots appear at the bottom, so you take the lead again.

“Well, do it. Admit it, Styles!”

The fucker likes your message right away, meaning he has been in the thread all along, waiting for you to write something.

“Alright, but don’t tell anyone, because she is kinda famous and I don’t want the media to find out about it.”

“You have my silence.”

You watch the three dots dance at the bottom, holding your breath while you sink your teeth into your bottom lip, trying to contain your wide grin that’s been plastered across your face this whole time.

When the text finally arrives you snort loudly, almost spilling your wine, laughing so hard you are happy you don’t like in a tiny apartment anymore with paper walls, because your neighbor would have definitely heard your laughter all the way down the hallway.

“It’s Betty White. Fuck, she is all I can think about.”

You need a minute to stop the laughter and type your reply.

“She is hot, gotta give you that.”

“Right?? I hope she is not afraid to date younger guys though.”

“I’m sure she would make an exception for you.”

“I hope so too.”

There’s a short pause, where you just read back his lines, chuckling to yourself some more. He always has a witty comment or comeback, no matter what you’re talking about and not once has he made you laugh madly on a set, at a meeting or just lying in bed before going to sleep.

“Joke aside, would it scare you away if I said I have definitely written about you?”

“Is this another theoretical question? Like the one you asked me on Ellen?”

You smile to yourself thinking back at the conversation the two of you had on the show when he was trying to figure out if you’d be up to give him your number.

“Maybe. So theoretically, would that be weird to you?”

“No,” you write, but quickly send another text. “But you know, it’s just theory. You’d have to tell me for real to find out.”

“Should have saw that coming…”

“Yeah, you really should have,” you muse to yourself, finishing up your glass and you carefully put it to your coffee table before sliding further down on the couch to get back to the conversation with Harry. You see that he hasn’t sent anything after his last one, so you decide to actually answer his question.

“Joke aside from my part, I wouldn’t find it weird. I think it’s flattering.”

“Okay, because I was ready to burn all my notes if you said it would be too much.”

“What if you’d be burning a Grammy worthy song though?”

“Would be a shame. But I would still burn it for you.”

“You are such a flirt…”

“Can’t help it! Or should I not be?”

“I like it. So don’t change.”

“Noted.”

Your little conversation has to come to an end since he is about to go into a meeting, but when you say your goodbyes and decide it’s time to head to bed, you already know a text will be waiting for you when you wake up in the morning.

Days and even weeks go by and you start to have a little too much on your plate. No matter how much you love your job and that it has always been your dream, sometimes you just need a breather. In the past week you’ve been in and out of auditions for a movie they keep top secret, you didn’t even get a script, just a few pages you had to memorize and they’ve been asking for more and more tapes from you with kind of absurd requests, but your agent told you it’s something major, that’s why they are so secretive. However, when they ask you to come in for another reading for the fifth time in seven days and you still don’t know what you are really auditioning for, you are kind of starting to have enough with all your other projects running at the same time. Your days start at six in the morning and rarely end before eleven in the night.

An entire month after the night Harry came over to your place, you kind of lose patience. The frustration that’s been building up inside you just simply bursts when your agent texts you on your way home that you’d have to go in for another casting in the morning for the same mystery movie.

“Have they not seen my face enough?” you snap, hands meeting the wheel as you keep your eyes on the road ahead of you.

“I’m sorry, Hun. I know it’s annoying, but they requested you, that means you are still an option for them.” Mona’s voice comes through the speakers of the car since your phone is connected to it.

“Do they need me to read the whole fucking Bible in front of a camera or what?” you growl.

“I have a good feeling about this last one, alright? And if they still can’t decide after that, we can always just say that we want out.”

“Then I would be labelled as the problematic little princess,” you sigh, knowing well how this industry works. Just one mistake and you can easily end up in a theoretical ditch.

“Just hold on a little longer, okay? I’ll send you the details in email and we’ll talk more tomorrow.”

“Yeah, thanks.”

“Bye, girl.”

Mona is an angel. She’s been your agent for about five years now, she is the one who gets you into castings, well, at least that’s what she was doing before you managed to reach your breakthrough. She got your name on lists you couldn’t even dare to dream of and she is the reason why you are here today. Now she mostly handles requests for you to go in for castings, creators started to reach out to you a while ago, though Mona still works her magic sometimes to get you into castings that are still out of your league.

By the time you get home, you are desperate to do something. Anything. You’ve been nonstop working these past weeks and you just need to get out of this loop that sucked you in. Before you could even think through what you’re doing, you dial Harry’s number.

He is back in the city, that you know of because he texted even before he got home. You both ditched the idea of having your date today, because you just knew it would be a long day for you, and it’s the truth, it’s past ten, so not quite ideal for a date, but you ran out of fucks to give.

“Y/N? Everything alright?” he asks, noticing that you called, which is not what you usually do, or at least not without checking in if he is free to talk.

“Yeah, sorry I called so randomly. Are you busy?” you ask, feeling a little out of breath, even though you definitely didn’t do anything physically hard. You just can’t help but feel anxious since you are about to ask him out on a spontaneous date.

“No, just… packing and all that. What’s up?”

“So you don’t have anything to do right now?” you clear up.

“No,” he chuckles.

“Alright, so then… what do you say we have that date now?”

Even with him always being so blunt and open about how interested he is in you, it still makes you perfect to ask him out. The silence that comes from his side doesn’t necessarily help either and you are already preparing yourself to get rejected.

“You know it’s ten pm, right?” he then asks, a little unsure if you really thought it through.

“I am aware, yes.”

“Don’t you have work in the morning? I know you always start your days so early, I don’t want to be the reason why yo—“

“Harry,” you stop him midsentence. “I do not give a fuck about what I’m doing in the morning,” you bluntly tell him and you can tell he is smiling on the other end of the call. “So the question is still the same. Do you want to have that date now?”

He doesn’t ask anything else, just simply say the following: “I’ll pick you up in thirty.”

“Make it twenty,” you tell him and end the call before he could protest.

Ignoring the adrenaline rush you that just washed over your body you quickly make your way to the bathroom to take the quickest cold shower before putting on some clean clothes. You really don’t want to overdo it, knowing well since it’s so abrupt he wouldn’t be taking you anywhere that would require you look spotless. You choose not to put on any makeup, not just because you don’t have the time, but also because you feel a weird urge to just be bare, be yourself around him. The same goes for your outfit. You put aside all designer clothes and opt for a simple pair of jeans, a black tank top and a bright yellow knitted jumper over it, looking awfully casual, but feeling rather comfortable.

It takes Harry 22 minutes to get to your place, but you choose not to comment on those two extra minutes when you get into his car. Luckily, he isn’t dressed to impress either, wearing a simple pair of jeans with some kind of washed out, vintage printed tee shirt with his Bode Jacket he has worn in his famous SNL episode. His hair looks a little mess and even wet, making you wonder if your call caught him in the middle of a shower or he showered after you agreed to meet up.

“Long time no see,” he smiles at you, his boyish smirk making your heart flutter so easily as he eyes you while you buckle yourself up.

“You had plenty of paparazzi photos to look at in the meantime, Mr. Styles,” you smirk at him teasingly as he starts the car and leaves from in front of your complex.

“My favorite was the ones of you where you were walking out of a restaurant wearing that silk dress and the coat.”

“So you did see pap pictures?” you ask chuckling, you didn’t mean it entirely, but you find it funny that he actually saw pictures of you.

“You know, it’s been hard to avoid you online, especially because I keep liking all your posts so my phone thinks I’m interested in you. Which is true, and I’m not complaining about the content I’ve been seeing about you lately,” he admits chuckling and your eyes wander down to his ring clad fingers on the wheel. Your thoughts take you back to when they were touching you at places you haven’t been touched in a while. How they felt inside you and how desperate he could make you with just his hands.

You force yourself to look away from his hands and focus on the present time before your arousal becomes way too evident.

“Sorry I’m everywhere,” you smirk at him, enjoying the situation maybe a little too much.

“Don’t be,” he chuckles, glancing in your way for a moment, his green eyes meeting your gaze. “I don’t mind it,” he adds and those damn butterflies as quick to act up again in your stomach.

You don’t try to get him to tell where you are headed, wanting it to be a surprise yourself, so you just stare out at the night city as it runs past you, still quite a lot of people walking on the streets even though it’s now nearing eleven.

What you know is that you’re still in Manhattan and it seems like you won’t leave it either. Harry navigates his way through the city easily, he is not even using GPS, something you could never do. No matter how long you’ve been living here, you’ll always get lost in this jungle some call New York City. About fifteen minutes after leaving your complex, Harry parks the car down in a spot he found along the road, and looking out the window you’re trying to figure out where you are, but it doesn’t ring a bell. Seems just like a usual part of the Upper West Side, so now he has you curious about his plans.

“Where did you bring me, Mr. Styles?” you ask him as the two of you meet on the sidewalk and he glances at your with a sly smirk.

“Since you gave me such a short notice about our date, I thought I would show you one of my favorite places in the city and I hope you haven’t it.” “Well, I can assure you I don’t know it, because I have no idea what could be here,” you admit.

Harry nods at you to follow him and you walk side by side until the next corner.

“I think you already know that I’m English,” he starts off, making you chuckle.

“Yeah, it’s pretty evident,” you nod.

“So, in the past decade I haven’t spent as much time in the UK as I wanted, and a few years ago I discovered a little piece of my home in the city.”

Trying to figure out what he meant by that you don’t even realize where you just took a turn to. Harry stops and you snap out of your thoughts, looking up and seeing a charming little street ahead you, looking totally out of place in the city’s fashion. The townhouses all the way down look like they’ve been placed here straight from England, the Tudor style complex is a refreshing change in the fast paced, busy streets of Manhattan.

You can’t help but gasp at the sight in front of you, taking in every tiny detail with your eager eyes as the feeling of being in a fairytale takes over your mind. If only it weren’t for the busy noises of the streets around the micro-neighborhood, you would completely believe that you’ve been magically teleported to England.

“It’s called the Pomander Walk. Always makes me feel like I’m home away from home whenever I miss my family and my hometown.”

Harry starts walking down the narrow pavement that runs between the houses, lined with quite some greenery, something you noticed right away. There are just so many plants and flowers down the street, it’s pretty clear the residents keep them in good care.

You catch up with Harry, eyes still taking in the pleasant contrast Pomander Walk has to offer for any visitors.

“I feel like we are invaders,” you tell him. It looks so secluded, makes you feel like you weren’t even supposed to be here.

“Don’t worry, it’s totally public. The people who live here are pretty nice too. Love it when someone comes around.”

“How did you find this place?”

“A friend told me about it and just came to see it for myself one day,” he tells you as the two of you slowly make your way down the street, slow enough so you could see everything. “There are 61 units and they were built in 1921 by Thomas J. Healy. He originally wanted to build a hotel here, but didn’t have the money to just yet, so he built these instead to make some cash for the hotel. He never got to do that though, died a few years later, so Pomander Walk stayed.” You listen to him, soaking in every word that leaves his lips, finding his oddly specific knowledge about this place quite exciting and… kinda hot. You could listen to him talk about historical facts for days without getting bored.

“The whole complex was renovated in 2009, they restored a bunch of architectural details that lost through the years.”

“Looks fantastic. I wonder what they look like on the inside,” you muse, your eyes wandering over the colorfully painted old school window blinds on most of the townhouses.

Walking down the pavement you realize there’s not a single soul around here, something you don’t get to experience too often in the city.

“It’s not too well-known, right? I don’t see any tourists and all that.”

Harry shakes his head, eyes ahead of him as he hides his hands in his pockets.

“No, ‘s quite hidden, not often listed in sights to be seen in the city. That’s why I like to come here so much.”

