#and instead of saying 'how should we change you'

[persephoneed]

I was going to ignore this post, but the more I thought about it and how many notes it had, the more it bothered me and asdfghjkl I need to get this out of my system.

So Elphaba, my beloved, was not selfish in asking her best friend to join her against Ozian fascism. I’m more than a little aghast at the suggestion of it. Like…doing the right thing isn’t always what’s popular, but that’s often true for real life too. It’s not selfish to ask real people to make those same sacrifices, so I’m not sure why that would be applicable here. Glinda may not be for the systematic oppression of Animals, but she’s certainly complacent in it, and it isn’t wrong to criticize her for it.

It is also not easier for Elphaba to do the right thing because she has always been hated and ostracized. She is an incredibly vulnerable and marginalized person and making herself an enemy of the state comes at an increased personal risk. I think it really undermines her courage and strength of character to present her choice this way. If anything, her desire to be loved and to be seen as “making good” should have made it easier for Madam Morrible and the so-called “Wizard” to manipulate and exploit her. She was literally being groomed to be a corrupt government’s weapon and subsequently tricked into creating their army of spies, but she had the moral backbone to fly walk away.

We should be unanimously celebrating Elphaba’s decision and her fortitude; we should not be shaming her for asking her (again) best friend to join the cause with her instead of joining the one that’s against her.

And respectfully, I’m also not sure why you (or anyone) would be sick of “people acting like Glinda made the ‘wrong choice’”…she did make the wrong choice. That’s the whole point. Even she becomes aware of this herself in the second act of the show. The entire concept of this story is to ponder the questions of “Was the Wicked Witch of the West actually wicked?” “Was Glinda the Good Witch actually good?” “Was the Wonderful Wizard of Oz actually wonderful?” “Was everything in Oz as it seemed?”

Of course some of these questions have nuance to them, and I’m not trying to suggest that Glinda is this tainted and irredeemable villain. I love Glinda! She can be so ridiculous and silly! But that doesn’t put her above any criticism. Over the course of the first act, we see her exhibit a lot of personal growth; however, she continually falls short in a lot of ways politically.

Yes, she and Elphaba eventually become friends, but let’s not forget how relentlessly Glinda bullied her and encouraged the entire student body of Shiz to do the same because of the color of her skin. Glinda has sympathy for the Animals, I’m sure, but she doesn’t share Elphaba’s level of outrage towards Dr. Dillamond’s dismissal or any real desire to go against the grain. I don’t believe she would have freed the lion cub the way that Elphaba and Fiyero did, if she’d been given the same opportunity to do so. She was also incredibly irritated by Dr. Dillamond’s difficulty in pronouncing her name and only changed it in his honor later because she thought it would impress Fiyero.

She can be well meaning, and I understand the inclination to give her some grace because she’s so damn likable, but that doesn’t make her any less performative in her politics. She was given a choice, and it wasn’t a choice without consequence, but it was a choice nonetheless, and she chose wrong.

TLDR: Elphaba as an underprivileged person has way more to lose by making her choice than this post implies and is not selfish for asking Glinda, an incredibly privileged person, to join her in doing the right thing. Glinda is in fact wrong for making a different choice, and it’s okay to say it.

I love how inherently selfish both Glinda AND Elphaba are as protagonists. But where one gets praised and admired for it, the other gets demonised and hated.

People always attack Glinda’s decision not to runaway with Elphaba, but no one acknowledges how overtly selfish it is to ask that of someone.

Elphaba is asking Glinda to throw her ENTIRE life away for her. To be ostracised and hated all throughout Oz when she knows full well how badly Glinda cares about what people think of her.

And while Elphaba is used to such ostracisation, Glinda is not.

It is an equally selfish decision to refuse Elphaba request. To perpetuate corrupt beliefs you don’t believe; in order to be accepted and validated by people in power.

They’re BOTH in the wrong, for entirely different reasons. It was an impossible situation with no right answer. And I’m sick of people acting like Glinda made the “ wrong choice ”

[lost-in-fandoms]

The first part of this has been spinning in my brain since last week but then it ran away from me and got long (3.6k) so it's on ao3 too.

Daniel wakes up to three calls from Max on his phone. Each call is accompanied by a voice message in their mostly quiet texts thread and the timestamps read 2:04am, 3:16am and 4:41am.

For a moment, he considers not listening to them. He is not sure his heart can take it: Max happy and celebrating his championship while he was alone, asleep in his bed, Los Angeles traffic the background noise that should have been Vegas fireworks instead.

But it's Max, and he never can keep Max out of his life, has never really wanted to, so he presses play.

Hello Daniel, the first message starts. Daniel can hear the noises of the garage almost overwhelming Max's voice, and it sends a pang of hurt through the still bleeding holes in his heart. You might be asleep, I don't remember what time it is where you are, but I wanted to say...I am...it does not matter.

There's a pause, the kind of pause in which Daniel can picture Max frowning, trying to figure out the sentence in his head, mouth left slightly open.

You are in LA, yes? I am in Vegas, of course, and flying out soon, but maybe we can...I'd like to see you. If you're free.

Daniel's heart lurches again, phone pressed against his ear almost slipping out of his grasp. There's something unreal about it. Max, sitting in a corner of the garage, fresh out of his fourth championship win, probably still smelling of champagne, asking to see him.

Daniel is fiercely glad he didn't pick up. He wouldn't have known what to say.

I think you are asleep. Call me when you wake up? Bye.

The first message ends, and the next one immediately starts. It's much quieter, Max's voice further away and accompanied by soft rustling sounds, as if he had left his phone on some kind of surface while he moves around the room.

Hello Daniel. Sorry, I know I said...and you're sleeping, so this does not make sense. I am maybe a bit drunk, but...

Max makes an annoyed sound, then his voice comes closer again, standing still this time.

I am going out, to celebrate, so I maybe will still be awake when you wake up. Will you call me, please? I know this is not, that you are trying to stay away, and I understand, but...please?

Another pause. Daniel can almost see him, standing in an hotel room, hair mussed by the quick change between the team kit and one of his usual plain t-shirts, fumbling his words trying to say what he wants to say without hurting Daniel. It's useless, Daniel aches anyway, but it's sweet that he tried.

He doesn't say goodbye this time, and Daniel startles when the next message plays, much louder in his ears, the booming sound of a party just barely softer than Max's voice, raised to make itself heard.

Hello Daniel, I am sorry, I know I asked twice already, I know I should not say this, but I won, and you're not here, and you should be here. I want to see you, Daniel. I'll be in LA tomorrow. Or today, I think, so if you want, you can call me. Or I will just go and it's okay. But you should be here. It's not right like this.

The voice message ends, leaving Daniel in stunned silence.

Max called three times just to say he wanted to see him.

He doesn't know how to feel. It's flattering, sure, to know that Max had just won his fourth title, was more or less on top of the world, and spent his night calling Daniel. It hurts too, to hear him saying you should be here, when they both know that Daniel would be there if he could. And it makes something else swirl in his stomach, something that has always been there when Max is involved, and only grew softer and steadier through the years.

He still has his phone pressed against his ear, even long after the messages have stopped playing, when it rings.

It makes him jump, grip fumbling, and he answers on instinct, without even checking caller ID.

"Hello?"

"Daniel."

Daniel blinks. He takes his phone away from his ear to check that yes, Max is calling him. At 9:31am.

"Daniel?"

Daniel considers hanging up. He doesn't.

"Hi, Max." It comes out softer than he intended, almost uncertain. He clears his throat, tries again. "How's the world champ doing?"

This time he overdoes it, voice forced and too loud, making him wince. Max makes a quiet sound on the other side, making Daniel think he winced too.

"I'm..okay. Drunk, maybe. A little. I saw you listening."

Straight to the point as always and saying the most insane things in the straightest voice tone.

I saw you listening. As if Max was sat there, looking at their chat, waiting for the ticks to go from grey to blue.

Maybe he had been.

"I, uhm, yeah I listened. And here we are, talking!" Daniel is glad they're calling and not facetiming, so he is free to hide his face in his empty hand, cringing. It's too early and he's too surprised for his brain to not be stupid, and these are the consequences.

Max chuckles anyway.

"We are. I," Max pauses, coughs slightly. Daniel hears him take a sip of something, wonders if it's water or more alcohol, even if Max doesn't really sound too drunk, words not even slurring. "I am on the plane, almost taking off."

I'll be in LA, Max had said. Daniel wasn't sure he had been serious, but he should have known. Max never says something he doesn't mean.

"I will be in LA, but only for today. I have to go to Europe, and then Qatar on Tuesday. Can you...are you free?"

"I am going hiking."

Daniel is glad his hand is already on his face, or he would have had to slap it there anyway. He is not going hiking, has no plans today really, but he doesn't know what is happening, and the idea of seeing Max is...overwhelming.

He feels stupid as soon as the words are out of his mouth, but he doesn't take them back.

"Okay," Max says slowly after a while. "Today?"

And because Daniel is apparently being extra stupid today, he nods, as if Max could see him.

"Yes, I...later today. Was just getting ready, you know? Feeling the fresh air, smelling the birds and the bees, all the good stuff!"

"The good stuff," Max echoes. Daniel maybe wants to die. "Okay."

"Yeah so, gotta run, Maxy! You have a good flight!"

He hangs up without giving Max a chance to reply, then he throws his phone down on the bed and flops back on the pillow, sighing out loud.

What a shitshow.

--

He only manages to get up after forty minutes of aggressive pep talk, telling himself that Max has done and said weirder and more awkward things in the past, and that it doesn't matter anyway.

Almost two hours later his doorbell rings.

Well, not his actual doorbell, the one from the gate, that alerts him there is a car there before whoever it is actually rings it. When he looks at the small screen, he sees Max getting out the passenger side of a car and head towards the button, frowning at it before pressing it.

The sound seems to echo slightly in Daniel's brain, and he's going to blame his ringing ears for the fact that he opens the gate, letting Max in.

He's still feeling a little out of it when he opens the front door, watching Max walk up the drive, a bag slung over his shoulders. He's wearing a cap, not Red Bull branded, a black t-shirt, not Alpha Tauri, and soft grey shorts.

He looks tired, as if he hasn't slept yet, but he smiles at Daniel with all his teeth.

Daniel just blinks back.

"I didn't know if you would be home, or on your hike, but I am glad you waited!" It's the first thing Max says when he comes close enough, like they do this all the time, like this isn't absurd.

He opens his arms, but doesn't reach for Daniel. As if Daniel would deny him this.

Max smells like sweat, alcohol, and airplane air conditioning. Daniel lets himself bury his face in his shoulder for exactly three seconds before pulling away.

"I didn't think you would come."

