#and i THINK 1 is a simple golden band

[wolfnight2012]

Trying to find a clear/clean shot of Ed's many rings & failing miserably

[stargirl-in-dilfspace]

Drive - Javier Peña x wife!reader [part 1]

[a/n: he’s too beautiful I couldn’t not write this. enjoy my thoughts on being married to this beautiful man.]

Warnings: smut (unprotected do better than these two!), dirty talk, I love you’s.

Content: established relationship (marriage), fluffy and warm, no use of y/n, escalates quickly to hot and a bit dirty, then back to soft and warm, The Cars & classic rock (self indulgent I know…), Javis hands, your sundress, Javi drives with ONE hand and you know it, old truck bc I love them, smut in said old truck on the side of a dirt backroad, a beautiful man and a sunset, minor mention of kids. [let me know if I missed anything my honeys <3]

Summary: Javi takes you both on your Saturday evening drive.

Saturday drives with Javier. That’s what you looked forward to when the weeks got hard. Without fail he took you somewhere more remote, just to enjoy the sun or the rain, and the breeze, and you.

Your chosen sundress draped lazily over your legs, the thin fabric giving a nice and somewhat unwanted layer between your bare thigh and his hand.

This one you work up to slipping yours over, you’d describe his hands as soft and calloused and large and warm all at once. In contrast to yours, always cold, shaky. You lean on the back of the old truck’s seat, staring at him, sun in the reflection of his aviators, other hand on the wheel, eyes on the road.

You were convinced that him driving with one hand had to be one of the most attractive things you’d ever seen, despite being told for years that it wasn't safe, even on these old backroads.

Your eyes focus on the hand that makes turns and slight adjustments.

You could see the wear of his hand, the work it’s done.

You could feel the touch of his fingertips and callouses from his gun without really feeling it.

He turned you into a mess.

The soft hum of The Cars over the local classic rock station filling the comfortable air. One of your favorite bands, you hum along, and he glances at you with a hint of a smile playing on his lips…fuck.

What did he do to you?

“Whatcha thinkin’ about?” Your husband spoke, giving you that grin.

“Nothin’” You smile back, tracing your fingers down his, eyeing your worn wedding band.

“I know you’re not thinkin’ all about glam rock.” He teased, chuckling as he surveyed the empty road ahead, fields as far as he could see.

“Maybe not.” You smile again. “Maybe just your hands.”

“Somethin’ that simple?” He asked you, grinning a little more.

“Yeah…something that simple.” You laughed softly, wrapping yours around his, pulling it up just a little higher on your leg. You leaned over, you head on his shoulder, watching the road ahead, the grassy fields.

You had a sense of safety, that you didn’t ever think you’d feel in an old truck with someone else driving. The confidence in each turn and press on the gas pedal made the ride smooth, and comfortable. He didn’t think about that, but you did. It was another way he provided you security.

“Mi esposa bonita…how are you?” He asks sweetly, quickly turning his head just to kiss your head.

“Good again.” You respond. You love these drives…nothing is better than getting away. No work, no responsibilities, no problems. Just him.

“I like this dress.” He twisted the fabric between his fingers a little.

“I know you do.” You smiled watching the golden lighting of the sun beginning to set. “You wanna pull the truck over and show me just how much?” You tease, not honestly expecting him to…before you felt the turn, the swift sounds of his unbuckling seat belts and laying you down quickly.

“Sure.” He smiles politely, leaning over you and kissing you deeply, running a hand through your hair, as your leg wraps around him. That look in his eyes, might have been there the whole drive—craving you, waiting for that little invitation to touch.

The fabric of your dress pushed back with the movement, you weren’t sure how it’d escalated so quickly, but somehow you never knew till his lips were on yours, making you lose all those deep rooted senses. He seemed to paint down your jaw, down your neck, to your collarbone, till his name fell off your lips like an unwritten poem you never thought of.

You don’t care how much you’ll really have to cover up by tomorrow.

The straps of your dress delicately pushed aside to press reverent kisses to your shoulders, the thin flowy fabric of your skirt pushed up enough by those big hands

————————————————————

Javier, Javi, Javi, Jav are your only coherent thoughts each extra time his hips meet yours, every time you feel his hands shift up and down your legs as you move rhythmically.

He’s got a way of looking at how he ruins you. Not in aggression or lust even. In some pure form of love he can only attribute to the beauty that is you, he stares at you, with deep brown eyes you know you could stare back at forever.

You pull him closer on top of you, with a soft, “Javi,” in his ear, as you dig little crescent moon shaped indents into his freckled, tan back you admired so much.

“C’mon, pretty girl, this is what you were looking for huh?” All he got was a whimper from you, he knew damn well he wasn’t getting full sentence answers with how well he made you feel like you were being split in half. No matter how many times you took him, you wouldn’t get used to that fucking delicious stretch.

His hand stayed on you hip to keep some leverage, while the other buried itself in your hair, pulling back enough to allow him to kiss and nip down your neck and now crudely exposed chest.

You got him like this—turned him into an animal. He got a great look at you like this, the sunset illuminating your skin just right, dress pushed down to your stomach, and pushed up to your hips, fuck-drunk on him.

“How’s that? This just what you needed? To be driven all the way out here and fucked with your dress all bunched up?” Javi muttered solely to get into your head and invade every single one of your senses. “Too impatient to take it off? To not even wear any panties with this little number?” He pulled your hair back just enough to get you to gasp. “Christ, I love you.” His voice had a moment of weakness, catching his breath, only you could do that to him, god how lucky was he to have met you and got you on your back like this.

He’s the one who’s got you skipping underwear.

“Fuck, Javi, I love you.” That’s all you could really think—let alone say anymore.

————————————————————

Snuggled up to your husband while he drove you home, trying your best to not to ruin the seat covers with the come dripping between your thighs.

You’d given up on saving your dress, that was a lost cause with how turned on he must’ve been.

Either way, you were wrapped up in his side, these Texas roads you learned to love leading you back to the home you called yours now. His free arm wrapped around you, the other driving, his eyes on the road again…Saturday drives. Something you’d never get tired of, something you’d be sharing with your children someday. (Javi liked to add someday very soon.) And you’d keep wearing the pretty sundresses he liked, pretending the rest of the world wasn’t there while The Cars hummed in the back of your mind on that scratchy radio.

————————————————————

feel free to leave any feedback!!! this was fun to write cause it had me blushing and kicking my feet while writing <33

[rootedinrevisions]

One of them Girls: Part 16 (Finale)

PART 1 I PART 2 I PART 3 I PART 4 I PART 5 I PART 6

PART 7 I PART 8 I PART 9 I PART 10 I PART 11 I PART 12

PART 13 I PART 14 I PART 15

Four Years Later...

The evening sun bathed the rolling hills of Northwest Arkansas in a warm, golden light. You leaned back against the tailgate of Tyler's truck, the worn flannel blanket beneath you feeling comforting and familiar. The picnic basket beside you was nearly empty, save for a few crumbs and an empty bottle of wine, remnants of a simple, perfect meal. Tyler sat next to you, his arm casually draped around your shoulders as you both looked out over the landscape.

Tomorrow was a big day—your graduation from the University of Arkansas. You'd worked so hard to get here, and now that it was finally happening, a mix of excitement and uncertainty swirled within you. The future stretched out ahead of you, full of possibilities, but also questions. What would come next?

You glanced over at Tyler, who seemed lost in thought, a soft smile playing on his lips. He was quiet tonight, more than usual, but the look in his eyes when he glanced at you told you everything you needed to know—he was happy, content, just being here with you.

"You okay?" you asked, nudging him gently.

He chuckled, turning his gaze to you. "Yeah...Just thinking."

"About what?" you pressed, curious.

"About us. About the future," he said, his tone thoughtful. "About you. I'm just really proud of you."

Your heart swelled with emotion, and you leaned into him, resting your head against his shoulder. "I couldn't have done it without you, Tyler. You've been my rock through all of this."

He was quiet for a moment, then he took a deep breath, his arm tightening around you slightly. "So... what do you think is next for you? After graduation, I mean."

You sighed, the question you'd been avoiding finally brought to the surface. "Honestly? I'm not sure. There are so many options, and it's hard to know what the right path is."

Tyler nodded, his expression serious. Then, a playful glint sparked in his eyes. "Well, I was kind of hoping you'd include me in whatever comes next."

You looked up at him, a teasing smile tugging at your lips. "What exactly do you have in mind?"

He grinned, his eyes twinkling with mischief as he slid off the tailgate and stood in front of you. "Can you stand up for a second?"

A little confused but curious, you pushed yourself up from the tailgate and stood before him. Tyler reached out and took both of your hands in his, his thumbs brushing gently over your knuckles.

"I've been thinking about this for a while now," he began, his voice soft but steady. "About how these last few years have been the best of my life. And it's because of you. I've never been happier than when I'm with you. You let me be myself, and you make me feel like I'm enough just as I am."

Your heart started to race, and you could feel your breath hitch in your throat as Tyler suddenly dropped to one knee in front of you. The world seemed to slow down, the only sound was the steady beating of your heart.

He looked up at you, his eyes full of love and sincerity. "I can't imagine my life without you. I don't want to. So... I was wondering if you'd do me the honor of being my wife? Will you marry me?" He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small, simple ring, its gold band catching the last rays of the setting sun.

Tears welled up in your eyes, spilling over as you nodded furiously, your voice caught in your throat. "Yes," you finally managed to whisper, your heart bursting with happiness. "Yes, Tyler, I'll marry you."

His smile was the brightest thing you'd ever seen, and he slid the ring onto your finger with hands that were surprisingly steady. Then, he stood, pulling you into his arms and lifting you off the ground. He spun you around, both of you smiling and laughing..

When he finally set you down, he cupped your face in his hands, his thumbs wiping away your tears. He looked at you with such love and devotion that you felt like you might melt. "I love you," he whispered before leaning in to kiss you, the kind of kiss that makes everything else fade away.

A Year Later...

The backyard of Tyler's house was transformed into a beautiful, rustic wedding venue. Twinkling lights were strung up across the trees, and wildflowers in mason jars decorated the tables. Friends and family gathered around, watching as you and Tyler shared your first dance as husband and wife. The soft melody of a country love song played in the background, but all you could focus on was the man holding you close.

As you swayed together under the night sky, you looked up at Tyler, your heart full. "Can you believe we're here? That we're actually married?"

Tyler smiled down at you, his arms wrapped securely around your waist. "I've never been more sure of anything in my life. This is exactly where I'm supposed to be. With you."

You rested your head against his chest, listening to the steady rhythm of his heartbeat. "I'm so excited for our future, for all the adventures we're going to have. You and me forever."

Tyler's smile widened, and he leaned in, his lips brushing against yours. "You and me forever, Mrs. Owens," he whispered before kissing you, sealing the promise of your future together.

As you danced beneath the stars, surrounded by the people you loved, you knew that no matter what life threw your way, you and Tyler would face it together. This was just the beginning of your forever.

[things-arent-what-they-seem66]

(For comic inspired AU... I think I'll call it "Mysterious dreams". Also... I'll be separating it in parts, okay? Just so it doesn't... get too long)

(And sorry first post is that long-. This was needed to set this all)

Part 1. The beginning.

For everyone around him, Adam never stood out. He was a normal guy, really. He worked as a lawyer (surprisingly enjoying his work), played in band with some people, he knew since high school, sometimes got out to some extreme activities on his free time, went to local garden to help out during warmer time. He was more of a loner, not many real friends, but it was okay.

He always seemed just another face in the crowd. But it was all he wanted to be really.

Nearing 30, he had everything he wished to have in his life. He had standard routine, but he never complained. If anything... it gave him feeling of control of his life. And it was enough for him.

This evening was just like any other. Adam was at his home, sitting with some documents for upcoming case at work, while his favorite show was playing on background. Rounding up at 11 PM, the man was already in bed, ready for good night's rest like always...But little did he know this day was going to change his life forever...

Deep into the night, Adam started to hear a weird music play in his room... it almost sounded like... a lullaby?

Kids' music? In my room? He thought to himself, slowly opening his eyes to see... he wasn't in his room anymore.