“Easy to stay unnoticed,” you add with a smile as your eyes meet his gaze and he nods, returning the smile.

You walk back and forth on the street at least five times, just talking and sharing and laughing, finally falling out of the misery of your everydays. He still amazes you with how good of a company he is, with his broad view of life and many experiences, you can truly connect with him on a level you haven’t been able to reach with anyone in a long time.

It’s way over midnight when you head back to his car, holding hands that happened at a point earlier, but you can’t tell who reached for who. It was kind of mutual, but now you didn’t want to let go of him… ever. You let your fingers play with his S ring on his pinky while he keeps running his thumb over the back of your hand whenever he has the chance. It’s a little disappointing when you have to let go of each other when you climb back into his car and head back home.

“I know this date wasn’t much, but I hope you liked it,” he smiles at you shyly before his eyes snap back at the road ahead of him.

“Shut up, this was literally the best date I’ve had,” you tell him making him chuckle. “Thank you for showing it to me.”

“Now it’s your secret place too. Maybe we’ll run into each other here one day.”

“I’ll definitely come back,” you admit smirking.

The city lights pass by you faster than you want them to, and you arrive to your complex way too early. Well, not according to the time, because it’s way past half past midnight now, but you just don’t want the night to end. However, you know Harry would not come up if you asked. He is way too big of a gentleman and he wouldn’t want to make you miss your appointment in the morning, but you are definitely collecting that kiss he promised a month or so ago.

“Walk me up, will you?” you ask him softly when he parks down in front of your building. He nods and follows you inside without a second thought.

You both know it’s about to happen, the air thickens between you two in the elevator and neither of you can hold back the small smiles on your lips. Harry walks next to you until you reach your front door and you turn to face him, his green eyes already examining your every move.

“I’m happy we finally got to do this,” you tell him, feeling a blush warming your cheeks from the way he looks at you now.

“I’m glad you called. Was starting to think we would never meet again,” he chuckles making you laugh as well. It really did feel like the universe was plotting against you, but you bet it didn’t expect your sudden move tonight.

There’s a longer pause where neither of you knows what to say or do next and your patience is running low, especially when you see him run his tongue over his pink lips. You just can’t wait any longer to taste them.

“Harry,” you breathe out, the frustration and desire at an all-time high now in your system. Never in your life did it take this long for you to get to a kiss with a guy you were clearly interested in and who returned the feeling as well.

“Yeah?”

“Swear to my lost Emmy Award if you don’t kiss me right now I’ll—“

You don’t get to finish, you don’t even know what you’d have said, but it’s all forgotten when Harry kisses you hard, hands cupping your jaw on both sides, angling your head to grant him the best access to your lips. You return the kiss without a second thought, hungrily tugging and pulling on his lips, your tongues meeting in the middle and fuck! He really knows how to make your toes curl with just a kiss. You grab a fistful of his t-shirt at his stomach, pulling him close and the cold touch of his rings on your skin makes you shudder. Everything about him makes your legs turn into jelly and you are willingly offering yourself to him without a doubt.

He pushes you against your front door, one of his hands wanders down to your waist and he gives it a gentle squeeze that makes you open your mouth more for him. You are a mess and so is he. You have no idea how long you make out, but when you eventually pull back, your chest is heaving and your lips feel swollen. Harry pecks your lips two more times before forcing himself to let go of you.

“Good night, Y/N,” he murmurs in a low voice as he starts to back towards the elevator.

“Good night, Harry,” you say a little out of breath. He smirks at you one last time before walking into the elevator and the doors close, officially ending your first date.

 PREVIOUS PART

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[stopandimagineloveforever]

The cast of Only Murders in the Building

Forget who killed Tim Kono (Julian Cihi), the biggest twist in Hulu's murder mystery comedy was the criminally delightful chemistry between veteran comedic partners Martin Short and Steve Martin and their unexpected third amigo, Selena Gomez. Surrounded by game supporting suspects like Amy Ryan and Nathan Lane, the big three are so good together as aspiring podcast sleuths, Charles-Haden Savage, Oliver Putnam, and Mabel Mora, that they might have even been able to make Splash! The Musical work. —Derek Lawrence

~~~~~~~~~~

The cast of Ted Lasso

Jason Sudeikis' mustache-wearing, whistle-blowing Kansas transplant would be the first person to remind us that a team is only as strong as its weakest link. Fortunately for Ted Lasso, every single actor on the roster delivered a pitch-perfect performance in season 2, from Hannah Waddingham's steely Rebecca and Toheeb Jimoh's idealistic Sam, to the gut-wrenching slow-build of Nate's villain arc (executed masterfully by Nick Mohammed). Plus, we have to give a special shoutout to the swoon-worthy romance between Juno Temple's bubbly Keeley and Brett Goldstein's growling Roy Kent. (Hell, Goldstein's eyebrows almost deserve a "best performance" nod of their own.) And we haven't even mentioned standouts like Cristo Fernández as the endlessly energetic Dani Rojas, or James Lance as the silver-haired Trent Crimm (The Independent)! This is one team that's worth believing in. —D.C.

~~~~~~~~~~

Kathryn Hahn, WandaVision

The superhero genre is littered with forgettable, power-hungry villains — which is part of what makes Kathryn Hahn's WandaVision performance such a revelation. As nosy neighbor Agatha Harkness (a.k.a. Agnes), Hahn hits the perfect balance of comedic camp and malice, whether she's peeping over white-picket fences or belting out Grammy-nominated earworm "Agatha All Along." It's no wonder that she's getting her own Disney+ spin-off series. —D.C.

~~~~~~~~~~

Katja Herbers, Evil

The Devil works hard, but Katja Herbers worked even harder in the spooky Paramount+ thriller's second season as she explored the many ways Kristen's guilt over killing a man manifested itself  — from committing adultery to beating up a man in a grocery store for cutting in line and her dramatic confession to the police. The entire time she kept the audience wondering if she was actually possessed or dealing with a psychological issue. On top of that, Herbers also showed off her physical comedy chops in the show's excellent silent episode. That being said, Kristen's harrowing and full body breakdown in the finale was her best scene of the season, especially because of how convincingly she went from crying to making out with David in the wake of her confession. —Chancellor Agard

~~~~~~~~~~

Bowen Yang, Saturday Night Live

Bowen Yang has been a standout on Saturday Night Live since his freshman season, but 2021 felt like SNL was fully in its Bowen Era. The first Chinese American cast member and the first out gay man to survive beyond one season, Yang made history again as the first featured player to score an Emmy nomination. He was a highlight in sketches alongside even his most seasoned castmates, but really stole the show during stints on Weekend Update with a powerful — yet howlingly funny — commentary on the rise of anti-Asian hate crimes, a Fran Lebowitz impression that even the humorist was compelled to weigh in on, and a takedown of twink Willy Wonka by a proud gay Oompa Loompa, but it was his instant classic Iceberg That Sank the Titanic character, who just wanted to promote his album called simply Music, that melted away any doubt that Yang is the show's MVP. —Jillian Sederholm

[beananacake]

hi. ok so i know accidental princess was made like.. months ago im not sure, but im absolutely HEARTBROKEN because i just finished reading it.

you truly, truly put everything into that series and god am i in live with reading it. it took me through so may different emotions that transcended me like.. hello? the period-piece slay that this is? i can not describe how much i enjoyed that shit. the way you were so consistent in all of the chapters, you never wavered from that old-english-period kind of language, both in dialogue, in exposition and literally any writing that you did for this series, and shit i cant tell you how much i admire your dedication. let me tell you there was not one moment where i thought your writing was any less from the gorgeous quality that it is. if you told me you weren't feeling a chapter, my bestie i would not have noticed at all. i was so immersed in reading this. your worldbuilding>> the language, the politics, the kingdom, all established beautifully. god i love those prussian royalties, smth abt them speaking german 🫣.. chile anyway,,

you managed to give each and every character mentioned a life—love, tragedy, realization, like you really made this story alive. i love how you gave spotlights to characters like louis, chelina, thibault, abigail, the grand duke, the king, and the late queen, even. how you managed to make them feel real, like they aren't just side characters used for the gains of the plot—it's incredible, really. there's just so much distinction between them, like i LOVE to see their personalities shine. you even gave the grand duke a backstory? like come on, man! i enjoyed seeing all the characters experiencing growth through different experiences. CHELINA AND LOUSIE LOVE STORY REAL>> oh my god i want a spinoff of his trip to zaragoza, damn. if i could, i would literally quote every line that made me scream and shout and cry, but there's too many to choose from!

you are so, so good with words and especially in making character dynamics and chemistry. reader and kit UGH i would die to have a love like them. every words spoken between them, especially any declaration of defiance and love against the king is gratifying to me. i can feel their passion in my bones.. for real. i LOVE how the theme i got is that you should always fight for love, even if the outcome isn't something you wished for. like that is such a serve. you deserve an oscar, a bafta, a grammy a golden globe and a restraining order, because i can not read this book for one second and not drown in a current of emotions. dont even get me started on the plot and how everything descended so beautifully. to me, it was planned out so well from the beginning and i love how you based the conflict off of the queen's death, like the grand duke?? that is so smart. its so evident that you put a lot of time in writing each detail of the plot and i was so consumed by it, it's true!! i spent 3 hours binge reading this whole thing and let me tell you my life changed. ok literature? work.

THE AMOUNT OF ANGSTT IS SO GOOD i LOVE forbidden romance esp if its in like a royal setting, and MY FAV is when the king finally realizes he can never stop reader and kit from loving each other—i adoooree that trope. almost forgot, but i was cryingg when i noticed the parallels and similarities between the cinderella movies and this story. like obviously this was based off of cinderella, but the things you switched and put in like reader having the principle of being kind and courageous, the lavender-blue lullaby sung from the mountains opposed to movie-cinderella singing it from her locked room, it's all too good. you really customized everything to depict this timeless, strong, selfless and beautiful main character. (the epilogue is amazing, by the way. love the children and love chelouis' children!! amelia is a sweetheart 🥹)

"If you do not think her worthy of me, then I am inclined to think that you are not worthy of her. She is twice more than I will ever be because she is kind and courageous.”

JAIL JAIL!! WHAT IS THIS?!! this is only one of the heart-moving dialogues from this series. this is actually the line that finally induced the waterworks for me. i mean everything made me emotional already, but this broke the dam. cmon now i cant get enough of it!

“I had been given the chance to bask in his love, even just for a while. I suppose these memories will suffice. They should last me a lifetime.”

i will actually start crying again

"You slowly opened your eyes, expecting to see the green color of your mother’s eyes but instead, you saw blue. The bluest of all blues you had ever seen."

fuck do i love the mountain saving scene..

ok anyway that is all. i hope you have a blessed life and thank you so much for writing this series, i love it! 😊

my dearest @mooncleaver, i just want you to know that I received this ask at a very opportune time; I was struggling so much with my mental health and I thought my writing was really bad and that The Accidental Princess wouldn't fly so well (for many reasons) but when I read this ask, all I could do was cry happy tears. This, along with the other asks I got for TAP, made me realize that there's a small percentage of people who read and liked (maybe even loved) my story. Thank you so much for taking the time of your day to read my little work and thank so much more for leaving this ask for me. To be honest, I wouldn't be opposed to you quoting all of the lines that resonated with you; I always love hearing people's thoughts about my stories.

By the way, that part where you said I deserve an Oscar, a BAFTA, a Grammy, a Golden Globe, and a restraining order: I literally laughed out loud and thought i had never received such a compliment from someone, ever. I will definitely remember this for years to come.

As for the Chelina and Louis spin-off, don't worry. It's in the works. I've always planned to write something for them because theirs is a story that is as beautiful as Kit's and Reader's, maybe even more. I'm just not sure how soon I would get to writing it but I would surely do because it's a story worth telling.