Max frowns, shifting his bag to his other shoulder. From this close, Daniel can see how his eyes are a bit bloodshot, his lips a little too red.

He tries not to look at his lips. Or his eyes.

"Of course, I said I would. You said we were going on a hike."

Daniel is pretty sure he didn't say that, but four time world champion Max Verstappen is on his doorstep, looking like he came straight from his own party to hike with Daniel, so fuck it, might as well.

"Right. Yeah, let me just..." Daniel moves aside, letting Max in.

He looks at him from the corner of his eyes as he hunts for his phone and wallet, his backpack, fresh water bottles. He watches as Max drops his bag, looking around, but doesn't move away from the hallway, seemingly happy to just wait for Daniel.

Daniel considers pinching himself, to make sure he's awake. Or slamming his head against the wall, to make sure he isn't.

"Okay, all ready to go!" he tells Max instead, too cheerfully and loud again. Max doesn't wince this time, he just smiles, like Daniel being a fucking idiot is endearing to him.

"You are coming in that?" he asks, nodding towards Daniel's clothes. Which, fair, he's still in his sleep clothes, bright pink shorts and a t-shirt, but also, rude.

"Do you have something against them, Maxy?"

"Of course not, you look very lovely, Daniel."

Disarming, as always.

Daniel has not showered and is in his sleep clothes, and Max calls him lovely in his most sincere voice.

Daniel reconsiders the slamming his head against the wall thing, but ends up just taking his keys and ushering Max out without replying.

He drives.

Both because he is the one who in theory knows where they're going to hike and because he's not fully sure Max is not still a little bit drunk. And because when they're together, Daniel always drives. Even if it's been a long while since they've been in the same car.

The ride is mostly quiet. Daniel turns on the radio, doesn't even connect his phone to it just letting a random station play, and neither of them talks.

Max has closed his eyes, letting his head fall back against the headrest, and Daniel sneaks glances at him, still trying to understand what the fuck is happening.

He doesn't even remember what his original plans for the day were, but he's sure they didn't involve going on a hike when the sun is already too high with Max Verstappen. Who flew over from Vegas, after winning his championship, to go hiking with him.

Daniel thought his life was supposed to become more normal after leaving f1.

By the time he parks at the bottom of a trail that he has already done a few times, it's past two pm, the air is warm and dry, and Max blinks his eyes open with a yawn, looking, if possible, more tired than he was before his little nap.

"We don't have to go," Daniel blurts out, looking at the purple bags under Max's eyes. "We can turn around, I can drive you back to the airport."

Instead of being a sensible person and agreeing, Max frowns at him, his expression closing off.

"If you want," is all he says, and shit of all the stupid things Daniel has said today, he seems to have managed to hurt him with the only rational one.

"No, I...you just look tired," he tries to explain himself. Doesn't even know why he's explaining himself, when none of this makes any sense.

"I am fine," Max replies, some of the ice in his voice disappearing. "Can we go?"

Daniel, again, can only helplessly nod.

It's too warm outside. Daniel had only done this trail earlier in the morning, or on a cooler day, or maybe this whole situation is making him feel it more, but he's sweating as soon as they step outside the car.

Max abandons his bag in the passenger seat, only taking his phone with him, while Daniel swings his backpack on his shoulders, cringing at how it's already making his tshirt stick to him.

He wonders how Max is feeling, after the cold night in Vegas. Max doesn't complain.

They walk quietly for the first five minutes, and Daniel almost misses the car radio, but then Max takes a deep breath and starts talking. Rambling, really.

He starts by mentioning the Vegas weather, as if he was reading Daniel's mind, then switching to a detailed account of the party Martin had thrown for him.

Daniel just listens.

He hums from time to time, to show he is still paying attention, laughs a couple of times when it comes to it, but he doesn't contribute to the conversation. He puts one foot in front of the other and feels the sunshine on his skin, the noises of nature and city combined around them. All the good shit.

When he pulls off his t-shirt, Max laughs at him.

"You only wanted to come out here and show off," he says. His cheeks are red, but Daniel doesn't know if it's him, the warmth, or the sunscreen they both forgot.

"Just for you baby," Daniel replies, winking, mindless, and he's sure Max's cheeks growing redder is just a trick of the light.

Max stumbles. Several times. Every time he catches himself with a laugh, making a joke about needing wheels instead of feet. Daniel resorts to walk a little closer. Just in case.

They don't come across many people, but when they do they stay quiet, hoping nobody recognises them, hoping nobody asks for pictures. Max and a shirtless Daniel, alone on a trail. Daniel wonders what it would do to the internet.

By the time they reach the highest point of the hike they're both red and sweating, and Max is looking a little unsteady on his feet, making Daniel curse himself for taking him out here, after he raced and partied and didn't sleep.

They sit down in the still too warm shadow of a spindly tree, and Daniel hands Max one of the bottles of water, watching him drink it greedily. His nose is already starting to burn.

"What are you doing here, Max?"

The question comes out almost without his consent, but Max doesn't startle. He finishes drinking, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand and pressing the half empty bottle against his neck, looking at Daniel with that unwavering stare of his.

"Hiking," he deadpans. "What are you doing here?"

And isn't that the question of the year.

"Hiking," Daniel answers back.

Max's mouth ticks up, amused as usual by anything Daniel says, but then he goes back to being serious. Daniel looks away, unable to handle his staring.

"I am here because I wanted to see you. Always, I want to see you."

Daniel closes his eyes, leaning back on his hands.

"God, Max. Fuck."

His brain feels like it's cooking, but it's more from Max's simple confession than from the heat.

"I keep...I text you, and I call you, and you are always busy."

It's true, but Daniel wishes Max wasn't saying it. He wishes they could keep ignoring everything between them that Max seems to be set on unearthing today. If this is what four championships do to a man, Daniel doesn't want them.

That's a lie.

Daniel wants them. Daniel would want even one. Daniel wants this. Daniel wants Max.

"We should keep going," is what comes out of his mouth.

He doesn't move, and Max doesn't either.

Max's sweaty hand lands on his arm, gripping for just a moment, then moves away. Daniel doesn't open his eyes. His neck is starting to hurt a little from his position, and he wonders if it would have if he had kept up his neck training. If he had been still in a car.

"You can't just...I am not letting you run away anymore."

Max's voice is harsh and Daniel snaps his head up, glaring.

"Running away? They fucking kicked me out, mate!" He grits his teeth, trying not to raise his voice. The ground is hard and uncomfortable underneath him. He wishes he had never picked up the phone.

Max glares right back, swiping his hand through the air, dispersing Daniel's words.

"I do not mean that. That was wrong, and stupid, and we can talk about it if you want, but I am talking about this," Max says, gesturing between them, as if the space between them was a solid thing, something tangible and theirs.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Daniel bites out. Max glares harder. He's always been a good glarer.

"Don't be dumb. I'm tired of you doing this, telling me it is nothing!"

A flash through Daniel's brain. Max, young and awkward, pushing him against the wall of a nameless club in a far away country, trying to kiss him. Daniel telling him you're just drunk, we'll talk tomorrow. Daniel refusing to ever talk about it again.

Suddenly, the anger seems to seep out of him, leaving him too warm and tired. He wipes some sweat off his forehead with his hand, feeling the grit of dirt mixing with it.

"What do you want, Max? For me to apologize?" he asks with a sigh, looking away again.

Two fingers on his chin guide him to look back, and he finds Max a little too close, eyes blue blue blue and cheeks red red red.

"You don't have to apologize," he says gently. "I want you to say that it is not in my head. I want you to say that you want me."

Daniel feels dizzy, isn't sure he's breathing.

"Why?" he chokes out. Max's fingers are still on his face. For a wild second, Daniel wants to lick them.

"Because I want you."

Simply deadly. Like Max always is.

Daniel's heart is rabbiting in his chest, brain buzzing. This doesn't feel real. Nothing about this feels real.

Max should be in Vegas, or on his way to Europe, high off his championship, not here, sitting in the dirt, telling Daniel he wants him. He shouldn't still want him. Not after everything.

"I fought very hard for one thing I wanted this year," Max says, when it becomes clear Daniel is not going to say anything, "and I thought it would be stupid to not fight for the other thing I wanted too."

"God, Max." It comes out in a rasp, and Daniel really hopes he's not going to cry, because that would be way too embarrassing, even for him.

Max smiles at him, small and soft and lovely. The one he saves for the little moments and the people he loves. The one he's been giving Daniel since forever.

"I would like you to say, if you want me, Daniel, because I would like to kiss you."

Maybe Daniel is going to pass out. But before he does...

"I do, God, fuck, Max."

Max laughs before kissing him, short and happy. He doesn't crash their lips together, but he cradles Daniel's cheek in his sweaty hand and gently guides him forward, soft and lovely and kind.

It's not fireworks. It's not an explosion of colors behind Daniel's closed eyelids. It's warm honey seeping through his ribs. It's a sigh of finally. It's a homecoming.

It lasts forever and nothing at all, and when Max pulls back, Daniel almost falls forward trying to chase him, making Max smile.

Daniel's brain doesn't have one single coherent thought left in it.

"We should finish the hike, this was a terrible idea," he says instead of please kiss me again. Which is maybe less pathetic, but also means Max laughs instead of kissing him, which is the worse outcome.

"It was your idea," Max reminds him, grabbing his bottle from the ground and pushing to his feet, before offering him a hand to do the same.

Daniel feels light enough he could probably float down the hill, no effort at all. He bumps his naked shoulder against Max's, immediately cringing at feeling of his sweat soaked t-shirt against his skin.

"I never claimed I was smart."

"Yes," Max agrees, grabbing him to stop him from moving further away, pulling him closer to kiss him again.

"You stink," he says when he lets Daniel breathe again, lips still brushing together.

Daniel snaps back, snorting a startled laugh.

"I stink?? Have you smelled yourself lately?"

Max echoes his laugh, making a show of smelling his own armpit and cringing away.

"You like it," he says, cheeky. Daniel firmly ignores the sharp pang of want in his gut and rolling his eyes instead.

"Come on stinky, let's get you to a shower."

Max's smile deepens, and he's the one to bump their shoulders together as they start back on the trail.

"You'll join me, yes?"

Daniel stumbles, the images the words Max and shower and join me are conjuring in his brain making him lose the grip on his limbs for a moment.

They should probably talk more about this. Figure things out. Set boundaries and shit. But all he cares about at the moment is finishing this fucking hike and take Max home. For anything else, they'll have time.

