#and I have dated and been friends with lots of people who do

[yandere-sins]

Cake Surprise

a/n: Happy Valentine's Day! I'm glad to be able to do specials again, so this year I worked on an idea I had for a while! Unspecified yandere, too, so you can imagine whoever you want! :D Hope you enjoy it ♥

Characters: Male!Yandere x GN!Reader Warnings: Yandere, Sexual Content (Food Sabotage, Feeding body fluids), Pathetic Yandere, Stalking, Forced Isolation, Pretending to be a friend, Long Post

Valentine's Day had never been his favorite day.

Why? Sharing a birthday with an official holiday just sucked. The gifts were generic merchandise catered to the holiday—all pink and cute and strawberry scented—and most people were too busy to celebrate on his actual birthday since they were doing couple stuff. But this year? This year, he loved his birthday.

Because he got to spend it with you.

He couldn't remember the last time he was so excited about his birthday party, especially since there had never been someone special by his side before. Usually, he sat between all the guests, who were coupled up and feeding each other cake and laughing at the bad jokes of their lovers, but this year would be different. Because out of all the people invited, you and him were the only ones single.

There were great hopes tied to the fact that between all the lovey-dovey couples, you'd only have one option to choose. He had ensured that no one got the stupid idea to ask you out leading up to this day. For the last weeks, he had followed you around, discouraged others from approaching you, and conveniently put himself on your radar, always smiling and greeting you, walking you home after work when you two "coincidentally" met after his own shift. Buying and offering you a drink or a snack ever so often just from the "goodness of his heart". You never even noticed how he melted in your presence, how he absorbed every word you said, more desperate to spend more time with you every day.

It was a lot of effort to be the only one by your side, considering how beautiful and desirable you were. Countless times, he had to hold himself back to not pluck out the eyes that followed you wherever you went. The light in your eyes was so vibrant that no picture could capture it, and your smile made him feel like he was finally coming home after years of trying to find his place of belonging. It simply had to be you, no matter the struggles he had to go through. He made sure to be up-to-date on every hobby you had, so the conversations wouldn't run out, and in times of distress, it was him who offered his help. No wonder that you, when you were sad about not meeting your friends as often anymore and feeling lonely, gladly accepted his offer to come to his birthday party.

He regretted having to put a damper on your mood before this by making sure you'd be a little more desperate to spend time with him, too. But when you said "yes", he heard the wedding bells ring.

Everything was already decorated, his apartment a monument to everything he didn't like. Gaudy balloons, reds and pinks, roses, and kitsch that made his stomach churn. His fridge was stocked with bottles of sparkling wine, Valentine's special drinks, chocolate-dipped fruits, and the highlight of the day: a sweet, strawberry-flavored, buttercream-covered, delightfully decorated, three-tiered cake. No one would call him stingy, that much was sure.

Carefully pulling out the cake from the fridge, he admired how heavy it was, smelling heavenly with all the cream and fruits on top of it. It would be the day's highlight and, hopefully, the way straight to your heart. He knew all about your love for sweet carbs, and although you ate it mostly for special occasions or when you felt really shitty on some days, this cake was definitely going to impress you.

Setting it down on the kitchen counter, he admired the artistic endeavor done on the food. Some would say it was almost too pretty to eat with all the swirls and decorations covering it, but he'd make sure you'd receive the biggest, most delicious piece of them all! Just thinking about you cutting a big bite out of it, scooping it up on your fork, and passing it through your plush lips sent shivers down his spine.

Your tongue darting out to lick off some excessive cream left behind on your cheek, the sounds of pleasure and delight you'll make as the cream melts in your mouth, coating everything in sugary sweetness. Feeling his cock twitch beneath the fabric of his pants, he knew he shouldn't indulge in the images of you enjoying the cake he provided for you, but how could he not, especially when the comparisons were almost too perfect?

Even though he knew there was a difference between the cake and his cock, it was so easy to replace the two in his thoughts.

He was imagining you on your knees, tongue stretched out to taste his shaft with eager licks, eyes gleaming with anticipation. Your lips wrapped around his tip, licking and sucking up the precum spreading all throughout your mouth until you could finally swallow his whole length, your head bopping up and down, pleasing him to receive all of his "cream".

By the time he pulled himself out of his head, watching the seconds run by on his clock with no more than twenty minutes left until the party was supposed to take place, his cock was rock-hard and leaking into his underwear. You were a potent aphrodisiac and he should have known better than to indulge in the thoughts of you, but it was hard, considering he desired you more than he ever had anything before. Nothing would ever bring him as much joy as you would. You had long become his whole world, and he worshipped you like the deity you were.

It was absolutely impossible to look into your eyes without coming right then and there on the spot. Time was running out as every minute threatened with his guests' arrival, and now he had this extra challenge to take care of before this perfect day could commence.

Working quickly, he freed his imprisoned cock, his palm almost immediately slathered in pre-cum, lubricating him as he pumped it up and down. All he had to do was keep imagining you and all the things he had planned for when he'd finally get to claim you as his completely. His hand worked back and forth, and he thought about taking you to his bedroom after the party, you wanting to thank him in private for the invitation. You, in skimpy, pink lingerie, slowly undressing yourself. The thought of you stripping away your clothes until you were almost completely bared to his eyes was nearly enough to make him cum. However, his cock was a mean prick, still so hard and needy, even though he fed his mind the delicious imagery of you.

All he could do was keep going at this point, time ticking away as he scolded himself for not finishing up quicker. You, jerking him off instead, your soft hands working over his shaft, telling him how much you want him to fill you with his big cock. How you've dreamed of him taking you and moaning at the pure thought of it. His hips made a jump forward as he imagined the tip of his cock about to penetrate you, finding your soft, receptive hole waiting while you mewled and pushed back against him. It almost felt real how wet you were in his mind, almost as if...

Prying his eyes open, he looked down in horror at the smudge on the cake, his tip donning a cream hat, which would have almost been funny if the situation hadn't been so serious. This cake was his masterpiece, and he just put his cock against it, almost completely ruining it!

"Shit, shit, shit," he mumbled, using his dirty hands to spread the buttercream down evenly where he had nudged it, the precarious state of his cock forgotten for a moment. It clearly looked like someone tampered with it, but at least it was uniform again. He'd simply take this piece so that no one would see.

Sighing, the stress fell off him again, his cock twitching below to remind him of what still needed his attention. Swiping off the cream from his tip, he licked it off his fingers, moaning at its sweetness. You'd enjoy it so much and savor every bite because he knew you liked the flavor. And it was all his doing.

Stroking his cock again, he eyed the smudged spot on the cake that he had ruined, imagining you eating something his dick touched. You'd never know, but you'd still enjoy it. There was barely anything more he could do to mark the cake, yet it drove him almost insane to think it was all his doing that made you enjoy it. If only there was something more. Something even clearer that marked you as his, other than just providing you with cake and a quick taste of his dick hurriedly covered by coating.

His pulse rose as he imagined his cum dripping down your lips, seeping into your skin. You, moaning as you tasted his jizz willingly, enjoying the taste mixed with the enormous amount of sugar from the cake. You'd never know what he did, never question it. No, instead, you'd be thankful and filled with his cum. You'd be marked as his by the smell of his cum and your willingness to consume it. No one could argue who you'd belong with while his batter was inside you.

With heavy breaths, he placed his tip back on the smudged cake spot. No one had to know. He could simply fix it again, and no one would notice the disgrace he did to this cake he'd present as his masterpiece.

Awfully slowly, with a loud groan, he pushed his tip inside the goods, followed by his shaft. The insides crumbled around him, welcoming him like he imagined you would. Sounds of pleasure erupted from the cake, the same wet squelching that was anticipated from any good hole.

One push, two. Everything was tight and yet softer than he had ever imagined. Immediately, the images returned to his mind—you, hungrily licking off the cake from his cock. It was all that was needed for the pressure to build. His thrusts grew sloppier as he snapped his hips forward. The cake threatened to slip away, so he grabbed the plate, making sure it would take his cock as it should. Another thrust, another loud moan as he imagined you arching your back and curling your toes, screaming as you were coming on his cock in your frilly lingerie, flushed with ecstatic pleasure only he could give you.

It was enough to send him over the edge, too.

He felt his cum burst into the cake, sloshing all around him and threatening to leak out. There was too much to absorb, but for a moment, he simply let himself enjoy the feeling of filling you to the brim. He'd have to clean up and get ready very quickly after this, so for a few blissful seconds, he let the shudders rush through him, listening to the screams and moans of yours that he could easily imagine just from his memories.

By the time he got a grip on himself, cum had already drooled out of the hole he made, adding an embarrassing stain against the white buttercream. He wiped off his cock quickly before putting it back inside his pants and grabbed some coating and fruits to fill up the hole he had created. In a moment of clarity, he realized how fucked-up this was, but the doorbell rang before he could decide not to serve his cum-filled cake to anyone and discard it.

As expected, everyone was awing and oohing at his efforts, their eyes going big at the sight of the cake. Embarrassment was an understatement for what he felt. It should have been pride, happiness, carefreeness. But knowing what lingered inside this cursed cake was too damning, too shameful, even for him.

And then, you arrived. Like an angel sent from heaven, with a little green package, whispering how you knew he didn't like the Valentine's fuss, so you made sure to be extra careful not to come close to the theme with your gift. Your heart was so good, your intentions so pure, and watching you light up as you saw the cake utterly broke his heart.

He wanted to, but couldn't. He definitely couldn't serve it to you.

The guests mingled, filling his apartment, as he began to dread every second of the party. You looked so natural, swaying your body through the room as if you already lived there. As if you were another host to the party, you handed out drinks and helped everyone to settle in. A sight to behold, that's what you were, fitting between all the decorations with how beautiful you were.

He should have been overjoyed by the sight of you acting so naturally in his home, playing his better half without even agreeing to go steady with him yet. But when everyone sat down at the table, ready to celebrate him, his mood crashed violently. Sweat collected on his forehead as he cursed the damn day, especially when you walked up to him, asking if he was alright and checking his temperature. You were so perfect, so sweet. So kind to offer to check on him. If only you could have touched him more, made him forget about all the other guests, and let him explore your body indefinitely in return. Of course, he quickly denied anything was wrong, instead inhaling your perfume, which left him light-headed. It made it easy for you to lead him to the table, sitting him down while you went to "take care of the rest" for him, and his guests kept him busy, talking and congratulating him, so he didn't see what you were doing in the kitchen.

At least not until you started bringing out slices of cake to everyone. He got the first one, topped with fruit, since it was his birthday. It was a beautiful piece from the top tier, and one by one, the cake was handed out. Gripping the chair he sat on hard, he watched as the cake slowly lost its height, piece by piece. Soon, only half of the bottom tier was left, and from his position, he couldn't see where you cut yourself a slice from. Maybe you'd miss the spot, and he could dispose of the rest quietly later. No one had to know, even if it was gross what he did to the cake either way.

But when you sat down next to him, smiling at him as you held up your plate, the color drained from his face when he noticed the change in cream consistency inside and the piece of fruit stuffed into the middle of the cake.

Jackpot.

Everyone sang him "Happy Birthday" while he sweated profusely, his eyes transfixed on your plate, but he didn't even notice or care. Clearing his throat, it was his time to make a small speech, but instead, he merely asked you to swap pieces since he had much more fruit on his, and it looked more delicious. You shook your head, holding your plate out of reach playfully before telling him firmly it was his birthday and he deserved the best piece. People chuckled and started digging in. Moans and compliments rang through the room, but he couldn't pry his eyes off your plate.

Using your fork, you stabbed it right into his cum, the fluids dripping off as you didn't seem to notice the difference from the cream. You lifted it to your mouth, opening wide, and so did his as he wanted to stop you, but no words rang out. Shame and hesitation held him back as he watched you consume the cum-filled cake with delight, humming appreciatively before gulping it down.

Heat filled his cheeks as he watched you take fork after fork of his surprise cake flavor, unaware of how he disgraced it. You were smiling and enjoying your cake thoroughly until you noticed he hadn't eaten a piece yet. With an innocent grin, you cut off some of yours, holding it out to him and prompting, "Open wide!"

And he did.

With his heart bursting out of his chest, your gesture too cute to withstand, while his stomach twisted as he tasted his own salty cum on your fork. But how could he not have been happy? Being fed by you, even if it was his own jizz that coated his tongue and not the sweet cream of the cake? It was a dream come true, and at this point, he would have eaten anything from your hand, he was sure. You were so happy, too, grinning from ear to ear and doing a happy little wiggle in your seat, not even thinking about the indirect cum-stained kiss you two just shared.

You were now fully, utterly his. However perverted and disgusting it was, it was the only thing he could think of. His pretty little partner, owning the place and him as if it always belonged to you. You had his heart in your hands, squeezing it with every smile and making it throb at the sound of your laughter. And not only had he satisfied your fondness for cake, but your belly was now also filled with his cum that you ate so willingly and eagerly. Of course, you didn't know, but you didn't even flinch at the change of taste you must have noticed at some point. If only that cum could have soaked all over you, spilled over your face and chest, and from your little hole that was probably waiting for his cock to fill it next.

He could have said something, ruined this moment and any chances of a relationship with you or any of his friends. But it was already too late, he reasoned. You already ate most of the piece, and he didn't have the heart to tell you what he did. It would be his little secret, although he did make sure that no one else got a dirty piece of cum-filled cake anymore. If anything, they had always been meant just for you. But as he ate his own cake, filling his mouth to the brim to get rid of the bad aftertaste, you leaned over.

"Happy birthday! And happy Valentine's!" you congratulated him, and all the panic and embarrassment simply fell off as he smiled back, thanking you after swallowing the cake. He was already thinking about what he could fill with his cum next for you to eat as he asked you out to have dinner with him soon. And you beamed up, none the wiser, agreeing immediately.

Best birthday ever.

[angstywaifu]

Apology Accepted - Garrick Tavis

Summary: Garrick and you got off on the wrong foot from day one. But maybe things could have been different if you'd just given him a chance. And somehow all it takes is for you to be stood up on Valentines Day. A/N: Just a small Valentine's Day fic for you all to enjoy ❤️ Masterlist | Links

“You excited for tonight?” Bodhi asks as he takes his across from me in the dining hall for lunch.

“What’s tonight?” Imogen asks, joining our conversation as Quinn gets up to join her girlfriend who just walked in.

“Y/N here has scored herself a valentines date for tonight.” Bodhi announces before I can get a word in.

A loud scoff has us all turning out heads towards the noise, Garrick having turned his attention to us. “You have a date? How much did you pay them?” He mocks with that stupid smirk of his, and that damn dimple in his cheek fully noticeable.

I roll my eyes at him and turn my head away. “I didn’t pay them anything, doubt I can say the same for you though.” I snap back, Bodhi and Imogen snickering at my comment as Garrick scowls at me.

“So do you have a valentine's date or plans then Garrick?” Imogen asks him, a knowing smirk on her face.

“I don’t need a day to tell me to do something romantic.” He grumbles.

“So that's a fat no.” I add, knowing if I turn my head he will be glaring at me.

“I doubt you two have any plans.” He shoots at Imogen and Bodhi, ignoring my comment.

“I’m doing a girls night with Quinn and her girlfriend.” Imogen says happily.

“So you’re third wheeling?” Bodhi teases, earning a bread roll being thrown at his head. 

“Says the one whose plans were to hang out with Y/N here till she got a date.” 

“Hey, those are perfectly valid plans for two very single friends.” Bodhi exclaims.

“And how did those plans turn out for you?” Garrick teases, causing Bodhi to sulk and ignore Garrick.

The tavern in town is packed with people tonight. Probably because it’s the only place nearby to go out for a drink or a meal. Meaning a lot of cadets and other people have chosen to come here tonight. I scan the room again, looking out for the infantry cadet who has asked me out. But yet again I come up short, only finding other happy couples enjoying their evening. Maybe Garrick was right and I should have paid for them to come on the date. maybe then I wouldn’t have been stood up. I throw back my drink, skulling the last of it. I put the mug down, shoving it away from me as I turn to get up from my table as a familiar large figure sits on the edge of the seat next to me, blocking my exit from the booth.

“So you teased me all of today about not having plans and being single, just for you to get stood up?” He teases as he cocks an eyebrow at me.

I roll my eyes at him. “If you’re here to gloat then save it and move out of my way.”

He ignores my command to move, looking down at me with those damned hazel eyes. Fuck, I hated what those eyes did to me. Hated what he did to me.

“Move over.” He tells me as he forces himself closer to me, making me move further into the booth to accommodate him. “You’re lucky I’m hungry.”

“How does that make me lucky?” I ask him as he waves down one of the servers.

He ignores me as he orders food for both of us, not even stopping to ask what I want, but annoyingly he somehow nails exactly what I want. The same thing I always get when I come here.

“You’re lucky, because now it doesn’t look like you’ve been stood up.” He tells me as he shoves a drink towards me, one he must have ordered before sitting down. “And you get to enjoy my company.”

“There’s nothing about your company to enjoy.” I snarl, taking the drink he offers me as I take a deep drink from it.

“I beg to differ.” He says smugly as he smiles at me, that damn dimple poping again.

“We’ve known each other for two years now Tavis, I think I’d know by now if there was anything to enjoy about your company. Which there isn’t.” 

