#also too embarrassed to post this on twitter which means it goes here

[wtfforged]

i love looking at hero concept art and going Man You Know what would make this go Even Harder? 

[bookishtheaterlover7]

Booky, you’re such a sweet person. I know it’s probably hard for you to be a fan and see stuff that annoys you, but remember that it’s probably happening to other fans with celebs they like.

Those poor Henry Cavill fans - though I don’t even think his gf is that bad. Lol.

And as for the Jeff Conway person…

lol. First of all he’s very very cringe. I’ve rarely seen an interviewer editor be this thirsty to repost his own articles and also be so unbelievably tacky as a grown man. But hey.

That being said, he was the one who wrote the Forbes article for Chris and his jinx thing at the end of December, right?

He was also one of the writers who wrote a people article of them going public. Somebody should check back those archives because I’m almost positive Jeff started following fish the night before or around the time they went public.

He also interviewed Chris the day Chris said his long term partner was his dog 🤣 - I wonder if he told Chris that 😭 and gave him a very cringey shirt ���my dog is my soulmate.” A grown ass man.. giving another grown ass man a shirt like that. And then repeatedly bragging about it on twitter. How is he not embarrassed by himself?? (Jeff)

My personal thought is he goes where he has an assignment. I sometimes have to write really cringe social posts for work but thankfully they’re not attached to my name. He was probably instructed to hype her up because tbh, I still believe they’re trying to make her happen.

Think about how the kardashians, TikTok influencers, and other random ass “Celebs” pop up and start being placed everywhere and nobody is asking for them and the comments are filled with hate. But do these outlets ever stop? Really think about it. Step back from the fishbowl and observe the other industry ppl who have basically been shoved into our faces without our desire. I think the media knows Fish is DOA but she’s here and unfortunately here to stay for awhile. I think people can and will continue to ignore her so that’ll be pretty funny to watch.

I’m also sure fish wasn’t rude to Jeff because I doubt she’s like openly a rude person. I’m not trying to defend her because I know people on here will feel how they feel about this girl, but she’s not going to be a brat to everyone just because people want to hate her. I do think it’s interesting that post had Jeff hyping her up and then just mentioning Chris was also there. As if he’s her plus one and not the other way around.

I feel like she’s getting way too much attention for being virtually nothing and a nobody. The general public simply does not care about her.

I think someone just posted up TMZ posting celebs at the parties and they posted Chris alone and cropped her out. If true, LOLLLLLL TMZ 😂

Just Jared has written at least 600 articles at this point and they’re still getting her name wrong.

By the way, in my line of work, we have to proofread our articles before submitting them to post. So does every single outlet just accidentally miss fish’s last name?????

I’m starting to feel like it’s intentional.

🥹 Thank you, Marketing An🫶n!

It must suck for everyone, but it's good to know that what I'm feeling is definitely not just me. Makes me feel less crazy. 🙂

Good Lord, Jeff seems to be overselling and overdoing it, a little. But, as you said, it's a thing that needs to be done.

And you've got a point about celebs we DIDN'T ask for, just popping up. And it causes quite a stir. Which is effective for their reasons.

No, they do not. Hell, she's simply known as Chris Evans' wife. No more, no less. Imagine that as your only title. It's sad.

I hope it's intentional, because that's too many typos, and almost (I'm assuming they did this at least once) zero edits... 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

Thanks for talking with me, Marketing An🫶n. It's really a highlight everytime you're here. So thank you ❤️ and it seriously means a whole lot. 🥰🥹

Until the next one...

[beautifulpersonpeach]

Hi BBP, thank you for your level-headed take on the hate. That said, could you help a bit more on how to dealing with the overwhelming hate? My timeline was fairly clean, but I was on reddit where there was a very one-sided vitriol towards Jimin and about his singing. So I tried to report on different platforms and my exposure to these vile accusations and sexually charged hate speech made me really sad. Idk how you've been able to report and deplatform some of the most awful bunch in the past. How do you not get emotionally drained? I feel so indignant for Jimin and I can't help but feeling hurt, which I know is not a good approach. I wanted to enjoy this comeback wholeheartedly, but I now feel a heavy weight in my heart. I also know that Jimin is a perfectionist and very hard on himself, I hope that he isn't beating himself up too much. He is a phenomenal artist, and I hope the recency bias doesn't get to him too much. If this is what (probably nowhere near the magnitude given the severity and size of army fandom at the time) army+bts went through in 2016-2018, then I can't commend the perseverance and strength of them enough. It's really incredible, and makes me feel better and want to do better. It's equal sign & letter time, I guess. Regardless, your advice would be much appreciated.

*

Ask 2: Lool Jimin is an embarrassment >..< Armys act high and mighty pretending you don't see that sorry excuse for an idol getting dragged all over Twitter lmfao lmfao >..< I wonder what you're going to say now BPP how will you spin it >..< Or are you going to defend his encore bleating?? Jimboy is my bias in BTS >..< you know why BPP? Bcos he can't lie Your boys tried pretending they're singers oh they tried hardddd but Jimin didn't get the memo!! I thought it will be Namjoon to fuck up first in solos given how sex obsessed he is but he pulled through lucky you BPP. Not lucky j-hope flopped >..< but Armys pretended he didn't. Jimin is where all the pretense dies. In solo era your dozens can't hide BPP and no amount of mass buying will change it. Thanks to Jimin the whole world knows BTS is a fraud >..< One day the whole tower of cards will come falling down. Your sick cult fandom will be exposed and your emperor will have no clothes. You know it no wonder you're miserable harassing bloggers here. Do you think people don't notice? How you steal from people here? Your favs are just like you.

Stop harassing bloggers here. You're not satisfied to run them off the app? Go back to the gutter you crawled out of and take your disgusting privileged dozens with you. Nobody will notice and there will be peace.

*

Ask 3: Ngl Bpp, but the success Face is getting in countries like Japan and UK really surprises me. I mean I was expecting him to do numbers but I didn’t expect it to do this well? Specially after all the stuff that’s been happening left and right. I know he’s Jimin and the maknaes in general are expected to do really well because they’re super popular and have tons of solos on top of that too but still. I’m not knocking on Face at all because it’s definitely my top 2 debuts but I guess you’re right that Jimin did unleash something that he hides away deliberately…

I’m expecting even more for Jungkook too especially if he goes more poppy. For Tae I think it will do just as well as Jimins, less maybe if he goes the jazzy, slow type that he’s done but I think he’ll do better in Korea if that’s the case. I’m really curious what those two are planning because they’ve been working on their solos for years now and have scrapped a ton of songs already. I wonder if they’ll flip the expectations too like Jimin did.

***

Hi Anon(s),

Anon in ask 1, the second ask in this post is here for your benefit. Normally when I get asks like that, I delete them. I don't get the really creepy ones anymore because escalating the issue to Tumblr each time got the creepy users permanently banned from the platform. The asks I end up keeping now are the ones that occasionally make me chuckle, like Ask 2. I just thought (and still think) it was so odd but quaint to say "Jimboy". Lol. As though Jimin's name is Jimmy... and like it's 2023, who actually says "Jimboy"? Also, "the emperor will have no clothes"?? I know what that means but it was so random I actually laughed reading it. It's also the most recent hate ask so I didn't have to scroll that far to get it lol.

What did you feel reading that ask? Annoyance? Anger? Confusion? Amusement? Bewilderment? Hate? Now, has anything changed in the last few minutes, in the real world, since the time you read that opinion and now? Actually, who even is this person saying it? They can't be anybody worth listening to if what they're saying isn't based in fact to begin with, can they? Until now I've never actually sat down to think this out, but that's basically the chain of questions that shoots down my mind in a split second when I see things like Ask 2. In fact my only takeaway from that ask is it's a shame its author is a bit insane, because I actually like their sense of humor. I mean, "Jimboy"? Really?

My point in saying this is, your personality will always impact how you approach hate, and this is something I didn't fully appreciate until recently. My personality is such that exposure therapy really does work on me - I've been into this for so long that few things are genuinely surprising (which is one reason I appreciate BTS/HYBE because that SM fiasco? Lol! Was left-field grade A entertainment. 10 years on and they still impact this system like new blood). Anyway, a lot of the talking points and insults get old. Like I know that in 2026 we'll be answering these exact same questions when a new wave of fans join the fandom, because this has happened every 2 - 3 years since 2013. When I first started actively writing on this blog, it was around the time Jimin was in a controversy related to missed insurance payments I think. There was a lot of hate and at first I'd respond to asks by pointing out how this will hardly impact Jimin in the real world, how Jimin hardly comes online anyway, how the people who write things like that are weird and miserable, how they're essentially binary code... I didn't appreciate that some people need more to understand what's happening because the scale and pervasiveness of hate in k-pop, whether in shippers, solos, ARMYs, or k-pop stans, is frankly senseless. So, I'll say a few more things if you don't mind.

Specifically on how to deal will hate towards Jimin or idols you like:

This might be weird to say, but one thing I consider very important is to remember what you are. You're a fan. That's it. Your scope of effective change is mostly beneficial when compounded with other fans' efforts. And even then, Jimin is his own person, a person strong enough to thrive in an environment as caustic as this, surrounded by people he loves and people who love him. So I get it when you say things like, "I feel so indignant for Jimin and I can't help but feeling hurt," but at the same time, it will be easier to detach and gain perspective when you remember what you are in this situation, a fan. And so is that person hating him. It's okay to just step back, log off, and go do something else if you're not in the mood to respond to them clearly, or to just report and block (recommended). Jimin is more than fine. Obviously. He already hears how much of a respected artist he is from his bandmates, their staff, talkshow hosts, interviewers, and designers, and what I suspect he'd like to see more is the response from his fans. So if you like what you're hearing, express that however you like. Just doing that is powerful and amazing. And going by that meme dance (the one JK too did), that Jimin posted on Instagram, maybe Jimin will notice how you express your love for his work. I'm writing all this to show it's not merely cliché to say focus on the music, it really just makes sense.

Anon in ask 3, thanks for providing a good segue into showing one of the best ways to deal with criticism IMO: actually listen to the music and support the artist. You were mad, amused, or both, reading Ask 2 weren't you? It didn't seem rational to you at all, did it? Responding to posts like that Anon's will take time away from you enjoying or assessing what Jimin has released, so it only makes sense to just focus on Jimin and support him harder. That's what ARMYs and his other fans did for him the last two weeks, and that's what they'll do again for Yoongi's D-Day release.

[ Your surprise at Jimin doing so well though lol... Jimin released the album of the year, ended k-pop, and owned every live performance, and you're surprised the fandom rallied for him and the world loved his work? Come now. ]

Speaking of D-Day's release and ARMY support, Taehyung and Jung Kook's debut will be so chaotic for the fandom oh lawd. I almost don't want to be here for it, but I also don't want to miss it because theirs could be the biggest debuts in the group and I honestly like Taekook's music so far. Both Tae and JK have made pop tunes so I assume they'll have a mix of pop, R&B, jazz, and/or hip hop in their albums. Let's pray Jungkook was thoroughly inspired by Jimin in Set Me Free Pt 2 and we get nasty rapper JK in JJK1, or a feature with one. We know Jungkook will be dancing hard in at least one MV too...

Besides that I have no expectations for Tae and JK. They'll both do very well.

*

Anon in ask 1, hate is something you'll only see more of unfortunately the longer you spend time in k-pop circles online, especially if BTS remains at the top of the hierarchy for a lot longer. I think whatever impact that will have on BTS will be insignificant so long as each member keeps making art. I could be wrong but that's also an outcome outside of our control, so why fret about it. Also, I personally enjoy a good debate and don't mind seeing critiques often because sometimes you learn something new, so I'd encourage you to remain in the spaces you're in, but it's also okay to curate your feed or block spaces that are clearly toxic to you. It takes a few tweaks but it's possible to curate a fan space online that's fun and helpful/informative to you as a fan. My $0.02: if that's what you want though, don't open a Tumblr account and turn on the Anon feature. Lol. A lot of people are just weird.

[spookfished]

media roundup june 2023

hey guys guess who just went "oh its the 4th of july. that means that its july" here im going to talk about things i read/watched/played last month! i didnt read as much but did finish a couple books that ive had checked out Forever. ok actually i read a lot woops

books/comics/written media:

fake dates and mooncakes by sher lee: fake dating (obv) premise between a cooking boy and a rich heir! book that made me realized im honestly just not that interested in ya romance anymore LMFAO. pretty sweet and a decent read, but landed more heavily on the expository end of uhh i guess diaspora fiction? than i really prefer. i think i picked this up bc the author got mega cancelled on tyk twitter lol??

bird by bird by anne lammott: book about how to write. i love to read about how people do stuff :3 some of the advice applies pretty universally to creative efforts i think.. made me want to write more too

john dies at the end by jason pargin: DNF. comic/horror about this loser guy who discovers stuff. sigh i tried so hard to like this book its supposed to be pretty 'mecore'...talked about this with alena a bunch but its like hm... i know the sort of casual offensiveness sort of goes in hand with being poor and white and in the midwest and i appreciate how its like that creates its own doomed narrative or whatever. but also i feel like the protagonist would call me slurs or something. also the lowgrade but pervasive orientalism is kinda offputting. probably fun for some other guy! i did enjoy the horror elements though

the goldfinch by donna tartt: literary coming of age about a boys relationship with a painting (the goldfinch). also he flops a lot and its sort of homoerotic i guess? a movie was made of it. so something to note is that ive had this book out on loan since literally december. neil kept on being like hey man just stop reading it LMFAO. thoughts cp'ed from discord:

why does the goldfinch feel like a 600 page leadup to the actual book which is 800 pages

idk at this point im kinda sick of pathetic lovelorn self obsessed semi literary men. like toku men are also sopping and pathetic but i think its more appealing when they are also kind and can be vulnerable. this guy is just annoying and kind of incel coded. like does a grand gesture to make up for the fact that he killed your dog while dogsitting

i actually did enjoy the parts post timeskip but i still think the first two thirds could have been cut or Greatly compressed or interspersed w the present or Something, yk? prose was nice though

the bodyguard by katherine center: romance novel about a woman bodyguard who lives for her job. fresh from a breakup, shes given a new undercover assignment with a handsome actor, recently withdrawn from society. will they be able to break each others' shells....? my mom recommended this to me LMFAO we kind of have different tastes in romance.. ive read a book by this author before i think her platonic scenes are very strong? i wish there had been a couple more of those. also i like how she always includes a life affirming section at the end about how important it is for us to open ourselves up to love etc etc cute but not especially memorable

kiss quotient by helen hoang: (reread) a shy, autistic econometrician decides that she needs to get better at sex, and so hires an escort. helen hoang is one of my faavorite romance authors i really enjoyed this reread although i kinda forgot that both leads say, think and do some pretty embarrassing things. but you know a little embarrassment is endearing and all that.. i still prefer her other book (the bride test) but this one is pretty good too. vivid characters 👍

sisters of dorley hall by alyson greaves: web fiction - a trans woman infiltrates a secret force-feminization program. ok im just cp'ing my thoughts from discord again but i enjoyed it a lot:

my thoughts are that the first like, third? is really really good. it like idk takes the very real trans fears of like discovery and passing and all that and fictionalizes them a bit. but like its still grounded and swag. sooo tense once The Reveal happens n things w steph are pretty normal it gets kinda meandering? which i dont really mind bc i love interpersonal drama even if i miss how tense and scary it was. but also theres only like two major plot threads going on rn and theyre both pretty slowburn. a timeskip would probably benefit tbh like the point rn is kinda like. the 7 year meteor? yeah sorry

like it used to be sort of psychological thriller? and now its sort of more character focus and also surprisingly fluffy.. im surprised that the author has said they have a complete outline bc it doesnt feel very focused atm? but also like i suppose things are snowballing a bit re: revealing the sisters to the outside world

an unauthorized fan treatise by lauren james: a fangirl trying to prove her rpf ship is real uncovers a greater conspiracy. to me if something is able to capture a specific age/vibe from the internet its automatically pretty good. however more and more people are learning how to do that so maybe i should change my standards... i was never involved in All That re: rpf or even fandoms of live action shows until kamen rider? but like i definitely knew people in hs that were sort of like this LMFAO so it felt very familiar. i appreciate the author trying to make that $$ but i dont know if it really needs an expansion/sequel.. the ending is better off with some ambiguity imo

impossible us by sarah lotz: literary romance? a man and a woman fall in love online, but encounter difficulties when they try to meet. ok im just pasting my thoughts here again (spoilers btw):

ok that was a lot of stuff. onto movies/tv:

xo kitty: kitty goes to a school to connect with her online boyfriend, but all is not well. yall this was not good. i guess my standards shouldnt have been that high but to all the boys ive loved before was so cute!! (havent watched/read the others). but like.. the writing was bad and the main actress just wasnt very sympathetic or charming? characters waste time saying "i can explain" until time runs out for them to actually explain, additional (and nonsensical) romance plots are added for no reason, and the male lead isnt even that hot. sorry. also kitty deciding to move to korea to connect with her mom but not bothering to learn a speck of korean and insisting that everyone else speak to her in english really sucks honestly. not even my mom liked it so thats how you know its bad 👎

succession season 1: yesss succession. greg is my favorite cant wait to see him become evil. makes me stressed

shin kamen rider (hideaki anno): reboot of the first kamen rider by the guy who made evangelion. this guy kinda makes the same thing over and over but it looked sick as hell so i wasnt complaining. like stella obstinaterixatrix said, kinda more introspective or even insular to the point of kinda ignoring the usual kr theme of justice but it was still very fun :3 kinda want to watch the original now

ready player one (movie): my parents made me watch this movie. aggressively mediocre.

kamen rider revice and live and evil and demons: pretty fun if you have the disease that makes you think revice is good, but mostly made me miss revice. i think they should have gone more into the clone thing but i always think that so

kamen rider juuga vs kamen rider olteca: two-parter special for kr revice. i forgot what happened in this pretty much immediately after but karizaki was hot

roman holiday: a princess touring in rome escapes her duties for a day, and meets a dashing young reporter. classic romance!! i actually liked this so so much like it actually is very romantic and funny and like deserves the hype. didnt expect it to be in black and white even so audrey hepburn is really hot. (spoilers) more romances should have bittersweet endings though like it hit

kamen rider ryuki: a young man is inducted into a battle royale between those fighting for their deepest wishes, and decides to try and stop the rider battle once and for all. hey guys ryuki is so fucking good for those who have watched madoka magica a lot of it is very heavily based off of/inspired by ryuki! but ryuki does it better. pretty much The kamen rider has so much to say about justice and love and what it means to be a hero and sacrifice and *runs out of air and falls over* also it made me cry. if you ever try kamen rider try this one <3

EDIT OH i forgot about across the spiderverse 100/10 obviously groundbreaking in animation nice take on generational trauma and also like the nature of adaptation and being in a multimedia comics franchise and all that. really hope the sequel doesnt get crunched too bad. oh but copaganda not great 99/10

video games:

twisted wonderland: gacha game where random disney villains are bishie high schoolers instead. ill play chapter 3 sometime soon i swear. gameplay is terrible as with most gacha games but the characters are cute? i feel terrible guilt for being involved with a disney franchise. honestly pretty compelling character writing sometimes though sorry

apico: stardew-like about raising bees (in beta). sooooo cute and the devs obv care about bees a lot in real life. the gameplay loop + breeding systems are a little bit punishing right now though i really hope it gets adjusted. took over my life during finals (woops) and i got like half the bees and then burnt out. multiplayer is fun though!

legend of zelda tears of the kingdom: the next zelda game, now featuring building + vertical elements. yeah this took over my life for two months like it did for a bunch of other people i finished the main story a couple days ago! i might go back to do a couple more of the shrine puzzles, but other than that i think im done. LOVE the vertical elements and also all the little sidequests there are to do and how the world has changed since botw. dragons tears was really good and OMG PROVING GROUNDS. would be a 10/10 if zelda was the protag stop damseling her you guys cmon

paper mario origami king: newest paper mario game, which is a spinoff of the main series where theyre all paper (duh). im about halfway through this, i think? tried it out because of the dunkey video lol and also bc it was free at my library. very charming and inventive, has a really good soundtrack and really funny writing! i know the gameplay was controversial, but im enjoying it a lot (and theres a lot of room for error). might 100% it

it feels like this month i tried a lot of things that i didnt really like LMAO. also a lot of romance. im very happy about finally finishing the goldfinch! the only holdout on my libby is slaughterhouse 5 :P i did find some things that i really liked though! anyways this one feels a bit more scattered but if you got to the ending, congratulations! thanks for reading :3

[cavalierious-whim]

Socially Awkward, Chapter Three (Wriolette)

Neuvillette and Wriothesley are a match made in Hell because neither of them knows what they're doing.

