#and i know it’s because Netflix are still trying to promote the film but PLEASE

[finchers-ipad]

Behind the scenes of ‘The Killer’: Editing!

[otp-holic]

Will this be the night? (ALSO IN A03)

A random piece of online advertising unleashes some movie memories of a Summer afternoon in 1932

1.5 Ks Fanfic + Pictures Inside. Part of the Never let us lose what we have gained series (AO3) Silly drabble born from my love of classic movies... that ended up not having anything to do with classic movies.

BROOKLYN'S KING'S THEATRE

Poster for Cary Grant's Retrospective. Printed paper 2025.

A poster for the upcoming month long celebration of the movies of Cary Grant to be held in Brooklyn.

Bucky is not expecting a vivid memory of the past to jump at him from a piece of online location-targeted promotion popping on his phone as he and Steve are wandering around the neighborhood on a random Friday.

But the 21st century works in mysterious ways and Google is kindly inviting him to check “Cary Grant: A Celebration”, a month-long chronological retrospective of all his movies taking place at a nearby hipster cinema starting… in half an hour.

He beams as a long string of memories of the both of them in different afternoons and movies plays in his head; how they counted the cents for the admission price, and how Bucky learned to sneak into the movie every time that did not add up to two full tickets.

“Buck, you’ve been smiling at your phone in silence for a whole minute,” Steve interrupts his daydreaming. “Should I be jealous? Worried?”

“Sorry,” he answers, still smiling about the memories. “I think I’m leaving you for Google, they see inside my one hundred years old soul; But I might give you another chance if you don’t mind a change of plans for the afternoon.”

“Lead the way, but can you give me some heads up?” Steve chuckles, more than used to Bucky’s ways.

He takes Steve’s hand to direct them towards the movie theatre and thinks about how much information he wants to share.

Although he is the one who still relies on the comfort of 30s and 40s movies whereas Steve keeps getting bolder with his options, Steve has always loved Cary Grant and Bucky thinks he’s going to appreciate his choice since this particular movie has a history (sad history, maybe) for them, so he debates on whether to tell him or not.

“We are going to the movies. But the real ones, not that shit on Netflix you keep choosing,” he settles for half-disclosure.

“Damn, mister life in black and white strikes again. Embrace the 21st century, Barnes, I think you’ll like it!”, Steve laughs.

“Hey, I embrace it more than you do! At least I look the part of a mid-thirties man from it instead of a fifty-year-old hiding in fucking khakis. Albeit a very hot one, I’ll give you that.”

They both laugh. It’s not the first time these remarks fly between them and having a routine, running jokes, and running pet peeves is very soothing after everything they have gone through.

They’re getting closer to the cinema now, and Bucky can already see the Billboard announcing the retrospective and a small queue forming upfront. He takes a side look at Steve to see if he has noticed and he can certainly tell that his curiosity has peaked.

“Surprise! Call it a win-win, it might be up my alley, but you used to love Cary Grant movies,” Bucky smiles as they reach their place in the queue and glance at the program for the afternoon.

‘This is the Night (1932)’, the poster says, ‘Cary Grant's feature film debut on the big screen’

Bucky is deep in nostalgia, remembering a summer day of 32 when they were waiting in line for the same film and how the evening turned out, but when he looks in search of his partner’s reaction, it’s not what he expected at all.

“Steve, you ok?” he asks, worried at seeing Steve frozen in place.

Steve nods. His whole face is deep red, but at least he is responsive. He looks ashamed and Bucky is shifting from worried to curious.

“Jesus, this movie,…” he chuckles now.

“You seem to remember, then. I thought you might.”

It was not a happy memory: Steve had felt really ill halfway through, looking white as a sheet of paper and about to die on Bucky. They had to leave the unfinished movie and run home, as per Steve’s request. But as far as Bucky remembers, nothing to be ashamed of.

“Why are you acting weird? Oh my god, Steven, are you allergic to this movie?”

The silence before Steve answers is a little too long and the queue moves forward.

“Shit, this is not easy to say and I’m sorry in advance.”

“Duly noted, but could you try to explain? I’m lost and I didn’t expect a full-on confession of something to be sorry about when I decided to follow Google’s intelligent advice to an unfinished movie. I just thought it was a good excuse for a change of plans. And kind of closure.”

Steve takes a breath and starts talking.

“I wasn’t honest with you, Buck. Back then…” he stops, searching for words, nervously musing on his beard. “Ah, I cannot believe this hasn’t come up at some point, but there it goes. I absolutely lied to you that day: I wasn’t sick or half dying and I am very very guilty of using my poor health to run away from that place and that movie, but I did the only thingI could think of.”

Bucky is at a loss for words, he’s still deciding if he is angry, curious, or somewhere in between.

“But… but you were feverish and white as a ghost and you said you had palpitations!”

Steve seems to think for a moment again and the bastard laughs so loud they get a curious look from the people behind. And taking advantage of the queue moving up again, he gets really really close to Bucky who honestly thinks he’s going to try to kiss himself out of the situation since it’s a bulletproof strategy.

But he doesn’t: He goes for Bucky’s ear instead, and whispers.

“I had a boner like you wouldn’t believe.”

Bucky gasps loudly totally taken aback while Steve takes a step back and looks at him in the eye more amused and hungry than ashamed, but still blushing.

“But hey, not all lies! I was somehow sick. And pale since my blood was… otherwise occupied. And I was barely 14!”

Bucky laughs at the dork. His dork. But the information is still making its way into his brain.

“Oh my God,” he exclaims as it starts to settle, “You piece of shit, you pulled the poor sick child card when you were just plain horny. I was worried to my bones as we run to your home. Shame on you Rogers!”

“Me? It was your fucking fault! Yours and Cary Grant’s and your stupid grins and stupid chins, those clefts!” he’s screaming in whispers so Steve Rogers’ teenage boner doesn’t make it to the news, but he’s talking as if he was pronouncing an important speech to the UN, “What was a 14-year-old in the fucking 30s popping one upon seeing an actor who kind of looked like a very tall version of his very male best friend to do?”

He is about to say something, but Steve literally covers his mouth with one hand giving Bucky no other option but to stick his tongue and lick the palm.

“Gross, Buck. I’m not done!”, he dries his hand on Buckys’ shirt before he goes on. “I’m not done because as I was still processing all that, you kept brushing your goddamned hand with mine when you went for popcorn! Over and over and over. It was torture. I have palpitations now just thinking about it.”

Bucky full-on laughs. One of those real ones that come more and more lately and that he honestly thought he would never get to experience again.

They have reached the box office, so he doesn’t push it further. For now.

“Two tickets for `This is the Night´, please.” Bucky smiles at the box-office guy. “He is paying, tho. I paid last time we tried to see this one and he didn’t have the decency to stay until the end.”

He actually feels like a teen as Steve takes his hand into the theatre, as he very intentionally buys popcorn to share, and as they start full-on making out on their seats during the commercials once the lights are out.

“Wanna know another secret, Buck?” Steve whispers a few minutes later, eyes on the starting movie as he brushes Bucky’s hand with intention over the popcorn bucket. His flustered face and recently kissed lips bathed by dancing lights and shadows coming from the screen. “It’s a good thing we were already together in ‘38 when “Bringing up baby” came out because I was able to plan ahead and lure you into that memorable window fuck at our old apartment before the show, or we would have totally missed one of our favorite movies, too.”

Bucky hates Steve with the force of the universe. Or maybe not, but he’s not playing clean.

“Raincheck on the movie?” he manages to whisper back as he drives Steve’s hand to his already noticeable hard-on. Two can play this game.

“Oh, poor Buck. Do you have palpitations” Steve chuckles, lips wet on Bucky’s ear and gripping harder on his bulge instead of letting go. “Was that the memory of the window fuck? Or all the making out? Tell me so I don’t do it again.”

“You are a punk, Steve Rogers,” Bucky answers before standing up to leave, closely followed by a smiling Steve.

Argh, sorry for deleting and uploading again, but i had technical issues with this.... so here it goes again. I need to free myself from this one!

[spidernerdsblog]

Wildest Dreams

Pairing: actor! Tom Holland x actress! Reader

Summary : Based on Taylor Swift’s song Wildest dreams. You thought Tom was the love of your life but it was just one of your wildest dreams.

Warnings : 18+,SMUT, mature content, infidelity, angst, tom being a douchebag.

"Today we have with us the Oscar winning renowned actress the one and only Y/N Y/L/N!" The RJ hyped you up. 

"Hello everyone" you spoke on the mic in front of you smiling. 

"Well first of all congratulations Y/N on your big oscar win." 

"Thank you so much. I’m still recovering from it not gonna lie." You chuckle. The RJ asked you a bunch of other questions which you replied cheerfully. 

"So you have been casted to play Morgan Stark in the next part of Marvel Avengers movie." 

"Yes and I am looking forward to it. Being in a Marvel film was always on my wishlist and I can finally tick it off." 

"Do you feel yourself under pressure as you will be continuing a legacy?" 

"It’s definitely a pressure playing Tony Stark’s daughter and living upto the standards of none other than RDJ. Luckily he is personally mentoring me and I think I’ll fare well. I have read the script which I can't reveal much but playing the grown up version of Morgan who is a part of the Avengers will be a lot of fun." 

"Well saying so you are also going to be sharing screen with Tom Holland after a long time. What do you have to say about the rumours  of you being speculated as the possible reason behind his relationship with his fiancee hitting the rocks?" you took a moment before answering the question. 

"Well a lot of things fly in the air we don't catch on everything right? And I have always made it clear that we never dated, we are just friends that's all."

"So you are still single?" 

"And not interested to mingle." You chuckle. 

"Well it was nice to have you with us today, Y/N."

"It was my pleasure. Love you guys bye."

The show ended and you headed out of the office building for the pre production meeting arranged by Marvel with the whole cast. You were sitting in your posh car, the last question of the RJ about your relationship with Tom still spiraling in your mind. You reminisced about one of your past mistakes. Though you wouldn't call it a mistake because you fell for a wrong person but when he left he gave you a life lesson which you will remember in your lifetime that 'nothing lasts forever'. 

It started with a small Instagram follow but who knew it would take you down like that. 

It all happened 2 years ago in a promotional show just like this. Your acting career had just begun and you had managed to create quite a buzz in and around the industry delivering two blockbusters mesmerizing the critics and audiences with your spectacular performance in your three year acting career. You were in a radio show for the promotion of your upcoming movie. The RJs were interviewing you.

"Well Tom Holland was here the other day and we asked who he likes among the upcoming new talents in the industry. He said and we quote that you are cute, sexy and very talented." the lady said. 

"Well what do I say thank you Tom." you giggle shyly. 

"Have you guys ever met?" the other male RJ asked. 

"Not really, though we had a chance to interact during the comic con. But I really admire his work and would love to work with him in future."

"But I have to inform you that he is a little disappointed that he follows you but you never followed him back." the lady jokes. 

"Well I can fix that I guess.'' You took out your phone from your jeans pocket and opened your insta app.

"And here we go, officially following Tom Holland." You said tapping the follow button.

"I hope now you are not upset anymore, Tom." you chuckle.

In less than a month you were signed up for a Netflix movie. It was a rom com and you were casted opposite none other than Tom Holland. The shooting began within two months.

You were on the set sitting in your trailer facetiming your mom. 

"Honey are you eating well?" Your mom asked.

"Yes mom I am." You assured her when you heard a knock as the door of your trailer opened and the person’s head popped in, it was Tom. You waved your hand to usher him in. 

"Five minutes please." You mouthed to him

"It’s okay," he mouthed back sitting on a chair. 

"Who is it?" Your mom asked.

"It's my costar you know him, the guy from spiderman." You inform her.

"Oh the one you have a crush on?" 

"Mom!" You shrieked utterly embarrassed with your mom revealing your secret.

"What? You only said that he is cute." 

"Ok-ok I get it you made your point but I have to go now, I'll talk to you later."

"OK sweetie take care." 

"Yeah bye mom." You ended the call heaving a sigh of relief and turned towards him. 

"Ignore my mom. I just told her that you were cute in the homecoming movie and she just assumed I have a crush on you." 

"Oh that's fine." He gave you a warm smile.

"So what's up?" You chirped.

"Umm just here to talk about the scenes we are going to shoot tomorrow together."

"Oh you mean the sex scenes?"

"Umm yeah." He said uneasiness clearly in his voice.

"Tom Holland nervous about some sex scenes?" You joked.

"No-no it's, it's not like that. I just want to make sure that you are comfortable tomorrow so I just wanted to discuss it beforehand."

"Oh that's really nice of you. Well honestly I'm always nervous before such scenes. Though it's partial nudity but still the scenes are quite passionate and vividly described." 

"Don't worry I'll try my best to make it easy and comfortable for you."

"Thank you Tom."

"Pleasure is all mine." he smiled. 

The next day on the set the director gave you the last minute reading of the scene that you are going to shoot. You and Tom walked in the frame. As per the script you guys play characters who are friends with benefits but both of you grow feelings for each other. When one confronts the other it leads to an angsty moment but soon turns into passionate love making. 

The camera started rolling and as soon as the director said "action!". You both got into your characters and played your parts flawlessly as per the script. 

"Why don’t you find someone who doesn’t hurt you?" You ask

"But I love you, Emma." Tom replies with a soft tone.

"Liam you don’t understand I was never good at this." You say with frustration in your voice.

"What.. talking?" He sarcasms.

"Yeah talking, communicating, relationships.." You were cut off as he captured your lips for a kiss.

"Well neither was I but we can figure it out slowly." his gaze was intense as your eyes were glassy. 

The next thing you did was, crashed your lips to his. It had to be a very messy sloppy one so both of you rolled your tongues into each other’s mouth. You popped open the buttons of his shirt out of desperation and then pushed him onto the bed. Tom plopped on the soft mattress as you got up to straddle him around his waist pulling your sweatshirt off your body revealing your red lacy bra underneath. Tom let out a light gasp it wasn’t to happen but the whole act turned him on as he felt blood rushing down south. You carried on the act like a true professional and leaned on to his face capturing his thin lips. He deepened the kiss holding your face and you kept on grinding on his crotch. The kiss grew heavy then you were suddenly aware of the growing bulge underneath you but you continued anyhow 'he is a human getting aroused is normal' you kept on repeating that in your mind. His hand trailed up your back and unclasped your bra. 

And with the scene coming to an end the director shouted "cut!" 

"Well done you guys." The director praised. You pulled away and got off him as the costume runner handed you your robe to cover you up, you slipped it on and tied it around your body. 

Tom's eyes never left you as you made your way back to your trailer to retouch your makeup and take a rest before the next scene starts. He was always known to be a professional but you made his mind go haywire. You on the other hand could only think about the scene, how you felt his hard on though it wasn't his fault it happens sometimes you reminded yourself. 

After the unit packed up for the day you were on your way back to your car as you heard a car honking behind you. You stopped as the car pulled over and the windows rolled down. 

"Need a ride?" Tom asked sweetly. 

"No thanks, I have my own." You gave a tight lipped smile.

"C'mon it's been a hectic week for both of us we should really blow off some steam and I don't want to get drunk alone too."

"Okay." You gave in breaking into a smile. You sat in the front seat as he drove the car while you texted your manager Mike about your change of plans. 

"So where are we going?" you ask. 

"Just in and about the town.'' everything went silent again before Tom cleared his throat and began. 

"Umm listen Y/N I'm.."

"It's okay Tom it happens sometimes I didn't mind anything." You cut him off saving him and you from  the awkward conversation. He took you to a local pub and had a few drinks together. Later you got back into the car both of you totally buzzed. You were laughing about something as Tom kept staring at you. 

"What?" you ask giggling. What came into his mind you don't know as he just straight up went to grab your face and kissed you, catching you off guard. You pushed him away, bewildered. 

"Tom! What are you doing?!" 

"Sorry, sorry, I-I just couldn't control myself. Ever since I saw you like that you are the only thing in my mind." he rambled. 

"But that doesn't mean you can kiss me."

"Don't tell me you didn't like it." his voice low as he brought his hand to your cheek. 

"Well.." Your words were stuck in your throat as your gaze dropped to his lips and you leaned forward to kiss him again fervently. 

"Your place or mine?" He asked, pulling away gasping. 

"Whichever is close." You said out of breath.

He never drove his car this fast the way he drove tonight to reach his apartment rented by the production company for him. You weren't even completely inside his apartment as he crashed his lips and pushed you against the door. You moaned into the kiss as he picked you up and carried you to his bedroom. 

You woke up the next morning as the sunlight hit your face squinting your eyes open. You stir on the bed to find yourself tangled in bedsheets and in the arms of Tom.

"Goodmorning, love." His voice husky as he looks down at you with his soft brown eyes. You sit up abruptly holding the sheets to your chest wide eyed as you recollect the memories of last night. Mike your manager had always warned you that you should avoid getting into any kind of relationship with your costars. You are young and new to this industry, a good image is what you need right now. 

"No, no, no this was a mistake. This should have never happened." You repent holding your head. Tom sits up holding your shoulders comfortingly. 

"Hey-Hey it’s okay. Last night was really good.I understand you don't know me well and your career has just begun so you don't want a relationship but that doesn't mean we can't have a little bit of fun." saying so he went for a kiss but you pull away.

"That's not the point Tom! We are colleagues and I want to keep it that way. And this will never happen again. This will be the first and last." You made it clear and left his apartment.

🥀

However Tom made it a mission to tease the hell out of you on set. You would often find him subtly touching you whenever he got the chance, when you were sitting together his fingers lazily dancing around your thighs making you shiver as he flashed you a cocky grin because he is totally aware of what he is doing to you. 

You reached your breaking point on the day you had to shoot another sex scene. The scene required minimal clothing. You would be just wearing your underwear and modesty patches to cover your breasts which will leave little to anyone's imagination. You took off your robe and lied down on the bed underneath the white covers Tom got on top of you in just his boxers. You licked your lips as you saw the prominent outline of his dick through the fabric which only reminded you of the night you slept together. He propped over you on his forearms a pillow kept between you. 

As the director shouted 'action', Tom leaned down to kiss you, dragging his lips down your body, sucking on to your skin as he massaged your breast with his hand. He could feel your nipple harden through the patch as you began to let out small moans as per the script. The heat radiating from his body was so overwhelming you could just think of him railing you to the mattress. Heat pooled between your legs and you were thankful that there is a pillow separating you or else he would easily get to know how wet you are. 

You closed your eyes, hands slipping on to his back letting out fake moans as he carried on rutting his hips on the pillow. Suddenly a chill ran down your spine when you felt two slender fingers brushing near your heat. 

"Did I make you wet, darling?" he whispered, chuckling lowly into your ears. Your breath hitched as you felt your cheeks heat up but you had nothing much to do than just go on with the scene. 

The scene ended as soon as the director said "cut!" And you were more than thankful as you quickly slipped into the robe. But you were hot and bothered as you exchanged glances as you both agreed to an unspoken agreement. 

And a few agonising moments later you find yourself bent down gazing at your flushed out reflection with droopy eyes in the dirty mirror of one of the restrooms on set you both snuck into to relieve your sexual frustration. Your dress bunched up to your waist as Tom thrusted inside you hard and fast. 

"Fuck darling! This feels so better when I actually get to fuck this pretty little pussy instead of wasting my energy humping a damn pillow." He grunted drawing back his hip to slam right into you as you jolted forward trying to keep yourself steady gripping on the edge of the marble.

"Fuck Tom!" you moaned. Your legs felt wobbly; knees on the verge of giving out as Tom’s hands expertly supported you. One of his hands slipped between your thighs rubbing circles stimulating your sensitive bud. You gasped at the added pleasure. 

"Tell me sweetheart who is fucking you so well?" He asked cockily.

"You T-Tom you." you were finding it hard to form proper words.

"Damn right." he chuckles. 

Just then there was a knock on the door. You squeaked in surprise and Tom immediately covered your mouth with his hand. You glared at him through the mirror.

"Miss Y/L/N?" It was your assistant Rebecca. Tom removed his hand from your mouth still going on with his menacing pace.

"What the fuck?!!" You seethed.

"You were being loud." he Whisper yells. 

"Mam are you there?" She asked again.

"Yeah- yeah. What is it?" You stuttered.

"The next shot will be ready in half an hour. You need to go for your makeup." 

"Okay .. ah i’ll be there in a few minutes." You tried to answer as energetically as possible.

"Mam are you okay?" she asked with concern in her voice. 

"Yeah, yeah I’m fine. Just-just go I’ll be there." Tom had a smug grin plastered on his face. You rolled your eyes. His eyes darkened dripping with lust as he thrusted deep inside you again, hitting your spot as you moaned loudly but he pulled you back by your neck, capturing your lips messily muffling your moans. You felt him twitch inside you and you knew you weren’t far away. You heard Rebecca's receding footsteps as Tom increased his pace again tipping you off the edge you both came with a loud moan. His head dropped to the crook of your neck panting, brushing his lips on your sensitive skin. You hissed when he pulled out. He stepped away giving you some space to clean up while he chugged the condom in the bin and zipped his pants fixing his shirt.

"I’ll go out first and you come out later." He said running his fingers through his messy hair trying to tame them. You nodded trying your best to fix your dishevelled appearance. 

🥀

This just became a regular thing for you guys sneaking out on the set to end up making out at the most odd places you could ever imagine. Sometimes in your trailers for a quickie. 