Adam : What..?

Now, it was a room with many beds. Walls were colored in pastel yellow, while floor had colorful puzzle patterns. On one of the walls, he could see a big blue circle with two white birds with long rainbow tails. The wording over it said "Songbirds daycare".

Was it the name of where he was? But... why was he at a DAYCARE of all places? He wasn't a child for instance! It didn't make any sense!

Adam : The hell..?

Then he noticed something. He put his hand on his mouth for a second, before slowly moving it away from it.

Adam : The hell is with my voice..?!

It was now higher... too high for his normal voice. It sounded like... a toddler's voice... at oldest. He looked down in fear on his hands. Also too small for normal. Too soft and pudgy than what they normally were.

Adam got out of bed, he was sitting in, before looking around. Across the room, he saw a mirror, before running to it to inspect himself...

But there wasn't him that was looking at him in reflection... but rather... a little toddler boy, if he was to guess, he'd give that boy 2 and half years of age. 3 at oldest. And yet... he recognized his own yellow, nearly golden eyes and brown hair. And yet, he now was a small child, wearing simple black shirt and white shorts.

Adam : ...the fuck is happening..?

? : Ah, there you are!

Adam gasped slightly, before turning around to see... a man. A normal man, but... compared to himself, he was a giant. Nothing, other than his height, was abnormal about him, but Adam took a notice of his shirt. Same image of birds and "Songbirds daycare" sign. Was it the place's work uniform? Was this man one of workers?

Daycare worker (Oliver) : Oh, what we have here? Did you wake up from your nap, Adam?

Now that was getting freaky... how did he know his name!?

Adam : Um... I...

The man just chuckled, kneeling down to pick up the (physically) small boy, much to Adam's surprise.

Adam : Hey! What are you doing?! Put me down!

Oliver : Oops, somebody woke up grumpy, isn't he? Ah, don't worry, kiddo, let's just get your spare outfit and you can go back to play! How does it sound?

Adam : What?! NO! Let me go! The fuck is going on in here?! Why am I so small?! Who are you?! How are yo-?!

But while Adam was having his panic attack, Oliver had time to get a bottle and place it in his mouth. And, what seemed to be instinct, Adam started to suck on the bottle and drinking the liquid inside of it.

Oliver : There we go... you were also hungry, aren't you? Yep, that's right... don't worry, little man, there's nothing some warm milk won't fix...

Adam, thinks : The hell is wrong with me?! Why can't I stop?! Well... it's not half bad, I guess..? But still... Why is he... talking to me like this? He sure can hear me... does... he not understand me..?

This all was weird...

(And he doesn't. None of adults within dreams can)

@adambrainrot

((Oh so this is Adams dream? Is he waking up in a dream in another life as a toddler and when he wakes up for real he's back to normal? That's so cool!!))

Oliver removed the bottle when Adam drained it, he moved him to his shoulder and gently rubbed and patted his back until Adam gave a small burp.

Oliver: There we go! All fed and ready to play. All your little friends are awake and ready to play with you again.

Adam: What friends?

Oliver took Adam out of the nap room and placed him in a playing area. There were at least 10-15 other toddlers around the same age Adam was being portrayed as right now.

Adam: What fresh Hell is this?

[redesigningxmen]

REDESIGNING MAGIK

Welcome to Limbo! Our group chose Illyana Rasputina, the marvelous Magik for this round! Introduced as the younger sister of Colossus, Magik joined the 80s New Mutants team as a young teen and has since flourished into an A-Lister in her own right. She's been a member of the Phoenix Five, Cyclops' renegade X-Men squad, the Krakoan New Mutants, and the 2022 X-Men team.

She has several inspiration points for artists and redesigners to pull from. She's most well-known for her all-black 2012 look but has also sported demonic and fantasy influences as someone connected to the hellish Limbo and her malevolent alter ego, the Darkchylde.

See what our enthusiastic and talented team of artists did this round, and make sure to follow them on social media for more fantastic art!

(The handles presented after artists names are their Twitter handles, but many use the same name on other platforms!)

Léa Dupic | @/kimodraw

"I went full speed ahead into medieval land and dressed Illyana in a full metal shiny armour, putting emphasis on her sword bearing arm with a biiiig spiky shoulder pad. Gave her a punk lesbian haircut while keeping her iconic bangs, because I think she should be allowed to be more of a punk lesbian. And I couldn't resist adding a touch of demon form with the horns. She's gloomy she's menacing she's spiky and shiny she's the girl of my dreams."

Giovanni Saroldi | @/RaulGiova 

"Just like matter, let’s give ‘Yana three states! Solid, liquid, gas? Kinda, not quite! From angelic to demonic, with her main form being the in-between totality of herself, where she can draw whichever power she needs.

It’s geometric, it’s chic, it’s retro-futuristic Terry Moore with the Horns of Galaxy The Prettiest Star meets Ludmilla from Bartok mid-transformation."

John Caden | @/johncaden64 

"I've always felt the Bachalo design was great, but could get very male-gazey.  I tried to make it more comfortable, while also keeping the same goth feel.  I do feel she needs to just go all-in goth, so let's shave her head, get some thick black mascara and commit to the bit! "

John Marsh | @/pastelrake

"What if Illyana had been a Russian figure skater?"

Joe Pryde | @/joeprydecosplay

"My inspiration for this design came from the idea of “what if Magik was an elder emo” complete with Kristen Stewart fem mullet, high waist buckled tights, and sleeveless crop top hoodie. I also wanted to pay homage to previous designs."

Haydn | @/ThatsSoHaydn 

"I had but one simple thought: What if the Soul Sword was a rapier? And thus fencing Magik was born. I wanted the geometric shapes of the dark bodysuit to contrast with the curves of the golden armor, whilst still adding a little magic and mystery with her cloak and mask. "

Dale Yaddow | @/DaleYaddow

Version 1 "The Savage Magik". Having been stripped of her magical knowledge, Illyana Rasputin hunts down various enchanted artifacts to replace what she's lost. Becoming desperate she seems to be willing to steal and sometimes kill to get these talismans. Among these are the Soul Dagger of Pixie, the medallion of Daimon Hellstrom, Holy bands from "Heven" and a cursed skull from an alternate version of Lockheed.

Version 2 "Mistress Magik" This is an older more seductive Magik that's been corrupted by the influence of Selene and embraced her sensuality, opening up a whole new avenue of mystical arts that she hadn't dared explore before. She now uses her SoulSword to capture the essences of her foes and much like Selene feeds on them keeping her young and vital.

Version 3 "Magik, Queen of Hell" Many questioned the logic of Magik giving Limbo to Madelyne Prior but the end game has been revealed. Illyana allowed Madelyne to tether her magic to Limbo, knowing eventually "Maddie" would get greedy and begin bringing more power to that dimension. With a carefully hidden clause in the Limbo transference spell Magik takes back Limbo and all the power within it and successfully overthrows all the Hell Lords, unifying the many dreaded dimensions under one fearsome rule, hers.

Anthony Ruiz | @/thwwipstickers

"Almost as soon as Magik was decided on for this design challenges I had two ideas strike me simultaneously ... The first of those ideas was the image of Illyana as a 90's Riot(ish) on the cover of a Magazine. I wanted to give her an edgy grungy vibe but still pay homage to her Demonic nature.

Shortly after Finishing my first Design I just knew I had to make my second idea come to life.

What if Illyana was an Anime Mech Pilot and Wore a Plugsuit... thats it... thats the idea. I really wanted to strike the Balance between Anime Plugsuit but still being noticeably Magik and X-men.

I kept the Bright yellow Color scheme with hints of black and red and chose to interpret her Armored arm into a Mechanized oversize cybernetic arm that helps fuel her Plasma Powered Soul sword that springs forth from her Gauntlet."

Isaiah Cox | @/isaiahbeenlost

"When designing my Magik look, I wanted to expand on ideas I had when drawing her a couple years ago by keeping her look sleek, yet scary stylish! So, I referenced a lot of Castlevania and Yoshiaki Kawajiri designs to get that cool anime look for her down! I plucked some fashion inspirations for the costume from places like: Mugler, Alexander McQueen, LaQuan Smith, JRPG rogues and medieval accessories! And for her new soul sword, I decided to give her an Odachi because since she already lived her Cloud Strife fantasy starting from the Bendis-era, I thought it was time for her to live her Sephiroth moment with this giant Japanese sword!"

David J Hughes | @/0ddeity

"I think with Magik I started out pretty traditional for her. Then I got to thinking our Russian Queen deserves a Mugler-esque fit. I wanted to go down the knight or warrior route, but then I thought ‘What If’ this was an AU Illyana raised by Patch and she got all of Logan’s training rather than Kitty and Jubilee, or, alongside them. So, bham, Oni-demon menpo mask and samurai elements on top of the Mugler flair."

Fleshmonk | @/fleshmonk

"Went through a bunch of design iterations, but settled on this cool plasticky vinyl plugsuit like version of Magik. I gave her a bob to mature her a bit and to move her towards a new silhouette."

Joshua Bruckner | @/joshingtonbear

"I took a bit from Magik's more armored designs, which I've always liked the most, and her goth jock aesthetic, and blended them. I rejected the Bachalo booty shorts in favor of a skirt, which gives her a bit of a 'cheerleader from hell' look."

Seye Sanyaolu | @/seye_art

"My intention for this redesign was Magik in a very dystopian future and so I imagined a 3/4 darkchylde Illyana that is in control of her self and powers (although almost lost it). In this future, most of the X-Men are gone and Illyana keeps a worn and frayed X-jacket on for the nostalgia :’)"

[nikichan234]

WHOOOAAA- after hemming and hawing over it for a while, I finally decided to post my takes on Cain and Abel for Hazbin Hotel!!

I’ve been thinking about these two an unhealthy amount, so here they are- the human versions, and then their versions in Hell hehe~ Below I have more in-depth reasonings behind their designs and the story I have given for them both~

Starting off let’s start with Abel!! The youngest little man here we go!!

For Abel- I really wanted him to take after Adam a lot. He resembles him the most, inheriting his brown hair, possibly build as well, and relatively taking after him a bit in personality as well just a little bit, mostly in being pretty prideful (which isn’t hard to do when you’re Heaven’s, and objectively your dad’s, favorite kid oops-). Not much to say on his human design, he’s pretty dang simple, so let’s get into his demon side shall we?

Now- Abel I imagine is in hell, which is like. Vaguely confirmed when Sera brings up the fact that Adam was the first human soul in Heaven. Now, frankly, while that’s most likely a throw away line, I wanna imagine that there’s a genuine reason that Abel ended up in hell, and I wanna say he became a little sinful in his life and that gave him his one way ticket to Hell.

With being the golden child of Heaven and his family, I wanna think he became a bit too prideful and arrogant about it, and with everyone around him basically being a yes-man to him, he just sorta internalized it and ran with it (parallels to Adam?? Yes.) While I imagine he wasn’t like a complete asshole, and has a good heart deep down, it just wasn’t enough, and the boy woke up in Hell.

For his demon design, I wanted to keep it fairly simple and give him a sheep/ram motif since 1. Being a shepherd, he’s around sheep and rams, and 2. a play on the whole ‘sacrificial lamb’ because he was the first ever victim of murder? Lots of fun to play with. He’s got a little sheep tail, possibly some furry haunches he keeps sheared to wear pants, and little cloven feet. I’m not the most satisfied with it, since it’s my first time doing something like this, but I’m fairly happy with how he looks. Little sheep boy we love~ I will probably redesign him before the year is over I swear-

And- for the wildest part, I wanna say he took after Adam in more ways than one and is in a rather popular rock band in Hell. I wanna imagine maybe Adam passed down his love of music/singing to his sons, as a treat, and Abel just kinda went with it since well. What else can ya do, gotta make a living doing something. He goes by his stage name commonly, to make sure no one knows he’s the son of Adam- the guy responsible for a lot of demon death. He’s not particularly strong, so keeping his head low and the truth of his lineage a secret is very very important for him.