His eyes travel over me, making me squirm under his gaze. I hated when he did that. It’s like he knew how I really felt. That my feelings towards him had changed over the time we’d known each other. But I was too stubborn to admit it to him, knowing he’d just tease me relentlessly. 

“You’ve never really given me a chance love.” He tells me as if he’s stating the obvious.

Our conversation is briefly halted by our food arriving, Garrick pushing the plate of roast chicken, mash potatoes and gravy towards me as he turns his attention to his steak.

“Why would I? You made it painfully clear you didn’t like me from day one.” I tell him pointedly.

He shakes his head as he chews his food. “No, you just took something I said the wrong way. I never disliked you.”

What? No, there’s no way. I remember that day. The comment he had made. 

“If that's true, why have you let it carry on for the last two years?” I ask, turning to face him in the booth.

He turns his head, giving me his full attention. “Because you were hell bent on the idea I didn’t like you. Trust me, I tried to make it clear I didn’t hate you. You didn’t want a bar of it. Now eat the food I ordered you before it goes cold.” Gesturing to my plate dismissively as he turns back to his own food.

I turn back to the food, but suddenly I’m not hungry. Garrick’s words playing over in my head. Had I really been the reason this had carried out the way it had for the last two years? No, I knew Garrick. If he had wanted to be friends or change the outcome of that day he would have. Right?

“Maybe he did and you were too stubborn to see things differently.” My dragon drawls in my head.

“I don’t need your input right now.” I snap back at them.

I feel the huff of annoyance through the bond. “Clearly you do. So either remain stubborn and continue as you are, or listen to the damn boy. Might do you some good too. With how wound up you’ve been over him, you need a release.”

I slam up my shields, not wanting to deal with them right now. But I don’t miss the laughter from them before I do. But they were right. I had just thought Garrick was trying to be annoying. Lure me into a false sense of friendship after the comment he’d made. But looking back, I definitely could have taken it the wrong way. I’d just jumped at it. And now after two years, and knowing Garrick a lot better than I did… It would have been clear he didn’t mean it seriously. Fuck. 

“I’m sorry.” I mumble, not expecting Garrick to hear it as I push a stray bit of chicken around my plate.

I know Garrick hears it clear as day as he turns his head towards me, feeling his eyes on me as he watches me. “What was that?” He asks, hearing the smirk in his voice already.

“I’m sorry.” I say a little louder this time.

Garrick turns in his seat, resting his arm along the back of the booth while the other pushes his plate away as he leans it on the edge of the table. “Sorry, I don’t think I understood what you sa-“

“I said I’m sorry!” I nearly yell at him as I drop my fork to my plate as he chuckles at me. 

Instead of the smirk I expect to see, it’s a genuine smile. It’s something rare to see on Garrick. I’d only seen it a handful of times, mainly kept for moments to do with Bodhi or Xaden when he thinks no one is watching.

“Apology accepted. Now let’s get you another drink and make this a proper valentine’s date.” He says as he stands from the booth, taking both our mugs with him to the bar.

[queer-froggit]

i'm ending it here because i'm boutta be here all day lol

ramble under the cut!!!!

lust's friend group is very tiny because everyone judges him for his job, but they're also all sanses so they're like "eh, not my problem" and really just ignore him, and even besides them lust has to work to get people to respect him. horror and lust are frenemies because they HATED each other at first sight- horror was very vocal about his prejudices and lust doesn't take shit from anybody. however, they're both old men just trying to get through their hell of a day without killing themselves, and they find common ground in that (same thing with lust and cross, except for them it's more lust teaching cross how to take himself seriously and turning into rivals instead) in my interpretation, lust dated a lot of people before realizing he was aro, with blue being his longest relationship. a lot of shit happened, but they're besties now.

horror and wine are frenemies because lthough they relate to ecah other, they do it in a "i pity you way", which pisses them both off. horror could never work for the royal guard, and i like to think horror takes his brother to move in with farm after leaving nightmare. it's basically saejun teaching him how to be a person again, and i think geno and farm would also make nice friends, since "old men who have finally learned to be content with what they have" trope. speaking of geno, i think he HATES reaper, like hate hate. i still haven't read aftertale, my only sources are analysis and pages out of order, but it just feels right to say? reaper likes pissing people off, so he sees geno as a pal because of this hate.

reaper and wine are dreams mentors, since reaper was supposed to have an appearance in dreamtale. reaper is more of a "using to learn your god powers" mentor while wine is "using your societal power", but they basically teach him that not everyone is going to want to be buddy buddy, and that's not something he should see as a failure (since they both have gone through the horrors). wine sees black as a more upbeat version of himself, but nox is always trying to be an opp, so he sees to reason to be friends. also they all hate fell because they think he's lazy and all bark yet no bite lol.

dust and fell are obviously friends in canon, but i feel like they especially relate because of their feeling of being trapped in hell and having to be guarded all the time (they're SO 30 for 30 by sza coded it's ridiculous), and if not romantic, i think that feeling can get familial. horror sees fell as a fake though, because he thinks underfell is just "undertale but they say fuck", so he thinks fell is all talk while he knows he wouldn't survive a DAY in horrortale (no one would), but dust and horror are friends, so horror forces himself to tolerate fell and give him advice about surviving (but more in a condescing tone).

sci and fell are a secret third thing because i could see them being siblings, rival friends or romantic (curse you cpau) so idk. same thinf with wine and cross because they're both royal guards who have gone through dictatorships, so they should relate to each other, but tehy're both bitches so they would probably be enemies, but them sparring would be so perfect???? maybe like a "my mentor is a bitch but it's to train me to do better", which works perfectly because cross is always trying to get people to see him as a superior, and wine always feels superior (but it's to do the same thing as cross), so wine talking down to him riles him up enough to try and beat him, and they can both let their stress out when they spar :) (they eventually realize that they've been living in a dictatorship where rheir leader has been incredibly selfish, don't worry)

swap and blueberror... idk how to explain it. i think they're very jinx and ekko coded. blueberror is the more hyper and blunt version of swap, and swap has to calm him down sometimes, but they would be besties because they bounce off of each other 👍

nightmare and ink are colleagues beacuse i said so :) ink is nightmare's equivalent of people watching video essays as background noise. also nightmare wanted to study fresh because he sees him as an anomaly (someone whose emotions he can't read, yet feels uneasy around him, depsite not knowing who he is), but then learned like one thing about him and decided not to open that can of worms. fresh just thinks nightmare is weird.

i think that's it... thank you for the chart sign!

Ship chart but it’s not a ship chart it’s a friendship/found family/QPR chart

[chrollohearttags]

CHARACTER ANALYSIS: EREN JAEGER AKA EJ THE DON

so in honor of me finally reviving Reverb, I decided to do some character analyses and info cards, if you will. These were so much fun (and a lot of work) to make and I really hope y’all like them. I was heavily inspired by a wonderful, talented mutual of mine and her amazing character analysis she did for her series a while back! As always, y’all know reblogs and comments are appreciated!! (Fair warning, this is a long read but it’s been in the works since last year and I hope y’all enjoy)

╔═*.·:·.✧ ✦✧.·:·.*═╗ ╔═*.·:·.✧ ✦✧.·:·.*═╗ ╔═*.·:·.✧ ✦✧. ✦✧.

name: Eren Michael Jaeger | date of birth + sign: March 31st, 1998 (aries sun) | age: 26 | aliases/nickname: EJ, Eren, EJ The Don, The Underground God, Rennie | pronouns: he/him/his | sexuality: straight (but a bit bi-curious) | race/ethnicity: white, italian/turkish + german

song in the video: ChainSwang - BONES (slowed and reverb ver.)

biography and early life: Eren was born in Montclair, New Jersey to his mother Carla and father, Dr. Grisha Jaeger. The couple met while Carla was working as a bottle girl at a gentleman’s club called Starlets in New York, when she was nineteen years old. (age gap oops)

Grisha, who was working at Mount Sinai as part of his residency, was twenty seven at the time and married to (but separated from) socialite and heiress, Dina Fritz. The two were a classic case of opposites attracting and it didn’t take long for their bond to flourish from a one night fling to something far more. A year into their relationship, Carla learned that she was pregnant and Grisha, who had annulled his first marriage some months prior, proposed right away and the couple settled in the suburbia township to raise their newborn son. Eren was described as a ‘very enigmatic and unique child’. Growing up, he was said to have always had a natural inclination towards music. From playing on toy keyboards to babbling songs into his Spider-Man karaoke machine at just three years old, it seemed that early on, the young prodigy was shaping his destiny. Eren attended the Montclair Township Charter Elementary, alongside his childhood best friends, Mikasa Ackerman and Armin Artlert, who were among many of the children of affluent families. He was extremely intelligent and schoolwork was a breeze. The problem was that he could be less interested! Eren struggled to focus and with maintaining relationships, which worried his mom. She took him to therapists, sought counseling and even considered moving him to alternative school when he began getting into trouble.

She worried what would happen to him…but luckily, her fears were for nothing because soon, Eren would show her and the entire world his true purpose. When he was ten years old, Carla enrolled her son in lessons for piano and guitar. During this time, he began to really hone his musical talent, and needless to say, he was a prodigy. All but mastering everyone he picked up. This seemed to be the area that little EJ most thrived in. Even his friendships began to grown. Having left New Jersey before they went to middle school, Mikasa and Armin were the only two people he'd bonded with. But eventually, Eren found companionship in several people from all walks of life and other areas of town. He didn't care about how much money someone had or what they looked like, he just enjoyed like minded people. Finding himself hanging out, playing basketball, skating and of course, making music. However, his father was less than pleased with his academic performance and new group of comrades. As the son of a prestigious doctor, Eren knew that his father wouldn’t approve of his hobbies if his grades weren’t up to par but he never expected that the catalyst for his dreams would be their falling out..when Eren was 15 years old, he made the decision to leave home and emancipate himself from his parents after a horrendous fallout with his dad.

It came as a shock to his friends, who felt that his life was objectively better than their own. However, it was the principle and anyone who truly knew the situation..knew that it was a long time coming and much deserved. Years of being put down or not acknowledged for refusing to follow in his footsteps and the final straw came when his father's cowardice and lying caused him to lose someone very important to him. Something that Eren could not forgive (explaining this later in the story!) After receiving $300 from his older half brother, young EJ boarded a bus to Miami, not looking back once. And he was fully prepared to make a life for himself, one not attached to his dad's name..no matter the cost. After arriving in Florida, Eren would work odd jobs to provide for himself and found housing at a local boys home in the Northside area. Just two blocks from Ocean Shore High School, where he finished out the remainder of his junior and senior years. It was then that he met fellow classmates and future group members Connie Springer and Onyakopon 'Ony' Baptiste (he doesn't canonically have a last name that I am aware of so I gave him one and I will explain it in his own backstory). The three of them immediately bonded and only grew closer when they played on the varsity basketball team together and began working at a local shoe store in the Aventura Mall. This would be the first time that the world would get a glimpse into Eren's musical talents when his friends would record him singing Miguel's "Sure Thing' in the backroom of the store and posted it online.

career: After going viral, Eren began to take his craft even more serious. Going from penning rhymes in his notebook between periods to doing makeshift recording sessions in the chorus classroom, he would post covers and original songs to a YouTube channel as well his Sound Cloud. He would save a portion of his paychecks and do yard, mechanic and janitorial work for neighbors to procure studio time. He eventually saved up and purchased a MacBook, and began making instrumentals. It was during this time that he began working a temp job for a local underground club, where artists like Denzel Curry, Ice Billion Berg and Pouya got their starts. Hired to clean up after sets and during closing, Eren would listen in on the performances, watching, studying and observing the rappers' movements. Having never done an official performance, it was an area he had no experience in. But during an open mic night at the club, he got an opportunity and didn't miss! Debuting one of his now infamous tracks, First Degree, Eren once again shocked everyone with how talented and charismatic he was. It was almost as if rapping and singing came as naturally as speaking did. Now 18 years old, graduated from high school and riding the momentum of his first stage set, Eren continued to grind. Working by day and recording and writing by night. It was then that he began going by the name EJ the Don after Ony joked about his New Jersey and Italian origins, implying that he must have 'mafia ties' because he assimilated into life in this rough area so well. His image and brand slowly came together afterwards..embracing the dark, edgy aesthetic coupled with his buttery smooth voice and unique lyricism, Eren was in a league all on his own.

And it didn't take long for the rising star to catch the attention of some big names in the industry, including renowned Neo-Soul artist and five time Grammy winner Vivian James. Who was not only doing a show at the Miami Amphitheater for a music festival but scouting prospects for the talent agency giant, Ackerman Management Group. Known for catapulting the careers of some of the biggest names in music, modeling and acting. Still building his reputation, EJ got the chance of a lifetime when he not only received a job request but an invitation from Vivian herself, looking for a backup vocalist and pianist. Naturally, being a huge fan on top of a starving artist, Eren immediately accepted and the rest was history! Vivian was blown away that he was able to recite the songs verbatim and so perfectly on such a short notice..so much so, she gave Eren an offer he couldn't refuse: an audition with AMG on the condition that he would work as her protege regardless and it was a no brainer. Two days after his nineteenth birthday, EJ the Don officially signed with Ackerman Management Group, the family business of his old childhood friend, Mikasa. Who was going by the stage name Mika ASH. But it wasn't smooth sailing for the new rap sensation..although he was Vivian's protege, he captured the attention of other executives who was interested in more than his music. Unfortunately, it caused them to try and take advantage of him, both career wise and physically. Eren persevered and focused on what his goal truly was and that was sharing his gift with the world. Six months after being signed, he released his first EP, Living Dead Boy. He went on tour shortly after and released Living Dead Boy II: The Casket Chronicles a year later. Fast forward and Eren took the 'horrorcore' rap scene and the internet by storm, with his gritty wordplay and captivating visuals. Ten years later, he is hailed as the Underground God and widely credited for reshaping the genre as a whole.

musical muses: BONES (the character playlist can be found here), $uicideBoys, August Alsina, Jon Dretto

notable achievements: LivingDeadBoy I sold 50,000 units its first week and debuted number seven on the charts. But his debut single, First Degree was number two on the charts and widely viral on social media. LivingDeadBoy II: The Casket Chronicles sold five times with 250,000 units and at just 20 years old, EJ had his first sold out tour in North America. His debut album was very successful and received two Grammy nominations. (even though he doesn't give a shit about awards and accolades) EJ the Don has released over ten EP's and five mixtapes, as well as three studio albums, one being a visual series. He has gone on to produce, write with and direct for several other artists, including Prince Cee + Ony the God, his high school friends and fellow musicians. He has earned 2 VMA's and appeared in a BET Hip Hop Awards cypher. He has headlined two North American tours seperately and three international ones alongside his groupmates. EJ has made many accomplishments in his ten year rap reign and is far from done.

personality traits, flaws, etc: Eren can be described as very emotional by some yet stoic in the same breath. He can be temperamental, not thinking hostile actions through sometimes. He acts of his own accord without considering other peoples’ feelings. He’s very blunt, and won’t hesitate to speak his mind. He CANNOT hide his true feelings for shit (if his mouth doesn’t say it, his face surely will.) There are times when he’ll go days without answering his phone or making contact with anyone because he loves being in his own little world. Friendships, partners..it honestly doesn’t make a difference if you’re around or not. Especially when he’s locked in, working on important projects. He shuts down when he doesn’t want to deal with something and you’ll have better luck catching a pig flying than him apologizing or doing what he’s told! In the same vein, Eren can be very emotional..it’s almost like a dam breaking. When he finally cracks, it’s hard to control the flood with him. He gets really intense, whether he’s crying, laughing or angry. He’s very passionate when he cares about something and he’ll let it be known. Behind that rough exterior is a gentle, sweetheart of a man that just throws his all into whatever or whoever he loves.

relationship status: Eren is currently seeing the influencer and rising star of pole dancing, (Y/N) (L/N). The pair has been in a low key relationship for some months now, taking it slow and really getting to know one another. Although they started with a hot and steamy romance, sprouting from years of loneliness and celibacy from them both, they’ve really grown to care deeply for one another. He puts a lot of effort into making sure he contacts her regularly bc it is not easy to keep his attention and always gifts her the most expensive and thoughtful things. He never seen himself as the lovey dovey type, but anyone that knows EJ..will tell you that he’s fallen head over heels for miss (L/N)!

physical descriptors: EJ is 6’3, just barely 195 pounds with a slender but toned frame. He’s been working out quite a bit since his last project and tour so he’s a little more jacked than before. He has several tattoos including full sleeves with various pieces he’s been getting since he was 16 years old. A few of his most notorious being the serpent and chain going around his hand all the way to his shoulder, the pink rose with the name ‘Ma’Kiya’ tattooed in one of the petals on his back (🌚) and his mom’s name. He has dark green eyes, brownish black hair that he wears in a half up-half down style most of the time. Occasionally though, he’ll wear it down and grow out facial hair. He’s always wearing some sort of jewelry..his infamous ‘The Don’ chain, as well as his bottom silver grills. His fashion sense varies on his mood.

hobbies + interests: when he’s not in the booth, Eren is somewhere tinkering with cars! He particularly loves older model vehicles and will spend days working to fix them. He loves going to the racetrack, sitting in the skybox like a little kid and watching drag cars and motorcycles go down the strip. He also loves to paint and draw, even designing a majority of his tattoos. (fun fact: he gifted (Y/N) a portrait of one of his favorite photos of her on her birthday.) and of course, he’s a huge gamer. His fans look forward to seeing him on Twitch, being stressed out by whatever franchise he’s delving to at the moment. Especially when he’s with his friends or (Y/N).