One time you were making out at the back of your trailer Tom’s hands were roaming around all over your body as he blurted out of nowhere.

"I love you." You broke the kiss and raised a brow.

"You don’t need to show your fake love to get into my pants." Tom frowned. 

"What? No I do love you Y/N" 

"You’re joking right?" you gave a poker face. 

"No Y/N, ever since I met you I fell for you instantly." 

"Really?" Your eyes welled up in disbelief.

"Yes, love. I love you and will always love you." 

"I love you too." You sealed your lips kissing softly, emotions running high. 

You started to feel his presence even more around you after you confessed your feelings for each other. Your wardrobe now consists of half of his clothes which he leaves behind in your room every time he spends the night with you. He tells you he loves you but he is never there the next morning for you. He isn't ready to acknowledge the relationship between you because he says it isn't a good time. You are always dodging the prying eyes of the media. 

Yes you were young, naive and trusted people way too easily that is why you didn't see the obvious red flags in your relationship. 

🥀

The last scene for the movie was to be shot outdoors near a cliff. The location was picturesque as the last scene was shot of you and Tom kissing each other. After the shooting ended the director officially announced the wrapping up of the film. The crew hugged each other and indulged into a little celebration at the location itself. You went near the cliff soaking in the natural beauty reminiscing about how this was the best summer of your life where you found the love of your life when Tom walked up to you from behind. He brushed aside your hair placing a necklace with a heart shaped pendant around your neck. You let out a light gasp surprised heart swelling up at his loving gesture. 

"This-this is beautiful Tom." 

"I know, love. Only for the most beautiful woman. This will always remind you of our love."

He wrapped his arms around you as you overlooked the cliff watching the sunset with an orangish yellow hue. His phone buzzed as he took it out from his pocket and saw the caller id. 

"I need to take this." He excused himself to take the call. You fiddled with your necklace admiring it and smiling to yourself. One of the runners brought you a bottle of beer you took it and the boy was about to go and give the other bottle to Tom but you stopped him. 

"I’ll give it to him." You took the bottle from him and made your way where Tom was busy talking to whoever called over the phone. 

"Yeah bye love you. Miss you too." You caught the last bit of his conversation. 

"Girlfriend?" You joked startling him. For a moment he felt his breath caught in his throat, he gulped hard before chuckling nervously. 

"I’ll be so damned to cheat on you. It was my cousin. Have to go back home, some urgent family work has come up." 

"You will leave tomorrow only?" You pout.

"Sorry love." He brings his hand to your cheek.

"What about I go with you? I always wanted to meet your family, I mean my future family." Your eyes sparkled. 

"Uh i don’t think that’s  a good idea since we are not public yet." he fumbled. 

"So let’s go public. You love me, I love you, what's the problem?" 

"Ofcourse, love but not this time. Once I return from London we will make our relationship official I promise." 

"What if you find a hot brit chick and forget about me?" you pout. 

"I can never forget you. This face is worth remembering." he cradled your face lovingly. 

"I really want to spend the last few moments with you before I go back."

"I'll keep my door unlocked.'' You winked.

At night Tom stood in front of your hotel room and as you had said the door was unlocked he smiled to himself sneaking into your room quietly. He was startled as you grabbed him by his shirt and pulled him in pinning him against the door pressing your lips to his. 

"I’m gonna miss you so much." you say breathing heavily.

"Me too darling." 

Pretty soon all your clothes were discarded as you now lay on your bed spread out for him while he pounds into you relentlessly. 

"Oh fuck darling you always feel so good around me." He praises thrusting deeper inside you. You grab onto his back wrapping your legs around him. His phone buzzes several times on the bedside table but he was too invested in the pleasure he was getting being buried deep inside you so he decides to ignore it. 

"So gorgeous." He purrs trailing his lips down your chest sucking on to your hardened nipples. Your body arches at his touch, your one hand reaching  down to rub your clit.

"Yes rub that clit for me." He demands. You clench hard around him as you both reach your own highs. He collapsed on top of you burying his head in the crook of your neck as he pressed a soft kiss on your shoulder before pulling out and rolled over to your side. You turned to him resting your head on his chest. His phone buzzes again and he reaches to receive it but ends the call abruptly seeing the number. 

"Who is it?" 

"Oh it's no one, darling." He said, stroking your hair gently and pecking on your forehead wrapping you in his warm embrace. You nuzzle your face in his chest listening to his heartbeat lulling you to sleep.

You woke up to an empty bed next morning. Tom had an early morning flight so maybe he didn’t want to wake you up you thought, giving yourself false hopes.

First two weeks he used to FaceTime you daily but soon it got limited to plain simple texts and suddenly all of it stopped. Two months went by and you didn't hear anything from Tom but still you kept your hopes high telling yourself he must be busy.

🥀

The time of the premiere for your film was approaching and you were over the moon with just the thought that you were finally going to meet him. At the night of the premier you were dolled up in one of your designer dresses, you decided to ditch your expensive diamond necklace to wear the necklace Tom gave you before leaving. You reached the venue and stepped out of your car as your eyes were flooded with the flashes from the cameras, you gracefully walked the red carpet a wide smile adorning your face. But it didn't last long. 

You heard the crowd going frenzy chanting the name of the person you loved the most in this world. You turned around to look at him and froze. He wasn't alone, he had a woman in his arms as they smiled at the cameras. Your heart clenched when you saw the big rock shining on her ring finger. He got engaged and he brought in his fiancee to make the news public. So this was his emergency family work in London.

Tom looked around smiling when his eyes found you standing at a distance with a hardened gaze. His gaze dropped to his feet as a sense of guilt kicked in. You were disgusted and filled with hatred he left you, no he fucking lied to you and was cheating on you this entire time. You never wanted a relationship in the first place. He was the one who professed his love for you and you being the lovesick idiot believed him. 

The cast was made to stand together for a group photo. You stood to the left of him. He couldn't dare to meet your eyes. 

The movie began as you took your seats and tried focusing on the screen. Tom frequently stole glances of you as memories came flooding in. You caught him glancing at you and you could no longer take this betrayal anymore. He had imagined of getting married one day and starting a family but guess what it was true but just not with you. You informed Mike sitting beside you that you aren't feeling well, he arranged for you to leave. You got up in the middle of the movie and ran out of the auditorium. Tom saw that went after you. 

"Y/N wait! Please don't go. Let me explain!" he shouted desperately. 

You didn't listen as you ran towards your car with tears in your eyes. You got into it and drove past him as you saw his reflection in the rear view mirror desperately calling out to you. Tears pricked your eyes as you saw the necklace he gave you as a token of love dangling down your neck. You held the necklace and pulled it hard breaking the chain. You took a look at it for one last time and threw it out of the window in rage. You wailed inside the car crying your heart out. That night you made up your mind to only focus on your career no more distractions or false attachments. Your hard work has paid off because two years later you are now an internationally acclaimed star with a strong image, a role model for many and your fans adore you.

Though after that dreadful night you received a string of messages of apologies from Tom which went on for at least a month but you left all of them on seen.  Recently he had started texting you again mostly they read 'I miss you', 'can we meet?' He even went on a liking spree on your Instagram account which fueled the rumors of you two possibly getting together. You decided to ignore all of it because you always wanted him to suffer the way you did. You wanted the memories of you to haunt him for eternity like a curse he can't get rid of. 

Your car reaches Marvel's office as your bodyguard opens the door and you step out of the car you strut past the gates through the hallways to the room where the meeting was to be held. Your assistant walking by your side briefing you out about your today's schedule. You entered the room to find some of the big names in Hollywood already present and there was Tom too. This is the first time in two years you are finally meeting face to face. His eyes lit up instantly seeing you as he made his way to you enthusiastically. 

"Hi Y/N" 

"Oh hey Tom." you greeted him with a smile. 

"So how are you?" he began but you didn't answer as your eyes were trained on the person behind him, a handsome blonde with icy blue eyes walking right your way.

"Hi Harrison Osterfield." He introduced himself.

"I know, you are playing my love interest and I must say you are totally worth it." You giggled. 

"Well it’s my honor to be your love interest." he chuckled. 

Tom just stood there as a mere spectator watching his best friend and you flirt with each other. You're totally lost in him, the only thought reeling in your mind.

Fuck he’s gorgeous….. 

..................................................................................

(A/N : This crap came out of nowhere. Will I be writing a Harrison osterfield x Reader fic based on 'gorgeous'? who knows🤷‍♀️) Feedback and suggestions are always welcome.

Forever taglist: @starcoadrienette2​ @hollanddolanfangirl​

[mult1tude]

TWO STARS ✰ AN ETHAN NESTOR STORY — CHAPTER 1

story synopsis: adele belanger, an upcoming star begins to fall in love with a man named ethan nestor after doing a press junket to promote her upcoming series that’s going to push her fame further than she expected. will problems arise?

word count: 3k triggers: none

     adele belanger - the name spoke few and far on the dazzling and glamorous world of hollywood. celebrated for her roles in roles in indie films produced and created in canada, where she was born and raised, she is soon due a big break as she was in the process of getting ready for the rest of the world to know she was starring in netflix’s latest series.

saying the heat resonating from beneath her laptop was hot was an understatement, she didn’t dare to budge or move it in the slightest as she restlessly refreshed the youtube page waiting for the trailer to pop up, almost wearing out the button on her keyboard. the sable black strands at the nape of her neck that had evaded her grasp as she hurriedly tied a ponytail began to itch at her skin but she didn’t have time to fix it, not until the trailer was posted.

after what felt like a lifetime, her eyes were quick to notice a new thumbnail appear on the page and she reactively clicked it, pressing the mousepad button-down slightly too hard out of excitement. the entire video played, a beaming smile was plastered across her face, her dimples displayed prominently as she approached the end of the video. the young actress felt like a firework in a glass jar, so much excitement contained inside of her as she brushed the laptop from her lap, jolted from her rumpled bed and clenched her fists as she excitedly hopped around her tiny apartment and squealed. adele rushed to the dust speckled mirror that was hung near her front door that had a few dozen, in a hyperbolic sense, of her unused coats after moving from canada. she deeply exhaled as she examined her face, noticing her own excitement couldn’t even contain itself as a smile sidled upon her lips as she delicately let out a few words. “i’m going to be famous.”

her emotions shot off again like fireworks, her chest fluttering and her palms tingling and red from the nails she didn’t realise she had dug so deep into her own skin. but it didn’t matter, adele was finally making the biggest leap possible into her career - it was everything she ever wanted.

“ok, i need some water.” she softly spoke to herself, taking another deep breath as she headed towards her apartment’s small open-planned kitchen. her shaky hands picked up a bottle of water from the fridge; she vowed that she would never drink l.a’s tap water after hearing an endless conglomeration of negative things from acquaintances and friends after moving only 6 months ago.

swigging it back and almost completing most of the bottle, she slapped it onto the counter whilst letting out a satisfied gasp for air. a few drops making wet patches on her eggshell coloured sweatshirt that may or may not have a few foundation marks around the neckline. a sudden change of thought, she remembered she needed to send the link to all of her friends and family if they already hadn’t seen it. adele slid the phone from her sweatpants noticing she was already getting congratulatory messages from some of her friends and even people that she hadn’t spoken to in a while. moreso, a lot of the messages from her friends were them completely fangirling over the fact that she had in fact worked with henry cavill.

adele replied to and messaged everyone she needed to before opening twitter and the rest of her social media to find that they were starting to blow up, multiple people talking about how cool the show looked and how excited they were. a lot of them were generic but few mentioned how intricate and interesting adele’s sidekick companion character seemed which made her stomach twirl once more and she felt like she had her ego stroked enough it would last the rest of the week. she put aside her phone and began to practice her bedtime routine before throwing herself back onto her bed where she only was an hour ago. her head smacking her pillow must have activated a switch because adele immediately felt her eyes involuntarily shutter closed and before she knew it, she was fast asleep.

                                                         ✰

today was the first day of recording stuff for the press. needless to say, adele was super excited. from what the actress was able to gather from her manager jenna, since henry cavill was known to be such a huge gamer online, buzzfeed had organised the cast to play the game version of the new netflix series with a few special guests. it was undeniably going to be a great day and a great way to start the press junket as it progressively and eventually got more tiring and mind-numbing. plus, she had gamed a bit before so it would be funny if she were able to show up a few of her cast members, especially henry.

at 8am sharp, the assigned makeup and hairstylist, and wardrobe stylist arrived at her apartment. she was so giddy with excitement that she wanted to run around and shout and tell everyone but she had to sit silently for the meantime as the makeup artist worked on her face. edging elation bubbled through her every vein as they talked about varying outfits to wear, expensive designer brands she was allowed to borrow. she felt like a proper celebrity.

finally, the crew decided on a casual look for today. her slate black, silken hair was bundled in a half-up loose french plait whilst the rest of it waved down just below her shoulders, the front strands falling in front of her face. light and delicate makeup that made her eyes shine and sparkle like a glossy nephrite stone; the minimal makeup also allowed her ubiquitous, chocolate freckles to proudly be displayed on her face. polished, golden dangle geometric earrings to frame her heart-shaped face and overall elevate the look from simple to elegant. an ivory laced-back milkmaid top with puffed long sleeves, high-waisted, sun-bleached skinny jeans with a few sparse rips and shreds, tattered white thread entwined between the tears and loosely hanging like vines. to finish off the look was some pearly white stilettos and few rings as well as a similarly styled necklace to match the earrings.

“i feel, amazing.” adele faltered in disbelief as she longingly stared at herself in the mirror, turning to the crew exhibiting an approving smile. “thank you.” she softly spoke before squeaking with excitement as she danced on the spot causing her team to giggle in response. “time to get going!” she excitedly commanded herself as she made a poor attempt at trying to control her out of rhythm breathing. the exhilaration and eagerness began to convolute into a ball of anxiousness and fret. it was something new and different which was scary but she didn’t want it to hold her back. another deep breath and she made her way to the contemporary, modern lobby of her apartment block where she spotted the black suv through the towering glass front doors in which her chauffeur was waiting for her.

“per jenna’s request,” the chauffeur nodded towards the coffee in the cupholder. adele wrapped her hand around the starbucks cup — still hot. “vanilla oat milk latte?” she asked as she brought the almost searing coffee to her lips, the steam floating upwards and brushing past her skin. the chauffeur nodded as he put the vehicle into gear and started to head towards the destination. effortlessly, the sweet drink passed her lips as she took a few sips before she threw her head back in a satisfied manor. surely the coffee would help with the nerves and just overall elevate her mood. she scoured her social media for a short while, taking breaks to finish the rest of her drink before they arrived. it’s l.a, so it was always bound to take a while even if it just was a few blocks over.

discreetly, the car pulled into the back entrance where she was able to enter without getting noticed and was directed to a very bright and lively reception where the young actress signed in. her heels clicking against the laminated wooden flooring as she followed the operations manager who was indistinctively talking through the black earpiece attached to her ear and was clutching a clipboard to her stomach. a few corridors later they had arrived, the manager twisted the handle to the door and entered, allowing adele to trail behind her.

almost blinding, the room was filled with numerous studio lights. littering the floor almost completely, cables and all different sorts of leads and plugs lay disorganised on the floor. a huge monitor was placed in front of the white screen which was the focus of all the beaming lights. “hey adele!” vocalised the director as he approached her, also bearing a black earpiece. “so the premise of today’s shoot is quite simple. you’re going to be playing the game with our two guests over here,” he briefly motioned towards two gentlemen sat in the corner of the room chatting and chuckling between themselves clearly in a world of their own, “and we’ve paired you with henry because we only have two controllers and we want to get everyone to be involved so the others are being shot later. does that sound good?” he queried, concluded his speech.

“of course.” she eagerly spoke with a grin. “great,” the director spoke as he adjusted his wire-frame glasses, “let me introduce you to the guests. they’re going to be guiding you along with the game,” he spoke, leading adele over towards the boisterous men who were still conversing right up until adele and the director were stood only a few metres away.

“mark?” adele apprehensively suspected as she reached her hand out to his, inviting the suave gentleman to shake hands. “yes!” he answered in a shocked yet pleased tone as he stood to be polite and accepted the handshake with a beaming grin. “i think i watched a bit of your stuff a while back,” adele admitted before briefly catching eyes with the other guy who was staring up at her with gleaming eyes and a dopey yet adorable smile. “i’m honoured,” mark softly spoke before looking down at the other guy who was now standing to follow suit. “this is my friend ethan,” mark continued, placing a firm grip on his pal's shoulder.

“hi, nice to meet you.” ethan spoke in a much more gentle manner than mark did as he reached his hand out to replicate the greeting. “nice to meet you too,” she replied, reciprocating the greeting. “have you watched my stuff too?” ethan asked with a bashful smile as he ruffled his hair with his painted black fingernails. adele hesitantly shook her head not wanting to hurt his feelings, “no, but if it’s anything like mark’s stuff i’m certain it’s great.” she stated looking back at mark who had an affirming smirk on his face as he looked down at his younger friend who’s face had started to flush pink.

“henry is meant to be here right now, but he isn’t,” the director addressed somewhat annoyingly, “i’ll go and have a word to see where he is you can just stay here and talk to each other.” the director stated before hurriedly making his way to the door which adele entered through. she sat down in one of the spare seats that sat opposite the boys as they sat down once more.

“can i just say i watched the trailer this morning and i can’t wait to watch it.” he admitted as he began to pull at the strings of his coal-black hoodie. “thank you, it really means a lot,” adele’s cheeks blushed as she began to fiddle with the rings on her fingers yet still keeping her eyes on the boys. “seriously. we’re not just saying this it looks fantastic,” mark chirped in enthusiastically as he leaned forward in the seat, “i’m never usually this excited about a new series. so congrats!” he admitted with a deep chuckle, looking towards ethan who was nodding in agreement.

the conversation was silenced when a huge figure walked through the door followed by the director and operations manager. the director hastily wagged his fingers at adele and the boys who obediently made their way over. “adele!” henry happily bellowed in his charming english accent as he pulled her into a gentle hug, remembering he probably was over two times her size. “long time no see,” she affirmed as she hugged him back before breaking their embrace. her eyes involuntarily wandered over to ethan as the director began briefing henry. ethan quickly darted his eyes to the director as if he just hadn’t been gazing at her causing adele to grin to herself as she put her concentration back to the director.

“great, so follow me and i’ll seat you.” the director asserted as he walked towards the chairs in front of the white screen, two at the front and two at the back yet not parallel to each other. the front seats were more centred whilst the back two were offset so nobody would be getting in the way of each other when seated.

“adele if you sit in the front left seat, henry in the right.” he requested as he took a step behind the camera and watched the monitor to see if it was what he had envisioned. adele and henry sat which the director reacted with a thumbs up. “okay, ethan if you sit on the left and mark on the right please.” the director concluded as he continued to watch the monitor. the boys did as they were told before mark immediately remarked. “gosh it’s bright behind here,” he joked shielding his eyes as he laughed, eliciting a few giggles from everyone as the director adjusted some of the studio light placement with a few apprentices.

after everything was adjusted to the directors liking, they were ready to roll. the director placed his 3 fingers up as he counted down whilst mouthing the numbers. the thumb was up, which meant everyone introduced themselves and surprisingly it didn’t need multiple takes. “today, adele and i are going to be playing the symbols of shadows game which is very similar to the new series on netflix september 4th.” henry beamed, clutching the xbox controller in his hand as he looked over towards adele. “and i’m going to win. i’m going to beat henry.”

henry scoffed, dismissing adele’s statement as mark and ethan giggled behind them. “we’re also going to try to help, but it looks like they’re gaming experts,” mark spoke, wavering his tone with the last two words as he jokingly mocked adele and henry. “well, there’s only one way to find out.” ethan spoke energetically in a slightly goofier voice than what he was speaking in before. ethan looked at mark before they both turned towards the camera with a raised eyebrow. “okay great. we’ll cut there. let’s load the game up.” the director approved, leaning back in his chair, fixing his corduroy jacket as one of the apprentices loaded the game up and set up the first level. “we just want you to complete the first level so don’t try and rush.” the apprentice handed back the controller to adele as he quickly rushed out of view.

the camera began to roll again and the pair began to get a grasp of the controls and the setting of the game as they intentionally tried to set each other up in the game: pushing one another of the map, friendly fire, stealing points and collectables, and deliberately annoying each other which resulted in many laughs around the room. matter-of-factly, ethan and mark didn’t really do anything to help, however, they did make for a great commentary and supplied multiple belly-aching jokes.

the screen faded to black as they’d finished the first level; mark and ethan clapped and congratulated the pair in between giggles as adele and henry carried on the bit and refused to display any means of sportsmanship. “guys, i don’t know about you but i definitely won.” henry retaliated as adele shook her head and rolled her eyes. mark and ethan were laughing so hard it was almost silent. “this was a team game,” mark giggled as the pitch in his voice heightened. “let us know in the comments who you think won. because it was moi.” adele stated confidently, trying to hide the smile that wanted to appear on her lips so badly. the pair promoted their netflix series as they wrapped up filming. “okay, great. that’s everything. thanks, guys.” the director spoke as he picked up his macbook from the desk and began typing away. “if you just wait here until someone comes and collects you,” the director struggled to speak as he was too busy multitasking. he pressed the side of his earpiece and spoke to himself as he called for the cast to be escorted.