I also imagine his time in Hell has seriously humbled him, so he’s much less arrogant and just living his life down there. He’s realized his own wrongs and is just trying his best to keep on living. Only big downside is he has to consistently go through new band members as some do get killed in the exterminations, thanks a lot Adam :|

~~

And now for Cain

For Cain, I like him taking after Eve the most, so I decided to go with a more dirty-blond hair look. I do HC Eve as looking similar, if not identical, to Lilith so lighter hair was a must- and not only that, but with the theories of Cain being Lucifer’s son, I did wanna give a little nod towards that as well (and give Adam some subconscious reasons to favor his younger son over Cain whooopsie-)

I also gave him freckles because those are for me, as a treat.

I didn’t exactly want Cain to be vengeful and full of pure evil, I love those versions of him very much, but I wanted to play with the regret and remorse aspect a bit more, as well as the whole redemption thing. So in my HC’s Cain killed Abel in his fit of rage and jealousy, but once he’s off on his own and cursed by Heaven to wander alone with his immortality, he does genuinely start to regret it. At first of course he blames Heaven, his dad, Abel, anyone else but himself, but as the years drag on, he does genuinely begin to regret and repent for it.

Of course the damage is done, and his spawns are unfortunately evil, but he does work hard to repent for his mistakes, and once he inevitably does die much much later on, he’s genuinely repented enough so that he is at first granted access into Heaven. Heaven is technically all about redemption and all for humanity, so I think it’d be fun to flip the scripts a bit and let Cain just taste something good like that, all that hard work did pay off.

But unfortunately for him, a certain someone is (very) the slightest bit pissed off that he got up there when his brother didn’t and took it upon himself to send Cain to Hell personally.

Because I enjoy ✨family drama✨ very much. That’s for meeee-

Because of that he’s just kind of a little guy, got some cool horns, clawed hands, just a little guy doin his best. Cain generally just kind of keeps to himself and does his own thing. Due to his lineage, he also goes by a different name to avoid people making the connection between him and Adam as well. While he probably would have a few sinners going for him since he’s the first murderer and that could possibly get him some good street cred, it could also be very bad for him, so he really just keeps to himself and does his best to avoid other demons as much as possible. I imagine he would be rather powerful as well, and could hold his own very easily in Hell, but he prefers to just be left alone so you’d never know how powerful he truly is.

I also say he enjoys plants. While he also got the music treatment, he prefers to just grow various types of plants in his home and possibly sells some different ones as well. It ain’t much, but it’s honest work. Got his temper still, but now he’s just kind of living his life and avoiding people the best he can.

-

Now- I also wanna imagine both brothers do have some sort of relationship with each other as well when they’re in Hell together. They do eventually run into each other, both are shocked seeing the other there, and they have plenty of time to talk about everything.

It’s not the closest in the world, but Cain sincerely apologized for his actions when they were alive, and Abel did forgive him, so now they do chat a bit about their jobs, small things here and there, and are relatively polite towards each other. Not best friends or anything like that, but they can hold good conversations and joke around a bit. Cain also gives Abel plants as house warming gifts and such, and sometimes Abel can’t tell if the plants are genuine or if it’s a thinly veiled threat due to some being a bit more dangerous than others- but he appreciates it nonetheless~

[amber-tortoiseshell]

A completely self-indulgent imaginary rework of the EMS system

The EMS is a good system. I like it. I'm glad it exists.

I still think it has stupid parts, and i'd change a few codes if I could.

1. Base colors

The letters are all over the place. Why is red and cream put between the eumelaninistic variant colors? Why is there a big gap in the lettering after j? I know historically why black is n, but i still don't like it. So my suggestion would be:

a - black

b - blue

c - chocolate

d - lilac

e - cinnamon

f - fawn

g - red

h - cream

w - white (white is a freak, it can get it's own letter from the end of the alphabet)

These are the ones usually deemed as base colors. If this ever changes, the new colors can get the letter i, j, k and l.

More simple genes get a color modifier letter after the base color's:

m - caramel

n - sunshine and other bimetal-type golden variants (corin)

o -

p - phoenix (if i'm right with it not changing the nose color)

q - karpati

r - recessive red variants (amber, russet, serdolic; i group them together for now, since they are all restricted to one breed and don't compete; if they become more widespread, they'd probably need an own number) (mc1r)

s - silver/smoke

t - tortoiseshell

Golden doesn't get a letter, because wide band is denoted in the numbering.

2. White spotting

This is the least organised part of the EMS coding. It'd completely overthrow it, and probably rework again when we finally have all the genetics understood.

01 - locket, belly spot ect (very low grade white, no ws allele)

02 - white attributed to DBE. ONLY if there's no other type of white spotting.

05 - low white (~09 now, and mitted and snowshoe are here too, doesn't get different code until proven different allele)

03 - glove (wgwg ONLY)

04 - salmiakki (wsal/wsal ONLY)

06 - intermediate white, bicolor

07 - high white, harlequin, van

09 - indeterminable white spotting

3. Wide band

11 - low wide band (golden/silver tabby)

12 - medium wide band (golden/silver shaded/tipped)

13 - high wide band (golden/silver shell/chinchilla)

A black golden ticked tabby would be a 11 25.

4. Tabby pattern

You know, i'm content with this one. I wouldn't touch it, it's good as it is.

5. Color restriction

Same. Mocha could be added as 34, but that'll likely happen anyway.

6. Charcoal

I'd introduce this as an extra letter. It'll probably need some rework when the genetics clear out.

41 - midnight charcoal

42 - twilight charcoal

So. For example a light amber tortoiseshell smoke bicolor would be brst 05, a cinnamon golden tipped tabby would be e 12 21?, a black mink rosetted charcoal would be a 24 32 41.

[sluttyforpascal]

(Anti-) Hero - Joel Miller x OC

Chapter 1 - Welcome to Texas

Summary: September 2002. In the aftermath of her father's death, Jess Young travels to Austin. With her life enough in shambles as it is, her goals are simple: sort through her father's possessions and then sell the Texan home. Things in life are never that simple, though. Especially not when her father's friend-and neighbor from across the street-tries to keep an eye on her. Joel is a total piece of ass, which is highly distracting Jess from said goals. Will Joel capture Jess' heart... And panties? 😈

Warnings: Joel being hot AF, but sadly that's it (for now...).

Wordcount: 6k.

Author’s note: Ahhh Joel Miller... I. Am. Obsessed. I couldn't help myself and somehow this idea for yet another multichapter monster emerged. There's much filth that needs to be written. 🥵🔥 A special thanks to my dear friend @fizzyxcustard, who listens to me rambling about my Joel obession. You mean the world to me!! 🥰🥰❤

“Every new beginning comes from some other beginning’s end.”

-Seneca

Thursday 26th of September, 2002.

The taxi had brought her from the Austin International Airport to the suburbs of the city and though Jess usually enjoyed taking in the scenery along the route or talking to the cab driver, today she would not even have noticed if a purple elephant had been rampaging across the street. Even the cab driver—a handsome guy named Earl—had fallen silent, for his client was too distraught to even tell him who she was visiting or where she was from.

As she sat on the worn backseat and vaguely registered Nickelback’s ‘How you remind me’ coming from the stereo, the synthetic fabric burned against her bare legs—the Texan heat making it even more uncomfortable. Jess suppressed a groan and shifted in her seat. She knew she should have opted for her long sundress, but the denim shorts and flimsy Metal band-shirt she wore instead were rather comfortable; it made her feel safe within herself. And though Jess had spent the first years of her life in the south, apparently it was easy to forget how unforgiving the Texan sun could be—hence her current, uncomfortable state.

‘It’s hot today, don’t you think darlin’?’ Earl tried, his last attempt to engage in a polite conversation with the lady. ‘Yeah,’ Jess agreed, her deep blue eyes fixated on the back of the seat in front of her. She heaved a sigh, feeling a bit guilty she hadn’t obliged in some casual banter earlier. ‘I hadn’t expected it to last. October is right around the corner.’ ‘Summer’s not your favorite season, then?’ Earl asked, looking at her through the rearview mirror. His handsome hazel eyes observed her with interest. ‘You strike me as a lazy summer type of gal.’ Jess chuckled at that. ‘No, I am not.’ ‘Christmas, then?’ She momentarily thought of her mother and her overfondness of Christmas decorations, and shook her head. ‘Definitely not.’ ‘Spring?’ Earl tried. ‘No? Are you more of a Halloween and pumpkin flavored drinks type of lady?’ ‘Yeah, I do love fall.’ Jess caved in as she brushed her long, raven curls over one shoulder before glancing outside. She recognised the block they were driving on, which meant they were almost there. ‘What about yourself?’ ‘I like all seasons,’ the cab driver replied with a grin, and it made her wonder briefly if Earl was one of those people who liked to stay impartial on most topics—either too scared to make a bad impression or too dumb to function. ‘Every season has its benefits,’ Earl went on, stopping at a red light. ‘But if you’re makin’ me choose, I would pick summer. I like the warm weather and the late night parties that come with it… Where we smoke somethin’, if you know what I mean.’

Jess eyed his golden curls, and a small smile tugged on the corner of her lips. ‘Are you abusing substances that you shouldn’t, good sir?’ She quipped. ‘Nah,’ Earl countered. ‘Just the occasional bit of pot, you know. To chill.’ ‘I hear you.’ ‘Really?’ Earl said, watching her through his rearview mirror again. His hazel eyes flashed with interest. ‘You smoke?’ ‘Just the occasional bit of weed,’ Jess said with a grin. ‘A bad habit I picked up in highschool, mostly to annoy my mother.’

Their conversation was cut short, for they had arrived at the end of the street and consequently her father’s home. Earl stopped the car in the curve of the cul-the-sac and took in the suburban bungalow. Jess’ father had painted it in a faded blue color awhile ago and the color went nicely with the low, gray roof, white painted window sills and the patch of grass stretching out before it. Even the red Ford F-250 that was still parked in the driveway matched the color scheme nicely. ‘Nice place,’ Earl remarked. ‘Is it yours?’

Technically, it was. Or would be soon. But since Jess didn’t want to share the details of her life with a practical stranger, she settled for the easy answer. ‘No, it’s my dad’s,’ she replied as she unbuckled her seatbelt and opened the cab door. ‘I’m staying here for just a while.’

Earl got from his seat to retrieve her suitcase from the trunk of the car, while Jess gathered her bag from the backseat before following him. She slammed the door behind her and eyed the silent street while waiting for her baggage. It was around half past three, the sun just coming down from its daily peak. Since it was a Thursday most of the neighborhood was at work, except the elderly couple sitting in the shade of their front yard across the street—the Adlers, if she remembered it right. They had been at the funeral.

‘Hi sweetheart!’ Mister Adler called as he waved enthusiastically her way. Jess couldn’t help but smile at that and waved back.

‘Here,’ Earl said, directing her attention back again. ‘Here’s your suitcase.’ ‘Thanks,’ she murmured. ‘What do I owe you?’ ‘Twenty bucks?’ he said with a laugh, though he had driven her all the way from the airport which must have cost her much more than just twenty dollars. Earl watched her retrieve the money from her purse. ‘And…’ he continued after he had accepted the money, scratching the stubble on his chin. ‘Maybe I can call you sometime, y’know?’

The move was cheesy, but sweet. Her first instinct was to decline—she had a fiancé, after all—but then the realization hit her. Like her dad, Adam wasn’t in her life anymore.

‘Sure,’ she said with a nod and rummaged through her bag again, now for her notebook and a pen. She scribbled her phone number on the paper and tore it from the book. ‘Here,’ she said. ‘That’s my cell.’ ‘You got a mobile phone?’ he remarked as he accepted the piece of paper. ‘Nice.’

There was a small awkward silence, in which both of them didn’t know what to say. Jess shuffled on her feet, unsure how to continue. ‘I have to go,’ Earl finally said. ‘Have to get back to the city. I’ll call ya, okay?’ She nodded and watched as he got in his car, started the engine and turned in the cul-the-sac. Forcing herself to smile, she waved her ride goodbye as he disappeared in the street.

Then, she paused at the front of the yard—keys in one hand and her suitcase in the other. She knew she was stalling, but she granted herself a few seconds regardless. For entering her dad’s home like she owned the place, meant also accepting the fact that he truly was gone.