@violetxxvenom @shamelesshoefairy @shawtuzi

[scary-grace]

pretty please will you write [bouquet] but reader gives flowers to tomura <33333

Thank you for the prompt! This got angsty and I apologize. Hopefully I can redeem myself with the third prompt! Post-canon, 2.1k, angst.

memory garden

The bouquet you buy gets bigger every year.

You’re in the interminable line at the florist’s, you and a bunch of guys in business suits and wedding rings, identical guilty looks on their faces, and somehow your bouquet is the biggest one. Not for the first time since you picked it up, you wonder if you’ve overdone it. White roses. Red roses – deep red, not bright red. Periwinkle-blue buddleia, ferns, baby’s breath, and ivy. It’s a lot of flowers. A lot of money. And it’s not like the person they’re for is going to appreciate them.

But it’s one day a year. One bouquet, and it’s the only bouquet he’s going to get. You kiss your pastry budget goodbye for the next week and wait for your turn at the checkout counter, feeling like shit for even thinking of buying something smaller. So what if you’ve got the biggest bouquet in line? It’s worth it. You don’t need anybody else to understand, which is a good thing. You barely understand the impulse yourself.

The last few Valentine’s Days, it’s been bright and cold and sunny, a picturesque winter day. Today it’s raining, and you check the forecast on the train with increasing dismay. It’s going to be a swamp by the time you get there, and you’ll be going home cold and wet and muddy. You’re already tired. It was an awful week at work, but when isn’t it, really? You work in Homicide, and in spite of society’s supposed great leaps forward since the war ended, people are still in the business of killing each other. If you didn’t have your quirk, you’d work anywhere else.

But you do have your quirk – Red Cap, which gives you a heads-up and flashback every time you walk over a spot where someone died a violent death. Working Homicide really is the only job you’re good for, although in the aftermath of the war, you were embedded with the national coroner’s office, walking the battlefields to identify victims, perpetrators, and causes of death. It’s not what you want to do with your life, but it pays. Enough that you could probably stand to get more than one bouquet, one day a year. But there’s only one day of the year where you can buy a bunch of flowers without anybody asking why.

As you’re putting your phone away, one of your friends texts you about a last-minute blind date – some friend of her boyfriend’s whose date fell through, who’s going to be a total wet blanket and ruin their night if nobody distracts him. Will you go on a pity date with him? You’re not his type and he’s not yours, but all you have to do is keep him busy for a little while. With an offer like that, how can you refuse? You text back one-handed. Sorry. I have plans.

doing what?? I know you’re single

I have plans, you type again. Even if your plan was to get plastered and forget about tomorrow, you’re not going to go on a date where you’re so obviously the consolation prize. And you wouldn’t be that much of a prize, either – once people hear about your job, and your quirk, they’re usually not interested. Sorry. I hope you can work something out!

The exclamation point feels forced. You tuck your phone away and stare out the window at the rain, the bunch of flowers rustling in your shaky hands.

The view out the window reminds you just how much Japan has changed. It’s been almost eight years since the war, and everywhere that matters to anybody has been rebuilt, bigger and better than before. Every city’s skyline bristles with skyscrapers, every highway has wider lanes – and in between are places that aren’t important enough to merit a rebuild, places that have been patched back together haphazardly or been allowed to fall into disrepair. Bigger cities, empty villages. More pretty city parks, fewer nature reserves. And every so often you’ll look out the window and see a dark shadow across the landscape, a scar that will never heal. Or so they say. People say time heals everything, and sometimes, you almost believe them.

Once you reach your destination, you’ve still got a ways to go. This part is uncomfortable. It always is, not because the terrain once you’re off the main road is rough, but because everywhere you step is a place someone breathed their last. This is the final battlefield from the Villain War. You’d say the number of deaths that occurred here is countless, except you have counted. That’s how you know where to go.

The rain soaks through your clothes as you pick your way across the barren, muddy field. At one edge of it there’s a shrine to all the heroes who fell, not just here but in the entire war, and on important days, there are people queuing up to leave offerings and pay their respects. You keep walking, hating the way your feet squelch in the mud. The longer you stay in touch with a particular piece of earth, the more information you pick up about the death that occurred there, and you saw enough the first time.

The death site you’re looking for is at the far edge of the field, pushed up into the shadow of the mountain that rears up nearby. It’s unmarked, of course. It would be unattended even if it wasn’t. No one mourns the wicked, after all, and Shigaraki Tomura, the Symbol of Fear, was as wicked as they come. Or so they say.

When you found his death site, what you witnessed through your quirk brought you to your knees. That’s not how it usually goes for you, how it usually went by that point. Almost every person who dies is scared while it happens. A lot of them are confused. A lot of them are angry or hurt or betrayed. But none of them are all of those things at once, and empty and lost and hollow at the same time, and while you’ve walked over many death sites, Shigaraki’s is the only one that’s ever taken you down. And when you got back up, you couldn’t see him as the monster he was any longer.

You thought reading the book the surviving members of the League of Villains wrote would help clear your head, or at least remind you who you were really losing sleep over. When that didn’t work, you went to visit the book’s author in prison. Spinner wanted to talk about Shigaraki, his best friend and his only friend, but nothing he said matched what you saw. Deku, who killed Shigaraki, never talks about him at all, and you can’t explain to anyone that you’re haunted by the last moments of a villain who was horrifying and tragic in almost equal measures. So you had to find something else to do.

You reach the far side of the field and come to a stop. You moved a rock a few years ago to mark the death site, so you wouldn’t have to step on it and retraumatize yourself every year, and you stop a meter or so back from where you know the edge lies. And then, like always, you hit a wall. You could keep doing this for the rest of your life, and you’ll still never know the right thing to say as you set down the bouquet. The last few years, you’ve just set it down and left.

But that thought’s in your head again – one bouquet, one day of the year. He doesn’t have a shrine or a grave marker, and you’re the only one who knows exactly where he died. If you only got one visitor every year, you’d want them to say something. Anything.

Anything, from you, is usually a bad idea. “I’m still working at Homicide. The murder rate hasn’t dropped back to pre-war levels yet. I go walking over two or three crime scenes a week, and none of them have ever been as awful as what I felt when I walked over yours.”

So what, you can imagine him saying. You get to walk away. This was my whole life, and I died as I lived. Do you expect me to feel sorry for you or something? “I don’t want you to feel sorry for me. That’s not why I’m saying that. I just – I wanted you to know that it really was that bad. All the pain you felt, all that anger – it’s unbearable. I can see why you’d do anything to get away.”

You wouldn’t do what Shigaraki did, you don’t think. Then again, you don’t have that kind of power. The only person you can torment with your quirk is yourself. “I don’t know why I come out here. Or why I bring flowers. You probably hated flowers,” you say. You can imagine his response to that, too: Yeah, no shit. “I never met you, but I can’t unsee what I saw. I wish I’d never seen it.”

You feel that way about everything you’ve seen and felt through your quirk, but this especially. “I wish I’d never seen it, but I did see it. And it would be wrong to look away.”

That was something you remember from that first flashback, the one that laid you out in the filth on the battlefield. The way the emptiness inside him yawned wide, a gaping void no amount of rage and destruction could fill, a desperate howl that still echoes through your mind –  look at me, notice me, save me – a cry for help that went forever unanswered. It’s too late for Shigaraki Tomura. Whatever you could possibly do rings hollow, and he’ll never see it, anyway. The longer you think about it, the more miserable you get. You need to go, before you spend another Valentine’s Day crying on the train home.

But to leave the bouquet by your makeshift marker, you have to cross the death site. As you hesitate, you hear that voice in your head, cobbled together from every newscast of the destruction of Jaku City or the final battle that took place here: This was my whole life. You get to walk away. You steep yourself and cross onto the death site, and like always, it hits you like a knockout punch. All you can do is stagger to the marker, set the bouquet in its mason jar down at the foot of the stone, and stagger back out, your eyes burning, struggling to breathe.

You’re doubled over, gasping for air, when you hear the voice. “I didn’t think you’d come this year.”

Your stomach lurches. You stagger backwards, foot-first into another deathsite, and struggle to get your balance, searching for a safe place to stand. “Because of the rain,” the voice continues, raspy and rough. His voice. “How long are you going to keep this up?”

You’ve always thought your quirk might snap your mind someday. You just didn’t expect it to happen like this. If you’re already crazy, you might as well answer him. “Until I stop seeing it.”

“Forever.”

It’s been eight years. Nothing else has clung to you like this. “Yeah. I guess so.”

“Forever,” the voice repeats. “I never stopped seeing it, either.”

You’re talking to a dead person. A ghost. You’ve walked over hundreds of death sites, and you’ve never met a ghost before. But if anybody was going to become a ghost, it would be him, wouldn’t it? Unhappy, unable to let go, unmissed and unmourned by anyone but you, and you can barely be called a mourner when the most you do is show up with flowers one day a year. He probably hates flowers, and hates you, like he hated everything before. “I’m sorry,” you say. Shigaraki Tomura’s ghost makes a questioning sound. “I’m sorry no one saved you. I wish it wasn’t too late.”

You turn and leave without another look at the death site, and Shigaraki Tomura’s voice follows you. “Maybe it’s not.”

You’re losing it. You really must be. As soon as you get home, you’re taking a leave of absence from your horrible job and going to therapy, so you can learn how to live with your quirk and not let it cling to you and leave a bouquet at a supervillain’s death site without having a psychotic break. Maybe it’s not too late. What does that mean? It means you’re going crazy. That’s all this was. You walk stiff-legged across the battlefield, sicker with every step, never looking back. If you see his ghost hovering over the death site, you’re going to lose your mind for good.

Curiosity gets the better of you, though. You look back just once, once there are no more death sites to walk over and the only memories in your head belong to you. Shigaraki’s death site is easy to miss if you don’t know what to look for, but you know what to look for – and even from this distance, you can see that the bouquet you left for him is gone.

[kiszjuli]

PERFECT EXCUSE .ᐟ

✸ playful!chenle x fem!reader | genre. fluff | w.c 2.2k | ♡

↳synopsis. you never cared much for valentine’s day. it’s not that you needed to, because school was more important. however, when you get roped into a (stupid) day at the valentine’s day fair, with the annoyingly charming zhong chenle, maybe your perspective will change.

↳playlist. good days - sza. the perfect pair - beabadoobee. bad - wavetoearth. rainbow - nct dream. sunflower - swae lee. love countdown - nayeon.

valentine’s day at college was a disaster waiting to happen. at least, that’s how you’d always viewed it. all the heart-shaped decorations, the excessive amounts of candy, the couples holding hands like they were somehow more in love because of the date on the calendar. it was just a lot of noise—unnecessary noise at that. your life was perfectly organized, your time always scheduled, and you certainly didn’t need some manufactured holiday reminding you that romance existed.

but, of course, your best friend mia had other plans.

“please, just come with me,” mia begged, standing in your dorm doorway, her eyes wide and pleading. “you know i can’t go alone, and honestly, i need you to go so i can be with felix. i’ll owe you, i swear. just this once. for me?”

you rolled your eyes. felix was mia’s crush—one of your other friends who had a thing for always being the center of attention. you couldn’t really say no, knowing how much it meant to her, especially since she’d been talking about him nonstop for weeks. if she wasn’t your best friend, you would’ve said no.

“fine,” you muttered, sighing, setting your textbooks down. “but i’m only coming because you’re clearly desperate, and i’m not staying long.”

mia’s face lit up as if you’d just given her the world. “you’re the best! i’ll make it worth your while, i promise.” she ran to you, attacking you in a hug.

—

so here you were, standing outside the valentine’s day fair on campus, which, unsurprisingly, looked like cupid threw up. balloons floated lazily above booths, and the scent of cotton candy and fried food was everywhere. people roamed around in pairs, couples wrapped in the gooey sweetness of the holiday, while you tried your best to keep the grimace off your face.

“i’m going to go find felix,” mia said, her voice practically vibrating with excitement. “you’re fine here. i’ll text you in a bit.” she dashed off before you could even say anything in protest. your words dying on your tongue as you sighed deeply.

great, you thought. now you were stuck in the middle of this chaos, alone and—if you were being honest—irritated. you wandered toward the game booths, wondering how long you could fake having fun, a familiar voice called out from behind you.

“hey, you’re not trying to sneak off and study, are you?”

you turned to find zhong chenle leaning against one of the booths, casually sipping from a drink, his bright smile practically glowing in the chaos around you. chenle was the kind of guy who could brighten up a room with barely any effort. always cheerful, always a little too playful, he had a way of dragging you into whatever ridiculous situation he was in—whether you liked it or not.

“chenle,” you said with a sigh, trying not to let your annoyance show. “what are you doing here?”

“i could ask you the same thing.” he grinned. “are you here for the lovey dovey atmosphere, or for the free candy?”

you crossed your arms. “neither. i’m here because mia begged me to come. and now i’m completely regretting it.”

he laughed at that, his voice like music, light and easy. “you know, it’s not so bad once you give in. the fair’s actually kinda fun, once you stop being all… ‘up tight’ about everything.”

you shot him a glare. “i’m not ‘up tight.’ i just have better things to do than waste my time at some cheesy fair.”

chenle raised an eyebrow and stepped closer. “you say that now. you’re already stuck here so…might as well make it worth your while.”

you didn’t know why, but his playful tone made you feel slightly… off balance. you’d never been good at letting go of your well-structured plans, but something about his easy confidence made you want to step outside your comfort zone. you shook the thought away.

“yeah, well, mia’s gone, and i’m stuck walking around by myself, in a place where i don’t really wanna be. not really my idea of fun.”

“stuck?” chenle tilted his head, as if considering your words. “you don’t have to be stuck.” his grin widened. “here, how about this? us. you. me. valentine’s day fair.”

you blinked, unsure if you’d heard him correctly. “what?”

“no, seriously,” he said, his voice dropping to a playful, almost firm tone. “i’m asking you out. right here, right now. us, enjoying the fair.” his grin was wide, but there was an edge of sincerity to his words that caught you off guard.

you almost laughed, half in disbelief. “you’re asking me out—here? now?”

chenle shrugged, unfazed. “why not? where better to then here? what else is valentine’s day about if not taking chances?”

you stared at him for a long moment, your mind racing. it wasn’t like you hadn’t noticed chenle’s charm or the way he made everything seem easier than it was. but asking you out here? it was so out there, so unlike the controlled life you were used to.

“i don’t know…” you said slowly, shaking your head. “i have a lot of work to do, and—”

“hey, hey.” chenle cut you off, his voice almost pleading, but still playful. “come on. just one day, no homework, no plans. just us and some fun what do you say?”

you felt yourself still hesitating. for all your plans and your need to be in control, something about the way he said it made you think that maybe, just maybe, you could let go for once.

“i see it, you’re giving in,” he smirks pointing at you.

“fine,” you said, a little too quickly, surprising yourself. “one hour. and i’m nothing cheesy,”

chenle’s grin was so wide, you swore he was glowing. “deal.”

and just like that, you found yourself swept up into whatever mess chenle had in mind for the day.

—

“you won’t regret this,” chenle says, grinning as he tugs you forward, weaving through the crowd. his grip on your wrist is light, like he knows you could change your mind at any second. and honestly, you might.

it was way too loud for your liking. screams and yells ring through the air, couples walking past hand in hand, some holding oversized stuffed animals, others sharing pink cotton candy like something straight out of a cliché rom-com. exactly the kind of thing you didn’t sign up for.

“i already regret it,” you mutter, adjusting your bag strap.

chenle hums like he doesn’t hear you—or, more likely, like he’s choosing not to.

then he stops, turning to face you with a dramatic flourish. “so, where should we start our date?”

you groan, smacking his arm. “this is not a date.”

chenle only laughs. “alright, alright. how about something simple? games?” he gestures toward the ones with flashing lights and prizes hanging from the ceilings—rows of giant plushies, novelty heart pillows, and even a ridiculously large teddy bear.

you eye the setup warily. “you mean the games that are totally rigged?”

“that’s loser talk.” he slings an arm over your shoulders before you can protest, steering you toward the booths. his warmth is distracting, and you hate how easy it is for him to act like this—like this whole thing is normal.

he stops in front of a classic ring toss booth, plopping down a few bills. “three tries,” the vendor says, handing over the rings.

chenle smirks, holding up a ring between two fingers. “watch and learn.”

you cross your arms. “you’re gonna lose.”

“you doubt me? me?” he presses a hand over his chest in mock offense. “that hurts. deeply.”

you roll your eyes, but you don’t miss the way his lips twitch, barely holding back a grin. and maybe you’re just a little curious to see if he can actually win.

the first ring bounces off the bottle. the second does the same.

you glance at him, smug. “loser talk, huh?”

chenle exhales, rolling his shoulders like he’s about to take the final shot of an nba game. then, he tosses the last ring.

it lands perfectly.

the booth lights flash, and the vendor claps once. “winner!”

chenle throws his arms up like he just won an olympic gold medal, then turns to you, triumphant. “see? skill.”

you shake your head, unimpressed. “that was luck.”