“you’re really good, i was impressed.” ethan spoke to adele softly, as everyone got out of their seats. “you really like to flatter me don’t you.” she joked which caused ethan to halter in his thoughts for a moment. “it’s not a bad thing,” she reassured him, “it’s really nice to hear. especially coming from you.” delicately spoke, eyes quickly moving over to see if anyone was listening but mark and henry were engulfed in their own conversation. ethan’s cheeks flushed pink again as he displayed a meek grin.

he was about to respond when the door re-opened and the manager stepped through, immediately grabbing everyone else’s attention. ethan bit at his lip as anguish washed over his face as he realised the conversation was over. adele was disinclined for a moment, lingering for a few more seconds as the butterflies in her stomach began to fade. “it was nice talking to you. talk soon?” she asked which brightened up ethan’s face as he nodded, “of course. see you soon.” he timorously spoke with a contemptuous smile as he waved goodbye, for now.

[charliejrogers]

Klaus (2019) Review & Analysis

I remember recently discussing with my fiancée how, though there have undoubtedly been a number of Christmas movies released in the last twenty years, none have really risen to the level of a “classic” – something you would want to watch every year as part of a tradition. It’s true I have not seen it, but still something tells me that 2008’s Reese Witherspoon vehicle Four Christmases is not on anyone’s annual watchlist… nor 2017’s Mel Gibson-infested Daddy’s Home 2. We concluded that the last “classic” was 2003’s Elf. And, while Christmas movies don’t have to mention Jesus or religion obviously, please don’t try to tell me that Frozen is a Christmas movie… it’s not! In some ways, given how secular things are, I began to wonder if there even was a market for holiday family fun movies, but of course, I’m an idiot because you can just make a whole movie about Santa Claus. Move over, Jesus, we gotta talk about the reason for the season!

Klaus released last holiday season on Netflix and at least in Chicago I saw billboards for it everywhere. Netflix went all in on promoting this as the next big Christmas movie and had some moderate success; they even grabbed an Oscar nom for best animated picture. Unlike most animated films these days, Klaus was made by neither DreamWorks nor Disney, and it shows. It lacks the refined polish of a Disney/Pixar feature, but also has a heart unlike a DreamWorks picture. The animation style can be best described as a hybrid of 2D and 3D (yet not quite 2.5D). At times the character models look like classic hand-drawn 2D models set within a mostly computer-generated 3D environment. But at other times, they look more 3D. It’s confusing to describe, and inconsistent to watch. It often felt like I was watching a compromise between a studio that wanted a distinct animation style but didn’t have the budget to fully realize it. Still, more often the not it’s a pretty movie.

More than the raw visuals, the movie has a fantastic sense of atmosphere��� perhaps even too much at the beginning. Klaus is, in one sense, the story about how a lonely woodsman becomes the legendary Santa Claus, but for such a jolly premise, much of the film is shrouded in shadows and dominated by an oppressive, cold, snowy bleakness. In retrospect, this makes sense as the true triumph of Santa and “Christmas spirit” can only be best appreciated when it brings light to the darkest of places and times. Still, upon first viewing, I was quite surprised and shocked by the dark atmosphere and downright violent imagery on display at the beginning of the film, so much so that I was wondering if this really was a Christmas movie!

The darkness stems from the fact that our woodsman Klaus lives deep within the forest on a far north island, far far from the closest village which is a town called Smeerensberg and is famous for its never ending feuding and wickedness. It’s a genuine Nineveh of the North so it seems. The town’s feud centers around two rivalling clans (the film’s equivalent of the Hatfields & McCoys) and every villager belongs to one clan or the other. The two families’ feuds go back longer than anyone can remember (cave paintings exist that depict their feud), implying an original sin of sorts with the town being more born from hatred than spawning it. Hatred is so foundational that it infects every part of society. Unwilling to allow children to interact with the rival clans in classrooms, children just don’t go to school. Instead, they roam the streets playing pranks on old people and stabbing snowmen with carrots.

For the most part, Klaus lives his life separate from and unbothered by these unruly residents of Smeerensberg. What breaks his solitude is the arrival of a new post officer to Smeerensberg. More than a trivial side character, this post officer, Jesper Johansson, is surprisingly the main character of this movie all about the origins of Santa Claus.

Much like the residents of Smeerensberg, we the audience come to the film with a primary misunderstanding, much of what makes Santa famous today (the home invasion via chimney, the responding to letters, the reindeer-pulled sleigh) were the creative inventions of a spoiler-brat-turned-postman. So despite this movie being about the origins of Santa Claus, being a Christmas movie, you should have guessed that this will be some variant on Dickens’ classic tale. Jesper isn’t a classic Scrooge in that he doesn’t abhor Christmas, but he is self-absorbed, materialistic, and all-around not a great guy. He’s the spoiled son of a successful postal worker who controls a postal empire that looks more like an army. (The true fantasy of this movie has nothing do with sleigh bells and stocking stuffers… it’s the idea that the post office is a well-organized, well-respected, successful enterprise.) Anyways, recognizing his own son’s worthlessness, Jesper’s father decides to whip him into shape, ship him off to the God-forsaken land of Smeerensberg with an ultimatum: Jesper must process 6,000 letters from the town of Smeerensberg in a year or else be cut off from his father’s wealth. The problem? With how ugly the feud is in Smeerensberg, no one needs to write a letter to express their feelings when a cold snowball to the face (or worse) will get the point across quite clearly.

So now with the spoiled postal heir longing for silk sheets as he tries to survive out in the cold boonies, the movie gets a hint of the Emperor’s New Groove flavor… sans llama. It is only by sheer “chance” (we’ll get to that) that when Jesper visits the woodsman in a last ditch effort to find one person on the island who wants to send a letter, a piece of paper falls out of Jesper’s bag as he flees in horror of the woodsman (we’ll get to that).  This piece of paper contains a drawing that a little boy made of himself locked in a high tower looking sad. In a very humorous scene, we had seen Jesper accidentally stumble across this drawing and then unsuccessfully try to scam the boy into giving him money so that Jesper could “mail” it back to him, rather than just give it back. Regardless, recognizing the little boy’s suffering, the woodsman decides to do something about it and enlists Jesper’s help. Luckily for the children of Smeerensberg, the woodsman has a barn full of toys. Yes, “a barn full of toys” is as creepy as that sounds and the films uses that creepiness to full effect when Jesper first meets the woodsman. The large, imposing, hooded, axe-bearing woodsman is far from the jolly fellow we know he is destined to become. He’s downright scary and given how violent the town of Smeerensberg is (Jesper almost dies when he first arrives because he’s tricked into ringing the war bell which sends the whole town into violent frenzy), we and Jesper are not wrong to assume the woodsman holds only ill-intentions. Essentially, the first meeting with the woodsman is supposed to be something akin to the reveal of the Beast in 1991’s Beauty & the Beast, a film so scary it sent my then two-year-old sister running out of theater in tears. Ultimately, I can’t speak for the mind of a child, but the tension for me here is certainly lessened by the fact that… well… we know the woodsman is Santa Claus. So even though Jesper is scared shitless and flees after meeting the woodsman, we know that there will be more to their story.

Still, even if not necessarily scary, the film does successfully shroud the woodsman in mystery, and his backstory is slowly and beautifully revealed throughout the film. I won’t spoil it here, but the script does a fantastic job of contextualizing the woodman’s stoic and aloof nature and explaining why that barn is so full of toys. The explanations come naturally and speak to a real human pain that I was not expecting from this film. In terms of emotion, the woodsman’s backstory almost reaches the opening montage to Up. ALMOST, I said, so put down the pitchforks!

So Jesper and the woodsman team up to deliver a present to that first child from the drawing. Or more accurately, the woodsman throws Jesper down a chimney to deliver a present while the woodsman looks on. The ensuing scene when the boy opens his present brought tears to my eyes. The woodsman (and we with him) watching the pure joy of a child receiving a present is truly nostalgic in its most literal sense. It hurts to see such joy, remembering that at one time you too could feel such joy from a hunk of plastic, and knowing you will never feel that way again. It’s a joy that few films outside of A Christmas Story with its the red rider BB gun really nail. Anyways, the little boy sees the woodsman through the window and finds his original drawing of himself locked in the tower which the woodsman leaves behind by accident. He surmises that the postman had devliered his drawing to the woodsman, and the woodsman responded with a present.

After that… well the rumor spreads wildly of the mysterious woodsman who comes down chimneys at night to give presents to children in response to letters. Now, the once dormant post office becomes a bustling hub of activity as children from all over flock to send letters to this Mr. Klaus. Kids even beg to go to school so that they can learn to write in order to get presents (much to the dismay of the disilliusioned teacher who long ago gave up on her dreams of teaching in a town where no child goes to school and had turned to being a fishmonger in order to pay the bills and one day afford to leave the town for good).

Gradually the children, who seemingly had no toys prior to Klaus and Jesper’s escapades, now joyously play together, regardless of which clan they belong to. Initially this upsets their parents greatly, but in the end it’s hard to really hate the parents of your children’s friends. The film promotes an age-appropriate and inspiring, if fanciful and naïve, notion that all the world’s problems would be solved if we all thought like children. As by spreading joy throughout the town, Jesper and Klaus inadvertently make the town a better place to live. It’s the theme of the film (not that they’re subtle about it): one act of good-will always begets another (or something like that). Still, all this doesn’t please the village elders, who abhor the change from the town’s hateful origins. They will ultimately serve as villains trying to put an end to all this gift-giving business.

Of course, there’s another villain of sorts, as well. Despite all the good he’s doing, Jesper is ultimately still motivated mostly by the notion of getting back to his old cushioned life. He is essentially using Klaus and preying on his kindness in order to launch himself back to a life of selfishness. It’s here the story feels most Dickensian, particularly in a scene where the school teacher (now love interest) acts functionally the same to the ghost of Christmas present and takes Jesper to the city center to see for himself the love and joy that he has helped bring to the world. But, still his desires to go home are strong, and, of course, he keeps them a secret. So between Jesper’s inner conflict about where he belongs in life and the external conflict of the community trying to fight back against a change in its culture, the film naturally comes to climax when the two conflicts meet and Jesper must confront both challenges at once.

What I’ve realized in writing this review … is that I am very impressed by the plot’s complexity and depth. The film weaves together at least three solid story arcs (Jesper’s coming-of-age/Scrooge-like-change-of-heart, Smeerenberg’s bubbling kindness revolution, and the woodsman’s aged hero who finds redemption and purpose after so many years alone). That all three feel fully supported and without any bloat is a testament to its absolutely solid writing, and for a kid’s film no less! Furthermore, the “origin” story genre can sometimes fall flat as it can just feel like the writers are writing more Wikipedia entries, explaining how every little aspect came to be more than just telling a good story. I call it the Han Solo trap. As for Klaus, the little tidbits about why Klaus uses reindeer and not horses, who the “elves” who work his workshop are, always clever and grow organically from the plot.

Plus, despite my opening doubts regarding whether the dark tone really fit a “Christmas” movie, the film very capably captures the joys of the Christmas season. Like Christians think about Jesus, Klaus/Jesper bring a world of light into a world of darkness. The film teaches about the importance of creating a loving community, of being selfless, and most importantly of respecting the spiritual aspect of the season. Even if this is a decidedly capitalistic/entrepreneurial movie, the film is not without a spiritual side. The previously mentioned “chance” of the woodsman seeing that initial drawing of the boy locked in the tower is no chance at all. Instead, throughout the film we see that the woodsman is “haunted” in a sense by a ghostly wind that points him in the path of righteousness. The film has its own explanation for what the force behind the wind is, but it is not too far of a stretch to point out the similarities between the wind and the Christian idea of the guiding Holy Spirit. Now, I’m not going to sit here and tell you that the woodsman represents God the Father and Jesper God the Son, (or is Klaus more the Christ figure?) because I think this movie is decidedly not Christian, but more I just want to highlight that I enjoyed that the film allowed for the presence of spirituality, which moves this film from the realm of secular kindness to one that recognizes the power and presence of some spiritual goodness, aligning with how many think of the “Christmas spirit.”

Now, let’s be clear, this is a fun, family classic, but it’s not a perfect film. In fact, I downright disliked the first twenty to thirty minutes, for the aforementioned tonal reasons, but also because I really disliked Jason Schwartzmann’s voice acting in the lead role of Jesper. My dislike lessened with the introduction of the woodsman, but it never went away fully. I can’t help but think this movie would be better with a different actor voicing Jesper. Everyone else does an adequate job with the voice work. J.K. Simmons as Klaus takes on an almost Batman-like stoic gruffness, and Rashida Jones as the teacher and love interest is just fine. And, again, I never really fell in love with the art style and it sometimes distracted me, and I found the soundtrack, particularly the main song to be rather lame and too much “of its time” than the typically timeless, more Broadway productions that Disney/Pixar put out. Still, director Sergio Pablos has done something I did not think possible. He and his team created a *new* Christmas classic, one that I’m sure will be played on an annual basis in many households across the world.

***1/4 (Three and a fourth stars out of four)

[shirbertshitposts]

Things you can do to help Anne With An E be Renewed

There are so many different ways big and small you can help in the fight to get Anne With an E renewed. I’ll do my best to compile all the ways you can contribute.

1) One of the easiest ways to let networks know there is a demand for more Anne With an E is to request it on their help page. Request Anne with an E season 4 so they know you want the show to continue. There is also no limit to the number of times you submit requests.

https://help.netflix.com/en/titlerequest

https://help.disneyplus.com/csp

For Disney+ click “Give Feedback” then “Request a film or show” then you can type in Anne with an E season 4

2) Watch Anne with an E on Netflix. Just constantly stream it in the lead up to the season 3 premiere. When the show premieres Jan 3rd make sure you stream the new season that day and in the days after. Not only do we want Netflix to know that the new season has a big audience, but we also want as many people watching at the same time for the show to make it to the “Popular on Netflix” category. New people may be attracted to the show if they see it is popular on Netflix.

3) Write emails to Networks. Netflix and CBC are not the only options when it comes to Networks that could renew Anne with an E, since it seems that the rights to the show are currently owned by Northwood Entertainment the production company behind Anne with an E. Many other fans have done the hard work of compiling lists of emails of network executives. I will provide links to various tweets I have seen with important emails. (of note, most will probably not check their work emails again until after the holidays, so you can draft emails now and send them out after Jan 1st) Also below is a google doc that includes emails of many network executives.

https://twitter.com/LeaOux/status/1205485569691680768

https://twitter.com/KindredsParty/status/1208518970002870272

https://twitter.com/KatVal11/status/1206141522820976640

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1StN_dHgHjhPhYkfgS_7AbeMbmu0KXhrtJW1ytAASUaw/mobilebasic

Template for writing emails and email addresses to send emails to: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1nkEu-ZyIiBkCABleKRBLU21T8lRSwRxwWXuVDZ7cxeo/mobilebasic

4) Write emails to magazines, newspapers, websites, etc. Any form of Press about Anne with an E will draw attention to the show from people who may not have heard of it before. You could write emails to ask them to cover the news of the show's cancellation, to review the new season, to discuss certain topics the show addresses that set it aside from other shows and more. Anything that you could dream up that could be an article that could be written about Anne With an E you could pitch the idea to someone to write about. 

5) Appealing to other fandoms with similar interests. Two big movies that are about to drop that have an audience that may be interested in a show like Anne With An E, would be Little Women and P.S. I Still Love You (To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before sequel). Little Women is also a period piece with a feminist heroine, so you could point out the similarities in the stories’ themes to appeal to fans of that film (which premieres Dec. 26th). For P.S. I Still Love You, the big connection is that in the third book of the To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before trilogy, Forever and Always, Lara Jean,  Lara Jean states that Gilbert Blythe is her ideal man. Screenshots of this quote have been going around all over tumblr and twitter since the P.S. I Still Love You trailer dropped. The selling point could be that if you enjoy the films and relate to Lara Jean then you should check out the stories and adaptions of those stories that Lara Jean considers peak romance. ( It also helps that the premise of the films relies on love letters and AWAE season 3 features love letters as well). When entering into other fandoms tags to recommend Anne With An E make sure you are always being RESPECTFUL and don’t just spam the tags with Anne promotion. You could always create side by side edits of the two programs to demonstrate how similar they are. Basically, make sure your posts in their tag don’t seem like a blatant promotion for AWAE.

6) Rate Anne with an E on IMDb. (Note: It is listed as Anne(2017) on IMDb). Right now Anne is listed in Top 250 TV Shows, but it is toward the bottom of the list at #248, with an average show rating of 8.4 stars. If enough fans rate it, the show could move up on the list, which may attract new people to watch the show. You can rate the show overall, and rate each episode individually. Plus you can leave a review. 

7) Watch the Anne With An E Netflix trailer and share it with others. The more views on the trailer the better. The trailer is available on Youtube and Instagram. On twitter, people are organizing trailer boosting parties for Dec 23rd - Dec 30th. 

This calendar shows when trailer boosting parties have been planned detailed descriptions of what those events include with links to tweets and posters

https://calendar.google.com/calendar/embed?src=potatolightbulbs%40gmail.com&ctz=America%2FNew_York

8) Sign the petition for the show to be renewed and get anyone you know who likes the show as well to sign it as well.

https://www.change.org/p/netlfix-awae-fans-renew-anne-with-an-e-for-season-4?recruiter=916548586&utm_source=share_petition&utm_medium=copylink&utm_campaign=share_petition

9) Recommend the show everywhere. On twitter search “What to watch on Netflix” or “tv show recommendation” and reply to any of these tweets with Anne With An E and maybe a reason why you recommend the show. If someone has already recommended Anne With An E don’t recommend it again, we don’t want to spam or annoy strangers. This can also be done on reddit search “What to watch” , “Netflix recommendations” , “Period Piece” and comment on any of the relevant results with Anne With An E.

10) Tell EVERYONE you know to watch Anne With an E. A great way to spread the popularity of the show is by word of mouth. People trust the opinions of people they know, so your friends and family are more likely to listen to your recommendations than strangers on the internet (but there is no harm in trying #9 anyway). 

11) Continue to be your amazing creative selves. Gif sets, fanart, video edits, memes, etc. All of these can help attract new fans to the show, so continue to create and post things related to Anne With An E.

12) Make bookmarks or small promotional posters and leave them in public places. I have seen a trend of this on twitter and it's not a bad idea. One amazing fan even took it to the next level and made tiny posters that have QR codes on it that when scanned takes people to the Anne with an E trailer or the show on Netflix. Below is a link to tweets showing what those looked like and how they dispersed them.

https://twitter.com/itsMaeWithAnE/status/1208618422768033792?s=20

Here is a tweet thread with templates for the posters if you want to print them out yourself:

https://twitter.com/itsMaeWithAnE/status/1208816797555671040?s=20

13) Buy official merchandise for the show and wear it around. You could be a walking advertisement for the show if you want (and can afford to). There is different merch available on the official Anne With An E shop website and on Amazon.  Also sales of the merch may be considered by networks when they consider whether to renew the show. 

https://shopannewithane.com

https://www.amazon.com/stores/page/A8C18641-8ECE-4892-A276-6A0A952A125C

14) Join the r/Anne community on reddit. There has been some encouragement to grow the size of the community on this thread because it shows a static number of how many people are apart of it. This number could be used to approximate how much interest there is in the show. It currently only has 2.5K members. Even if you’re not very active on reddit, joining the subreddit would be helpful.

https://www.reddit.com/r/Anne/

15) Donate to the campaign to have a billboard to promote the show. Details can be found on the gofundme page.

https://www.gofundme.com/f/renew-anne-with-an-e?sharetype=teams&member=3295372&rcid=r01-157601384514-6d847f2ab5bb49bd&pc=tw_co_campmgmt_w&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter&utm_campaign=p_lico+share-sheet

16) Donate to campaign to run instagram ads for Anne With An E. More details on the gofundme page below.

https://www.gofundme.com/f/anne-with-an-e-season-3-ad-campaign

17) Let’s Make Some Noise Campaign. Some fans are encouraging people to write messages on white rags, like the ones the avonlea students use during their protest, and sending them to various streaming networks or Northwood Entertainment, the production company behind the show. Details can be found in the tweet below.

https://twitter.com/kindredsparty/status/1206624186342559745?s=21

18) Rate and review Anne With An E on Rotten Tomatoes. You can do this for each season. Currently there are a fair amount of negative reviews so it would be incredibly helpful to explain why you love the show. Good reviews would attract new potential fans to start watching.

19) Vote Anne With An E up on Ranker.com lists. This might attract new get people interested in the show if it consistently ranks high on lists of best shows.

https://m.ranker.com/list/the-best-new-original-shows-on-netflix-hulu-and-amazon-of-the-last-few-years/ranker-streaming?ref=also_ranked&pos=2&a=0&l=85370943&ltype=n&g=0

20) Take care of yourself. THIS ONE IS MOST IMPORTANT. Don’t sacrifice your health in your efforts to get the show renewed. If you need to take a break please do. Also don’t feel guilty if you need to step away or you can only do one or two things on this list. Every effort counts and is greatly appreciated.

I’ll try to update this as more stuff comes up. Good luck with all your efforts Kindred Spirits!