Dad’s place looked exactly like how they had left it the day after the funeral. Jess dumped her suitcase under the staircase in the small hallway, and moved to the living room on her right. She eyed the sparse furniture—her dad had been a practical man, not needing more than a television, comfortable chair, a couch no one sat on and a small dining table.

She heaved a sigh and moved through the living room into the kitchen, where the breakfast bowl she had used on the morning after the funeral still stood in the kitchen’s sink and a forgotten glass of water sat on the counter. Mom had been eager to catch their plane, pushing her daughter and daughter’s fiancé to hurry up.

Jess leaned against one of the bar stools, half expecting her father’s heavy footsteps on the stairs, excited to see her. ‘I miss you, dad,’ she mumbled, a lump forming in her throat. Her fingers traced aimless circles over the stone kitchen counter. ‘Wish you were here… You’d know what to do with me…’

The silence was deafening. ‘Please,’ Jess whispered, tears forming in her eyes. Her fingers faltered. ‘I… I don’t know what to do, dad… You’re gone and he—’

She couldn’t bear to say the words out loud, for the memory was still too fresh. Her chest burned, like someone had ripped her heart out of her cage. Adam had betrayed her, and the worst thing about it was that she hadn’t seen it coming. At all.

Diiiing.

‘Shit,’ Jess mumbled, quickly rubbing away the tears from her cheeks before making her way through dad’s home to the hall. Why mister Adler already was calling on her after she had been here for just five minutes was beyond her, but because she wasn’t exactly familiar with the neighborhood it would be wise to be on her best behavior. So when she opened the door, she was surprised to not find mister Adler, but Sarah Miller standing on her porch.

Jess knew the thirteen year old a bit, for their dads had been best pals from the moment the Millers had moved into one of the homes across the road—now six years ago. Though Jess’ father was twenty years Joels’ senior, the Millers had been quick to adopt her father as a part of their family and as a consequence, Jess had heard much about the family before even meeting them in person. Apparently Joel was a single father who had just started as an independent contractor in the construction business and Sarah was this quiet kid that—upon closer inspection—turned out to be equally funny and smart. So when Jess finally visited her father a few months after the Miller families’ arrival, she had expected to meet a typical American dad and his bright daughter. But as it turned out, her father had left one important detail out.

Joel Miller was anything but the typical American dad: he was a total piece of ass and he didn’t even know it… With his dark, tousled hair, his deep brown eyes, scruffy facial hair and sweet smile Joel had captured Jess’ heart—and panties, let’s be fair—the second he had greeted her, effectively turning her into this weird, clumsy gal she didn’t recognize.

Sure, she had experienced her fair share of crushes and dalliances before, but this was different. Something switched whenever Joel came around the corner; she laughed too loud, choked on her drink or said something extremely stupid. Her dad—who knew her too well—had teased her endlessly about her crush and at one point Jess had suspected him of matchmaking. Which, as she had told her dad, was highly inappropriate, for at the time she had been in a relationship with Adam.

‘Jess?!’ Sarah inquired with a small chuckle. ‘Are you in there?’ ‘Oh,’ Jess said, a genuine smile lifting the corners of her mouth. ‘Hi Sarah! I didn’t expect to see you this soon! I just arrived five minutes ago.’ ‘I’m sorry for disturbing you,’ Sarah quickly greeted her neighbor. ‘But my dad isn’t home yet and I forgot my keys. He will murder me when he finds out. I saw you entering mister Young’s—Carl’s—house, and I know he kept a spare for us. So I thought maybe you could help me find them and save my life?’

Jess laughed at the girl’s direct approach and leaned against the doorway, the hard wood uncomfortable against her shoulder. ‘I would gladly help you, but I have no idea where my dad kept your key, so you have to help me look. Deal?’ Sarah quickly obliged, her beautiful hazel brown curly hair bouncing as she nodded. She straightened the blue backpack that hung over her shoulders. ‘Come in,’ Jess said while stepping aside. ‘Do you want something to drink?’

Unfortunately, their search for the spare key turned out to be futile and after an hour, both Jess and Sarah had to accept the fact that they would never find out where Carl Young had kept the Miller’s house key—or his own spares, for that matter.

Both girls had resorted to the couch, initially exhausted by their search. Though it was nearing half past five, the Texan heat was still quite unforgiving, and the only way to cool off was lying splayed out on the couch, allowing the fan to wash over them—a cold glass of Coca Cola in hand.

‘How long are you staying?’ Sarah inquired, watching Jess taking a sip from her drink. ‘Dad said he wasn’t sure anyone would come back here….’ ‘I don’t know,’ Jess mused, watching the ice cubes float in her drink. The fan brushed over her face, her own hair ticking her cheeks. ‘A month, maybe two. I need to sort out all my dad's—Carl’s—stuff and I have an appointment with the notary to settle some affairs next week.’ ‘What will happen to the house?’

Jess shrugged, unable to present the teen with a clear answer. ‘I need to figure that out too. Maybe I will sell it, maybe I’ll stay.’

It was weird saying the idea out loud, for it only had existed in her own mind since she had boarded the plane. With her relationship with Adam in shambles and her mother living in the big city, the only thing that tied her down to Staten Island was her job. The school board hadn’t been too happy with one of their teachers taking unpaid leave when the term had just started, so Jess wasn’t even sure her spot would be there when she came back. If she’d come back.

In the background, the first tunes of INXS’ ‘Need you tonight’ emerged from the radio. Jess grinned brightly and despite the warmth she jumped from the couch. She had been addicted to this record back in 1987, when she had been just sixteen. ‘Sorry, I have to,’ she told Sarah—who was watching her in both typical teenage annoyance and amusement—and placed her drink on the radio before turning on the volume.

‘All you’ve got is this moment,’ Jess sang along with Michael Hutchence as she bust out her best dance moves. ‘Twenty-first century is yesterday….’

Sarah watched Jess making a fool out of herself and rolled with her eyes, though a small smile adorned her lips. ‘You look like my dad right now,’ she told her neighbor over the music. ‘’And trust me, it’s not a compliment. How old are you anyway?’ ‘I’m turning thirty in December,’ Jess replied with a laugh. ‘Which is—as my kids at school inform me—the equivalent to the age of the dinosaurs.’ ‘Yeah,’ Sarah agreed before taking a sip of her own drink. ‘That’s pretty old. Though my dad is even older than you are.’ ‘Oh, really?!’ ‘He turned thirty-five today,’ the teen told her. ‘So if you are turning into a carnosaur, don’t worry—dad’s probably of the herrerasauridae family.’

Jess laughed at the girls’ smart-ass notion. ‘Well played, young Miller,’ she quipped. ‘Have you bought him a gift?’ ‘Not yet,’ Sarah said, a frown now decorating her forehead. ‘I wouldn’t know what to get him and besides, he probably will be home late again. All he does is work.’ Jess heaved a sigh and turned down the volume again. She picked up her drink, absentmindedly rubbing away the condense the glass had left on the radio. She felt sorry for Sarah. Spending time with her dad must be important to her, especially because he was all she had.

‘We could start with buying a cake,’ she offered. ‘And see what Walmart has to offer that could be to Joel’s—your dad’s—liking?’ ‘You would do that?’ Sarah chimed, her dark brown eyes pleading for her neighbor to say yes. ‘But I have no money.’ ‘It’s nothing,’ Jess replied with a vague gesture from her hand. ‘I need to get some groceries anyway, and I think we should do something nice for your dad, don’t you agree?’ The teen nodded. ‘One problem, though,’ Jess murmured, her eyes scanning through the living room. ‘We still have to find the keys of my dad’s truck….’

It was around seven when the girls returned from their shopping spree. They had picked up some pizza on their way home—caprese for Sarah, pineapple for Jess, and pepperoni in case Joel showed up—and now were lounging on the couch while enjoying their meal and watching Legally Blonde that was showing on tv. Jess watched Sarah as she enjoyed her pizza, and laughed with her when Elle reprimanded Warner with the iconic burn of 2001: ‘What, like it’s hard?’

Sarah had picked up an Aerosmith and Nirvana CD—‘then he can finally listen to them on repeat in the car instead of one song on the radio’—and had chosen the most elaborate cake design they could find. And though the thirteen year old swore she would pay Jess back, the latter one refused kindly. It must be hard for Sarah that her dad was doing overtime on his birthday, and Jess hoped that Joel would return home soon.

She had just taken a huge bite of her pizza, when the doorbell rang again. ‘That must be dad,’ Sarah concluded, scrambling herself together. ‘Got it,’ Jess muffled with a mouth full of pineapple and rose from her seat. With the last of the pizza part still in her hands she walked towards the door, quickly swallowing her food before opening.

Joel Miller was still as hot as she remembered. He was leaning against her porch, his dark brown hair tousled from his day at work and his dark eyes observing her in a curious, though friendly manner—but if one would look closely, one could easily see the exhaustion written in them. Joel possessed a so-called ‘roman nose’, with a prominent curved bridge that ended in a sharp, though rounded tip. His full lips were crowned by a thick, dark mustache and his cheeks sported a messy scruff. It seemed like he had just arrived home: there was some construction dust on his temple and he still wore his work clothes—a simple black t-shirt that clung nicely to his defined torso and gray, worn jeans—both in the same rugged state. In his hands he held the note that Sarah had hastily scribbled on Jess’ counter before they left for the store, the post-it paper looking small compared to his palm.

‘Hey neighbor,’ Joel greeted her, his lazy southern drawl wrapping around her like a silk shawl. ‘I’m lookin’ for my daughter. She left a note on the door, sayin’ she would be here.’ ‘Yeah, she’s with me,’ Jess said, eyeing him with a small smile while she told herself to just breathe. ‘She forgot her key and said she’s grounded forever now.’ ‘She tryin’ to find an ally now?’ Joel said with a smirk. ‘Smart girl, raised her well.’ ‘Well, it is working…’ Jess commented. ‘I mean, come on, Miller. Is forgetting a key such a big offense?’ Joel laughed at that and ran the hand that wasn’t holding on to the note through his hair, tousling it further. His tanned arm flexed. ‘It is when there’s no one to let her in,’ he argued. ‘Carl had one, and I don’t like t’give the Adlers access to my place, if y’know what I mean. Can’t leave my daughter stranded.’ ‘No, definitely not,’ Jess agreed, thinking of mister Adler. Her dad had told her that though the couple was kind, they were very meddlesome; the type that would rearrange your home while you were away—just to help, of course. ‘Though,’ she went on. ‘In the event I hadn’t been home… I can imagine spending a free afternoon with the Adler’s would have been enough punishment, don’t you think?’ ‘Sure,’ he agreed. ‘She can count herself lucky that you were here.’

There was a short silence, in which they observed each other—gorgeous chocolate depths burning in their deep blue counterparts. A small twinge burned in the pit of her stomach, the same one she had felt at the funeral when Joel had shook her hand to pay his respects. It had struck out to her that even in her grief-stricken state a simple touch from him was enough to make something spark within herself.

‘How are you holdin’ up?’ Joel inquired gently, pulling her from her thoughts. ‘Hadn’t expect to see you back soon.’ ‘Me neither,’ she replied, stepping aside to let him in, and vaguely sensing the cold half-eaten pizza part in her hand. ‘But I have to handle some affairs here.’ ‘How long will you be stayin’?’ Joel asked as he brushed past her, his eyes not leaving her frame. ‘I don’t know,’ she confessed. ‘As long as I need to. To go through his stuff, I mean.’ Her throat went stuffy at the reminder of the enormous task of cleaning her dad’s home and sorting through his belongings; she wasn’t ready for that yet. Joel nodded, offering her a sympathetic smile. ‘Lemme know f’you need my help, okay?’ ‘You already work too much, birthday boy,’ she told him while she sent him a cheeky smile. ‘I wouldn’t want to impose on your free time.’ Joel groaned at that. ‘She told you, huh?’ ‘Happy birthday,’ Jess congratulated him as she waved with her pizza part. ‘I hope you’re hungry, we got you pepperoni.’ ‘Y’didn’t have to—’ ‘Yes, I did,’ she argued before taking a bite of her pizza. In her haste she accidentally gobbled down a larger chunk than she’d bargained for; of course her clumsy, nervous ass did. Joel watched her struggle to maintain her dignity—which meant not coughing herself to death in his presence—but her trachea protested against her ego’s wishes. Jess toppled forward and went into the very coughing fit she had been trying to avoid. Joel was eyeing her with growing concern and after a few moments of hesitation, he carefully rubbed her back. ‘Keep it up,’ he instructed, his tone calm. ‘It helps.’