[localshe]

JEALOUSY k. martin

► sum. maybe dancing with a stranger on her birthday wasn’t really ideal. you had no clue she’ll be making you dance on top of her instead.

wc. idfk

warnings. fem! reader, escalates briefly, strap-on, dirty talk, masturbation, fingering, petnames, praise, breeding kink.

an. the long awaited fic has arrived. i keep rereading it and half makes no sense so im js posting this for ygs sake. you’ll see that in some parts i got lazy and whatnot, maybe even repeated shit (idk) but i hope you enjoy this mess <3

(this is not proofread)

•••

two warm hands found home on your hips, swaying against a crotch that you were unfamiliar with. you didn’t care tho, not when the alcohol tasted like chocolate, and not when the music got louder.

you let the alcohol take control over you, returning the favor by leading your feet to the dance floor with jada and gabbie, but that was ten minutes ago.

the both of them disappeared somewhere else when a man asked you to dance with him— which you of course were vulnerable enough to not say no.

and thats how your practically on the man, in a euphoric state while you smiled in bliss. the club becoming hazy at how fast your dancing, the both of you sharing small words to make this moment funner.

‘the motto’ by drake started to blare around the club, people immediately started to cheer, even monika, caitlin and jada joining you.

and when jada had suggested that kate should join in, you had just locked eyes with her.

her tall, vigorous figure — immobile, leaning against a wall. her eyes roamed both of yours’ bodies, especially counting the centimeters between your ass and his belt.

growing nervous, finally leaving the group, you amble to your girlfriend—found green-eyed and eager to brawl the guy who was presently trying to find you in the misty forest of drunk individuals like you.

you ignored the neurotic adulation spreading inside your stomach, going for a kiss just to get dogged, and you scoff. in utter disbelief on how someone can decline your lips, or how kate declined your lips with such dexterity.

“uh, what the fuck?” you furrow your brows, and almost instantly kate bit her lip, subtly shaking her head, not appreciating ur poor, drunken anger. instead—she gripped your forearm to her car.

confusion filled your mind.

what type of confusion? the type to swiftly snatch her firm hand away and stand still with crossed arms as you questioned out loud the questions that devised inside your brain rather quickly.

first it was . . “kate why don’t we just go back inside?”

second — “why are we- uhp leaving?”

then — “you didn’t even say bye to everyone.”

which led to — “hello? stop laugh-i-ing and answer me!”

through hiccups, you tried your best to get a point a-cross. only earning sarcastic laughter. “get in the car baby girl,” kate softly told you, eyes alleviated as she awaited for your future steps.

and even tho she had appeared to change into the natural kate that would never force you to do anything, there was a tiny ogle of sour in her smile.

so you decided to get in the car, choosing a safe path because it felt more secure. you didn’t know what would happen in the next minutes, you didn’t wanna know.

but oh, you knew when you were founded sprawled, back domed beautifully as the whet nail prodded at your bundle of nerves briskly.

it was so sudden.

she was stretching you out hefty, not letting you take any chances to take a deep breath.

“shiiiiit!” two fingers messaged your walls around and around and around, controlling your hormones that already felt like they were doing something to you.

but nothing like kate slowly taking her fingers out of you painfully obtuse, a splatter sound rumbling around the room, “tch, he made you this wet?” she queried, keened bitter emanated from her tone.

and that made you wonder . . was she jealous?

the mention of a guy left you confused, but you didn’t have enough time to operate her words when she stood up, sighing as she took off those suffocating, derided gray sweatpants that hung low the whole night, proudly showing off the sexy calvin klein boxers.

you felt a big throb nictate your red, cushioned clit when kate had gotten her strap ready.

“oh, you thought you were just gonna get a good fuck like that?” she pouted in pure sarcasm, snapping her fingers to dictate on how quick it could’ve gone, “after letting a stranger touch you? really mama?” smacking her teeth, shaking her head in lost disappointment.

now you started to shake your head, about to disapprove her own sightseeings when she met your lips, quickly covering her cheeks with your hands, a needy whimper radiating off your chest, missing the downy lips.

and even though you still felt confused, slightly getting distracted by the make out sesh, kate was leisurely steering your right hand to ur dripping core.

a sharp bite to her bottom lip from the abrupt surprise had gotten her to stand up, interrupting the kiss you craved since she had rudely dogged you.

she sat down on the rolling chair in front of the desk board, facing your hitherto broken soul that was struggling to keep calm on the bed, hardly ever accomplishing that when you felt her sullen hooded eyes paint all over you.

you didn’t need to ask what to do, it wasn’t the first time. although, it feels like it from the dull atmosphere that was very rare to be surrounded by.

you felt your walls tightening, a slow frenzy walking across your brain as her sharp gaze was attacking all of you. everything in the room dissolved when you converged eyes.

she was looking at you, nowhere else. not even at your hand that was rapidly doing the job. her eyes trained onto yours, like if it was the last time she was ever gonna see you.

you couldn’t look at her anymore, because if you did you’ll fall apart miserably.

“eyes on me, sweetheart.” she murmured, tiling her head slightly.

you mewl as ur clit becomes nervous, tensing from time to time as you deny your own orgasms, waiting for the permission you await.

“mh’ aren’t you just so nice,” she flashed you a small smile that almost instantly disappeared, “so nice you practically let a man’s dick poke that ass.” she chuckled, a noise brimful of tenebrous.

you can’t blame kate for being sarcastic, i mean — why would you let a man even dance you away? you have a whole girlfriend that can dance wayyyy better than him. and frankly better in general.

“i couldn’t find yo-“ “bullshit sweetheart, we both know you didn’t even try to ask me.” kate cut you off, smiling with hoaxed pride.

she didn’t wanna hear your taciturn excuses that had no big impact on her. only helping the envious hunch brainwashing her good.

“all fours.” she demanded, rough tone ringed to your ears as you found trouble trying to prevent your legs from shaking. your clit was swollen, denied, and abused just now and you were sure kate isn’t that jealous, right?

you felt a little tap, and before you could comprehend, kate was dumbing you down relentlessly.

one hand clasped your right hip as for the other one was buried in your hair, yanking it to pull it back, giving her a hint of how dumb you instantly get on her vastly lubricious strap — soaked of your juices.

“aw, fuc’ kaaayy..” you whine, hopeless underneath her firm will, handling what felt like the worlds hardest thrusts in ancient history, or a somewhat record. it didn’t matter much when you felt her grin peck ur spine with no mercy.

she nearly chuckled, “atta girl,” she grumbled, soflty smacking your ass, jiggling all over her face. pushing out til the tip annoys your other lips, her thumb gathering every single drop of ur mess, “mmmh she’s s’ wet,” she purred, savoring ur sweet precum that was almost spilling from her hand.

every drop of energy was gone, letting ur chest repose while the woman behind you was in less than five seconds gonna make you (s)cream. just by not giving you any warning, she had rammed into you. hard and sharp.

it was almost life changing.

kate even hissed, ur tight warm walls pawed her strap, fueling a sudden wave of urge to fucking bite ur fresh unmarked neck.

licking a stripe on your earlobe, “on my birthday too?” you heard the intensity plop from kate’s tongue, soon to be chuckling as she pulled out, letting you breath for only a split second before she gasped a deep thrust out of you.

you had no pulse to feel guilty, kate was giving you a taste of her own medicine.

her right hand slithered up to your neck, grasping it with little force unlike her yawned plunges impacting your g-spot greatly.

“i’m s-sssorry—kate- fuck,” pathetic.

there was no use to apologize, you were done for.

she shook her head once again, pulling out to leave you whining, the emptiness making you push back for any friction. although, kate was sitting low against the headboard now, manspreading as she called for you with two fingers in the air, pursuing you to get in between her aroma.

you heel sat, submitting to the woman currently rubbing ur jaw with the thumb she used to gather ur sweet juices. her head slightly tilted, and with siren eyes she scrutinized the hell out you.

biting her lip subtly, she dragged her thumb in your mouth, forcing you to suck on it. you comply without any questions, eyes forum as ur tongue twisted all around.

kate smirked, “cute.”

she muttered, nodding mildly, a silent way of letting you know that ur doing well for her.

you beamed, and just then — she nudged her thumb far in your throat. no warning as you slightly chocked, coughing as tears brimmed your eyes.

looking up at her with shocketh, “making you practice for later ‘s all.” she shrugged, thumb no longer in your mouth.

“cmon, ride me.” kate instructed, nodding down as she spied you, gripping ur hips to help you steady on her standing strap, soon disappearing inside ur warm, damp pussy.

you cried out, sinking into the trap of kate martin.

you leaned back, one hand on her lower torso as the other one comfortably rested on kate’s right knee. swaying your hips back ‘n forth, presenting all of you.

“f- fuck,” you huff out, already starting to feel the plunging heaves of your stomach commence. aligning yourself immaculately on her cock.

feeling your slick cunt maneuver itself against her vexed reddened tip makes her head slightly toss back in the feral torture.

she brings her hands to your hips, messaging them softly, tracing the word ‘mine’ with her cold fingers. she watched you eagerly make two solid taut bucks against her.

“what? don’t tell me she’s already tired,” a weepy reproachful tone echoed from kate, and you started to whine in embarrassment.

“i- no- pleeeeassssse” you sang, both lungs ready to collapse. she’s huge - just barely you started riding her and you could already feel your pussy starting to throw a fit of tantrums.

from that, you try to slow down — only proving yourself adored failure when you go nimble. it was clear your own body was betraying you. your motivation to not disappoint kate furthermore was faint. 

you were sure—just one more single hard thrust and you’d probably break, “aw, your legs are gettin’ weak so soon. tappin’ out, princess?”

“ kate, ‘m cummin’,” you blurt out when she pinned her thumb on ur clit, rubbing small hasty circles, collecting every face you make. strings of glowy drool depart from your lips, letting her thrash the swollen tip against your g-spot.

“you gonna let me cum in ya?” kate slurred, her hot breath fanning over your bouncy boobs that had been giving her a show she wanted to watch again.

you sobbed a throaty moan, the insanity to have her cum inside you was something you craved.

immediately you had nodded, head thrown back as the idea of having kids with her cranked you up to make her cum.

“yea- yes! pl’pl’plea’!” you let off a plethora of sweetened fusses as her cock scrapes its way through your gummy walls onerously before you abruptly squall. “f- fuuuuck!”

a pretty, glistening geyser sprays out between your thighs, and your expression is priceless.

kate remained inside you as she watched you whine out those needy raw sobs, that alone impacting her to gush out her load, thrusting up as she breathed out a groan, your tightness bringing her extreme pleasure.

you couldn’t think straight—you could only taste the treacly sweet tang of fresh cum on your bud as your head flops onto the bed. “o- oh my god,” you puff, feeling your wobbly thighs soak with slimy molasses of yours’ sweet.

“m-mh’- don’t lay down, darling, m’ not done with you.”

an. feedback & reblogs are v appreciated!