Thank you thank you so much for reading the story! You hold a special place in my mind and heart for leaving such words! <3

[captain-josslett]

Broken Melody - Part Five

Part One, Part Two, Part Three, Part Four, Part Five, Part Six, Part Seven, Part Eight, Part Nine, Part Ten, Part Eleven,

Summary: Grammy Award winning Emma Danvers is the first to say she has a pretty good life. But what happens when it implodes around her and it looks like things will never be the same again?

Words: 5.8k+

Warnings: Smut... 18+ (duh)

Pairings: Emma Danvers x Lena Luthor, Alex Danvers x Kelly OlsenIn

This Part: It’s the L-Corp New Years Eve Gala and Emma and Lena haven’t seen each other since the kiss on Christmas Day.

This will be the last part until the angst train plows through everything! 

As always B!D is named.

Thank you for reading and let me know if you wanna be tagged or any general feedback will be greatly appreciated.

Taglist: @thewitchandtheassassin , @natasha-danvers , @life-is-hella-unfair , @finleyfray​, @supergirl-writingz​

Emma and Kara sing loudly as they dance around in their underwear and dressing gowns. They are meant to be getting ready for L-Corp’s New Year’s Eve Gala but Taylor Swift’s song, ‘Shake It Off’, comes on and they can’t help but dance and sing along. Alex quietly ignores them as she applies her makeup.

“Come on Alex!” Emma whines behind her, pulling her famous puppy dog eyes.

Alex scoffs softly and rolls her eyes at her in the mirror.

“Please Alex.” Kara joins in and pouts her lower lip, letting it quiver.

Alex really tries her best to ignore them… But the combined efforts of her two sisters weakens her resolve. She rises to her feet to the whooping of the two blondes and dances with them to the rest of the song. The three of them laughing and moving energetically.

The song finally ends and Alex goes back to the mirror and sits down to finish. “The car will be here soon.” She says looking over at her two sisters.

“Yes boss.” Emma salutes and laughs as she wanders over to her walk in wardrobe. She looks between the two dresses she has picked out for the event. Both red but one is more modest than the other. And if Emma hadn’t kissed Lena on Christmas day she most likely would have worn that one. But, now knowing Lena was interested in her… Well, that changed things.

They had agreed to talk about it the next day over lunch but Lena had been called away to Japan to an emergency that needed her presence. They have been texting back and forth, but Lena has been adamant that they discuss the next step in their relationship in person.

Emma couldn’t help but worry that Lena had changed her mind. Which, if Lena had, Emma would honour her choice and back away. But Emma hoped that wasn’t the case.

“Em?” Alex walks through the door.

“Yea?” Emma looks away from the dresses and whistles when she sees her eldest sister. Alex is wearing a navy evening gown that made the redhead look stunning. “You look beautiful Al.” Emma smiles warmly at her sister.

“Thank you.” Alex smiles shyly and looks away for a moment. Her gaze focuses on the two red gowns. “Can’t make up your mind?”

“Nope.” Emma sighs heavily.

“Well what’s your reason?” Kara steps into the wardrobe wearing a long, gold gown. The top half is gold lace while the bottom is a beautiful material that simmers in the light.

“Kara!” Emma beams at her, seeing the dress as resembling Kara’s sunny attitude.

“Does it look okay?” Kara asks looking down.

“More than okay! Wow, you both look so stunning!”

“Thanks Em.” Kara smiles brightly at her baby sister. “Now let’s make you just as stunning!” Kara claps before turning to Alex. “Does she have time to try both on?”

Alex looks at her phone. “Barely, if you finish her hair.”

“Can do! Right Emma! Change!” Kara orders.

Emma laughs and grabs the more modest dress. Pulling it over her head, careful not to smudge her makeup. Alex helps zip her up and Emma turns to face her sisters.

They both push their lips forward and look up and down the dress.

“It’s… okay?” Kara tilts her head.

“Try the other one on.” Alex orders.

Emma rolls her eyes and unzips herself, stepping out of the dress and taking the other dress. When she puts the dress on she can feel it's the one before she even turns to get her sister’s opinion. She laughs at Kara’s wide eyes and Alex’s open mouth.

They gaze at the red, high necked, backless dress that clings to Emma’s curves in all the right places. It has a little train and a very long slit up the side but keeps Emma’s modesty but gives enough sex appeal off.

“Wow! Em!” Kara gapes. “That one! Definitely that one!”

“You look incredible.” Alex agrees “I think Lena will love it.” She smiles cheekily at the blushing Emma.

“Yea?” Emma asks shyly.

After everyone had left the Christmas party the sisters immediately descended onto Emma about the kiss under the mistletoe. They followed the blonde into her bedroom and sat on her bed, threatening they won’t leave until Emma tells them everything. Taking a deep breath Emma finally admitted her feelings for Lena. Kara squealed and pulled her into a bone crushing hug before giving her the shovel talk and what she would do if Emma was going to hurt her best friend. Alex just smiled brightly at her sister. Pleased that Emma finally found someone to love and that was worthy of her. They talked until the early hours of the morning about what Emma was going to say at the lunch later with Lena. They fell asleep in each other's arms and were woken by their Mom cooing over them. Their excitement as lunchtime approached was taken when Lena messaged to say she had to go to Japan immediately. The sister’s wrapped Emma in a blanket and they watched Disney films and ate the Cadbury chocolates Kara had flown to get from the UK.

“Lena will totally love it. You’re gonna blow her away!” Kara nods.

“Okay.” Emma breathes out as she makes her way back into the bedroom. She catches herself in the mirror and laughs loudly.

“What?” Alex asks cocking her eyebrow.

“I just realised we are in Supergirl’s colours.” Emma looks at Alex’s navy gown, Kara’s gold gown and her red gown. The smiles Kara gives her is blinding and Alex just smirks while shaking her head.

“How do you want your hair?” Kara asks quickly.

“Half up half down? Maybe plait it round to the back?” As soon as Emma finishes talking she blinks and her hair is finished. “Thanks.” She laughs and checks it out.

“Cars here!” Alex yells from the doorway holding up her phone. “We ready?”

Both sister’s nod and Emma steps into her super high heels.

“I don’t know how you can wear those.” Alex shakes her head.

“A lot of practice!” Emma laughs as she picks up her clutch with her keys and phone in and follows her sister’s to her apartment door. “Plus Dolly encouraged me to wear them as high as I can.”

Kara freezes immediately and Emma almost crashes into her. Kara whips round and stares at her sister.

“Kara?” Emma tilts her head in confusion.

“Dolly?”

“No, I’m Emma.” The singer sasses back and looks at Alex who taps her foot getting more and more impatient.

“No! I mean… Dolly… As in Dolly Parton?!” Kara’s voice somehow goes up an octave.

“Yea, as in Dolly Parton.” Emma smiles at her sister. Forgetting that the celebrities she meets are actually a really big deal to other people.

“Kara! We have to go!” Alex yells as she opens the apartment door and walks out.

Kara looks to Alex and then back to Emma. “We haven’t finished this conversation.” Kara threatens before leaving the apartment, Emma smirking behind her.

The car journey took longer than expected as many vehicles were heading towards the L-Corp Gala. Giving Kara and Alex time to question Emma about any other celebrities she has met. Kara almost hyperventilates when Emma admitted she has Taylor Swift’s phone number and had lunch with the singer in Nashville. Showing her sister’s the selfie they took at the lunch.

But the wait in the car also gave Emma time to get really nervous and excited about seeing Lena again.

“Hey.” Kara says softly, reaching for Emma’s hand and giving it a gentle squeeze. “It will be okay.”

“Yea Em.” Alex agrees next to her sister. “Lena adores you, anyone can see that.”

Emma nods and takes a deep breath to slow down her racing heart.

Finally they pull up to the red carpet and Alex gets out first, then Kara and as soon as Emma glides out the photographers go wild.

“Emma! Over here!”

“You look gorgeous Emma!”

“Emma! Here! Look Here!”

“Smile Emma!”

On and on the photographers yell and Emma takes it in her stride. When she’s placed on the marker in front of them Emma smiles at each camera and poses elegantly. Alex and Kara watch from the sidelines, smiling at how at ease and natural the singer looks. 

Soon Emma is ushered away to allow the next celebrity to pose. Alex sees how Emma blinks to clear the spots in her vision. She reaches out and holds Emma’s hand and Kara does the same. Both guiding her down the long red carpet until she is able to see more clearly again.

Fans scream Emma’s name and she smiles and waves at them. But due to security, members of the public can’t get close which saddens Emma, she likes meeting her fans. Emma has a reputation for spending hours signing autographs and chatting with fans at events. Sometimes almost missing the event completely. But with the recent attempts on Lena’s life, she understands the tight security. After all Lena’s safety is the most important thing to Emma.

“Ready?” Emma asks her sisters, they nod and enter the building. After checking in they enter an elevator to where the gala is being held on the top floors of the building.

As the doors slide open the noise from the gala explodes around them. Emma looks over to Kara who nods at her and shows she remembered to put her dampening setting on her glasses. The sister’s exit the elevator and Alex watches as people are immediately drawn to Emma, like sunflowers to the sun.

Emma leads the sister’s to the open bar, unaware of the attention she is drawing. The bartender immediately serves Emma and she orders Alex’s go to whiskey and non alcoholic drinks for Kara and herself. With the tour coming up Emma can’t afford to have any alcohol. To be honest, she’s never been too fond of drinking anyway. Only really having wine with a meal on the odd occasion.

“There you are!” Kelly says as she wraps her arms around her girlfriend.

“Hi babe.” Alex kisses Kelly passionately before looking up and down Kelly’s dress. “You look beautiful.” Alex says softly causing Emma and Kara to grin at each other before quietly slipping away, giving the two love birds some alone time.

“Wanna dance?” Kara asks, already bopping to the music.

“Of course!” Emma puts her drink and clutch down as does Kara. “M’lady? May I have the honour of this dance?” Emma holds her hand out to her sister who laughs at her.

“And they say I’m the dork!” Kara takes Emma’s hand and follows the blonde to the middle of the dance floor.

The two sisters dance and laugh to many songs, having a great time. They both scream when Abba’s ‘Dancing Queen’ comes on and pull out their best dance moves, drawing the attention of the people around them. Kara smirks when she sees the attention is mainly aimed at Emma, who seems to hypnotise both men and women with her swaying hips. What Kara loves most is that Emma doesn’t even know the power she has over people.

Eventually Brainy and Nia find them, Brainy stands guard by the drinks and Nia joins in with the dancing. A few times all three are asked to dance by other men. But they politely decline. Nia goes back to Brainy when James, Sam, Alex and Kelly join him.

Another man approaches Kara, asking her to dance. Emma smiles sadly when Kara turns them down. Knowing her sister still isn’t over Mon-El yet. She leans towards her sister so Kara can hear her.

“You know you can say yes right?”

“I know… I just… Don’t want to leave you.” Kara says lamely.

“I’ll be fine! Lena should be finishing up soon anyway.”

All the time they’ve been dancing Emma has kept an eye out for the raven haired beauty. Knowing from her experiences of accompanying the CEO to many galas that Lena needs to work the crowd before allowing herself to relax and mingle with her friends. And as this is an L-Corp Gala, Emma knows Lena will most likely be working right up until midnight.

Alex, Kelly and Sam join the two blondes for a few more songs before they decide to stop dancing and refuel on food and drink. All the Superfriends head to the grand spread of food, though Emma doesn’t notice Sam slipping away from them.

Emma smiles when she sees potstickers in the centre of the table. Grabbing a plate she piles it high with lots of yummy foods and much to Kara’s horror, Emma grabs a few carrot and cucumber sticks. Emma laughs loudly and explains she needs to balance it all out.