Of course it did, she knew that. But it also meant that she turned into a watery eyed, tomato faced mess; and that was a look she didn’t particularly pursue. Jeez, the man was only in her vicinity for a minute and she already had to make a fool of herself?!

‘You’re not allowed to cook on your birthday—’ she began, her voice unsteady because at the same time her throat managed to get the loose chunk of pizza in the right place. ‘It’s one of my dad’s rules,’ she added while looking at him through tear stricken eyes, ‘and it’s bad luck if you do. The fact that you dared to mention it almost made me choke, Miller!’ A grin tugged on the corners of his mouth, whether it was from her pun or her current disheveled state, she didn’t know. ‘I remember him sayin’ that last year,’ Joel remarked, his hand still on her back. ‘Carl took us out for burgers.’

Jess slowly rose from her huddled position and smiled faintly. The sweet taste of pineapple burned in her throat and she still couldn’t see properly through the tears, but her heart stung at the memory. She should have visited her dad more often, but at the time she had been so busy with her own, Adam-infused life… ‘S’okay,’ Joel murmured as his fingers brushed over her t-shirt once more, which set off a confusing array of emotions in her system.

‘Dad?! Jess?! What are you two doing?!’ Sarah called as she jumped from the couch and made her way through the hall. Upon eyeing the pair she laughed. ‘What happened here?’ ‘Didn’t you hear me almost choke myself to death?!’ Jess croaked, internally groaning when she felt Joel’s fingers leave her. ‘I almost died.’ ‘That’s for eating pineapple on your pizza,’ Sarah quipped as she turned on her heels and sent a knowing glance to her dad. ‘I warned you, Jess. People like you belong in hell.’ ‘You’re one of those?!’ Joel asked Jess with a grin while the three of them made their way into the living room. ‘She is,’ Sarah agreed as she eased herself onto the couch once more, her eyes sparkling with joy. ‘You don’t know what you’re missing out on!’ Jess defended herself half-heartedly, though she knew her chances persuading pineapple pizza haters to come to the dark side was usually a fruitless task. ‘Nah, it’s disgusting,’ Joel tutted. ‘The state of New York is ruinin’ your taste buds.’ He lowered himself next to Sarah on the couch. ‘Hi, kiddo. What are you watchin’?’ ‘Legally Blonde,’ Sarah said before pulling her father into a hug. ‘It’s pretty cool. You wouldn’t like it.’ ‘Lemme decide f’myself!’ ‘Dad! I’m telling you, it’s a girl’s movie!’

Jess let the pair bicker and went to reheat Joel’s pizza in the oven—a skill she had perfected over the past few years—doing overtime and still having to cook makes a girl creative. She tossed the cold remnants of her meal into the garbage bin; another consequence of nearly suffocating on her beloved pizza was that she had lost her appetite. As she listened to Sarah’s excited chatter and Joel’s low hum, she fetched two beers from the fridge. She knew his favorite—thanks to her dad—and as her hands searched for the bottle opener in the kitchen drawer, her mind drifted to Joel’s pretty eyes and to—

Ugh, he had no reason to be this hot, it was borderline criminal. Especially not after a long day at work, where he undoubtedly had busted his butt ordering others around and hauling stuff across the construction site. Jess peered in the drawer, her mind fixated on the way Joel’s biceps had bulged under his t-shirt. She shouldn’t think of him like that, she really shouldn’t—

‘D’you need some help?’ ‘What?’ she gulped, her hands randomly grabbing a knife, and he hissed at the sting it caused. ‘I was just—’ ‘Carl kept the bottle opener on the side o’the fridge,’ Joel told her as he made his way towards the sink and gestured at the drawer. ‘No need for searchin’ in there.’

Ah. Of course. Her father had been practical about life. He surely would have hated to spend hours searching for a bottle opener. Tears burned behind her eyes and Jess quickly grabbed the object from its place against the fridge. After lifting the cap from both bottles, she offered one beer to Joel.

‘Thank you darlin’,’ Joel rumbled, leaning against the kitchen counter before taking a sip. As he studied her with his dark eyes, Jess busied herself with inspecting the shallow cut she had made in her fingers. It drew some blood and she hissed at the sight. She was many things and possessed many talents, but blood—especially her own—always made her knees weak. And not the good kind of weak.

‘S’just a little cut,’ Joel remarked with a small smirk. ‘Hold it under the tap and you’re fine.’ ‘I’m not one of your men,’ she countered with a huff, eyeing him defiantly. ‘I don’t haul dangerous stuff around all day.’ ‘Glad y’don’t,’ he murmured, while planting his beer on the counter and turning on the faucet. Without ceremony, he got hold of her hand and pushed it under the cold stream. ‘I don’t think you’d be of use at the side,’ he continued. ‘You’d keep hurtin’ y’self.’ Would have t’fire you on your first day….’

That remained to be seen. If Joel stayed out of her way, she would be fine. If not… Well, then she was fucked—and again not the good kind.

Jess observed the water as it poured over their hands and slowly turned into a pleasant temperature. After a short while Joel pulled her fingers close and inspected the damage. ‘S’fine,’ he concluded before shutting off the tap. ‘It doesn’t even bleed, see?’ ‘Are you judging me, Miller?!’ ‘F’course not,’ he replied as he retrieved his hand and dried it on his shirt. Jess—her own fingers still hovering over the sink, dripping with water—couldn’t help but notice that his hands were littered with scars, roughened from his days at work. ‘I don’t believe you,’ she quipped, narrowing her eyes. She reached for the kitchen towel. ‘Remember I’m a highschool teacher, Joel. I can smell lies and omitted truths from a mile away.’ ‘Yeah, I was told to be careful around you,’ he replied with a grin as he leaned against the kitchen counter. ‘Teachin’ these unruly kids like my daughter must be a callin’ or somethin’, I really couldn’t.’ ‘Ah, they’re not that bad,’ Jess said. ‘I can boss them around all day, just like you do with your crew.’ ‘Why’d you think I’d do that, huh?’ ‘I got it from a very reliable source,’ Jess said as she fetched her own beer from the counter and took a sip. As the rich, deep flavor swirled through her mouth, she eyed her father’s friend’s handsome features. ‘I imagine you had the same source,’ she mused with a smile. ‘Tell me… What do you know about me that you probably shouldn’t?’

Joel sipped from his beer and observed her with an amused twinkle in his eyes. There were a thousand things she’d rather not have him know. The first and obvious one was the fact that she had a crush on him, but after that there were a few cringeworthy childhood memories she’d rather forget. It would be embarrassing if Joel knew how she had caught herself in barbed wire during one summer—trespassing farmer Jack’s property had seemed a good idea, until the world turned upside down—or how accidentally had dyed her hair orange instead of blonde.

‘Why are you lookin’ at me? I’m not tellin’ you,’ Joel finally remarked with a vague smile. ‘Promised him not to.’ ‘Aha! So he did tell you stuff he shouldn’t!’ ‘Not much,’ Joel admitted, despite his previous statement not to reveal any of the information he knew. The twinkle in his eyes was gone and now was replaced with genuine concern. ‘Just that he hoped Adam takes good care of you.’

Though Joel couldn’t know about their separation, his revelation still stung. Jess shrugged and bit on her lip. ‘He never told me that.. Did dad—Carl—have his doubts?’ ‘S’not my place to say,’ Joel confessed, his brows furrowing together. He shuffled on his feet and watched Jess sink to her knees to check the oven. The smell of pepperoni pizza filled the kitchen.

‘Almost,’ she commented quietly, her mind still stuck at Joel’s remark. It didn’t surprise her that her father had worried about her relationship with Adam; usually when her mother pressed her to do something—like pursuing a relationship with Adam—her father had been against the idea. Jess had often wondered if this had become her parent’s typical dynamic or if they truly were two opposites in every choice life had to offer.

‘Your dad was somethin’,’ Joel changed the subject. ‘Must be weird f’you, to be back here. With him not bein’ around here.’ ‘Yeah, it is,’ Jess agreed with a heavy heart. She looked up at him through her lashes. ‘I miss him terribly and to be honest I don’t want to be here—no offense of course. It’s just…’ she heaved a weary sigh while her gaze swept through the kitchen. ‘Everything reminds me of him.’ She rose to her feet and retrieved a plate from one of the cabinets. Joel watched her as she placed it in the sink and opened the tap. ‘Heating the plate will keep your pizza warm,’ Jess explained as she waited for the water to get hot. ‘I learned that from a chef I once dated. He was an ass, but he did teach me a useful trick or two.’ ‘Never thought of that,’ Joel murmured. ‘Cold pizza ain’t that bad, why complicate it?’ Jess laughed at that. ‘I bet single dads don’t have time to complicate their dinners,’ she told him as she dried the hot plate and fetched dad’s mittens from a drawer to retrieve the pizza from the oven. ‘Give it a try, Miller,’ she teased as she handed him a mitten and his plate. ‘It won’t kill you.’

Joel, Sarah and Jess spent the evening like a normal family would—at Sarah’s request they watched the rest of Legally Blonde while Joel ate his late dinner. Though the latter wouldn’t tell Jess if the heated plate had made his pizza better, Jess liked to think that it had. After Legally Blonde had ended, Sarah told her father and their new friend about her day at school and Jess was obliged to share the details of her trip from Staten Island to Austin. Jess could not bring herself to explain her breakup with Adam—it would surely result in a tsunami of tears—so when the topic landed on her ex she simply stated that her fiancé had been too busy to help her out. Though Sarah seemed to accept the story right away and chatted about Carl’s tendency to hoard stuff he liked, Jess felt Joel’s eyes burning on her. He probably sensed there was more to it, but he didn’t press her to share. She would probably have to tell him the truth, in time. But for now, his birthday turned out to be the perfect diversion for unwanted questions.

It was around half past ten when Jess found herself leaning against the doorframe of her porch, waving at Sarah who had just ran across the street with her father’s keys. Joel had stepped down from her porch—about to follow his daughter—but had paused at her lawn. ‘She’s a great kid,’ Jess told Joel as they watched Sarah disappear behind the front door. ‘I know a lot of teens, but Sarah’s one of a kind.’ ‘Yeah,’ he agreed quietly as he pushed his hands in the pockets of his jeans. ‘Don’t know what I’d do without her, y’know?’ ‘Well, for one you would not get roasted all the time….’ Joel chuckled. ‘I could do without being called old, yeah…’ He shuffled on his feet. ‘Listen, I wanted to thank you. For takin’ care of her and everythin’. You didn’t have to.’ ‘It’s okay,’ Jess said with a grin. ‘I didn’t mind.’ ‘At least let me pay you back,’ Joel offered, his right hand shifting to his back pocket and retrieving his wallet, which was in a rugged, worn state. ‘No!’ Jess cried out as she raised her hands defensively. ‘Not a chance in hell. We’re good. I have to thank you for the company, especially on your birthday!’ Joel shrugged and his hands fumbled over the worn leather. ‘I wouldn’t have done anythin’ special,’ he confessed. ‘Not after a twelve-hour shift. Probably would have ended up on the couch, watchin’ somethin’ stupid.’ ‘Legally Blonde doesn’t count as stupid?!’ she teased with a smile and was awarded with a cute grin. ‘It was okay,’ Joel concluded. ‘I was enjoyin’ the company, Young.’