[corvidaequeer]

There's not really a point to this. I'm not saying Arcane is bad or you shouldn't watch it or you shouldn't like Jayce or jayvik... I'm just feeling annoyed at the way they took Jayce's character in the second season for a lot of reasons & I want to rant about it.

Starting with the whole scene of Jayce & Mel talking by comatose Viktor. Jayce says "never again" to making hextech weapons & Mel promises to protect his & Victor's dream. Then, 30 seconds later, Jayce makes Caitlyn more hextech weapons anyway! His wishy-washy promise wasn't surprising, just annoying that he'd make the same mistake AGAIN (Then a third time to defend Piltover from Ambessa's attack).

-

Later, in seeing the whole story, we know that Viktor sent Jayce back to teach himself some life lesson. So why was Jayce's first reaction to kill Salo & blow a hole in Viktor's chest?? Shouldn't he have tried to reach Viktor in a less murdery way first? Try to reason with him & teach him said life lesson? It just doesn't make sense.

-

After Jayce gets back to Piltover, he has this sudden resentment & distrust towards Mel. Where did that come from? Why does Jayce suddenly think Mel is an enemy?

Jayce starts accusing Mel of selecting who she protected. What would she have to gain from that? Even if Mel DID know she had powers, why would Jayce think she would willfully let the council & Viktor die? Why would he think her so cruel?

Then there's the "investments" line. Firstly, it was Alora that called Jayce an investment. Mel just said, "Indeed." Secondly, Who the fuck told him that happened anyway??

Then Jayce claims Mel was "using" them? Yes, she wanted Jayce & Viktor as allies & directed them in her favor, but thats really not "using" them. She saw a good opportunity to make some change & took it like anyone else would. The rest of the council used him for their own benefit far more than Mel did. But more importantly, Mel CARED about Jayce & Viktor. She cared about their dreams & helped them to achieve it! She was the one who supported them from the start. She was trying to get the council NOT to make hextech weapons. She wanted to protect their dream, but she's still somehow "using" Jayce & Viktor to get hextech?! Jayce is the one who keeps making hextech weapons without anyone pressuring him to do so! So what was the narrative point of having Jayce take his regrets out on Mel? What function did it serve?

That whole scene was just-

Mel: Hey, I need some emotional support from this traumatic thing that just happened to me

Jayce: Fuck you, Mel! You should have saved everyone. Also, how dare you have unconditionally supported Viktor & I & our research!!

The anger towards her just comes out of nowhere & has no evidence to back it up & it annoys me. Also, it just feels out of character, even with the more edgy way they portrayed Jayce in act 2 & 3. So, just, why?

-

Then there's "my partner died in this room." Jayce saw Viktor in the future, as himself, not the machine herald. He spoke with him & promised to fix things. So clearly, Viktor's humanity wasn't dead, so why even say that? What was the point?

-

Then there's Jayce's little speech. There are so many things with this.

Jayce, who had up to this point, chose violence, is suddenly all soft again & just NOW trying to reach Victor. Where was that in the last few days?? Would he not have done this first instead of blasting a hole in him?

"You always wanted to cure what you thought were weaknesses" No, bitch, he wanted to help people in poverty & didn't want to fucking die!! What are you even talking about!? Viktor was insecure ONE TIME about being up on stage, so why is Jayce diminishing Viktor's ENTIRE MOTIVATION to him being insecure about being disabled??

Then, in the same line of thinking, there's Jayce saying Viktor's disability & illness (his "imperfections") make him beautiful & he admires Viktor for that??! Cut the inspiration porn trope! Are we not passed that?!

Lastly, Jayce is supposed to show Viktor some life lesson of all that being left is "dreamless solitude" & "there is no prize to perfection" but Jayce doesn't even say any of that?? He just shows Viktor saying it. How is that something only Jayce can do?

Sure, I love the idea of Cosmic Destiny Partners. It's a great idea & a somewhat happy ending for these two. I get it, I do. But the whole path leading up to it & its execution was poor, confusing, & frankly ableist.

-

In general, Jayce just felt inconsistent.

Yeah, in season 1, Jayce has a track record for flip-flopping on his morals & ideals. His character arc is that of someone being easily swayed. He makes a lot of mistakes & then corrects himself by swinging in the complete opposite direction, only to make more mistakes. It's his character flaw.

Then season 2, he becomes more resolute in the promise he mentions. You think, oh, this makes sense. He finally grew a backbone & is standing his ground. Apparently, choosing violence as his footing, but still. He keeps this aggressive demeanor up for the rest of season 2. But then suddenly, right at the last second, he turns around & says the softest & sappiest shit in the whole show?? The fluffy confession of adoration & partnership just comes out of nowhere! If you're taking Jayce in an aggressive direction, then do so. Don't come in swinging with this totally different person.

Overall, it just feels like Jayce is there for shock value & relationship drama instead of being an actual character with solid motivations & and a steady narrative.

[abbysimsfun]

Sims In Bloom: Generation 2 Pt. 97 (Cherished Friendships)

Conrad tried to make breakfast for his hosts while a familiar light rain drizzled outside, but Neal rushed into the kitchen to stop him. "It's an old stove. Real finnicky," he insisted. "Maybe you should let someone else do that. Heather, maybe."

"It's no trouble. I had a stove like this growing up," said Conrad, but Neal shook his head.

"It's not a good idea."

Daisy shook her head with a gentle chuckle. "Don't let him scare you. He's just trying to scam a meal out of his daughter now that she's as good as any gourmet chef."

They all knew it was more than that, but they went along with the excuse because it was easier that way. "It's not like I'm making anyone ambrosia," Heather said. There was nothing special about her scrambled eggs and bacon, but she took over at the stove while Conrad hung out with sleepy Lavender, instead.

The early morning rains let up and the sun came out, so Heather and Conrad next headed to Old New Henford, where Everett, Spencer, and their children had settled well into the mild winter season - at least it was more seasonal than their last home in Oasis Springs.

"Greyson, say hello to your godmother, Heather."

"Hi, Heather," he said cheerily. "Hey! You have glasses, too!"

"I told you she did." Spencer looked apologetically at her old friend. "He just got glasses recently and was feeling insecure, so I was trying to tell him all the awesome people I know who rock glasses."

"Your glasses look really good, Greyson. The bright red is so cool!" Heather wasn't lying to him about his glasses, though she played up the excitement to help Spencer convince him to embrace this change in his appearance. "I've had glasses for pretty much as long as I can remember, and I love wearing them. If I looked as cool as you, I'd love them even more!"

Seven-year-old Greyson smiled up at Heather. "You look pretty cool," he said, before running off to play on the monkey bars in their backyard.

Heather watched firsthand the bond between Spencer and her sons. Especially four-year-old Jett, who was Heather's biological child, but was treated the same as his siblings. He followed Spencer everywhere and loved making everyone laugh. "I seriously don't know why you doubt yourself, Spence," Heather gushed. "You're an incredible mom."

They also met Everett and Spencer's third little miracle - a daughter they named Violet. She was about six months younger than Lavender, with big blue eyes like her mother.

"I hope you don't mind that their names are so similar," said Spencer. "I've just always loved the name and I thought maybe the girls might grow up to be friends as close as we are. If that happens, their names are a perfect set!"

Heather smiled at the thought. "I think Violet's name is perfect, and I'd love for her and Lavender to have as many adventures together as we have!"

"I'm still planning to take you to Selvadorada with me next time, if you can get away."

Heather nodded. "And I'm still planning to get away, as long as business stays as manageable as its been lately!"

Everett's father Bob stopped by to say hello, and Heather thought to ask him about Agnes and Agatha. "How does it feel seeing clones of your dead mothers walk around town?"

He laughed. "It was hard to get used to, but now it comforts me whenever I see them. They're together forever, just like they wanted to be."

They left for San Myshuno after leaving the Pancakes' after lunch, picking up Ash from the Landgraabs' penthouse before stopping in to visit with Heather's old friend, Dylan Richards, and her family. Pearl was a year and a half older than Ash, but their mothers were happy to see them get along.

"You can do my math homework?"

Ash shrugged. "It's not that hard. Just numbers."

"I don't like numbers," Pearl complained. "I prefer dancing, but every time I want to practice, Darrell gets in the way!" Pearl's toddler brother perked up from the sofa at the mention of his name. "Be glad you have sisters. Little brothers are so annoying!"

Pearl's father, Gavin, chuckled. "He just wants to spend time with his big sister, sweetheart. He loves you!"

"Why can't he love me and be less annoying?" she moaned.

Gavin took Darrell into the hall to help him use up some of his energy, and by now, Lavender was struggling. It had been days since she'd been in her own crib and felt the familiar surroundings of their home in Brindleton Bay. Though she'd been her wiggly, happy self for most of the weekend, she was fading fast.

Heather had hoped to stop in to see Holly and Kris' daughter, Betta, who was only a few weeks younger than Lavender, but Heather and Conrad knew it was time to head home.

(Look at that face. She would not stand being passed around for cuddles in one more stranger's arms this day!)

They knew they'd see Heather's youngest niece during the Winterfest holidays, but they still had a few weeks of work left until the festive season. ->

<- Previous Chapter | Gen 2 Start | Gen 1 Summary | Gen 1 Start

NOTE: Did I give Heather and Everett's children all colour names? Yes I did. Am I plotting something? Maybe. Will we know what that is for years? No. 😂 Did plotting encourage me to give Violet a better outfit than the default medieval cc dress and bucket hat she aged up in? Also no.

[delliebre]

how to not make color variation look ass i have color jitter on a lot of my brushes but if i turn it up too much it just looks ununified and bad - your colors look so good!! and like i keep the values but ig it just looks off? like ive noticed a lot of nice green-kind-of spots in ur art among other colors and like its there but it's all really harmonious and stuff

it is hard to explain further than me saying "use a light touch". I am light with my strokes. I build up the work with lots of layered, quick, and short brushing. The color jitter then is way more subtle as I build it. I have more control.

I think it is important to compare the first block-in to the final so we can see the foundational colors. Here is an isolation. I start in a closer value range most times and expand both ways on the value scale as I progress. The colors expand also. For this I did not have a plan for the final, as at the start I chose cooler light but decided on warmth later. I choose muted tones with muted value. My main render brushes do not have color dynamics because control is increasingly important with progression.

here are my settings for the block-in brush. I recommend keeping brightness jitter low for subtlety.

If the values are close, but the colors are still seeming off, to harmonize, if we are talking about skin, (but applies generally) I would take the average skin tone and glaze the problem areas with it. Can be done in normal layer or color blend mode. I like normal layer. Be light with this. In being light, we keep our textures built up from all the layering and the subtle color variation.

So, first image is the value range I start with, second is sometimes what I end with. Minus pure black and pure white. This is planned. However, it can be irritating working in values you know are not final, the ugly stage stays longer, but I still prefer this.