“skill,” he repeats, accepting the prize. a heart-shaped plushie. he turns to you, eyes twinkling, and before you can react, he presses it into your arms.

you blink down at it. “what—”

“you did say no cheesy stuff, but, y’know.” he shrugs. “couldn’t help myself.”

your fingers tighten around the plushie despite yourself. you tell yourself it means nothing. that he’s just being his usual, annoying self.

but when you look up, he’s already watching you, a small, knowing smile playing at his lips.

and for the first time tonight, you don’t have a quick comeback.

—

you don’t know when it happens—when the reluctant acceptance of being here turns into something else, something dangerously close to enjoying yourself. it had been at least an hour by now, you didn’t notice, not keeping track anymore.

maybe it’s when chenle insists on buying you a strawberry milkshake, claiming it matches the “valentine’s aesthetic” before promptly stealing half of it with a smug grin. or maybe it’s when he drags you to the dart booth, loses spectacularly, and then pouts at you until you give up your last attempt—only for you to actually win, leaving him in stunned silence before he bursts into laughter.

“i can’t believe this,” he groans, throwing an arm over his eyes dramatically. “this is the worst day of my life.”

you snort, sipping the remnants of your milkshake. “you’re just mad i’m better than you.”

chenle lowers his arm, watching you with that ever-present amusement in his eyes. “nah, i’m just mad i have to give you all my future winnings now. gotta keep my girl’s record clean.”

you freeze.

he doesn’t, not even for a second, like he didn’t just say something that sent your brain into overdrive. instead, he steps closer, leaning in slightly. “huh. no comeback?”

your fingers tighten around the stuffed bear he won for you earlier, and you tear your gaze away, heart pounding in your chest. “shut up.”

he laughs, the sound rich and full, and for once, you don’t mind being the reason for it.

the realization hits you then—soft but certain. you like being here. you like chenle. you had for a while; behind all the sourness you felt towards him, hearing his laugh, bubbly personality, and seeing his stupid smile. and the worst part? you don’t even want to fight it anymore.

—

the sun has nearly set, casting the fairgrounds in a golden haze, and you swear the air feels different—softer, warmer, like the world itself is urging you to stay in this moment a little longer.

“okay,” you murmur, just loud enough for him to hear. “this wasn’t terrible.”

chenle turns to you, grinning like he’s just won the biggest prize of the night. “that’s it? that’s all i get?”

you roll your eyes, but there’s no real annoyance behind it. “okay, fine. i had fun, okay?”

he hums, clearly satisfied, and nudges your shoulder with his. “good. now let’s end on a high note.”

you don’t even have time to question it before he’s steering you toward the ferris wheel. the line is short, and before you can put up a fight—not that you’re sure you even want to—he’s already handing over tickets, tugging you into one of the cars.

the ride begins, slow and steady, lifting you above the fair, above the laughter and music, until all that’s left is the quiet hum of the night and the soft glow of carnival lights below.

chenle leans back, stretching out like he owns the place, but then he turns his head, watching you carefully. “so?”

you glance at him. “so what?”

he tilts his head, eyes warm, knowing. “so, am i growing on you?”

you’ve always thought of chenle as loud, unpredictable, a little too confident for his own good. but here, in the quiet, you see something else—the way his eyes search yours like he’s trying to figure out what you’re thinking, the way his fingers tap idly against his knee, like he’s waiting for something.

you let out a breath of laughter, but your heart betrays you, beating faster than it should. you should have a snarky response, something quick and teasing, but all you can do is hold his gaze, the space between you charged with something unspoken.

he shifts closer, not enough to cross a line, but enough to make it clear—if you wanted to close the gap, he wouldn’t stop you.

your fingers tighten around the stuffed bear in your lap.

“maybe,” you whisper.

chenle’s smile softens, and then he gently reaches out, brushing a loose strand of hair behind your ear, fingertips lingering just a second too long.

the ferris wheel slows, grounding you, but as you look at him, at the way he’s watching you like he’s memorizing every detail, you realize something—

maybe you don’t mind falling, after all.

—

taggies(open) ↳ @kittydollzz @huffnpufffck @completelyjae @lovesuhng @nae-vm @ayibdorrt @chocoriki @yomaman @yukisroom97

⁀➷⊹ ࣪ ˖~ THE LA LA LOVE SERIES .ᐟ

[harmless-variety-of-garden-snake]

Tommy's introduced as a bigot in season 2 and often shown taking initiative in starting the bullying of Hen and Chim vs. waiting for Gerrard to do something and just not standing up for them. There's even a scene in "Chimney Begins" where no one else is even in the room to overhear and Tommy still chooses to be nasty to Chimney instead of a bare minimum of civil. Even after the "resolution" of the episode and his 'apology' (not for racism, but for making Chim prove himself at work), he's still shown to have spent years not learning his lesson, becuase he goes back to the same behaviors with Hen and Chimnney even mentions that "the Asian guy" still isn't invited out by the team for drinks or BBQ.

Then when it's "addressed" in season 7, we see remarkably little growth from Tommy, where he's blaming "the environment" and Gerrard for his choices and actions as a grown man. And in season 8, we get a healthy dose of misogyny in ageism with how he speaks of Abby, while casually acknowledging he also screwed up her life.

It's not just that he was afraid to stand up against bigotry in the face of an evil boss. He could've taken Eli's route, and just be silent. But no, Tommy is someone who chose to actively participate in workplace bigotry and bullying, and then almost 20 years removed, shrugs it off as everyone else's fault.

let’s not forget his very recent comments about Abby that were reeking of misogyny. Talking about her dating some “himbo” younger than her (as if he wasn’t actively doing the same thing) and admitting he was lying the whole relationship (not just about his sexuality).

Word for word that man said, “Heard she went a little nuts after that” as if her entire world wasn’t flipped upside down with her engagement ending and having to take care of her sick mother. The only tiny bit of understanding he showed was him saying she deserved better, which duh. 

One time when I was five I put a bead in my nose and it went all the way up to the bridge and I had to push down on it from the top until I could get it out because I was scared it would go to my brain and kill me.

That has nothing to do with any of what you said, but I just thought I'd put that out there because you're doing some dumb shit and I wanted you to know we've all done dumb shit. This is a safe space.

Anyway, I don't think you've ever been a closeted queer person who's said and done some at times questionable or outright fucked up things to keep yourself safe from scrutiny.* I grew up seeing people like me getting murdered and heard people explain why it would've been avoidable if they hadn't been so obvious or if they'd just chosen to be normal. I also grew up with a lot of bullies who were only bullying me because it put them in the protected group. It kept them from having people look at whether or not they were actually a good target for bullying. I'm actually friends with a couple of those people now. Not close, but we're cordial and we'll talk when we bump into each other at the store. That has more to do with us being in our thirties and living our own lives. There's a couple who had no excuse whatsoever other than being actual homophobes, I don't talk to them.

I dated in high school, I was engaged but I was 18 so I don't know how much that counts, but then I came out when I was in my early twenties. I knew I wasn't actually interested the entire time I was with those people, either. At first I just thought the relationship wasn't right for me, then I started to realize what was actually going on. I still dated, I still asked someone to marry me because I thought I could be happy with them. I did love and care about them, just not the way you should if you're going to marry them. I also didn't tell anyone I was non-binary until two months ago, even though I figured it out about fifteen years ago. A trans person hiding their identity to protect themselves from danger or rejection is nothing new, but it's kind of a shitty feeling to know you've been lying to every ex you've ever had about something like that. I don't like that feeling, and it's going to take a while for me to shake that. I don't know that I ever will.

So all of that is to say that a character like Tommy is actually kind of important to those of us who also weren't perfect at being queer, especially those of us who grew up during a specific time. I was actually pleasantly surprised that a basic network show would have someone like that, but times they are a-changing. So onto your last point:

Abby Clark is played by a now 57 year old Connie Britton (drop the skincare routine, girl), Lou Ferrigno Jr is 40, and Oliver Stark is 33. When you're an actual grown person, a seven or eight year age difference is kind of nothing. One of you might be a little more ready for things like kids or marriage, but that's not a guarantee. But hearing that your ex started dating a 26 year old when she's about 50, whether or not he knows that she actually pulled Buck's info in a very questionable way (I love that no one going after Tommy ever seems to care about the massive ethical breach from Abby), is kind of...wild. And he presumably heard about this from a mutual friend of some kind, who likely gave him this information colored by their own perception of the situation. This is where critical thinking skills become important. Based on context clues, I can safely guess that Tommy asked someone how Abby was doing or ran into someone who knows her, too, and they said "Hey, did you hear about Abby's new guy?" Otherwise he would've said "I saw that she was dating...." or "She told me she was dating..." So this could've been secondhand bitchiness, it could've been that her behavior was being framed as extremely not okay by someone they knew. We'll never know, the show doesn't have the strongest writing all the time. I'm not touching the thing about her mother, because a very close family member of mine has Alzheimer's, a good friend just lost a parent to it, and I do not want to examine the behavior of a person who's dealing with that or that of the people in their lives.

Could he have said "But I get it, she would've been going through a lot because of her mom and then our breakup"? Yeah. Would it have been nice if they wrote any scenes between Tommy, Hen, and Chimney that bridged the gap between when they weren't close and when they actually celebrated him and his accomplishments when he left the 118 to show why he would be someone Chimney would call on in two major emergencies? Yeah. I think I would've liked to see them talk things out onscreen and to show any apologies. Mostly because it would keep people from dropping an essay in my ask box when I feel like my sinuses and temples are filled with hot needles. I don't actually need to see it other than liking the three of them together, because I figured that they would've shown some hesitation before Chimney would reach out to him or he would've pulled Buck aside to warn him to be careful with Tommy. Or Hen and Karen wouldn't have been so thrilled when they realized what had gone down before Buck and Tommy came into the hospital room. There's a lot of stuff they don't show on this show, but they'd at least make a point to do or not do certain things if a character hated or disliked a character.

*I believe a certain dispatcher even did a whole big speech about this on the very show you apparently watch. I didn't like the Glee part, because I don't like Glee after season one. But the rest of it was good.

[wrioreid]

| Valentine's Day | spencer reid x reader

You and Spencer have plans to celebrate your first Valentine's Day together.

Warnings: fluff, slight angst?, indefinite season, some references to the series, without a definite pronoun I think?, lots of rambling.

Author's note: Hello, happy Valentine's Day! The day is literally over, but I only managed to post now :c I really wanted to write something involving my pookie and rewatching some episodes I had some ideas to put in the fanfic. Sorry if any part was confusing or doesn't make sense, I swear I tried!! Anyway, I hope it's fun to read!

The simple drops of icy water that fell calmly from the tree branches contrasted completely with the warm feeling emanating from the couples walking around there. Couples, lovers, families, friends. The street was full of people who were overflowing with love for each other, and you watched them solemnly while leaning your back against the icy wall of some random store. Not even a morning of persistent rain and unpleasantly below-par temperatures could spoil the romantic atmosphere and prevent people from loving each other.

It was February 14th, Valentine's Day. Or rather, your first Valentine's Day with someone. It was late afternoon and the rain had stopped, leaving only small drops of water as a reminder. The temperature continued, but nothing that good layers of clothing and a warm love couldn't solve.

You were waiting for Spencer. You had started dating the previous year, after February, so this was the first time you would celebrate this day together. In fact, neither of them cared about the date. You could even hear his skeptical voice again, talking about how this celebration made no sense and that it stopped being a proof of unconditional love a long time ago. On the other hand, you had never cared about the date because you had never had someone special enough to show that you were still made of love. Now that you had someone, you wanted to make the date unique.

You bite your lip, trying to suppress a smile, remembering how Spencer looked when you answered him saying that you had the desire to experience the magic of the day at least once. Not shocked, not surprised, but hopeful. The “Me too” that he whispered uncertainly like a secret being eternally kept in your mind. After that day, you started planning how you would spend the celebration, the millions of colored papers full of ideas - and dreams - scattered on the floor of his house being a warm memory in your mind.

But even though the plans were set a few good weeks ago, you - and neither he - could control your nervousness when today finally arrived. Even when you were walking together a few hours ago - him accompanying you to your house as he always did at least once a week - you couldn't hold a decent conversation. There was barely a goodbye, just you running inside the house to get ready and him running to his house to do the same. Now there you were, playing with a small puddle of water in front of you with the boot you had specially chosen while you waited for Spencer to arrive.

It wasn't like him to be late at all, and it was starting to get difficult to control your anxiety. Maybe he gave up. Maybe he realized it was something silly and irrational to celebrate. There were millions of thoughts battling against the small memory of the genuine smile he let out every time he read the post-its with the ideas for the long-awaited day.

Despite his confession when the subject came up, you had never actually talked about Valentine's Day before, much less if he had ever celebrated it. You knew that Spencer had already been in relationships with a few other people before, but you deduced that he had never celebrated the day, probably because he let reason take over, as always. However, deep down, you couldn't help but think that it was because he never allowed himself to celebrate, the idea that he was incapable of being loved rooted in his mind.

You felt pain in your heart, almost like a heart attack, when your relationship grew deeper and you would notice with each encounter these small - big - scratches that he had on his soul. Someone who would like to be seen as normal, to be perceived as someone capable of loving and being loved.

So, you take a deep breath and let the bad thoughts go away. Deep down, this is also his wish, and you accept this fact. You push yourself away from the wall, determined to find a better and more visible spot to make it easier for him. However, you didn't count on finding him standing in front of you when you stopped looking at the floor. And damn, he looked stunning.

His soft and tidy hair, his untidy white t-shirt, the wine-colored cardigan on top showing off his crooked black tie, his slightly wrinkled dress pants quickly revealing the pair of mismatched socks. All of this being soaked up by the dark gray overcoat and the purple scarf. There was literally nothing different about his style, but at the same time there was everything. Maybe it wasn't anything different physically, but whatever it was, was enough to make the thoughts that tormented you before seem like nothing more than a small fraction of an unknown nightmare now.

Spencer clears his throat, trying to bring your attention back to the real world. You can't tell if he's blushing because of the cold or because he's been stared at so intensely, but either way, it's cute. "Sorry I'm late," he says quietly, even though no one else can hear.

"It's okay, we'll still be a few minutes early." You smile playfully and awkwardly stand next to him, ready to go to the first attraction of the day. After millions of desires were buried by a job that took up too much of your time, the final decision was a traditional Valentine's Day schedule so that you could enjoy all the romantic experiences that couples usually have - as much as possible. The first stop would be at a small local theater to watch Romeo and Juliet. Afterwards, you would enjoy a beautiful romantic dinner at a special place, and by that you mean that you would have dinner at Spencer's house. And then, he would walk you home. It sounds simple, but it was more than perfect.

Despite your movement, Reid doesn't move. He looks at you with a tight-lipped smile as he unrolls a black and white fabric from his messenger bag. You hadn't realized it was there and before you know it, he's lovingly wrapping the scarf around your neck.

"I knew you'd forget," he whispers, smiling like a child who's been naughty. You use the scarf as a shield to hide your flushed cheeks, starting to walk quickly after whispering a thank you. The smell of freshly washed clothes with a hint of fresh vanilla is the only thing you can smell now, intoxicating you like a drink.

However, it's not enough to make you not notice the awkward silence between you. You've known each other for a long time and talk a lot, but the idea of ​​something new, a unique - and secret, in a way - celebration between the two of you was too much for both. You snuggle even closer into the scarf and slide your hand closer to his, your pinkies touching. You notice him looking at you from the corner of his eye, a look full of secrets for the others, but not for you. Calmly, he intertwines his fingers with yours, you now walking hand in hand and both of you smiling foolishly behind the scarf.

The play's performance was interesting, but it was hard to concentrate on it while Spencer made several dissatisfied expressions beside you. "It's almost revolting how a play about young love, family rivalry and lack of communication turned into a mere sad story about love at first sight. And I haven't even talked about the imaginary balcony yet!" It was the last thing he said after you left the theater and started walking towards his apartment, distractedly engaging in other matters.

“You can’t deny it, Spence,” you laugh out loud, smiling at his pouting face. “Love moves worlds!”

“It changes realities, that’s what it does,” he mutters, looking irritated, but a playful smile plays on his lips. “A tribute to a bishop who went against an emperor turned into a celebration of love with an exchange of gifts and declarations just because they decided to combine love and romance! And it makes much more sense for the celebration to exist because this is the first day of mating for birds. It’s the order of life!”

“Of course, it makes much more sense for men to leave love messages on their loved ones’ doors because the birds are procreating,” you giggle. “I think I’m talking to the reincarnation of Claudius II and I didn’t know it.” You joke, having even more fun when you notice Spencer pondering his words for a few moments, a furrow forming between his eyebrows.

“Technically, men who have nothing to lose are better at war than those who have love,” he pauses, now speaking again with a mischievous smile, “For example, I worked much better before I met you.”

You stop walking, shock written all over your face as you stare at him in disbelief. Spencer laughs, stretching one of his hands to intertwine them. He gently kisses the top of your hand. “Contrary to statistics and facts, I have been working better since we met and you know that very well,” he whispers, still with your hand close to his mouth, his lips brushing against your skin with each movement. You turn your face away, still angry, but taking the opportunity to control the immense urge to kiss him.