Remember “Dreamers change the world”

[aelaer]

[1/2] Now this is an actual ask as in asking for help. 👀 I have a problem with Steve and Tony. I spent too much time too early on reading anti/not-friendly post-CW fics about 'Team Cap', and because of that I have been unable to see Tony as a flawed human or Steve as a good person. It's a pattern I've become too familiar with, and even recent stories are often going into that sense. I have been trying for some time now to do something about it, but either the method was bad, or I couldn't

(I tagged a couple people in this post – if you were tagged, the question directed to you is wayyyy at the bottom! Feel free to ignore of course.)

You really hit me with a doozy with this ask. I might offend someone for not thinking the exact same way as them with… everything this topic entails… Steve, Tony, anti-fics. Followers from last year know what happened last time I talked about poor and OOC characterization in fanfic, lmao. Beware The Easily Offended! This Is A Critical Thinking Of Your Hobby Zone! I Am Being Critical Of Specific Types of MCU Fanfic!

Please don’t click the read more button if you can’t handle an opinion that might not match yours. Really. I’m fine with discussing different opinions in a mature manner but if you have issues with people saying they don’t like a specific type of plot, this post is not for you. (The read more button doesn’t appear on the original post for followers using the mobile app, but it works on desktop and in all reblogs. If you don’t see a cut and don’t want to read, just skip it, please).

Yeah. Okay. Moving on. Can’t say folks weren’t warned.

I’ve had this in my drafts for several weeks because of the abuse I got the last time I wrote something critical about certain plot points used in fanfic. I was definitely a bit reluctant to look at this specific topic from an analytical and critical look as I remembered that, but hey, it’s really easy for a coward to use a sockpuppet account and throw abuse. It’s harder to be a minority voice with stark opinions contrasting the popular trend. I’m okay with having a minority opinion amongst the MCU fandom.

(PS - you’re welcome to disagree with my opinions, so long as you’re respectful about it. Remember there are individuals behind the screens!)

Concerning Character Flaws

So the thing about really well-written characters is that they are flawed in some manner. Anyone who thinks Tony or Steve exist without flaws – and I mean real flaws, like arrogance, believing they’re always right, short tempers, and other *real* character flaws that both of these characters have – well, if they don’t think they exist with these flaws, how well do they know the character?

You don’t have to know a character well to be a fan of said character – there’s no rules about that – but if you’re going to write fanfic, and that fanfic entails the character you love against a character you don’t particularly like, I’d say any writer looking to do anything resembling a good job would do their due diligence in figuring out the strengths and weaknesses of both characters before writing the characters themselves. These mental lists of characteristics should be equal for both characters. No, “good abs” is not a character strength if you have no physical aspects in the other character strength column. You don’t have to like a character to still write them well.

Even professionals don’t follow this rule when, say, shows get new writers or comics get different writers, so you might consider me silly expecting those dabbling in fan fiction. But yeah, if an author wants me to take a story seriously as something with quality, I expect the characters to resemble themselves in some manner.

(This level of resemblance varies when you purposefully choose for the protagonist to be evil, be in a completely different time period, etc, but authors who do this *well* still get core personality traits solid, even if morality is out the window or the profession is entirely different. I have a lot of examples from the Sherlock fandom of total AUs that pull this off well – haven’t read nearly enough AUs in the MCU to have a good collection here).

But a resemblance of character, of capturing the three-dimensionality of a character, is what anti-fics simply fail to achieve. The characters they’re anti against usually suffer cases of Flanderization, if they’re not completely out of character altogether in showing traits that were never displayed in the canon, ever. I don’t know why anyone would be interested in such stories, myself, and remain baffled at their popularity. Is there some sort of enjoyment in seeing such a 2D rendition of a character in what is otherwise meant as a serious work and provides absolutely no sense of proper conflict between two characters? Not for me; it immediately takes me out of the story and when it gets too much, I abandon the story. It’s just not enjoyable for me. Turning a canon protagonist into a strawman is just lazy writing and offers nothing to the writer’s favorite, preferred character.

Concerning Steve’s and Tony’s Flaws

Every real human being has some sort of personality flaw that is decidedly unattractive. Some people are really good at showing it very rarely (and are some of the best human beings), but with these two characters we see them at their greatest heights and lowest of lows. Ironically, they actually share a lot of the same flaws, but display them in different manners in canon:

Both men believe they are the best man for the job and will do it without consulting someone who could actually fight against it - or go completely against them. Tony with Ultron is the easy example here. He’s the smartest man in the world and can tackle the issue of protecting it on its own. Steve, same issue, and his job is “helping Bucky”. *He’s* the one who can handle Bucky, the only one who can handle him - big thing in both WS and CW. If both of them had utilized their friends and allies a lot more, a lot of issues could have been avoided.

Both men are sometimes hypocritical. Steve promotes teamwork in all his speeches but again with the Bucky situation. Just… everything Bucky, man. Tony signs the Accords and immediately goes against them with what he gives to Peter, who most assuredly did not sign them (tangent: if he HAD joined the Avengers at the end of Homecoming, I have no idea how that would have gone since Peter would have had to reveal his identity to the UN and then there’s the whole ‘still a minor’ thing, and yeah, Homecoming’s end scene just makes me go nuts). But anyway, their occasional hypocrisy is one of the most realistic aspects of them because most human beings are hypocritical sometimes.

Both men are sometimes arrogant. Tony’s self-explanatory with his genius-playboy-philanthropist-billionaire. One thing he does not suffer from is low self-esteem in regards to his abilities. His arrogance comes from his genius. Steve’s arrogance lies more in his deep-seeded belief that he is on the moral high ground – and one reason I think a lot of people dislike him so much, because moral superiority is very much a faux pas in this day and age for some millennials and many Gen Z folk. He has a very, very solid sense of what is right and what is wrong, and that rubs some folks the wrong way. Tony is more morally fluid – but he is not by any means immoral.

Both of them have a really solid list of strengths as well. As this ask specifically is looking to find the good in Steve, I specifically Googled pro-Steve articles for you to click at your leisure (and one with both). If you need to go back to canon, I highly recommend rewatching The First Avenger and The Winter Soldier, which introduces Steve brilliantly and then lets Steve grow further in the second film.

(Note: I actually prefer Tony to Steve in terms of personal favoritism, but how a very loud segment of Tony fans have treated other characters has led me to be more vocal about the strengths of others, especially Steve and Wanda. So Tony might be in my top 5, but mean-spirited Tony fans have moved me to be a champion of other characters, if only to show other fans that there are indeed Tony fans that do like the other characters and treat them – and their fans – with respect).

Bringing Balance (to the Universe…) Fanfic-Style

This addresses the second part of your ask in regards to the fanfics. And this is where I started running into trouble, too, mostly because, well, just how many Stephen and Steve fics are there? Yeah, exactly. Stephen’s my main guy. So I did some research, outsourcing, and reading.

Here’s two I knew of before cuz Stephen’s in them in some capacity:

Identity Theft by KitKat992 - it stars Peter and both Tony and Steve play integral parts from what I recall. Good story too, very engaging.

A Dysfunctional Senior Year (series) by ApolloLoki97 - this also stars Peter and has a large Team As Family aspect, so it shows the entire Avengers team as just decent people. My favorite part is naturally part 3 because Stephen comes in that one, haha.

And to find other stories, I went into the Anti-Accords tag. It was nice to find fics that didn’t have such a love of hypocritical authoritarianism. Aannyyyyway.

Making Sense of Chaos by SparkedtoLife - mind the tags. Seriously, it’s heavy duty. Yet another Peter fic because he’s way more popular than my favorite character, qq. Lots of Netflix Marvel characters too! Anyway, deals with not only Tony and Steve really well (and has a different dynamic with Tony that isn’t IronDad, so that was a nice change of pace), it also deals with the Accords situation very realistically. And none of those are even main plot points. If you can handle the very serious, sensitive subject that is the main plot point, I highly recommended it. It’s a very masterfully done work.

Atlas by nanasekei - Stony. Treats all characters with respect and both Tony and Steve as three-dimensional, flawed humans with some serious self doubts. Also highly agree with the author that Thaddeus Ross sucks and is basically one of the biggest people to blame for Everything Going To Shit.

Homecoming by an orphaned account - Some Stucky. This is a lovely one-shot of things I basically wanted to happen when the team got together again but didn’t. Sigggghhh. Everyone is definitely in character in this one, traumas and healing and all. And look, another person realizes that trusting Ross is a really horrible idea.

Locks Not Replaced by Riverdaughter - first this writer has a Tolkien-based username so yay. Anyway, the fic starts off by Tony realizing that he almost killed Steve during the fight with his repulsors, and it was only Bucky that stopped him. Do people seriously think he’d survive a shot to the face with that power? This is one reason the ‘Steve tried to kill Tony’ people piss me the fuck off. What do you think those repulsors shoot, fucking rainbows? Honestly, guys. Anyway, mini rant over. This fic is great. Author comes in with a Cap favoritism but treats Tony well, and honestly Tony turning a blind eye to everything and ignoring Ross is what I like to think happened in canon (he clearly dislikes the guy). And also I love the Robin Hood parallels. Love love love. I think this fic is my favorite of the ones listed in this section.

Meeting Your Heroes by Riverdaughter - naturally after reading that fic I went to explore more and found this gem. She’s not incorrect in saying Tony wasn’t a good mentor at the beginning - I think he had his own growth after Peter’s actions in Homecoming especially (though even through Homecoming he was trying, just… not always successfully lmao). Anyway love these two together. It’s great.

Photograph by slytherclaw420 - A scene we deserved in Endgame and didn’t get. Sigh. Definite IronDad feels here. Hopeful Steve, rebuilding of a friendship.

And uh, an honorable mention of sorts:

Balancing the Scales by MoonFire1 - I’m not recommending this fic for good characterization or plot. It really doesn’t have either. The fic was written in retaliation for the nasty Tony fans completely trashing Steve’s character. You should only read this if you want to see the argument from “the other side” and if you want to see an anti-Tony fic like you’ve seen anti-Steve fics. Don’t harass the author though. This is presented as a counterargument to anti-Steve fiction, for those interested to read the other sides arguments. I don’t like the nature of the fic, but I loathe that “not Steve friendly” has 30 fucking pages of works with tens of thousands of kudos, so one anti-Tony fic (with a comparatively small three pages under that tag) really doesn’t compare. Ugh. I hate the anti culture in this fandom so much. Loathe it. It’s such a nasty energy! Why would you indulge in such negativity? But as I’ve mentioned before, I appreciate authors aware enough to tag it so I can avoid it. I wish that part of fandom culture didn’t exist, but well, can’t change it. Just can criticize the fuck out of it on my blog. Maybe encourage people to think less one-sided in the process if I’m lucky.

But there’s probably more good characterization Steve fics to be found, so I am forcefully recruiting two people via tag:

If you’re looking to dabble into Stony fics with good-guy-Steve, if anyone would know of any, I’d imagine it’d be @babywarg.

You don’t know this person, but @cairistiona7 has actually known me the longest of anyone here on tumblr (half my life! HALF! She even knows my real name :P She betaed a LOTR work of mine a decade ago I ended up never fully publishing… thanks again for all your help there…). Anyway, she’s a big Bucky fan, and Bucky friendships is the best thing. So if anyone would know any wholesome Bucky and Steve stories, it’d be her. (Or really I’d take any of your recs, Cair, as I’ll probably enjoy them as well).

I hope this was helpful to you md, and that I didn’t piss off too many of my followers in the process of answering this lol.

[hystericalweenie]

Just Another Day at the Office - New Experiences

George MacKay x Reader Series

Part Four: Get to Know You

Masterlist

Summary: Y/f/n Y/l/n had found herself stuck in a scenario she’d never thought she’d ever have to face: she’d been catching feelings for a coworker. While she attempted to adapt to her new job and work load, she also had to get used to these new feelings and figure out what the fuck to do with them. George made her want to take risks, she didn’t care about the potentiality of a broken heart with him, because falling in love with him made it seem worth it. Is George falling for Y/n too? Will he be able to reciprocate her feelings?

a/n: I have absolutely no personal experience in magazine/journalism career, so the information in this fic will be provided with the knowledge I have conducted from research. With that being said, please don’t be mad if this is not accurate!!! Since you guys seemed to like the text messages between Y/n and George, I decided to include a chunk of them, since there weren’t any in the last part.

Warnings: This is a slow burn fic, their relationship won’t happen in one night, so if you’re not into that, check out some of the beautifully written imagines that you can most likely find under the george mackayxreader tag. I might eventually write some of my own too :P At least one person’s saying “fuck” and there’s some making out, thigh riding and dry humping. Yes, y’all read that correctly. 

George hadn’t spoken to me since the incident in his office. I figured it was because he’d been occupied with his friend, but when Saturday rolled around, he’d make up for all of the missed time between us.

Bree had informed me that she was going out with a group of our friends from college, which she’d invited me to, but I assured her that I was feeling ill and didn’t feel like leaving the house. I felt bad for lying, but I needed to see George. I missed him awfully; I missed the way his bare skin felt flush against mine, I missed seeing his smile and hearing his laughter, like music to my ears. I missed the feeling of his locks in my fingers, feeling his breath tickle my neck.

I couldn’t take it anymore; I messaged him immediately.

9:13 pm, Me: Apartment to myself... You busy?

Buzz.

9:14 pm, George: Nope. On my way.

I smirked to myself, hugging my phone to my chest before ripping my clothes off of me and replacing my casual undergarments with my best lace panties and matching black balconette bra. The thin lace and underwear revealed my nipples sexily enough through the unpadded, thin fabric of the bra. I grinned proudly at the lingerie before slipping into jeans that made my bum look extra good and a sexy tank top with lace trimming. Was it too much? Maybe. Did I care at this point? Nope.

I didn’t care to put shoes on, plopping on my stomach onto my bed, waiting for him to message me that he’d arrived. I was shocked when I heard a knock on my door, causing me to get up and open it with furrowed eyebrows. It swung open, revealing my favorite man standing with his hands in his pockets. I tilted my head.

“You remembered where my apartment was?” I asked him, putting my hands on his hips.

He nodded, leaning down to peck my forehead before entering. I blushed at his simple act of affection, shutting the door behind us and following him inside. I clapped my hands together, rocking back and forth on the balls of my feet.

“Do you want to watch a movie?” I suggested.

He shrugged. “Sure.”

I led him to the sofa, sitting myself down as he took a seat next to me. I grabbed the remote controller, opening Netflix and scrolling through the movies. I laughed out loud as a movie I’d watched the previous night with Bree popped up.

“What?” he asked, his lips curling in a smile at my sudden laughter.

“Bree and I watched this movie last night, and it’s really funny,” I explained to him, trying to fight back the giggles that threatened to escape as my brain replayed the funny scenes in my head.

“Well, put it on,” he ordered, gesturing his hand to the television. “Let’s see if it’s as funny as you claim.” He winked.

I pressed on the movie, slouching back into the sofa as it started. I wondered if I should’ve cuddled up next to him, or if that’d be too much. I kept my posture, keeping to myself as the opening credits rolled onto the screen. 

As the movie began, I found my mind wandering immediately. My fingers began drumming onto the fabric of the couch, as I found myself staring at the screen, but my mind remained occupied with other thoughts. I pulled my bottom lip between my teeth as I began to ponder George and I’s relationship again. I had just found out his birthday, and it made me uncomfortable that he’d explored so much of my body, yet I felt like I barely knew him. 

“You alright?”

I turned my head to him. He looked concerned, his eyebrows furrowed and his eyes fixated on me.

I nodded. “Yeah, I’m fine.” I pulled my legs up, crossing them as I slouched, trying to make myself more comfortable.

I returned my eyes back to the television, trying to concentrate on the film until my eyes scanned the room in thought, as my lip was pulled in between my teeth again.

I wondered what his favorite movie was, what kind of movies he’d liked. I didn’t like that I didn’t have the answers to these basic personality questions. I pondered what his childhood was like, if he’d met Dean in the United Kingdom before prior to moving to America. 

“You’re doing it again.”

I whipped my head toward him and cocked an eyebrow.

“What?”

“You chew on your lip and stare off with your eyebrows furrowed,” he observed, moving closer to me. His blue eyes bore into mine as I guiltily stared back at him. He tucked a piece of my hair behind my ear, his eyes not leaving mine. “What’s wrong, love?”

I sighed, removing my eyes from our eye contact as my head lowered in thought. His fingers went to my chin, gently lifting it to meet his eyes again.

“I want you to be able to be honest with me, Y/n,” he admitted, his thumb running over my chin. 

“I want to know more about you,” I confessed, my eyes worriedly staring back at his. “I feel like I barely know you.”

He smiled softly, bringing his hand up to my cheek, caressing my face. His hand trailed down my arm, down to my hand before bringing it up to his lips. He kissed the back of my hand softly before holding it in his own, lacing our fingers together. 

“I was born in London,” he began, his eyes never leaving mine. “March thirteenth, nineteen ninety-two. As I’ve mentioned before, my father’s Australian and my mum’s British, but they chose to raise me in the UK, obviously. I have a sister named Daisy, who lives in London with my parents. I try to visit them during the holidays, but it’s not as easy with work. Sometimes, Dean and I will fly down together to visit both of our families.

“I moved to the states after graduating from Uni when I was about twenty-four years old; my parents weren’t super keen on me leaving to a whole new country by myself, but they wanted me to be happy. Dean and I didn’t meet until my first job after moving to New York. We hit it off so well, that we ended up moving in together, and not long after that, we met Andrew at the same job and invited him to move into our flat. About a year or so after, Dean and I decided to apply to Essence, because we felt that we needed a career change. 

“Andrew ended up being promoted at our old job, so he wanted to stay there, plus, he’s happy working there whereas we weren't, really. Once we started working there, I decided to get my own flat; the pay at Essence was much better, I was almost entirely done paying off my student loans, and I felt that I was in need of a different atmosphere. Hearing your roommates play video games constantly, and being the only one who could cook in the house was not something I particularly looked forward to,” he laughed as he recollected the memories from the past. 

“But, long story short, one day I’d been looking for Dean and I saw that there was a new girl, sitting across from his desk in a chair that I’d never seen occupied before. The way you talked to me, you were so nervous and innocent; After seeing you on multiple accounts, in the cafeteria, at your desk whenever I’d come to talk to Dean, I started thinking about you a lot more,” he admitted, his thumb tracing along my knuckles. 

I noticed his cheeks tint scarlet and he wet his lips with his tongue, still maintaining eye contact with me. 

“Like, I would go to the cafeteria and hope that I'd see you? I hope that doesn’t sound creepy,” he laughed a little. “And, when you told me how you felt at the bar, I was baffled.”

My eyes widened, as I tried to recollect the nonexistent memories of being at the bar that night. My eyebrows furrowed and I could feel my cheeks heat, wondering what the absolute fuck I said to him.

“What did I say to you at the bar?” I queried, chewing on the insides of my cheek anxiously. 

He bit his lip, staring back at me for a moment, as if he was pondering how to tell me. He finally parted his lips, as he recalled our conversation at the bar that night.

Dean got up from his seat, leaving George and I to ourselves. I grabbed my glass and downed the rest of the vodka soda in the glass, slamming the empty glass down on the bar and turning my body to face him.

“Hi George,” I smiled, resting my chin on the palm of my hand, my elbow resting on the table.

He turned to me, his lips curling into a smile.

“Hi, Y/n.”

I giggled, smiling blissfully at the beautiful man next to me.

“George,” I began, batting my eyelashes as I looked up at him. “You’re so great.”

His eyebrows knitted together, an entertained smile evident on his lips as he looked down at me.

“And why is that?” He took a swig from his beer bottle as I began my slurring.

“Becaaauuuse, you’re a fucking art director, which is, like, crazy,” my bloodshot eyes bore into his bright, piercing blue ones. “And you’re, like, crazy handsome.”

He cocked an eyebrow at me, smirking as my eyelids hung heavy, my eyes barely visible as I smiled. My face was red, as my cheeks had always heated up when I was drunk.

“You think so, love?”

I nodded, attempting to take a swig out of my glass as the empty cup poured nothingness into my mouth, reminding me that I’d finished off the drink minutes ago.

“You’re obliterated,” he observed.

“Want to know a secret?” I asked him in a sing-song voice. “I smoked weed before I got here, because my roommate told me it’d make me less anxious,” I whispered, giggling between words.

He raised his eyebrows, his jaw dropping before he started laughing.

“Jesus, Y/n, I didn’t know you were so reckless,” he gasped.

“Well, I didn’t waaannnnt to do it, but if I hadn’t done it, I’d probably be standing in the corner, too nervous to talk to you,” I admitted.

He furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. “Why would you be nervous to talk to me?”

I gave out a big sigh.

“You’re sooooo hot,” I moaned. “I kind of want to fuck you, but I don’t want to lose my job,” I admitted, licking my vodka-tasting lips before continuing. “And also, I got, like, cheated on big time in my last relationship and it left me with some crazy trust issues and self esteem issues. And, I haven’t had sex since then! It’s been two years, George, can you believe that?!”

My eyes blinked a few times as I stared at him, completely and utterly dumbfounded. My eyebrows were raised and my jaw struggled to keep closed. 

“W-was this before or after I threw up?” I asked, trying to compose myself as I felt my face heating up.

“Literally right before you threw up,” he answered with a small laugh. 

I withdrew my hand from his, using my index finger and thumb to pinch the bridge of my nose in frustration. 

“I can’t believe I said that shit,” I groaned, leaning back into the couch. “I can’t believe you didn’t just laugh in my face, God, that’s so embarrassing!”