'Socially Awkward'

Part 3 of 11

modern au

old dude cliche rom-com

Read here on AO3. You can also, follow me on Twitter and Blue Sky.

--

Wriothesley is in the middle of chucking one of Sigewinne’s infamous protein milkshakes into the trash when his phone dings. 

[LesBAEin] >> Hey moron—check out your favorite Kameragram account

He blinks, thumb hovering over the screen. Clorinde sent him a text message. Clorinde never sends him text messages. The one time she did was when she had the flu about six years back, and she was convinced she was dying. 

“My favorite Kameragram account?” he murmurs, face twisting in confusion. “What does she—”

And then it clicks. Wriothesley's mouth rounds into a small ‘o’. LeviathanJudicator. Right. That. Clorinde told him she was going to stalk his account. He gives his phone screen a narrowed, suspicious look when another message comes through. 

[LesBAEin] >> damn those collarbones

He cannot click into the Kameragram app quickly enough. He’s already saved LeviathanJudicator’s last… ten… pictures. To look at. To appreciate. Definitely not to jerk off to. This is a Kameragram story slated to stay posted for a full day. The theming is the same; a slick, crisply cut navy suit, perfectly tailored. A starched collar—

Undone. Smooth, pale skin on display, a sharp clavicle disappearing behind the button placket. 

Wriothesley's mouth goes dry as he stares. His cock—he doesn’t think about his cock. He’s standing in the corner of the gym, in full sight of everyone else and the last fucking he needs is to pop a random boner. Damn those collarbones indeed.

Gods, it’s—

And then Wriothesley notices. The caption at the bottom of the picture, settled right next to the subtle bulge in the man’s trousers. Your turn.

Wriothesley swallows. 

He took the bait. The man took the bait. Wriothesley didn’t think he’d—he never imagined that he would actually—

“Could you at least hide that monster behind your gym bag or something?”

Clorinde. It wouldn’t be the first fucking time she’s seen him compromised but no amount of years shared between them can make it any less embarrassing. Wriothesley looks down, which makes her snicker, and he heaves a long sigh when he sees that nothing is so readily apparent. 

“That was just cruel.”

“As cruel as making me think about it?”

Wriothesley raises a brow. “You were the one who decided to—what was it you said? Stake him out?”

Clorinde sniffs in mock annoyance before stepping to stand beside him. “I won’t apologize for worrying over your stupid ass. You’re a moron and you’re prone to doing moronic things. Is that one of Sigewinne’s shakes?”

“It’s all yours,” he says, handing her the shaker cup. “Also, I’m only a little bit of a moron—”

“A little bit is still a bit.”

“—the point is that there’s still a smart part somewhere in there.” Clorinde snorts and Wriothesley tries not to be too offended. “Oh, shut it. You have no right to say shit when you drink that crap.”

Clorinde salutes him with the bottle and takes a massive swig of the milkshake. Not even a grimace. “She knows what’s good for bulking.”

“Because that’s what you need, surely,” is Wriothesley's dry reply. “I’m fine with… well. This tea and—”

“I swear to the Archons you add a scoop of protein powder to—”

He does. Wriothesley grins as he dumps a heap of it into a second shaker bottle, caps it, and mixes it up. Clorinde cringes when he takes a sip. It isn’t that bad—the vanilla pairs well enough with earl gray, and earl gray is decent when iced. 

Better than the thick concoctions Sigewinne tries to force down his throat. 

“Anyway,” says Clorinde, leaning against the small drink prep counter. “What are you going to do?”

“What do you mean what am I going to do?”

“About your problem?”

“I already told you, there’s no problem—”

“Not that, you dumbass.” Clorinde gestures to his crotch. “That.” Gestures to the phone.

Right. LeviathanJudicator.

Wriothesley clears his throat. “I… well. I guess I have to own up to it, don’t I? I made the bet and never thought he’d…” He sighs, dragging a hand down his face. “Well, I reap what I sow,” he finishes with a laugh. “Anyhow, I’m going to catch a shower. Let that protein really sink in. Think about my mistakes and the damn sweater.”

“And those collarbones?”

“Absolutely not.”

Absolutely yes.

Clorinde’s mouth twitches at the corner. She reaches out and punches him playfully on the shoulder. 

#

So, Wriothesley doesn’t plan to jerk off in the gym shower. 

But the showers are empty, LeviathanJudicator’s tease is fresh in his mind, and Wriothesley has already whacked one out to his fully clothed body, so how worse can somewhere mildly public be? Besides, he co-owns the gym, so he has whacking-off rights as far as he’s concerned. He’ll tuck away in a stall and keep quiet. Just a quickie, a few strokes of his hand. Relief will come swiftly and Wriothesley can walk back out there a man renewed and in better spirits. 

It’s too hot. Sweat drips down his face as steam rises. 

Wriothesley imagines sweat clinging to those finely shaped collarbones instead, of dragging his tongue across the length of them for a taste. His cock hardens easily, instantly. There’s a joke in there, somewhere, about how he’s too old to be acting like a teenager.

“Don’t think about that,” he murmurs to himself. 

Think of those perfect shoulders; the lapels, that waistcoat, the Barbatos Knot tie. Wriothesley spits into his hand, cradling his cock. The stream of water beats down his back. He groans softly as he gives himself a stroke. 

He’s never done this in public. Never wanted to, but desperate times and desperate measures—not to mention the minor thrill of it. The gym’s empty enough that day so others shouldn’t walk in, but there’s a dastardly pleasure that zings down his spine. He shouldn’t that, shouldn’t get off on it, but—

Wriothesley sighs, resting his forehead against the cold tile of the shower stall. At least it’s clean. Thank god for Wriothesley and Sigewinne’s combined neurotic tendencies.

But those collarbones. The suits, the trousers, the taper of a perfectly shaped waist. 

Wriothesley squeezes his cock harder and chokes off a moan. Strokes it once, twice, and tries not to think too much about the heat of another body, another man. It’s teasing—all of this is teasing. Harmless flirting. He’s better off with his odd and occasional fucks, and jerking off into his palm.

The fantasy is nice, though. A silly tale of meeting over social media, of awkwardly sharing pictures, the sort of thing that romance books build. Another tug of his cock has pleasure sinking into his gut. It twitches and Wriothesley grunts, moving his hand faster.

Quicker is better. Too long holed away and Clorinde will come looking, and that’s a can of words that Wriothesley definitely doesn’t want to deal with. 

She—

He definitely should not be thinking about Clorinde right now. No, no. He thinks of navy wool and white cotton. Of collar pins, and cufflinks, and a handsomely arched wrist bone. Gods he’s gone. It’s been too long since he’s fucked another real-life, living being. 

None of them are so handsome. The man has to be. Handsome. Pretty. Wriothesley just knows it, feels it in his bones. His breath hitches as he pulls across his length, grimacing slightly as the water washes away precome and spit. 

But it’s good. Just enough. Slick to the point that he should be able to get off, and later, when he’s at home he can bust out the good lube—

He should not do that. 

Just like he shouldn’t be shooting his load down the drain, but he does so anyway, coming with a soft grunt that he barely manages to hold back. What has possessed him so? It’s not like he hasn’t gone through periods of fevered jacking off but it usually follows a dry spell—which, he’s been busy, but not busy enough to eke one out before bedtime a couple times a week. 

But this faceless man has Wriothesley's entire being in knots and even his orgasm isn’t completely satisfactory. He’s too keyed up. Wants to look at that picture again and sear it into the wrinkles of his brain. Did he screenshot it? He’s got to screenshot it before it disappears. 

Wriothesley sighs, shaking off his hand and rinsing up underneath the stream of water. At least the water gets hot enough. Nothing like boiling himself back into a semblance of something more normal. Gods, he’s pathetic.

Clorinde is leaning against the lockers when he steps away from the showers, dripping water everywhere. She ignores the low-slung towel tight around his hips. “Wriothesley,” she says, her mouth tugged into a look crossed between disgust and disappointment. 

“Oh shut it. When this happens to you, I won’t let you forget. I’ll sink my teeth in and drag you as far as I can.”

She lifts an eyebrow. “This will never happen to me.”

“Yeah, well that’s what I used to say and look at me now.”

Clorinde snorts. “Yes, well, you aren’t following the rules. Speaking of—what’s the next move?”

“Wearing the damn sweater.”

“You know that isn’t what I mean.”

Wriothesley pinches the bridge of his nose, closes his eyes, and prays to Celestia that when he opens them again, Clorinde is gone. When he looks she is not gone. “I am thinking. About it. I—” Wriothesley swallows. “It’d be rude to ignore him, right?”

“Perhaps. I think the question you need to ask is are you thinking with your head or your dick?”

“Both?”

“Ah, so I’ve always been right—a man’s dick is his head. Call the Steambird because I’ve cracked the code.”

Wriothesley manages a smile and goes about redressing himself. “It’s unconventional,” he admits, “but like… this guy is just… different? Respectful? I can’t really describe it but you know when you gete a gut feeling and you just know that it’s right?”

Of course, she does. Clorinde is a professional sharpshooter, which is one percent aim, and ninety-nine percent instinct. She sighs, arms still crossed over her chest. “I know that, Wriothesley. I’m not blind. I can tell that this guy is a gentleman—and you know what that means.”

Wriothesley has a thing for the so-called gentlemen and it’s never worked out well in his favor.

“And that’s why it’s casual. We’re just having fun! The moment the weird shit starts I’m out, I promise.”

Clorinde watches him for a long moment, saying nothing. Wriothesley tugs on the rest of his clothes with that stare burning into his back. He knows she’s just concerned and he’s thankful for it. If he can’t have a good head on his shoulders at least she does. 

Still. 

“Really, though—when it happens to you—”

“It will not. I have standards.”

Wriothesley towels off his hair and shoots her a grin once fully clothed and ready to head back out to the gym floor. “Why don’t you tell that to my one o’clock? I think she likes you—”

“I’ll drown you in the shower next time I catch you on a date with your hand.”

He laughs as he brushes past her because Clorinde definitely would.

#

In the nearly twenty years that Wriothesley has been a personal trainer he has never been so distracted.

His time in the ring is holy. He sheds everything else, focusing only on his opponent, the sweat that drips down his face, the gloves that encase his hands. Pankration is an all-in, barely bars held sort of sport that leaves a person bloody and bruised. He loves the thrill of it, the rush through his veins, and it used to be his go-to for feeling alive until—

Perfect, perfect collarbones. 

Wriothesley is so distracted that he’s caught across the face with a mean right hook. 

“Shit—shit. Bro—my dude, I’m sorry—”

Fuck, that hurt. Itto might be a few crayons short of a full box but he definitely packs a punch. Wriothesley cradles his face and works his jaw. “It’s fine.” Pain lances through his face but nothing is broken, only bruised—just like his ego.

Those damn pictures. No, no, he needs to focus.

“Again,” says Wriothesley, toughing it out. “Let’s go again.”

Itto looks at him warily, dragging a fist across his face. “Compadre, maybe we should, uh, take a breather—”

“I’m fine. Come on, let’s go.”

Itto goes and Wriothesley ducks, dancing around the ring. A few jabs, a few hooks. Wriothesley is quick on his feet but Itto holds his own despite his wide bulk. Wriothesley throws out a hand, knuckles brushing Itto’s shoulder. Then again, making full contact when Itto twists but fails to dodge the hit. 

The crunch of Wriothesley's hand is so loud that everyone within five feet cringes. 

“Dude—”

“Alright, that’s it, I’m calling it.”

The gym stills at the sound of Sigewinne’s voice cutting through the room. Wriothesley grimaces but comes to a halt, and even Itto looks like he’s had the fear of the Sovereigns put into him. When he finally meets her face, Sigewinne looks as if she’s swallowed a lemon. It doesn’t matter if she barely pushes four-foot-eight, Sigewinne is the most terrifying person Wriothesley has ever known, Clorinde included.

“Sige—”

“Oh don’t you Sige, me,” she snaps, holding her hand out. She motions him toward her. “Come on.”

Wriothesley goes like a dog with his tail tucked between his legs, climbing down from the ring. It’s a short walk to the gym infirmary and once shuffled into the room, Sigewinne has the decency to shut the door behind them.  

“Sige—”

“Sit,” she demands with a flick of her wrist.

Wriothesley does as she asks without protest, hopping up on the medical chair.

She steps over with gauze, alcohol, and a mild scowl on her face. “Wriothesley, what’s going on?”

“I—nothing.”

Sigewinne raises an eyebrow and holds out her palm expectantly. Wriothesley sighs and drops his busted hand into her fingers. She isn’t so gentle; Sigewenne tugs at him roughly, tilting his hand to and fro as she looks over it. “Not broken, but definitely busted.” Her gaze flickers up again to meet Wriothesey’s face. “I can’t remember the last time you hurt yourself like this—not since you were active in the ring.”

Which was, admittedly, quite a while ago. Wriothesley stopped picking at titles a few years back when Sigewinne started teasing him about the loss of bone density with age. No, he didn’t listen to her. Yes, he decided it was time for a change of pace. That led to more free time, which led to him opening his ThristTrap account, which led to—

Wriothesley swallows. 

Sigewinne is sharp. She catches the way his throat bobs. “You aren’t in trouble, are you?”

“What? No.”

“Do you owe someone money? If you need someone taken care of, I know of some really unfun mixtures that can—”

“There’s someone I like,” he blurts, hoping it’ll get her to shut up. “Also, Sige, you’re a doctor—”

“Just because I renew my medical license when need be doesn’t mean I’m actively practicing. Did you forget I own this eyesore with you? All I do is bandage up the sorry asses around here.” Wriothesley snorts. “Anyway, what do you mean you like someone?”

“I…”

“Met someone?”

“Kinda?”

Sigewinne’s brow furrows. “You don’t sound so sure.”

“It’s—look, you know about the streaming thing.”

She cringes, pulling away long enough to grab the bottle of alcohol. “Unfortunately. I may see you occasionally naked but that’s in a professional capacity. I don’t want to think about you jacking off in front of—”

“I absolutely don’t fucking do that—”

“Shaking it, then. Whatever. The point is that I don’t even want to think about it.” She pauses and douses Wriothesley's hand in the alcohol without warning. Even expecting it, he jerks. Sigewinne clicks her tongue and holds him firm with surprising strength. “Anyway, the streaming thing—go on.”

“I—fuck’s sake, Sige, that burns.”

“That means it’s working.”

“Isn’t that an old wive’s tale?”

Sigewinne levels him with a too-sweet smile right before pulling some gauze across his busted knuckles. “So,” she drawls, dabbing at his wounds with calculated roughness, “this person you like. What’s he look like?”

Oh, this isn’t going to be good. Clorinde judges him because she’s his oldest friend, but that judgment is still soft-handed and teasing. Sigewinne’s judgment will be sharp like a scalpel and burn like the disinfectant she dabs into his hand. 

“He wears suits,” he hedges. That’s convincing, right?

Sigewinne’s shrewd expression tells him no. “Suits?”

“You know… like a nice, tailored three-piece.”

“And that’s… it?”

Wriothesley pinches the bridge of his nose with his free hand. It’s better to be out with it and let her kill him quickly. “He’s a follower. One night I mentioned I like well-dressed men and I woke up to his Kameragram link. Sige, he’s gorgeous. Well. His body at least. I haven’t seen his face but the rest of him? Gods, I just— And the flirting. Do you know how long it’s been since someone just… flirted with me? A little tease, mostly innocent. No dicks pics, no half-naked thirst traps.”

Sigewinne’s grip on his hand loosens slightly. 

“Everyone else… Archons, you know that I don’t date.” Wriothesley sighs. “This is nice. It’s just… nice.”

“You… you idiot.”

“Sige, I’m not—”

When she dabs at his busted knuckles again, it’s with a lighter-handed touch. “You haven’t even seen his face? Wriothesley, where are your standards?”

What? He just looks at her, confusion settling over his face. 

A snort of laughter as she grabs a new pad of gauze and fresh disinfectant. “You might be old—”

“You’re older, you know.”

“And I take care of myself so I look better. But, back to the point I was making—at least see the dude’s face before you fantasize about sticking your dick in him.”

“I am not thinking about...that.”

Not much, at least. But Sigewinne knows, she always knows, and Wriothesley hates the look that she gives him. “So, a man and his suits,” she then prompts. 

“Look, if you saw the pictures you’d understand. I’m serious Sige, I’m a goner. I teased him on stream, and he called my bluff, and now I have to—”

“Save that for Clorinde. The less I know about what you do during naughty time, the better. I’m going to bandage this now—don’t give me that look. And don’t pull off this bandage for a few days, either, even if you’re streaming. I know it won’t be sexy but you did some damage so you’ve gotta let it heal.”

“I will, I will—”

“Wriothesley.”

“I promise!”

Sigewinne bandages his hand with more care than he expects, petting over the back of his palm as she wraps the bandage and tapes it down. “Idiot,” she calls him again. “And I know that Clorinde has no doubt given you a piece of her mind about this, so there’s no point in doing it again. So I’ll just say this—”

“You don’t need to read me the riot act.”

Sigewinne looks offended. “I was going to say that you deserve to get some. A little action. You’ve been so tightly wound, so if sticking your dick in something fixes it—”

“Sigewinne.”

“Oh, the full name this time.” Sigewinne’s laughter is light as she drops his hand. “You know the drill. Ice it if you need to but mostly just let it rest. You’re too old to be picking fights.”

“We were training!”

She pats his knee. “Is that what they’re calling it now?” Sigewinne clicks her tongue. But then her voice softens as she begins to clean up her mess. “Joking aside, just remember what I said.”

“About the training, or the getting laid?”

Sigewinne shoots him a crooked grin. “Why not both?” she asks.

Wriothesley knows that grin. It spells trouble, and he knows that this will not be the end of Sigewinne’s meddling. 

#

It’s no Café Lutece but the small tea stall is a comfort nonetheless. 

Neuvillette is not a fan of tea but they keep his second favorite bottled water in stock, and their pastries are tolerable enough for his considerably picky palate. 

“So,” says Navia as she drops her purse onto the table. “Any news?”

“News?” Neuvillette blinks and pretends to not know what she’s talking about, hoping that Navia will take the hint and drop it entirely.

But Navia is far too invested to not needle him further and shoots him a wry grin as she adjusts her skirt before dropping into the chair beside him. “Monsieur Neuvillette, I know that you’ve recently proven me wrong about how coy you can be, but I’m dying to know—did Cerberus69 take the bait—”

Neuvillette’s arm darts out and slaps across his mouth, cutting off her words. “Miss Navia,” he says politely, “we are in public. If you could keep your voice down?” When he pulls away she rolls her eyes, but when she continues, her words come quieter. “I have to know if our hard work has paid off.”

“Our hard work?” Neuvillette huffs. “Miss Navia, this is a mess of my own making.”

“Which you’ve roped me into! I’ve seen more of your collarbones than I care to at this point. What’s next? A bit of a pec?”

This is insufferable. Neuvillette doesn’t want to think about showing his chest off, least of all in front of his assistant. “We are on the clock—”

“We are not. It’s our lunch break for another—” Navia glances at her watch. “Forty-seven minutes. I bet you’re regretting giving me an hour now, aren’t you?”

A headache brews and Neuvillette massages his temples. “Miss Navia, it is merely that it doesn’t matter.”

“So he didn’t respond? That’s a damn shame. Maybe he’s stupid.”

“Or—and just consider this, Miss Navia—he is busy.”

Navia’s mouth curls into a wicked smile. “So you’re still hanging in there, then? Is that a hint of hope that I hear?”

Not for the first time, Neuvillette curses Navia’s sharp wit. Or maybe it is because he is bad at socializing, and she can read it all over his face. Others find him stern and stoic, but Navia often tells him that he’s as easy to read as a children’s book. 

“I would… not complain if he chose to respond. However, I don’t expect such a thing. I may have answered his tease, but it might have been merely that— a tease. He has to build intrigue amongst his audience.”

Navia rests her chin against the back of her knuckles and gives Neuvillette a long once over. “So we should up the ante, then?”

“Up the ante? Miss Navia, this isn’t a poker game—”

“And yet you made a bet all the same. I know you don’t gamble Monsieur Neuvillette, but it’s too early to fold your hand.”