However, the whole act ends when you feel something different in your hand - the same one he was holding until just now. You turn your head quickly only to notice the beautiful red rose that magically rested in your hand, its scent so present that even from that distance you could smell it. Paralyzed, you stare at Spencer, mouth open, not knowing what to do. He stares back at you with a smile from ear to ear, his nose red from the cold.

“As someone told me the other day,” he says calmly and amusedly, “It’s worth ignoring the hype, the advertising and the high prices for someone special.”

You can barely react. Twirling the rose between your thumb and index finger, the only thing you can do is control the tears that are welling up in your eyes. It’s the first time you’ve received a flower so full of feelings from someone. A single, simple flower, but it was worth more than an entire field. Spencer calmly waits for you to recover, tenderness sparkling in his eyes.

“You’re an idiot,” you manage to whisper, hugging the flower gently so as not to ruin it or hurt yourself, despite your clothes. “H-How? Since when?”

He shrugs, reaching for your hand again and intertwining it with his, putting both in the pocket of his overcoat as he walks on again. “A magician doesn’t reveal his secrets… and he always has tricks up his sleeve.” He lets a sentence hang in the air, more mysterious than it should be. You stare at him, waiting for him to continue, but you only get a pat on the hand.

The rest of the way was calm and quiet, but comfortable enough for you to process everything, your eyes never leaving the delicate flower resting on your chest. When you arrive at the apartment, you can't help but notice how much - more than ever - this place made you feel like home.

A small smile escapes your lips as Spencer offers to help you remove and put away your coat and scarf. He removes his own scarf and coat as well and offers to put your rose in a container of water so it doesn't die. You hand it to him and as he disappears into the kitchen, you wander through the rows and rows of books, stopping when you notice that the chess pieces were not on the usual table, the moonlight coming through the window and illuminating only the chess board.

"I couldn't think of a better place," you hear Spencer say before looking in your direction, noticing the beautiful vase with several roses that he held in one hand and the tablecloth that he held in the other. He lovingly hands you the jar, smiling softly “I tried to put them all in my bag, but it was a bad idea, so they were waiting for you” he laughs embarrassedly as he arranges the tablecloth on the table.

You smile from ear to ear, enchanted by the beauty of the flowers, and place the vase in the center of the table so you can help him set up the rest of the romantic dinner. When everything was finished, you stop for a few moments to appreciate it and can't help but smile when your gaze lingers between the two chairs. As your relationship with Spencer deepened, a second chair began to appear frequently at the chess table, a sweet reminder of all the times you played there - and that, now, was even part of the scenery in his apartment -.

You sit there, smiling amusedly when Spencer reappears with a lit candle in his hand. "Waiter, please" you joke. He looks at you with arched eyebrows, carefully placing the candle next to the flowers. "On average, more than 7,000 candle fires happen here in the country each year".

You laugh nasally, fascinated by the moment "Thank you, Spence… I don't even know what to say. Everything is so… right, so romantic".

“It’s the least I could do and… I actually wish I had cooked, but time…” he scratches the back of his neck, embarrassed.

“It’s perfect, seriously. Next time we’ll cook together and you’ll see my culinary skills,” you say, making a silly smile appear on his face as he nods positively.

You eat and talk calmly for a long time, enjoying each other’s company. When darkness already dominates the streets, you realize it’s time to end the night. After helping Spencer put things back in their proper places, you pause in the middle of the room on your way out, pondering what to do. It was still Valentine’s Day and you hadn’t kissed.

However, in these last moments, Spencer seemed more spaced out and lost in his own thoughts, probably overwhelmed by the emotions of the day. You feel bad for a moment, wondering if you hadn’t forced it too much with him. So, you choose to quickly grab your flowers and your coat, your little goodbye speech already on the tip of your tongue.

“Wait,” Spencer, who was standing there watching you get ready, spoke hurriedly and, after making sure you weren’t leaving yet, disappeared into his room, returning moments later hugging an object to his chest. He walked until he was close to you, but never stopped looking at what he had in his arms. Looking closely now, you noticed that it was a somewhat old book, with some obvious marks on the cover and spine.

Spencer opened and closed his mouth several times, but unable to say anything, he just handed the book to you. Parlement of Foules was printed in large letters.

“T-This is considered the first Valentine’s Day poem,” he said uncertainly, his tone lower than normal, as if he wasn’t talking to you. “For this was on St. Valentine’s Day, when every fowl comes there his mate to take… is a 700-line poem that follows the tradition of dream vision poetry, a medieval literary style, and Chaucer uses it to discuss romantic love and freedom of choice… my mother read it to me when I was a child” he finishes in a whisper so low that you doubt if you heard it right. You press the book against your fingers, understanding the weight that it implied.

Spencer bites his lip, but resumes speaking, now with a more confident tone “It was a poem that stuck in my memory, more than any other and… given today’s date I would like it… to become important to you too. It’s the second copy my mother had in case something happened to the first one… but nothing ever happened and well… one copy is enough for me” he smiles embarrassedly, scratching the back of his neck “I-I left some notes throughout the book, too, so you would always feel accompanied while reading and… well, know my opinions about it”

“Couldn’t you read it to me too?” The question escapes your lips, your eyes glazed over the book as you caress the cover with interest.

Spencer is taken aback by the question, but a small smile plays on his lips. “I could too, of course” he paused again, now looking at you expectantly “There’s one more thing in there…”

You press your lips together and stare at him. Passion, surprise, affection… you felt so many things in that moment that not even the cold wind outside could cool the warmth that permeates your heart. You delicately open the book, noticing a writing on the title page. It was in pencil, and the marks from previous attempts were still there as if they were telling you a secret, but they didn’t get in the way of reading the large, hurried letters.

You can only teach a child to love by loving them. Johann Goethe, From your Spencer

A small drop falls onto the page, briefly staining the paper. You then realize that tears are streaming down your face, even though a tender smile has not left your lips. Spencer comes even closer, taking the book from your hand so he can hold it in his. With his other hand, he slowly passes it over your face, wiping away the small drops that insisted on running down.

“The whole discussion of the poem revolves around love… whether people are destined to be together or whether they have the right to choose, whether by passion, affinity or social conventions.” He speaks delicately, never taking his eyes off you. “Love is everyone’s final destiny, but it is a complex, free and uncertain process that, honestly, is still the action of hormones and neurotransmitters…” He bites his lips, quickly looking away to look at you again, determined. “But even so, even though it is not destiny… I firmly believe and I am more than happy to know that I made all the correct choices that led us to meeting.”

Honestly, fuck it. You put your hands around his face, cradling him, and bring him closer to you. Your lips touch gently, and you can't focus on anything else. Spencer timidly holds your waist, pulling you closer to deepen the kiss. Delicately, he starts to run his hands over your body as if he were appreciating a work of art until he reaches your face, where he caresses the side of your cheek with one hand and pulls you even closer with the other - if that's possible -. You separate from the kiss panting, but remain close, your foreheads touching. Spencer calmly places a tender kiss on your nose, then your forehead and, finally, on the top of your head, enjoying every second.

When you look at each other again, the only thing you can whisper are several "Thank yous". He smiles lovingly, still caressing your face.

“I don’t even know how to thank you, Spence,” you whisper. “You gave me so much today, with so much love, so much dedication… and I only gave you a meager little letter with messages that you surely already knew… I really don’t know how to repay you.”

His smile widens and when he answers, you feel like you’ve finally found your place. “Nothing could surpass the happiness your letter brought me, love, there’s nothing you can repay. However, it would make me even happier if you slept here…”

Author's note 2: Hello there! If you've made it this far, thank you so much for reading! I'm also on c.ai with the same user @/wrioreid, but the process of making the bots is going veryyy slowly.

[spidermans-l-o-v-e-r]

Hitch, 2005

Pairing: Eddie Diaz x Reader

Word count: 8.2k

Notes: It’s…. Not going great right now😂😂 things are actually hilariously bad and they’re going to get so much more worse before they’re better. I apologize to my friends and people who read my work because I haven’t been talking to anyone or putting anything out and like it all around just kinda ✨sucks✨ so I’m sorry, anyway I hope you guys like this one!

Eddie fixes his tie in the mirror, a freaking tie. He isn’t sure why he agreed to this, actually when Buck legitimately got on his knees and begged him to do this double date with him and Tommy he didn’t really have a choice. 

It was Valentine’s Day and Tommy had gotten them a reservation at one of the most exclusive restaurants in the city, he’d pulled some strings, called in a couple of favors, and got him and Buck a rooftop terrace gardeny type shit exclusive table! 

And then his little sister popped in for a visit. 

No matter how hard she begged to stay home, Tommy roped her into coming anyway because there was no way he was leaving her alone on Valentine’s Day. As much as Buck wanted a romantic dinner, he wanted to include her more. So Tommy called and asked for a table for four instead, and they agreed to it. 

Which is when Buck came to Eddie’s door, crying and pleading for him to come with them and that he’d pay for absolutely everything. 

And how could he pass up a free meal? 

“Make sure you grab the flowers” Buck comes up next to him, messily tying his tie, and Eddie smirks.

“I will” 

“And remember, she’s shy okay? So try not to be so…. I don’t know, really sexy Mexican guy! Try to be like…conventionally attractive but easy-going” 

Eddie yanks the end of Buck’s tie and he makes a weird hacking noise. 

“Would you just relax? I know you’re worried about being weird in front of Tommy. But he loves you, Buck, he already knows you’re weird” 

“Oh haha you’re so funny” He sticks his tongue out “Besides, It’s…it’s not him I’m worried about” 

“So what is it?” Eddie fixes his hair in the mirror and Buck grabs the comb right out of his hands and starts fixing the sides of his hair 

“That’s his sister. And not just any sister, his little sister! Her opinion means a lot to him. Her opinion is the law! What if she doesn’t like me? What if that’s why she didn’t want to come?? What if she already hates me?” 

He stares into the mirror, spiraling and thinking about all the things that could go wrong and Eddie shakes his head, leaning against the vanity and smiling. 

“You know none of that’s gonna happen right?” 

“Even the part where there’s an elephant stampede because I tripped over the gate and he gets trampled to death and she blames me and I go to jail for involuntary manslaughter???” 

Eddie has to take a slow, deep breath. He lets his head tilt back and he quietly counts to five before turning back to him and putting his hand on his shoulder, giving it a reassuring squeeze.

“Especially, that part Buck.” 

The doorbell rings a half hour later and Buck lets out a weird gurgling noise and jumps off the couch. 

“I’m not ready!! " he calls out while running back to the bedroom, and Eddie rolls his eyes and pushes off the couch.

“You are ready so get your shit together so we aren’t late!” 

He opens the door, expecting to see Tommy there but he’s a little surprised when he has to look down.

Well, fuck. 

Tommy is coming up the walkway with two stupid-sized bouquets and you’re standing at the door, your hands laced behind your back. But that’s not what gets his attention, no it’s you. 

He can tell those shoes are new from the way they shine, like gorgeous red rubies. They wrap around your ankles and have precious little bows on the backs of them. His eyes trail over your full figure and the way the little black dress hugs your body, he can feel a pull in the pit of his stomach at the way the square neck pushes your breasts together and he likes the way the bow in your hair matches the bow on your shoes. 

“Hi,” He says, and…he knows he’s been caught staring by the way a pretty blush appears on your cheeks you look away from him and he doesn’t even bother hiding the blush on his cheeks.

“Hi,” you mumble and he melts at how soft and sweet your voice is. He’s so busy trying to remember his own name that he doesn’t notice Tommy coming up behind you, or the way his jaw sets just a little. 

“Eddie? You gonna let us in??” 

“Oh uh- shit yeah sorry. I - sorry. Anyway, welcome to my home” He steps aside, ushering you both in and you come in, your shoes thudding softly against the hardwood and sending a thrill through his body.

“You have a nice place,” You say, looking at the photos of friends and family he has lining the cabinet in the entryway he smiles and runs a nervous hand through his hair.

“Thanks… I uh- tried to clean up a bit when I heard you two were coming to pick us up”

“Speaking of,” Tommy looks around “Where’s my Evan?” 

You gag a little and Eddie immediately decides he likes you… even if you know he’d already decided that the second he saw you.

“He’s in the spare - sorry he’s in “his” room. He’s kinda nervous” 

“Why would he be nervous?” Tommy’s tone is immediately worried and Eddie gives a little nod toward you. 

“Oh. I’ll be right back” he hands Eddie one of the bouquets and chuckles 

“From us, to you, our Valentine” He winks and kisses his cheek and Eddie gives him a side hug 

“Thanks, man, happy Valentine’s Day, and thank you for dragging me along” 

“It was our pleasure!” 

Tommy heads back to Buck’s room, leaving you two alone and that’s, fun. You stand in the middle of the room awkwardly for a minute, your hands clasped behind your back. 

“So uh-“ he clears his throat, toying with one of the roses “I didn’t know Tommy had a sister. Where are you from?” 

He gestures for you to follow him to the kitchen and you do, he hesitates for a second, deciding to just be forward, and grabs your hips, helping you get up onto the counter next to the sink. You squeak when he lifts you, his fireman’s strength is no joke and he smirks a little before kneeling to look under the cabinet for a vase. You bite your lip when he unbuttons the cuffs and folds them up, he winks and your cheeks light on fire. You clear your throat and look anywhere but him.

“I was born in Minnesota before I was shipped off to my grandmothers and moved here to California. After she died I was put into foster care where Tommy’s family adopted me. He was already 18 when they got me so we weren’t together for very long, but he was the sweetest big brother ever” 

Eddie listens to your story, staring into the glass while it fills with water. That explained the sun-kissed brown skin, the rich honey color he wanted to drag his tongue over and leave pretty bruises behind. 

“Eddie?? I think that’s enough water” 

He blinks a couple of times and comes back to the water overflowing from the vase and spilling over his hands. 

“Shit” He curses quietly and shuts off the tap, he shakes out his hand and pours out a little bit. You hand him the flower food with a little snicker and he sticks his tongue out before pouring it in and grabbing some shears from the drawer next to him. 

“Just keep a pair of clippers on hand huh?” You look at them and he rolls his eyes, pruning the bottoms 

“You wait until May” He nods his head toward the window and you turn to look out “That garden is gonna be sprouting”

“May huh? I’ll make sure to plan a visit down here” 

You help him arrange the roses in a comfortable silence, he gives your thigh little nudges and you poke him back with the toe of your heels. He’s smiling the entire time and every time he looks up so are you. Even your teeth are pretty to him, which, is weird okay it sounds weird but you have pretty teeth. You have naturally pouty lips and a cute button nose… you’re just too much for him and nothing even happened yet. 

“I wonder what’s taking them so long” You work off a thorn and drop the stem in the vase and he scoffs. 

“Trust me, you don’t want to know. I’m gonna have to like, burn those sheets” 

You giggle as he makes a face and gags then grabs a towel to dry his hands with

“What was Buck so nervous about anyway? Tommy said he was pretty outgoing” 

Eddie takes your hands, drying them for you and taking extra care to dry off your rings too 

“He’s actually nervous about meeting you, don’t tell him I told you.” Eddie sets the towel down and places his hands on the counter on either side of your thighs, you lean back a little against the cabinets as you think 

“Why in the world would he be nervous about meeting me?? Im- me!!” You hold your arms out and Eddie smiles, leaning in a little closer and you’ve got nowhere to run. Just the way he likes it. 

“Yeah, but he doesn’t know you’re “you” yet. He just wants to impress you… he’s really into Tommy. I’ve never seen him this serious before, not to mention he’s literally never mentioned you before, at least not to me. I for sure would have remembered you” 

You blush a little as you look into those deep brown eyes, you turn your head to look away and pretend to look at the ceiling. 

“You uh- would have remembered me? Why do you say that?” You mumble and look down quickly, playing with the hem of your dress. Eddie hooks his finger under your chin, tilting your head up to look at him.

“Oh, I’d remember everything he told me about a gorgeous little thing like you” You feel his hand on your thigh, he just lightly places it there and your heart skips a beat. His eyes trail shamelessly over the glittery body oil you’d accentuated your look with and he wonders slightly if you taste as good as you look. 

“Have I told you how beautiful you look tonight?” 

Is he laying it on thick? Oh yeah definitely. But it’s Valentine’s Day and he’s got a pretty girl on his counter, who’s shy and quiet and it’s making his confidence shoot through the roof. Every giggle, every blush, every word he pulls from you is a win in his book. 

“Hmm no I don’t think you have” you mutter coyly and it takes everything in him not to just kiss you. He can just feel Tommy throwing him into the nearest body of water already. 

“You are positively,” He kisses your hand 

“Wonderfully” He kisses your nose 

“Stunningly” He kisses your forehead 

“Beautiful” 

His eyes flit down to your lips and he’s sure you can hear his heart slamming in his chest. The rhythm matches yours when your eyes find his lips as well. He’s smirking when you look into his eyes again and you lean forward just the littlest bit, giving him all the permission he needs.

Your eyes flutter closed as his lips hover mere inches from yours, you can feel the warmth of his breath splashing over your cheeks and you’re ready, you’re seriously going to kiss this God of a man you’ve only known for about 45 minutes and absolutely nothing in your body is telling you to stop.

Beat that Disney.

“Hey guys we’re ready to-“

“Jeez- Evan what-“ 

Buck stops hard when walking into the kitchen and Tommy smacks into him. He whirls around fast and pushes against his chest. 