He watched me with amusement, an entertained smirk making its way onto his lips. I rolled my eyes at him, shaking my head in disappointment. 

“Well,” he began, playful eyes staring at me. “If you think about it this way, love, if you’d never said anything, then we’d both probably still be too nervous to talk to each other.”

I furrowed my eyebrows at him.

“Do you think we’d still end up, you know...” I trailed off, referring to whatever label we shared.

He paused for a moment, he eyes drifting in thought before nodding. 

“I think that you were made for me, love,” he admitted, his voice softer than before. He moved his hand onto my thigh, rubbing it gently. “I’ve never been so easily infatuated and comfortable with someone before you, Y/n.���

I wanted to cry, his words painted my heart with the love and desire I had failed to receive in my previous relationship. I blushed, blushing at not only his words, but his touch. The feeling of his hand on my thigh was anything but a soothing rub to me at that point, and my brain had addressed his touch far more quickly than it should have. My eyes dropped down to his hand, watching as it caressed me, just far enough from my heat. The contact sent me into overdrive, as my eyes moved back up to his face, scanning his plump lips.

I moved myself over to him, slowly leaning in until our lips brushed softly. My hands went to his shoulders, gently massaging them as I kissed him softly. His hand moved from my thigh and to my back, his other hand joining as he pulled me closer to him, our lips beginning to move at a steady rhythm. I moved on top of him, knees on each side of his legs as I settled into his lap, our lips still connected. He brought his hands down to my ass, squeezing my bum. I moaned, and he used my parted lips as access for his tongue. Our tongues danced together as his hands snaked back up to my back. 

As I straddled him, I slowly rolled my hips against his lap, needing the friction against my heat. I could feel the tent in his pants against my core, making me moan against his lips. His hands moved back down to my hips, guiding my movements as I rolled my hips against him again. He groaned, lifting his hips for more friction. My lips parted from his as I moaned again, tugging my shirt off of my body, revealing my bra to him. His eyes widened at my exposed nipples through the thin lace fabric, his hands subconsciously raising to cup my breasts. The pads of his thumbs ran over the raised buds, making me let out a blissful sigh at the intimate contact. His fingers ran around my torso, to unclip the bra. He gave me a look, wanting permission first. I nodded, looking down at his dark, blue eyes before his fingers effortlessly worked their way with the clasp, removing the bra from my body. 

He immediately attached his lips to one of my nipples, lapping at the bud and gently nibbling on it, as I tilted my head back in euphoria. 

“Can we, fuck, take this to my bedroom?” I breathed, looking down at him.

His mouth released from my nipple with a pop, as he picked me up and walked me to my bedroom. He settled me down onto my bed, not bothering to close the door as he settled himself in between my legs. The tent in his jeans rubbed against my core as he ground his hips into mine, his lips returning to my own. 

We were lost in each other, voicing soft moans into each other’s mouths while our hips moved together, too lost that we didn’t hear the front door open. 

“Y/n! I have some soup for y–HOLY SHIT!”

George peeled off of me, my hands immediately coming to cover my exposed breasts. 

I heard the sounds of her shoes against the floor as she scurried away, shutting my bedroom door. 

“I’m sorry!” she called from the living room, as George looked at me with an amused smirk.

I threw one of my throw pillows at him with a roll of my eyes.

“Shut the fuck up,” I groaned, biting back a smile of my own.

He tossed the pillow onto the floor, moving himself back on top of me.

“Make me,” he whispered, attaching his lips onto mine. 

I let our lips move together in a steady rhythm, before I pulled away, concluding our kiss with a peck on his lips.

“My bra and top are just sitting on the floor where my roommate’s probably trying to eat right now,” I groaned, embarrassed. 

As if on cue, the door opened as we heard the sound of something dropping at the entrance of my room, before the door closed again. I sat up, noticing that she had returned my missing pieces of clothing to me as they sat neatly in front of the door. I got up, arm slung over my breasts before pulling the shirt onto my torso, not bothering wearing the bra. I tossed the bra into my underwear drawer, before returning back to the bed. I watched as the man on my bed hungrily looked at my chest, not caring whether I noticed or not.

“You’re teasing me,” he moaned, his voice husky with lust. He sat with his legs criss-cross, watching me as I mimicked his seated position.

I could feel my hardened nipples against the fabric, teasing him with my now-covered breasts. 

I got on my knees and hands, prowling towards him. Smirking, I nudged my nose against his own, watching as his eyes watched me in awe.

“What are you going to do about it?” I chided with a whisper.

Without a warning, he captured my lips with his own, hands going to the back of my head to pull me closer to him. Our tongues danced together as we feverishly kissed, wanting needing the contact with each other. His lips moved to kiss the corner of my mouth, before moving down my jaw. 

“What do you want to do, love?” he asked between kisses as his lips began sucking on a spot on my neck. 

My eyes rolled back at the sensation, as I tried to control myself to answer his question. 

“I-I don’t want to, fuck, George, d-don’t want to have sex yet,” I admitted between moans as his teeth nipped at the spot, igniting more and more pleasure. 

His mouth left my neck for a moment before finding another spot on my neck, sucking sweetly at the skin just like before. 

“You want to ride my thigh, angel? Want to get yourself off on me while I watch?” he growled against my neck.

My cheeks flushed at his dirty words, but I could feel the pool of wetness growing in my panties. 

“Yes, George,” I pleaded. He pulled his lips away from me as I peeled my shirt off and went to unbutton my pants. 

He replaced his fingers with my own, fumbling with the button and zipper much more slowly, thickening the tension and teasing me. I helped him peel the fabric off of my skin, standing up from the bed and tossing them without thinking. I was left in my lacy black panties, stalking over to him nervously whilst he sat on the edge of the bed, waiting for me. I met my lips with his in attempt to calm my nerves, my fingers tugging at the hem of his shirt. He pulled away to quickly peel his shirt off of him, making his locks look more disheveled in the sexiest way possible. 

He propped my legs up so that my knees were on either side of his left thigh, our chests flush against each other. His hands went to my hips as I lowered myself onto his thigh carefully, before slowly rolling myself against him. I sighed at the contact of my clothed clit against him, feeling him flex underneath my core. One of his hands went to my knee, pushing it closer to the tent in his pants. As I rolled myself against him again, I made sure to rub friction from my knee against his boner. His lips captured mine in a sloppy kiss, as I started to gradually pick up my pace. His hands went back to my hips, guiding my movements as I humped his leg. 

I felt the pleasure building inside of me, as I quickened my pace, desperate for my release. Our lips pulled away from each other, as I leant my forehead against his own, not able to concentrate on kissing anymore. My breath quickened and I moved my fingers to his hair, chasing my release. 

“Cum for me, angel,” he ordered, his voice soft, but raspy with lust.

I couldn’t help the moan that escaped my mouth, due to his dirty words and the way this new nickname, angel, rolled off of his tongue. I hit my climax, as I continued to rub my pussy against his leg, riding out my high. As my breathing slowed, I attached my lips back to his, pushing him back onto the bed. He scooted himself up, allowing us to lay whilst our lips danced together. He rolled himself on top of me, as my legs immediately found their way around his waist. My fingers wandered down to his jeans, unbuttoning them and fumbling with the zipper while my feet helped me peel the fabric off of his legs.

I wasn’t sure where this was going, but I could feel another ache between my legs and I was desperate for another relief. He kicked off his shoes, leaving him in his boxers as the tent between his legs became much more present. He attached his lips back to mine before surprising me, grounding his hips into mine as I felt his clothed cock against my clothed core. My jaw went slack as another moan left my lips, my sensitive heat dripping from the sensation. He rolled his hips against mine again, pressing as much into me as he could. My legs pulled him into me, needing as much friction as possible.

He began picking up the pace, his face digging into the crook of my neck as his clothed dick humped my pussy. I felt his hot breath against my neck, motivating me to move my hips against him.

“Fuck, Y/n,” he moaned into my hair. “You gonna make me cum in my briefs, angel?”

With that, I released for my second time, my body stilling underneath him as the pleasure waved over me. I could feel him twitch against my heat, feeling small spurts make wet spots through his underwear. I rode my high against him, as my breathing slowly returned to its normal pace. He rolled onto his back, lying beside me as his chest rose up and down. I turned my head to face him, as I watched him do the same. He leant his head up, looking down at the wet spot displayed through his underwear. He chuckled softly.

“You made my cum in my bloody underwear, Y/n.”

[notthefilmreview]

Reacting to THE HALF OF IT TRAILER on Netflix

Hey, it’s Dana!

As you can tell from the title I’m going to watch the trailer to THE HALF OF IT and deliver my thoughts and predictions while going through the trailer.

So read on for more!

https://youtu.be/B-yhF7IScUE (here’s the link to the trailer if you’re interested).

Just from the first bit of the trailer, we can obviously tell that this is going to be one of those nerdy-girl tropes which have been played out many many times before. 

Another main highlight (which is also the main reason why I wanted to review this trailer) is that Ellie is ASIAN! I do love how Netflix has started introducing more diverse main characters in teenage movies like these because it just shows that, yes, we too experience the same romances and struggles just like every other white teen in the universe.

(However, she does fit into the nerdy-Asian-girl trope which is a bit offputting, especially with the stereotypical glasses and all, but I guess it doesn’t matter *that* much).

Squahamish? SQUAHAMISH?

Who would name a town Squahamish, let alone decide to *live* in a town called Squahamish?

Is it even a real place?

Well, it turns out no - but there are many places called Squamish, particularly in Canada.

Okay, kind of unrelated, but the actress who plays Ellie (Leah Lewis) has a lovely talking voice. It’s really calming, almost velvety and caramelly. I actually advise you to go and watch the trailer just to listen to her voice.

Also, I like that in sync eating with her dad because just by looks and mannerisms you can tell that she and her dad seem alike reflecting how close their relationship may be.

However, this does bring up the question: where’s Ellie’s mum? She might either be dead (to be blunt) or her parents are divorced. I’m leaning towards the former more because that’s such a trope to give a character more depth and add in a little emotional scene.

Ooooooo okay, my girl’s an entrepreneur at the age of 17 - you go, girl!

Here it is, our designated love interest to come and swoop nerdy Ellie away *YAWNNNNNNN*

He’s probably going to ask her to write an essay for him and then they’ll fall in love and kiss and break social boundaries and live *happily ever after!*

DisGuSTaNggGg

This is such a beautiful wide shot.

Nevertheless, I can’t help but wonder how far in the countryside is this Squahamish??? Because the town looks quite lonely.

Only 10???? Ummmm...Ellie, honey, essays take *effort* and if you’re doing multiple different essays at once then I would definitely charge A LOT more. Seriously, I can barely do my own essays so I don’t know how she’s getting through her own work and all those other essays from other people. 

I am wondering if Ellie might get caught by the school for helping other people to cheat because she obviously has written about the same essay topic multiple times for different people and thinking about good points are hard to come up with. There are also other factors like the tone of voice while writing because certain people write in a certain type of way.

Also, this is a teen movie so there should be some aspect of a “moral to the story” and Netflix can’t promote cheating so Ellie may get caught during the climax of the movie.

So here it is, the guy wants Ellie to write this letter to Aster and then he and Ellie are going to fall in love in the process. GENERIC!

But, on a side note, Aster is very pretty so if she’s available at the end of the movie I’m available too so...

HIT ME UP, GIRL?

I hope they don’t make Aster a bitch but I know that if they go through with the generic storyline of the guy realising he wants Ellie instead of Aster then they need to make her unlikable.

I mean, who names their child Aster Flores???? 

Wait -

WAIT!

Is that a...meet-cute? Between Aster and Ellie? Are they going to fall in love? Is Ellie going to be gay? Are we getting a gay Asian?

Omgomgomgomgomgomg - YES!

I really didn’t want this movie to be generic and it looked as though it was going through that path but 44 seconds into the trailer and this movie is *definitely* anything but.

So now, after seeing this interaction, my prediction is that Ellie and Aster are going to bond just as Ellie’s friendship with The Guy (who I still don’t know the name of) blossoms so she’ll have that big conflict between helping him out with helping Aster fall in love with him and her own feelings for Aster.

If they actually make this a thing then I will be so happy; omg they just look so cute together.

BUT I do hope they don’t make The Guy the main kind of “villain” of the movie because we do need some solid male-female friendships in movies just to show guys and girls can be purely platonic without it turning into something more.

Okay, now I’m really excited!

Awkwardddddd...

Okay, so what I’m thinking is that Ellie’s love letters are going to help The Guy and Aster go on a date but when they actually go on the date, The Guy realises he has zero in common with Aster and says “hey, Ellie, I think I just liked the idea of dating Aster - but it’s you who she actually really likes and has stuff in common with!” 

Or something like that.

(Basically, I’m just trying to save The Guy’s friendship with Ellie as much as possible because he does look pretty sweet).

(Also, another side note, I love the colours of the film; they just look very simple and pleasing to the eyes).

So I’m thinking that maybe at the end of the movie, Ellie might leave Squahamish to go and explore the world (possibly with The Guy or with Aster, or both!)

Why do all these blonde girls look just a tad bit *too old* to be in High School?

Not to be rude or anything but it’s just a tad offputting to have Leah Lewis look like an ACTUAL 17-year-old and then have these side characters who look like mums they’ve decided to take their daughter to school to meet all her friends.

Seriously, look at that look on Aster’s face - she looks like her 4 mums are strutting into school, holding her hand, and completely embarrassing her!

But back to the review: Aster seems to be a popular girl (and her friends seem to be stereotypical popular bitches). But it seems as though Aster doesn’t like her popularity so she might just ditch her friends to hang out with Ellie and The Guy, then by the end of the movie they become a friendship trio (with Aster and Ellie dating because duh).

The trailer does end up revealing that The Guy finds out Ellie likes Aster (as we were all waiting for).

He does look quite betrayed but at the same time, I think he’s also angry at himself for not actually realising Ellie’s feelings before.

This might come after they become good friends so it looks as though The Guy seems (possibly) willing to give up his crush on Aster for the sake of their friendship (I hope).

Awwwww FRIENDSHIP! 

OMG yes, Netflix! I am proud of you!

This little phrase is kind of changing my thoughts on the end of the movie because I don’t think Ellie would actually go and date Aster right after The Guy tried to date her because - BRO CODE.

So, the movie might just focus on the development of their friendship and then Aster might join them to make them a trio, leading up to the possibility of Ellie and Aster getting together in the future.

Is this making sense???

DisGuSTaNggGg

Well, I don’t think The Guy got the message about bro code...

So this will probably be the height of the conflict where Ellie and The Guy fight over the fact that he knew she likes Aster yet carried on dating her.

This seems like a really cute moment but also a bit dangerous because, like, that’s a *train*. I don’t know about Squahamish but if I decided to walk across the train tracks in the UK, I would get crushed by a train, or (if I don’t die) get arrested or something.

Awwwwww he’s a JOCK!

Jock-nerd friendship goals omg that’s too cute.

Netflix do not mess up this friendship! They are too pure!

So overall I am super excited to watch the movie for the male-female friendship and the lesbian love story.

My initial reaction, as you read above, was that it was just going to be a generic heterosexual love story between this nerdy Asian girl and this white jock. 

HOWEVER (and this is a big however), when I watched the rest of the trailer, the story became anything but generic. The story seems complex, interesting, and really fitting to the lives of teenagers now.

So I urge you all to watch THE HALF OF IT on the 1st May 2020 on Netflix (and I’ll make a reaction post to the movie).

But as for now, keep binging - bye!

[dramaqueeenamby]

Waves [AU] [2]

A/N: Part 2 of 2. Only tagging the few of you who expressed interest (that I can remember lol) as I don’t want to spoil anyone else’s perfect couple.

THIS IS AU! NOTHING IN HERE IS REAL! I REPEAT! NOTHING IS REAL!

one

Words: 4K

Warnings: Angst, over the top shit, etc.

TAGS:  @purple-apricots @sisterwifeudaku @idilly @honeyybey @letsshamelessqueen-m @amazonian-strap-queen

Waves

It started out small.

Minute.

Barely even noticeable to anyone on the outside, but Summer wasn’t an onlooker.

She was a participant, a member, a wife.

The “I love you’s” that typically accompanied the ending of every phone call or Facetime sessions shortened to “Love you,” shifted to “love ya,” and eventually dropped to “you too.”

But she tried not to think too much of it. Christopher had been extremely booked and busy in the past year. It felt like his schedule consisted of shoot, promote, repeat. His visits home were far in between and shorter in duration. Sometimes lasting only a day before he was back on a plane leaving Australia.

As an adult, as a fellow actress, she understood. For someone with his level of fame, he was constantly being requested, his presence demanded everywhere at the same time. The Hollywood life was one that never closed.

And as he’d shared in a few interviews, he wanted to ride the wave as long as he could because he understood how fickle the industry was. Not even a year from now, his offers could dry up as they moved on to the next “it” actor. He was taking advantage of any and all opportunities. Again, Summer Hemsworth, the actress fully comprehended that.

But Summer Hemsworth, the wife and mother, couldn’t.

Not only were the kids getting older, their demands were steadily increasing. Emmett with his lacrosse practice, Elysha with her ballet classes, both in soccer, not to mention school and all of the project and homework assignments that included. Summer was playing both roles of mommy and daddy and shooting a Netflix show about an hour from where they lived. It was a lot, even with the help of Christopher’s family, and it was starting to take a toll on Summer’s health.

She’d been feeling slightly unwell in the past few weeks, but she chalked it up to exhaustion. She was constantly on the run. The stomach pain was irritating but tolerable, and the increased urge to urinate made watching the kids practice a bit harder. Her appetite was also changing, suddenly taking less time for her to become full, definitely a big change considering how much Summer loved to eat.

But, again, she had her kids to worry about. She’d put off her check up for as long as she could, finally penciling it in on a day the twins went to their Uncle’s house after school.

The ride to the appointment consisted of Summer discussing a potential role with her manager, Mercedes. The ride back, however, was dead silent. Summer turned her phone completely off to make sure of that.

Later that night, the twins managed to get their father on the phone, the first time they’d been able to talk to him in almost a week.

Of course, they talked and talked and talked. They had to fill him in on every single thing that happened, minute by minute, in his absence. It made them feel more connected with him despite the continents separating them.

“Papa, when are you coming home?”

Emmett was the one to pose the question, his normally lively demeanor dampened as he thought about the last time he’d been able to hug his papa. Almost two months.

“Yeah. We miss you,” Elysha added, looking over at her mother. “Right, mama?”

Summer naturally hit the lock button on her iPad. She blinked a couple times, lifting her eyeglasses onto her head, forcing a small smile. “Of course, mija.”

Emmett’s eyes widened. “Can we come see you!” He looked over to his twin to see that his expression was mirrored. “Please, papa? We’ll be good!”

“Yeah! Really really good!”

Christopher cleared his throat. “I don’t-”

“I have a few days off,” Summer added, forcing herself to mentally join the conversation. “And the school can accommodate whatever they miss.”

Christopher’s eyes furrowed. “How’d you get out of filming?”

His question unnerved her. She hadn’t thought of an excuse. “Not sure. Some hold up on Netflix end.” She shrugged and quickly moved to change the subject. “It would be nice to see you, babe. I-I really do miss you, and-”

“I miss you all too, you know that,” he sighed. Summer looked over at the kids, their excitement evident in the way they started bouncing up and down on the bed. “I just-I don’t want to have you all travel this way to spend what? A couple hours with me before I have to shoot.”

Summer rubbed her forearm. “It’s a couple more than what we get now.”

Heavy sighing from his end let Summer know that he was still not in agreement. “Well, what about this weekend?”

“What about it?”

“Could you come see us instead? Would that be easier?” She offered, the twins even more elated at that proposition. They hated traveling.

“You want me to take a 15 hour flight to come stay for like two days-”

“You’ve done it before.” Summer was confused. They’d both made travel sacrifices in the name of family. What was so different about this time? “Didn’t you say that you had off from filming?”

He was caught off guard. “Not any more. I have to do some reshoots.”

She frowned. “This early? It’s not even in post-prod-”

“Damn,” he interrupted. “I’m sorry, Summer, I have to go. That’s the director calling now.”

A chorus of “no’s” erupted from the twins. Summer gave them a sympathetic smile. “Come on, guys. You can talk to papa later.”

They weren’t happy, but they acquiesced, telling their father that they loved him. As they scuffled out the room, Summer cleared her throat and lowered her voice. “Can you call me when you get done? I-I need to talk to you.”

“Yeah. Of course. You too.” Was his distracted and nonchalant reply.

She sighed. “I l-” The beep that accompanied an ended call was her reply. Licking her lips, she brought the phone to her chest, her head immediately returning to that place.

“Mama! Emmett broke the TV!”

“Did not!”

She wiped at the tear that managed to escape, thankful for the distraction when her brows furrowed. She suddenly had an idea.

“Kids, come here!” She shouted, waiting for the rapid patter of their frenzied footsteps as they appeared before her. “Mama has an idea.”

-------

“Are we almost there yet?”

Summer rolled her eyes.

“Not since the last time you asked, kiddo, which was five minutes ago.” Looking in the rearview mirror, she watched Emmett cross his arms and slump in his carseat. She chuckled. Any other time, she would have probably grown frustrated with the incessant questions. But today...today she was thankful. Beyond thankful.