The Superfriends chat while they eat and suddenly Emma feels like she’s being watched and a warm feeling spreads through her. Emma turns her head and connects with beautiful green eyes across the room.

-- -- --

Lena tries to politely listen as one of L-Corps board members drone on and on about the recent hiccup with the Japanese company. But Lena was running out of patience. Not that she would ever show it.

“I’m sorry to interrupt.” Sam smiles sweetly at the elders board member. “But may I borrow Ms. Luthor?” Not waiting for a response Sam holds onto Lena’s arm, moving her away from the group of board members.

“You’re my hero.” Lena whispers as Sam leads her towards the area where the food is.

“Don’t let Kara hear you say that!” Sam laughs loudly and Lena smiles.

As they walk closer to the food she hears a rich laugh above the noise of the room. One she’d happily listen to for the rest of her life. She starts searching for the source of the heavenly noise.

When she does Lena immediately stops walking and her mouth drops open. Her eyebrows rise when her eyes lock on Emma. Her gaze travels up and down Emma’s body, admiring how it hugs her curves. How it shows off Emma’s toned ass, making Lena want to moan at imagining what must be underneath the fabric.

“Lena?” Sam realises the CEO isn’t following her anymore. She looks at her friend and snorts at the bedroom eyes Lena is sending Emma’s way. Sam heads back to the transfixed woman. “You may want to tone down the fuck me eyes.” Sam softly says causing Lena to jump.

“I don’t have fuck me eyes!” Lena whispers back, not taking her eyes off the blonde.

“Oh trust me, you do.” Sam laughs before heading back to the group.

Emma turns her head and looks right at her through the crowd. Their eyes connect and Lena holds her breath. For a moment all she sees in the room is Emma. The blonde smiles brightly at her and Lena remembers how to breathe and use her legs again. She weaves through the groups and approaches the Superfriends.

“Lena!” Kara yells and gives Lena a one arm hug, careful not to spill any of her food. “You look wonderful! Doesn’t she look wonderful Emma?” Kara smiles at the other blonde.

Lena turns towards Emma and smirks at how Emma’s eyes take her in. How they linger on Lena’s chest. Lena is now happy she chose the mermaid, off the shoulder, dark green dress. Showing just enough chest to, hopefully, peek Emma’s interest. And it seems it's succeeding.

“You look breathtaking Lee.” Emma says softly and holds out a plate with Lena’s favourite food on.

The CEO can’t help but feel a warm sensation in her heart at Emma’s thoughtfulness. “Thank you.” Lena reaches out to take the plate, their hands connecting for a moment and butterflies erupt in her stomach.

The Superfriends start talking amongst themselves. Emma keeps smiling shyly at Lena when she catches the raven haired beauty looking at her dress. All Emma wants to do is find a secluded corner and talk to Lena. As well as other things… Emma feels her cheeks heating up at the thought of kissing Lena again.

But, before she can get ahead of herself, Emma knows they need to see if they are on the same page. She hopes the lingering looks Lena is giving her is a sign that they are.

Emma takes a deep breath to build the courage to ask Lena if they can talk. She turns to the CEO and opens her mouth to speak.

“Ms. Luthor?” Jess appears out of nowhere stopping Emma’s words from leaving her mouth.

Emma sighs quietly as she watches Lena leave with Jess to do some more important mingling. Both Kara and Alex give her sympathetic smiles.

To distract her they pull Emma back towards the dance floor and when they need another break a few other attendees ask Emma questions about her career, the Christmas concert, what her plans were for her solo album, the list went on and on. Emma graciously answers every question where she could. Being honest when she didn’t know the answer, like the actual time frame her new album would be released.

Secretly Emma has been recording a lot of songs in the studio with her long term producer and friend. Mainly to try different styles and see what fits better with Emma’s voice. Most of these songs won’t ever be used, much to Emma’s sadness but it’s been fun experimenting.

Half an hour before midnight Emma goes out to the balcony to get some air. She leans against the railing and gazes at the twinkling lights of the city below.

“Penny for your thoughts?” Lena asks quietly as she stands next to the blonde.

“Honestly?” Emma turns her head to look at her best friend, who nods at her. “I’m thinking about what this new year could bring. I mean it’s silly cause tomorrow will be just another day, and the day after that. But, I guess, with the New Year, it’s always a fresh start.” Emma’s face scrunches up. “Did I make any sense then?”

Lena chuckles. “You did and I would have to agree.” They stand in comfortable silence, just enjoying being in each other’s presence.

“Lee-”

“Em-”

They both stop and smile shyly at each other.

“You go.” Emma says, indicating for Lena to talk first.

“I’m sorry about everything that happened. With me leaving so quickly before we could talk. It wasn’t at all ideal.” Lena rubs her forehead.

“No, but, it happens.” Emma turns to face Lena fully, Lena copies her movement. “Lee… You’re my best friend and I really like you. Like, really, really like you.”

“Really?”

“Really, really.” Emma smiles and averts her eyes for a moment, biting her lip. “And, well…” Her hazel green eyes lift back up to Lena’s. “I’ve grown to care for you more than just my best friend…” Emma drops her head again and turns towards the railing. “Sorry I’m really not good at this!”

“Hey.” Lena reaches out and lifts Emma’s chin towards her. “I really, really like you too and I would love to explore this further.” Lena bites her lips as she finds the right words to say. “I love you Em. It may be too soon to say it, but you are one of the greatest friends and from the moment your sister’s tackled you to the ground I fell in love with you.”

Tears fill Emma’s eyes. “I love you too. With all my heart I love you and I would love to take this next step with you. To be yours.”

“And I yours.” Lena whispers as she moves closer to Emma. Her hand softly stoking Emma’s exposed back. “You do look beautiful tonight.”

“So do you.”

“10! 9! 8! 7! 6! 5!” The crowd inside starts counting down and the two women smile at each other.

“To new beginnings?” Emma asks leaning towards the raven haired beauty.

“New beginnings.” Lena nods and leans the rest of the way. Their lips connect when everyone yells zero.

Lena and Emma experience fireworks immediately. Much like the ones whizzing and booming in the distance. Their bodies heat up as they flush together, deepening the kiss. Not caring if anyone saw them. At the moment it’s only the two of them.

They break the kiss only due to needing air. Pressing their foreheads together.

“Wow.” Lena whispers.

“Yea…” Emma breathes out. Her body tingling.

“Do you want to go slow?” Lena asks, knowing Emma has only been with a few people.

Emma pauses for a moment and looks at Lena. “I… I don’t think I can.” She says smiling shyly.

“Do you want to get out of here?” Lena asks with a heated gaze.

Emma nods but frowns slightly. “What about the gala?”

“Sam can take over. I’ve seen who I have needed to see.” Lena looks around them to make sure no one can hear what she says next. Leaning in she kisses behind Emma’s ear. “Plus, I don’t think I will be able to keep my hands off you a moment longer.”

Emma moans and bites her lip as Lena continues to run her hands up and down Emma’s back. Lowering her neck she kisses under Emma’s jaw. “Lets go.” Emma breathes out.

Lena doesn’t have to be told twice. She grabs Emma’s hand, lacing their fingers together and leading her back inside towards the elevator. They weave quickly through the crowds of people, missing the amused looks the Superfriends give them.

“Emma?!” Kara rushes after her sister holding out the blonde’s clutch.

Emma turns and smiles at her sister. Hoping Kara doesn’t notice her elevated heart rate. “Thanks Kar.”

“See you later?”

“Maybe… I’ll let you know.” Emma smiles when she feels Lena pulling her arm impatiently. “Happy New Year.” Emma calls out to the Superfriends as Lena tugs her towards the elevators.

Lena quickly hits the button for the garage level and when the doors close Lena launches herself at Emma. Pressing the blonde against the wall in a heated kiss.

“God this dress is divine on you.” Lena whispers as she rocks against the blonde and sucks on the Emma’s neck.

“I’m glad you like it.” Emma groans out.

When the doors slide open again the pair pull apart and Lena leads Emma towards her chauffeur’s car.

“Happy New Year Ms. Luthor.” The chauffeur nods at the pair, holding the door open for them. Emma dives in and Lena follows after telling the chauffeur to drive them to her apartment.

Immediately Lena raises the divider and makes sure the windows are on the black out setting. She lifts her tight dress up and straddles the blonde.

“Shouldn't— you wear— a seat-belt?” Emma says between kisses.

Lena pulls her head back and laughs. “We’ll be fine love.” She dives back in and sucks on Emma’s neck, happy to have already found one of Emma’s sensitive spots.

The car swerves and Emma reaches up to steady Lena by grabbing her shapely ass. She squeezes and whimpers.

“You like that?” Lena whispers seductively.

“Yes.” Emma gasps out and Lena starts to grind on her.

Soon the car stops and instantly Lena is off Emma’s lap and heading towards the apartment building. Emma follows quickly behind and grabs Lena’s hand. 

Back in another elevator and they can’t keep their hands off each other as they kiss deeply.

Finally they enter Lena’s apartment and the pair kick off their heels while knocking into furniture and walls, not wanting to break the kiss. They enter Lena’s bedroom and Emma falls back onto the bed. Lena immediately straddles her and kisses her passionately.

But Emma suddenly freezes. The realisation of what is about to happen dawning on her.

“Em?” Lena asks quietly, sensing the shift in Emma. “Are you okay.”

Emma nods.

“Do you still want to do this?”

Emma nods again.

“I need you to use your words love.”

“Sorry.” Emma squeaks. Coughing to clear her throat. She sits up, holding onto Lena as she does so the raven haired beauty doesn’t tumble to the floor. “I just… I’m not the most practiced. I want this to be perfect and I’m, well… Not.” Emma averts her eyes from Lena’s gaze.

“Oh Em.” Lena’s heart immediately breaks knowing that Emma believes this. “Love, look at me please.” Embarrassed hazel eyes connect with Lena’s. “Remember I’ve seen you at your worst and your best. And you’ve seen me too, warts and all.” Emma scoffs, Lena reaches out and cups Emma’s cheeks, wanting the blonde to hear what she has to say. “But to me you are perfect. Sex is meant to have moments of laughter and figuring things out. To truly get to know your lover. If you want to wait, that’s okay. I’d rather you be honest with me.”

“No, I want this. Want you.”

Lena smiles and moves to stand up. She turns her back to the blonde, looking at her over her shoulder. “Unzip me?”

Emma stands and bites her lips as she slowly pulls the zip down. More and more of Lena’s back is revealed to her. Lena reaches down and peels the dress off of her before kicking it out of the way. She turns slowly and Emma focuses on her chest. The strapless push up bra cupping Lena’s breasts.

Taking a breath Emma reaches up to the back of her neck and unclips her dress. The top half flutters down, the rest of the dress staying on her body.

Before Emma can take the rest of the dress off Lena steps forward. “May I?”

Emma nods and Lena slowly pulls the dress down. Emma steps out of it. Leaving them both in their underwear.

“God Emma.” Lena has seen Emma in her underwear and bikini before. But now things are different and Lena can’t help but bite her lip as her eyes wander over the blonde’s toned body. She notices how deep Emma is breathing and focuses on Emma’s dilated eyes. “You okay?”

The blonde smiles. “Yes.” Emma starts to reach towards Lena but pauses. “Can I take your bra off?” Lena nods and Emma continues to move her hands forward. Reaching behind, she unclips the bra. Slowly Emma pulls it off and steps back. She looks down and her mouth waters at the sight of Lena’s naked chest.

“Like what you see?” Lena asks seductively.

“You have no idea.” Emma smiles and reaches out, cupping Lena’s breasts and gently rubbing her thumbs over the nipples.