“Sorry I realized I wasn’t done” 

He wraps his arms around his neck and you and Eddie can hear the sound of Buck giving him the nastiest kiss. Eddie helps you down from the counter and you slap your hands over your ears. 

“MY BRAINNNN” you scream dramatically and melt into Eddie’s chest and he holds you against him, hoping you can’t feel the way he appreciates your tits pressed into his chest 

“THE HORROR” He wails with you and you both hear Tommy laugh. He comes around the corner with Buck in tow, who’s blushing like a madman while giving Eddie an extremely pointed look.

Because he wants his friend to get it but can he please not get it when he has to meet his boyfriend’s sister for the first time? 

Tommy leads him over to you and Eddie where apparently you’ve found yourself very comfortably sticking to, your arms are around his waist and he’s got his arms on your shoulders now.

“Am I interrupting something?” He blinks plainly, his face a completely blank slate and you pull away from Eddie, swallowing thickly and giving him a little smile

“We were just consoling each other over the loss of our sanity” 

“Uh-huh”

The playful smile doesn’t reach his eyes, and Eddie knows he’s semi fucked. But he looks at you and the way that dress clings to your hips… and he doesn’t care if he’s royally fucked as long as it’s a chance with you. 

“Anyway, there’s someone I want you to meet. Y/N, this is my boyfriend, Evan.” 

Buck comes around and holds out his hand and you let go of Eddie, reaching for it.

“It’s just Buck, but it’s really nice to meet you” he shakes your hand vigorously and Tommy wraps his arms around his waist, grabbing his wrist calmly. 

“She wants to keep her arm babe” 

You giggle as he releases your hand, with a light blush on his cheeks “Sorry I- I’m just kinda nervous I guess” 

“You don’t need to be” Your smile seems to calm him down a bit and Tommy feels him finally start to relax “I’ve been really excited about meeting you, my brothers told me so much about you!” 

“Hopefully all good things” Buck’s voice cracks a little and Eddie snorts, earning a glare from him 

“Of course! I think all the jobs you’ve had are really cool” You smile up at him and Eddie knows that’s the exact moment Buck falls in love with you, he smiles back at you, and kind of bends down to your height a little 

“Why thank you, I’ve learned a lot over the years. Shall we?” He holds his arm out and you take it, giggling as he leads you out the kitchen and Tommy looks over at Eddie 

“Did she just steal my date???” 

“I’m pretty sure she just stole your entire evening” 

Much to everyone’s dismay, it turns out that you and Buck get along really freaking well. He decides to sit in the backseat with you and you’re literally whispering in each other’s ear the entire way to the restaurant. You’re both snickering and trying to hold back full laughs, and every time Tommy catches Buck’s eye in the mirror he snorts and you both have to try and keep it in.

He’s immediately regretting introducing you two. 

Eddie watches you in the mirror occasionally and he knows that it’s stupid, and it doesn’t make sense and you literally almost kissed. But he’s jealous of the way you lean into Buck’s side when he tells you something stupid, he’s jealous of the way you fall all over him every time you can’t help but burst laughing and he’s jealous of the completely innocent way that Buck’s hand occasionally brushes your bare thighs. 

Tommy pulls up to the valet and gets out, he opens the door for Buck with a little glare and Buck just snorts, he puts his hand on his hip, pulls him a little closer, and kisses him and Tommy’s grumpy attitude vanishes. 

“Happy Valentine’s Day” He whispers. 

Eddie opens your door for you and you hop out, brushing the front of your dress out a little, you take a step to the side and he puts his arm around your waist and shuts the door.

“You two have a good laugh?” 

“Sure did! We started a secret club, we’re gonna make a handshake for it later” 

“Of course you did” 

Once inside, the four of you are led up to the roof and your mouth drops open as soon as the elevator doors open. This place is set up like it’s straight out of a movie, from the fairy lights strung up around the perimeter to the rose petals creating a walkway to a table set with candles, a bottle of champagne on ice, and probably the fanciest napkins you’ve ever seen in your life.

The live music is a punch to the gut, the violins really bring on the waterworks. This is beautiful, this is trying to deeply impress someone level, and as you look up at Buck, watching him pull Tommy in for a shy kiss with little tears pricking in the corner of his eyes… you turn to Eddie, who’s already whispering to the man who’d brought you upstairs and you know he’s thinking the exact same thing.

Tommy and Buck are in their own world for a minute and Eddie tugs on your elbow to pull you to the side. 

“So there’s a cancellation and a table open downstairs” 

“Oh thank god”

“I know right?! Do you see how romantic this is?!” 

“Yes!!” you gesture wildly “How could he think it was okay to bring us?!” 

“What was he thinking?!” 

“What’s going on you two?” Tommy turns to look at you and Eddie, who is currently slowly backing up toward the elevator and leaving you to break it to him 

“Eddie and I got a table downstairs” You glare back at Eddie and he winks 

“You guys what? No, it’s okay, Buck, and I want you here” 

Eddie now grabs your waist and slowly backs you up with him. You place your hands over his and shake your head 

“I love you so much Tommy and it was so sweet of you guys to invite us along… but this is for you okay? This needs to be about you two. You and Buck are gonna have an amazing time” 

“I-if you’re sure?” He runs a hand uneasily through his hair and behind him, Buck clasps his hands together pleading with the two of you to get lost

“Oh we’re so sure” Eddie laughs and pulls you into the elevator with him “You two have fun!” 

Buck wraps his arms around Tommy’s waist and pulls him into his chest 

“We will!! Hey uh, Eddie? You want me to send you money for an Uber?” 

“Yea, don’t worry Tommy I’ll take care of y/n tonight!” 

“Wait I’m not so su-“

The doors close and you slump against Eddie who slumps against the wall 

“…So that would have been so weird” 

“Kyle” hits the ground floor button and you throw your hands in the air 

“That’s what we’re saying!!!”

It turns out Eddie is wonderful company, he’s got you laughing and you’ve got him snorting into his champagne glass and trying not to laugh like an idiot and disturb everyone around you. 

The table you’d gotten is tucked into a corner next to the window, you can see the busy L. A street as they start to calm down, it’s a cozy little table, and incredibly romantic. Eddie moved your chair right next to his when he pulled it out for you and you blushed at the intimate proximity he’d created. As if going to a romantic dinner on Valentine’s Day could have been any more intimate than it already was. 

“Oh my god” Eddie is trying not to choke on champagne and you’re sinking into your chair with your hands over your face, trying to stifle the giggles. You’d told the most embarrassing Tommy story you knew. The time he’d gotten locked out of the locker room at work and had to run to find the chief in just a towel. His coworkers had sent you a ton of pictures that Eddie now owned as well. 

You’re both wiping tears from your eyes when you finally sit up and clear your throat, Eddie holds his sides, still giggling and you reach for the nearly empty bottle of champagne and refill your glasses. You put his up to his lip and he takes a small sip before taking it from you.

“Good girl” He winks and you feel your cheeks turn pink, you’re hoping he doesn’t notice it, maybe just thinks it’s the champagne. But you can see the twinkle in his eye when he notices you squeeze your thighs together just slightly and he slowly sets your drink down. 

“So, we’ve made fun of Tommy. We’ve made fun of Buck… I don’t know how I got mixed in, but I did. But you know what?” He runs the tip of his finger along the rim of his glass 

“We haven’t really talked much about you” 

“Me? What about me?” You feel a little uneasy and he reaches under the table, placing a hand over yours 

“Oh! I just wanted to get to know you, you know? It’s nice to make new friends. I’ve always made them easily, it’s just keeping them I sometimes have problems with”

“Oh?” You tilt your head and he laces your fingers together and puts his arm over the back of your chair 

“Sometimes I get in my own head you know? I don’t let people in… and that’s kind of left me alone more often than not” 

Your heart breaks for him and you smile softly 

“Whaddaya wanna know?” 

“How about we start easy?” He smiles back “You have any pets?” 

That gets your attention and you perk up, turning toward him 

“I’m so glad you asked that” 

You pull out your phone and excitedly show him pictures of your rabbit, Saturn. He fawns all over her immediately, the sweet little brown bunny seems to be the star of your life and he absolutely eats it up. 

You show him video after video and he makes you send him pictures of her and nearly convinces you to take him to Tommy’s house when he finds out that she’s there right now.

“Bro” you shake your head as he stares into her little black eyes “There’s no way in hell we’re going back to Tommy’s tonight” 

“But- bunny” He holds your phone up with a little pout and you coo at his sweet face and lean over to kiss his nose.

“Aww Pobrecito” You squish his face and he leans into your palms “Tomorrow! I promise”

You’re not sure when the conversation turned kind of naughty, but you can’t help but cackle at all his stupid dirty jokes. Maybe it was when you were telling him about the size of the cucumber you’d grown… or maybe it was when you said you would deep-throat a whole-ass mango if you could because they were your favorite.

Either way, Eddie is whispering dirty things into your ear and whilst they may be funny… they’re beginning to start a fire in your belly. 

“I’m so serious, I found out in the worst way possible that Buck is packin’ okay?” He gags a little and you nod along deliriously, trying not to snort 

“What about you huh?” You say playfully, nudging his shoulder and he stops a little, looking into your hazy eyes, and smirks 

“Wouldn’t you like to know” 

“We’re friends, right? Friends share dick sizes Eddie they just do” 

“You know… you’re not the first person to say that to me” 

You turn and laugh into his shoulder and he laughs with you, holding you closer and running his fingers down your arm 

“Hey! That tick-“

Your breath gets caught in your throat when he places your hand over his cock, you look up at him and he strokes your palm against it. You gasp as it hardens underneath your fingertips and you swallow thickly feeling just how large he is

“Any other questions baby girl?” 

You shake your head fast and he smirks, before leaning down and placing a kiss on your neck.

“Well, I have one or two. Can I ask ‘em?”

You nod and he lets go of your hand, grinning when you leave it on his cock, and slides his hand up your torso and over your chest. 

“Do you like wearing necklaces?” You feel his fingers splay across your throat before wrapping around it squeezing lightly. He likes the little cross-eyed expression on your face when you gasp out for air. 

“Well?” He squeezes a little to get your attention and you come back to him 

“Uh-huh” 

“Oh good, so do I! I have this very nice gold chain my tia gave me when I was maybe 15” 

You’re hardly listening to him, you’re really more focused on the hand around your throat and the way he squeezes lightly, just enough to make you dizzy and send the champagne buzzing happily down between your legs.

“You ready to get out of here?” He asks you quietly and all you can do is stare at him. He chuckles lightly and lets go of you, but keeps the hand on your neck.

“Hey, sugar? You in there?” 

You blush and nod at him, something that was apparently the only freaking thing you could do this entire night and he smiles. 

“Alright cool, I’ll order our Uber” 

A half-hour later, you and Eddie stumble your way out to the Uber, he keeps his arm around your waist tightly and you wrap your arm around his neck. 

He’d done what he’d seemed to be doing all night and did another 180, acting like the last half hour of your conversation hadn’t even happened, now he was back to telling his corny dad jokes. 

He had a stupid amount of fire jokes. 

He opens the door for you and you fall in, taking him with you. You both erupt in giggles and he helps you up and swings your legs into the car. He flops into the car and you pull him in awkwardly climb over him and shut the door. 

“Are you both in?” Your driver, Milo chuckles and you give him a little thumbs up over the back of the seat 

“We’re in!!” 

“Is it too much to ask you to buckle up?” 

You look at Eddie in a heap underneath you and at the seatbelts

“Uhhhh I think we can try. We can try right?” 

“We can try” Eddie agrees and you get off of him and sit awkwardly in your seat. Eddie gets on his hands and knees and reaches for your belt, he pulls it way too far out and tries to click it in. He spends a good 30 seconds just trying to get it in the buckle and by then you’re losing it. 

“Shut up! Shut- up!! Im close” 

“That’s what she said” you cackle and he smacks your thigh. You hear Milo upfront snicker and you squeal. 

“See!! He thinks I’m funny!!!” 

“Oh yeah you’re just a barrel of laughs” Eddie pulls away and his face is so close to yours, that you can feel his breath fan across your face, and smell the peach champagne on his lips. His eyes flit down to yours and you’re right back in the same position from earlier. 

Only no annoying brother is going to interrupt you… 

You scoot forward and he easily clips himself into the middle seat

“We’re ready,” he says distractedly and the car starts moving. He moves your legs into his lap and you slowly wrap your arms around his neck 

“This is cozy,” You say quietly and he runs his hand over your thigh, squeezing lightly 

“Very cozy” 

“Can we…can we do something” You whisper and he smirks, running his hand under your dress and higher up your thighs 

“You into voyeurism sweet girl?… didn’t really peg you as the type” 

You punch him in the chest and he leans his head down and laughs into your shoulder 

“That’s not what I meant!!! I just…I wanted to make out” you mumble as your cheeks turn pink and Eddie pulls away to look at you again

“Sorry, honey I don’t think I quite heard that, you wanna run it by me again?”

Your cheeks burn right through to the freaking bone and you roll your eyes 

“I said… do you want to make out” You say it a little louder and he grins wickedly 

“Oh, I thought you’d never ask”

He closes the distance between you, finally capturing your lips in a searing kiss. It's not gentle or sweet like you’d been expecting- no, this kiss is hungry and demanding, full of all the pent-up desire he's been feeling since he first laid eyes on you since Tommy had interrupted what was gonna be your first kiss.

He kisses you like it’s the last time he’ll ever get to like you’re the air he needs to breathe. His tongue laps at your mouth, exploring every inch of you, wanting to claim you as his own. He nips at your bottom lip, soothing the sting with his tongue before kissing you again.

You try to keep up with him, with his roaming hands and absolutely sinful tongue but it’s almost too much, and soon you’re moaning as he wraps his hand around your neck, pinning you against the door, and takes what he wants from you. 

His fingers slide higher and higher and you just feel them brush teasingly against your panties when the car suddenly comes to a stop. 

“Here we are!” 

To his credit, Milo kept the music sort of loud and the windows down to drown out the noises you were making, that Eddie totally was eating up and egging you on more and more. He pulls away from you, admiring your kiss-swollen lips and the dazed look in your eyes. 

“Let’s get you inside Princess”

“Thank you for tonight… I wouldn’t have minded staying alone, but this was really nice” 

Eddie has his arm over the back of the couch, his hand is laid on your thigh and you smile up at him, leaning back against the couch. He takes a sip of his champagne and sets the glass down on the coffee table. You’d both sobered up a bit after your make-out session and decided to keep the party going back at his place, it was nice to just relax and let go.

Even if it drove Eddie crazy the way you shyly came into his home and said you needed to use the bathroom and managed to hide away from him for a good 15 minutes just to gather yourself. He’d taken the liberty of setting out more drinks and impatiently waited for you to come back to him. 

“I should be thanking you, you’re a lot of fun to be around… how long are you staying in town?” 

“As long as Tommy wants me around, I’m sure he’ll get sick of me at some point” You hand Eddie your glass and he puts it down next to his 

“If he kicks you out you’re welcome here, I’ve got a spare room” His fingers trail over your thigh and you blush, scooting a little closer to him. Strawberry champagne looks good on you, he thinks as he watches your cheeks turn pink.

“Wanna see it? You know, decide if you’d even like to hang out here?” 

“Sure!” 

Eddie gets up from the couch and reaches out for you, he takes your hands and squeezes them before pulling you up into his chest. You stumble a little and giggle and he cups your face. 

“You okay?” 

“Just a little tipsy” You hum, leaning against him and he smooths his thumbs over your cheeks, enjoying the way your pretty eyelashes fluttered closed for a second 

“Yeah… I know what you mean” he leans down and kisses your eyelids, your breath fans across his face lightly and he bites his lip, looking down at yours. 

“Come on…” he squeezes your hand and leads you back to the spare room. He flicks on the lights and you peek around his shoulder, it’s painted a very pale blue and the linens match the curtains. 

“My Tia helped with decorating” he answers your questioning look and you step into the room, doing a little spin and walking over to the large full-length mirror.

“I like it, it’s nice” 

Eddie stands behind you and you look at him in the mirror, you shudder and sigh softly when his warm hands cup your shoulders. His fingers dance over your skin, down your arms, and turn you around to face him. 

“Nice huh? You haven’t even tried the bed, what if you don’t like it?”

“Oh that’s true…”

He walks backward, taking you with him, and sits down on the bed. You stall for a second before climbing into his lap and straddling him. He holds your hips and you place your hands on his chest, slowly pushing him down.

Eddie grins, running his thumbs over your hips and you smirk 

“It kinda looks like you’re the one trying to bed right now” 

“Hmmm… yeah I guess you have a point. We should fix that” 

He rolls over with you and settles between your thighs, you wrap your arms around his neck and pull him closer to you 

“You know? This isn’t actually that bad, like this bed is super comfy” 

“S’why I picked it” 

You let out a soft moan, feeling his lips connect with your neck. He swirls his tongue, tasting your buttery soft skin, and moans with you. You start to work at the buttons on his shirt and he smirks, sucking on your pulse point while your fingers shake. 

“Aren’t you an eager little thing?” He teases, and you feel his hands on your thighs, pushing your dress up around your hips 

“Uh-huh, you’re sure talkin’ a whole lotta shit for someone who got me into their bed” 

“Why don’t we both be whores?” 