There was a short silence in which their eyes met and Jess almost drowned in the beautiful molten chocolate hues. ‘Before I forget; here’s my number,’ Joel murmured as he retrieved a business card from his wallet. ‘Just in case. Y’dad would want me to keep an eye on you.’ ‘Very fancy,’ Jess commented as she took the card—careful not to brush her fingers across his. ‘Was an idea of your dad,’ Joel explained. ‘He told me I needed to be more professional or somethin’.’ ‘Though I also heard you have no trouble finding work,’ Jess replied as she admired the design. It was simple, neat—very Joel. ‘So you could always use the pile my dad probably made you buy to pick up ladies. Chicks like stuff like that.’ Joel laughed at that and Jess reveled in the sound. ‘And about keeping an eye on me…’ she went on as her gaze met his. ‘I can take care of myself, Miller. I’m not a damsel in distress.’ ‘I know that,’ he agreed. ‘Y’dad told me as much. But just… Don’t be stubborn and call me when y’need me. Or swing by.’

‘Even when I have night terrors?’ Jess heard herself question, but by the time she realized how flimsy—and filthy—that must come across, it was too late. She bit on her lip, unsure how she could save herself from her clumsy mouth. Joel didn’t seem taken aback by her comment. He grinned broadly, an amused twinkle in his eye. ‘Yeah, Young,’ he replied in a soft tone. ‘Especially then.’

Thank you for reading this first chapter 🥰🥰 Feedback is highly appreciated, so if you have a minute to spare I'd like to know what you think of my work!

Until next time. ❤❤❤❤

Taglist: @fizzyxcustard @lathalea Let me know if you like to be added or removed!

[luviestarz]

nct pt 4

Delphinium. - mark

It wasn’t intentional. You don’t even know why you cared that he didn’t believe in pre-marital sex, but it didn’t stop you from arguing with him about it. You didn’t intend to win the argument either. Then again, he kind of let you.

haechan — if i believe you  

gimme gimme! - haechan

꒰ things that make nct dream flustered 🍦 ꒱

꒰ nct dream + intimate moments i want to experience 🍞 ꒱

😄 haechan letting u top but can’t take it anymore so he flips u over

Nct Dream as your roommates P2 (finding out they have feelings for you edition)

surprise hugs + dreamies.

take my breath - haechan

give me a good morning call tomorrow

request #1: meandom!haechan who's still weak for his gf

haechan eating u out drabble

Too Young - jisung

You thought avoiding Jisung after what happened during his first rut would make the problem go away (SPOILER ALERT: it didn't.)

⎇nct dream and first kisses

Touch me - haechan

reader x dom!haechan

at midnight with you - jisung

your boyfriend just recently got his driver's license, and boy, was he adamant to take you for a ride (with you being just as eager as him).

moles ♡‧₊˚ lee haechan

you read something on the internet that made you feel jealous of a person you didn’t even know but haechan knows just how to reassure you.

love foolish; a valentine’s day special - haechan

bad boy bf!hyuck x (implied fem!) reader

CHALLENGE ACCEPTED: calling your boyfriend by his first name.

haechan — gold-skinned, eager baby pt.2

the little things - haechan

the one where haechan surprises you when you’re not feeling too good.

she’s quiet (s,f) - haechan

although you were not looking to make new friends, the ones you had tried their hardest to push you out of your comfort zone to find something abnormal for you. which is why you’re at a frat party on a thursday night, watching as lee donhyuck observes you from afar.

eyes tell - haechan

donghyuck has been trying to confess his feelings to you. third time's the charm, he thinks.

Pearlescent - haechan

A shoreline sunset spent cozied up against Hyuck dives deep past surface level. His lips profess his heart’s intent; his eyes reflect waves dancing in iridescent glimmers; his love whispered into your skin evokes heated passion. 

i love it, starboy - haechan (yandere)

haechan (cw: stalking, drugging, h*rassment.)

haechan x reader (f) (fluff)

— 12:59AM - jisung nsfw drabble

request #3: posessive dom!haechan

‘00 LINE + SHOWER/BATH SEX (M)

jisung drabble - warning: mildly suggestive.

haechan is capturing everything he loves and cherishes on his new camera and it’s mostly you filling up his sd card

perv!dreamies

𝐍𝐂𝐓 𝐃𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐌 + 𝐒𝐎𝐌𝐍𝐎𝐏𝐇𝐈𝐋𝐈𝐀

LOLLIPOP; PARK JISUNG

cw. age gap, creampie.

NCT DREAM TEXTING YOU AFTER YOU CONFESS TO THEM.

college boyfriend!haechan

you and the dreamies perv

perv!haechan

request #4 - himbo haechan

NCT Reaction: Sitting on their lap during car ride

nct dream when they’re clingy !

nct dream reaction ༊*·˚

"i never want you to stop looking at me the way you are right now,"

Double Take - haechan

My Boy. - haechan

A series of failed relationships and you were this near of giving up on love. But then here comes little Donghyuck and his persistence. Maybe-- he was the one fated to you, after all.

markhyuck x reader smut

kiss it better - haechan

summary. haechan gets hurt but you know that with him it’s not going to be as simple as putting a band-aid on it

GOLDEN HOUR. | L.MK

You’re a waiter and Mark Lee the local biker and infamous bad boy loves the eggs your diner makes, but now he wants a taste of you.

sugar, butter, & the royal crown - L.DH

prince donghyuck only has one princess on his mind, but she's not actually a princess. she's just the royal baker's granddaughter

strawberries & cigarettes - haechan

the art school's play is in two days and you're running out of time to put everything together since your known enemy lee donghyuck decided that the rehearsal day was the perfect day to release a launch party for his new album.

bus stop - haechan

summary: haechan rides the bus. you hop on the same ride. minutes later, you two were a couple. he never questioned why.

suhnshinehaos masterlist (nct, svt)

[d-criss-news]

[UHQ] TheStandard_Vol11_Issue3 March, 2023 (PHOTO CREDITS: Amanda Demme: Blue NY Bomber Jacket, Bright patterned jacket / Lindsey Byrnes: Red back drop photos / Pierre Hennequin: B&W photo)

DAP Health’s 2023 Steve Chase Humanitarian Awards | The Standard

The Steve Chase Humanitarian Awards, DAP Health’s biggest annual fundraiser, also fondly known as The Chase returns to dazzle donors outdoors at the Palm Springs Convention Center on the evening of Saturday, March 25. Fashion, medicine, and music will take center stage at the starry annual benefit gala.

—

Up Close with Headliner Darren Criss

Darren Criss — the 36-year-old “Glee” alum who won an Emmy, a Golden Globe, and a Screen Actors Guild Award for playing gay serial killer Andrew Cunanan in Ryan Murphy’s “The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story” — may be making his professional desert debut when he headlines the 2023 The Chase for DAP Health, but he’s no stranger to the Coachella Valley. Since he reports he has a “significant amount of family in the Palm Desert,” he’s somewhat of a regular. “I’ve got all my favorite spots, let’s put it that way.” He even made it to fellow performer Harry Styles’ last North American “Love On Tour” stop (and impromptu birthday bash) on February 1 at the new Acrisure Arena.

I chatted with Criss over Zoom while he was in Los Angeles to talk about what we can expect at his show, his love of all things show biz, and his ties to queer audiences.

Tell me a bit about the show you’ll be presenting at The Chase.

When I have the opportunity to play events like this, which are very fun — I know The Chase is very big and I’m very thrilled to be there — I’m the court jester. I’m just making sure I’m servicing people having a good time. So, I tend to stray away from deep cuts [in favor of] any smattering of things that people would be familiar with from, Broadway or the stuff I did on “Glee” or just covers in general that are fun to play and that kind of seem appropriate for the vibe. I’m notorious about not coming up with a set list until a few days before. I’ll have a band [that night], so I have to be a little more fastidious with the organizing of that. The nice thing about being a musician is you’re your own accompanist. If this was just me, I wouldn’t have an answer for you. Maybe about an hour before I went on stage — ’cause I would go to the party, kind of get a vibe from people, have a couple drinks — I’d go, “OK, I think I get the playlist,” and then I’d just do it… I’d just show up and try to make people happy. You can quote me on that.

Acting, singing, or songwriting and producing — what would you say is your favorite?

That’s a great question, because usually the question is, “Which one do you consider yourself?” And my answer is, they’re all the same because they’re all connected. They’re all storytelling. It’s just different tailoring. Different dress codes. But it’s the same party, the same venue….

You know, I’ve been very lucky, where I’ve gotten to do everything. I will say the most fulfilling would probably have to be songwriting…. Songwriting and producing probably consume most of my soul.

Talking acting, is it film, TV, or theatre?

Nice work if you can get it. Listen, I’m a mercenary. I’ll be very happy to have the opportunity to work in any of those fields if they invite me to the party. Lucky me. And I’m always grateful and cherish every opportunity that comes my way. Obviously, I come from the theatre, so it kind of has my heart and soul because there is an immediacy to it. So, yeah, that might be the leading player on the field.

Between “Glee,” Ryan Murphy, and Broadway, you clearly have a lot of queer fans. Thoughts?

I think the simple answer is I’ve always felt so privileged to be included at what I deem to be the cool kids table. And that’s not me trying to be charming or sucking up to a certain demographic. I’ve spent a lifetime chasing my heroes, wanting to have the people I think are cool think I’m cool. And I’ve worked very hard for that. I’ve educated myself. I’ve tried to cultivate my life so that people I respect might go, “Hey, this kid ain’t so bad.” And a huge [number], if not the majority, of those people come from the queer community. I feel very privileged to have anybody’s attention, much less that of a community of people I think are rad. I’m just so pleased to have a seat of the table, and I hope that my conversation is interesting enough to hold their attention and to be worthy of their time.

As you know, The Chase is DAP Health’s largest annual benefit, and the organization began in 1984 as Desert AIDS Project. How have HIV and AIDS touched your life personally?

I was born in the eighties, raised in the nineties, in San Francisco. I’m from a very, very queer city during a very troubled time that didn’t see everybody survive. People’s uncles were dying. I was a little boy. You’d notice, and you’d go, “Wait, what’s going on?” But it’s something that didn’t really hit me until much later in life. When you’re old enough to understand and realize, “Holy shit, that was a pretty insane time.” I’m very lucky because I’m of a generation that got to benefit from the slow de-stigmatization and more healthy conversations around HIV and AIDS. The men and women in my circle who are living with it, when we talk about the sort of dark days of AIDS in the United States, they and I are just supremely aware of the people upon whose shoulders we get to live our day-to-day life. I consider myself very, very lucky.

Well said. Shifting gears to a lighter subject, The Chase can be quite the fashionista extravaganza. So, here’s the most important question: Have you picked out your outfit?

Oh, girl. Um, no. [Laughs] And I’m not proud about it. I gotta get on it. Thanks for reminding me. I gotta get a set list together and an outfit. It’s literally the two things that are required of me. And I don’t have either one right now.

PHOTO CREDITS: Amanda Demme: Blue NY Bomber Jacket, Bright patterned jacket / Lindsey Byrnes: Red back drop photos / Pierre Hennequin: B&W photo

[persephoneflouwers]

What things not conventionally accepted in the fandom do you believe about bg? We all have our own beliefs and I think that's totally OK. I like hearing things outside the box

I don’t think I’ve ever talked about this and quite honestly I haven’t read it anywhere. I think people too often divide Harry and Louis solo careers because they think they are on different stages, but with them I always apply the same logic. To me they go in tandem, like yoghurt packs alright? Like cherries. It’s the two of them or nothing (hypothetically either if they are together or not). It’s not a case I have a tag for them and it’s polar opposites lol I know people say they are their own people and I agree to a limited extent. They do what they have to for their careers and obviously they do what they can individually, but babygate is something else. It’s not a simple stunt. It’s not a stunt like the others. That shit is not something you just go through by yourself. I wouldn’t be afraid to say babygate is never one single individual call, never is Louis’ individually.

I want to take a few steps back to 2015. One direction is still at it, but rumours of the hiatus are on fire. You have 1 of them who’s been courted by the best in the business and your influential son since ages. You have a project for him. You have a plan. A vision. You take the frontman and you need him to be successful. You are going to invest so much money on this guy you’ll make him the new Elvis or something. You know you can. You’re rich enough for that! What 1D team did with his image was incredible. They gave him the most intriguing brand for an upcoming solo artist. They gave him the rockstar aurea, the heartthrob agenda, the golden boy super talented curriculum. They failed with one thing: the rumours on his sexuality. Not the ambiguity, you like the ambiguity. You can even use that ambiguity for his own good. You will (they did). Their failure was one and only: the rumours on your relationship status with your bandmate. You can’t have that. How’s it possible that the mortal enemies pipeline didn’t work? How can you break that? You can’t give your golden goose a serious relationship, a long lasting one… that’s going to ruin the brand. You need to think about something else.