What an analogy. Neuvillette frowns.

“Oh, don’t give me that look—it’ll make your wrinkles worse. Though, if we’re taking a picture from the chin down I suppose it doesn’t matter much. Your phone, please?”

Neuvillette makes no move to give it to her when Navia holds out her hand, palm up. “Your tea is getting cold,” he says, “and this pastry—”

“You barely like the pastry,” she cuts in. “Humor me.”

He should not. Navia is ruthless when she sticks her nose into something, and ever since Neuvillette expressed his sordid desires, she’s intent on helping him land the fish—her words, not his. There is a large part of him that thinks it is a fruitless effort; Neuvillette is far too out of his depth and if the man responds, where does he go from there? There’s an ocean between them, a veritable internet of all things. Neuvillette is a good swimmer but he does not know how to surf, and the World Wide Web is a vast and dangerous thing.

“Neuvillette,” says Navia again, this time gentler. “I’m just saying to post a new picture to your Kameragram account. Nothing untoward.”

He sighs and hands over his phone. “I am trusting you,” he says. “Not that I don’t to begin with, but Miss Navia, I think that you are too involved—”

“I found you hungover and nearly sick because you’re obsessed with this man.”

“Obsessed is a strong word, I think. Mildly enamored would be more appropriate. Perhaps, interested—”

“Cut the legal jargon, boss. You’re bad at flirting and I’m here to help, so let me.”

Neuvillette knows there will be no stopping her, so he gives in. Besides, the idea that it… might work out… Well, he shouldn’t get excited but there is a thrill to it, he supposes. “I will not unbutton my collar,” he tells her. 

“No, no, I think something along the lines of your usual will be fine. Didn’t he like that to begin with? You need to relax though—you’re stressed and I can tell, even through the lens. Just rest your arm against the back of the chair, and cross your legs… That should work.”

“Miss Navia…”

“I’ll let you do your edits,” she says, handing his phone back over to him, “but just know that that’s a nice set. I’m sure he’ll like it.”

“It isn’t—this isn’t for him. My account is for me.”

Navia hums and takes a sip of her tea. “So why can’t it be for him again?”

“To cater to another is just… crass.”

She lifts an eyebrow. “Need I remind you that you are the one who goaded him?” Navia sighs, her expression softening. “Look, Monsieur Neuvillette, I know that you are awkward—” He frowns at that observation. “—but it’s okay to be self-indulgent. Post it for you and him.”

It is simpler when she says it, of course. When Neuvillette thinks about it, when he thinks about the chase, and the game of flirting, dread sinks into his gut like a rock to the bottom of the sea. “Awkward,” he muses. “Yes, I rather am, aren’t I? I have a confession, however, Miss Navia. I have been… enjoying the attention.”

Navia snorts, nearly dropping her cup. “I know that,” she says, her mouth curling into a smirk. “It’s nice to see.”

“What? Me floundering about?”

“No, you enjoying something.”

Neuvillette’s mouth falls open slightly and suddenly his tea is far more interesting than the quirk of her lips. “I am a mess. Miss Navia, without your help I’d be—”

“Still posting these handsome photos, no doubt.” Navia leans over to look at his phone again. “It takes effort to put yourself out there. I get it. You… you’ve got style and grace, and a lot going for you. So are you going to edit one of those photos or do I need to steal your phone back?”

She cannot. For all that Navia has helped him capture good angles, she does not understand the intricacies of the filters he uses for that perfected, professional look of his photos. He grunts softly, opening up Kameragram to do his work. 

Navia watches him all the while, her cheek still resting against her knuckles. “So, one last question I have that’s burning a hole in my pocket. What will you do when he answers?”

“Unlikely,” says Neuvillette as he adjusts the sliding scales on the edit screen of the picture post. 

“Want to make a bet on it?”

He pauses, thumbs hovering over his phone screen, and looks at her. “Miss Navia, that would be massively inappropriate on account that I am your boss.”

“As inappropriate as telling me way too much about your personal life?”

“I—that’s—outside of work hours we are friends,” he reminds her.

Navia shoots him a smile and looks at her watch. “We’ve still got about seventeen minutes left on our lunch break, so we’re still outside of work hours. So I’m setting it, a simple bet in exchange for a few days of paid time off.”

“If you wanted a vacation, Miss Navia, you can just ask—”

“I meant for you. When was the last time you took off? I can’t remember. If I win this bet, you will take a few days off, get some rest, and jerk off a lot to whatever he’s going to show off in response.”

Oh, that’s—

Neuvillette feels how red his face must be to the temples. He doesn’t think he’s been so publicly embarrassed before, and even if Navia hadn’t said such a crude thing loudly, it was still enough for him to want to slap his hand over her mouth. He refrains because he is a gentleman, opting to distract himself by posting his picture instead. 

“There,” he murmurs, tugging at his collar. “It’s posted. A proper post too, nothing that has a time limit.”

“Neuvillette.” Navia’s voice is soft and sweet. “We are our own worst critics. Just because you think you are out of your depth doesn’t mean someone else will agree. Besides, what if he’s the same?”

That would be a funny thought. “Then life would truly be full of irony, wouldn’t it?”

Navia gives him a mock salute and then points to the remainder of his pastry. “Now that that’s settled, are you going to finish that?”

#

Neuvillette has decided to take Navia’s advice and indulge for the night.

Not like the last time—he never keeps wine on hand and after his drunken foray into the world of dating, he’s told himself that he’ll be stone-cold sober on this quiet Friday night. Still. He smiles as he looks at the bottle of water (Sobek Oasis, located in the Hypostyle Desert. Like the Great Red Sand, there is an earthy quality to it, and a distinctly mineralized taste. His second favorite as far as waters go. Naiva cringed and nearly spat it out the one time she tried a sip which only means more for him). 

The Duke is scheduled to stream as usual. He never responded, never sent another message and though there is doubt in the back of Neuvillette’s mind, Navia has done wonders to assuage his fears. Perhaps the man is busy. He’s mentioned a day job in passing on the stream, so it could be that he has a similar workload. 

Or, perhaps Navia was also correct in thinking that maybe The Duke might be awkward back? He’s older—that Neuvillette knows; he can tell by his general build and the softness that clings to his well-honed muscles. He doesn't seem to have a partner, so perhaps he is equally out of his depth?

Doubtful. But even with that doubt clogging Neuvillette’s mind, it is a fun fantasy to entertain. For a moment, he feels better about himself. Not so adrift in the sea. He can swim—he’s told himself that before, and perhaps it’s a slow doggy paddle to the shallow end of the pool. Either way, he plans to enjoy himself for the night with a nice bottle of his second-favorite water and some takeaway consommé that was definitely too expensive. 

Neuvillette settles into his bed. He uses his phone to open up the ThristTrap app and then hits the streaming option to send it to the television on the wall. It’s a miracle that he knows how to; he is not technologically advanced by any stretch and it’d taken a lot of trial and error. But at least this way it’s a hands-free option, and even if he has to wear his glasses, he can lounge properly amongst his sheets and pillows. 

What’s on the docket today? More reading aloud? That is Neuvillette’s favorite, even if the content is at times… vile. It’s about The Duke’s voice, and how it curls around the words. How he settles into his couch, abs on display, a length of leg stretched out, showing off every angle. His thighs—well. Neuvillette has his preferred parts, he supposes. Thighs, hips, the not-so-hidden bulge of the Duke’s cock. That’s—

No, no, this is the line of thinking that got him in trouble the last time. 

Neuvillette is still embarrassed by jerking off to the stream itself rather than the fantasy of The Duke after it was done. Standards. That’s what he has. Standards and propriety, and though he knows it’s odd, it’s the least he can do. Makes him feel less… 

He takes of swig of his water. How it makes him feel isn’t the point, not with the way that Neuvillette has been thinking about their bet and bargain for days on end. Has The Duke seen his response? The picture he posted earlier that day? Neuvillette’s cock has feelings of its own, twitching at the thought of it. 

“Later,” he tells himself. “I’ll just enjoy this stream as I usually do, and pour over these reports whilst he’s working in the background.”

The Duke’s voice is easy to work to, he’s learned. Neuvillette can split his attention, so the moment the stream starts in full swing, he takes hold of the topmost case file stacked on the edge of his bed. 

And then he nearly drops it at the sight of The Duke.

“Hello, lovelies.”

The Duke is wearing considerably less than Neuvillette has ever seen, just a strip of black knitted material stretched across his front before coming to an abrupt halt just past the swell of his ass. His legs are on full display, thick, robust muscles slightly damp underneath his studio lighting. Oiled up? Sovereigns, above. 

His pecs—Neuvillette swallows pathetically as he lets his eyes roam—are barely contained, because The Duke is too broad to be properly covered by the… apron? Wait, wait—

“Remember that little bet? If Mr. Talk, Dark, and Suited showed off some collarbone then I’d show off in return. Well, lucky for all of you he answered the bait with a gorgeous, unbuttoned selfie that showed off—Well, you get the drift. And, because he delivered, everyone here gets to see me rock this Virgin Killer Sweater.”

Virgin Killer Sweater. That’s what it’s called. Neuvillette vaguely remembers the bargain that was stuck and he sucks in a deep breath. Oh, he saw. He saw, he saw, he saw, and he’s delivered. Neuvillette is way too sober for whatever this is. 

“He’s here, of course. I’m not going to call him out because I think he’d rather keep it quiet. Besides—” The Duke shifts slightly, turning and arching his back, showing off—

Neuvillette looks away. No, he can’t look. But he can. And he does, taking in an eyeful of the knitted material that barely covers The Duke’s ass. Celestia, above. Navia told him she might sit in on the stream, curious. He’s never prayed to the Archons before but he does now because if she is, he’ll never hear the end of it. 

“I’d like to keep him to myself, I think.”

What? Neuvillette does drop the file this time. The Duke didn’t say that. He did not.

Oh, but he did, and it traps Neuvillette, pulling him into a vice grip that he isn’t sure he can free himself from. Even if it’s a tease, even if it’s for the show, it’s the principle of the matter. His cock is hard, and his heart beats twice as fast, and Neuvillette has no idea where to go from here. He’s in deep. He’s in so, so, deep. He’s—

His phone beeps and he jumps. Neuvillette unlocks the screen to find a text message from Navia: I’m thinking sometime next month. 

He pinches the bridge of his nose and forgoes sending a message back. The damage is done, there’s no need to further wallow in his misery. Besides, The Duke—

“So I’m thinking we’ll watch some videos tonight. It’ll be a shorter stream because I’m tired, but I hope that the sweater makes up for it. As you can see, I busted my hand.” A bandage is wrapped around The Duke’s hand from the knuckles to his wrist. “Workplace hazard.”

Neuvillette’s mind wanders, thinking just what The Duke might do for a living. His hands have always been handsome—thick and calloused. Those muscles and his build… manual work? But then why hide his face? The mask is keen, sure, and Neuvillette enjoys the intrigue of it. 

But then Navia’s words float through his head again: “What if he’s older and just as awkward as you?”

If Neuvillette was a cam…boy? Man? Regardless, if he indulged in such a thing as a side job, he certainly would cover his face, and not just because he’s a famous prosecutor and well-known within the Court of Fontaine. 

The Duke stands and turns, showing off perfectly sculpted quads, glutes, and the line of his back. He strikes a pose, curling his biceps and Neuvillette is so embarrassed by his staring that he has to look away. His work. That. He should focus on that, and not the way The Duke settles into his computer chair, legs slightly spread, the bulge of his cock clear as day underneath the short hem of the sweater. 

He has been lewd, yes, but never so overtly on display. Neuvillette’s throat is so dry that not even his water can quench his thirst; only staring does, so he stares, the folio in his hands all but forgotten. He doesn’t listen to the videos The Duke reacts to, doesn’t care for the amusement of safe-for-work fetish-mill content; Neuvillette just focuses on his voice, and the laughter that drips from his mouth. Tries not to look at that slowly rising hem, or the crack of The Duke’s ass when he turns around, just barely peeking out from the dangerously low, open back.

Neuvillette will never hear the end of it. He considers cutting his watch party off early but manages to eke out an entire stay. He’s never been so hot and bothered, never so twitchy, never so, so—

He is proud of himself, and how well he’s behaved thus far. 

“Alright, everyone, I think that’s a wrap for tonight.” Neuvillette blinks out of his thoughts at the sound of The Duke hanging up his headphones. “How about one last flex before I cut the stream?”

He grins, pulling his arms up to show off his muscles, and just—Neuvillette drags a hand down his face. This is his fault. He can’t forget about it, or the fact that he’s won not just the bet but apparently the entire damn game. Which begs and answer to the question—what now?

Neuvillette never expected a response, despite Navia’s intuition. He’d shown nothing but a suit and some of his collarbones! How could a man…

Well, he’d know the answer to that, wouldn’t he? The Duke isn’t always this half-naked; even when fully clothed Neuvillette has fantasized all the same. Easy as that, then. 

The stream ends, leaving Neuvillette more exhausted than he thinks he’s ever been. His cock has flagged, only half-hard and mildly aching. He’s too tired, too sober to try and do anything about it. Plus, the case files—he should put in at least a little overtime. Especially if he’s going to be doing his best to avoid Navia the next day. 

So he flips through another file, squinting through his reading glasses, and trying to convince himself that the headache that’s brewed is merely from work stress. 

Then, a chirp from his phone. Not a text message notification. He looks and sees that he has a direct message from an account on Kamergram. This isn’t so unusual; he tends to delete these the moment he sees them but curiosity gets the better of him, and he pulls it open just in case.

Neuvillette stills. “I—oh, this is…”

[TheDukeDownUnder] >> So, shooting in the dark here, but I thought that I should at least thank you personally for all the eye candy. 

[TheDukeDownUnder] >> Feel free to ignore but if you want to chat… well, it’s The Duke and this is my personal account. 

[TheDukeDownUnder] >> Anyway, it’s late, so enjoy your night sweetheart. I certainly will, thinking of those collarbones. ;)

--

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[dreamcatcherrs]

dating a faceless streamer/youtuber; mcyt x reader

+ this was a request, but it got deleted in my drafts ;-; sorry!

dream:

since he is also a faceless youtuber

he’s very understanding of keeping your privacy

and whatever reason you have to not reveal your face, he respects it

he knows what it’s like to have people tell him to face reveal

sometimes his voice will just appear in the back of your streams/videos

like in sapnap’s with the question about one direction

and chat is like, how long has he been here?????

the two of you would hint at a face reveal

and then after weeks brush it off like it was nothing

because you like to torture the fans, I guess🙄

because dream never has a face cam on

he has the perfect seat for you on his lap whenever he streams/films

and the same thing goes for when you film/stream; he’ll be sitting right next to you with his hand in yours or on your thigh

you’re known as the faceless couple

georgenotfound:

it really doesn't bother him at all that you’re a faceless streamer/youtuber

I don't see him as the type to post a whole lot of pictures with his s/o anyways

or something along those lines

so it wouldn't make a big difference to him

would just think it was funny to tease chat about knowing what you look like, when they don't

and then having them just hear you voice in the background of his videos sometimes

but not actually seeing you

he kinda likes that your relationship is more concealed

and that it’s harder for people to come at you when they don't know what you look like exactly, just because he’s dating you

because that would honestly be his biggest worry when revealing your relationship

so he’s happy that’s one less worry :)

sapnap:

does everything to not get people to beg for a face reveal

he doesn't want people to put that kind of pressure on you

especially if they go after you for it just because you're dating him

like, he will make a video about it if he has to

or tweet about it

the last thing he wants is for the fake fans to try and reveal your face or other things about you

when clearly that’s what you wanna keep private

that being said, he’d do so many streams with you

wether it’s gong against each other, or being on the same team

you always have so much fun together

even if you're literally in the same room together

if his face cam is on, he’d look over at you every now and then and send you a smile or some shit like that

there’s some pretty cute moments - expect a compilation

badboyhalo:

bad would be really proud to have an s/o who did youtube/streamed

and he would for sure help you out if you ever needed him to!

like with coding

or just general growth in your channel

wouldn't really care if you showed your face or not - whatever you're happy with makes him happy

he would just make sure that you never felt pressured to show your face

he knows people out there can be meanies

and come for you just because you don't show your face

and he’d always be there to talk to about it if it ever stressed you out

he would also make sure that you didn't hide your face because you didn’t like it or something like that

and if that was the case, you bet he’d be reassuring you

calling your all kinds of sweet things and show you lots of love

he takes lots of pictures of his two favourite girls

you and rat, of course (without showing your face, obviously)

technoblade:

he actually really likes that you're a faceless streamer/youtuber

like, he doesn't notice how much he likes it

before he realises all of the times you'd sneaked some hand-holding while streaming, or shared little kisses when on mute wouldn't have been possible if you both didn't show your faces

you’d share these secret glances when streaming/filming together

and no one would even know about it

sometimes his chat hears a little talking in the background from you

but techno just brushes it off like you weren't sitting right next to him the entire time

and vice versa

he also just stays with you when you're working

sharing small touches and words

chat also notice eventually how much you gush over each other without noticing

it happens A LOT more than you realise

especially from his side🤭

wilbur soot:

okay so

I think wilbur would have a hard time not showing you off to stream every second of the day

he would just always talk about you and want you there with him in his streams

and miss your touch after 5 minutes of being apart

but would be totally respectful of you wanting to remain faceless

he would just talk to you from an angle where chat couldnt see you

but yeah, he loves that you do the same type of job as him

and most of all, you motivate each other on days where you can't be bothered to even get out of bed

you’re definitely that couple that everyone makes cute compilations of

and that everyone strives to be

chat loves you, what more can I say

corpse husband:

ANOTHER FACELESS COUPLE

the power you two hold over everyone is actually immaculate

you stream/film together all the time

just having fun and being yourselves

he would definitely ask if you could join the games he plays with others when streaming

and if that wasn't possible, he’d just get you to come into his room and be part of it that way

he teases you a lot on stream

both cutely and mischievously

and your viewers are like👀

while his chat is just going crazy

you share lots of giggles

like, seriously, the majority of the videos/streams consists of you two laughing your asses off

you two will forever be known as the faceless couple

even if you both face reveal, that’ll always be your title

skeppy:

zak will find a way to show you off no matter what

he just can't resist

the way his heart is always beating out of his chest because of you is just too much for him to not ever show you to the world

but of course with your consent only

he wouldn't ever pressure you or anything

but since you're only remaining faceless

you can expect LOTS of matching outfit pictures taken in the mirror

and just lots of pictures of you in general

with your face blocked out or not in view, of course

you'd always be helping each other with your setups or videos

and he’d want to introduce you to literally everyone he knows

especially bad

you don't necessarily stream/film a lot with each other

but you're always in each others’ company in some shape or form

he always mentions you in his streams

just small stories or conversations

chat can tell he’s head over heels for you

karl jacobs:

he's the most support person everrr

he’d always be celebrating even the tiniest achievements with you

you hit 2k subs? he’ll treat you to an expensive ass dinner

you hit 1 million subs? he’ll buy you a whole room full of filming gear to improve from your previous ones

you managed to finish that one video you've been struggling with? he takes you on a weekend trip to somewhere you’ve always wanted to go

he’ll beg you to join him in is streams

just so he can hold your hand :)

or laugh with you every once in a while

he doesn't need you to face reveal at all

your company is all that matters to him when it includes the rest of the world

I mean, he’s the one able to see your beautiful face all the time, so he can't really complain even if he felt like it

always tweets about you or tweets things at you that only you two understand

and everyone is like ?????

but you don't care :)

fundy:

fundy actually doesn't talk a lot about you in his streams or videos

mostly to avoid people leaving bad light on you in the chat

unless he’s in the same game as you, of course

which in that case, the first thing he’d want to do is find you and talk to you in the game

he’s very respectful of you keeping your face private

and tries his best to keep the pressure of a face reveal off your shoulders

especially if it’s happening in his or your comments

if it gets really bad, he’ll eventually talk about it on twitter or something like that

does tiktoks with you

only with your voice though

and posts manyyy pictures where you’re tagged, but only slightly in view

he doesn't really care about your face being a secret

as long as he gets to see it, he’s happy

quackity:

alex has so much fun making videos or going live with you

and obviously you have the best collabs

you’re the funniest couple on the platform and it shows

he would talk so much about you - like, telling embarrassing stories about you or some shit like that

or saying how clingy you are with him

and chat would be like AWW HE TALKS ABOUT THEM

and he's like “no”😤

but alex can't fool anyone

he’s in it for real with you🥴

and at times, he doesn't even try to hide it

especially when he speaks up about ho proud he is of you

and how people should respect your choice of remaining faceless to the world

but then he quickly moves on to his silly self again

with blushy cheeks ^w^

punz:

has you on his lap constantly

even when his hand-cam is on

nothing will stop him from making you sit on his lap while he’s streaming

he loves that he can rant to you about the problems he faces sometimes concerning his streams

because you get it

he’d teach you the games you didn't know of

and you'd teach him the games that he didn't know of

and then you'd stream/film together after learning the basics

he doesn't talk about you a lot on stream

but chat eventually figures out it’s because you're literally in the same room as him

and how do they find that out, you may ask?

well, your snores coming from his headphones made it very obvious to say the least

awesamdude:

sam knows what it’s like being a faceless streamer

so if you wanted, he’d give you all of the advice you needed

and if you ever considered face revealing, he'd totally help you!

you guys have matching setups 

you sometimes talk to each other across the room as you're playing the same game together

because it’s funny to tease chat that way

you’d be posting pictures on social media

that give off hints that you're with each other a lot

like, in one photo he’s wearing a hoodie

and the next day, you post a photo of you in that exact same hoodie

stuff like that

he also celebrates big and small achievements with you

wether it be you achieving them or him, you always celebrate together

eret:

matching. outfits.