You can also try adding a new digital layer and brush what colors you want and then lowering the opacity or erasing. Perks of digital.

Also, the color spots, of greens and whatever, are not blankets. They are blotched, the main color when you squint is an acceptable, not too wild color for skin. The little color pops and changes do not overpower. I could make the whole cheek a bit more green, in the same values, but it would feel off because it is blanketing when it should be just thread among the main average. I want to go in and out with the colors for vibration. The acceptable colors have the liberty to blanket, not the additions. But this depends one what is required of the work/what the artist wants to see.

before: sort of filtered look as I keep a close range of value and color, planning to add variation later..(patience is hard)

after: added variation and expanded value range built up slowly

hope this helps you. Sorry it is hard to explain what is intuitive to me I do not think about this stuff in words.. when I make mistakes painting I just call myself stupid and try to correct it. A lot of "why would you do that?" and "WTF?"

but still it is fun keep experimenting! Thank you!

I actually would like to edit the colors, but better to go onto the next one instead of berating my past decisions.

[aingeal98]

thinking of the differences in cass and bruce regarding their no-kill rules, and how cass’ rule is better in regards to the batman persona and what it stands for. death and bruce have an awful relationship, to say the least. he has gained nothing from death and murder, in fact it affects him so much that all he can do with death is just sit in its presence forever, without ever working through it (he literally refers to death as ‘a curse constantly hanging over him’ i mean that is not the most accepting mindset). with cass though? she can actively process death and even accept that it has happened. she isn’t like bruce, because she uses others dying to make her intense love and empathy stronger, while bruce just uses it to fuel anger and an onslaught of repressed negative emotions (which we all know can only last you so long before your whole body just gives out). i mean, the second bruces parents died, he separated the concept of murder from his life, (even though that is literally impossible, minhkhoa, ra’s, talia, selina, and basically anyone who has been in a meaningful relationship with bruce has pointed this out. i mean even a ghost martha wayne has told bruce there’s no avoiding death, only going through it). however, with cass? she literally was a murderer. one of the many reasons cass vows to never kill is because she actively sees herself in murderers, and thinks they all have the capacity to be redeemed, while bruce barely has an idea how to even process murder, let alone accept it or the people who do it (thinking of how he straight up denied that cass killed anyone, or was even capable of doing it, even with video evidence shown right in front of him, and im not even gonna get into the whole jason todd thing). cassandra could be a better batman simply because she can look death (specifically murders and murderers) dead in the eye and accept it, something that bruce cant even do. basically what im getting at is that, ironically, cass’ backstory of her being a murderer allows her to use the batman persona to its full unfiltered potential, something that even bruce is aware of. anyways here’s my cass should take up the batman mantle propaganda!!

I'm chewing on this like it's a five course meal thank you so much for this analysis there's so much to go through.

You're so right about their different mentalities like Bruce was ultimately a victim and his drive comes from both never wanting anyone else to suffer like that but also never wanting to be a victim again himself. And if does mean that his various complexes around death and crime can sometimes be very harmful to people he should be trying to save! Batman is a symbol and an ideal and no one, not even Bruce can truly live up to it.

Meanwhile Cass views herself as the perpetrator, the responsible party instead of a fellow victim tricked into killing a man. And her projection while again not in anyway perfect is definitely better for those around her than Bruce's because it's full of empathy and a belief for change. The heartbreaking part is that she's no less fucked up over the concept of death imo, she just directs it all inwards. Every life lost is a tragedy that Bruce and Cass both carry on their shoulders. The difference is Bruce views anyone who takes a life as having sacrificed a part of themselves they can ever get back, of ruining their life regardless of circumstances. And we really do get to see frequently in comics how that standard ends up harming innocents even as he tries to do good. Meanwhile Cass... Does actually hold quite similar views but she also stubbornly refuses to believe it's true for anyone else just because she cannot escape it being her own personal truth. They killed but they can change. They killed but they can turn their life around. They felt bad for a second there, I saw them. I'm going to help them because of that.

Part of it definitely comes down to the thematic cohesiveness of Cass's Batgirl run compared to Bruce's... Everything. But ultimately yeah Cass best Batman for multiple reasons and you can fight me on this.

[1toreyouapart]

The Lies We Tell

***FANFIC THAT INVOLVES REAL PEOPLE. 18+ ONLY. MDNI. DO NOT READ IF YOU DON’T LIKE FANFIC THAT INVOLVES REAL PEOPLE***

Summary that tells you nothing: Sometimes everything you ever wanted has been right there, within reach, all along.

CW/TW: Angst, fluff, swearing, friends to lovers, jealousy, smut, fingering, PinV, pet names, friends with benefits, mental health (mention of a past attempt), more to come as I actually get things written out.

Masterlist

We Bend

Another shitty date. Another evening wasted. More money wasted. Because she just could not let these men pay for her meal. Groaning she kicked off her shoes, adjusting her skirt in the process. Another wasted skirt on a man that couldn't even get passed the first five minutes without talking to her like she was stupid. What the fuck was wrong with her? Literally nobody had been good enough. The bar was low, but goddamn. Why the fuck was she back home at 11pm and bored out of her skull?

Heaving a weary sigh she started up the stairs, smiling the instant she heard Noah yelling in his room. That sound was all she needed to know that she was home.

Curious she peeked her head inside his cracked bedroom door, smothering a snicker as he jumped and laughed with the friends he was online with. She couldn't help but watch him in his element. Everyone said that music was what made him who he was, but as she watched him now, wearing cat ear headphones, jamming out to some Bruno Mars, she couldn't help but fall for him just a little more.

On the tips of her toes she crept forward, clicking his bedroom door shut behind her. He only ever left it open if she wasn't back by a certain time, anyway. Surely he had to have heard the door close. He had to have. Instead he jumped when she came into view, pausing his game. Without a word she climbed into his lap, settling herself where she could bury her face in the crook of his neck.

"Something came up. Gotta run." He spoke into his headset, ripping it off. “Bad date?”

“Yeah. Total dickbag.” Quinn heaved a weary sigh. “The bar is so low at this point I would settle for somebody that at least looks at me when they’re talking to me.”

Noah shifted underneath her, his arms settling around her waist. Large hands rubbed her back in soothing circles, his breathing slowly changing to match her own. He had always done that. Mirrored her in some way. It was unsettling how easily he did it, sometimes. Like it was as natural as, well, breathing.

“Try raising the bar, babe. You deserve more than that.”

Quinn shrugged. At one point she had thought so, too. But as time went on she was starting to realize that may not be true. And that maybe she was the problem.

“Don’t shrug at me. I’m right and you know it.”

“You have to say that. You’re my best friend.”

Noah chuckled as he reached up and grabbed her head to lift it off his shoulder. She knew she was being impossible and should just take the compliment. But truthfully, her confidence had been shaken years ago and she never quite got it back. He held her face there, inches from his, forcing her to look at him. His dark eyes were soft and dancing with affection as he looked at her.

“That means I’m the most qualified to say that. I know you, flaws and all. From the way you refuse to use a stupid step stool to reach up high, to the fact that you know the entire choreography to Bad Romance.”

“Uh, Lady Gaga is an icon and I find it offensive that you don’t know it,” she retorted , quirking an eyebrow.

Noah laughed, thumb gently stroking her cheek, his eyes never leaving hers. Moments like this were the only ones where she felt seen. Like there was at least one person in the world that saw her for who she was and didn’t run away. Odd to think it came from a random night in a bar seven years ago.

“I also know that you’re a fucking psychopath that puts ketchup on their mac and cheese. And that you always stir your tea exactly three times clockwise, and then three more times counterclockwise. That you have a habit of leaving your bras fucking everywhere. And for some reason you put hot sauce on everything. I mean, ice cream, Quinn? I feel like normal people don’t do that.”

“Noah,” she warned. He was right, but goddamn. Did he have to be so mean about it?

“I digress. You’re also the funniest, kindest, sweetest, and most intelligent person I’ve ever met. I’ve watched you give your last dollar to someone in need. Watched you drop everything to help someone who was lost, or show up for a friend even when they didn’t show up for you. I’ve listened to you talk for hours about the ocean and all the new information coming out about previously unexplored places there.” He sighed, brows furrowing slightly as he spoke. “So, yeah. You deserve better. You deserve the world and somebody that’ll stop at nothing to give it to you. Not these little boys that you keep settling for. Raise your standards.”

Quinn froze, her breath trapped in her lungs. So that was how he saw her. As this kind person that did good things all the time. He had to know that she wasn’t a good person, though. Had to. She fucked up all the time. Took their petty arguments too far more often than not. And yet he was still sitting there looking at her like she was a saint. She didn’t know what to do. What to say.

Tags: @collisionofyourkissmakesitsohard @supersquirrel1996 @mrscevans

[mistresscitrusslice]

I hate that Arcane made the decision to make Hextech an inherently evil power. It should not have been that simple and the real-world applications are not that simple. Making Hextech evil is an anti-progress message.

Hextech is basically a fantasy reflection of nuclear power. Nuclear power is almost objectively a good thing, but tends to be conflated with nuclear missiles despite there being a huge gap between the two. The best thing coal companies ever did to try and save their industry was to convince us that they’re the same.

Most detractors will point to the Chornobyl disaster as an example of the dangers of nuclear energy. They fail to recognize that that happened largely due to incompetence and outdated reactor designs, all flaws that have been fixed long ago. Today’s reactors have failsafes upon failsafes and risky old designs have been retired. Even the disaster at Fukushima was nowhere near the caliber of Chornobyl. There are millions of people living in Fukushima today.

It is willful ignorance to continue using coal while waiting for a better source of energy to emerge. Nuclear energy isn’t perfect, but it’s far cleaner and safer today than coal power ever has been. Nuclear waste is disposed of with incredible safeguards rather than billowing up to linger in the atmosphere and slowly cook the planet. The US Bureau of Labor recorded about 20 annual deaths per 100k workers in the coal industry in 2021 (while we’re at it, 10 per 100k for oil and gas) while the nuclear industry had exactly zero. Even if nuclear energy isn’t perfect, it’s pretty close, and we’d be fools not to switch over to it until a viable replacement arises (solar and wind are not strong enough, at least right now).