“Can I take yours off?” Lena breathes out and Emma nods. Still fixated by Lena’s breasts. The raven haired beauty smiles and unclips Emma’s strapless bra. Moaning softly when Emma’s chest is revealed to her. “Gorgeous.” Lena gently runs her hand over Emma’s smaller breasts.

Emma blushes and leans forward. Capturing Lena’s lips in a heated kiss. They moan when their naked chests connect. Emma takes a hold of Lena’s hands and pulls the raven haired beauty towards the bed. They break the kiss and both lie down facing each other. “I can’t believe this is really happening.” Emma kisses Lena softly before pulling away again. “You do want this, right?”

“You have no idea. I’ve wanted this for a long time.”

They gaze into each other’s eyes until Lena can’t take it anymore and kisses the blonde. The kiss gets more and more heated.

Lena moves to straddle Emma and continues to kiss the blonde. But soon she breaks away and slowly kisses down Emma’s body.

“Oh Rao.” Emma whispers out when she realises what Lena’s intentions are.

“This okay?” Lena pauses and lifts her green eyes to Emma.

“Yes, please don’t stop.”

Lena smirks and quickens her descent. She kisses up and down Emma’s inner thighs, which quiver in anticipation. Spreading Emma’s legs Lena makes eye contact with the blonde, who nods at Lena to continue.

She pulls down Emma’s underwear and takes them off. Slowly she looks back at the now fully naked blonde. “Beautiful.” Lena gently parts Emma’s outer labia and licks up from Emma’s pussy to her clit causing Emma’s back to arch off the bed and a deep moan to sound around the room. The noise becomes one of Lena’s favourite sounds and she decides she needs to hear more.

Lena focuses on Emma’s clit, gently rubbing it and causing Emma to let out quick breathy moans.

“Lee. Lee. Fuck.” Emma chants as she reaches out and holds Lena’s other hand.

Spurred on Lena stuffs her face in-between Emma’s legs, licking all around her clit.

“Lee, please!” Emma calls out making Lena smile and answering her wish. She lightly licks the clit repeatedly until applying more and more pressure and speed. Emma responds by bucking her hips more and more. Her moans increasing in volume.

Using her free left hand Lena runs her fingers up and down Emma’s body before finally settling on Emma’s breasts. Massaging them gently and playing with the nipples between her fingers.

“Lee… In me… Lee.” Emma gasps, moving Lena’s right hand she’s holding down to her pussy. Taking the hint Lena moves slightly to get a better angle. Slowly she rubs her finger up and down Emma’s pussy, collecting the juices there. “Yes! Fuck… Me!” Emma grabs onto Lena’s other hand that was massaging her chest.

Lena watches the blonde as she slides her finger into her.

“Fuck!” Emma moans and her hips buck wildly as Lena finds a rhythm of both sucking and thrusting. Soon Lena adds another finger and loves the feel of Emma’s juices flowing from her. “I’m gonna…” Emma throws her head back in a loud moan. Her legs shake and clamp around Lena’s head as the orgasm roars through her.

Lena watches Emma come down from her climax before crawling up her body.

“Hi.” Lena smiles when Emma’s eyes connect with hers.

“Hi.” Emma grins back and attacks Lena’s lips with a searing kiss.

Emma pulls away from the raven haired beauty and smirks. “My turn.” She slowly kisses down Lena’s body and as she settles between Lena’s legs she lifts her head to look at her. “Ready?”

“Yes.” Lena bites her lips and gasps as Emma kisses up and down her inner thighs. “Em… Please.” She feels Emma smirk as she continues to unhurriedly kiss her thighs. Emma slowly pulls Lena’s underwear off and Lena impatiently kicks it off.

Emma hums happily as she gazes at Lena’s neatly shaven pussy. She moves Lena’s folds and licks her lips as more of Lena is revealed to her.

“Em.” Lena whines. 

“Yea?” Emma grins up at her, causing Lena to give her an annoyed glare. Emma tilts her head and slowly lowers her head. Lena reaches out and runs her hand gently through Emma’s hair. Finally Emma’s mouth connects with Lena’s clit and the raven haired beauty hips buck in response.

“Fuck!” Lena screams and Emma has to hold her thighs down to be able to continue. Remembering what Lena did to her Emma steadily increases the pressure and experiments with different parts of her tongue. Listening to Lena’s moans and changes in her breathing. “FUCK!!” Lena cries and pushes Emma’s face further in between her thighs. Soon her legs are shaking and her eyes squeeze shut as she orgasms. “Emma! Em! Fuck!” Lena moans out as her hips grind into Emma’s face.

But Emma isn’t finished, not by a long shot. She watches as Lena slowly comes down from her high and she loosens her hold on Emma’s head. Once she is able to move the blonde scoots up the bed. Dilated green eyes lazily open and look happily at Emma.

Emma smiles softly, trying to take in every detail of how beautiful Lena looks in this moment. “What do you want me to do?”

Lena bites her lower lip. “Fuck me.”

“Fingers?” Emma says before leaning over and kissing Lena’s lips. The raven haired beauty moans as she tastes herself on Emma’s lips. “Or tongue?” Emma pulls back and waits.

“Fingers.” Lena faintly responds. Her brain short circuits with what’s about to happen.

Emma grins and captures Lena’s lips again. Her hand slowly descends down Lena’s body. She gently runs her fingers through Lena’s dripping folds, causing both of them to moan deeply.

Before Emma does anything she pulls slightly away from Lena to see her properly. “Okay?”

Lena nods and gasps as Emma slides a finger into her.

“Oh Lee.” Emma whispers as she moves to kiss and suck Lena’s neck. The feeling of Lena around her finger is mind blowing.

“More.” Lena gasps out after a while and gradually Emma increases the pace with Lena’s hips moving in response. Her moans and gasps grow in volume. “Another finger.”

Emma stops sucking Lena’s neck and looks down as she enters another finger into Lena’s pussy. The sight makes her moan and Lena pulls her into a heated kiss.

Emma curls her fingers and knows she’s found Lena’s g-spot when her hips buck wildly and her back arches. Emma smirks into the kiss and keeps working against the spot. She reaches down with her other hand and gently rubs Lena’s clit causing the raven-haired beauty to break the kiss and yell out. Her breathing increases and Emma feels Lena’s body tense and walls pulse around her fingers.

“Em! Fuck! I’m… I’m… I’m gonna come!”

Emma watches as Lena becomes completely undone. It’s one of the most beautiful sights Emma has ever seen.

Gradually Emma helps Lena come down from her high. When she’s able to remove her fingers she licks them, moaning at the taste.

Lena turns her head to the noise, the sight of Emma sucking her fingers almost makes Lena go over the edge again. Emma tilts her head and a smirk appears on her face.

“You okay?” Emma asks softly.

Lena nods quickly and kisses her passionately. The rest of the night is filled with their moans of pleasure until the early hours of the morning.

“Lee!” Emma throws her head back as her hips grind against Lena. The raven haired beauty watches with a small smile. Transfixed as Emma scrunches up her eyes and tenses as another orgasm floods through her. Her moans filling the room.

Emma collapses next to Lena, gasping for breath. “Lee, that was…” Emma rubs her hands over her face before looking back at her love. “Why haven’t we done this sooner?”

Lena snorts. “You dork.”

Emma smiles but before she can respond she yawns.

“Sorry? Am I keeping you up?” Lena laughs and then yawns herself.

Emma smiles sleepy before kissing Lena lazily.

“Let’s get cleaned up and then we can rest.” Lena moves off the bed, making Emma whine and reach out for her. Lena cocks an eyebrow and sways her hips as she goes to the en-suite.

“Meany.” Emma whispers before rolling off the bed and following.

They both use the bathroom and while Emma cleans herself up Lena quickly changes the damp bed sheets. She gets into bed and waits for Emma. Who rubs her eyes as she shuffles towards the bed and falls into it.

The blonde crawls to Lena and rests her head on her chest. Lena wraps her arms around the blonde, holding her close.

“Love you Lee.” Emma says half asleep, her eyes already closed and breathing deeply.

“Love you too Em.” Lena leans down and kisses the top of Emma’s head. Her own eyes grow heavy and soon they fall into a peaceful sleep.

(Part Six)

[alextturner]

Lyrically speaking

What AM/TLSP song that u deeply admire? And why?

(I am so sorry for how long this got front a simple question! but tysm for asking me this <3 :) )

hmm, this is a loaded gun of a question! there's something I permanently come to admire about Alex's writing (singling out Miles here), as if the weather challenged him to adjust and he did to no complain, never mind the clothes. It's defiant, dishevelled- I absolutely adore the way he wrote and left little to no room for air in WPSIA and FWN, especially in Ritz or A Certain Romance... Plays like a movie, which I suppose is what made Richard Ayoade take a liking for directing one of their lives. Imagination runs faster and wilder than lines delivered or rolling reel. Find yourself later taking a dip in Humbug, and that gasp for air which never complained necessary is almost inherent to the words. It's all too clever to even be calculated, he baffles me.

And so I get carried away because I suppose, and what I mean to say is, it's very hard to pick just one :')! But I do remember the ones that made me wish they were down on book. For TLSP it's either My Mistakes Were Made For You or Aviation, especially Aviation. There's a myriad more to name but never have I seen such clever way of blurring the lines, skipping scenes and still tying it all in a firm knot, come to be more Oscar worthy than Grammy... I do not know how that can come to mind. For AM, The Jeweller's Hands, American Sports and This House Is A Circus perhaps... Not even gonna dive in the infinite wit found in the previous records. Those I could cite each and every song, but these named are infinitely wise and bathyscaphe profound to me. To build rhymes and characters out of made up scenarios or routines, that's what I suppose a part of poetry is- but I've never seen so many colours paint scenes in such way. He's got an eye for mundanity, romance and space that I don't think can come easy from anyone else's mind. It'd take like a third eye for most... And still, individually, I don't think he's all that spectacular- but he sure writes like so.

[whatiwillsay]

Now that you guys are talking about Joe’s sketchy contribution to folklore, I wanna add that i always found it sorta weird how Taylor (and Jack) in the long pond sessions describes joe with writing the songs he did, by making him sound like a musical genius, yet he only wrote 5/34 songs collectively (folklore and evermore combined). She says he fully wrote them, not just inspired them or added a little line here or there, but straight up wrote the melodic foundations and lyrical themes of these songs. The odd thing is both albums go together in terms of overall sound and themes, yet he only wrote 5? If Taylor was so impressed why wasn’t he included on majority of the albums (or at least just more than 5?). It’s not like his songs can be singled out as obviously different. His 5 sonically and thematically all sound the same as the remaining 29 he’s not credited with, so it just doesn’t make logical sense to me how he contributed on the songs he wrote vs. the ones he didn’t. I don’t hear or feel a fundamental difference between his and the others. I wouldn’t be able to tell which ones he’s credited on vs. the ones he’s not. Also another thing that doesn’t add up to me, is in the long pond sessions, Taylor straight up says folklore/the quarantine was the first time she wrote with him after coincidentally finding out his talent because she just happened to walk in on him playing piano, yet she’s been with him since reputation (3 years before folklore) but she JUST discovered his seemingly Grammy worthy talent that just so happened to fit with the sound she was going for with these two albums? Funny how his sound didn’t fit with Rep or Lover. What a freakin lucky coincidence! It seems like if you were about to date one of the worlds biggest songwriters, you’d bring up the fact that you too like to play and write music and not them just woefully discovering this fact during a quarantine in a happenstance moment almost 4 years into the relationship. Also Taylor just released Lover, an album seemingly mostly about him, yet he makes it on the 2 albums that are both intrisically heartbreak albums and not the ones narratively slobbering all over him? Make it make sense. There was even a narrative in 2017 that she was serious with him in London, yet in took her 4 years and two albums in to discover he has award worthy musical and songwriting skills? I just find it so sketchy and off. I was totally fine with her lowkey energy with Joe, until she made that long pond sessions and made it weird by bringing him up. It was so unnecessary, because even if he is William Bowery, he clearly wasn’t credited for a reason. If she was just gonna let us know WB’s true identity only a few months after release, why not just credit Joe? The secrecy just doesn’t make sense to me, especially from Taylor who has been all about songwriting rights since before joe came into the picture, so why play this unnecessary game? I didn’t get this pseudonym bullshit with Calvin either. At least with that narrative they tried selling a convincing break up reason. It’s not like anything changed with the knowledge that he’s WB, so why not just be straightforward with it? Regardless of how I feel about them as a couple (which use to be positive), it just logically doesn’t add up in my book. There’s too many unnecessary plot holes that don’t add up. Jeez, I guess all she had to do to make Lover a better album was just to sit him down in front of a piano. Who knew?!