STRAWBERRY DRESSES

PLATFORM HEELS

ahhhh chat would be going absolutely crazy at the fits you guys have sometimes

and you're always matching

as in always

he tells their stream that you have a matching crown like his

but that chat obviously can't see it on you because you don’t have a face-cam

she likes telling stories about you

like, memories they have of you two together

and he just always compliments you and praises you for your hard work on her streams

telling everyone how happy you make them

she also always invites you to join his streams because it means a lot to them that you're there :)

jack manifold:

jack is so excited about the fact that you're also a streamer/youtuber

it makes it easier to open up about your relationship online

because some people already knew you before you revealed you two were dating

though I feel like jack would kinda like the secrecy of your face online

just to brag to his audience about how he gets to see your face every day

but also because he likes that there’s more privacy for you

sometimes he’d pop into your room without knowing you were streaming/filming

and would just start talking to you while you giggled about how you were “kinda in the middle of something”

when jack realised what you meant, he’d hurry out of the room in an instant

you’d always be in each others chats/comments

showing what a supportive couple you were

he always raids you at the end of his streams if you’re streaming at the same time

tommyinnit:

tommy always forgets that you're a faceless streamer/youtuber

and is sometimes sooo close to blurting out something he shouldn't

because he’s so used to seeing you, he just kinda forgets that no one else can

you always have to send him a text to “sToP TalKIng AbOUt yOu” so he doesn't accidentally reveal something

that being said, he literally talks so much about you

again, I’m bringing up that time he said that tubbo is so clingy

he says the same thing about you

but he’s really the clingy one, and it’s pretty obvious

you catch him saying things like “yeah, y/n is really cool”

or “guys, please don't say stuff like that to y/n”

getting all serious and shit🥺

he asks you constantly if you can join his vc

even when you're busy, he’s like “pay. attention. to. me😤”

it’s really entertaining sometimes

especially when his streams just consist of you two bickering the whole time

calls you his favourite woman

tubbo:

ahhh tubbo is so sweet when it comes to you

like, when anyone mentions you he just starts smiling

and wants to tell everyone about you

even if they already know you from your channel

he just can't help but ramble on about you

especially to tommy

he replies to all of your tweets

and you reply to all of his

you always feature each other on your channels/streams

and share a celebratory cake when reaching subgoals

sometimes chat notices similarities in your layouts

like a colour change

or a similar pattern

posts a photo of your pinkies intertwined

wearing matching bracelets you made yourself

and everyone finds it super cute<3

ranboo:

he would encourage you so much to join his videos

and wear the same type of outfit to cover your face with

but with a sense of yourself in it so you'd look similar, but not exactly like each other

you'd be matching outfits so often

doesn't talk a lot about you on his streams

apart from mentioning how short you are

but on TWITTER

that's a whole other story

his twitter has practically just become a fan account of you

he’s always in your comments

just to leave a :)

or a supportive comment

if you ever wanted to do a face reveal

he would do it with you if it meant making you feel more comfortable about it

or less nervous

you’re just very lowkey and cute

___________________________________

tag list✰

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[hologramcowboy]

Danneel planned to eliminate Jared from the picture all along. It's clear she orchestrated everything and Jensen went right with her plan….||

Before I get to my opinion I just want to say I mean no harm or disrespect. I understand not everyone is liking Jensen at the moment. Reading a lot of anti danneel blogs as well as what I have seen and heard from those who didn’t have a good experience with her Danneel seems to be a very controlling manipulative person. While she may not be abusive towards Jensen physically it seems she is abusive towards him emotionally. The things she says to him while she thinks it’s funny you can tell sometimes it bothers or hurts him. Of course she plays it like a joke not realizing it’s hurting him or maybe she does realize it and doesn’t care. She forgets it’s not what you say but how you say it. I was with a guy that was manipulative and an emotional abuser like her. He would find ways to tear me down and bring my confidence level down. So I can definitely see the signs and see how Jensen tries to hide his hurt in public. When you are with an controlling person you sadly end up going with anything they want. Even though you know deep down it’s not right you feel you have no choice. You know if you don’t go a long with it you will face backlash you don’t want. To me that is what happened here. She pushed him into this and rather than to say no he agreed in hopes he can keep peace and she would leave him alone. I know Jensen isn’t perfect and to be honest I don’t want him to be. It’s one of the things I love about him. He knows he isn’t perfect and he doesn’t try to pretend to be. He knows he has faults and I love him for it. But I honestly think he knows this was not going to go over well. Jensen may not post a lot on Twitter or Instagram but he does lerk around so I know he sees the comments. He sees the negative things so he knows it’s not going over well. But he knows he can’t back out of it cause it’s too late. I think that is why he is pushing for something with Jared as to hopefully get people to forget about The Winchesters if it ends up flopping. With his name being attached to this people won’t forget. It makes me feel bad for him yes I know he agreed to it but I still feel bad. I have supported Jensen way before people even knew who he was. So it kind of makes me feel sad to see him get so much hate over this. I seriously hope he gets past this and people look at his other great projects instead of focusing on this one. Jensen is one of the sweetest guys out there along with Jared and I hope Jensen goes on to do better and greater things in his career. I know you may not agree with everything I’m saying which is okay. I mean we all have our own opinions about it. Also I’m very sorry this is so long just wanted to share my thoughts here. 

I love it when people freely share their perspective so thank you, Anon, for being vulnerable and honest. I suspect the same thing you do, I think Danneel kept insisting until Jensen thought it was best to let her have what she wants, embarrass herself in the process and learn from it. Because it was the only way to get her to shut up about it. I think it's beautiful you still see great things in Jensen and you should never feel weird about sharing that, even with people that may disagree, because it's your truth and your experience and you should lead it.

I am sure both Jared and Jensen will keep accomplishing beautiful things, not so sure about this prequel though. Jensen attached his name to it and his presence because he knew it was the only way to bring in the audience, same reason he cast Tom Welling, to bring in audience. Due to both Tom and Jensen having some pretty rabid fanbases it's possible the show might take off, at least initially. But it's clear the quality of the product leaves much to be desired and even though Jensen is trying to shift "credit" to Danneel, if the show does flop, it will no doubt affect his name within the industry. I think what's saddest to me is the preplanned canceling of Sam. I'm still very sad over that.

[alpacaparkaseok]

Could you repeat the question?

pairing: Taehyung x reader, oc x Yeonjun (TXT)

premise: a joint interview with your group, BTS, and TXT two months after you met your soulmate.

word count: 2k

[2/2] continuation of Can’t Keep My Hands To Myself

requested by anon - a picture of your request will be at the bottom of the post! 

------------------------------------------

“Please don’t tell them.”

“Me? Why would I say anything?”

“You...you have that look.”

Yeonjun whirls around to face Taehyung, who just entered the room. “Do I have a look?”

Taehyung winks at you in greeting, something that nearly makes you swoon and your group members snicker. 

“A look?” He frowns for a moment before giving his dongsaeng a pitiful smile. “Oh yeah, you do. Definitely.” Taehyung smiles at Jiwoo, my band member who is busy sending death glares at her soulmate. “He’s gonna spill it.”

Yeonjun jumps up from his seat at the same time Taehyung settles down beside you, placing his arm on the back of the couch and brushing your hair off to the side. It’s enough to make goosebumps rise on your skin, which of course he notices. 

Oh, how you’d like to wipe that knowing little smirk off his face right now. 

“I can’t believe this! I’m not going to say a thing-”

“Yeonjun, and I’m saying this with love, if you say a single thing about it, I will personally unplug your refrigerator when you least expect it.”

Your attention is pulled away when you feel Taehyung leaning in to whisper something in your ear. “So, do we know what they’re arguing about?”

You can’t help but giggle. “Nope. Jiwoo won’t say anything.”

“Neither will Yeonjun.”

The smitten couple have been teasingly arguing for the entirety of the morning, leaving the rest of us in complete and utter confusion. 

Oh well, I suppose it’ll help make the broadcast a bit more exciting. 

It’s been two months since Jiwoo and I first *ahem* teleported to our soulmates at the MAMA awards. Or rather, since I landed in Taehyung’s lap and Jiwoo was nearly knocked unconscious when Yeonjun was thrown into her at full force. Of course, Jiwoo claims that it was horribly embarrassing, to which I’m always quick to say that she should feel lucky that at least she didn’t end up in a grown man’s lap. For all to see, no less. 

Ari, our other group member, just rolls her eyes and tells us that beggars can’t be choosers. 

Yeah, whatever that means. 

The past two months have been busy, with hardly enough time to spend with my soulmate. Between the busy schedules and BTS and TXT and our own schedule, we’ve had to settle for late-night FaceTimes and the occasional lunch at the Bighit building. I’ve become really good at sneaking in and out of that building in broad daylight - so far I have yet to be discovered. 

Today, however, is an important one. It’s our first official schedule together as soulmates. Naturally, all three groups have come together for the interview/variety show. 

“Alright, time to head on!” A manager shouts into the room, and suddenly there’s a flurry of movement as we all head toward the door. “I need all the soulmates to stick to their own groups, ok? We don’t want to be causing a riot today.”

Right. With a gloomy expression, Taehyung parts from me to head back to his members. Jiwoo and I glue ourselves to Ari’s side, much to her chagrin. “Ready?”

Both you and Jiwoo respond simultaneously. “Nope.”

Ari just sighs, feigning annoyance. Together, the three of you await your cue as one by one, your groups are introduced. 

TXT goes first, the hosts making a big deal out of swooning over Soobin who now has a cult of his own due to his MC abilities. They make a show of handing the microphone over to him, begging him to take it over from there. He politely declines, while the rest of the boys bicker and chat in the background. 

Then your group is called out, and you find yourself walking out before a huge crowd. You didn’t realize that many people could fit in this building, but here they are. And all of them are here for the same reason: to get a look at the soulmate couples that have newly formed. 

And that have been trending on Twitter and Tumblr for two solid months, breaking all kinds of records. 

As BTS is introduced with an almost reverent tone, you understand why you’ve been trending for so long.

It has a lot to do with one of the men walking out right now, smiling at the crowd and waving, graciously bowing his way across the stage. 

Taehyung wears a gray casual suit which has him looking like he just stepped off a photoshoot. Hair perfectly styled and eyes glowing with adoration for the fans that roar and wave, he commands the entire room with a single raise of his eyebrows. 

Your soulmate, ladies and gentlemen. 

Today is the day where you prove to the rest of the world how much of a perfect match you are for this man. The notion is terrifying. 

“Wow!” The host, a jovial man named Donghyun shouts out, exaggerating how amazed he is by the crowd’s reaction to all three groups sharing the same stage. Indeed, it’s a rare sight. “Ok! Should we get started?”

After a few minutes of more introductions, a few cursory questions (he asks Yeonjun what he’s been up to recently and you’re pretty sure Jiwoo manages to telepathically threaten him, because he chooses the most vague answer imaginable), and instructions on how to begin the next activities, you’re off to the races. 

Painting races, that it. 

Donning a frock and eyeing the empty canvas before you, you glare at your opponent across the way. Taehyung, to his credit, refrains from winking at you. He thinks you’re adorable when you’re flustered, but now’s not the time. 

“Taehyung-ssi!”

Taehyung blinks up at Donghyun. “Yes?”

“Are you going to let your soulmate win?”

The game is simple: paint the listed object with as much detail as possible in a sixty second period. The others will have to guess what it is. 

Taehyung pouts his lips a bit, glancing over at you with a glint in his eye. “I’ll have to see, I think.”

Donghyun chuckles into the mic, turning to face you. “What about you? If Taehyung-ssi falls behind, will you help him win?”

You wiggle your eyebrows at your soulmate, heart soaring when he delivers a boxy grin. “Oh, of course not. I came to compete, not hold hands.”

The crowd bursts out laughing, and someone yells out, “I’ll hold his hand for you!”

You all dissolve into a fit of laughter at that, your cheeks blushing madly. “Yeah, thanks for the offer,” you say between giggles. Readying your paint brush, you wait for the signal. 

You’ve been given the word ‘Iceland’, which you figure shouldn’t be too hard. 

What you failed to account for was the fact that you’re perhaps the worst painter you know. What should look like a globe looks like a basketball and what should be a cube of ice instead looks like nothing more than a cardboard box. 

In the end, you’re pretty sure you laugh more than you paint. Your team members, consisting of a mix from both teams, look utterly confused at the end product. Eventually it’s Jin - who happens to be on Taehyung’s team - that accidentally calls out the answer. 

The rest of the games pass by in a blur of laughter and covert glances toward Taehyung. He always manages to find a way to make you laugh, even though he remains on the other side of the stage for the most part. You don’t miss all of the fans that look at him dreamily, and you can only hope that they’re happy with your overall performance today. 

At the end, you all squeeze onto a couple of couches. Donghyun makes a fuss over allowing the soulmates to sit together, and you can’t hide your smile as a beet-red Yeonjun sidles down to the couch to sit beside Jiwoo, placing his hands in his lap and trying not to do anything that will go viral. 

Taehyung sits on your right, crossing his arms in a way that pulls on his suit jacket enough to expose the outline of his biceps. You catch your eyes wandering, snapping your attention back to the front where Donghyun reads some questions off of a card. 

“I believe that this was the first time soulmates have met while performing at MAMA, is that correct? What were your first thoughts when you suddenly found yourselves face to face with your soulmate?”

The four of you that now have all the attention riding on your shoulders look to each other for help. Finally, with a racing heart, you answer first.

“I think the obvious answer is that I was shocked,” you smile as knowing chuckles ripple through the room. “But I was also really grateful, because Taehyung was so kind and understanding. The staff were very professional and helped us quickly. Overall, I really can’t imagine it having happened in any other way.”

There’s a few ooh’s and aww’s that greet your ears, but you look down at your lap as you blush. Taehyung slightly nudges your knee with his own, and in that simple movement you feel the comfort that he’s trying to give you. 

“I’d actually been talking to Jiminie earlier about soulmates,” Taehyung pipes up. 

“Oh, yeah! That’s right!” Jimin says, giving his friend a slap on the shoulder. “What are the odds?”

Taehyung flashes a shy smile. “I told him that I felt like I was ready. It can be strangely lonely sometimes, and there are times when I just felt like I was missing something. Now, all I have to do is pick up my phone and my missing piece is on the other side, ready to talk with me.”

Now people are really swooning, you included. You dare to peek over at your soulmate, heart nearly melting when you see that his shy smile is paired with pink cheeks. You wish that you could snuggle up to him right now, but that would definitely not end well. Instead, you lightly nudge his knee with your own, returning the little slice of comfort he provided you earlier. 

“And you two?” Dongyun asks after wiping fake tears away from his eyes. 

Yeonjun chews on his bottom lip, Jiwoo too lost in thought to notice that he has that look again. 

“I, er...” Yeonjun begins, squirming a little in his seat. “I was...really happy.”

Donghyun urges Yeonjun to continue. “Of course you were! What about finding Jiwoo made you so happy?”

Jiwoo looks up in horror, but it’s too late. Yeonjun has already opened his mouth and begun to speak. 

“I was so happy because the first thing she said to me was that she thought I was so hot.”

Radio silence. 

And then-

“Oh-ho!! Yeonjunnie you’re so dead!” Hueningkai laughs, and soon everyone follows suit. Even Donghyun has to throw his hand over his mouth to keep himself from snorting with laughter. 

Jiwoo looks at Yeonjun, who completely avoids her gaze as he stares unblinking at the floor. Then, quietly enough for nobody to hear except for you who sits beside her, she whispers, “Say goodbye to all the perishable items in your fridge.”

In the chaos that ensues, Taehyung discreetly traces circles against your arm and mumbles, “Why didn’t you say that to me when we first met?”

You smack his shoulder. “I should be asking you the same thing!”

Just before everything calms down again, Taehyung leans over to grab the abandoned canvas on the ground. Taking the still-wet paint and dipping his finger into it, he draws something out on it. Nudging you to get your attention, he flashes the canvas for you to see, hiding it from the cameras. 

It’s hard to keep a neutral expression as you see his handiwork. It’s just six words, but they’re enough to have your entire face flushed a moment later. 

I think you’re hotter than Yeonjun ;)

Stifling a laugh, you roll your eyes. “I hope you know I’m keeping that,” you mumble. Taehyung grins.

“Great. We’ll get it framed.”

A few days later, you do. It hangs in the front room of your apartment, for all to see. And for Jiwoo to loathe, as it serves as a constant reminder of her embarrassing first words to her soulmate.

Oh well. In the words of Ari, “Beggars can’t be choosers.”

masterlist

[amaya-chwan]

Takeaways from Therapy Game: Restart Chapter 13 (and some Therapy Game news!)

Hello everyone! I hope you've all been well these past two months and taken care of yourselves! 💜

Before we get into our takeaways for chapter 13, I saw some news from Hinohara-sensei's Official Twitter that I would like to share with you all!

First piece of news: Therapy Game re:start volume 2 will be released on 1st June 2021! 🎉

Second: in conjunction with the release of the second volume, Sensei will have an in-person fan signing event at the Ikebukuro Animate store (animate honten) AND will have a special limited time shop featuring goods of our favourite dorks! This shop will be opened 6th-20th June! 🎉🎉

Image from Sensei's Official Twitter post! ❤️💛💜❤️

Now, what does the second piece of news mean for us not living in Japan (such as myself)? 🤔 Well, one of two things could happen:

We could see the merch on Sensei's Twitter and wish we could buy them one day 😭 OR

Animate could "potentially" release this merch for online order!

I'm not trying to get anyone's hopes up, but when I saw Animate open a special Yuri!!! on Ice shop last year, I didn't think they'd release merch online. But they did, for a very, very short period of time only! So my only hope is that they do that again for Hinohara-sensei! 🤞

Here's the special website from Sensei's twitter that has information about the fan signing event and limited time shop! It seems they'll show what merch will be available in the shop when it's all been finalised.

If I spot anymore updates about that, I'll try to post about it here! ❤️💛

Alright, down to business as usual! Let's get into our takeaways~ Thank you for being so patient with me! Life has been a little busy this year with juggling work and social life! So I really appreciate your patience! 💜

Here are our takeaways for this chapter:

Loving the brotherly love we see in this chapter! Warms my heart to no end! ❤️💛💜❤️

Minato, bb, you are growing up a lot! I am proud of you! 😭

Did I ever tell you guys that I really love Mito-san too? No? Well now I have ahah! He is just amazing and I love the energy he has--cool and lovable, yet smooth and sexy! Loving the domestic vibes I'm getting! 😍😍

AHHH SHIZUMA! Your smile is too pure, it's blinding! 🥰

Just couple goals from Shizuma and Minato, AND from Mito-san and Shouhei! (Why I don't call Mito-san Itsuki, I'll never know ahah I blame Shouhei! XDDD) ❤️💛💜❤️

The younger sibling moments in this chapter are so relatable! (I am that younger sibling ahahah!) 🤣🤣🤣

I honestly don't know what to think of Onodera at this point in time? 🤔

The (supposed) date time with Shizuma and Minato went from adorable anticipation to steamy relations in a split second, but not NSFW! 😲

And that’s it for this chapter’s takeaways! For a more detailed breakdown/summary of this chapter, please continue after the cut! Since it's been a while since the last chapter, I threw in some extra surprises in this summary, so keep reading if you want to see~  😉✨

Our chapter begins with an image of Mito-san and Minato, with Minato's cheek leaning on Mito-san's shoulder. The dialogue reads: When it seems like my overflowing emotions are about to burst from the seams, I really do yearn for this back (i.e. something familiar he can always lean on).