Then again, her weekly appointments to the doctor were the driving reason behind her improved outlook.

A lot of things that typically evoked irritation were suddenly being welcomed. Her perspective was changing.

Elysha giggled and wagged her legs, pulling her Build A Bear close to her chest. “I can’t wait to see papa!”

“Me too!”

Contrary to what Christopher suggested, a couple hours with him was more than worth the lengthy time travel. Sure, all three were exhausted, but the idea of being reunited with him made it all worth it.

She’d done some digging in old texts and got the location of the condo he was staying in while he filmed and arranged so that they’d arrive while he was still on set in an effort to surprise him.

“Can we order pizza, mama?”

“Nooooo. Chinese!”

“Pizza!”

“How about both?” She suggested. They cheered. She laughed. Repeat.

Fifteen minutes later, they’d arrived, unpacked, and tried to settle down. Mostly, the kids ran around, exploring their new environment as Summer tried to prepare for Christopher’s arrival in a few hours.

Wiping at her forehead, she felt herself growing weak. She needed to eat something but feared that whatever she tried to consume would come up one way or another. Instead, she tried to busy herself.

Summer explored her husband’s place, picking up on a few things. He had more food than what was necessary for a single man. Not to mention, there was a lot of junk food.

Christopher didn’t eat junk food. She tried not to overthink things and instead moved up to the bedroom, deciding to take a shower after putting on a movie for the kids to keep them preoccupied for a good thirty minutes.

Pulling out a change of clothes and a shower cap which felt strange considering she was used to trying to fit in her mass of curls. Curls that used to cascade down her back but now grazed her shoulders.

She was allowing the warm water to rush down her body when she noticed two separate body washes, one specifically for men and another infused with Shea Butter.

Christopher hated the smell of Shea Butter but tolerated it for her sake. What was he doing with it?

Again, she ignored it.

Summer was out the shower, sitting down on the bathroom seat, trying to catch her breath. She could have fell asleep right then and there, but she powered through it.

Standing up, she reached for her lotion in her travel bag when something black sticking out of the drawer caught her eye.

Frowning, she pulled the drawer open and paused.

It was a bonnet. Not only that, the drawer was filled with Bobby pins, rat tail combs, and small thing of Creme of Nature edge control.

Summer had never used that brand a day in her life.

“What the hell?”

It was rhetorical. Slightly. Mind in a million and one places, Summer distractedly pulled her clothes on, popping in her evening cocktail of medications before exiting the bathroom.

“Mommy!”

Elysha’s excited voice managed to make her smile only for it to drop seconds later when she hears another voice.

“Come on, Lee. I’m sure your mommy’s busy.” Actually, mommy was very confused, not busy. Sauntering our the bedroom and into the hall, she stood at the top of the steps.

Emmett and Elysha stood at the bottom laughing and giggling, pulling on the persons pants leg. Elysha was the first to speak.

“Look, mommy! It’s aunt Yanda!”

Sure enough, Summer’s longtime best friend awkwardly swayed at the bottom of the stairs. Summer observed the singer. Her hair was piled on top of her head, and her feet were bare. She wore a pair of black, adidas joggers and a white and blue Emery hoodie, size XL, a small bleach spot on the inner hoodie.

Summer knew that for a fact because the hoodie belonged to Christopher. So did the joggers.

“Hey, girl.” Siyanda spoke with a tentative smile, laughing as the kids continued to hug her side. “What-”

“Yanda!”

Before either woman could react to the new voice, the kids were already running full speed ahead.

“Papa!”

Emmett and Elysha followed the sound of the shout, tracing it to the front door where a surprised Christopher was ambushed.

“Whoa,” he stumbled, bending down to scoop them up in his arms for a bear hug. “What are you two doing here?”

“We wanted to surprise you, papa!” Elysha shared excitedly, grinning from ear to ear.

“Surprise!” They both yelled at the same time, making the actor chuckle.

Emmett suddenly asked. “Did you miss us?”

“Of course, I missed you.” He replies warmly when he thought of something. “Where’s your mother?”

“Right here,” Summer answered for them, walking in with Siyanda not too far behind her. Christopher stood up, his smile gradually dropping as he tried to make eye contact with Siyanda. She kept her gaze on the ground.

Christopher forced himself to meet his wife’s surprisingly calm gaze. She smiled softly.

“Surprise.”

And just like that, he knew that she knew.

———————-

For Emmett and Elysha, the rest of that evening was a ball, they were with their parents and their aunt Siyanda, who Summer insisted stay and have dinner with them.

The songstress was visibly uncomfortable with the offer, but Summer simply laughed softly and smiled. “Please. You’re family. Right?”

Silence.

It was uncomfortable as could be for both Christopher and Siyanda who watched as Summer carried on like nothing was wrong, like she hadn’t figured out what was going on. She even helped deflect when Emmett pointed out that his papa had the same sweatshirt.

Summer was providing a real life example of kill em with kindness.

Even as she and Christopher put the children to bed, she managed to coexist with him in a way that relayed absolute serenity despite the turmoil boiling within.

“Let’s hope they stay asleep,” she chuckled, walking down the stairs, Christopher and Siyanda on her tail. The two of them communicated in nonverbals, each unsure how to approach and the woman that they both cared for yet had betrayed in the worst way possible. “They wore me out.”

Being that he was her husband, Chris was the first to speak. “Summer, I-”

“You know, it’s funny.” Summer smiled as she walked into the kitchen, hands over the knife set. Watching her evaluate and pick up the largest one, Christopher instinctively placed a hand in front of Siyanda. “In the back of my mind, I always wondered what I would do if you ever cheated on me.”

As she stood around, eyeing the knife with boredom, both her husband and best friend wondered how to keep a safe distance between them and her. The lackadaisical tone of her voice was deeply unnerving.

“If I would cry, breakdown, whoop that ass which you both know I’m more than capable of doing,” she spoke with a humorless chuckle. It was true. While both Chris and Siyanda had backgrounds in martial arts, Summer was a beast at various forms of martial arts, MMA, taught by her brothers military combat, and had a hell of a temper. They knew of the stories from her childhood, from how she would both start and finish a fight. Boy or girl. It didn’t matter. She didn’t care. Her hands were universally crafted for a wide variety of ass kickings.

“And yet, all I can do is laugh.” She shrugged, walking over to the remaining slices of pizza, starting to cut them into smaller slices. “Do you guys want some?”

Siyanda swallowed, pushing Chris’s arm down so that she could approach the island, stopping when Summer lifted the knife. “But don’t test me.”

The singer took a deep breath. “Girl….I-I am so sor-”

“No, you’re not,” Summer interrupted gently. “Sorry you got caught? Of course. Why wouldn’t you?” She giggled, pushing a piece of her hair behind her ear. “It could have been worse. I could have caught you in the act. Now that would have been something to see.”

“I never meant to hurt you, Summer. I-this-”

“Now Christopher, you know I hate stammering,” she sighed with faux disappointment. “Come on. Spit it out. She was here. I wasn’t. You got lonely, vulnerable, which of em’ is it? Not that I care, but humor me.”

“You know,” Summer repeated slowly, laughing quietly. “Let me tell you what I know. Actually, no. Why don’t you tell him?”

“Damnit, Summer.” He ran his hands over his face. “Can you please be serious?”

She froze, her smile icy. “Serious? You want to get serious?” She pushed her lips together and nodded slowly, wiping her hands to shake the crumbs off. “Alright. Let’s do this. Let’s put that Teen Choice Award or was it The People’s Choice? Aww, whatever, one of two awards you’ve won in your entire career to work.” She leaned back against the counter, pointing to herself. “Or do you want me to go? I prefer least to greatest so….”

“Summer, please. We just want to talk.”

“Is that what you call it? Talking?”

Chris closed his eyes. “Sweetheart-” He was silenced by Summer extending her arm and knocking over the entire box of pizza, watching it spill onto the granite floor.

“Don’t,” she whispered, clasping her hands together in a praying motion. “Don’t you dare.”

He looked away with shame, unable to even allow his eyes to watch as her jaw trembled.

“You want serious, Christopher?” She questioned rhetorically. “Serious is how I wake up some mornings so weak that I can’t even get out of bed. I have to crawl to the bathroom, where I sit on the floor, trying to force myself to hurry up and vomit because I know that I have to get kids up and ready for school. And god forbid they find me like that.”

“Serious is going to work every day sometimes filming for hours upon hours only to rush and pick the twins up from school and rush them to their practices all while praying to God that I don’t pass out from exhaustion.”

“Serious is going to that goddamn hospital twice a week for four hours of chemotherapy all while taking 10 different medications three times a day which sorta, kinda, not at all help with the side effects.” She gestured to her hair. “And it gets shorter by the week-”

Christopher was at a complete loss of words. “W-what? Chemo? What are you-”

Summer laughed bitterly, gasping quietly. “Oh, she didn’t tell you?” She motioned to a misty eyed Siyanda. “What, ya’ll two don’t have pillow talks?” She shook her head. “Silly me. You probably don’t like all that greasy ass Afro Sheen she uses on those balding edges on your pillowcase.” A beat. “Go on, girl. Tell him.” She encouraged with that same stoic smile. “Don’t be bashful now. You certainly weren’t bashful when you were fucking him.”

Siyanda winced. “Summer, pl-”

“What is she talking about?” He asked quietly, quickly growing angry when she remained silent. “Answer me!”

Summer rolled her eyes. “You don’t want to do it? Fine. Allow me.” Despite her best efforts to maintain her icy grin, it gradually dropped as Summer bitterly forced out the next statement. “I have cancer. Ovarian, to be specific.” A beat. “Stage IV.”

Silence. And then, denial.

“Wh-what? No.” He shook his head, placing his hands behind his neck. “No, you don’t.”

“Ask her.” Summer was staring directly at her former friend. “She was on the phone with me the day I found out. “One of three people I told because I trusted her.”

“Cancer?” He whispered, hands on the counter. His heartbeat was erratic as were his thoughts. “You have cancer, and you didn’t tell me?”

“I didn’t know how to tell you. I didn’t want to worry you.” She replied, staring at the ground. “Imagine that.”

“Summer…” She forced herself to look up. He was crying. She swallowed back the sob in the back of her throat and turned her head. “I-I’m so sorry-”

“Don’t be sorry for me,” she informed softly, gaining back her small smile. “I know I’m going to be okay.” She spoke more to herself than to them. “I actually feel sorry for you. For the both of you.” She took a deep breath and lifted her chin. “Because let me tell you what else I know.”

“I know that I did nothing to deserve or cause this. Not the cancer and certainly not you cheating on me with my best friend. Well, former.” Siyanda sniffled, wiping the tears that continued to spill. “I know that it was probably the insecurities got to you. Right? I make a film, it shatters the box office meanwhile are your movies still even bringing in a profit? Is single digit still considered a success?”

She shrugged. “Ally, Bashira, Storm, my relevancy covers a vast collection of roles, but you? You, my dear husband, will always just be known as Thor, and when those Marvel checks dry out, which they will….you’ll be lucky if you can land a fucking one season only, CW program,” she spat coldly. “You couldn’t handle being with a strong, successful, beautiful, black woman like myself, and that’s okay. Really.” A beat. “I’ve always had a soft spot for the less fortunate.”

“And you.” Summer turned her gaze on Siyanda and tilted her head to the side. “You know, my grandma always said not to trust you because you looked like the type of whore to look another woman in the face and laugh and converse all while sleeping her man behind her back….wait till’ grams hears about this.”

“Summer-”

“I really feel sorry for you though because for all of the fans who adore you, for now, at least. We both know this new girl. What’s her name? Shayera? She took the number #1 spot didn’t she? Damn, when is the last time you had a number one?” She groaned and squeezed the bridge of her nose. “Never mind. It would take too long.”

“S-”

“All of these accolades, awards, talent, it all means absolutely nothing because you know, and I know, that at the end of the day, you return home to a cold, empty, barren house because, let’s be real, no one likes their cum rag to spend the night. That’s what you are, a disposable bucket for men to fuck as they please and discard like the scum that you are.” She motioned to Chris. “Ask him.”

Summer covered her mouth. “Oh wait. Can I? Please. Let me.” She bounced on her heels with anticipation. “You want to know how this plays out? He’s done with you, sweetie. See, as fucked up as a person he is to have done this in the first place, and not that it makes it any better, I can almost-no, I know that if you had told him that I was sick, you? Gone. This film? On hold. He would have had his ass on the first available flight home. Why? Shit, I forget, you don’t know what love is. After all, everyone who has ever loved filth like you….is gone.”

Summer gave a faux, sad, sigh. “He’s going to return home and do everything he can to try to make recompense, and one day, I will forgive him. But you, sweetie? You’re dead to him, and me. My kids, our kids, they’ll be hurt, yes, but when they’re older and they find out what kind of dirt you are? They’ll despise you.”

“God,” she laughed. “There is literally no scenario where you win. Now imagine that, all of that fucking for tracks, betraying people who actually gave a damn about that, playing house with my husband, not to mention the other taken men you fuck on the regular….all of that….and where does it leave you??” Her smile dropped. “The same place where you started, you seasonal bitch.”

Summer took a deep breath, closing her eyes, and placing her hand over her heart. “Well, that was intense.” She yawned. “It’s been quite a day, hmm? I’m going to head to bed.” She smiled sweetly, walking past a devastated Christopher and humiliated Siyanda. “Enjoy your lives.” A beat. “I know I am.”

[psychic-refugee]

Sometimes I get basic and like to read gossip.

So, there’s this thread going about that mainly focuses on Dove Cameron.

https://prettyuglylittleliar.net/topic/3903-dove-cameron/?page=37

I cannot and do not make any claims to the validity of the thread’s contents.

This is all internet gossip from an anonymous “set employee” who does not name themselves. Please take this with a grain of salt. I do not necessarily believe this gossip, and I write about it mostly for entertainment purposes. Remember, this is the internet, anyone can make up anything. Whatever you happen to believe is true is based solely on your own preconceptions and biases, as nothing is substantiated, and it all amounts to hearsay.

Please also remember that any anecdote is solely from one person’s point of view. A point of view they are expressing behind the back of said celebrity who is not given a chance to defend themselves nor have they put forth their version of events.  

It does not paint her in a flattering light. It literally goes on for 61 pages of mostly people ragging on her plastic surgery (“PS”). I am not a plastic surgeon, so I cannot 100% say what she has gotten done, but as a layperson and from my own opinion, I would suspect that she has had fillers (specifically for her lips), a nose job, and something done to her cheeks. I do agree with that she looks vastly different in each movie, with more work done as time progresses. I’ve also seen her stint on Shameless and bearing in mind that she was 15/16 vs 19/20, I still think she had a lot of work done. I don’t think her transformation can be brushed off as losing baby fat or growing into her looks.   

I’m not super offended by PS. There’s this notion that celebrities maintain this impossible standard, but I think it goes both ways. The public isn’t interested in flaws. They want and even demand perfection from their idols. Fans are quick to “cancel” people or they move on to the next hot new thing. It’s kind of a destructive co-dependent relationship. Like honestly, how many celebrities would you “stan” if you didn’t find them attractive? And what do we find attractive? How quick are people to point out flaws in candid photos? I’m not saying everyone does this, but it’s enough to be pervasive in celebrity culture and I think it’s unfair to try to say it doesn’t exist or to not acknowledge the extreme pressure celebrities are under. The thread itself is an example of it. It’s mostly people ragging on Dove about how bad they think she looks now.

No one is famous without our permission and I have yet to see anyone boost anyone who wasn’t at least conventionally good looking. If they are selling an impossible standard, we are the ones buying it.

So, no. I do not find PS all that problematic in itself. I will agree there is something disingenuous about going on about self-love while heavily filtering/photoshopping pictures on top of PS.

But I also find it disingenuous to talk about body dysmorphia or the mental health dangers of PS and then rag on someone and speculate about every PS they may have had.

Pot, meet kettle.

People bring up that young people look up to her and while I agree that she does have great influence, I just don’t know if it’s really her (or any celebrities’) responsibility to be a good role model. A human is a human, is a human, right? No one person is ever going to be perfect and while they may do something admirable in one part of their life, that doesn’t mean they have to be admirable in every part of their life. That’s another impossible standard fans put on celebrities. I think we should all critically think when giving our time, attention, energy, etc…to anyone. Learning how to critically think is a parent’s job. My mother specifically raised me without celebrity magazines and to take into account what they do and say, and to be skeptical of anything anyone tries to sell me.

Why is it a celebrities’ job to be a third parent?

They’re only responsible for what they do, you’re responsible for what you do.

Holding celebrities accountable for false things they say or try to hock is different. Example, if X celebrity says that this specific tea or vitamin is what they owe their beauty and success to when really it’s the lifestyle they can afford and genetics. Then yes, point out that what they’re selling is snake oil and a lie or just don’t buy it. At some point we have to take personal responsibility for what we consume. Or if these are impressionable young people, then hold their parents accountable as well. If they’re so young, then they’re not buying this stuff, their parents are. And we should take into account what celebrities associate themselves with. I think it’s telling if a person literally doesn’t care what they sell as long as they make money. If someone is willing to sell you dangerous laxatives and call it a diet, that should clue you in on how much they respect their fans and you should rethink giving them your money.

Again, the celebrity is just the spokesperson/seller. It’s up to us to actually research and determine if what they’re selling is worth it or safe. It’s also up to us to figure out if the celebrity uses their fame wisely. If no to either, then it’s also up to us to keep admiring them or not. Celebrities tend to change their tune if their money is threatened.    

I feel like Dove’s PS in itself is a non-issue. Whatever pic of herself that she posts on Insta or any surgery she admits to is her own business. How I react and what I spend my money on is my business. I do not buy into her proclamations of self-love, I do not buy into her vitamins, I do not buy into the highlight reel of the life she’s trying to portray. I see her for what she is: a celebrity. No more, no less.

I am interested in the reports of her diva behavior. Throwing fits, stealing from set, and yelling at set employees does give a bigger picture of her as a person. And it also helps shatter the illusion of a perfect, happy, person. I don’t want to demonize her, but it is good to humanize celebrities. I do think people should take into account how celebrities treat people that are their subordinates.

I don’t think anyone is so talented or famous that they should be given a pass to be a monster to people.

Dove is not so unique in looks or talent where she can’t be replaced.  

There were implications that she is struggling with an eating disorder, it kind of fed into why she may be getting all this PS and the types of photos she takes for Insta. I also wonder if it explains (not excuses) her behavior. She’s probably constantly hungry!

They also alleged that she had been taken “illegal” diet pills. The illegal part might be relative, because the commenter mentioned it may have been Hydroxycut. In the States, it’s an over the counter diet supplement that is mostly just a high dose of caffeine and some herbs. It’s not like an upper or some prescription. Hydroxycut is legal in the States and she probably just brought it over with her. I don’t think it’s a controlled substance, merely just banned for sale in Canada. I’d be more worried that she’s taking it with other stimulants like coffee and soda.

There’s also allegations that she had been cheating on her former fiancé with Thomas during filming of Descendant’s 2, while Thomas also was in another relationship. These things happen, they’re human. It’s a personal issue they should deal with. I wouldn’t want either as a significant other in light of it, but that’s about it. I would be weary of anyone who has an affair as potential mates. If they’ll cheat with you, chances are they’ll cheat on you. But I’m never going to date either of them, so it’s not really my place to judge.

Another tidbit that came from the thread that I’m interested in is Mitchell Hope’s alleged drug use. The comments didn’t specify what he was on, only that he seemed “strung out.” So, if I were making a bet, then it’d be on him to write a tell-all book. I’m pretty jaded on the fact that there are drug addled teen stars. I think it’s just par for the course. Disney makes sure they have a clean image while making and promoting the movies, they literally will protect and pay for good coverage. But once that protection is over then everything comes to light. Mitchell isn’t even really the most famous of the stars for Descendants. He hasn’t really done anything worth noting outside of Descendants. It looks like he has a role in a Netflix Christmas rom-com coming out, but again nothing to really be too impressed with.

I don’t see him lasting long if he’s already showing up to work high. Money goes quick between jobs, especially if you’re blowing it on drugs. There’s also an allegation of hooking up with a set employee. I don’t see anything wrong in terms of two consenting adults, but it’s bad form professional wise. It’s especially in poor taste if he’s 1) obvious about it and 2) makes it public knowledge that it’s just a hook up. Have your fun and all but be discreet and classy about it. Otherwise you’re burning bridges. I think she’ll have more issues than he would, which is why discretion should have been practiced. Like even if he had no intention of getting into a relationship with her, at least respect your partner enough to not endanger their livelihood. But I guess she’ll live and learn.

I was glad to see that Cameron really wasn’t mentioned, at least not in terms of anything bad like diva behavior. He was implicated in stealing items from the set (like costume pieces) but the commenter used the universal “everyone,” so they didn’t outright name him like with Dove and Sofia, so they may have been hyperbolic. Otherwise they said he was always nice, which is good to hear.

I saw a post from another blog asking their opinion about Cameron being friends with Dove despite the behavior alleged in the thread. I want to say that I think their friendship is over conflated. Most of their interactions have been for promos/BTS for Descendants. I don’t think I recall ever seeing them hang together on a purely platonic level, not like he did with Sophie and Karan.