You toss your head back and laugh and he snickers against your neck and rolls his hips against yours and you both groan. He reaches down and you hear the clink of his belt unbuckling. 

“What’re you doing?” You whisper and he kisses your cheek 

“I don’t want to ruin these pants, getting suits cleaned isn’t that easy”

You snicker and prop yourself up on your elbows, watching him pull away for a minute and shuck off his pants, he leaves them on the chair in the corner for a second and you giggle, watching him take off his shirt too. 

He comes back over, taking your ankle and kissing the inside of it. He trails kisses down your thigh and starts to bend down, settling your thighs over his shoulders. 

“I plan on taking my time with you pretty girl… wanna take you on dates, wanna see these pretty, thick thighs splayed across my front seat”

He buries his face between your legs, nudging his nose against your soaked panties, and inhales slowly, he drags his tongue over the pathetic patch of cotton and sucks on them.

“So fucking good” He grinds his hips into the bed and you arch your back and push his face closer. He looks up at you and hooks his finger in your panties like he’s giving you the option to tell him to stop.

But the blissed-out look on your face and the hazy shade to your eyes just spurs him on. He pulls them away, moaning at the sticky tendrils that come with them and before you can even react to the cool air he’s already on you. 

He eats you like a man starved and you cry out, putting your hand on his head and tugging on his hair. 

“Jesus you taste even better than I ever imagined” 

He moans into your pussy and brings a hand up to hold onto your thigh, keeping it over his shoulder and pressing soft kisses against your skin. He looks up at you, holding your gaze with smoldering eyes and you can practically feel the gush between your legs 

“You wanna ride my face baby? Wanna feel you grind that pretty little cunt on my lips until you cum” 

“O-oh my-“

Before you can even respond you’re shrieking as he rolls you both over. He purposely wraps his arms around your thighs and holds you in place so you can't run, even when you try. He slaps your ass and you jolt, making him moan underneath you. 

“Come on Sugar, use me”

It’s the way his voice breaks when he says that, the little hint of a desperate whine that drives you to move your hips. You grip his hair and let your head fall forward, you gasp out and he hums between your legs. 

“That’s it baby” He coaxes “Grab it like you mean it” 

You pull his hair harder and he groans appreciatively

Eddie leans in and places a soft kiss right on your clit, his tongue flicking out to tease the sensitive bundle of nerves.

His hands squeeze your ass, helping to guide your movements as he encourages you and you’re lost on him. You haphazardly reach for the headboard and brace yourself as you grind on his face. He moans beneath you and spreads your cheeks enough to drag his thumb over your puckered hole. 

“Whaaat the fuck are you doing??” You keep rolling your hips and brushing your clit against his nose, you can feel his finger on you but you’re too hot and flustered to pay too much attention to what he’s doing, besides whatever he’s doing feels good anyway 

He makes a muffled answer kind of noise because it's not like he can exactly answer you for real at the moment, but you get the gist of his “just let it happen” When his tongue swirls sinfully through your folds and your back is arching deeper against his mouth. 

“E-Eddie wait I’m gonna cum please let me down please pl-“

Eddie drags your hips away from his mouth just enough to glare at you

“I came here prepared to drown Y/N. I’m a firefighter, you think I can’t handle gushing water?” 

You bark out a laugh and he shoves you back over his mouth and you shriek, your hands reaching out for the headboard and he smacks your ass, squeezing your full cheeks in his hands. He moans underneath you and pushes his fingers inside you at the same time and you finish, your hips grinding down on his mouth while he drinks your juices.

Your head falls back with a soft opened mouth gasp, stars exploding behind your eyes. He works his fingers in and out of your ass while sucking hard on your clit and you reach down with one hand, trying to push him away. 

“S-stop!” You writhe on his mouth and he hooks his arm around your waist, pinning you down to him so you can’t get away from him. He works you through another earth-shattering orgasm and you slump forward against the headboard, crying into it as your thighs shake around his face. 

He pulls his fingers away and pushes you down off his mouth, gasping loudly while reaching for your waist to steady himself. 

“Jesus fucking Christ you taste good” He licks at the wetness on your torso and you whine and try to shuffle back down his body. He snickers and keeps you sat on his chest for a bit, rubbing his face against your breasts and you flick his forehead. 

“Quit being a perv and let me go!” 

He rolls his tongue over your nipple and you shudder when he bites down gently, sucking it between his lips.

“Cállate, corazón” 

Your mouth drops open and he chuckles, pulling away with a wet pop! And bringing you down his torso like you’d asked 

“Did you just tell me to shut up??” You narrow your eyes when he brings you face-to-face with him

“No? I don’t know what you’re talking about” 

He turns you both over and wraps his arms tightly around you then nuzzles his face into your neck, inhaling your lingering perfume and the distinct scent of sex that clings to your body. 

“I feel like you’re lying” You look at his closed eyes and the corner of his mouth twitches upward. 

“Shhhh, go to sleep” 

He blindly runs his hand down your face and you groan, batting at his hands and snuggling into his chest. 

“Asshole” You mumble and he places a soft kiss on your shoulder

“Mhmmm sure am” 

Eddie rolls over the next morning, reaching for you but he comes up with an empty bed. His eyes pop open and sure enough, you aren’t there, he sits up slowly, wiping at his eyes and sighing as he reaches for his phone. Buck has sent at least 25 texts… because that’s just him and Tommy has left a couple, asking about you how you’re doing, and when he should come get you.

He answers those ones first, telling him that he’ll bring you home later and that he and Buck should enjoy their day together, then he wades through the smut Buck sent him.

Wow! He’s so glad he could know Tommy’s EXACT size. 

A little knock at the door gets his attention and he looks up 

“Come in??” 

You push open the door with your shoulder and he holds back a groan. You’re wearing one of his t-shirts, it sticks to your curves and doesn’t quite fit over your hips. It stretches across your breasts and he can see your dark nipples through the white fabric. 

“H-hi” he awkwardly shifts a pillow into his lap, watching you bring a tray into the bedroom. 

“I made you breakfast, it was the least I could do after you let me stay the night…” 

You set the tray down, breakfast for two and he takes it so you can climb into bed with him. 

“Personally I feel like the eating I did last night was payment enough but whatever, not that any thanks were necessary” 

You whack his chest and he snickers and wraps his arms around you, kissing your cheek.

“Thank you, this was really nice of you” He nuzzles his nose into your neck and you blush, trying to push him away. 

“Yeah, yeah, yeah. Eat your pancakes!” 

He pushes your hands down and holds them in place while he kisses your neck. 

“No really! This was sweet of you princess” He growls and you melt a little, your cheeks flushing. 

“Sooo sweet and domestic of you” He mumbles in your ear, nipping at your lobe “My good girl got her pussy eaten… so she made me breakfast” 

Your jaw drops and your mouth gapes open and shut while you try and process his freaking sentence. 

“I- no that’s- no I”

“That’s a little submissive of you don’t you think? You want me to tell you how proud I am of you?” He trails his fingers over your arm and your eyes nearly pop out of your head 

“You did such a good job baby girl, these look so good. I bet you just put your whole heart into it didn’t you?” 

You blink slowly, processing what just happened and definitely not processing why it stoked a very distinct fire in your belly. He finally pulls away and cuts out a piece from the stack, he falls back into the pillows as he chews and moans. 

“Dude what the fuck” He takes another bite and does a little happy wiggle “These are good” 

“It's a family recipe” You breathe out, coming back down from Neptune and into the adorable two-bedroom home, where you’re currently sharing a bed with a sort of stranger who took his time with you last night. 

“Buck is basically my brother, and Tommy is his boyfriend and they’re probably gonna get married so I really feel like that makes me family” 

“Or you could just marry me” You snort take the other fork and dig in 

“I was gonna say that, but I thought it would freak you out” He cheeses and it makes you roll your eyes 

“Right…right because whatever you just pulled on me wasn’t going to freak me out, but you know asking me to marry you after the first date? That’s crazy” 

“See! Now you’re getting it!” 

He holds a piece of bacon up to your mouth and you narrow your eyes and take a bite, you reach out for your juice and he grabs it for you, tilting it up to your lips.

“I can-“

“I know you can. I want to do it for you” 

There’s no room for argument and you sip it, watching him watch you. His eyes trail over your jaw and down your neck, he tips the cup a little higher making you tilt your head back more to keep from drinking it too fast. He pulls the cup away slowly and looks back at you, those pretty brown eyes sparkling. 

“You know I wasn’t lying… when I said I wanted to take you out, wanted to take my time with you… or when I said you were absolutely welcome here. It wasn’t just the champagne talking”

“I know” You smile a little and look down at your eggs “I just… don’t know if it’s realistic. Last night was…good but I don’t live here Eddie, I literally live hours away” 

“So move here” He says it like it’s the easiest thing, like it’s a complete no-brainer. 

“I’m- are you joking?? Eddie, I can’t just pick up my life and come live here? That’s not… that’s not plausible”

“What’s holding you back? You already told me you didn’t have much there for you, Tommy is here, and Buck is here! And you love him already… and I mean, even if things about work between us? If there even is an us… I want to be your friend Y/N first and foremost. Even if you wanted to stop exploring whatever this?” he gestures between the two of you “Is?? I’d be happy just being your friend, and right now I’ve got the means for you to be here so… why not just take a chance?” 

You flop back in the pillows, considering what he’s said and he flies a little piece of bacon over to you again and you giggle. 

“Besides, my garden remember? I wanted you to see it in May and it’ll be a heck of a lot easier if you’re living here. Maybe we can even plant things together? Make it ours?” 

Ohhhh boy did he know how to bargain. Plants??? A garden?? It’s like he knew your heart already. 

“I can even put a nice chair out there for you, so you can read in the sun” 

He’s got this soft way with words, this really soft, really convincing… really-

“I’m gonna move here aren’t I?” 

“You can decorate this room however you want” 

“Tommy is gonna kill me” 

“You’re definitely going to have to share it with Buck” 

“Yeah I can see that” 

“But you’ll do it? You’ll move in with me?” 

Eddie is so eager to have you and it’s hard not to get excited with him, you sit back up and turn to him, and he mimics your stance, looking into your eyes in that deep way he always seems to look at you with 

“You promise that… that if things don’t work out between us… you won’t kick me out?” 

“I promise Y/N on my word, I do. I want to be your friend too honey… our relationship doesn’t have to just be whatever this is you know?” 

“Okay…okay. It would take some time to get everything together… I’d have to sell my apartment and get everything in order to be shipped here. Can I bring Saturn?? I should have asked that first, cause this ain’t goin’ nowhere if that little bunny isn’t with me”

“I’m not a monster” Eddie slaps his hand on his chest offendedly and you giggle “Of course that precious baby can come too. Hey! Why don’t we go on a date today hm? I’ll buy that little bunny whatever she needs to be comfortable here and we can get lunch” 

“I-I can’t ask you to do that” you stutter and he moves closer while pushing the tray away from you two. 

“You’re not asking, and neither am I ” 

He places his hand on your neck, gently pushing you backward onto the bed and you gulp, looking up at him. He squeezes lightly and nuzzles his face against yours then places a soft kiss on your cheek. 

“You’re going to make me very very happy  Princess. I just know it” 

You let out a shaky breath and he settles between your legs again just like last night 

“Whaddaya say princess… you want an encore?” 

You’re about to answer when your phone rings, Eddie reaches over you and grabs it, handing it to you, and then kisses his way down your body.

“Hi T-Tommy!” You take in a sharp breath as Eddie kisses the front of your panties and hooks his fingers in them 

“I have something to tell you” 

[lune-moon-nuit]

I think for some people it’s kinda hard for them to grasp the idea that Mike could be queer because they haven’t seen any hints that they are used to being given when a character’s sexuality is being questioned. Think Mickey from Shameless and Lukas from Eyewitness. With both of those shows and characters we are given confirmation at the start of their journey, or close to it, that they are in fact not straight because we see them acting on those feelings and throughout the show they have to learn to accept themselves. Mickey and Ian literally have sex together and Lukas and Philip were headed in that direction as well at the start of their storyline. Other shows might show their character on some dating app looking at guys or have the characters’ friend accidentally find their gay porn magazine or something that clearly outlines to the audience that they are queer and marks the beginning of this self discovery journey. It’s easier to see moments of projecting feelings and internalized homophobia from characters who you basically already know are queer. The audience follows them along that journey the whole way, so there’s not many moments where you find yourself questioning their behavior. Whereas with Mike we haven’t had his pov since season 2. We don’t know what he’s thinking. We don’t have the full picture yet, so it’s easy for the audience to see his behavior and to immediately write him off as an asshole. They aren’t given a clear reasoning for it. Both Mickey and Lukas were assholes at some point (or multiples points) throughout their coming out storylines because they were struggling with those feelings of internalized homophobia and being looked at like they were different. Both of them had girlfriends or were at least trying to seem straight to those around them by feigning interest in women. BUT the difference is that the audience knows they are lying. With Mike you assume he’s telling the truth because you haven’t been given a clear reason to think differently. We are uncovering his sexuality and his story kinda in reverse. Season 4 was the most obvious he’s been and it solidified a lot of peoples beliefs that he is queer and now we are working backwards slowly finding hints here and there trying to piece together his full story. We are following breadcrumbs not a fully carved out stone path. Mike is also a queer kid in the 80’s, unlike those other characters who are set in the present, so it makes sense to have his feelings be less obvious or out there because they can’t be. He doesn’t have anyone to turn to or a possible positive outlook on his confusing feelings like those other gay characters might. I don’t even think he’s aware of them most of the time.

We see what he gives us and only that. There are some outside hints and subtle nods to his queerness (one way sign, closet placement, posters..etc) but not at the level that other shows might hint at a gay characters sexuality. We aren’t on the journey with him step-by-step. We’re looking at consistencies in his character and comparing his relationships to one another trying to understand him and his feelings from season to season. We are, for the most part, on the outside looking in trying to decipher those clues. Come season 5, I think we will be part of that journey the whole way.

I completely agree with you. I think it’s precisely the way they scattered little breadcrumbs everywhere without making Mike’s sexuality obvious from the start that makes his arc with Will and El so compelling. The fact that we don’t have his point of view is exactly why the audience struggles to notice that he’s gay. And I find that very realistic. It’s like observing a real teenager—no one, except for the person themselves, is there to witness the intimate and private moments that confirm their sexuality (aside from a public coming out). The only thing we can do is guess or suspect an adolescent’s orientation based on what we see of them and the information we gather from spending time with them—without them explicitly stating, “I’m gay and I’m dating a guy.” And I think that’s exactly the case with Mike.

But that’s precisely why I love the Byler arc—because we don’t have direct access to Mike’s perspective within their dynamic from the beginning. The uncertainty, the ambiguity, the process of connecting the dots, rethinking things, asking questions, rewatching the series, and realizing new details—that’s what makes it so engaging.

Mickey’s storyline in Shameless is fantastic as a deeply closeted gay character with intense internalized homophobia, largely due to the environment he grew up in—especially his father, who is an absolute monster. But there’s zero subtlety in his arc. There’s no need to analyze Mickey’s bedroom, and the Shameless creators didn’t choose specific colors or camera angles to drop hidden clues, because the script itself already tells the audience everything they need to know through dialogue. Mickey and Ian’s story is very dialogue-driven. And I think that’s intentional.

Shameless aims to be a realistic series, where we experience things alongside the characters, which is why its cinematography feels like an amateur documentary, as if someone is filming their daily lives with a handheld camera. It’s not shot using highly stylized, professional cinematic techniques like the Duffer Brothers, who are more in the vein of Stanley Kubrick in The Shining: nothing is left to chance. If the curtain is yellow, it’s yellow for a reason—whether it’s symbolic, a hidden message, or a clue. If a specific word is used in dialogue, it’s intentional. If a book is placed prominently on a piece of furniture, it’s meant to be seen. If a character is illuminated in a certain way, if a particular shot is flooded with light, it means something. Every single piece of furniture, every line of dialogue, every color, every lighting choice, every setting—everything we see and hear in Stranger Things (including the soundtrack) has a purpose, directly tied to the story and the characters’ arcs. That’s the magic of cinematic language and why it’s an art form—everything has meaning.

That’s why cinephiles love analyzing Kubrick’s The Shining or dissecting Stranger Things. Both approaches evoke different emotions and suit their respective series perfectly. But yes, this method of gradually revealing Mike’s contradictions and internal conflicts, so that even after four seasons we’re still rewatching to fully understand because we don’t have his perspective, is brilliant and fascinating. And finally getting his point of view in Season 5 will be the long-awaited answer that unlocks so much!

[lullabyalikpoptarot]

Enhypen's (Green/Yellow/Red Flags) For Partners

Okay, time to move on to one of my faves for this reading. Let's see what they will share about what they like and don't like in a partner.

Heeseung

Green (6 of Cups) Someone he can build a long connection with, maybe be long time friends with. Someone youthful and pure. They may need to have this young vibrant energy. A playful and imaginative person. Also, someone pure, sweet and kind, and also pretty simplistic.

Yellow (Page of Swords) He may not like someone shy and timid, or someone who has a fear to speak up on things. He would want someone communicative and open about their thoughts. He also may not like shallow individuals. He wouldn't want someone who hides information as well and not open and honest with him.