We see Minato spaced out on a sofa, being called by Itsuki. Itsuki tells Minato to go home if he's just going to sit there like that since he is very busy cleaning his entire home for when Shouhei moves in with him! Minato gets up, understands the situation, and helps Itsuki out.

Itsuki, knowing something has happened between Shizuma and Minato, asks Minato directly since he only goes to Itsuki's place when he is troubled, and he must be troubled by something related to Shizuma. He also says that Shizuma is worried about Minato, especially since Itsuki lied to him about Minato's whereabouts.

Minato brushes it off, saying that it's nothing big. He talks about the time when they had to drop by Shizuma's workplace, he saw a woman/Onodera (not knowing she's Shizuma's director) and that Shizuma made an very adorable face while talking to her.

Minato stops talking, so Itsuki asks if that is all to the story. Minato then says yes, so Itsuki deduces that Minato is ignoring Shizuma because he happily spoke with that woman (Onodera) and confirms with Minato, who then agrees. Itsuki blames himself for raising Minato like this and apologises to Shizuma in his inner monologue.

Minato defensively says he's told Shizuma not to do that, yet he still does. Minato's monologue says that this Shizuma--who is talking to someone unknown to him, about a story he doesn't know, in a place he doesn't know about--seems like a distant person to him.

He realises that even though he and Shizuma are together, he cannot monopolise him, and that it annoys him. So rather than tell him not to speak with others, he has chosen not to see Shizuma until he calms down. Suddenly, a handyman appears at Itsuki's home to beginning furniture installations.

Image translated from Sensei’s Twitter post here!

Minato is surprised Itsuki replaced a lot of his furniture, to which Itsuki replies: "I wonder if Shouhei-kun prefers the new ones too."  Minato says Shouhei would freeze from this "surprise" and imagines Shouhei asking how much it cost!

Itsuki, still in his happy bubble, says he wants Shouhei to also select some household furniture and accessories, so they'll go shopping together next time. Minato is happy for them since their house-moving plans are going well. Itsuki goes back to their previous topic of conversation, and says how Shizuma and Shouhei both are very charming. He recounts how Shouhei would handle different kinds of customers, from the difficult to the sad ones, how his charms and personable skills would change their mood completely, and calls him a genius who has a knack for calming customers.

Minato asks if Itsuki dislikes that, since he himself doesn't know what to think of Shizuma showing his charm and friendliness to others and that some misunderstandings would arise eventually.

Itsuki then reminds Minato that out of all the people in the world, Shizuma asked Minato to live with him, and that thought alone must've made him happy.

Minato does agree, yet it doesn't change the fact that he is unaware of what Shizuma does outside of the home. Itsuki is then suspicious that Minato and Shizuma are going to move in together too.

Minato panics, and says he just meant that from Itsuki's point of view since he's moving in with Shouhei. Just as Minato thinks he's almost let the secret slip, he gets a phone call. Itsuki tells Minato that it's Shizuma, but Minato refuses to pick it up as he is "still cleaning"--the real reason is that Minato told Shizuma he wouldn't forgive him if they speak before Minato gave the OK to talk again.

Itsuki, being the older brother, answers the phone and slides it on the desk near Minato and leaves him to talk with Shizuma, even putting it on loud speaker since Minato is preoccupied.

Shizuma is frantically trying to get a response from Minato, to which Minato responds with a simple: “What... I can hear you.” The first thing Shizuma asks is where Minato is at this present moment, fearing that he might be at a suspicious place. Minato says he isn't and is in fact in the neighbourhood doing some errands. Shizuma breathes a sigh of relief and is thankful his call finally reached Minato as no one he asked knew where Minato was, and because Shizuma was overthinking things, he was just about to go searching for him.

Minato tells him that he doesn't need to go to such lengths and make such a big fuss about it, but Shizuma tells him that he will always make a big fuss about it since it's about Minato. To avoid such a thing happening again, Shizuma tells Minato not to make him worry. Then these pages happen:

Just as their talk of their brothers' moving into together comes to an end, Shizuma gets all excited to go apartment hunting with Minato again and reminds him, not knowing that Itsuki is also listening. The Mito brothers freeze in surprise, with Itsuki soon confirming his earlier suspicions with Minato--his eyes and aura going all kira kira (i.e. sparkly). Minato tries to reprimand him for bringing it up now, but Shizuma continues on, saying he's found a few places he likes and they should start inspecting prospective apartments soon before they're overwhelmed by it all.

Minato hastily agrees to it all, and Shizuma smirks on the other end of the phone, asking Minato when they can see each other. Shizuma suggests Friday if he is too busy at the present moment, and just as Minato gives work as an excuse not to see him on that day, Itsuki jumps in and says he can go see Shizuma.

Shizuma, very surprised by the fact Itsuki overheard their conversation, says his name aloud, and Shouhei overhears him. Itsuki thanks Shizuma for letting him overhear such an adorable story featuring Shouhei. And then this happens:

Still very flustered, Minato quickly agrees to seeing Shizuma on Friday and promptly ends the call before Shizuma can even finish saying "Wait!" Itsuki happily approaches Minato and asks to hear more of their apartment hunting adventures, to which Minato replies that nothing is final yet!

We change locations, and Minato is now on the balcony scrubbing the floor. Minato recalls how he wanted to tell Itsuki about his and Shizuma's plans to move in together further down the track. He then is overjoyed at the thought that Shizuma missed him and wanted to see him. While he awaits Friday, he remembers and is embarrassed by how furious he was the last time they saw each other. He plans to start a skin routine to care for his face and to get his hair done.

Just as he thinks this, he is called out by none other than Shizuma, who is on the ground floor outside. Minato, visibly surprised, asks Shizuma why he’s here. Shizuma tells him that the shop is close to his home. Minato knows this, but is more curious as to why he is here since they just agreed to see each other on Friday. Shizuma is taken aback for a moment, before saying: 

While Minato hides away from Shizuma and quickly tries to style his hair, Itsuki overhears a ruckus on his balcony and goes to investigate. We then find out that Shouhei accompanied Shizuma. Shouhei calls out to Itsuki and asks why he didn't tell him that he was cleaning the whole house. The Ikushima brothers offer to help out with the cleaning, with Shizuma joining in because his younger brother will be under Itsuki's care soon. Itsuki happily agrees, saying that he wouldn't be able to fully clean the place if only Minato were there.

As the Ikushima brothers are getting ready to go upstairs to help, Itsuki says the brothers are indeed good, endearing people, and their charming personalities would probably make Minato and Itsuki anxious at times. Minato agrees. Itsuki then continues to say that while Shizuma and Shouhei charm those around them, the only ones who can make them smile the way they do are themselves. Minato is concerned about a possible intruder in their relationship, and Itsuki provides some brotherly advice.

We change scenes to Onodera, smoking on the clinic rooftop and thinking about Shizuma's smiling face.

We change scenes again to Minato, waiting for Shizuma at a predetermined location since it is now Friday. Happy with his new hairdo, Minato reminds himself not to get angry, to sort out the current situation they're in (i.e. Minato's one-sided anger at Shizuma), and to be calm and collected.

Shizuma then gets out of a car across the road, and looks around for Minato. Minato, who can see him very clearly, smiles happily and decides to let Shizuma look for him a little longer. A few more moments pass by, and Shizuma spots Minato and then waves happily to him. However, there is a slight problem.

Minato sees “the woman from last time” (Onodera) driving the car who then passes Shizuma his phone, with him smiling awkwardly at her. He recalls Itsuki's brotherly advice. Minato had actually asked Itsuki a follow-up question: "You say ‘just don't lose,’ but what should I actually do?" Itsuki tells him that it's something he has to figure out for himself.

Shizuma runs to Minato, apologising for making Minato wait. He explains that he was running late due to various issues, and he seemed to have dropped his phone in the car of the person who dropped him off. Before he could even tell Minato that it's his director who dropped him off, Minato says he doesn't need to say anything else and to just go out with him.

We see that Shizuma and Minato are now at a hotel, with Minato quickly pushing Shizuma onto the bed. Shizuma is annoyed at himself for letting Minato see such a scene that would cause a misunderstanding. Before heading over to the bed, Minato closes the door, turns to face Shizuma, and grins. He crawls onto the bed and immediately kisses Shizuma. He calls out Shizuma's name before asking him:

He softly pleads with Shizuma, asking for a quick response. Shizuma wonders if Minato's jealously is making him want to be held right now. He thinks Minato is really, really adorable, but also realises this isn't the right time to be thinking this. So Shizuma does tell Minato he loves him, that it's obvious he loves him very much. He apologises for causing him to worry and that he never once intended to do so. Minato cuts him off, saying that he understands and that it's okay.

Despite saying so, Shizuma notices the atmosphere is a little different than usual. Minato then tells Shizuma that he's been thinking of a way to ensure he doesn't lose Shizuma to anyone or lets anyone take him. The final page shows us this:

Again, THANK YOU FOR READING THIS FAR! 💜 📢  As always, please support Hinohara-sensei by purchasing her books and CDs! 📢

And that’s it for this chapter! 😲 Another cliffhanger here, and ngl that was a little (SFW-ish) steamy? I honestly do not know what to expect in the next chapter!! Dominant Minato?????  But I hope you enjoyed the few extra panels in this summary! 💜 My laptop struggled to keep up, so I will go back to only showing a handful of panels in future summaries. Please also refrain from resharing these translations and images outside of this post! Thank you for understanding! ❤️💛

The next chapter will be in next month's Dear+, so the wait isn't too much longer! So I shall see you all next month for our next set of takeaways to find out what happens next!

As always, stay safe during these turbulent times and look out for each other and for your loved ones! 💜❤️💛

[makeste]

regarding Best Jeanist, Dabi, and all of that

@kaleswagdragon​ I hope you don’t mind me posting this comment and my response as its own post, seeing as it quickly got out of hand and sort of morphed into a whole entire essay.

anyway, so! you say that it’s a mischaracterization, but it’s really not, though. I mean, props for bringing up the cultural context of Japan, in which the honne-tatemae culture of covering up anything that might lead to any sort of conflict -- even if it means harming an innocent victim in the process -- is a very real issue. so given that, I understand why so many people are interpreting Jeanist’s statement in a “how dare you bring this family shame to light” sort of way. and Caleb’s “dirty laundry” translation doesn’t help, given the “we’re more embarrassed than actually concerned about this” feel of that particular phrase, which he apparently chose just because of the clothing pun without really giving much thought to any other implications.

but in the actual Japanese, the meaning/context is somewhat different. here’s a link to a twitter thread clarifying the original spoiler translation, and breaking down the actual Japanese dialogue.

I think the meaning here is very clearly “you waited until the public’s faith in heroes was already wavering to bring this down on them as a final blow.” if he was simply criticizing Dabi for publicizing the Todoroki family drama, he would have stopped with that first sentence. the two sentences afterward (“you waited until everyone’s faith in heroes was wavering, when the damage would be too great to handle”) make it clear that what he’s actually calling Dabi out for is the way that he basically weaponizes his story into the perfect political tool to finally take down the heroes. which is an observation that we as the readers can verify for ourselves as being true. look at how he so carefully edited the footage of Twice’s death. look at the contrast between the way he acts in the video, compared with the homicidal glee we see from the actual Dabi in real time.

Jeanist is notably the only one who is able to get the same perspective as the readers here, since he’s the only person who’s physically present in Jakku with the real Dabi, but is also able to hear the video being broadcast. meaning that he’s able to hear both video!Dabi’s calm, prerecorded “I’m just a concerned citizen trying to look out for a society being taken advantage of by the ones charged with protecting it” speech, and actual!Dabi’s “hahaha fuck you Endeavor I’m bringing the whole country down even as we speak, well anyway time to kill you all” reality. he alone can see that stark contrast between the concerned whistleblower act Dabi is putting onscreen, versus his true attitude of “I don’t actually give a fuck, I just want to eradicate the heroes and make my dad suffer.” basically, Jeanist is the only one who can see that juxtaposition, and see Dabi’s reveal for what it really is, seeing as Dabi literally spelled it out for Endeavor and the others. and so he’s calling him out on that.

and he’s not wrong to do so. it’s clear that a lot of fans vehemently disagree with this, but being an abuse survivor doesn’t excuse you from having the same obligation as every other human being on the planet to try your best to be a decent person, which at minimum means not going out of your way to hurt other people. I say this as someone who’s experienced abuse, which shouldn’t need to be a disclaimer honestly, but I guess that’s how it is these days. anyways, though, I have, and I know a lot of other people who have as well. it’s a terrible, awful, exceptionally shitty thing to experience, and it affects everyone in different ways. and every single person who goes through something like that deserves help and support and time to heal, and it’s a tragedy and an injustice that Dabi, from what we have seen, never got any of that.

but that doesn’t excuse him from still being held to the same basic standard of “hurting other people is shitty” as everyone else. it doesn’t mean he gets a free pass. it doesn’t mean that anyone who says “hey, Dabi using his trauma as an excuse to murder people is kind of fucked up” is an abuse apologist. and it doesn’t mean Horikoshi is an abuse apologist for writing him that way, for that matter, because guess what? sometimes people who are abused grow up to become abusers. that’s just a fucked-up thing that happens sometimes. and pretending like it doesn’t is ironically not all that different from that whole “sweeping things under the rug” concept you mentioned earlier. it does happen, and I think it’s important to acknowledge that, because acknowledging it is one of the necessary steps to take in fixing it.

this attitude of “if someone was abused they should be absolved of responsibility for their actions” that I’ve seen in some posts is taking the concept of “abuse often has a profound impact on people’s mental health, and that should be taken into consideration before judging them too harshly for behavior that they can’t always necessarily control”, and twisting it into this nice little loophole that people can use to duck accountability whenever it’s convenient. but being abused doesn’t give you the right to abuse other people, is my point. nothing gives somebody the right to do that.

and Dabi is hurting other people. he waited ten years to tell his story specifically because he wanted to use it to make others suffer. and, putting aside the part where he’s trying to engineer the downfall of society as a precursor to the mass destruction he and his pals have planned, he also broadcast the story nationwide without the consent of the other abused parties involved. which I’m not saying he didn’t have the right to do, mind you, because it’s his story as well as theirs, and he has the right to tell it. and the right to make his abuser’s crimes as public as he wants, if that’s what he decides. but it also ignores the question of what his mother and siblings might want, and the fact is that they’re also survivors, and so in theory should have the same right as Dabi to choose their own healing process, and decide exactly how they want their abuser, who like so many abusers is also a close family member, to be held accountable. anyway, but all of that is obviously very, very complicated and I don’t think there’s a clear right or wrong side as far as this part of it all. it’s not a situation where everyone can be happy, which unfortunately is often how it goes.

anyway, I’ve kind of meandered pretty far from my original point now, so my bad. my points are, basically,

(a) I think the linked explanation does show that Jeanist is chiding Dabi for using his trauma in this specifically scheming and destructive way, as opposed to saying “shame on you for not being a good little victim and staying quiet”, which would be a ridiculous thing for Horikoshi, who’s explored the topic of abuse more thoughtfully than any other mangaka I’ve read, to randomly have one of his protagonists say.

and (b) the people calling Dabi out on his shit aren’t all smug victim-blamers who have no sympathy for what he has been through. the latter point (and a lot of this post, actually) isn’t particularly directed at you btw; it’s more of just a general statement brought on by some of the discussion that’s been going on these past few days.

anyways, I actually like that the fandom is talking about all of this! I just think it’s a very complex subject, and an even more complex situation currently in the manga. and ideally, people would try to acknowledge that complexity when discussing it, rather than simply picking a side and doubling down on it no matter what, or shooting down the whole thing as problematic writing just because isn’t a neat and tidy situation where you can simply say “oh, person A is right and person B is wrong, that’s it, end of story.” it’s not, unfortunately. it’s a messy clusterfuck of a topic that’s only going to get messier as this plot continues, so hopefully we can all just sort of brace ourselves for that lol. this is really just the tip of the iceberg, I think.

[be-ready-when-i-say-go]

Inspired partially by the twitter trend of The Face Vs. The Face Sitting On It and just in time for Valentine’s Day! 

Gender Neutral Reader Insert. 

Enjoy my masterlist!

Support me on KoFi!

__________________________

While sitting in the car, you watch out the window. Folks buzz around you--some folks looking content, strolling about their day. Others are flitting around, a bit of crease in their forehead. And you feel for them. You know those days where there’s just not enough hours in the day to get it all done. Or it’s when one thing sets off a spiral of all terrible things. Or when you just don’t wake up on the right side of the bed. You know that crease all too well because currently you were having a bad sleeping week. 

You were getting tired when you were supposed to but the second you put your head on the pillow your brain was hot wired--keeping you up with all the things you needed to do, hadn’t done, all the appointments you had kept pushing off. It was finding the littlest things to find that anxiety and keep you staring up at the ceiling. Calum noticed the tossing and turning and tried his best to lull you to sleep this week, fixing you tea in the evening, getting you off your phone or laptop a couple hours before bed. He even started reading to you, but your ears picked up on the white noise of everything in the house. Your brain picked up the embarrassing memory that you hadn’t even considered in decades and now holding it in front of your mind’s eye for hours on end during the week. 

Like right now, you should’ve been at home sleeping. Your work was giving you a long weekend and you really could’ve used the time to catch some extra Z’s, but you were, admittedly, a little scared to stay home. Sure maybe you did fall asleep cuddled up next to Duke. But you worried that you’d stay up, worry yourself sick some more so when Calum told you he had some errands to run you immediately tagged along. The time running around would hopefully tire you out enough that when you got home you could actually fall asleep. 

So after Calum’s personal training session in the morning, which you sort of tagged along for, but mostly went through your own routine and getting a solid breakfast, you two were now buzzing around from store to store. Calum had gotten most of the grocery the other day, but he forgot a couple things so your first objective was to grab those and bring them back up. He then had to go to the post office to mail out his mother’s birthday cards and a few other things. 

While in the line at the post office, your head tucked into his back, Calum got a phone call from a guitar shop on the other side of time about a new model that had just come in. Calum had been eying it for ages, but he didn’t want to be reckless with his money especially after getting some work on his teeth and to the house. So he asked the guitar shop to keep an eye out for when more stock arrived in case it sold out before Calum felt comfortable spending a large sum of money like that again. 

The store agreed to set one off to the side for him and could keep it on hold until the end of the day. Which was perfect--still gave the two of you time to get lunch. You didn’t need to get anything, didn’t need to do anything. But even after lunch, Calum made one more pit stop. Here now at the gas station, you sit peering through the windshield and can see a mother with her two sons walking from the doors. They boys hold brightly colored icees in their hand, each clutching a bag field with goodies. 

You aren’t entirely sure whey Calum needed to stop here for anything. It’s not like he needed stamps, since he got those at the post office. He hadn’t pulled in to get gas. Lunch had been filling, though you tried not to stuff yourself too much just because you knew that on a long car ride, the last thing you wanted to do was be uncomfortably full. 

The door opens again, Calum strutting through with his glasses covering his eyes and resting comfortably atop the chubby cheeks. Barely hanging from the crook of his fingers is a brown plastic bag. The doors click open and he climbs into the driver seat. The guitar shop wasn’t that far, but today seemed to be a busy day on the road. Took you all too long just to get to the grocery store this morning. 

“Snacks?”

“Was craving something sweet after lunch.” 

You peer into the bag as he hands it over to you. Some gummy bears, gum, a bar or two of chocolate you can’t quite tell. You set it onto the floor at your feet. “Let me know when you want something.” But he’s already tearing into a Twix bar when you glance at him. “Or not,” you laugh. 

“The other stuff is for you--if you want to indulge. Can’t forget ya,” he pushes the glasses down for just a moment to wink at you and then looks into the rearview mirror. 

“Do you think you’re going to get this one?” you asks as the SUV rolls out from the parking lot and onto the asphalt of the highway. 

“Hmm, maybe. Gotta see how it feels first.”