Oh yeah, this was supposed to be about Hextech. Jayce is stupid, Heimerdinger is the coal industry, and I don’t think Viktor has a real-life equivalent in this nuclear-Hextech metaphor. Unless we say he just took bare, unprotected radioactive material and plopped it down in the middle of town square. Or… became the radioactive material, idk. That’s the closest I can get. Jayce saw the Runeterra equivalent of Chornobyl and decided to shut down all Hextech operations immediately. I understand why, but that doesn’t make him right. Heimerdinger is comfortable with the way things are now, in no small part because it’s comfortable for him even though Zaunites had it so bad in the coal mines they had a whole attempted revolution over it. Perhaps he was right and Hextech needed more safeguards, but there was no reason to eliminate it entirely. You want Zaunites to stop dying in the mines? Support Hextech so people have a better power source. (That’s not gonna fix everything; mostly a systemic change is needed, but Hextech instead of coal would also help.)

Let’s assess the problems with Hextech. There seem to be two central ones: the spread of magical energy causing Ekko’s tree rot and Viktor’s… whole thing.

The source of the magical energy rotting Ekko’s favorite tree comes from the Hexgates surging over capacity and releasing that energy underground thanks to the redirection tunnel/chamber that they built. This is a fixable problem. They can relocate the Hexgates, design a way to absorb the magical energy, find ways to relieve the magical buildup before it becomes a problem, etc. Don’t ask me, I’m not a mage.

Now to the Viktor apocalypse. This is a very fixable problem. THROW AWAY THE HEXCORE. Whoops, too late, it’s already merged with your husband lab partner? Make your speech about how he was never broken, etc etc. sooner to avoid him becoming Hextech Jesus or, failing all better solutions, detain him. Just detain him! I don’t like it either, but if the fate of the world is at stake, you gotta detain Viktor until you can love confession/therapy the Hexcore’s manipulation out of him. Let’s also not ignore the fact that this is a very niche, very unlikely problem to arise again. It was unlikely to begin with. No other project Jayce and Viktor worked on posed any threat of this problem. Caitlyn’s gun did not have thoughts of world domination. Viktor just happened to create the world’s cultiest AI. Actually, we don’t even know if the Hexcore was like this before the introduction of shimmer. It could be that those two are just a horrible combination and Hextech on its own doesn’t have the Glorious Evolution issue; only the magical contamination issue in the above Ekko tree section.

Sorry about the long post and sorry about the nuclear energy detour. Anyway, I’m still pro-Hextech and nothing can change that.

[lillotte17]

Okay, I’ve done 2 play throughs and I’m well into my 3rd, so I feel like my review of the game can be (mostly) fair and not as emotionally driven as it was when I finished the first time. (this is very long >_>)

I want to start with the good things!

The game is beautiful. BEAUTIFUL. I was not crazy about the stylistic change of the graphics from DAI at first, but once I started playing, I really loved it. The maps are huge and unique. I find something new every time. I love all the little puzzles and sneaky little side quests you can find. I the little sneaky cameos of items and songs from other games.

I love the mechanics of being able to use companions’ special abilities when they are not in your party. I still wish we got 3 people in our party instead of just 2 for balance reasons, but otherwise I find the fighting really engaging and dynamic.

I love that they brought back specific banter spots, shortened the time between when the next banter triggers AND allowed for recovery of the conversation if it got interrupted by something. Thank you for my LIFE. Waiting for certain banters to trigger in DAI was awful lmao.

I really appreciated the effort they put into the CC, allowing for greater body type differences and the various gender options. Long hair, curly hair, please and thank! The CC took some getting used to, but once I got the hang of it, it’s fun just to build characters, lol.

I really liked the easy upgrades and enchantments for your armors, and I LOVED being able to wear whatever the best armor was, but have a different armor visible. Great call, team! Do that for always and ever. The only qualm I had was that I would have liked to be able to change the colors on some of the outfits, but really, there was such a good variety, this is a very minor complaint.

In terms of storyline, my favorite quest was the Blood of Arlathan, and I also liked the final push at the end through Minrathous. Big surprise that the things I liked best was actually getting to fight with Solas on my team again, lol. But those where also the times where it really felt like everything was on the table, you know? Weisshaupt was a strong contender, too. That quest was so fasted paced, it made it a little hard to appreciate just how much was going on around you. But asking your local assassin to stab a god-cloud is never not funny, so that one gets good points, too.

Overall, the gameplay is really strong. The rollout was really smooth. I didn’t really encounter any bugs, except for one time I managed to change all the subtitles to French? But I think that might have been a user error. If I was just here for a generic fantasy game, this would get 10/10. It’s fun to play and it’s pretty. You can stab stuff, and throw magic around, and there are dragons.

However…

The storyline and the pacing was a mess. Which is honestly baffling from a BioWare game. I am not saying this with spite or hatred, because I know that EA tried to kill this game repeatedly, so it’s kind of amazing that we got anything at all, BUT it’s still frustrating, because…I can SEE IT. I can SEE all the pieces of a REALLY good story. An AMAZING story. The story I WANTED to play!!! And it’s like…it all got put together wrong.

The nearly nonexistent romances are honestly the worst offenders here. Even if they wanted to keep the rating down to make it more accessible to a wider audience, there is no reason why I should only have ONE opportunity to kiss my love interest over the course of an 80+ hour game. SOLAVELLAN had more unique romance scenes and kisses than you get with Lucanis and he DUMPS your character before coming back to steal your hand. Not to mention the fact that it is possible for your LI to die before you ever get to actually say you love them or anything. Davrin was my first romance. At the end of Tearstone Island like…I wasn’t sad. I wasn’t feeling my PCs grief that her boyfriend whom she had kissed exactly one time was dead. I was PISSED. I don’t think I have ever been so mad about a writing choice, and I am a certified Tragedy Enjoyer. It didn’t even feel like a good tragic blow, because they didn’t take the time to build up the romance before killing him. And Rook hardly gets a second to mourn afterwards, so it was just kind of a nothingburger that made me feel like I wasted all the time I had spent playing for it. (I went back and changed it so he lived but jfc)

Speaking of killing characters: Varric. It was a mistake. I know what they were going for. I see what they were trying to do. But it was a mistake. First of all, they relied way too much on the idea that the player has played the other games, in the sense that the story just opens with Rook already with Varric, who they have known for over a year, and then they turn around and nerf him in the first act. There’s no time to establish how Rook feels about Varric, or how they feel about this quest they’ve been on for so long, you just get thrown into it without preamble. And then, Varric is just kind of… there. He’s Rook’s cheerleader, but he almost never has any real advice, and you almost never get to have a discussion with him. Which means, when you find out what happened to him later, the emotional blow is relying almost entirely on your attachment to Varric from previous games instead of the game you are currently playing.

Also, I figured out he was dead pretty early on, so the reveal had almost no impact, and felt a bit ham-fisted, if I’m being honest.

The second reason it was a mistake is that…it just felt like an excuse to make the player hate Solas. Like, it honestly feels like that is the only reason they did it. Which seems so unnecessary? The man is responsible for the fucking blight and the death of the titans and is currently trying to tear the Veil down, and you think that’s not ENOUGH motivation for the PC to want to give him the middle finger???

Which brings us to: Solas. I love this man. I love Solavellan. I love his story. I love THEIR story. But…if I had played this game first, I don’t think I would have cared about redeeming him. All of the companions tell stories about second chances and redemption and being able to change your nature, and I KNOW that was supposed to be in reference to Solas, I know it was but… It just felt like they did almost nothing to SHOW you how much he was trying to do the right thing every time he fucked up. How badly he wanted to be a hero and a protector, and someone giving wisdom instead of orders. When we saw his regrets and talked about them with the team, I really thought it was going to be relevant later. I thought it would come up in conversation with Solas, and depending on how you talked to him about the things you saw, you could slowly guide him towards choosing a better path at the end. I thought it would all be on Rook, and their choice to take a chance to try and redeem him or not. But in the end, it didn’t matter. It only unlocked Mythal. She was the only thing that made a difference. Not Rook. Not your Inquisitor. Not any of the other choices you made in the entire game or the one that preceded it. Don’t get me wrong, I am SO grateful they squeezed a Solavellan ending in there for us, really and truly. But the fact that he was so in love with her during DAI that he was about to give up everything without her even asking, and he’s so torn up about her during Trespasser that he can hardly let her close to him because just being in proximity to her makes him want to stop everything and stay with her, and then when she shows up at the end of Veilguard and asks him to stop…he pauses for even less time to consider the option than when ROOK asks. And then Mythal holds more sway with him by like 1000%. Just. Felt very much like a downgrade. (Also I wanted a hug. He needed a fucking hug and my Lavellan would have hugged the Bad Choices right out of him)

There are other things. Dwarves getting sidelined again. Slavery in Tevinter barely being touched on. The weird idea of the Crows being a good option for orphans with nowhere to go. The SUPER uncomfortable end of Bellara’s quest where a non-elf Rook can have an opinion on what she should do with the history of her people. But those are kind of like…small potatoes. Typical BioWare story flubs tbh.

I know, my complaints are much longer than my praises, but I really do like playing the game. Really and truly. It is a good game, and I am eternally grateful that they got it to us at all. I just…wish we could have gotten the story I think they wanted to tell us, instead of what we ended up with. But as they say: That’s what Fanfic is for. <3

[glisten-inthedark]

I am not over the fact that Odysseus starts to musical saying that he's just a man who's trying to go home.

Then he states he's neither man nor mythical (foreshadowing).

But his best friend dies and he switches his premise around thinking of open arms and doesn't kill the Cyclops and gives Polyphemus his name and he should have just killed him or not give the name.

And then he realizes he can't be the man anymore, he needs to be the monster for ruthlessness is mercy upon ourselves. He needs to make it home and he'll do whatever it takes to do so.

And the scale tips to the other side.

He kills the sirens almost sadistically, he sacrifices six men, he choses himself over his crew.

He gets stuck on an island for seven years and that's enough time for him to understand the lengths he's gone through and how much he's changed.

He then faces Poseidon himself and offers him not only a way out but something I don't see many people mention - he offers him compassion.

"Aren't you tired Poseidon?" "We are both hurting from losses"

Odysseus isn't talking about just himself and all the pain Poseidon has caused him, he's telling Poseidon they're both hurting when that's not necessarily the truth because I don't think Poseidon is hurting from loss.

And Poseidon says he can't which gives us so much insight on him as a character because he's not saying he won't. He's saying he can't.

Meaning - he's physically and emotionally incapable of doing what Odysseus is doing. He's incapable of forgiving, of empathy, of letting it go. And Odysseus still is, even after everything, even after Poseidon threatens his wife and child, he still tries kindnesses and empathy first.

And then he dies and comes back and uses ruthlessness instead, since kindness didn't work.

Now, we know that Jorge will use the Just a Man motif again in the next Saga in triplets, and this is the culmination of everything.

Because this is what Odysseus has said long ago - he's neither man nor mythical.

Both versions of Odysseus died, the man, the monster.

He comes back as someone else. It's not that he's just a man or that he's just a monster.

[tangents-within-tangents]

Hi, demiro ace here to learn more about apl! If I may?