1. please always split walls up into paragraphs as requested in my faq it’s hard for me to read this 😩

2.  i agree there’s 1000 sketchy things around joe/wb/the grammy/long pond explanations/so on and so forth but while I support you all considering it in all the ways you have here, personally I just don’t have the energy to split as many hairs here as you did.  it’s all sus, but also tiny little details don’t stand out to me as much, it's more a big picture thing ykwim? but yes...all sus

cheers for putting so much thought in tho!

[iwantitiwriteit]

Slow Burn: Act I - Part 5 cont.

The Lip Sync Battle cont.

Pairing: Chris Evans x Famous!Reader

Summary: Growing tensions between you and Chris overflow in the most musical of battles.

Warnings: Profanity, drunken silliness

Notes: Oh my fucking gosh, I fucking finished it! This part was a BEAST to write! It’s hella long so it’ll be in two posts. Before you dive in, set the mood with the moodboard + music specially curated to go with this part! THIS IS A CONTINUATION Read the previous part here.

There stood Chris, muted mic in hand, pink feather boa around his neck, dramatically lip syncing his way through “Big Shot” by Billy Joel. He pranced around the stage, miming the lyrics with absolute conviction, engaging the gawking crowd. You couldn’t believe your eyes.

Scott grabbed your hand and pulled you down the stairs to get a closer look. A crowd had formed on the dance floor in front of the stage, so you and Scott observed from the bottom steps that were a good twenty feet from it. This is close enough.

Chris was really going for it. Gesticulating and strutting, but it’s clear he isn't fully comfortable with performance. Nevertheless, he was having fun. He may be annoying as hell, but he does know how to have a good time. Just as you were mentally giving him props, he locked eyes with you, and a small smirk appeared on his face. What’s he playing at here?

Chris pointed at you as he performed the last chorus:

You had to be a big shot, didn’t cha?

All your friends were so knocked out

You had to have the last word, last night

You’re so much fun to be around

Is he… calling me out me right now? It did add up. He said he thought you were arrogant and a diva, to your face no less. But now he was slander serenading you in a public forum. What the hell is my life right now?

When the song ended, the crowd applauded and Chris bowed, but before he could exit the stage, the host from earlier pulled him closer. You didn’t care to hear what he had to say and started back up to your party’s section. Before you could even make it half way up, you felt a harsh spotlight on your back, causing you to freeze in place.

“Where are you going, sweetheart?” You turn around at the sound of the host’s voice. “You’re not really gonna shy away from a lip sync battle challenge, are ya?” All you could do was awkwardly laugh, still frozen on the step.

“Yeah, not you, the diva with all your many Grammys,” Chris and this word. His smug expression makes your blood boil. Before you could even begin to think about why you let this man ruffle your feathers, you’re making your way to the stage. I gotta trick for your ass… The crowd cheers rowdily, eager for what’s next.

When you reach the stage, the host recognizes you, announcing it to the crowd which is just as excited about your presence. “Thank you for gracing us all! You are a true queen!” You get a little timid from all the praise; it never really becomes easy for you to accept. You offer a small smile and wave to the crowd. Chris senses your shyness, and he wonders if he made the right decision in calling you out. 

“But as much as we all love you out there, you have to earn the title of ‘Majesty’ in here. Do you accept this fine gentleman’s challenge?”

You turn to look at Chris. He’s trying his best to be expressionless, but there’s something there. Unfortunately for you, the ruckus and burning stares of the crowd make it impossible for you to focus and discern it. For the moment, you disregard trying to figure him out, grab his hand, pulling his mic to your mouth and say, “I accept.”

“Yass! We love to see it! What song should I tell the maestro to cue up?” You lean over and whisper your selection in the host’s ear. “Great choice!” The host disappears off stage to relay the message, and you turn to Chris to get his mic, which you assume will be muted once it’s time for you to perform.

You get your hand on the microphone, but Chris keeps his grip, causing you to look up at him. “Good luck,” he says with a smirk you’re starting to think is trademark.

“Luck is for chumps,” you rebut, snaking the boa from his neck and placing it on your own. It blends into your pink furry outwear, a sure clash, but you intend to use it as a prop. He huffs out a laugh as he walks backwards a few steps, then turns and leaves the stage to you.

The music starts; a bass strum and some percussion. You wind your hips to the rhythm. Making an imaginary gun with your fingers, you raise it to your lips and blow the “barrel”. You mouth the intro line:

Son of a gun

This earns you an “ow!” from somewhere in the crowd. You continue to sway your hips and move about the stage with utter femininity and a feline nature. A trance clearly comes over you: you are in performance mode. Chris can’t help but marvel at the sight of you so comfortable in commanding a crowd. He’s snapped out of his thoughts as your gaze finds his and you sing to him, the lyrics reminding him of where you two stand:

I had some dreams, they were clouds in my coffee

Clouds in my coffee, and

You're so vain

You probably think this song is about you

The mention of coffee from you still stings a little for Chris, but you seem to revel in it. ‘You’re So Vain’, huh? Clever choice. You continue to sashay across the stage, accenting the lyrics with your quirky dance moves, head whipping, and expert work of that pink, feather boa. You finish your performance with a slow curtsey to the crowd, but keep your eyes trained on Chris. Even in the dim lighting you can see his sly grin, and you reciprocate it.

“Whew! Did somebody turn up the thermostat cos it is HOT in hurr!” The host and crowd praise you for your performance a few moments longer. You humbly laugh, a little out of breath from all that dancing. “Where’s our other contender?” Chris strides to join you on stage. The way he’s looking at you makes you feel the heat the host was talking about in your cheeks. “What’d you think of your competition?”

Chris takes a moment before he answers, rubbing a hand over his beard while looking down at you. “I thought she was… aight,” he said with a shrug.

“‘Aight’? Just aight?” you feigned offense with hands on your hips, to which Chris just shrugs again. The crowd began to turn on him with some booing and he was quick to clarify.

“Hold on, hold on, lemme explain!” His Boston accent was thick as he began, and the host helped him out with quieting the riled up room. “It was a great song choice, I give you that. Didn’t think a youngin like you would know anything about Carly Simon,” You scoffed and rolled your eyes as he continued, “but I was expecting something with a little more pizzazz, more diva attitude, ya’know? That was just… cute.”

“Hm,” you contemplated your response, “so, what I’m hearing is... you think I’m cute?” You looked up at him with a mischievous grin, hoping to throw him off a little. It seemed to work as he started to nervously laugh and wag his finger at you. The audience laughed and whooped like a fifth grade class, all while Chris’ face turned red.

“I think you need a lesson in how to channel all that sass into your performance. Here, lemme show you how it’s done,” Chris motions for you to leave the stage, and you graciously take the hint and pass off the mic to him. He then leans over to whisper his next song choice to the host who hurries to get it played.

The aggressive pop production of Ashlee Simpson’s ‘Outta My Head’ begins and Chris begins to faux-belt out the tune, really channeling his inner pop star. Palms to his temples for emphasis, he slowly *and overdramatically* rotates his head to accentuate the lyrics before pointing to you as he sings:

You're in my head

Get outta my head!

A room full of people, but Chris is obviously doing his best to entertain you. You struggle to maintain any semblance of a bitch face, working hard to stifle your giggles and bashfulness throughout his goofy performance. Have I really been on his mind? Just before his performance ends, you whisper your final song selection to the host who nods in confirmation. 

Chris takes his last bow in front of the excitedly raging audience. “See! That’s how you do it!” Chris says, motioning up and down with his outstretched hands to the crowd, them to signal to them to continue their applause. “I hope you were taking notes,” he says offering his hand to help you back on to the stage.

“Yeah, I think I got it,” you say sarcastically, rolling your eyes to the audience’s amusement. “May I?” Chris hands you the microphone with a lingering touch.

A slow sultry start to the song brings the energy down for a few moments but once the chorus starts, the crowd is jumping and jamming along with you. You even have a few members from the crowd and half your party join you onstage. You’re having such a good time that you almost forget that you're in the midst of a competition. You turn to Chris and mime the final chorus just to him:

If we don't fuck this whole thing up

Guaranteed, I can blow your mind

Mwah!

With a wink, you blow a kiss at Chris that he catches and puts in his pocket. You throw your head back laughing, unable to keep up a diva act any longer. Chris is laughing too and you hold each other's gaze as the song comes to a close. 

The crowd that engulfed the stage as well as everyone in the venue roared an ovation. You were so into your good time and silent banter that you have no idea if your performance was worthy of this applause. The host beckons Chris onstage for the crowd to choose which between the two of you is the winner of this lip sync battle. Chris stands across from you, his left hand and your right hand in each of the host’s hands. You don’t hear the verdict; the whole of the crowd is a cacophony that fades to the background as you and Chris look at each other with idiotically inebriated smiles.

Shaking you on your shoulders, Scott shocks you out of your trance, “That’s my girl! Congrats!”

“Thanks!” you say and give him a hug. Remembering that he should be the center of attention, you re-announce it over the mic which is met with another round of rousing applause. ‘Birthday’ by Selena Gomez gets played and you're swept into the sea of bodies dancing on stage. 

You look around for Chris and you find him squeezing his way out of the madness that surrounded you. Your mood sours when he doesn’t stick around. You hoped tonight would give you some kind of resolution, and with the moments you just shared, you hoped a good one was at the of the tunnel. Where you stood with each other was still left open ended. Or not. Guess he got the show he wanted.

——————————————————————————

Waiting outside for your ride, a couple of fans asked for pictures, thanked you for your performance even though you didn’t even sing, but soon enough you were left alone in the soberingly chilly Boston air. A wind blows through and you hug your jack tight to you to cut it, but you still feel the freeze. 

“Here,” You hear a voice behind you say. You turn to see that it’s Chris approaching with his jacket in hand. “I wasn’t using it anyway.”

“Thanks,” you say as he fixes it over your shoulders on top of your jacket. He slowly draws his hands from you shoulders as he looks into your eyes. Catching his actions, he clears his throat and backs away from you a decent distance.

An inexplicable excitement floods you then washes away as you remember you haven’t officially reconciled. You try to seem uninterested when you say, “I thought you left.”

“No, just… needed to get some air. Gotta pretty packed up there on that stage. Congrats, by the way. A very deserved win.”

“Thank you. It’s not the kind of win I’ve been needing lately, but I’ll take it.” You let out the kind of laugh like when you laugh at a painful memory. Chris wonders what you mean by that, but doubts now is the time to ask. “I owe it to you.”

“How’s that?”

“You brought the diva out of me. Couldn’t have done it without you,” you say coldly, looking away from him at nothing in particular.