So what if..? What if you rebrand his counterpart, who was in a 5 years long relationship instead and give HIM an even more long lasting stunt? That’s supposedly going to last forever? Like a baby*. That would settle it. How would you do it? How would you convince them to agree with this? You take 4 boys who know no better, who have been indoctrinated and manoeuvred since they were illegal of age, who are going to not be in a band anymore, who feel probably a bit uncertain about their future… and sell them a dream. Add some guilt and strong recommendations, maybe a few threats and lies. And there you have it. The perfect stunt that will serve two purposes: 1. put one of them in the heaviest of the closets (plus he was always a pain in the ass for you so you are even more okay with it), 2. set the other one free from those rumours. (Flashforward: they didn’t stop, but it worked well enough for them anyway).

I know what you are wondering. Why did Louis agreed to this? My two coins are he knew there wasn’t an alternative because in abusive places of work you are proposed with an option, but that’s the only option, which makes you question if that’s an option at all or just an obligation. Plus he saw a way to help their way out after the band and took it. If what he says about the hiatus is true (I have many doubts and questions but still), he was fucking terrified of it so when they come at you with a promise to make it go “better than”… he always felt responsible for the band, so he says anyway. I agree with you, reader! That’s manipulative, toxic, blindsiding, naive. Very naive. But the real thing is I don’t know the reasons behind and this is just me trying to look for a new perspective, because I dont 100% agree with the ones I’ve read through the years.

What pushed me into loophole was the timing of the babygate return. I know 2020 is a weird year because of the pandemic, but we literally started having babygate content in more or less July 2021 — does anyone remember what happened on Harry’s side in July 2021? Does yachtgate 2.0 ring any bell?. Anyway since then we had bg constantly. Remember the arcade date with the kid? That was August 2021! I have a timeline for it but I quitted with keeping up with it because it was too much at some point and now that we’ve seen it was literally made for the documentary it feels even more useless lol.

Isn’t it too coincidental it happened along with the holivia mess and the rampant success Harry has gained throughout 2021 and 2022? When babygate is around, there’s sony around. You cant simply distinguish the two things imo. And isn’t it too coincidental that the first time babygate happened was when they were going solo and the second time it happened huge as ever was when the above mentioned solo careers became insanely grand? Oooh the way we got the release of bg in the doc the same weekend of the Tokyo kiss performance!

What confuses me, though, is who is gaining from this? I mean Sony is for sure in a contorted way. I can see what team Harry is gaining from his stunts too. I say it often but his team always play to win, so if they agree to something they are going to get something. That’s their strategy. I don’t understand what Louis is getting yet. I see he is doing his own shit to be proud of: the tour, the new music, the festival, apparently even the doc. But my question is wouldn’t it be possible without babygate too? And we can’t know yet. I think Louis is cocky and stubborn and sometimes he has to hit his head against the proverbial wall before understanding what’s good and what’s not. But to this stage, it’s too soon to say. I want to see where babygate is going in the next year or so. It’s possible he has chosen to go with babygate instead of continuing with his beard, but then again it’s too soon to say. It’s possible he has chosen to go with babygate instead of agreeing with a revolutionary marriage. It’s possible he has seen twarries drooling over the kid and decided to feed that narrative. I don’t know where this is going yet.

All I know is this revolves around the two of them and it’s possibly one of the few things nowadays that make me believe they still are together. If they weren’t, we wouldn’t see this shit unfold again in front of your salads in the year of our lord 2023.

*not with his actual girlfriend of 5 years but with an American ONS. With no DNA test because you are sure your specimen is so very strong, you take it one for the bros and even if you’re worthy 60millions you don’t need to know if she is actually trying to take advantage of your fame. You are kind at heart like that. A gentleman 💪

Edit after tokyo kissing show.

[monster-noises]

not to be basic but 1 and 2 from that meta ask meme?

all the question are on the list for a reason Anon! no need to put yourself down for it v-v 1&2 are Excellent questions I"m happy to answer! now. I Imagine you intended this for Lazarus, But! you were not specific so you will now get a Very long post about Everyone >:3c (and by everyone I mean the main 3 characters I consider 'Bartholomew's Nasty Little Bastards')

First up, of course, we will do Lazarus! 1. What inspired you to create your oc?

The really obvious answer here is Re8, my instant consuming love for it and for Karl, the overwhelming need to like... Participate, somehow, in that world, but not being able to cross the Full self-insert hurdle.. He's basically a very Warped-beyond-recognition version of a self-insert, a guy all his own but in somewhere still very Connected to the Me. But the more like.. in depth stuff, like what inspired Lazarus to Be Who He Is is like.. I love like.. weird Art Gore, Body-As-Art kinda shit, Meaningful and disturbing.. somehow Comforting and he's kinda the perfect vessel for that. I've had the Human Taxidermy Artist thing floating around the back of my mind for a decade or so just Waiting for a place to land and Laz was a golden opportunity v-v.

2.Why does your oc look the way they do? What are your reasons for their appearance? When I was settling Lazarus's design I wanted him to have this appearance of like, a very refined and elegant individual; beautiful in a sort of Severe way, but twist it up ever so slightly so he registers as Uncanny and Gross. Beauty Hiding Filth and all that. (just think about how many Fluids get into that Velvet Ensemble on the daily, it's Not Good.) Like the way his pants cut him and the vertical lines make him just All Leg. And his pallid bloodstained skin which makes him look like a Walking Corpse, hair slicked back with its own grease.. a figure that's bewitching and unsettling to witness also yes, the hair is Both a Me thing and a Bride of Frankenstein thing.

Virgil always feels right coming Second on these things.. 1. Inspiration Virgil is ooooooooooold, he's so Old, virgil is Ancient Virgil is possibly my oldest still-in-use OC, I created him a Looooooong ass time ago. like 2010 Long Ass Time. That is to say I do not know Why she exists.

Okay, Not entirely true. I made her for a comic I was writing with my friend at the time. She was my part of the main villain pair, but I do Not remember how I ended up on Toxicologist prodigy but make it Cowboy (which was always a bit of a misnomer for the vibe but nowadays Especially he's less Johnny Cash more Nickleback) I Think, I Think, what I wanted was to have a character that contrasted the Hardest against my friends main villain? who was very Orderly and Serious and Efficient?? beats me though that was So long ago.. I was also just listening to a Lot of Nickleback-esk music at the time, which may have been an influencing factor lmao

2. Appearance Virgil's appearance is pretty simple to explain, all told! He's a Country Boy/Girl, rowdy and ostentatious, and very secure in her understanding of that part of herself. It's where she comes from, and despite his rocky relationship with home it's who he is, y'know? The brightest (and most dangerous) mind in Toxicology doesn't Have to look exactly how you'd Expect her to look now does she? (Virgil pictured here on the Right)

Now our wonderful little Ulysses vwv)/ 1. Inspiration oh this is an Interesting one!! Ulysses (and Charlie, for that matter) came from 2 distinct places to land where they are now.. From time to time I like to entertain the idea of starting a band and having a musical career of some kind, something that blends my love of folk/bluegrass, prog-rock, and power metal into a loud villainous and exhilarating sound. and a few years back, as I was getting into Bluegrass for the first time, I was struck by a Concept for a Concept Album. It was called The Book of Brother UIysses; the story of a sniveling little priest in the frontier days and his Cursed Book, following him around as he fed townsfolk to whatever entity lived in its pages until he was finally Consumed himself. I toyed with it for a bit and eventually put it back on the shelf until the Musical Fancy struck me once more, untiiiiil I was listening to friends at the table: sangfielle and had both a deep desire to do a Horror-Fantasy Western ttrpg And satisfy my ever-present desire to weasel my way into playing two characters at once.. and I pulled ol' Ulysses off the shelf again and made some.. Additions. This has evolved now into them being just like.. free floating OC's? I don't plan on making a comic out of them, I would Still love an opportunity to play them in a TTRPG setting, but I'm not Banking on it, and hey, who knows, maybe I Will make that album someday, but for now they just kinda amorphously Exist within Something resembling a Narrative in my head after a long and complicated journey...

2. Appearance Similar to Lazarus, I wanted Ulysses to be unsettling, but in a Slightly different way. He's too clean- his all black outfit is never grimy, he is clean shaven his hair perfectly quaffed, with that plastered on grin, under eyes obscured by reflective glasses the vibes are just Immediately Off. To the flip side of that I always wanted him to look kinda.. pathetic. When we see him outside of his Persona as The Keeper of the Book, as just a man that is still Human in many ways; he's just.. small, waifish, behind the glasses his eyes are big and jittery, like a pray animal caught in a snare and still trying to fight its way out..

[lonewolfel]

(Image descriptions

Top image: Suki with a confused look over a sky background. She has a Fire Nation top knot. She is wearing a simple brown? [idk what color that is] sleeveless shirt with a black skirt. She is wearing arm bands that are magenta and with a red band on top that goes up to her elbows.

Middle left image:  Suki with a confused look over a sky background. She has a Fire Nation top knot. She is wearing a Fire Nation soldier uniform and armor.

Middle right image: Yue with her arms crossed and an unhappy look on her face. Her white hair is down. She is wearing a red tube top [idk I suck at recognizing clothing items] and red skirt with a bracelet. She is covered in shadows.

Lower left image: Yue with her arms crossed and an unhappy look on her face. She is wearing a red cloak with a golden clasp that’s hood is covering her white hair. Under her cloak she is wearing a red tube top and red skirt with a bracelet.  She is covered in shadows.

Lower right image: Azula standing in the Fire Nation bunker [I think] with her hands on her hip. She is wearing the full Fire Lord robes with the gold crown in her top knot while the rest of her hair is down.

Sorry that I suck at this. If you can do better please reblog it with the better description and I’ll change this post or reblog that version.)

This is for my AU Broken World. You can read the first chapter here.

These are the main characters for Book 1, Aang is a main character but he pretty much uses the same clothes that he wore at the end of season three. Also more characters will appear but they aren’t major characters. If that changes I will add a second part. 

Please be nice I can’t draw.

[magickfromscratch]

I had two separate thoughts about good and evil while suffering from insomnia last night, and an additional one this morning. CW: Passing mention of the Catholic Church's problem with abusing children.

(1) It has been said that evil is easily defined as a lack of empathy. I'd amend this: it is a lack of compassion. Empathy is visceral. Acting with compassion is a choice. People who call themselves "empaths" are so frequently unable to de-center themselves that they wind up strengthening whatever systems of oppression they have access to participation in. Self-described empaths are so overwhelmed by feeling that they sometimes fail to listen, learn, and improve their treatment of the marginalized. Compassionate people help. Compassionate people do. It is in the doing and the helping --or at least in the refraining from being cruel or supporting cruelty-- where the ethical value lies. Compassion is a choice. Empathy is not. Fear of discomfort is the enemy of compassion.

(2) There was a scientist who said -- and I really need to track down the article -- that the problem of climate change is not really a scientific one. It is a spiritual problem. We already know what we need to do --what corporations need to do-- in order to solve the problem. But there is a cancer in our social discourse. We believe there is a line, demarcated by power (influence, money, whatever), above which we cannot punch. There is a line, and if people who exist above that line want to destroy the world, we have to let them. The attitude seems to be that if Jesus Christ wants to destroy the world, it's a part of his divine plan we can't question. As if we should not fight God Himself to protect the human species.

The problem is, once there's a line, it just keeps getting lower. What about a priest? It's ok, little child, I work for God, now pull down your pants.

What about a God-King? What about Trump? What about people who shit on golden toilets and have their own private armies? What about a parent of a gay or trans kid who's just doing what the Bible said? Having that line, at all, above which evil can be good, or good can be evil, is a corrosive influence to the moral fabric of humanity.