I'm kinda thinking it might be best for everyone if we don't consider apl apart of the aspec community (which is historically/currently defined as both the aro and ace spectrums only). If the umbrella gets too big it's not really helpful anymore. I definitely get how they are related with similar concepts of not experiencing a certain type of attraction, but they are also complete opposites, no? And while there are those who identify as both aro/ace and apl, these spectrums don't actually overlap like the aro and ace ones do (which is why it is helpful to talk about them together under the aspec). Like that overlap is more akin to someone who also identifies as bi or trans and apl, it's an additional identity that doesn't really have anything to do with the other, a venn diagram not a connected spectrum.

Trans identities are about gender, lesbian/gay/bi/pan/etc are about who you experience sexual/romantic attraction to, and aro/ace are about how you (do or don't) experience that attraction. But aplatonic is about friendship, about how you relate to people outside of relationships. It's not a romantic or sexual spectrum so it has as much to do with aro/ace as it does with Lgbt-etc and vice versa, right? I just feel like it would be better to view aplatonic as a separate valid thing.

Like if it sucks and feels unwelcoming to you, maybe sometimes that just means it's not the right place for you, not that the place needs to change. And I'm not saying apl-phobia is okay and we shouldn't strive to be better (esp with acknowledging the overlap), but if you are mad at the 'values platonic relationships more than romantic and/or sexual ones' community for doing just that, that's kinda aro/ace-phobic.

yea sure to YOU sexual/romantic relationships don't mean anything/are devalued/etc, but not to all of us!!

Yeah we know, it's like that with all allos in the Lgbtq+ community! What do you want asexual/aromantic people to do about that? I could say the exact same thing, "sure to YOU platonic relationships don't mean anything/are devalued, but not to all of us." We shouldn't have to make caveats in all our posts for people who are allo-romantic/sexual when that's not what we're here to talk about no more than you should have to for people who are allo-platonic. It's just counterproductive.

That's kinda like a lesbian complaining about how all gays ever talk about is how hot guys are. Where those communities do relate is in experiencing same-sex attraction (the same way ours relate in experiencing a lack of a certain attraction) and even though they may technically overlap with people who are bi/pan (like we may with people who are on both spectrums) they are still quite different and therefore considered separate groups while still being included together under the wider umbrella of queer/Lgbtqia+

I think it's clear we would benefit from a similar distinction, and I'm curious to hear what others think about this. Like maybe 'anattractional' spectrum instead can be about anything with an a- prefix referring to a lack of an attraction (the same way Lgbp can be lumped together under homosexual or SSA), while 'aspec' can still refer to just the aro/ace spectrum.

(Also, I get the frustrations with relationship hierarchies, but I just want to clarify: when alloplatonic aro/ace's say we value platonic relationships more, we mean for us. We're saying that sexual/romantic relationships are less valuable to us (esp bc that is not reflected in an amatonormative society) not that they can't/shouldn't be valuable to anyone who is allo. When we speak out against amatonormativity, it's that we want platonic relationships to be seen on the same level of value as romantic relationships in society as a whole (the same way that feminism is about equality for women, not bringing them above men). Amatonormativity and platonormativity are mutually exclusive, getting rid of one doesn't mean replacing it with the other (especially since both currently exist). The normativity is the problem, we aren't speaking against the people who happen to conform with it but those who want to enforce it. It's about the mindsets and how they are exclusionary for those who don't conform.)

being apl in aspec communties sucks sm. everything is all about how important platonic relationships are and "dismantling relationship heirarchies", while just building new ones. it feels super unwelcoming.

like yea sure to YOU sexual/romantic relationships don't mean anything/are devalued/etc, but not to all of us!! some of us LIKE those things, and MORE than platonic relationships. its like we rnt even aspec at all 2 these people, like sorry some of us go against the grain of society while still having certain ""non queer"" parts to our identity. i feel like we are seen as not aspec/lgbt enough to participate in those communities. so much about the aspec communtity is about how untalked about we are and how we are never included or thought about in discussions, but aro and ace communtities do the same to us!!!

.

[911-quotes1838]

Imagine this:

Eddie is in El Paso and has started to bond with Chris again. Chris hasn’t fully forgiven but there making progress.

Eddie has kept in touch with buck a bit but recently he feels buck is pushing away.

He has been awake for atleast and hour and is now having breakfast, it’s 7 and hes been trying to message buck, he should be awake because today was one of the days Buck got up to go gym. But he hasn’t message him which he usually does at this point, but nothing . Which is unusual for buck.

Eddie is starting to worry until he gets a call, “please be Buck please.” He whispers to himself whilst he’s stood alone in his kitchen.

It’s chimney. Why is he calling Eddie…

——————————

Early morning about 5, buck woke up sweating after a nightmare.

He lost everyone, Bobby how he was when he was in the coma, chimney stabbed to death, Maddie died because of dough and Eddie shot right in front of him and died.

He shot up sweat dripping down his face and tears streaming down his face, he couldn’t save them, they all died because he couldn’t save them.

It’s been half an hour and No way he was going back to sleep after that. So he thought he would go on a walk.

It’s currently chucking it down with rain and it’s difficult to see as it is still dark out but that doesn’t stop.

He starts to regret this walk when all he can think about his Eddie and how he let Eddie down.

He could��ve helped him. Offer for Chris to stay at his for a while instead, but no. He was too caught up in his own issues.

Tears started to stream down bucks face, he can’t see anything except for two lights travelling towards him very fast. They start to move more infront of him. Buck can’t quite figure out what it is until it’s too late…

A car heading towards him-

——————————

“Eddie…” his voice sounds broken, like he’s been crying. “Eddie I-it’s” he can’t finish what he’s saying without getting all choked up. “Eddie, buck is-” Eddie’s heart sinks. He doesn’t want to carry on listening. He could hang up ignore it. “Buck is in hospital” too late. Those dreaded words.

Eddie doesn’t know what to do he can’t speak he can’t move, he can’t think.

“A car hit him this morning. Drunk driver, driving wel over the speed limit in dangerous rain, lost control and swerved onto pavement and hit buck.”

Eddie can feel tears pouring down his face. His mind finally gives him Some words. “Is he..al-” but Eddie couldn’t bring himself to finish it. He just hopes chimney knows what he’s asking.

“For now..” for now, what does he mean for now. “He’s in a coma, he’s broke quite a few bones. Luckily nothing that will permanently damage anything.”

“Like the ability to work…” Everyone knows that whenever buck is in these situations the most important thing is if he can work after.

“Ye..I was hoping you could maybe get her as soon as possible, and maybe bring Chris if he’s up for it.”

Eddie was already on his way to his laptop to get two tickets To LA.

“Ye I’ll go do that now call me with any changes good or bad” and with that he hangs up.

After a few minutes the words Eddie would never want to see In this situation popped up. ‘All flights to LAX cancelled due to extreme weather warnings’ next one was tomorrow. Eddie had to wait a whole day.

——————————

Later that day, Eddie goes to his parents to break the news to Chris.

He’s taken him for a drive to a cafe Chris likes to go. Whilst eating Chris mentions how it reminds him of the one buck and Eddie use to take him. And as Chris says that Eddie breaks down.

“Is everything ok?” Chris asks sounding very concerned.

“No…buck..he’s in the hospital. And I tried getting flights down as soon as possible but concealed until tomorrow-” he has to stop there cause he can feel his words get lost in the crying.

He wipes his tears and looks up at Chris who has now got tears streaming down his face too.

“What happened?” Chris asks. Eddie tried to explain it his best but struggled. Afterwards Chris just stares at him. “Can I…stay with you until we go la” tabt question took Eddie by surprise.

“Of course you can” he says immediately getting up and going to wrap Chris up in his arms. And Chris doesn’t refuse.

——————————

The next day, flights cancelled.

And the day after.

And the day after.

Eventually Eddie is in the flight and is freaking out.

Let’s rewind.

Eddie had a day off work yesterday and was really worrying about buck. And he started thinking about him. And thinking. Until he reached something he was expecting. He could imagine him hugging buck when he’s better.

And then all of a sudden he thinks about what it would be like to just drag him into a kiss. ‘Strange’ he thinks to himself. Why would he think that.

He doesn’t want to kiss Buck

He’s his best friend.

And Eddie is straight. He thinks.

Although…is he. I mean ok guys a cute, and maybe he’s wanted to date a few, but he’s already dated women, he can’t swap now can be. He has to lien women.

But men for Eddie is just so…especially buck. ‘BUCK! no can’t think like that he’s my best friend” he thinks again.

But he can’t stop thinking about him. And he eventually reached the conclusion after 3 panics attacks, 10 panic calls to buck. All didn’t answer which sent him to tears. 2 totally off topic calls with Carla. And a useless therapy call. And his conclusion was he has feelings for buck…his best friend.

Which now leads him to being sat in an airplane about take off, to see his dying best friend. Who he likes.

——————————

Tbe flight was a nightmare, he couldn’t sleep because every time he fell asleep he had a nightmare, all the same scenario with different outcomes.

All about the day buck got struck by lightning.

His first nightmare was simple, Eddie couldn’t get his heart started and he died thanks to Eddie. And most of them were like that.

Except one that stood out. Buck git struck by lighting, and he fell, he’s dangling and Eddie runs up the ladder shouting buck.

“Eddie” he hears faint at the top of the ladder he looks down to see buck he’s speaking.

Sense of hope. So he lowers him down happy that he’s survived. Until chimney shouts saying he’s not breathing. But eddie can hear buck say his name.

After a few minutes he’s still saying his name.

“Guys I hate to do this buck I’m calling it tome of death…”

And all buck says is ‘I love you, Ed’s.’ And Eddie replies

“I love you too buck”

He jolts awake tears in his eyes. He’s on the plane, most people asleep.

But after that he refuses to sleep

——————————

They finally reach to la.

Athena is there to pick them up.

They rush straight to hospital. Not even dropping there bags off.

In the car Athena offers it stay with Chris while Eddie rushes straight in. And that’s what happens when they arrive.

As soon as he reaches there he sees in the waiting room, everyone.

Chimney

Hen

Karen

Bucks parents

He guess Maddie and Bobby are with buck.

Everyone says there hellos simce it’s been ages and chimney takes Eddie to see buck. Maddie is stood by the window watching buck.

Eddie looks into the window and as soon as he sees him his heart shatters. He looks worse than the lighting strike.

Bobby looks over to Eddie, and straight away gets up to see him.

“Nice to see tpy Eddie.” He says bringing him in for a tight hug, and as soon as bobbys arms bring Eddie in for that embrace Eddie breaks down into tears.

When they pull away he downs today anything. He just draws his eyes to buck.