You nod at his question, resting your head into the cushion of the seat. And it goes quiet for a while. The radio plays softly in the background, and every so often the packaging crinkles as Calum downs more of the chocolate and caramel treat. 

“Valentine’s Day is coming up soon,” Calum states, while paused in a bit of traffic. “Got any ideas on what you want to do for it?”

You think for a moment. Valentine’s Day has never been your thing--being perpetually single does that to a person. “Restaurants are going to be a nightmare.”

“Yeah, they will be.” Another crinkle comes from the right side of the car and then his arm reaches behind your seat, finding the small bag of trash you stash there--though you have to be careful when Duke sits in the backseat. Generally though, he doesn’t mess with too much. “My mom sent me a recipe of hers. It’s really good.”

“I’d be down for cooking.”

“Nothing else? Don’t wanna go sky diving? Give me another heart attack?”

You laugh thinking about the first birthday you spent with Calum together as a couple. “You didn’t die.”

“But I did almost shit myself.”

“You can play on stage to thousands of people, but no, jumping from a plane is a no-go.”

“Yes, because I am a sane human.”

You huff out a small tuft of laughter and turn to look at him. One hand on the wheel with the stainless steel linked chain dangling from his wrist. His other arm is resting against the door, gently tapping out a beat with his long slender fingers. “Do you want to do anything?”

“Valentine’s Day,” he scoffs. “How long have we been dating? When have I ever been dying to do anything on some random day in February.” His statement doesn’t fall venomously from his mouth. He even looks over to you with a smile. “I don’t need one day out of 365 to declare my love for someone.”

And it’s true. While Calum wasn’t super accepting of love from new people, while it took you months to show Calum that you were trustworthy and not someone to keep at an arm’s length, once he cracked open, he oozed adoration and love for people. And you knew it was a defense mechanism. You knew that when someone did care as hard as Calum did it wouldn’t always be an easy thing to win over. 

Calum, when he finally let someone one, loved hard. It could be a random Tuesday in July or a Sunday in February, and he would make sure his love was known. He never needed a special occasion to send flowers, to cook dinner, to offer to drive you to doctors appointments because he knew that sometimes you got too nervous or flustered by them to drive but did manage to push through if absolutely necessary. He’d easily pick up some gloves and an extra sponge if he saw you wiping down the walls in the kitchen or wiping through the counter. He kept fridge cleaning days marked on the calendar. And when you added reminders to wash bed sheets to the shared one, he also include rest breaks for you too. 

Calum had never needed someone to force him to show appreciation. 

“I mean, there is the option to literally do nothing on Valentine’s Day. Like treat it as any other day.”

“That’s still something,” he countered, turning on his signal and switching out from the middle lane. His exit was approaching in another mile and a half. 

“Oh fuck off,” you laugh. “We can’t cease to exist that day. Bare minimum we need to convert oxygen into carbon dioxide.”

Calum laughs softly, showing some of his teeth too. “Fair, fair. There’s another Netflix documentary coming out, true crime one. I forget what it’s fully about, but I think it’s about a serial killer if you’d be down to start it then?”

“When would I ever turn down the opportunity to be a detective with you?”

“You haven’t yet,” he states with laughter in his voice. 

“And I never will.” The ramp takes the two of you down and down and soon you’re winding through streets and not too far you can see the shopping center coming into view. He pulls into the lot of the shop and the two of you step out in unison. 

The bell above the door chimes as he opens it for you and you smile often in your thanks. “Hey, Calum!” one of the guys at the register calls out. The store is fairly empty. But you’re not shocked on a Tuesday afternoon. 

“Hey, Derek. How’s it going?” Calum heads directly over to the counter and you look up to the left wall, at the records on display.

“Let me know if you need anything,” the second guy states to you, “or if you want to see anything.” He’s younger than Derek, both look to be equally tattooed from the pieces that peek out from the short sleeve work shirts, but his face is significantly brighter. 

“Thanks,” you return and go back to the displays. You can hear Calum and Derek chatting but slowly tune it out, make it background noise to the music playing through the speakers. 

You turn to walk towards the back where more instruments sit and you can see Calum leaning into the glass display of the counter. The palms of his hand pressed into the metal edge. The sunglasses sit on top of his head and you notice the younger guy glancing over at you again.

He nods again and then goes back to his computer. Nothing else is said. And you look over the stringed instruments, ukuleles, some violins and then you spin around again, done with that lap and go to head up to Calum. “See anything?” he asks. 

You shake your head. “You’re the musically talented one. I just nod and smile when you talk about it.”

Derek returns, a case in hand. He comes out from the hinged doors that separate the sales floor from the registers and back of the store. You scoot a little closer to the display as the case is transferred over. Calum takes it easily heading to the corner you just abandoned to sit and check out the instrument. It’s a beautiful deep green, almost reminds you of the thick Washington forest. The body is slender. 

“That’s a pretty cool color,” you note, watching Calum work his fingers over the frets. 

He grins up at you. “Think so?” You give another nod. He doesn’t inspect it long before you can see the desire to give in crosses his face. 

Derek’s standing close by and you turn to him and keep your voice as close to a whisper as you can while still being heard. “What’s a bass like that cost?”

He rattles off the price, one eyebrow slightly raised over the other. You know Calum will riot--he’ll pitch a fucking fit. But you reach into your wallet and slide out your card. You had been saving--for a year. You wanted to do something big for Calum. You just didn’t know what it was yet specifically though you had some ideas, a bass was top of the list.  But you didn’t want to try and go out and buy a bass without consulting him, without getting an understanding of what he liked. You thought about maybe a really good leather jacket and some more boots. He loved the ones he had, wore them as much as he could. 

And when you mentioned possibly getting him more, he told you the ones he had were still in good shape. Calum wasn’t the type to just buy clothes to buy them. He indulged here and there, but always made a point to wear something he had down before replacing it. You’d tease the subject a couple more times after that, but he never took the bait and you weren’t going to force him into a thing he didn’t want or need. 

But it’s clear to you that this is something he wants. But he’ll tussle with himself and never give in on it. It’s pricer than you thought it would be. But you too were being smart, having finally paid off the last of your car, you start moving those payments to savings and it helped a great deal. You were fine. You get insurance and the whole deal as Derek advises. By the time you slide the receipt back across the counter, Calum comes back to the registers. “I appreciate you holding it for me, man. But I don’t think I can right now.”

Derek looks at you and you look down into the glass. “It’s--it’s yours, dude.”

“What?” Calum breathes behind you. 

“They-uh, they paid for it,” Derek says, nodding at you.

You can feel the heat in your body now and spin around to face Calum in a rush. “Consider it a not Valentine’s Day gift.”

“What? What are you talking about?”

“Ever since I finished paying off my car, I saved the payments to do something nice for you. Didn’t know what it was going to be for sure. But I know you, Calum. You’d want something and tell yourself no. I mean you can treat yourself sometimes.”

“You-you didn’t?” His eyes are rapidly blinking, head shaking like he doesn’t want to believe you. Like he can’t believe you as his mouth mumbles out, “No,” repeatedly. 

“It’s yours,” you nod. “It’s really yours.”

If it weren’t for the weight of the bass, you’re sure Calum would’ve tipped over, maybe even rushed to Derek to hand the case back over, but instead he’s weighed down, chained to this spot in the blue speckled carpet of the store, still repeating, “No,” softly. 

“‘I hate to break it to you, but you’re gonna have to find space in your office for it now. Because I refuse to return it.” You step forward, find the handle and slip your hands around it taking it from Calum. A small grunt leaves you and then you start to the door, throwing a thanks to Derek. 

The lights to the SUV blink and you can hear the locks clicking open as you push open the door to the store. “Wait--what are you doing?” Calum asks. 

“Open the trunk please,” you ask. 

“Let me do it,” he demands, stepping in close to take the case with the bass now. “What the fuck did you do? Baby, this is expensive.”

“It’s not a Valentine’s Day gift,” you answer again. “Because I love you. On a random Tuesday.”

He gets the instrument safely into the trunk and then closes it, watching dumbly as you climb into the passenger side. He walks to the driver seat and climbs in, taking you gently by the chin. “That was absolutely reckless and unnecessary-- ”

“I am just absolutely reckless and unnecessary then,” you counter, “because I’m not returning it.”

“--but thank you. Thank you so much,” he continues as if you hadn’t interrupted him. “I love you.”

“I love you.” Then it’s silent, as the two of your gaze at each other, watching what could almost be tears well in his eyes, but they don’t fall. 

“I don’t know what I did to deserve a person like you, but whatever it was, I’m glad I did it.”

“I’m glad you did it too.” The two of you return home, Duke rushing to the front door as the two of you step through it. Calum safely places the bass in his music room/office and returns shortly after to help you decide on what to order for dinner. 

As the two of you settle onto the couch, Calum takes your hand and presses a kiss to teach knuckle. “I’m gonna teach you how to play.”

“You know we’ve done this before.”

“And you were good at it.”

“I was alright at it.”

“It’ll be your bass,” he whispers. 

“I bought it for you,” you return tossing your head back to look at him. 

He kisses your lips. “Yeah, but it’ll be the one that I teach you to play for real one and it’ll be yours--just as much as it is mine.”

“A true sap,” you laugh, but nod and return your focus back to the TV. 

In the week that follows, Calum makes sure to take an hour in the evenings to set you down and pick up on the lessons. They fizzled out as work for the both of you picked up. But now things are a bit more calm. He sits next to you, assessing what you remember from last time and correcting finger placements as needed, but they go smoothly. 

When Valentine’s Day does come, Calum pulls you back into bed for just five more minutes of sleep. And five minutes turns into half an hour. But finally you two pull yourself out from the sheets, figure out what to do in the midmorning that results in food being consumed and then you slowly gravitate towards different sections of the house. 

There’s still a bit of laundry to be done and Calum takes Duke out for just a little bit. The two of you migrate back together by mid afternoon. He finds you making a quick lunch and presses a kiss to your cheek. You turn to face him, squeezing at his. “I bought some face masks,” he offers. “Care to join me in doing the bare minimum of converting oxygen into carbon dioxide after your lunch?”

“Don’t see how I could pass up such a wonderful offer? You want anything?” He shakes head, mentioning grubbing on some of the leftovers earlier while you took a nap. 

With your lunch done and the plates cleaned, you find Calum in the bedroom and let him know you’re ready for the face masks. He shuffles to the bathroom. “I hope I got the right one for you,” he mutters. “I got them forever ago it feels, so who the hell knows what I got.” His laughter is soft as he rummages through the bins under the skin. 

“I’ll be in the office,” you tell him and he nods, still pulling bins out. You settle into the couch and spy the green bass still on the stand from yesterday. You pull it into your lap and sling your arm over it. The amp next to you is off, you know but you still pluck away at it as if it were on. 

Calum shuffles in a few minutes later. “Um, babe. It’s off.”

You don’t reply but do look up. He holds up three different packages. “Here’s to hoping one of these is worthwhile.” You place your bass back to the stand and take one that sounds like one you’re okay with using. Calum hands you a towel so you can wipe your fingers off after you get it placed onto your face. He helps get it right and then you help him with his and the two of you slip onto the couch, legs entangled and leaning into opposite ends of the couch.

You laugh at Calum’s story as you scroll mindless through app after app. In the boredom you snap a picture of Calum with the face masks on and don’t think too much of it, saving it to the album with all the silly and cute photos of him are--there are tons. 

“I mean the sun is a star. Though the ones we see have been dead for a long time.”

Calum taps your leg with his foot. “It was a simple question--to be the sun or the stars. I didn’t ask for this philosophical crisis.”

“Why would it not weigh in your decision! If you’re a star like the ones we see at night, you’re technically already dead. You wanna be dead?” You huff, sitting up. 

“I mean, no, but c’mon.”

“It’s a valid thing to consider, that’s all I’m saying!”

He laughs. “Okay, sun or the moon?”

“You first,” you return and just then your alarm on your phone goes off. The two of you shuffle back to the bathroom and take off the masks. 

“Moon, maybe,” he counters. 

You nod. “Fitting. When should we get started on that recipe of your moms? Is it super involved?”

“Nah, it’s pretty easy. Normal time should be good. I’m going to read outside if you want to join.”

“Maybe in a bit.”

Calum nods, grabbing his book as he passes through the bedroom and the patter of Duke’s claws follow behind him. You go back to the music room, turn on the amp and then actually play a little something. It’s nothing fancy--just the arrangement you put together with Calum as a practice exercise once. You play it for a bit, adding a little flair. When you phone rings, you pause to answer it. You wouldn’t normally, but the number looks semi recognizable so you answer it. 

It’s just a scam call and you hang up but then notice some other notifications. Before you realize it, you’re deep into Twitter. You’ve run across the trend of people posting pictures of themselves and their significant others with the caption, The Face Vs The Face Sitting On It. It made you laugh just a little bit at first. And then you kept going down the rabbit hole. Some are silly, most are good pictures. 

While it’s not exactly secret that you and Calum are dating, you two don’t post too much. Calum isn’t incline to post on social media in the first place and while you use it a bit more than him, you try not to post too much about him out of respect. However, as you look tap on quote retweet and bring up your photos you think maybe one silly post wouldn’t hurt. So you grab the one of him recently with the face masks and then one of yourself--it’s silly too, a little blurry too in the darkness that it was taken in. 

You hit post and watch the likes come in. Then keep scrolling. Eventually you have to put the bass away and peel yourself from the couch to find Calum and see if he’s hungry enough for dinner. Just as you round the corner to the office, you spy him stepping through the glass sliding backdoor. “Hungry?” you ask. 

He nods, “Yeah.”

The two of you, with Duke trotting ahead, make your way down the hallway and into the kitchen. “You’re funny,” he states, washing his hands first. 

“Thank you. I’ll be here until you kick me out.”

He laughs. “No, the pictures you posted. On Twitter.”

You’re shocked that he noticed it that fast. Normally it took him a bit longer to see silly stuff like that. “Hope you don’t mind.”

“Nah. What I hope you don’t mind is my reply.”

At first you’re nervous. Calum could’ve gone one of two ways--super silly and broke out even worse photos of you possibly not sober or he went super on trend with it and pulled out a photo of you done up for a date night. Not that you preferred one over the other, but sometimes you liked to keep your relationship light on social media. It was easier that way. There wasn’t any real pressure that way. Though the fans seemed to have enjoyed it when you posted more posed and serious content. 

You liked to keep it a bit more real. You and Calum didn’t do the whole nine yards a lot--you two were normal people who hated getting out of bed some days and went as well into the afternoon before showering at times and walked Duke and went to doctor’s appointments like everyone does. So you always opted for a bit of a joke, a silly Tweet or photo whenever you could. 

“What did you post?” you ask. 

He shrugs, taking up the knife to dice the onion. “I’m not telling you.”

You glance at the printed out recipe and get a pan on the aisle over medium heat before pulling out your phone. As you load the app, you listen to the snap of the knife fitting the wooden cutting board. You type Calum’s name and tap onto his profile. 

While there’s is silly--I do want to take a moment to show off my favorite person in the world. So here we go, The Face Vs. The Face Sitting On It. Below is attached a picture of him--you snapped while you two were out for lunch one day. The black t-shirt tight around his biceps as he slyly grins into the camera. The lights in the background are just barely in focus of the resturant and Calum’s glancing out of the window next to him. You remember that you were recording him, or at least you thought you were, and told him that he was handsome. Not the first time, but everytime he did, he blushed and turn away. And you captured it here too. 

The photo of you is actually one with him in it. The guys got together and did a big family dinner and the two of you posed at Crystal’s request in the slightly matching outfits. You hadn’t intended to match--though black was a staple in both your wardrobes. You were a bit different thanks to the pop of color in your shoes, but in the lighting of the street lamp, you had to admit that you did look hot. The first couple of  buttons on your shirt you were undone and with your hands tucked into the pockets, you looked like you owned shit. 

“While I hoped that you’d go with something more silly, I will take this,” you finally say. 

“That picture is literally my background for a reason,” he returns. 

You kiss his cheek and then trace over the stubble with your teeth to his ear. “Can I make a reservation for tonight?”

“The table is reserved for you literally at all times,” he returns in a breathe. 

“Good,” you laugh and then glance back to the recipe. 

[chaerincore]

hyewon’s v lives include…

some highlights & traditions that your favorite rapper has whenever she goes live!

notes: hi hi! i’m not fully back yet but i’ve been preparing some posts for a while so here’s one of them! enjoy <3

warning(s): none.

taglist: @skzfairies @m00niesk7 @keehoilys

she was answering a question about one of her rap verses that was so close to breaking her own speed record & pulled a bang chan moment when she said “you know what else they say about fast rappers, right?”

EVERYONE was ready to pass out in the comments and thought she was gonna say something nsfw until she finished her statement with “we talk a lot, and can talk very fast too! galaxy… what did you think i was gonna say? get your head out of the gutter! 🤨”

SHE DIDN’T SAY ANYTHING ELSE ABOUT IT AFTER THAT BUT SHE DID GIVE THE MOST DISGUSTED LOOK EVER, AND YES EVERYBODY MADE A MEME OUT OF IT.

during a group vlive she once scolded eunwoo ten times because it was late at night and he was sleep deprived so that means he was slightly “unhinged” (you could say 🥴)… somebody made a compilation of it with a counter after 😭

she found the compilation the next day on twitter, and this girl IMMEDIATELY took to bubble & was like “galaxy, eunwoo doesn’t remember that v live at all… oops?”

the type of idol to read a nasty or weird comment and shoot a look of annoyance at the camera with a face like “y’all just be saying this on my livestream?”

will absolutely scold younger fans if they’re watching her lives during class.

stays love to watch hyewon’s v lives because she shares so many stories about 3RACHA, they like to call her the lost member of stray kids because of how much she mentions that she adores them.

“this stray kids song needs more recognition! i’m telling you guys, seriously!”

will call changbin just so he can rap with her even if it’s through the phone, and changbin is hyewon’s bestie so of COURSE he’s joining her (currently crying in my little corner of the internet nobody speak to me)

has tried to call jisung on multiple occasions but stopped because he was shy and seemed super nervous to do it on the spot without any notice, so they usually end up chatting for a bit instead :]

jisungie is her first maknae so ofc she was like absolutely not i must protect 💪

will absolutely share embarrassing stories she has of jaehyun, which ends up with him calling her to “scold” her but it usually is just him asking why she ALWAYS picks the worst ones 😭

her and jaehyun will go live and freestyle or share how they make certain title tracks sometimes

every single live (and i mean ALL of them) has at least thirty seconds of sakura interrupting just to say hi to galaxy and hyewon of course! but hyewon loves her maknae soooo much, how could she ever be mad at sakura wanting to say hello to their fans?

shares her favorite 3RACHA tracks at the moment (it’s always changing, she’s the biggest stay out there, i fear)

loves runner’s high, dragon three, double knot, matryoshka & id:A (we fully support a legend loving her own features)

if there’s a new seventeen song… she will NOT shut up about it, or if she’s playing music you can guarantee there’s ALWAYS a seventeen song playing.

will sometimes start talking in thai and get all flustered when she realizes it because she THINKS people find it annoying but everyone actually lives for her speaking in her native tongue.

galaxy asking her to rap in thai? all of the TIME

if eunwoo does a live with her, she will absolutely dedicate five minutes of her time just roasting the living hell out of him because he puts her through ENOUGH chaos

will usually get a call from sakura towards the end asking her when she’s coming back to the dorm because it’s getting late… she’s also the member that goes live the most, it’s her own way of showing her love for galaxy… she’s so cute </3

[liam-93-productions]

Liam’s full interview with Tings Magazine - Part 1

Note: the interview was recorded in may 2020.

Justin Campbell: What is the weirdest YouTube/Instagram trend hole that you’ve fallen into? Liam: One that always gets me is putting Mentos in Pepsi or Coke. We all know what happens, but we have to watch the ending. I’ve seen it about fifty times, and it doesn’t change. But it’s weird finding out what things are interesting when you’re stuck inside. It’s a crazy ride watching the world react to this. It’s almost like everybody’s become a street performer. You see these people on the street who have a special skill like magic and the internet is now the place for that and everybody does it. 

Do you feel pressured to participate? Is there currency in that? Does that keep you relevant? I think artists have had to change a lot to fit in. There used to be mystery where you didn’t know too much about their lives, whereas we are in my living room now for all the world to see. I think that’s the biggest change of these newer platforms. I think you have to join in if you want to stay relevant. If you look at someone like Jason Derulo, he has 19 million followers on TikTok and he just started. His old songs are re-charting because of the TikTok chart. So, you can’t just make music and expect it to go well anymore. There has to be a personality and a story. It’s not quite the same anymore. 