“I’m sorry,” Chris doesn’t hesitate to say; it’s like he’d been holding it in for a while. He steps towards you making the gap between you a little smaller, but still a few feet wide. “I’m sorry I was judgmental. All of what I said about you being arrogant and a diva isn’t true. I knew it when I was saying it. I was just pissed you wouldn’t give me a chance to explain myself for my first screw up,” he says with a humorless chuckle. “I came off as a jerk, and I swear that’s not who I am. Do you forgive me?” His eyes are wide and waiting, hands in his pockets, more so from nervousness than the cold.

This is what I wanted, right? An apology? You sigh deeply before you reply. “You’re forgiven. And I’m sorry too, for not being up front about what I thought. Kinda just left you wondering about where we stood, and that is childish. I, too, have misrepresented myself since we met.”

He smiles a heartwarming smile at, appreciating your profession. “If it counts for anything, I sent those texts before I’d even met you, and even then, I didn’t know you were who I was talking about.”

“So… you had no idea who I was when we met?”

He shakes his head, “Nope, didn’t put two and two together until you stormed off,” he shrugs

“Huh. Well, that’s humbling, for sure…” you trail off with a laugh. Damn, all this over a misunderstanding? “Are we cool now?”

“Yeah… we’re cool.” Chris is somewhat relieved you didn’t ask to be ‘friends’. “We should start on a clean slate.” Chris takes his hand out of his pocket and puts it out to you for you to shake. “Hi, I’m Chris.”

You look at his hand, then his face, then his hand, and his face again. Noticing your hesitation, he re-presents it and wiggles his brows. You playfully roll your eyes and shake his hand, slow and steady. You get a little lost in his ocean eyes as you introduce yourself, “Hi… I’m—“

“Hey, there you are!” You and Chris snatch your hands away as if you’d just been caught doing something horrible when Lisa approaches. “I’m glad I caught you before you left.” The two of you blush and babble like idiots, but Lisa can only notice it on Chris. “Honey, your face is red! You should put a jacket on if you’re cold!”

You giggle at Lisa’s mothering and can hear Chris muttering “oh my god, Ma” under his breath. You’re handing him back his jacket as Lisa says, “I didn’t give you the details for the museum on Monday.”

“Museum? I love museums!” Seeing a grown man get this excited about anything is charming and you can’t stop the giggle that escapes you. “Can I come, too? If that’s ok with you?” Chris turns to you, hands in front of himself cautiously as he asks for your blessing. You contemplate it. Yeah, we’re cool now, but I don’t know about hanging out with him again so soon. But there’s literally no way out of this. Chris has an expectant expression, and you give him a nod to let him know you’re fine with it. “Yesss!” he says as he sharply pulls his fist into his side like he excitedly won something.

Lisa laughs at her son's antics before giving you the necessary details for your excursion. She bids you goodnight and tells Chris she’ll meet him at his car.

Your phone buzzes in your bag, and you check to see that your sister texted to let you know she’s about 2 minutes away. “Ya know… I should get your number if we’re gonna be meeting up on Monday,” Chris tries to say nonchalantly, making you perk up your brows, but you don’t meet his eyes. 

“What for?”

“Just in case, uh, you get lost on the way there.” You look up at him fully now. “You never know. We may just need to communicate.” You could swear his eyes and smile are kind of flirty. Your stomach is doing flip flops, but you’re determined to ignore it. 

“Should that happen, I’ll just call your mom.”

“What if she doesn’t answer? Who ya gonna call? Don’t—“

“Ghostbusters!” Chris tries not to laugh, but your laughter coaxes it out of him. In the midst of your laughing fit, you see your sister's car pull up a few feet up the street so you turn to walk to it. “That’s me. I gotta go.”

“Wait! Your number?”

“No.”

“Really?” he calls out to you.

You reach the car and open the door. With one foot in, you look back and say, “Really. I’ll see you Monday,” with a wink and duck your head to get into the car. You’ve got the biggest grin on your face and notice in the side view that Chris has a matching one.

“So I take it you had a good time?” Lynn asks.

“Yeah.”

Lynn questioningly mouths your simple under her breath as she wonders why you won’t give her more. “I’m too tired to ask for further details, but tomorrow I’m expecting a full debrief, ok?”

“Yeah, ok. Cool.” With that, Lynn pulls off the curb, and you think to yourself, We’re cool.

Part 6 coming soon!

[justasparkwritings]

Cardigan: Your Favorite

Previous: Thrill Expired

Pairing: Seokjin X Reader

Genre: Fluff / Slice of Life

Rating: PG

Word Count: 1,365

Warnings: Exhaustion, insecurity, comforting partner

Listen: Cardigan by Taylor Swift

           Jin crashes down into the bed, tears stinging his eyes. He’s been working his ass off for two months preparing for the Grammy’s, dancing harder and longer than he has in years. Vocal sessions multiple times a day, vocal rest afterwards, endless refills of his water bottle. Dancing during all the hours in between. Crashing early each evening to rise earlier each morning.

           He knew it didn’t make sense for him to spend this much time and energy preparing for a five-minute set, not when he had tour prep starting almost immediately afterwards. But he was determined to be perfect. How often were they nominated and performing at the Grammys? Jin had been running on empty for two weeks, and today he hit a wall. The pressure mounted as he tried to hit the notes, complete his steps and not fuck up the routine for the rest of the boys.

           With every step, all he could see was his mother, sitting in a group of her            friends, listening to them discuss their son’s accomplishments. Their pride radiating off of them, sending a heatwave throughout the house. He watched as his mother sat silently, resigned to admit her sons hadn’t done anything worthy of her pride. She never knew he had been eavesdropping and the moment continued to haunt him years after, seeking out his weakness and feeding until he was left crying and empty.

           He’d worked hard to get to this point. He had put his heart, his life, into BTS. He spent their training years working twice as hard, going to extra vocal lessons and dance sessions, he had gone to the gym compulsively. He dedicated his adventurous diet to become the healthiest, cleanest version it could be. Had he earned her acceptance and praise? In his darkest moments, when he was slowly being swallowed whole, his answer was no.

           And then there was you. You were proud of him for every song, every routine, every interview. Every time you watched him perform, you were more convinced of his brilliance. You couldn’t believe the man you loved could be so talented, so charismatic, so giving to his fans. Your awe inspired him, encouraged him to do his best. Every show was great when you were there. You weren’t just proud of him, but grateful of his hard work, his dedication, his resolve to persevere. He’d done more than any one human dreamed of doing by age 30. Couldn’t he relax and be proud of himself for that?

           But in the darkness of his insecurity, he leaned into comparing himself. He had been labeled the worst dancer, or second worst dancer, from the beginning. It clung to him like a sweater in the cold. No matter how hard he practiced, no matter how many vocal sessions he went to, he was never going to sing like Jung Kook. He was never going to dance like Jimin. He didn’t look like Taehyung, he couldn’t spit bars or bring positivity like any of the rap line. He was the eldest, and therefore the most respected, but he was positive on any given day that he was the least talented member of BTS.

           It was these thoughts that led to him crying on your bed, arm loosely over his eyes as his body shook, tears rolling down his cheeks and into his ears. It was this sight that you walked into, ten minutes later, having run to the store to grab a treat to celebrate his hard work. You knew the sound the minute you heard it, it wasn’t often that Jin sobbed, and the noise made your blood run cold.

           You dashed into the bedroom to envelope him in your arms. His head rested on your chest as you cradled him, whispering calming words in his ear. You stroked his hair and rocked slowly, lulling his body into a calmness he had lost track off.

           “Baby, love, what’s wrong?” You asked once his tears had subsided.

           “I’m so tired, and I’m the worst member of the whole group. I can’t dance. I can’t sing. No matter how hard I work… We’re going to lose the Grammy because of me!” His voice cracked as the tears welled up.

           “Where are you getting this?” You asked softly.

           “It’s true! Everyone’s thinking it! Whenever I screw up or my backing vocal is slightly off or I stumble over a lyric… they’re all thinking it.”

           “Jin, no they’re not,”

           “They are,”

           “Honey, you’re exhausted. You’re overworked, you’re hardly sleeping from the stress. It’s the anxiety trying to fuck with you,” You reassured.

           “But what if it’s true?” He whispered.

           “It isn’t true,” You stated.

           “Will you still love me if it is?”

           “Jin, I would love you if you quit BTS and decided to sell knock off T-shirts at the mall. I love you, always,” You brushed your fingers through his hair.

           “What if we lose the Grammy, will you still love me then? Will you be proud of me when we’re losers?”

           “I will love you if all you do at the Grammy’s is introduce yourself as Mr. Worldwide Handsome, you know? And that’s it.” Seokjin smiled at your teasing tone. “A Grammy doesn’t change how I feel about you. I am always proud of you and the work you do because it’s worthy of being proud of, and because I’m so in awe of you. I’m proud of you for who you are, for how you treat others, for what you choose to do with your time and talent. Grammy or not.”  

           “Will she love me if we lose?” He didn’t look at you as he spoke, shame in his words.

           “Yes, and if she doesn’t, she’s not worthy of your love,” Your voice was calm, capturing him in your love.

           “What if-”

           “What and if are two of the most powerful words in the world, put them together and they’ll destroy kingdoms. Can we focus on what we know to be true?” You suggested.

           “I don’t know what is true anymore.” He said.

           “Do you want me to tell you what I know is true?” You asked.

           “You act like you –

           “I know you, honey, I know you,” You reassured. Jin licked his lips, tasting the salt from his tears.

           “Okay,” He responded.

           “I love you, that’s true.” You said.

           “I guess,”

           “You love me, that’s true,” You started counting on your fingers.

           “That is true,” He nodded softly.

           “You are kind, thoughtful, loving and so unbearably funny,” You smiled at him.

           “If you say so,” He turned his head away from you.

           “You’re my best friend,” Your voice was coaxing him back to you.

           “That’s true,” He muttered.

           “The maknae worships the ground you walk on,” You added a fifth finger.

           “Maybe,” He huffed.

           “You have talent and charisma in spades,”

           “If you say so,”

           “Everything’s going to be okay,” You reassured. He turned to face you, doubt on his face.

           “If you-

           “I do say so, it’s going to be wonderful.” You ran a hand through his hair, your warmth grounding him.

           “Can I fall asleep here?” He asked, snuggling into you.

           “No, you need to shower or take a bath. Do you want me to draw a bath for you? Put on some calming music, light a candle or two?” You offered.

           “Will you take it with me?” The first hint of a smile crossed his lips.

           “If you want me to,” You leaned down, placing a gentle kiss on his lips.

           “I do,” He said, humming against yours.

           “Okay,” You smiled, grateful he had moved out of his sorrow.

           Jin watched you walk into your shared bathroom and heard the water turn on. As he slipped his clothes off and lowered himself into the hot water, you sitting in front of him, he was filled with contentment. That was the magic of you. No matter how heartbroken he was, how insecure, like the kid who was doomed to forever be picked last in gym class, you always made him feel loved, admired, protected, seen. At the end of every day, he was your favorite, and he wore that knowledge like a badge of honor.

[morningstarwriting]

College AU

So this was an idea that popped into my brain and I had to write it. I don’t know if this has already been done, but if it has oh well. I had a lot of fun writing this as it was my first time writing for Obey Me! I hope that you enjoy it! 