Good is when you help. Bad is when you allow fear to overrule compassion. And it's pretty straightforward that if there's a person, no matter how powerful, who hurts large numbers of people for their own pleasure, or to extend their own power, it is a moral responsibility for humans of conscience to band together to take them out. If God tells you to kill a member of an oppressed minority, or a helpless person, or a person you have a responsibility to nurture and protect? Turn the sword on God.

(3) Evil people thrive on moral ambiguity. If you're not certain that they're evil, you will remain passive and do nothing to stop them. You see them. You see people who are enthusiastically cruel. You see people who are responsible for what is tantamount to chattel slavery, or genocide. But because. Maybe. Possibly. I don't know. There might be. I'm not sure, but maybe I think. Nuances. And. Maybe good and evil don't exist. A large number of people who could act simply do not. Because they think they'll be "just as bad" for killing a single person as that person is for enslaving or murdering thousands.

And watch out for anyone who viciously argues that morality can't be as simple as working for a kinder world, and defeating people, institutions, corporations, politicians, divinities, who want the world to be crueler, harsher, and more oppressive. Those people LIKE THE LINE, because they dream of one day being above it.

You should be afraid of the reasons why.

[weirdthoughtsandideas]

Which Sweden wins were deserved and which ones weren’t, according to me:

1974 - Waterloo by ABBA. Deserved.

This is the reason ABBA’s career set off! And they’re amazing!

1984 - Diggiloo Diggiley by Herreys. Deserved.

I CAN’T TELL YOU HOW MUCH I LOVE DIGGILOO DIGGILEY. I used to listen to this on a CD so much as a kid that the CD broke. It’s silly, it’s catchy, it’s cheesy, it’s amazing. To think, back in this day you could win by singing about something so simple as golden shoes.

1991 - Fångad av en stormvind by Carola. Deserved.

It is catchy asf and easy to dance to. I get it.

1999 - Tusen och en natt by Charlotte Nilsson (Perelli now, but Nilsson in 1999). Undeserved.

This is probably the most ”unknown” of the Sweden wins and sorry to all the Charlotte fans but i’m just not feeling it. Both my parents have said they were very surprised this even won because they weren’t that into it either. It’s not a bad song, but idk if I would call it a winning song either. But oh well, there were other tastes and standards in 1999…

But another reason is that Iceland came in second this year and if we hadn’t won, they would have gotten their first win.

2012 - Euphoria by Loreen. Deserved.

Euphoria was amazing. It’s still a song that plays and holds up.

2015 - Heroes by Måns Zelmerlöw. Both deserved and undeserved.

I was not expecting him to win in 2015 and when he did, I was very happy about it. His song was good and I think what really stood out was the effects with his little animated dude. The only problem is that his win lead us to

1. Have like 7 years of men representing us in esc, all with pretty similar songs and I can barely remember how half of them except for in the chorus. The only exception was 2020 with a trio of women, but then we didn’t have any competition. Finally in 2022 we had a woman compete again and it really felt like a bit of fresh air.

2. Insert Måns every year in esc somehow. Stop inserting him. Stop milking the man.

2023 - Tattoo by Loreen. Undeserved…?

The question mark because I don’t know how to feel. I should feel happy that we’ve won, but I did not at all feel that. Especially when it was so clear that the audience wanted someone else. It didn’t feel right, it didn’t feel fair. And I think swedish media definitely makes it worse when they openly mock the others, especially Finland, over this win. They’re making us look like prudes and kind of insensitive with the things they say. It’s like not even swedish media can celebrate this because they wanna focus on the negative backlash. Like with this behavior, I think we deserve as little points as possible for at least 5-10 years so we can fucking calm down, because I’ve noticed kind of already after Måns’ win we’ve developed this hubris, and I had hoped we’d start to calm down, but now with this win I am sad to say it’s probably not gonna disappear for a longer while.

But at the same time. The song isn’t bad… and Loreen is a queen. And I gotta say, I didn’t think she’d win. First of all, she competed in our national competition in 2017 and didn’t even get to the finale, so I was unsure at first what would even be different this time. Then she won, and I thought, well, people have sent precious esc winners before. It’s never gone that well except for one time in the 80s, but that is an exception. But I guess Loreen just has that po-po-po-pooooooweer /j So seeing her win actually was a bit of a surprise. I knew she’d be popular with juries, but I really thought ”oh but the televoters will probably only give her 100 points at max”. Haha…

It’s cool that she’s the first woman to have won twice, but tbh, eventually it’s just gonna be a textbook trivia. I mean, how relevant is Johnny Logan now? Now we need other records to beat - maybe first band to win twice (Måneskin, Lordi? Maybe?), maybe first country to win with only jury/televotes because the other gave them 0? This year was also a learning year how to do it next time, or possibly a protest to change the system. Honestly, the voting system has changed so much in years, and now we at least have the power in the semi’s. Maybe it will change, maybe it will not. We’ll see.

Also as a final note: There’s a lot of songs you barely remember who have won. From 2016-2019, the only song I remember is Toy by Netta. Also, there’s gonna be so much other underserved wins in the future. Both in our national competitions to choose a representant from our country, and in esc. What happened this year has def happened before.

I’m a bit curious what next year will bring. But I do think this win was more undeserved than deserved, even if I could see why it would win too.

[sh00kspeared]

I’m just gonna answer these as I please with Johnny and V instead of making it an asks game since I wanna answer all of them! lol

1. Johnny was the one who kind of subtly brought up the topic one day; despite being less inclined toward marriage to begin with, he loved Vince enough to want to bring up the topic first

2. Johnny proposed; he brought Vince the very top of the Dogtown stadium and proposed to him as the sun was setting. Private yet grand nonetheless.

3. They’re two simple silver bands with one long groove wrapping around the center, and in the grooves are shards of the relic encased in resin.

4. They planned the wedding on their own. It was a rather small event anyway, and in classic Rockerboy fashion, they wanted to be in total control of their party.

5. Wedding prep was definitely not stressful. Johnny frankly thinks the wedding industry is bs, and Vince likes to keep his environment as low anxiety as possible (ironic for a merc). The rockerboys took it pretty chill in the months leading up to the wedding.

6. The first person Vince told once he was proposed to was his best friend, Vincent Graves. However, if we’re talking about pre-proposal, Johnny went to his father figure, Milt Nauman, for advice on how to propose to Vince properly.

7. The best men were Kerry and Vince Graves. Kerry was Johnny’s best man and Vince was Vince’s best man.

8. Just a little bit. Vince didn’t like Rogue much but decided to let her stay on the guest list for Johnny’s sake, and at first Johnny had some trepidation about Vince Graves being on the guest list because they have a rocky history, but for Vince’s sake he relented.

9. (Ik a lot of these are straight wedding photos; it’s because i couldn’t find many gay rock/punk wedding pics)

10. Haven’t decided who marries them yet. Johnny’s not religious but Vince is, so I feel like Vince would want to be married by a religious leader and Johnny might either be abject or impartial to that desire. However, I feel like he wouldn’t be too pissy about it as long as the priest/officiant wasn’t too traditional or cheesy about the wedding script and as long as it made Vince happy— so I’ll go with church.

11. I’m thinking they get married at sunset, right at golden hour. That way, they can party all night 🥂

12. They don’t actually do an aisle walk at all (too stuffy according to Johnny) but they do play plenty of music at the reception. In fact, instead of doing a first dance, they play a few ‘first songs’ together instead, which include a song that Johnny wrote for Vince called ‘Tear down the wall’ as well as ‘Your Song’ by Elton John.

13. Outfits:

14. Not really. Aside from the priest mentioning God once or twice, Johnny and V don’t really do things the ‘traditional’ way.

15. There was no ring bearer. In fact, the rings were actually a surprise from Vince because Johnny originally thought that wedding rings were ‘corny-ass pieces of metal’ (despite having several rings of his own, lmao). However, Vince surprised him by pulling the relic rings out of his pocket right before vows began and gave Johnny his wedding ring, knowing that Johnny would like them way more than just a standard wedding ring.

16. Some priest; still don’t know who. Probably someone that Vince ran into during a gig at one point and eventually grew close with?

17. Johnny’s vows (still a WIP; this is just the gist of it):

Vince, you adorable little bastard. Never was one for all this ‘baring my soul’ sorta shit. But, then again, I never was one for a lot of things. Coming back to life after fifty years. Puttin’ my guns in the ground for once. Realizing that there’s more to life than beating my fists against a megacorp. If someone had tried to tell me back in 2020 that I was gonna get married– and to a man, at that– I’d’ve told them they had a massive turd in place of a brain. But now I wouldn’t have it any other way, Vince. I promise, V, promise with all my damn soul to be the best husband I can be. Nobody’s ever cared about me as much as you did, nobody’s given me the second chance than you did. I can’t lie– sometimes I wanna crawl right back into that dumbass head of yours and sleep there till the end of time ‘cause even back then you begged those docs at Langley to save me, you carved my name into that shitty tin roof that they tossed over my grave… ‘cause I trust you with everything I am. I love you, Vince. I love you more than anything in the fucking world. Never gonna leave you, dickweed– ya hear me? Can’t wait to spend the rest of my life burnin’ cities with you.

Vince’s vows (again, still a WIP):

Hell, where do I even begin? Can’t lie… I spent a long time writing these vows. Longer than any song I’ve ever written, Wanted something perfect, ya know? But then there came a point where I just… well… ditched the perfection. ‘Cause you know I’m not perfect, Johnny. That we’re not perfect and never were. We’re not perfect…. But we are two motherfuckers who never give up. I remember you telling me once that you thought weddings were for gonks— a bunch of fancy ass shit where ‘till death do us part’ was almost never true. And, I’ll admit… as cynical as it was, i kinda agreed with you. But, Johnny… we went through death and we’re still here. Together. I’ve followed you past death and I’d do it again, and again, and again, a thousand times over. You’ve been with me through everything, even when you didn’t want to be. And when you were finally given the choice to stay or leave, you chose to stay. You’re one of the bravest, most devoted, most loyal people I’ve ever known. And I love you, Johnny. I love you so much that it aches. It’s gonna be a good life, asshole. I just know it will.

18. The wedding was very small and filled with only their closest friends, so no oppositions were made.

19. The ceremony was pretty simple. Vince and Johnny weren’t up at the front for too long— they said their vows, exchanged rings, kissed, and then played some songs together instead of having a first dance.

20. Thankfully, no. (Though Johnny and Kerry did get VERY drunk).

21. Their honeymoon was a road trip around the NUSA— camping in their Porsche, stirring up mischief around the country, going to famous places, etc.

22. No, they didn’t.

23. The best night of our lives.

24. Very unconventional.

(Tagging @calibvrn because Vince Graves belongs to him :)

Wedding ask game for your newly (and not so newly) wed OTP

(made mainly with couples in mind, feel free to adapt to as many people as you want)

Who first brought up the option of marriage? Was it an easy topic?

Which one proposed? Was it grand and public? Discreet and private? Was it expected?

Show us their engagement and/or wedding rings!

Did they plan the wedding by themselves, with help, or with a professional planner?

Was the planning and time up til the wedding stressful?

Who were the first people to find out about the engagement? How did they react?

Who are the maids of honor and/or best men? Why and how were they chosen?

Was there any drama whatsoever regarding the guest list?

Show us a mood/stimboard of their wedding's general aesthetic.

Do they get married through court? Church? Third secret option?

When do they get married? Night or day? Any specific reason for either?

Do either of them play music while walking down the aisle (if they do at all)? If yes, show us their song.

Show us their outfits!

Do they follow any familiar, cultural, and/or religious traditions at any point of the wedding?

Who was the ringbearer?

Who married them?

Show us their vows. Did either of them tear up at them?

Did anyone oppose the marriage? Did they speak then, or did they just forever hold their peace?

What was the ceremony like? Any highlights?

Did anyone pass out from a food/alcohol coma?

Do they have a honeymoon? Where to? How soon after?

Do they renew their vows? Remarry, even?

If the couple could describe their wedding in a sentence, how would they?

If you could describe their wedding in a sentence, how would you?