“Go in I’ll give you some space with him.”

He enters the room, shivers through his body, the room is cold. Seeing buck like this makes the room colder.

He finds a chair in the corner of the room next to Buck. Eddie makes himself comfy. Vowing not to leave his side as he grabs bucks hand and places a gentle kiss. The hand was cold against his lips.

——————————

For days he satay there in the hospital, only leaving the seat to go bathroom or leave doctors to speak to his family or let his family have alone time. It’s been a week until he hospital, Chris is staying with Athena and Bobby, and they sneaks him in sometimes.

It’s just a normal Wednesday morning. Eddies hand clings onto bucks. He always finds himself praying for him when he does this and after he prays he tells buck how much he loves him.

But today after that he felt a movement his hand. This makes Eddie freeze, he tries to go call someone but that hand he’s holding onto clings on never wanting to let go.

Eventually he lets loose, one he hated to do, and calls the doctor. After half an hour of check ups and doctors and relatives coming in there’s a change.

Him Maddie and Bobby are In bucks room. Eddie holding bucks and again and Maddie and Bobby sharing stories about buck. Eddie couldn’t bring himself to join in.

But it was nice and relaxing to hear the stories. They both chatted until something caught the trios attention. A groan from the fourth body in the room.

They all turn to buck whose eyes are now flicking open.

Eddie tightens his grip on bucks hand. Letting him know he’s here. The first thing said from that man’s was “Eddie”

Eddies eyes widened and he was surprised.

Buck didn’t know Eddie was back.

“I’m here buck, right here I’m not leaving you.”Eddie said his voice shaking.

Buck turns to look at Eddie. His face lighting up when he sees him.

He then changes his focus to the other two.

“Maddie…is mom and dad here…” his vice weak and shaky.

“Y…y-yes” pure shock coming from her mouth as she says it. “I’ll go and get them.” She says nudging Bobby to go with her.

Which me at that it was just them to alone.

“So-” Buck tries to say but is immediately cut off my Eddie.

“Buck I am so sorry for leaving you. I never should have left LA I never show have gone to El Paso. I’m sorry i didn’t come sooner then rain cancelled flight for 3 days. I wish I was here. Maybe if I was here It wouldn’t have happened and you would be fine.” Eddie stops himself when he looks and buck.

“Please stop I think I’ve been in a coma for so long and the last thing I want to here is one of Eddie Diaz’s unnecessary and useless apologies” Buck says which a little laugh to accompany it.

“Erm rude”

“Really Eddie it’s fine please to apologise, I should’ve seen it it’s not your fault.” Before Eddie could protest his family came in which was his cue to leave.

——————————

Few weeks pass and buck is aloud out the hospital but accompanied with a broke foot and arm.

Eddie has been living In his apartment which he hasn’t cared about, until now. Because how is he going to survive living in a flat with his best friend who he’s in love with.

And it didn’t help that Eddie had literally looked after him so well.

He’s finally home, but has realise he can’t really get to his bed. Which he was annoyed about until he got into his house and noticed his bed downstairs where is sofas and chairs use to be and they have been relocated to where is bed use to be upstairs. And the plus side to it. His tv is still downstairs.

“Did you do this for me.” Buck said tears in his eyes and he doesn’t know why.

“Ye, I’m gonna sleep on the couch upstairs there’s also an air mattress upstairs for Chris to sleep on.”

Also buck does is smile and appreciate what his best friend has done.

“Well wanna watch a movie,” Buck says whilst Eddie is helping him into bed. He makes sure there’s space for Eddie to make himself comfy.

As the movie starts they both just sit in silence, soaking in eachothers presence. It’s comfortable.

Buck falls asleep on Eddie’s shoulder and eventually Eddie falls asleep. Both content.

——————————

A month and a half has passed and Eddies been living With buck for a while, but today is the day he’s been dreading for.

“Why are you going back to El Paso. This isn’t fair” Buck says sound rally upset. But Eddie couldn’t answer.

Buck was back walking and they were currently in the car bark by bucks apartments. Eddie about I Leave for the airport. Buck was obviously taking them since he could drive again.

The drive was silent for all three of them. And it was a pain knowing that they have to say goodbye again.

Eddie was considering telling buck how he feels but he didn’t want to ruin anything

Because confessing your love for your best friend is dangerous. It’s dangerous to say ‘I love you so much and have loved your since the day I joked 118 but was to oblivious to realise’ that’s just to risky. So he leaves it.

Hoping one day they can say it.

——————————

It’s tough saying goodbye to Eddie again. He wanted to just Im hold him back. He wanted to drag him in for a kiss and confess how he feels, tell him that’s he’s loved him since they met, that could ruin there friendship though.

But as buck is driving back regretting g everything ever he gets a call from a no caller id.

He beaks my answers not saying anything.

“You really going to let me leave like that again”

“Eddie” but knew it was Eddie, he could recognise his voice raiser then his own. “I’m sorry Eddie-“

“Come back you idiot”

And that’s what he did. No thoughts. He just turned around going back to the airport. As soon as he arrives he going to the door to greet them back.

He spots Chris first, giving him a hug like it’s been ages since they saw, you wouldn’t think Buck just dropped them off.

Then he saw Eddie. Without thinking he runs up to him and wraps him up in his comfort.

The drive back was comfy and they all chatted. And without realising until later on the drive, he noticed Eddie’s hand resting on bucks thigh. And he didn’t even realise his gown hands was resting I Eddie’s.

When they finally arrived at bucks they had food, pizza delivery, and got Christopher settled in bed. Since Eddie and Chris lived tbere Eddie and buck cleared out this random room and made Chris a temporary bedroom. The best was back upstairs and the couch was downstairs again.

Chris was asleep and Eddie and Buck were wrapped him in each other. Bucks legs over Eddie and there hands joined together, fingers interlocked. They didn’t even realise they did that.

“Eddie, I need to tell you something.” Buck has been thinking this through and maybe he has a small chance, and he’s gonna reach for it and fight for it. Eddie’s attention shifted fully to buck as he repositioned himself so he could see buck. Eddies eyes locked into bucks and bucks heart was jumping over building. “I’m just gonna say it Eddie, I love you and I’ve loved you for so long and I didn’t realise it until you said your were moving away.”

——————————

Eddie couldn’t say or do anything. He just stated and buck. He’s sat there staring at buck for what feels like for ever and the longer he waited the more depressed buck looks. Without hesitation he bulls buck in to a fiery kiss.

As they pull back to catch a breath. There foreheads pressed to eachother Eddie finally respond. “I love you too, Buck, I’m never leaving.”

And as he says that here are reunited at the lips.

[toubledrouble]

You know what we should bring back?

Older christianity. I mean the anti government, anti military, community based christianity. The one that cared the most about peace, equality, mercy, kindness, and radical love. The one with shared property. The one that didn't conform to society but instead existed mostly outside of it. The one where noone considered one sin worse than another because in the end, we are all sinners trying our best to be better.

[muirmarie]

Me: I joke about writing the same McCoy centric story over and over again in different ways

Me: and like. I love doing it and imma keep doing it because it makes me happy.

Me: but also. I do sometimes wonder if it's like. A little Much.

Me: like maybe I should branch out or something

Me: [reads another fundamental and extremely insulting misread of McCoy's character by someone who is clearly making a Choice to cast McCoy as the villain, because they have to get him out of the way of spirk, because they're too???? idk immature??? to realize that even when you're in a relationship with one person, other ppl can and SHOULD still be important to you]

Me: lmao I hope I AM too much actually!!!! I hope it is 100% obnoxious how much I love that doctor!!!!! Time to write more versions of the same story of McCoy being forced to realize that he is loved and cared for!!!!!!

Me: I KNOW MY NICHE AND IMMA DIE IN THAT NICHE, THANKS

[sustiawan-author]

You guys put me up to this (lol). Here are some of my thoughts on how I think The X-Files could've been improved? At least show-wise. Reddit was being unnecessarily cynical about this so let's just take these here.

Plot patterns. It gets repetitive my love like </3 I'm sure you've all seen the memes, but every episode goes through the exact same order: something strange happens, Scully hands the file to Mulder or the other way around, Mulder puts up a strong but absurd theory about what could've been a cause for such absurdity, Scully denies it with "scientific" cynicism, and the end of the episode concludes Mulder being right. It's almost always this way. And the lack of variety in plot structure, not to mention for how long the show went on, made it feel... old? Like for once I want Scully to be right about her gut, or maybe let's see them both be wrong, or let's explore many other structurally varied points to vamp it up a bit.

This, in turn, kind of pissed me off? Cause in the beginning, I loved Scully to bits. She was cynically funny, snarky, logical, and says what's true in-your-face. But when the pattern of Mulder being right about his preconceived theories gets used repeatedly, and we still see her emit the same snarky stubbornness and supposed "scientific" cynicysm even when put forth with the fact that what Mulder says has a 98% chance of being true, it just makes her seem like a bitter and, in turn, illogical character.

We need more POC </3 I know it was the 90s, but if a kids' show like Barney & Friends can even do it, I don't see the excuse lol.

I mostly see such potential for Scully's character. She could've been a strong woman in an otherwise male-dominated environment, who's both empathetic, emotionally intelligent & emotionally available, gentle, and kind, but also does not take any disrespect — but instead we get a cardboard-stale robot. I know she's smart, but along the way she became so in ally with the system that I feel like Mulder was working through these otherwise unconventional cases all by himself. I'm not saying she should jump up and cheer him on like an overeager college girl but it would've been somewhat a nice change to see genuine self awareness coming from her.

I know they tried to depict Fox as dysfunctional when Dana's not around, but to be real, I think these characters were created purposely as polarized extremes of two archetypes. They need to be more humanized in a way that makes... a bit more sense sociologically!

I really wish their banter was just pure banter and not bordering on insults or physical attacks on eo and then slapping a rubber duck-patterned band-aid over it and call it Quality TV Romance. Lolz.

Mulder and Scully being so good together onscreen is mainly and mostly courtesy of Gillian Anderson & David Duchovny's chemistry </3

I wish they could've stayed good friends and kin instead of lovers. I really wished that by the first few episodes of the series. If they wanted to make the insults and physical humor between the two work, it would've been more heartwarming to see them get together in a way a found family would be protective of one another — even through the various chastising lol.

That's it for now 💀 I love this show to bits, but as an author, there are times where we need to do a bit of a surgery-review to certain fictional works and observe them not just through a lens of unbridled admiration and love, but also a constructively critical approach especially through the basis of being a fan of the series/movie/book. Let me know what you think though! ♡

@california-112

I've got some HOT NEWS unpopular opinions for you guys about The X-Files that would probably put me in an actual FBI watchlist but if I get enough notes on this post I might as well just put myself up for it.