Red (7 of Pentacles) Someone who stays stagnant. Someone who doesn't work hard or doesn't finish what they started. Someone who plays it safe. Or doesn't try hard to push for their goals. He may also not like a lazy person as well.

His overall seems pretty normal and what most people would like or dislike.

Jay

Green (9 of Cups) Someone who is appreciative and satisfied with what they have. Someone who finds a way to be happy and has the ability to get what they want. He would prefer a happy person that doesn't complain too much about things in life.

Yellow (Justice) Hmm, not sure what to make of this one. Maybe someone who has a tough time decided things. They seem to always see both sides of things, maybe someone who is a bit too objective and robotic is a bit of a dislike to him as well. Someone who may focus on too much of the facts or is black and white about things. He may want someone a bit more emotional and less cold. He may not like someone who is neutral about things and can't pick a side or make a decision, that is what I feel it may be a dislike for him.

Red (6 of Wands) I would say someone egotistical, a bit too boastful and prideful he may not like. Someone with a strong competitive spirit, I guess. I am getting more of someone who boast a lot about their achievements. That may bother him. He would prefer a humbler person. I can visualize someone blabbing about all their achievements and not shutting up and him making an annoyed face at it. Love that he gave me that visual lol

Jake

Green (The Devil) This dude is a bit warped here, why would he have this for a green flag? Bro really? He would like someone attached to him and maybe someone he can control ugh dude why did he have to show this. Going to be fun to do his boyfriend reading when I get to him for that series I am starting.

Yellow (Ace of Cups) Once again, not sure why he would pick this as a yellow flag. Someone who may trauma dump on him or pour all their emotions to him way too quickly may be a problem for him, not a deal breaker, since it is a yellow flag, but a bit of a turn off for him. Also, someone who gets too emotional and falls in love too quickly. He may pull away if he sees that too early on.

Red (The Sun) Once again, why this for a red flag not sure, someone with a big ego, someone who shines bright. Hmm, not liking this look, umm, he wouldn't want to date someone with a huge presence. Yeah, I don't like that, this energy kind of shows red flag behavior for him. This need to control his partner and honestly want to dim their light in a sense, keep them humble and small. Well, I hope I am off the mark there, but that is what I get.

I will be real it has been a while since I have seen that toxic energy from him regarding relationships, but it is making its way back in lol I mean that Devil being the green flag is something else, yes, you can say, he may want a partner with self-control and a handworker, but man, there are better cards to show that then this one. This man may want someone codependent on him.

Sunghoon

Green (Queen of Swords) This man is so predictable, love it. He gives me this card a lot. He wants someone smart, a bit cold, very wise, mature. They know what they want and share what they want. A confident person. Someone who isn't afraid to share their opinion and won't back down, but also very diplomatic and non-combative. A very cool, calm, collected person.

Yellow (Queen of Cups) I laughed when I got this, basically he doesn't want someone overly emotional and sensitive and someone who may ask about his feelings a lot or want him to share it, that is a no for him. It isn't a deal breaker, but he does not like people who nag him about his feelings.

Red (2 of Swords) Someone stubborn, combative, create arguments, unwilling to listen and someone who has different ideas and opinions from him, if he can't agree with them and they are not willing to compromise he is done.

Sunoo

Green (The Tower) Interesting card here lol Someone unconventional. Someone who is willing to change things and shake things up. I wouldn't expect this to be a green flag for him. He seems to like things to be stable and safe, so okay. Someone who isn't stringent and just lets things fall if need be.

Yellow (Knight of Swords) Maybe someone defensive. Someone who always has a point to prove or something to say. He may not like argumentative people. Hmm, this is a bit of projection on his part to, because he can be like this too, so unless he has changed, which I doubt it. Kind of projecting here, but maybe he doesn't like people who fuel that energy in him. He may also not like someone who is overconfident in their thoughts and beliefs and is unwilling to back down on it. Also, someone quick to speak, but not listen.

Red (The Hanged Man/2 of Wands) He may not like someone who doesn't see his point of view and understand his side of things. He may also not like people who don't reflect on their actions as much. He may also not like someone who doesn't have a vision of the future, if they can't see a future with him or align with what he wants, he is done. Which makes perfect sense to me lol

Why is he giving me he dated, or is dating someone, and they didn't want to change things and that is where the disconnect happened with him and someone. I sense that from this spread.

Jungwon

Green (3 of Cups) He would want a sociable and friendly person. Someone who gets along with everyone. Probably more so an extrovert type of person who likes to have fun and spread joy to others, the life of the party person. Also, someone he can be friends with as well and have fun with.

Yellow (6 of Swords) Someone mentally unstable and finds it hard to move forward and make positive changes in their lives. He doesn't want to carry the weight of this person. He would want them to be able to move on their own and work on things. He kind of comes off insensitive there, but just my opinion.

Red (The Lovers) Interesting card for a red flag. Umm, he doesn't want a partner attached to him, or to be infatuated with him. I am also getting he may not want to be attached to a partner, so if he likes someone a lot or feels a strong attachment to them, he may pull away and that is a red flag for him. Also, maybe someone similar to him is something he may not want. If that person mirrors traits he has he may not want that person. I guess those mirrors would probably trigger him, which is interesting. He might need to do some self-work and reflection there as to why he would be triggered.

Ni-ki

Green (The World) Someone very cultured and has lots of experience. He would want someone who has accomplished a lot that would be his green flag. If he has seen, they traveled the world and did a lot of things he would like that. He likes someone who gets things done. Also, someone very understanding of the world and knowledgeable about a lot of things. Like he would be an aww of their vast knowledge about life and things in general.

Yellow (Page of Pentacles) He may not like someone who is too cautious and to slow to do things. This also shows someone inexperienced in a sense. Dude would need to date someone older I guess, because being experienced and getting a lot sh** done is important to him. He may also not like someone who is unsure of themselves either.

Red (King of Pentacles) He wouldn't want someone heavily focused on making money, someone stubborn and too set in their ways. He wouldn't want someone to materialistic and grounded. And that they take things/life way too seriously. Someone too practical and safe and that they don't have much fun or ability to be spontaneous.

So, there that is, nothing too wild there for them, most seem reasonable. Some are questionable and a bit toxic, but nothing too surprising and crazy to me from what I have gotten from them in the past.

[neutron-stars-collision]

In all honestly, I don't like the ugly comments and have lost a lot of respect for you because of them. And no, I don't expect you to care about that, but I do expect you to care about why it happened.

Yes, your comments are nowhere near some of the hate that gets thrown around, but they are very similar to the comments about Nicola and Luke "not being attractive enough to be the leads" or about them just being "ugly" in general. So unless you are advocating those comments as well, you are being hypocritical whether you believe it or not, and you shouldn't be surprised that people don't like it. They shouldn't like it. Not because you are insulting Jake - he'll likely never know - but because you are insulting people who have similar features to him or people who do find him attractive. You make it sound like there is something wrong with them. You are insulting anyone who has ever been called ugly and made to feel like they deserve less because of it ("she can do better"). You don't think he's attractive? That's fine. Neither do I, particularly. We all have different tastes. But you make it sound like it's a personal flaw that makes him beneath Nicola.

So, no you are not as bad as the people who have said vile things about Antonia or the people who say these comments directly to their target, but that doesn't give you a free pass to"be a hater too sometimes". You are not bullying anyone, but you are insulting them for no reason other than appearance. We, as a fandom, should be better than this.

I understand your point of view. And well, I never expected people to like the comments, quite the contrary to be honest.

But at some point, I think I’ve figured that being “the better person” than the haters isn’t doing shit so I might as well give those weird Jake fans a taste of their own medicine and just speak my mind. The pettiness came from being tired of Jakolas putting down Luke to glorify a random man who doesn’t even look good enough to evoke such admiration as they seem to treat him with.

It also came from the fact that I’m shook Nicola is with a man like this as yes, she could do much better. Both in terms of looks and status. Age too, really. I don’t know about you but I think many of us had the experience of being disappointed by a man our friends chose to date. This is such a situation for me.

Finally, I don’t really believe in being nice and respectful for the sake of it as this fandom has already shown that’s not enough. Being quiet didn’t work so I might as well allow myself to be petty once a few months on my personal blog. No one else has to like it but my tumblr is a place I’m fully myself. No censorship or unspoken things left.

[flowering-darkness]

Lorenza: "Had I been at Laxan Loft that fateful day, then perhaps.. You whom the Ascians kept in the shadows might yet have had an ally for that last sacrifice. ..Ah, but who are we two of the void to dwell on a hundred years past?"

(comments/reblogs are appreciated but never required. further context is under the readmore!)

A little idea I had earlier and was successfully able to get a friend to queue into E10 with me to access the location for! This is actually technically my first thing made for my selfship with the Shadowkeeper (or to use her truer name Cylva), so it's perhaps a bit too context-heavy of a piece to start things off with, but.. oh well! I hope that it's still alright/people like it, even without everyone being aware of the full background ;w;

(If you are curious what's actually being depicted here: it's just a hypothetical musing about "if Lorenza had been present at the Battle of Laxan Loft a hundred years ago, where Cylva turned into the Shadowkeeper and forced Ardbert and the Warriors of Light to fight her (but they refused to kill her like she asked), then maybe that whole event could have been a bit less emotionally harrowing for Cylva". There was no way Lorenza could have been there, of course - she didn't even know Cylva at that time, as the two only met at the start of Shadowbringers despite both originating from the Thirteenth - but.. it's still something she idly muses after learning about Cylva's past. For more background context, feel free to have a read of this other post!)

When it came to putting this together, I was limited by what remained of the duty timer (since we had to do the whole boss fight against the Shadowkeeper and then I had to wait for everyone else to leave), as well as my own inexperience with manipulating reshade parameters like colour curves and brightness (so I apologise if this is a bit all-the-same-value - I tried to mess with the background vs. foreground a bit, but that was about all I could muster). To put things into perspective, this is how the arena looked before I went in and started the posing process - so as you can see, a lot of processing needed to be done to get the final vibes!

I'm also still not really adept at posing within FFXIV, which is why Lorenza is incorrectly using her right hand to reach out to Cylva; the day I learn how to flip/invert poses derived from paused animations will be a very advantageous one indeed! There's probably a better workflow than the one I currently use, but.. like when I was first starting out with MMD, it takes a while to get properly familiar with the tools involved and how to do what you're aiming for with them. I'd meant to get some alternate/closeup camera angles, but exited out of /gpose instead after taking the initial one, which meant I lost everything I'd loaded in .w.

In any case, though - I like how the final product turned out (even if the composition is almost identical to my January render..), and I hope that some of my thought process in making it could come through! I did finish making this at one minute to midnight on Valentine's Day, but I'm aware it isn't really a very Valentine's Day selfship thing.. so, I suppose it's more fitting that I wasn't able to get around to posting it until after the date had changed here! =P

Thank you kindly for taking the time to read this! I hope it all makes sense ^-^

[starlit-rook]

I am physically incapable of choosing a sole partner for Rook because *picks up all the Companions and shakes them* I mean, just look at them! I'm supposed to only want one! This is still very WIP levels, since this is the first time I've actually sat down and described their relationships together, so some of them are very sparse atm.

So, yeah, they're all a web of romantic/platonic/whatever they want -to call it, group.

Lucanis and Emmrich are Lance's main squeezes. (I've been contemplating a Blighted Treviso with Lucanis and Lance getting together officially later after the game but haven't made a decision yet). Primarily he lives with either one or the other.

Emmrich is the main one Lance pursued, since he was the eldest of the group, it felt good to have that sort of stability with someone whose been through things and knew what he wanted. He becomes a lich because of Lance's encouragement, though with the way I'm spinning my story, Manfred is still around (the way that whole thing spun out in-game still frustrates me.) They do dates when they can, proper fine dining and touring places dates, as well as funeral planning dates. Being Dalish and growing up in the Crows, Lance has a much more open mind about topics such as death. When Lance finds unconscious Nevarran habits creeping into his mannerisms, Emmrich about proposes to him on the spot. Lucanis: it took a long, long time for anything more than fleeting romantic feelings to bloom between them. They were able to develop a close friendship after the Blighting of Treviso, a small miracle with how Lucanis buried himself deep away from others. There's a key moment, in the Lighthouse, when Lucanis comes across Lance trying to keep himself together after so much has happened, that it starts to crack Lucanis's walls. They both have this sort of 'will be the leader but also needs someone to follow' personality that lets them swap the roles between them, a relief to know that if they need it, all they have to do is lay their head down on the other's lap and all their leadership responsibilities and titles and all that junk is flung out the door for a short respite. There's a big piece of Lance that will forever be guilty of what happened with Treviso, even though logically he knows it's not his fault. Spite, of all people, is able to soothe him the most of this (Lucanis also logically knows this, but it's difficult putting that kernel of hurt away.)

Taash and Davrin are big, big friends with benefits types. Taash and Lance share a strong bond through queerness; Lance transitioned when he was fairly young, been through all this shit for years at this point, so being able to guide Taash through that minefield has them thick as thieves. They do a lot of the more outlandish/frisky things together that Taash usually wouldn't do with Lace. Davrin: found they make better friends than full-time lovers, though their heartstrings do tug on them more often than they'd like. Lance is neither an animal person nor a parent type, so while his support in Davrin figuring out how to deal with Assan, it wasn't the best. (Assan though does now have a firm favorite spot in Lance's heart). Like with Bellara, they bonded over their shared Dalish history, both of them having left the Clan at a young age for various reasons.

Harding, as sweet of a woman as she is, she also reminds Lance of one of his prior relationships a little too much, so he keeps this relationship in the friendzone. (It was Bobber, a fellow Dalish elf who was the sweetest boy around, able to get past Lance's walls and bring out the softness in him.) OTOH, because of his prior relationship, Lance is much more equipped to deal with Lace's problems with dealing with the Titan's anger and her own lack of self.

Neve: Friends/Business partners with benefits. Lance adores hunting down clues and studying people with her! Once getting past each others walls, they make sure to check in on the other, that they're taking care of themselves and generally not running themselves into the ground. Lance encourages a sense of freedom and security in Neve that is hard to find elsewhere. Meanwhile Neve will help keep Lance's feet on the ground.

Bellara: girlfriend, shares her primarily with Neve (look girlfriends can still have sisterhood together, okay?) She has the ability to work with ancient tech and such that boggles Lance; he can pull people apart like nothing but give him an artifact and he'll be blowing up the continent. He delights in sitting nearby after a long day, asking a question or two about what she's doing, and sitting back and basking in her knowledge. Does he understand half of what's going on? No. Does he greatly enjoy these sessions? Yess. Bellara very much appreciates him being her wall to bounce ideas off of. Their time together is often spent staying weeks out in the wilderness, exploring whatever they can find to bring back to the Lighthouse, the other Veil Jumpers, etc.

They all still work in the Lighthouse, it's become a sort of stronghold for their group, expanding and shrinking as need be. Every few months they try to all get together and have a big reunion, share stories, experiences, knowledge and indulge in others they haven't seen in a while.

And then, there's Solas. A whole different and very unique kettle of fish that requires its own post. Though for a small detail of them; Solas was tricked into the Fade and can still talk to Rook, their blood bond unbroken.

Rook Introduction Hour 2/14/25

Happy Valentine's Day! I hope everyone celebrating is having a wonderful time! 💞💖❣️🧑🏾‍❤️‍💋‍🧑🏿👩🏻‍❤️‍💋‍👩🏽👨🏾‍❤️‍💋‍👨🏼💌🩵🫶🏼🥰💝💘❣️

How it works: I ask you a question about your Rook(s) and you answer it with as much brevity or verbosity as you desire. You can do this whenever you want, and I’ll reblog it + add some comments! There’s no time limit— if you want to do the older ones, they are collected here! (The post is updated on Fridays!)

🎶 L is for the way you look at me /O is for the only one I see /V is very, very extraordinary /E is even more than anyone that you adore! 🎶

Today's Question(s): NOW it's all about 💕Romantic love💕! Who is/are your Rook's LI(s)? Do they go on dates together frequently? Where do they like to go together? What's the most romantic thing that Rook's ever done for them? That they've ever done for Rook? If they had unlimited time and money, and no obligations, what would they do for each other? Is there anything Rook or their LI(s) want to say to each other that they haven't yet, for some reason? If they were to settle down together, would they want to start a family? Do you have any headcanons about anything they did together during the game that wasn't shown? And lastly, do you have any pictures of Rook and their LI(s) that you want to share?

Hopefully there are enough questions for everyone to find something they're excited about! Have fun, and thanks for sharing!

(Also, if you are looking for more DA themed Valentine's day content, taamlok made a new romance themed ask game, and corvus-frugilegus is sending silly valentines! And those of you playing on PC can also download the Veilguard of Love mod that metamancer-io made, and turn your Veilguard romantic! Hope you have fun!)

[boywithbear]

back with another opinion that I guarantee has been said before but I think autistic people who don't have an intellectual disability really need to speak to people who do

[onesnoopyaday]

I AM AT MY LIMIT

Snoopy #90

30/12/2024

description under the cut

[description: a cartoon-style drawing of Snoopy's head. Snoopy is a white dog with black ears. His eyes are shut and his mouth is a horizontal line. There are two large blue teardrops, one under each eye. The text "I am at my limit" is handwritten across the top of the image.]