I think people, mostly kids, want to see their movie best friends be best friends in real life. I feel like all the promo stuff insinuated that they all LOVED each other, and they all got along ALL THE TIME. I think most people know that there’s never an instance where literally every person in a large group gets along all the time. They might be cordial and polite to them to be professional, and I think we need to remember that the cast are co-workers.

We also have to remember that they’re young and want to do well in the industry. They won’t want to get a reputation of being difficult or even a snitch. So, while Cameron may or may not have liked Dove that deeply on a personal level, I’ve always felt he was the utmost professional. He’s not going to antagonize her or call her out unless she did something super egregious like hit someone (and maybe not even then, I did not know him personally). From the thread, Dove threw tantrums and yelled at people, none of that warrants risking his reputation for. Even the original poster of the thread wouldn’t give out their name for fear of reprimand and possible legal action. On some level, they too do not think it’s worth calling Dove out for any real consequences.

They’re willing to gossip about it, but they’re not willing to give actual credibility to their story.

When his manager was indicted, he immediately fired him. I think that speaks to his character and if Dove had done something truly heinous, he would have stood up to her.

We also have to remember that it’s possible that this entire thread in terms of Dove’s behavior might be completely made up. We have nothing to go on besides this one person’s account, and we have no idea who this person is. Literally anyone can create a username, open a thread account, and say “I work for X company and I had Y position with Z celebrity.” I can’t verify any of that. One person can also make dozens of accounts, say they’re different people, and try to tell the same story. Again, that doesn’t make any of it true. Even if we took their account as true, we only have their side of the story.

I would never judge Cameron or the others on who they’re friends with based on salacious gossip.

[ouranimeyeah]

Lesean Thomas’ Yasuke- Concerning yet Invigorating.

Note: I am a long standing supporter of Lesean Thomas’s work and I bear no ill will to his production but I felt I needed to say something. Take it as you will, it’s more so the ravings of fan exploring their opinions and ideas not a direct attack on Thomas or his work which are all note worthy pieces of art with their flaws and all!

Okay It’s no surprise after my thoughts on Cannon busters were laid bear and my extreme excitement for Children of the Either readily apparent, that I would have something to say about Thomas’ new project coming to Netflix “Yasuke”. There isn’t much known or needed to be said about the project other then it’s going to be awesome to get a new project by Thomas, and that there are Black samurai involved. Cool right? Well yes and no.

Lesean Thomas is a creator that I respect and empathize with. Being the only black guy in the anime industry pumping out his own content i’m sure there has been tons of red tape in the realm of production that gets in the way of everything he makes. And yet he still managed to release 2 projects. I have been following Thomas’ for quite some time and his work has been exciting when it comes to the build up of hype, but sadly don’t deliver fully on the promises made in promotional material.  Which could be considered my fault on account of me putting my expectations so high with him being the first black animator in years to formulate his own projects and get them green-lit (as far as my knowledge is concerned). It makes sense to have clear issues with his other works if I do because they have already been released and possibly even finished. Of the two works he actually managed to get on the big screen one is a completed project while the other is a pilot that seemingly died in production hell. I had a preference for his Children of the Either series (over Cannon Busters)because it showed an incredible understanding of character animation and had some really interesting concepts that I was hoping to see fleshed out more. All the while managing to have an aesthetic very reminiscent of my favorite anime while not 100% feeling liking a bone dry rip off. Cannon Busters by contrast was a hodge podge of different anime references with some very in your face and hand fisted themes which broke my immersion from time to time. It’s aesthetic was inconsistent, at times the animation would relatively nice and then be followed up by what would look like a bad episode of teen titans. I never found it in my soul to find the series as lazy, just slightly misguided in it’s production. Ineffectively allocating skillful animation and art design for scenes less relevant to the plot; having dialogue sequences that very blatantly explain things with no form of nuance; and a handful of other minor attributes that made the series kind of a slug through most of the central part of the show and even had slower elements carry onto the the end.  All in all it was a decent series however, and had enough charm and pazaaz to it to the point where i could never in my right mind give the series a lower score then a 6/10, I gave it a lucky 7. Which brings me to my pre existing fears and concerns when it comes to Yasuke. 

The fundamental element of Yasuke’s promotional information that strikes me as daunting and a little cynical is the fact that the show is going to be a quote: “Magic Samurai Robot Anime” (according to vice: https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/vbammy/new-netflix-anime-lakeith-stanfield-pacific-rim-altered-carbon-yasuke-vgtrn). Now before anyone comes yelling at me to ring my neck I must first start out establishing something. For one, a Mecha magic series has already been done by Thomas in Cannon busters, which I would argue was his weakest element of the series. The technology and magic system of his story never was fully fleshed out in an interesting way and while there is a lot of mystique I feel like those elements would take away especially when it comes to the samurai/chanbara genre. Which leads me to my second point, samurai anime are surprisingly rare! AAANNNNDD I am talking about strictly samurai. Hardcore, balls to the wall, classic samurai political drama stories being depicted in anime. The last I checked the only popular samurai anime have been Rurouni Kenshin, Samurai Champloo, Dororo, Sengoku Basara, Afro Samurai (which is good but relies heavily on modern sensibilities) and Gintama. Among these the only one that truly explores the culture of samurai in any way is Dororo, and that element takes a back seat in favor of the supernatural elements. MECHA SAMURAI HAVE ALREADY BEEN DONE BEFORE, and i would argue that those two genre’s should stay separate until we get enough anime depicting samurai authentically. Or at least like an old Japanese samurai film the likes of Ran or Kagemusha! Samurai 7 is a thing guys and while it had it’s interesting elements by in large it lacked one of the fundamental elements that made samurai stories exciting and that was one on one samurai fights (outside of the fight between Kanbei and Kyuzo). Samurai have become a novelty, people assume the genre is generic for japanese culture, but it’s rare in the medium of animation that they are depicted with the same level of reverence and relevance as they are in live action film and T.V. shows. I am disappointed  that the next samurai series that is going to be green-lit by an individual I look up to so much is gonna play it safe by making another novelty samurai series with giant mechs and magic. In the time were Yasuke ventured to Japan the actual political climate is so invigorating that you DON”T NEED GIANT MECHS TO PUSH THE ENTERTAINMENT VALUE. I know mechs are an aesthetic choice I get it. But honestly, they take away some fundamental attributes so integral to the entertainment value of the samurai genre and I would think that is something that is important. All in all foregoing an interesting historical war drama with the potential to have slight supernatural elements in favor of sci fi feels like something that is starting to become boring and slightly overdone when it comes to samurai. The amount of anime that are actually about samurai that are popular in the west are few and far between and there are very few samurai series being produced now that cover Sengoku period japan. If Lesean Thomas sees this know I mean no ill will, I am only stating my personal opinion as a fan of your work. Please try something else. you can still have the hip hop aesthetic with flying lotus, you can have Lakeith Stanfield play his voice actor. But please, make an authentic samurai experience that placates to the trappings and best attributes of the genre. Because we as a society are in dire need of something of that calibre. We have gotten to a point were so many anime that are being produced stray far away from the source of what makes samurai so fascinating and entertaining to watch. And if you don’t want to draw on that fine. But don’t stop me if I want to create my own Yasuke anime. 

@leseanthomas

Love you work

Keep it up !

[romancingromanoff]

Imagine Being In The MCU And Going On Ellen Part 1/3 (Scarlett Johansson x reader)

Part 2

You’re a guest on the Ellen show and also currently dating Scarlett Johansson. I just really love Ellen and pretending that I’m a part of the Avengers cast family like it’s a huge fantasy of mine that will never come true (rip my hopes and dreams) so I decided to make it three parts haha. BONUS POINTS IF YOU KNOW WHERE CARLA SHAW IS FROM. Reader is of an unspecified gender, I use they/them pronouns. Also, part 3 of What Happens At Disney is coming soon :)

Jumping up and down in front of the mirror in your dressing room you kept trying various dance moves to see how they looked. It was Ellen so of course you had to dance out onto the stage when she introduced you! Though you had technically met with her before at Chris Hemsworth’s birthday party, it was really just a quick “hello,” “how are you,” and a funny comment from her that made you laugh. So nerves were naturally part of the reason why you were so angst at the moment and felt like you had to get rid of a bunch of pent up energy.

Your door opened which almost made you choke on the sip of water you had in your mouth. “Y/N, you’re one in five!” the crew member tapped her watch and you could only respond with a noise that sounded a little bit like “mmhmm” with your mouth still full of your drink. Taking one last glance in the mirror, you flashed some finger guns at your reflection, immediately regretted that cringed decision, then stepped foot out into the hallway where another crew person was waiting to escort you to your place.

From stage right behind the curtain you could hear the audience’s hysteria gradually calming down after they had all won $1000 Target gift cards and Ellen sat down to introduce you. “Our next guest has taken the world by storm since we fell in love with them as Obie’s hilarious best friend, Mason, in the Netflix Original Series ‘Time To Dive.’ After a suspenseful appearance in the modern remake of ‘High Noon’ with John Hamm they joined the Avengers as a recruit with some pretty neat morphing abilities in Marvel’s newest film which is coming out next Friday. Please welcome Y/F/N Y/L/N!”

You were so overwhelmed by everyone in the crowd jumping up and down that a huge smile covered your face as you tried waving to them all while also keeping a beat in your step, which was hard to do when you couldn’t hear the music very well. Approaching the couches that you had watched all of your favorite celebrities sit in was just surreal and Ellen opening her arms up to hug you was the cherry on top. “Hi, how are you?” she said underneath the wave of all the cheering so that only you would hear.

“I’m good, thank you so much! Thank you so much for having me,” you repeated what you last said as you sat down and the clapping had died down.

“So, this is your first time on the show,” Ellen smiled.

“Yes, yes it is. And I’m so happy to be here!”

“Well, thank you so much for taking the time to stop by. I know the press tours Marvel has you doing keep your schedule super busy.” The audience let out a series of “whoos” at the sound of Marvel being mentioned.

“It’s certainly crazy and I never could have dreamed about being a part of something like this but really it’s the fans that keep it going. We owe so much to them.”

“You must have your fair share of crazy run-ins since you, you know, signed a contract with them and everything. How has going out in public changed for you?”

“It’s funny, actually,” you laugh a little bit remembering an incident that occurred about a month ago. “I mean since ‘Time to Dive’ I’ve always had fans come up to me asking for pictures and autographs; stuff like that just at restaurants and a few public places. But since I was announced as a part of the Avengers cast and started filming the run-ins have gotten a lot more frequent and I’ve found that the Marvel fans are very... um... adamant,” you laugh. “They definitely know their stuff which never fails to blow my mind.”

“I guess ‘adamant’ is one way of putting it,” Ellen jokes and you chuckle along with the crowd. “But you actually had someone like demand to take a picture with you after you had just gotten out of surgery? Is that right?”

“Oh my gosh,” your pitch got so much higher when you turned around and saw the picture from that day on the giant screen behind you. “Yeah, so it was just wisdom tooth surgery, nothing super serious but I was pretty drugged up on painkillers and loopy to say the least. Wow, okay, yeah you can see how swollen my cheeks are, aw man, and that gauze in my mouth I just look completely dead!” you remarked on the image of you with your messy bun, glasses, and sweats on as you were being pushed out of the hospital in a wheelchair.

“But you were 100% fresh out of the operating room where you were under anesthesia and a complete hot mess?” Ellen laughed as you squirmed in your seat from a mixture of embarrassment and just laughing at how hilarious you looked and how strange the situation was then.

“I don’t know if ‘hot mess’ is how I would put it, but it was definitely strange.”

“And they drug you up pretty well for this surgery, right? Like there are a lot of people who film themselves or get a relative to film them post-surgery because they’re prone to say really crazy things.”

“Honestly, I think that a part of me just thought it was standard procedure,” you admit which makes the audience crack up. “I don’t remember it too well but the fan who’s crouching next to me in the picture basically stopped me and asked for a picture and I was probably just like ‘sure, why not?’ you know? Like everything was normal.”

“Speaking of pictures, there’s a photo of you and one of your co-stars going around that’s been building up a ton of talk over the last six months,” the audience cheers as the screenshot of your instagram post comes up. It’s probably your most favorite photograph in the whole world and you can’t help but smile upon seeing it. You are your girlfriend Scarlett weren’t too public with sharing all of the details about your relationship and you both valued privacy pretty highly. As a celebrity on instagram you were pretty inactive compared to a lot of others your age since you never went live, rarely posted on your story except to promote big press events, and would go weeks or even months before you’d upload something new to your feed. Even though the photo was from six months ago, it was actually the 4th most recent on your profile. Scarlett, of course, didn’t have any social media at all and you respected her wishes to try and keep a low profile online by never posting any photos of her and you, but this picture was the one exception that she had allowed.

“That is just adorable,” Ellen smiled and the audience followed with a giant “awwwwww” which made you blush. “So this was taken on snapchat?”

“Yeah, that’s the dog filter,” you point to Scarlett’s face which has the staple dog ears and nose on her in the center. But she’s also laughing so the big pink dog tongue is sticking out with her face all crunched up as you’re giving her a big kiss on the cheek. “We’ve been dating for a little over a year,” a lot more “awes” and hoots instantly follow which makes you laugh. “But that was the first time we both felt okay with posting a photo of us just being together. It was a surprise for a lot of people; including myself too.”

Ellen gets a mischievous look on her face and leans in really close to you. “You know, it’s funny that you mention surprises because I-”

“Oh no,” you gasp suddenly clutching the arms of the chair really tight and spinning your head around to check behind you. Absolutely EVERYONE in the cast had warned you about the pranks Ellen loved to play on her show that almost made some of them pee their pants in fear. A couple of years ago when you were just another regular Marvel fan that followed all of their talkshow appearances you had watched the videos of the Chrises or Scarlett being surprised by someone in a crazy costume on repeat. It was hilarious of course, but now being in a position where it might happen to you was terrifying. You were embarrassingly easy to scare and in that moment you took back all of the times you had laughed at others being surprised on the show.

“You can relax, nothing’s back there,” Ellen reassures you while chuckles and excited squeals fill the studio. “Or maybe there is.”

Your eyes widen again and your heart drops as you turn back around.

“But, no, no there isn’t,” Ellen corrects herself. “Or is there? I don’t know.” You anxiety keeps dropping then shooting back up as she plays with you and by now your neck is hurting from straining it back so much. “I’m just kidding, I do know. And there isn’t anything,” she finally settles the tension before looking straight into one of the cameras. “But we do have a good surprise and it is not scary, I swear, coming up after the break.” You’re clutching your speeding heart in both your hands as the Ellen theme music plays cueing the commercials. The  clapping dies down quickly as a bunch of set workers being moving cameras and lighting and you follow the blonde you’ve admired for so long as she stands up and goes in for another hug.

“Hey, Y/N, you need some water?” she picks up a bottle from behind her chair and you nod. “HERE you go!” she pretends she’s about to splash it all on your shirt and you jump back making a panicked sound before you realize that she’s kept the top of it on and there’s nothing on you.

“Scarlett said to watch out for you!” you laugh and are happy to hear that your mic is off.

“Really? She did?” Ellen smiles like the two of you have known each other for years and it makes you a hundred times more comfortable. Most interviewers were so stiff and acted like robots off camera but you were finding Ellen to be extremely friendly and caring. “Me and Portia love you guys by the way.”

“Wow,” you can’t believe what you’ve just heard. “Thank you. I mean, thanks that is just crazy to hear. We love you two as well and I’ve always been a fan of your show; it’s what got me through school, haha. And, yes, Scarlett almost made me too scared to come on but I really wanted to meet you.”

“Well I’m glad that you came too. Hey, I heard that you and Scarlett were thinking about adopting a new pet?”

“Yes!” you nod your head excitedly. “We really want a dog. I grew up with two but I’m just worried about having to leave the little guy or girl at home for long periods of time or having to make them travel a lot with us.”

“Yeah I totally understand. But like for me, going home to my cats every evening and just laying on the couch with them and Portia is what keeps me sane.”

“Absolutely, same for me.”

“Woah, okay, can you just come stand over here for one second?” she pulls you to the side as a set worker instantly lifts your chair up and takes it away only to be replaced by two other crew members that have a full sized couch. That was strange. Usually you’d be told if there were going to be guests or fans that you’d have to interact with on shows but you just shrugged it off and assumed that a fan from the audience would be coming up to meet you and it was just a surprise. “Thanks.”

“And we’re back on in ten!” one of the producers yelled and you and Ellen took your seats. “Five, four, three....”

The audience was cheering once again as the music played. “Alright, we’re back with Y/F/N Y/L/N,” Ellen said looking into the camera. “And before we left we told you that there was a surprise for you.”

“Yes, and I’ve noticed that you’ve expanded the seating area so- oh wait,” you interrupted yourself to turn around to check and make sure nothing was behind you again which made the audience laugh.

“No, there’s nothing there. We actually have someone in the audience today who is a huge fan of yours that would just love to meet you.”

“Cool beans!” the audience starts shrieking and jumping up and down not knowing who it’s going to be.

“So the fan is actually completely blind but is a part time worker at Barnes & Noble and also operates rollercoasters at six flags during the summer.”

“Oh.... oh my God, I mean, that’s amazing I’d love to meet them,” you were suddenly very nervous about meeting this person.

“In a letter they wrote to us, they said ‘even though I cannot see my only dream in life is to see Y/N in person.’ From Duluth, Minnesota, please welcome Carla Shaw!”

Scanning the audience you finally catch sight of a very timid woman with frizzy red hair and dark sunglasses get up towards the top and smack dab in the middle of the aisle. Not so sure of what to do, you almost get up from your seat when you don’t see any crew members going over to help her as she shuffled her way past other audience members who are simply clapping and leaning away from her as she feels the tops of the chairs to walk towards the stairs. “I should probably help her,” you get up and jog off the stage to go assist this poor woman who’s waving her cane around feeling for where the steps are. You are shocked and almost appalled that no one else getting up to help her and you jog up the steps carefully and go to lock your elbow into hers so you can guide her down.

“Allow me,” you offer before she completely spazzes our in front of you tripping down two steps and throwing her cane in the air. “SHIT!” you scream and forget that this is daytime television. You immediately fall to your knees and go to try and help them up when you notice that they’re just sitting there laughing. That laugh. You know that laugh.

“Oh my God-“ you breath as they reach for their hair and pull off what is actually a wig and then take off the giant black glasses. “I cannot believe you!” you yell at Scarlett who’s laughing hysterically at your dumb face.

“Hey baby,” she says cheekily and you roll your eyes as the two of you get up together. The crowd is going completely bezerk and girls all around you and covering their faces with their hands, mascara dripping with tears of joy and disbelief. She pulls you in for a hug and the screams get louder which you didn’t even think was possible.

“Scarlett Johansson everybody!” Ellen is clapping from the stage as your girlfriend waves to some fans and the camera. You playfully bump your shoulder into her and she pushes you back like you’re two bumper cars as you walk down towards the stage. Once you’re up there, the two of you turn around to wave at the audience some more and you’re certain that your eardrums are permanently damaged.

“I’ll sit on this si- AHHHHHHH!”

“AHHHHH SHIT”

You both scream with horror in your eyes as you see the cushions from the couch launch into the air as a beastly looking guy dressed like a yeti explodes two feet in front of you. His growling almost gives you a heart attack and you and Scarlett instinctively clutch into each other with both of you trying to hide behind the other.

Your grip on your girlfriend is so tight and you don’t let go until the yeti guy has completely disappeared running offstage. Ellen is in a complete fit of laughter that has rendered her unable to stand. She’s laughing, struggling to take breaths when she needs to from her chair while high pitched screams continue to get louder and louder.

“WHY!?!” Scarlett looks at the blonde woman in horror and your fingers are up by your neck feeling for a pulse.

“Is that all the surprises? Please tell me there are no more surprises,” you cry for mercy.

The next part will be an interview with you and Scarlett where you discuss the upcoming movie, choose your favorite Chrises, and talk a little bit about your relationship

[reddeadmort]

Hmm dunno if you do modern Arthur ones but I'd love a modern or time-travelling Arthur reacting to snapchat filters. Can includes other gang members too, whomever you feel like writing.

Thank you for being so patient @nordic-breeze ! This started as just a general Arthur and social media, but then kind of accidentally evolved into a slight commentary of issues that women sometimes face. Not too sure on this one, but I hope it’s along the lines of what you were hoping for :) 

If anyone wants a bit of background reading/scene setting, I wrote some HC’s for my take on Modern Arthur - they can be found here. 

Btw, the catcalls/comments are real ones, taken from videos on youtube. And, tbh, they are some of the milder ones that feature.

Modern Arthur x f! reader | “Surely that’s enough photos now….”

Guidance: Minor fluff, protective Arthur, catcalling/sexual comments/threats

Words: 2.1k

“I just….. I don’t understand? Why do I need to be in the picture, surely it’s the skyline they want to see?”

Arthur was standing in the doorway of your balcony, facing away from you, looking out over the city. He was topless, leaning against the door frame with his arms and ankles crossed.

“Arthur, they’re following you to see YOU, not some boring modern buildings” you chuckled, as you took yet another photo.

You’d waited a while before introducing Arthur to the concept of social media; you didn’t really use it all that much yourself. You quite enjoyed using Snapchat, it was an easy way to keep up to date with your friends back home. Arthur had asked what you were doing during one of your selfie sessions sat next to him on the sofa; you’d shown him some of filters, but they completely befuddled him. 