There’s so many differente avenues to keep up with. There’s Instagram, YouTube, TikTok. It used to be you did radio, tours and late-night television. Now there seem to be a dozen things to do.  It’s crazy, this last promo schedule for me, having to do it indoors. I had to learn how to do a bunch of different jobs for the people that couldn’t be here. We put up a green screen in my lounge. We moved all the sofas, me and the camera guy that is staying with me set up the green screen and then you have to film it as well. It’s just crazy the amount of different things that you have to get involved in right now to stay relevant. And that’s all it is. The majority of the stuff isn’t really doing anything, but it’s doing loads at the same time if that makes sense. It’s a difficult thing to get used. And also, things have gotten jovial. So, you have to learn to make fun of ourselves. You can’t be Mr. Serious pop-star anymore. People aren’t really attracted to that anymore. People like the fun side of you, your personality and your humor come through on these things. It’s crazy. I thought about when I joined TikTok the other week, there’s a pressure to film something fun. But then if you are not having fun filming it, you’re not going to film a fun video. And I didn’t want to live my life every day thinking I got to film a video or nobody is going to care. I spent an hour trying to think of stuff and I don’t want to live my life like this. I enjoy then. I like going on TikTok and getting lost in a little TikTok rabbit hole, we all do, but I don’t know if I’m that way inclined mentally. 

With the need to share more, to share a comedic side or a vulnerable side, where do you draw the line? When do you stop sharing? How much of it is constructed sharing and how much of it is authentic sharing? It’s difficult. I’m very prone to enjoy a moment rather than take my camera out and film it. I’m always one of those people who take a picture of a sunset and then never look at it and say why did I bother taking the picture. I’d rather enjoy the moment. We live in a day and age where the camera phone is people’s first thought for things. And I’m just not one of those people. Humorous stuff will happen and it will be off the cuff, but we didn’t film it. And it will be like “aw, should we recreate it?” But we don’t want to recreate it. It just feels stupid. It always feels forced in that sense. So for me, I definitely struggle with sharing moments.  And you have those people out there, who are literally willing to do anything. There’s a trend for people who are shaving their eyebrows off at the moment. I’m not going to shave my eyebrows off so people will care a little more. That just doesn’t register with me. You have Jake and Logan Paul, who do a lot of crazy, crazy things to get noticed. And it’s like where do you draw the line. 

These platforms make it challenging to carve out a private life. People expect more and more of celebrities’ lives to be shared. They feel they have ownership of every aspect of people’s lives. What are your thoughts on that? From the start of this lockdown, the first James Corden TV performance was filmed in the lounge and we went through my whole house. I can remember back in the day when a newspaper sent out the photos of my house. I don’t like people knowing where I sleep because it’s a security problem for me. I had a big complaint about that. Now fast forward 5-6 years and the world has changed to where nothing is really a private or intimate moment. It’s strange. As One Direction, we were in an era on the rise of Twitter. I think Twitter helped us a lot. It was the way we trended on Twitter that actually made us famous. But being on the cusp of that internet stardom, we didn’t really care about how many followers [we had].  Now, it’s become a currency. I just struggle to take those things seriously, that it is part of the job because it feels so foreign. When we had apps as kids, there was no way to becoming MSN famous. Now kids want to be an Instagrammer or a TikTokker. It’s crazy. We never had that. 

You said something about people chasing the currency of liked and follows. Kids are thinking about that validation when they are creating content. How much of that are you thinking about it when you create music or social media/video content? I think, for me, I don’t often pay attention to how many likes thing gets. As a pop star, you have to have an average amount per post. We have to have meetings now where people will go through posts, and tell you why this works. Which for me, it seems insane, but you have this persona that you have to keep up online. And definitely, when posting certain things, you are gauging whether it’s going to get a reaction or there’s no point in posting it. And that’s always been the problem for me. I’m hoping for a big reaction for stuff which limits the amount you post because you think there’s no point posting this.  Often the people who do the best in these scenarios are the people that didn’t mean for it to happen. Someone makes a little challenge like The Ice Bucket Challenge. Someone thought I’ll do this. It will be fun for us to film and because they are having fun, everyone is like we will get involved. If you think about it too much, it will overtake you. For the longest time, I didn’t post a lot. I got off of Twitter because of the backlash and the fact that you are always going to annoy someone with a post. I was like, I can’t deal with it. I might as well keep it to myself. There’s no disappointment. 

I think that’s part of the condition of being an artist. You crave a certain amount of validation.  When it’s work, you can take that some people won’t get it. But because everything has become so personal now like it’s about you. You sell your personality to people. It’s like if someone asks you “what five things do you want people to know about you”. And everyone goes, well, I’d like to be... You suddenly think, what we are doing every day online is trying to sell ourselves.  It’s a difficult balance. You have to have the right amount of humor and humility and the right amount of this. It’s so difficult to find that person. And you see people who become caricatures of themselves online. They overdo it. You don’t know what works any why it works. The internet is such an untested experiment. The public decides. It’s so crazy.

You just said that it can feel so personal, which I think is such an honest statement because when you are putting yourself out there, it is hard to celebrate the work and you. When people don’t like something, it can feel like they are personally attacking you.  It genuinely scares me sometimes. Even to post a selfie, because you just don’t know what the recipe is. I’m not trying to impress anyone. I’m just trying to stay around if that makes sense. I don’t know, it’s difficult. The fact that you just let it go and it’s gone and people either take it or leave it. It’s like jumping on stage every time you post, which scares me anyway. 

You’ve spoken pretty openly about dealing with depression and anxiety. How does this level of exposure impact your ability to manage your anxiety? Before all of this started, the first day of school would probably be when you are your most anxious. Or it’s your own clothes day and you don’t know what to wear. That feels like what everyone is going through every single day online. It’s like the teen generation has so many more questions to answer that we had. I know as a kid I was quite stressed. I can’t imagine how these kids feel these days.  The only way I can relate is by how I feel in this scenario. Obviously, being a little bit older, you are a little wiser with it. I thinks it’s a different kind of pressure these days. It’s a worldwide pressure. The fact that anyone can become a superstar overnight or also the most embarrassing thing in the world and the line is that thin. I can’t imagine what is like for kids growing up in that scenario. For me, it’s raised a lot of questions about my mental health and having to deal with these things. I’ve been running a pilot with someone for people in my position, people who struggle with fame, with the position that they get themselves. You don’t really realize the playbook you’re pressing. Once you’re in it, you’re in it.  I started from 14-16, were my two start years. And the only answer that people had for you was that you’ve got have thick skin. But I don’t think that’s really the point because once you are here, you have to find out if your skin is thick enough. You have to learn. For the longest time, if somebody wrote something about me in the press, I’d rise back up and bring back up. I didn’t realize they were trying to bait me out because they knew I’d do that. Then they’d write three more articles about the scenario that I didn’t want them to write about. You can only know that with years of experience. If something comes out now, I just leave it to die and go away and that’s it. I just think it’s difficult when people say the only answer is that you have to have thick skin to do this. 

That’s not really a solution. That’s just saying you asked for this. This is just part of it, which I don’t think is fair. Is fame something that you struggle with a lot? For me, there’s different periods, severe highs with different things and a lot of questions about stuff. I’ve been going at this now for ten years, which seems insane. I’m only 26 as well, which is quite a long time to be doing anything. And to be in this pressure cooker for that long is quite difficult, but I say I’ve learned to deal with it better now. Age and time are wonderful things. And we were buffered as teens. We had each other in the band. When I look at someone like Justin Bieber, I think no wonder he went completely mental at some point because there is no one in the world that knows what is like to be Justin Bieber, but Justin Bieber. He had no one to share it with. We had each other to share it with, to remember it with and be reminded how to behave, how to act. You shouldn’t do that. It was tough at some points, but for the most part it was helpful growing up in that team exercise rather than be let off on your own and you’re the most famous person in the world. It must have been pretty crazy for him. 

[conspirasee7]

This is going to be my first post and a Tumblr exclusive. At lease for now 😭. I plan on uploading it to WattPad once I’m done.

⚠️Warning⚠️: This will be a gay erotic short story primarily about sniffing, manly scents and underwear fetish. This is NSFW. If sniffing/scents/gas is not in your lane this is not the story for you.

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Ca$h Pig

By: ᥴꪮꪀᦓρ꠸᥅ꪖᦓꫀꫀ

Ca$h Pig • Also known as financial domination, a pay pig is a submissive person who gets sexual gratification from being financially exploited.

I quickly grabbed my phone out to snap a pic of this niggas ass. I had seen him all the time but had no idea what his name was. I assumed he was from around here because he knew a number of people I was familiar with. I don’t remember him from school, church (not that I go to church 😭), social media, nothing. Who was this stranger?

Ima keep it a bean (keep it real) with you I’m not attracted to dudes, nor have I ever wanted to smash one. Pussy was constantly being throw at me so I didn’t have time to focus on niggas too. Despite not physically being attracted to dudes there was one aspect that I couldn’t escape. It constantly waived its finger at me, calling me when no one was around.

*Daydream Segue*

Me: ......

Booty:

*Back to the Present*

So I know I said I didn’t like dudes which I definitely don’t... But a mans ass is another story. Is it possible to only be attracted to a booty? An ass was an ass to me whether on a man or a woman. However it was something about a mans ass.

As I approached him I felt my dick trying to slowly unzip my pants. It wanted so badly to break free and just bust all over his back while he taunted me with his unwashed hole. Not that I assumed it was dirty but I was hoping it wasn’t fresh out the shower.

“I would pay anything to put my face in it.”

I found myself saying in a low tone. But wtf did I mean by that? Pay a nigga to sniff his ass? What I look like? I get offers from niggas all the time. Why would I need to pay one to sniff his ass? Sad thing is I really would pay just to sniff it. I just want to smell the gap where his butt meets his jeans sooooo bad 😩. Dam I’m a nasty ass mf!!!

I don’t know what I needed to do to get it but I needed to smell this niggas ass. It needed to happen today. The next time I nutted I wanted it to be with a face full of his ass. I won’t have it any other way. I didn’t know shit about this man but I knew I needed to know one thing. I needed to know what his ass smelled like once his cheeks were opened 👃🏽.

Before I got a chance to figure out a game plan my lips betrayed me.

“Excuse me?” Wtf was I doing and wtf was I about to say? I could hear myself screaming at my inner voice!!!

Stranger: “What’s good?” *turns around*

Now again I’d just like to repeat I am not attracted to dudes AT ALL!!! But goooooood daaaaaaaaaaaamm!! When this nigga turned around he was finer than a mf. Like fine fine. I had to calm myself down for a second so I could take in all his features. I paused to take a moment to acknowledge how gay that just sounded and how I didn’t like it honestly. I’ll have more time to think about that later though.

I guess since I be minding my own business all the time I never really checked dude out. When he turned around he was about 6’4, 220lbs of solid ass muscle, hazel eyes, pretty pink lips and gorgeous white teeth. The man was almost perfect. I say almost because it just had to be something wrong with him. He had to be unemployed, living with his mama, got 12,000 kids or something 😭. Literally no one should be that perfect. Shit weird lol.

____________________________________________

“😳..... Oh I feel you. My bad.”

There has to be a word that goes beyond embarrassed because I was experiencing it right now times infinity. My face began to get hot, my mouth started drying up. My hands started sweating. “Oh god oh god oh god... what have I done?” I knew this shit was a bad idea. Do I just walk away orrrrrr?????? Yea ima just do that. I nodded my head and began to walk away and all of a sudden I hear him bust out laughing

Stranger: “😂🤣🤣🤣... I’m just fucking wit you! You better not be smoking on no Reggie (low quality weed). Where we scrolling up (rolling up) at?”

“🥴”

I let out a loud internal sigh of relief. My heart slowly began transcending back into my chest and I was now able to breath again. To keep it real that response had me second guessing myself. If that’s how I felt over that little situation imagine what hearing no to my real question would feel like. I would literally never come here again which sucked because it was my favorite gas station in the city. They had the cheapest gas, it was central to everything and I’ve been coming here since I was a kid. Should I really be doing this? Maybe I’ll just leave it at smoking and just sniff that picture of his ass I took earlier and bust a nut 🥴. Nothing about that plan sounded appealing. I wanted some ass on my face. End of discussion. I was doing this!

Like I said I’ve been coming here since I was a kid so I know everything about this place. I’ve smoked in this parking lot numerous times so I was aware this was a safe place. Hell he was standing outside smoking and no one was bothering him.

“We can go smoke in my whip it’s right over there.”

I pointed to my car which was around the corner in a discreet spot.

I call it my spot because I’m the only person I ever see park in it. I’ve been smoking in this spot well before I was even able to buy a wrap to roll the weed in. It seemed like the perfect place to do what I was trying to do I thought devilishly to myself.

We walked over to my car and I could see him admiring my BMW. He didn’t say it out loud but it was written all over the expression on his face. Almost saw a light turn on in his head. Not really sure what that light meant but we gone look further into it.

We both hopped in the car, I turned it on so I could turn on the radio. I put on EST Gee, MoneyBagg Yo- Special Remix.

I reached for the glove compartment because that’s where my weed was stashed. My elbow was now slightly between his legs causing it to graze his knee almost resting there. Oddly enough he didn’t move nor did his facial expression change. Was I pushing his limits or trying my luck? Probably a little of both 😈.

We both reclined our chairs a little and started bopping our heads to the music. I stared at him out the corner of my eye and noticed he already had a blunt rolled up in his ear. “Oh this nigga came prepared.” I thought to myself. The universe must have known of my devious plan before I did.

“I’ve seen you around before. What’s your name? I probably should’ve asked that’s before we got to this point 😅.”

Stranger: “Probably huh? Yea you was too busy trying to take pictures of my ass to worry about my name.”

I blinked a few times to take in the scenery because I was suddenly unaware of my surroundings. I looked up and it all I could see was a hard dirty black surface. I ran my fingers across it to confirm my suspicions. I was now underneath my car. My body had fused through the seat, then the floor and I was now on the ground. “Did he really see that?” I started biting my nails nervously in my head.

He finished rolling up and hit the Blunt. He hit is a few times and then passed it to me looking me directly in my eyes setting my whole body on fire. I had to look away before grabbing the blunt. His eyes were indescribable. He had the kind of eyes you could only look into for a few seconds before blushing. What I look like blushing? Especially over some nigga.

Rock: “And to answer your questions my name is Rock.”

“ROCK 😳......” Uhhhhhhhh I’m really hoping he doesn’t mean ROCK as in ROCK from 5th and Landry. ROCK who shoots first and asks questions later. ROCK who only had to snap his finger and you’d disappear. Wtf did I just do? I fucked up real bad. I’m way closer to him than I feel comfortable being. Did he get in the car so no one would hear me screaming. Everything in my body was telling me to run. How do I get out of this? I have to get him out my car. I was about to do the dumbest shit ever. I could have just got my life ended.

“Rock from 5th?”

Rock: “You’ve heard of me.” He asked with this sexy ass grin on knowing dam well I heard of him. Shit who hasn’t?

“Uhhhhh.... yes I have. I think just about everyone around here has 😅”

I took a few more pulls then passed it back to him. He did the same as music blared on in the background and the air filled with good gas.

Rock: “Word... so then you know what I’ll do to you.”

All of a sudden the air was cut with a serious tone. His tone of voice cut a perfect line of view so I could now see his face through all the smoke. I felt my body getting heavy again. “Dam I knew this was going to happen. This nigga was going to kill me and probably take my whip 🤣.” It wasn’t funny but it was a funny way to die I laughed to myself. Shit if I’m going to die may as well try and smell this nigga booty. I’ve gotten this far. I’m dead either either way. I don’t have anything to loose at this point.

“.......... Yes I am well aware but you gone have to fuck me up because this ain’t gone be no easy win!” I say jokingly trying to cut the tension that was sitting on my dashboard staring at my with its legs crossed. When I looked up trying to read his face again it was evident he was not enthused.

Rock: “I must look like joke to you.” He says plainly as he passed me back the blunt.

Somehow I got the feeling I was treading on thin Ice. I don’t know how we got here though. Was it because I didn’t address that comment he made earlier? Wtf was I supposed to say?

“My bad did I do something?” I asked really wanting to know what caused the sudden mood change as he lit the second blunt.

Rock: “Yea why were you taking pictures of my ass? & what question did you want to ask me?”

“😰”

____________________________________________

“I..... uhhhhh.... because...”

Rock: “I uhh... Spit it out nigga!”

“......”

Rock: “Let’s take this one question at a time and this going to be the last time I ask.”

I see him reach down into his sock and pull out a 380 and placed it on his lap.

Rock: “Maybe this will give you a little motivation. Now why were you taking pics of my ass?”

The truth shall set you free was all I could think to myself. I tried to think of any lie that was better than the truth but I couldn’t think of anything so here goes nothing.

“I’m not gay but if I can say this without getting shot....It was out...I couldn’t help myself.”

Rock: “So you just going around stealing pictures of people?” He asked while shifting the gun in his lap leaving his hand on the trigger.

“Rock my bad frfr if you saw it from the WHOLE worlds POV you’d understand. That ass is enough to make any straight man look twice.”

Although I meant every word I didn’t mean to be so frank I was just trying to insinuate.

Rock: “.........”

“😵.” I think I’ve died at least 3 times during this conversation. This time making 4.

Rock: “And your question?”

“Well......I was wondering.....If.”

I could hear the gun shifting around again causing the words to get stuck in my throat again.

Rock: “You know how I feel about that stuttering shit.”

*Takes a deep ass breath sucking up all the oxygen the wasn’t being used in the car*

“I really wanted to smoke. You seemed cool. I’ve seen you before and I really don’t like rolling those leaves. I know how to roll them but I don’t like to.”

Rock: *Puts gun to my head* “Quit fuckin playing with me before you don’t make it back home tonight.”

“🤐”

Rock: “Now what was your real question?” He asked moving the gun so it was now touching my head.

“Ok Rock I’m sorry....You’re right... my real question was.......was.......”

Oh no I found myself stuttering as Rock pushed the gun further into my head. I wasn’t ready to die so I did what anyone would have done... I blurted out the truth.

“I WOULD PAY ANYTHING TO PUT MY FACE IN YOUR ASS. I WANT NOTHING MORE THAN TO KNOW WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE RIGHT THIS SECOND!”

Without saying another word with the blunt still in his hand smoking it he took another pull not breaking his gaze once. He takes another pull and it was so quiet I could hear the sound of is breath going in and out.”

Rock: “Get out the car.”

Good this is my perfect chance to ru-

Rock: “And don’t even think about running nowhere unless you want to find yourself shot in the back of the knee.”

My heart was back in my throat. I wish he would just shoot me. If he didn’t I was going to die from asphyxiation. I opened my door and stood outside the car awaiting further instruction from my killer. “I couldn’t leave well enough alone could I?” I thought to myself.

He got out the car and told me to open my door. I did as he told me to while he walked around the car standing right in front of me.

Rock: “You know I’ve made niggas disappear for way less than this right? What’s stopping me from clapping (killing) you right now?”

“Don’t you at least want my money first?” I cowardly asked in attempts to add a few minutes to my life.

Rock: “I was going to get that anyway. That’s all you got?” He asked seriously wondering if that’s all I had to barter for my life.

“Rock I-“

Rock: “Hush all the noise. You not saying shit.” He says with distain while pointing the gun back to my head. “Gimme your wallet.”

I reached on the door grabbing my wallet and handing it over to him without any questions. He rummaged through it leaving behind the cards and only taking the cash. It was about $120 in 20’s then threw it at me causing it to hit the ground.

Rock: “Pick that shit up”

As I reached down to retrieve my wallet I hear the gun right next to my ear.

Rock: “Get down on your knees you butt sniffing weirdo.”

I kneeled down and made sure not to make any eye contact. The last thing I wanted to do was upset the man with a gun pointed at my face.

Rock: “Take out your phone and open up your cash app.”

No use in telling him I didn’t have cash app because who tf didn’t have cash app? I was afraid to lie anyway. I needed all the time I could get left on this earth.

Rock: “Type in $Rockdagodd.” As you’ve already guessed I did exactly what I was told. “Send $40 and you say yes sir after I tell you to do something.”

“YES SIR!”