───────────────────────────────────

「 Lucifer 」

This man will be a lawyer

Don’t argue with him

He’s always right

Mainly cause he’s majoring in psychology

But he’s not stopping there

He’s actually double majoring

Psychology and History

And it ALSO doesn’t stop there

He’s getting a minor in philosophy

This means that he’s going to school for five years instead of four though

He’s so insanely intelligent though

He psycho-analyzes his brothers all the time

The only ones who don’t really care about what he has to say are Belphegor and Satan

They regularly plot against him

He always knows it

He blames it on daddy issues

This just means that even when he’s with his brothers, he’s constantly working

Always doing his schoolwork

He’s also the Vice President position of Student Government

He was beat out for the President position by Diavolo

And forced his brothers to join in the other positions

He’s also an Admissions Representative

He’s the perfect person to look at applications and determine if people are suited to attend his school

Diavolo also has this job with him

They spend countless of hours together all the time

And he knows that people ship them

He knows

There is one thing he refuses to take part in on campus, though

The only Greek life you’ll catch him in is an Honor Society with Greek Letters in the name

He isn’t the biggest fan of Greek Life

Or parties

However, he was convinced to go to a party by Asmo once

Never again

The biggest perk for his brothers is that he’s so ridiculously busy

That he can’t really constantly be on their cases

At least that’s what they think

He finds his ways

He finds a lot of ways

「 Mammon 」

He went into school as an accounting major

Big Miss Steak

He… wasn’t the best at it

He didn’t necessarily hate it

But he wasn’t thrilled about it being his major

Lucky for him

He was required to take a fine arts course

He decided on photography

And boy oh boy

He fell in love with it

Taking pictures was a Big Yes from him

He was really good at coming up with poses for his models

And most times the people in his class would ask him to model for them

And that’s when he started getting into modeling

And he loved that even more than photography

So naturally

He googled what he should do to become a model

And he found out you don’t necessarily need a degree

But Lucifer would NOT let him drop out

So, he saw that a few majors would help

Luckily for him

Photography was on there

But there was another that caught his eye

Fashion Merchandising

And here we have it

The brother who everyone sees as a dumbass is a double major

Who would have thought?

Not his brothers

Now don’t get me wrong

He barely passes his general education classes

But his major classes?

Easy

He loves them

He has shown up to class many times hungover, though

That’s what happens when you’re in a frat

Yes

Our boy Mammon

Is in a frat

He’s in the frat that puts on the best parties

They don’t let him spend money on anything anymore

They learned that the hard way

He’s also in Student Government, courtesy of Lucifer

He’s the Director of Public Relations

He considered running for treasurer

But all of his brothers reminded him of all the things he’s spent money on

And bet money on

And lost money on

He decided against treasurer

When it comes to partying

Mans goes hard

Doesn’t give a fuck

Does it all

Except hard drugs

…

Only that one time

Thank God Lucifer was there

「 Leviathan 」

If you think he would major in anything other than video game design you’re wrong

He went in looking to be a general programmer

And then he saw the words “Video Game Design”

He changed major immediately

He’s perfectly happy with just Video Game Design

But he is getting a marine biology minor

He’s always been fascinated with the ocean

And the creatures in the ocean

So he decided a minor would be a neat idea

He could also totally use his knowledge to design a dope ass underwater themed game

Which high key may be his thesis project

He really doesn’t get out much

He stays home the majority of the time

Gaming

Watching Anime

Reading manga

Lucifer literally scolded him for always staying in his room

Never going out to do anything with anyone

Levi tried to tell him playing games was basically his homework

But Lucifer was having NONE OF IT

So, to shut him up

Levi looked at the clubs the school offered

He nearly screamed when he realized there was a Japanese Manga, Anime, and Gaming Club

He quickly became the president of that

He’s also a part of Student Government with the rest of his brothers

He’s the Media Representative

He runs all the social medias for the Student Government

And he’s damn good at it

He’s frequently on his phone during meetings

And he’s the only one who’s allowed to do that

And he may use it to his advantage

He needs to know what happens in the next episode of the anime he’s watching

He doesn’t have time to listen to Lucifer and Diavolo preach about things damnit!

He also doesn’t have time for

Shudder

Parties.

Just the thought of going to a frat party makes his skin crawl

What a normie thing to do

Sadly, for him

He’s frequently forced to attend them

Thanks Mammon

He just follows Mammon around like a lost puppy

He gets flustered any and every time anyone talks to him

One time, Mammon thought alcohol would make him feel more confident

…Mammon should not have provided Levi with alcohol

Too many things happened

Things the two never speak of to this day

N E V E R

He apologizes to Ruri-Chan every day for his mistakes on that night

「 Satan 」

VETERINARY MEDICINE

HE DOESN’T CARE HOW LONG IT TAKES

HE WILL TAKE CARE OF ANIMALS

Almost bit Lucifer when he reminded him, he’d have to put down animals too

Lucifer then proceeded to call him an animal

But seriously

Satan wants to be able to help animals in any way he can

He’s well aware he will have to put some animals down

But he knows he won’t have to do that unless it’s absolutely necessary

He’s also going to be a whole ass doctor

Fuck off, Lucifer Esquire

Here comes the DOCTOR of the family

Literally took up a job just to get away from Lucifer

He works as a librarian

He loves it

He’s constantly reading

And I mean  c o n s t a n t l y  r e a d i n g

He’s the nicest librarian ever

Just

Don’t talk too loudly

Or destroy a book

Or do anything stupid

Because he will go off

He doesn’t tolerate stupidity

Not in his safe space

He’s on track to get a certificate in writing

So please

Do not interfere with literature

He’s also on track to get a certificate in Women and Gender Studies

So do not interfere with women’s rights or equality in front of him

He will not be happy

And he’s horrifying when he’s angry

Same thing goes in Student Government

He’s the Parliamentarian

And he does the job well

You either follow the rules

Or you get a talking to from Satan

Nobody wants a talking to from Satan

The only person who isn’t necessarily afraid of him is Lucifer

But Lucifer never breaks the rules so Satan can’t pop off on him

Satan might watch him like a hawk just to see if he messes up eventually so he can yell

He never catches him doing anything wrong

He catches Mammon doing plenty wrong, though

Constantly on his case for staying out too late

Mammon always blames it on his frat

And Satan always rolls his eyes

Similar to Lucifer

The only “frat” he’s in is an honor society with a Greek name

He considered joining the “smart” frat

But he decided against it seeing as Mammon was in a frat

He didn’t want to be associated with him

Sadly

He can’t escape it

Every party he goes to

Mammon is right there

Every

Time

Satan doesn’t understand how he does it

To avoid the feeling of dread he just

He drinks as much as possible

He doesn’t party often

But when he does

He

parties

The amount of times he’s gone out with his brothers and then disappeared only to come home after some crazy shit happened to the rest of them?

So many times

He doesn’t have time for their foolishness

He parties to get away from them

You know sometimes he just needs a break from his family dynamic

Even though when he gets drunk, Lucifer usually gets a voicemail

And… it’s soft

Satan has no idea those voicemails exist

Lucifer keeps them for blackmail

He also just keeps them to remind himself that Satan has a heart and isn’t a fucking dick to him all the time… don’t let the insult fool you, he actually really cares for Satan and hearing him be nice is pleasant

「 Asmodeus 」

He is a fashion design major

He’s known what he’s wanted to do since he was a child.

He’s been making his own clothes for years

People always stare at him because wow he looks good

He also decided to minor in music

Specifically focusing on his voice

Boy can sing

And sing he does

Sometimes Belphegor tells him to shut up

To which Asmo responds with

“I can’t hear you over my Grammy Award worthy voice! Did you say something?”

Before Belphegor can respond

Asmo is singing again

It’s futile

He never stops

That helps him in his Acapella Group though

He loves singing with them

Invites his brothers to every performance

Actually, gets happy if they show up

He’s the treasurer of Student Government

He’s actually very good with his money

He basically runs his own mini fashion business after all

He not only creates clothes for himself

But other people too

And don’t even get me started on his make-up looks

He’s literally an icon

He walks into a room and people know exactly who he is

He also has a YouTube channel

Focusing on fashion and beauty

He’s decently popular

And he loves it

He’s the other one in a frat

His frat is the most popular on campus

Everyone knows it

Everyone knows the people in it

And he loves the attention

So many girls and guys on campus throw themselves at him

And he loves that too

He always treats whoever he decides to bring home with him like royalty

Even though he’s had several hook ups and one-night stands

People don’t mind

Because he’s

1)

AMAZING AT IT

and

2)

HOT AS FUCK

He knows it

And he is not afraid to show it

He parties every night

Like actually

If he isn’t partying, it’s concerning

He’s one that believes that college are the best years of your life

And he isn’t letting that slip away from him

No matter how much Lucifer yells at him to stop partying all the time

Of course, partying is also an excuse for him to ignore some other things

So, he does it a lot

When he’s with someone else is when he’s happiest

So, he always makes sure to be with another person

「 Beelzebub 」

Bet you think he’s gonna major in culinary science

WRONG

That’s his minor

His major

Is Family and Child Science

He wants to help people so bad

Especially children

He wants to do everything in his power to make sure that children live happy lives

So, his main goal in the end is to either be a school counselor or a crisis counsellor

He’s very serious about what he does

And he holds some past trauma

So, he wants to make sure people have someone to talk to when bad things happen

Of course, he also loves making food

He loves eating it more, though

But honestly

He’s a student athlete

Of course, he needs food

He’s always moving

He’s the captain of the American football team at their school

If he wasn’t going into child services

You’d best believe he was going into the NFL

Mans can PLAY football

It’s also really nice to have him in Student Government

Because the student body actually respects them because of it

He’s the secretary

It’s always nice when Lucifer asks Beel for the notes they took that meeting

He hands them over

Super detailed

Perfect, even

He always pays attention

He’s great at listening

And he knows how much it means to Lucifer

So, he never disappoints

He isn’t in any other clubs other than student government

But that’s because he’s on teams

Like I said, one hell of a football player

And if he’s not home making food or doing schoolwork

He’s at practice

Or just at the gym

He’s always bettering himself

And he’s certainly a campus heartthrob

It’s always fun going out with him

because he is the heaviest of all the heavy weights

His record for taking shots is twenty-one

That should have KILLED HIM

It didn’t kill him

BUT

That’s definitely his limit

That was an interesting night

Beel is just happy that his brothers happened to be there

He wasn’t too happy when he realized Mammon did something even more stupid than taking twenty-one shots

Lucifer made sure they were both okay though

Which Beel appreciated

He just… avoids vodka as much as possible now

Too many bad memories

At least from what he can remember

「 Belphegor 」

Like Beel

Belphie really cares about the mental state of people

Not children specifically

Just people in general

He’s just

Not cut out to be a counsellor

He doesn’t have the personality for that

He needs to do something that can actually take his sarcastic ass and allow him to use it for the better

SO

He does some research

And something catches his eye

Rehabilitation Coordinator

Specifically Rehab for drugs and alcohol

He’s no-nonsense enough to enforce the rules of the facility, but still be able to care about these people

And become one

He needs to go to nursing school

This is difficult for him

He really enjoys sleeping

And this whole getting up early for clinicals thing?

Not ideal

However

After talking to his advisor about it

And by talking

I mean just straight up telling him he’s nocturnal got severe insomnia and waking up early is a no go

He gets put on the night shift

And that does wonders of good for him

The brothers barely see him

He’s either in class, asleep, or at the hospital

The only brother he ever really makes time for is Beel

They’re twins

Of course, he’s going to make time for him

A lot of the time, Belphie will return home around the same time Beel wakes up to go on a morning run

So, they have breakfast together

Because of his chaotic schedule

The only club he’s in is Student Government

And he did his best to snag the easiest position

The Reporter position

He just

Submits stories to the papers in the area

That’s it

He loves it

It’s so easy

Lucifer has to remind him to do it sometimes, though

He doesn’t mean to forget

He’s just got a lot going on

He needs to memorize he human anatomy, Lucifer

Some things are more important

He rarely goes out

He isn’t fond of parties

Even though he’s a night owl and enjoys the occasional drink

There are too many people

The main reason he goes is to make sure Beel doesn’t get too wasted

Not after that one time

But he did party a little hard when he found out he passed a test that he needed to get higher than a C on to stay in his major

He celebrated

Sleeping was the last thing on his mind that night

He was so hungover in the morning