When you’d flicked on the flower crown, he’d looked frantically between your head and the face on the screen, muttering “but there’s nothing there…” to himself. He’d practically jumped over the back of the couch when you’d done a face swap with him; it was all a bit too much. He’d spent the rest of the evening in a bit of a confused grump, occasionally pausing Netflix to ask a question -  “why do people want to take so many pictures of their own face”, “why do they change how you look so much” “why would you want to look like a dog”. You tried explaining that it was just a bit of fun, but knew when a concept was a lost cause.

Arthur was much happier to help you out with your Instagram. You didn’t post that often, mostly nice photos you’d taken on your treks. But Arthur enjoyed helping you with pictures, and the man did have an artistic flair; he’d gotten pretty good at framing the photos. He’d even started taking some pictures of his work building treehouses, mostly just to show you. Eventually, you managed to persuade him that posting these to Instagram might help promote his business; he’d agreed, but only under the proviso that you dealt with the actual posts/timings/hashtags etc. You had got a few good leads for his work through Instagram, but those jobs were mostly for rich families that had more money than sense. Arthur didn’t love doing these projects, they always ended being more 4 bedroom houses on stilts than rustic treehouses, but they did mean that he could afford to do builds for local charities at less than cost price.

But you knew that the main reason people followed Arthur was for Arthur, no matter how beautiful his work was. And so here you were, once again making him reluctantly pose for yet another picture.

“There we go, plenty to choose from now. You’re free to go now Arthur.” He let out an audible sigh of relief as he walked over to you to have a look at what you’d taken.

“I really don’t see why this is a good picture. All you can see is me pretty much.” Arthur shook his head. “Those ones that fella took of animals back in my time were much better”.

“Arthur, I’ve got 4 words for you: shoulder to waist ratio.”

“I’ll pretend I know what that means” he grunted as he pulled his t-shirt back on over his head. It had a Thor design on it; Arthur had become quite keen on Marvel. That photo you’d posted on your Instagram of him messing around, pretending to pull something out of the ground (copying the first Thor film), had got thousands of likes, despite you only having a few hundred followers. It was at that point you’d decided to set up his own account.

“Anyway Y/N, we best be goin’ to the gym if we want to eat before bed.”

“Yeh, good point, I’ll go grab my stuff.” You went to grab your workout bag with your clothes in from your bedroom as Arthur went and got changed into his, then started the short walk to the gym. As you walked, you chatted, then Arthur asked you a question.

“Here, Y/N, how come you don’t wear your gym clothes? Why’d ya always get changed there? We only live a few streets away.”

“Because, Arthur, I don’t like the attention I get. It’s not so bad when we walk together, but if I’m by myself…. It makes me uncomfortable. It can be pretty bad even if I’m not wearing my workout stuff.”

“I don’t understand? What attention?” 

Sighing, you came to a stop, looking around.

“Look, Arthur, see that group of lads sat outside that shop?” you pointed up the street. “I see them a lot. I hear them a lot. Just walk behind me a bit, close enough to hear what they say, not so close that they think we’re together.”

“Alright, but I don’t really know why. They usually don’t say anything to me.”

“Arthur, that’s because you’re not a… never mind, just follow and listen, okay? And only listen. Whatever you hear, DON’T do anything, promise?”

Arthur grunted as you walked off, then followed behind as instructed. As you suspected, even though you weren’t wearing your gym leggings and sports top, the lads quickly took notice of you.

“Hey what’s up girl, how you doin’!”

“Smile baby!”

“That’s a gorgeous ass, I’d like to hold you down while I slap it”

“Hey bitch, we’re complimenting you, you should thank us!”

You controlled your breathing and continued to walk at a steady pace, stopping in a doorway further up the street so Arthur could catch up. When he did, he looked furious.

“I’m gonna kill ‘em.” He muttered through clenched teeth.

“Arthur, you can’t. And anyway, there’s like 6 of them and one of you. Let’s not get you arrested or killed, alright?”

“But…. they shouldn’t be sayin’ those things (Y/N)! It ain’t right.” You could see him clenching and unclenching his fists.

“No Arthur, it isn’t. And I hate that because of men like them I’ve changed my behaviour and changed what I wear. But I do it to try and make myself feel safer, cause one day, someone may do more than just say things.”

Arthur wrapped his large arms around you and hugged you tight. “I’m sorry (Y/N), sorry that I didn’t understand.”

“It’s alright Arthur, now come on, we want to get to the gym while it’s not too busy.”

Arthur was quieter than normal as you walked the rest of the way – you could tell he was mulling things over. Being yanked from his time into the modern world had made him a bit naïve; it baffled him that 100 or so years later, some of the same issues still existed. 

——-

Arthur was indeed thinking about what he’d heard, but he was also thinking about what he himself had said in the past. Some of those off-hand comments to prostitutes in the saloons, things he’d said to Karen when she’d been drunk…….

You thought he was a good man, and here and now he’d done nothing to prove you wrong, but every so often a memory of his past would float up, reminding him of the things he used to do. But he’d been given a second chance - this time, he was determined to do better.

—–

You had a good workout; you always did with Arthur. You would chat and laugh together, and he was always great at motivating and encouraging you. You helped out each other’s routines where you could, but one thing you could not do was spot him. For god’s sake, the man benched way more than you even weighed. When it came time for this part of his workout, you left him with some of the other gym guys he’d grown friendly with and went to do your cardio. You didn’t love running on a treadmill, but in the city it was really the only option.

You were in your own little world when you noticed a man stood to your side talking to you. He was smiling at you; you took your headphones out, assuming he wanted to ask how much longer you’d be.

“Hello gorgeous.” Those words, from someone you didn’t know, gave you chills. “I’d love to give you some tips.”

“I’m alright thanks” you said as you gave a slight smile. It was one that you’d carefully crafted over the years; not quite big enough to encourage someone, not too small as to risk being called rude.

“No, sweetcheeks, you realllllly need my help. Here…..” As the man said it, he stepped even closer and put his hand on your back, while you were still jogging.

You slammed the stop on the machine and turned as quickly as you could away from him.

“I said I’m fine, please don’t touch me.” You were forceful, but not loud – you really didn’t want to cause a scene in the middle of the gym.

“Bitch, you need my help. You need teaching a thing or two.” The man grabbed at you again, this time managing to get your wrist. He was big, strong, you tried to pull away but you couldn’t. Sod not causing a scene, you thought, I’m getting this fucker banned.

You were about to scream at the man when suddenly he let you go. This had something to do with the fact that an enraged, sweating Arthur had grabbed him by the front of his shirt and was practically lifting him off the ground. Arthur wasn’t much larger than him, but much stronger; Arthur wasn’t a poser, he worked out for strength, relaxation, not definition.

“I think the lady said she’s fine without you goddammit” he snarled into the man’s face.

“What the fuck do you care buddy” the man retorted back, pushing Arthur away. “Me and this bitch need to do some more talking.” This man either had balls of steel or was a complete moron. You suspected the latter; a case of more muscles than brain cells.

“No, mister, me and you need to do some talkin’. And I think my friends might want to help with that.“ The man paled as he finally looked past Arthur.

Turning, you saw what he’d just seen; 3 of Arthur’s gym friends, each of them the same size or even larger than Arthur. You knew these guys, they were always polite, always happy to help you when some other arsehole had left some massive weights on a stand you wanted to use. And, as an added bonus, one of them was the gym’s manager.

“I’ll finish this with you another time girly” the man hissed at you, before quickly turning and walking away as Arthur took a step forwards.

“No he bloody won’t. Y/N, I’m so sorry about this, I’ll go and get him revoked right away” said the manager. “I’ll also make sure that the office send round his picture to all the local gyms, try and stop him doing it elsewhere. If you want me to ring someone, just say.” You nodded and smiled, as the others went back to what they were doing. Arthur stayed with you, checking your wrist.

“You alright (Y/N)? I’m sorry for intervenin’, I know ya could’ve handled him, I just saw red. Especially after what you showed me earlier.”

“Yeh, I’m fine, thanks Arthur” you smiled at him as he rubbed your bruised wrist. “I just wish it wasn’t something I had to deal with, you know?”

“Yeh, I know. I just don’t understand why nothin’ much has really changed. At least back with the gang I could deal with someone that did stuff like this properly.” As you looked into his eyes, you could see that glimmer of animalistic rage that appeared occasionally. Arthur had done well to adjust to modern life, but you knew that sometimes he struggled with not being able to fight his way out of situations. It had worked well for him for years back in his time - to a point anyway.

“Come on Arthur, why don’t we go and do a little bit on the punching bags to cool off. We can take a few more pictures.”

Arthur groaned. “Surely we’ve got enough pictures already?”

“Stop your whining, I know you secretly love the attention.” You jokingly stuck your tongue out out him. “Tell you what, I’ll treat you to dinner on the way back after, to say thanks for being my big burly cowboy.” You knew Arthur liked it when you called him a cowboy, it always made him laugh and think of some of those ridiculous films.

“Sound’s like a plan, Y/N. As long as I getta choose.”

“So, Five Guys again then.” Arthur grinned as you sighed, smiling, and went to finish your workout.

[nicolacoughlanbigheartfanpage]

LILY-ROSE DEPP

New interview with Lily for Vogue Spain (Will try to translate as much as I can, if anyone who is a spanish speaker and see something wrong, please be my guest to comment).

Some parts are old, but with new interview questions.

Playing a princess is the most natural thing in the world for Lily-Rose Depp, a member of Hollywood royalty as the daughter of Vanessa Paradis and Johnny Depp. "I think my first ten Halloweens were princesses," the actress tells us at the doors of the premiere of her new movie: The King, Shakespeare's new epic adaptation by David Michôd. Share cast, embedded in the skin of Catherine de Valois, a fifteenth-century princess, with Robert Pattinson, Joel Edgerton and the rumored to be her boyfriend, Timothée Chalamet, who plays King Henry V.

Despite her outstanding performances in French and English language productions (as A Faithful Man, of 2018, for which she was nominated for a César Award), The King marks her first adventure in a blockbuster. "Without a doubt, it is the largest project in which I have participated," she says. "Working on such a scale can be very stressful, but it also involves a lot of emotion and the urge to do the best you can’‘. If there is someone fit for the challenge, that is her.

Ahead of the movie's premiere, we talked to Lily-Rose Depp about how it has been to work with Timothée Chalamet, the memories she treasures with the late Karl Lagerfeld and her plans for 2020.

VOGUE: In 'The King’ you play Catherine of Valois, a princess forced to marry King Henry V when he conquers France. What attracted you to accept the role? 

Lily: “She was a fascinating woman! Before I started, I didn't know much about Catalina, but I had a great time researching her. In the filming there were even historians who answered us to the questions we had. Catherine has a powerful voice, she comes from a family of strong women.Her father Charles VI, had access to madness, so, sometimes, it was his mother who reigned, even if it was behind closed doors. Catherine also had sisters, like Isabel, who was married to King Richard II. They were powerful, especially if we consider the era it was; I think the script clearly shows how much respect Joel Edgerton and David Michôd had for her. In The King, women are the voices of reason, the only ones that get rid of greed and the desire for power that consume men’’.

Vogue: How was the atmosphere during shooting?

Lily: “I think the director and the protagonist are the ones that set the mood during filming, and David and Timothée are wonderful. David collaborates in everything, he knows exactly what he wants, but he also asks you how you want to focus’’.

Vogue: Was there something about your character that you wanted to change?

Lily: “From casting to filming, Catherine’s curiosity and interest  for Henry  increased. At the audition I was tougher. I think she wasn’t excited to meet him, but she is smart and knows how to see beyond what people say about the monarch. She is not flirtatious, but not hateful either. At the end of the scene, they understand each other and, for me, that relationship advances over time. It destabilizes Henry in a way that nobody had achieved. It is said that, in the end, the relationship of the monarchs was good and they loved each other quite a lot’’.

Vogue: That change is also seen in Chalamet's performance.

Lily: ‘’His performance is incredible. Timothée manages to give an air of emotional vulnerability to everything he does, it comes naturally. It is his gift. He has immense talent and I think nobody would have done it like him.’’

Vogue: Robert Pattinson's accent has raised many comments in the press. He plays the dolphin of France. Did you have occasion to give some advice?

Lily: I wish! I did not get to work with Robert, we did not shoot at the same time, although in the film we play brothers. One day I saw him and said: Let's see that accent, Rob! If we are brothers, we have to sound similar. And he didn't want to open his mouth. But frankly, I think he has done great, he is the best to frustrate the king, he takes it out of his mood. At some point in the movie, that humorous counterpoint is very much needed.’’

Vogue: In comparison, Catherine is quite serious, and that is reflected in her clothing. In what sense did the costumes help you get into the role?

Lily: Jane Petrie, the costume designer, did a beautiful job. My costumes are regal, but without being ostentatious.They reflect how the country was at the time. The French could not go dressing their princesses with diamonds in times of war.’’

Vogue: It's been a few months since you finished filming and now you're on promotions. Has Catherine influenced your wardrobe?

Lily: It depends, because sometimes you want to be inspired by things of your character and sometimes you want to get away from it. Without a doubt, I allow myself my moments as a contemporary princess’’.

Vogue: At the London premiere, you were the first to bring the Chanel spring-summer 2020 collection off the catwalks. How has your relationship with the brand evolved since you started being its image in 2015

Lily: ‘’For me Chanel is my family, something that does not happen to me in other labor relations. I know the whole team since I was little and being able to work with them now makes me very proud. It's a great job, but the people behind it are the ones that make it special, like Karl Lagerfeld, for example’’.

Vogue: Do you remember when was the first time you saw each other?

Lily:  “I was eight years old, I was with my mother. She had a costume test and took me to the atelier to accompany her. I remember that Karl was surrounded by fabrics and drawings. This year, when he passed away, it was very sad. When I was little, I dreamed of dedicating myself to what I do, and he made my dreams come true. The moments I could share with him, at work and outside of work, are memories that I will always treasure with love.’’

Vogue: Have you worked closely with Virginie Viard, her successor in Chanel?

Lily:  “I love Virginie. I've known her since I started working for the brand. She has a huge talent, I think nobody better than her to keep his memory alive. In every Chanel parade, I still see things about Karl. You can still see his influence, the genius in his work.’’

Vogue: What are your plans now?

Lily: My first science fiction movie! I just finished filming Voyagers in Romania.It has been directed by Neil Burger and I share with Colin Farrell, Tye Sheridan and Fionn Whitehead. I've also done Dreamland, with Armie Hammer, which is about the opioid crisis. They are two different roles, both between them and if I compare them with my previous characters, they will be released in 2020.

This is the whole interview ,I tried to translate the best I could, but if there is any mistake, please let me know.

[dancinginodessa]

I’ve been doing this survey on New Year’s Eve for thirteen years, which is HALF MY LIFE, and I need to go sit down now.

1. What did you do in 2017 that you’d never done before?

Officiated a wedding, crocheted a shawl, got a joint membership to something with somebody (the New York Botanical Gardens, truly the highest level of commitment before marriage), marched for my beliefs, called my elected officials on a regular basis, got a promotion, genuinely did not give one shit if my dad’s family figured out my sexuality, etc.

2. Did you keep your new years’ resolutions, and will you make more for next year?

My sole New Year’s resolution, as usual, was about how many books I wanted to read. I chose 100. I read 103.

In the new year, I (please hold on to your hats) want to read less, only so I can write more. It’s been a while now since I graduated from the MFA program. I want to go back to the work I was learning to do and keep doing it. That was the point: to keep doing it. 

I always want to learn to be more comfortable with not being in control, which might actually take me the rest of my life, but I might as well start sometime.

3. Did anyone close to you give birth?

No, though I know of lovely people who had equally lovely babies! Just, you know, not babies I know very well.

4. Did anyone close to you die?

No. People got sick but recovered, and I am so grateful for that.

5. What countries did you visit?

I did not leave America for the...fourth year running? It’s a bummer.

6. What would you like to have in 2018 that you lacked in 2017?

Money that I am not actively setting on fire, and more room in this apartment.

7. What date from 2017 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?

August 5: my best friend got married. I remember this on account of how I officiated, and also on account of it was one of the loveliest days of my life.

September 9: I had dinner at the American Girl Café, which I will not stop talking about until I am literally dead.

8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?

I got a therapist!!! 

9. What was your biggest failure?

I was a real dick to myself. And I’m still very bad at emailing people back in a timely fashion. As far as society is concerned, the latter is a graver sin.

10. Did you suffer illness or injury?

A bunch of weird bruises and scabs from being too clumsy to live, plus a pretty nasty cold or two. And I guess mental illness more or less constantly. But I think I am okayer now, and was okayer all this year, than I have been for a long time.

11. What was the best thing you bought?

G and I went halvsies on a Nintendo Switch! I’m real bad at Mario Kart 8 Deluxe! But I guess love is being real bad at something in front of someone and not caring.

Also: plane tickets to Cleveland and Chicago, bus tickets home, yarn for my mother’s Christmas shawl, a new phone because that means my dad has inherited my old phone and we can send each other emoji-filled texts now.

12. Whose behavior merited celebration?

Everyone who put up a good fight. The friends who hugged and fed me. G, for riffing off my bad jokes with his own bad jokes for another whole calendar year. My parents, for everything. The McElroy brothers, for making me laugh every time I needed to.

13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?

The government? Evangelical Christianity? Lani Sarem? In no particular order?

14. Where did most of your money go?

Transportation to other cities and mental healthcare. Holy hell am I glad that I now see a therapist who does not cost $$$$$.  

15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?

Karen’s wedding!! Seeing Welcome to Night Vale live!! Making things to keep people I love warm!! The 5 Boro Bike Tour!! Switching to a shampoo that makes my dry hair less dry and therefore more acceptable in polite society!!

16. What song will always remind you of 2017?

“New Rules” by Dua Lipa, no contest.

17. Compared to this time last year, are you:

i. happier or sadder? Happier. Angrier. More willing to put up a fight.

ii. thinner or fatter? The same, I think, because we can’t afford an animator to redraw my sprite and I guess the series is going to be using this model until further notice.

iii. richer or poorer? Poorer. Woof.

18. What do you wish you’d done more of?

Being honest about what I needed. Wearing a scarf instead of pretending I wasn’t cold. Watching Netflix, because now it’s almost 2018 and I still haven’t seen Stranger Things or Bojack Horseman and the entire zeitgeist has left me behind. 

19. What do you wish you’d done less of?

Worrying (about whether I am secretly the most unbearable person alive/about what my face is doing/about spending too much money/about what I should be doing with my life/about whether or not I am literally about to die, which, so far so good), though that is kind of a tall order. 

20. How will you be spending Christmas?

I went home and spent December 25th at my grandma’s, where I was very cold and also very happy to be with my family. For Julian calendar Christmas, I think I am going to see family in Connecticut, and I haven’t seen them since I was 12, so this could be great AND/OR very awkward. Say a prayer.

21. Did you fall in love in 2017?

Stayed in it. Bought a time-share in it. Built a house in it. 

22. How many one-night stands?

I’ve been having the same one-night stand for two and a half years, am I doing this wrong?

23. What was your favourite TV program?

I watched little to no TV this year, but I did really like the one episode of My Brother, My Brother & Me I saw! If we’re counting Youtube channels, I would like to give an award to Geography Now! for being the glue that bonds my parents and my boyfriend.

24. Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year?

Honestly, I don’t think so. 2017 is the year of smoldering resentment. I’m too tired to hate anybody extra.

25. What was the best book you read?

Oh geez. Lincoln in the Bardo was way up there. And Version Control. Also Shrill, and Her Body and Other Parties, and maybe a dozen more, but I’m trying to finish this before midnight (in five hours), so let’s stop there.

26. What was your greatest musical discovery?

This was not a year in which I listened to much music! That was weird. So I can’t say I really discovered anything; however, I certainly continued to be grateful for Ween.

27. What did you want and get?

A subscription to New York Magazine. Listen, it’s the little things. (Also, a raise.)

28. What was your favourite film of this year?

Thor: Ragnarok is the most profoundly bisexual movie I have ever seen. I would also like to nominate the trailer for A Wrinkle in Time, even though the movie is not out yet. It’s just that the trailer is very important to me.

29. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?

I turned 26! And my birthday just happened to fall on one of the dates of Welcome to Night Vale’s spring tour, so I went to the Bell House with G. There’s a doofy photo of us on Facebook looking pleased with ourselves on the train, and I treasure it.

30. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?

I’m getting word that everybody else already submitted “a different president,” so how about...a rug in my living room that isn’t white? Come on, Past Nina. Who did you think you were? That kind of hubris is unbecoming, and we’re all paying the price now.

31. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2017?

“Thanks, I Love Cardigans.”

32. What kept you sane?

Podcasts, crocheting, calling my mom to vent my spleen, and therapy (if you want the literal answer).

33. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?

Oscar Isaac is a beautiful man, and St. Vincent is my queen.

34. What political issue stirred you the most?

[tense, angry silence; in the distance, thunder and a horse’s whinny]

35. Who did you miss?

Everyone. All the time. Especially my parents.

36. Who was the best new person you met?

Who did I meet this year? It’s been a decade since January. The new tenants at the office are pretty delightful, and my first bonding activity with my roommate E was going with her and G to the Women’s March. (We three are the best apartment you know.)

37. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2017:

It’s okay if you aren’t okay.