Rock turned his back to me and stood there for a few moments. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t enjoying the view. If I’m going to be shot at least I had this opportunity. I was going to die a happy man 😭.

Rock: “You also gone have to buy my silence pussy. Send another $40.”

Like clockwork I sent another $40.

Rock: “I should drain your bank account right now. Instead of playing this little game.”

Little did he know this game had my dick at full attention. I don’t know if it was the gun, the way he was talking to me, the fact that I was this close to his ass or how he is taking all my money 🤤. I couldn’t get my thoughts straight enough to figure out which one it was. What was even more puzzling is why him stealing my money with a gun to my head was turning me tf on. I was inches away from that gap in his jeans that so desperately wanted my nose to be in.

Rock: “Give me your phone.”

I heard his cash app go off again. He just sent himself more money. Dam was he going to really clean me out?

Before I could gather my thoughts I was being suffocated. Everything went black, I couldn’t move my head and any attempts to scream were being muffled. As I started to come to I realized I couldn’t breath because Rocks ass was on my face.

Rock: “Catch your breath nigga. That’s gone be $20.” I hear his cash app go off again. “Get out my way soft ass nigga.” Then he mushes me in the head causing me to fall into the door. “You not done yet.” He says before handing me back my phone while making his way to my driver seat.

He then pulls his pants down a little more fully exposing those perfect cakes. I was so confused by him sitting on my face the first time I didn’t really get a chance take in the scent. I was too busy fighting for my life. I could only do one thing at a time but this time I was going to take it all in.

Rock: “Send me my $20.”

*Ding* His cash app went off again

Rock: “Now come smell this ass nigga.”

I dove in head first like an Olympic diver with perfect form. My nose hit its target and I inhaled as deeply as my lungs would allow taking in Rocks scent. Right when all my senses were connecting and I had his ass smell in the tip of my nose he pushed me back with extreme force.

Rock: “Have you had enough you nasty mf?”

“NO SIR”

Rock: “Send me my money then.”

*Ding*

He snatched my head forcing my face back into his hole.

“👃🏽👃🏽👃🏽👃🏽👃🏽👃🏽👃🏽🥴👃🏽👃🏽😋🤤”

He slung my head back out of his ass again.

Rock: “What does my hole smell like? And before you answer send me $10.”

*DING*

I couldn’t wait to answer him.

“It smells like ass sir. It actually doesn’t stink at all. It smells like dove with a little ass at the end of it.”

Rock: “And you like that don’t you you butt sniffing ass nigga?”

“YES SIR!”

Rock: “I got shit to do so we gone have to hurry this shit up.”

“Can I beat my dick so I can cum please sir?”

Rock: “Hell no... but you can pull your pants down. No touching yourself. Gay ass nigga.”

As instructed I took my pants down and fought the urge to empty my sack all over my car. I don’t even know if I needed to touch myself. I felt like I could bust at any moment.

Rock: “Send me $100.”

$100???? Was this nigga serious? Of course I sent it but I didn’t want to but how do you tell someone with a gun no? Once he heard his phone ding he pulled his underwear down and grabbed my head again only this time with the other hand he held one of his cheeks open. I didn’t even have a chance to get excited because I was too busy releasing a tornado of sniffs.

“👃🏽👃🏽👃🏽👃🏽👃🏽..👃🏽👃🏽👃🏽👃🏽....👃🏽👃🏽”

I rubbed my nose from the top of the crack to the bottom. I went from the left cheek to the right cheek. I sniffed his goochie (the space between his hole and balls), his nutsack & his dick. Shit I just paid $100 I was going to smell all of him. If I could get my nose inside his hole I would.

It was like he could feel my sniffs getting more aggressive so he did the unthinkable. He pulled my face in deeper into his hole so my lips were now face to face with his hole bumping skin. Then he pushed his hole out giving me momentary access to the inside of his hole. I looked up over his shoulders and saw him watching me and gives me a quick nod. Was that like a “go ahead” to the question I wouldn’t dare ask. I wasn’t going to waste time trying to figure it out. I just went for it.

I stuck my tongue in his hole as deep as I could go. Although I knew my tongues had reached the deepest depths it could go it didn’t stop me from trying to stick my tonight on further.

Rock: *Lets out soft moan* “Yea eat up I knew your nasty ass was hungry.” With that he turned around standing up exposing a hard dick. “Stick your tongue out you ass chewing mf.”

With that he jerked his dick a few times and shot 1,2,3,4,5,6 flows or nut all over my face narrowly avoiding my left eye. I looked down to see I had nutted as well without touching myself like Sir Rock told me to.

Rock: “Send me $20.”

Although I had come down off my sexual high I sent him one last $20. He Wrapped his hands around my throat standing me up and getting really close to my ear.

Rock: “You ever lick my ass again without permission you’ll be staring down the barrel of my gun mf.”

He then gets within inches of my lips as if we were about to kiss. I saw stars, I heard a marching band and my dick started standing up again since he didn’t allow me to pull my pants up. I don’t know why I wanted nothing more than to kiss him right now.

He mushed me in my face leaving me sitting in both of our cum looking stupid regretting the fact that I didn’t get that kiss 🙄. He walked away pulling his pants back up right under his ass cheeks. He’s probably going back to the front to stop more people dead in their tracks so he can take all their money. I wonder how many times he’s done this?

____________________________________________

So this story took a violent twist 😅. I had no idea Rock had such a violent streak.

As previously mentioned this is a tumble exclusive I hope you guys enjoyed.

I’m so annoyed when I started this story I used a different video, typed up 2 chapters and the shot never saved 🙄. This story is the outcome but honestly I’m really pleased!

If you have any story suggestions or people you would like me to write about pls feel free to contact me!

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[annbourbon]

Pretty sure I'm going to break a lot of hearts here. But I needed to say it. And yes it's about the Twins Choi. Because I love them too much. Both of them.

So anyway, I saw a couple of post on Amino (I forgot my password and even my nickname because it was on my iPod and that thing got broken so whatever. I'm too lazy to make another account and I really loved my nickname.. c'est la vie)

I'm going to try my best to make this spoiler free, but this is about the Saeran's AE Good Ending so if you haven't played, and you don't want to be spoiled, go away. Run for your life. If you're curious, and want to torture yourself, keep reading.

So, I'm gonna skip all, and say we had the Good Ending, you're happy, you're sad. You feel a thousand emotions running through your heart and cheeks, blah blah blah,

I'm going to the point here: I really can't see the flowers Saeran's is holding, except for the roses, and that's it. It's too white for my poor eyes and I'm writing this at 3AM (thanks Cheritz for ruining my schedule lolol I still love you)

Anyway, yes, we're supposed to be happy because it's Saeran's AE. And all that. BUT there are a couple of things that left me thinking. And freaked me out. (After embarrassing myself on Twitter with Cheritz because I experienced a glitch with the AE, I went through the app a couple of times and suddenly I realized that according to moi there was a picture missing, and I came back and embarrassed myself a second time because once wasn't enough....)

And that's how I discovered that Saeran's AE Good Ending picture was on.... 707's album. And I was completely weirded out because, Seven's picture is on his album. Right? So are the rest of the members. They have their own AE's picture on their own album. So... why??

Well here's why:

Look at both Choi body language. Their eyes are full of love for MC. Most logical thing would be, she's on the center, so it's impossible not to look at her. But if that was true, which isn't, look at Seven body language. He's basically all over MC, and it's even closer than Saeran's. 😳 His hips at least, and one of his legs, and one of his arms. So yeah... And if that's not enough, you can see how his eyes and his brother eyes are basically, in love, with her.

BUT if that doesn't convince you, the flowers will. At first I thought it was weird that both had bouquets. Both were pointing with their body language to MC and all that. And then I remembered a couple of things I read about flowers, and the way Saeran gives a huge importance to these. He knows the meaning of all the flowers. Even Jumin was impressed with his knowledge on his Normal Ending so he hired Saeran to work on his island.

Anyway, we know that Cheritz chooses the flowers really by their meaning. And that's how we know that the Lily of the valley means the promise of happiness. Which ironically, we're basically seated on a field full of Lily of the valley.

But, while I was investigating, the flowers that Saeyoung has on his bouquet are not just more visible, but also hold a deep meaning. At first I thought they were lavander. But I happen to have lavander on my backyard, and sorry to disappoint you, that, on Saeyoung's bouquet is not lavander.

It's Lilac. And it has a totally different meaning:

During the Victorian Age, the giving of a lilac was meant to be a reminder of an old love. Victorians thought that giving someone a lilac indicated an old, often bygone love. Widows frequently wore the flowers to commemorate their lost husbands.

The Celtics regarded the lilac as “magical” due to their incredibly intoxicating fragrance

They symbolize spring and renewal. Lilacs also symbolize confidence. There are many meanings that lilacs have that can best be classified by color.

White lilacs symbolize purity and innocence.

Violet lilacs symbolize spirituality.

Blue lilacs symbolize happiness and tranquility.

Magenta lilacs symbolize love and passion.

Lilac, the color for which this flower is named, is a light purple that symbolizes a first love.

Although various colors of lilacs have different meanings, the lilac has always had a strong association with love and romance throughout history.

American poet Walt Whitman, uses the lilac in his famous poem, “When Lilacs Last in the Door-yard Bloom’d”, as a symbol of life after death in a narrative depicting Abraham Lincoln’s last days.

Greek Myth:

The lilac has a deep history that is, as with many flowers, rooted in Greek mythology. The myth goes that Pan, the god of fields and forests, fell hard in love for the nymph Syringa. Syringa was eventually forced to turn herself into a lilac shrub to protect and disguise herself from Pan’s advances.

Although Pan was unable to locate Syringa, he did, of course, find the shrub. He cut the reeds of the shrub and created the first original panpipe from these reeds.

Lilacs almost always symbolize love and romance, but often take on an even deeper meaning than that. This flower can refer to old or lost love, too, and is often chosen by widows or widowers.

So yes. Seven still, loves us. Even if we're with his brother... and on a second thought... Why's he being so blunt? Because I'm pretty sure that Saeran knows about the meaning. And Saeyoung being blunt about it... not only that, but I think, he, in a certain way, want us back. And according to the whole image, he wouldn't really mind if we restart the game as long as we choose him. (He prefers to be the one who saves his brother and have us.) Pretty cute, and greedy. The way I think about it, it's that Saeyoung it's really trying hard not to ruin it but failing. And he also wants us to remember, that even if we're head over heels for his brother (let's admit it, Saeran's AE was completely awesome compared to his AE. Because we had more couple moments with Saeran's than Saeyoung with us. Even though we understand because he was trying to save his brother. Something we did now and we can completely understand because we would go to the end of the earth to make sure Saeran's okay... okay, I'll stop rambling.) Even if we're heads over heels for Saeran. Saeyoung wants to remember us that we were first. I don't think he blames us though... he just wants us back.

That also reminds me how he hug us when we were on his route taking us a bit away from his brother instead of sitting besides Saeran's.... coincidence? (Please don't do the I think not meme lolol)

[fastcarsgovroom]

Don’t really know what to make of still it but here goes (the Lando Norris issue) Pt 3

This is about the Lando Norris and Max Fewtrell (and other involved streamers) issue so you don't need to read it if it's not in your best interest to. I don’t know if this thing is supposed to have blown over or anything, but I’m posting because heck this is my blog and I want to post about things I think are in line with my personal philosophy (and maybe in-group).    

The entire rant is in five parts:  

Part 1 is where I describe very basically the entire situation, essentially what I saw happening through posts on the tumblr, twitter, and reddit Lando Norris tags  

Part 2 is me trying to describe why some fans felt what they felt and reacted the way they did  

Part 3 is the videos and what was said of them and how I interpreted them  

Part 4 the ‘misinformation’ idk

Part 5 is like, a rant.

Part 3: What was actually said?

The clips of Lando and Max F saying things that were, for the lack of better words, questionable. Clip urls taken from one of the OPs who brought the issue to our attention (hope it’s all right I didn’t credit).

TW for talks about sex, sexism, and misogyny

If anything, listen to the clips for yourself and ignore the wall of text. Make up your own mind. I’m only writing what I’ve seen, and as a way to make sense of it. 

Under the cut

The relevant videos are (not in chronological order)

1. Star signs

https://va.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_qqblm5bUU51y0rtc3.mp4

How I’d describe it: Max F brings up star signs (like, the zodiac) because his chat was discussing it. Lando reacts by saying that if a girl asks about star signs, ‘you get up and leave’, apparently in reference to his personal experience with a girl in conversation about star signs. Max F comments that the girl has ‘dodged a bullet’ based on how, for the lack of better words, passionate (’salty’) Lando’s reaction was. Lando retorts that Max F ‘wouldn’t have wanted to be with her,’ providing some information (where the girl was sitting), which causes Max F to recognize the girl and react in an amused but equally passionate way. The other streamer quoted “she crazy”, supposedly in relation to the girl.

How people have interpreted it: Others have interpreted is as being a sexual encounter, Lando being dismissive of a female-skewed topic of interest (star signs) and only listening to her in hopes of a sexual encounter (edit: the more ‘obvious’ “listening to women in hopes of a sexual encounter” is clip 4, added below. But I’ve also seen people claiming  ‘dipping’ (said by Max F) and ‘coughing’ (said by Lando) here to be references to sex, along with the ‘you wouldn’t have wanted to be with her’ as, of course, having sex, so I’ll leave this interpretation up. Again, I may be getting this wrong), that Lando and friends were making fun of the girl (’she crazy’, ‘you wouldn’t have wanted to be with her’, how Lando said the topic was ‘so boring’ at the mention of star signs, etc.) 

How I interpreted it: Personally, I don’t think we have enough context as to what really went down. I can see how you could come to the above interpretations, but I also, personally, find relating it necessarily to a sexual encounter a reach. Yeah, it could be the men hanging out and getting to know a young woman (girls) but just not jiving with her, or thinking that the woman’s interests were weird and boring. Personal conversations, essentially, that probably has no place on a public stream, but it comes across as being said carelessly and immaturely rather than with malice.  

2. ‘Stealing’, ‘don’t want to talk about it’, ‘that [descriptor]’ 

https://va.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_qqbm90Esu01y0rtc3.mp4

How I’d describe it: This clip starts with a streamer (honestly I can only identify Max F and Lando, sorry) saying Max is bitter, to which Lando adds that it’s because Max F ‘did not receive love from a girl’. This seems to upset Max F, who retorts that if he should ‘tell a few stories’ about Lando, implied to be embarrassing ones. There was a lot of ‘yours’ and ‘mine’ (Lando and Max F) thrown around about the women. Max F brings up that Lando ‘tried to steal mine (Max F’s)’. Lando refutes this, and Max F looks more upset and says repeatedly that he does not want to ‘have this conversation’ with Lando. Lando continues on, referring to the girls as ‘the [descriptor]’, i.e. “the old one?”; “the top golf one?” and “I did not try to steal that one.” 

The other streamer appears to take issue with this, saying ‘that one?”, and Max F adds “can we stop talking about it like that?” and doubles down and tells Lando to stop the conversation. 

How people have interpreted it: This is the more egregious clip; people took offense at how the women were spoken about (’yours’, ‘mine’), the implications that they can be ‘stolen’, and how Lando referred to them as ‘the [descriptor]’. Some also interpreted Max F’s it as referring to a girl. This all leads into the perception that Lando and Max F were objectifying the women and talking about them in terms of conquests (presumably sexual). 

How I interpreted it: I think Lando and Max F were quite disrespectful in how they were talking about the women, more so Lando because he continued with the conversation (in a public stream) despite Max F telling him to stop. It does sound like ‘locker room banter’ about relationships, which is still, ultimately, misogynistic, immature, disrespectful, and inappropriate, especially in a public stream. 

What I don’t get is how ‘the/that [descriptor]’ was taken as intentional and malicious objectifying, and how the ‘it’ was referring to a woman and not the entire situation. 

3. ‘Cowboy’

https://va.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_qqbq6nhmZR1y0rtc3.mp4

How I’d describe it: The clip starts in the middle off in-game banter, with Lando asking Max F if has any other digs at him, to which Max F replies that he does have ‘plenty off digs’ at Lando. Lando brings up ‘cowboy’ as an apparent dig, to which Max F retorts is ‘not a dig’, but was ‘brilliant’ and ‘very good’ for Lando. The Toy Story reference of ‘there’s a snake in my boot!’ is brought up, to which someone says ‘not the only snake, haha’ in a mock-jokey voice. 

How people have interpreted it: There’s probably more backstory to this in previous streams, as OP mentioned. Some have taken issue with, again, discussing personal situations involving a third party (OP has mentioned that the nickname ‘cowboy’ is in reference to a woman). Some also claimed that the nickname ‘cowboy’ is a sex position, so took offense to how it sounded like Lando and Max F nicknamed a woman they knew after a sex position, then openly talked about her in a public stream. Some said the nickname was from the woman’s social media handle, which had a cowboy emoji. 

How I interpreted it: This one is weird. I have no idea what the context is. I have no idea how people came to the conclusion that ‘cowboy’ was a sex position. Is the ‘snake’ in reference to male genitalia? I don’t know? I have no interpretation of this other than things without context always sound so weird. There’s entire twitter accounts about shows and podcasts lines taken out of context, which just sounds bizarre. 

4. ‘Reward’

https://va.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_qqbfwzG9GC1wg3eue_720.mp4

How I’d describe it: I’m not sure if I can describe it without transcribing the whole thing or putting my own interpretation / narrative here. It’s a public stream, sure, but it sounds as coherent as a bit of disjointed conversation you’ve eavesdropped on (To me, anyway. I’m not being obtuse on purpose maybe I’m just dim).  

Clip starts with Lando and Max F sounding very amused with something, with Lando telling Max F about an encounter(?)/incident(?)with ‘cowboy’, referencing ‘rounds’ (round 2… round 6). There’s more banter, Max F saying he was ‘worried’ that Lando was talking about someone else, that he will whatever Lando is doing is ‘good for [him]’, and is ‘healthy’. 

Lando says it was “bit boring, really”, to which Max F says ‘oh, 100%, yeah waffle. Complete and utter waffle’ and “gotta do you what you gotta do, listen to her sometimes you know what I mean? Sacrifices do bring on great things.”

How people have interpreted it: Essentially, Lando is telling Max F about his hookups with ‘cowboy’ (the rounds being, well, rounds of hookups). Lando is saying that being with ‘cowboy’ is a bit boring, but Max F saying that Lando has to make sacrifices (his time? listening to boring conversation (’waffle’)?) in order to maintain said hookup partner. The takeaway was that Lando and Max F discussed sexual encounters with a woman (’cowboy’) on public stream, called her ‘boring’, and implied that she should only be listened to in context of getting a hookup is disrespectful. Many were disgusted. 

Some, perhaps not having watched the clip, attributed the ‘sacrifices for women’s attention / sexual gratification from women’ comment to Lando. Others are angry and disappointed that Lando did not speak up against the comment, which indicates that he too is complicit with the notion that women should only be listened to for sexual gratification. 

How I interpreted it: There’s a lot of innuendo here and ‘keywords’ that are attributed to sex and hookups (i.e. ‘rounds’ being hookups / rounds of sex; Max F’s implication that the many rounds (6) are ‘healthy’, a common description for sexual activity as being a healthy part of the human experience.) So, yes, I’ll believe that they’re most likely talking about their sex life. Why did I use so many words to come to that conclusion, and not just say ‘they are talking about their sex life’ out of the bag? Because that was my thought process so idk what to tell you other than what I did. Maybe it’ll come across as being apologetic and intentionally obtuse, who knows. 

Without the context, it’s not going to be very obvious.

So if I’m taking it as their conversation about sex, then the “sacrifices do bring on great things,” will very heavily imply that Lando has to have boring conversations with ‘cowboy’ for sex. Let’s be clear, this is a very disrespectful and demeaning take. It’s also unfortunately a very common one that’s thrown around everywhere in media, among immature men (young or old, lets be real). It’s also very normalized, so I get when people say they find it ‘normal’ or ‘typical’. This doesn’t excuse the comments or topic of conversation. 

On the other hand, I can also see a POV that Max F may have said things ironically or sarcastically, since it is a sentiment often used (women are nags) and both Lando and Max F are known to be sarcastic, dramatic, and dry at times. This is a reach to the other end of the ‘harmless banter’ spectrum, but without context, maybe it’s possible.

Still don’t know why ‘cowboy’ is necessarily a nickname derived from a sex position. 

Part 4