#and like the fact that I even got the chance to buy tickets

[taylortaylortaylor13]

Do you guys ever think about how you were panicking during the eras tour ticket sales so you just added some tickets to your cart and if you had tried a little more maybe you could have gotten better seats so then you start to check ticket prices a bunch/enter lots of giveaways to see if you could go again or are you normal

[puckinghischier]

Crowded

Luke Hughes x fem!reader

summary: reader gets nervous in the crowd, but luke is right there to help her out of it

notes: i’m once again throwing a luke fic out into the world. i saw this request in my inbox and immediately thought of the zach bryan concert the boys just went to. i would literally give anything to attend a concert with them. i just KNOW they’re great concert buddies. sorry it’s kinda short, i just didn’t know how to drag it out any longer. i hope you enjoy!! happy reading!! 🫶🏼

request: from my 400 follower celly - Character A can tell Character B is getting nervous in a big crowd, so A slips their hand into theirs to help them calm down.

[2.8k]

You had been looking forward to tonight for months. From the second Luke surprised you with the tickets for your birthday, you immediately started planning an outfit, making a playlist, and anticipating the trip.

When he told you his brothers and a few friends were tagging along, it only made you more excited, enjoying every moment you got to spend with your boyfriend’s brothers and their hockey friends.

After the concert, everyone was driving over to stay at the lake house for a few weeks, enjoying as much of the summer together as they can before pre-season training starts. You couldn’t wait to have a few weeks of fun on the water, but also wanted tonight to last as long as it could.

Your excitement grew even more when you found the perfect outfit for the occasion, even buying a matching light-up cowboy hat off of Etsy. You were especially excited for the chance to wear your boots again, not having many excuses to wear them in Jersey.

Luke had his hand planted firmly on the small of your back, making sure not to lose you as you weave through the crowd. You had bought Luke a new shirt for tonight, the orange t-shirt matching the burnt orange color of your dress.

He leads you over to the crowded merchandise stand, telling you to pick whatever you wanted. You struggled, loving every item tacked onto the display board. When you told him you couldn’t decided between a t-shirt and a hoodie, he bought you both before you could even open your mouth to protest, buying himself a hat and t-shirt as well.

“Luke, you just spent over $300 without even batting an eye,” you barked at him, crossing your arms to try and look menacing.

You know Luke could’ve afforded to buy you the entire stand and still not make a dent in his bank account, but you don’t like when he spends large amounts on you for no reason.

“Yeah, so?” he shrugs, taking your elbow and leading you away from the cloth covered table, slinging the clear bag of merchandise over his shoulder.

You roll your eyes and huff at him, unfolding your arms and taking his hand, letting him lead you through the sea of bodies.

“’So?’”, you mimicked his response. “You didn’t have to buy half of the merch stand just because it took me more than three seconds to choose which shirt I wanted.”

He glances back at you over his shoulder. “The fact that you didn’t have your mind made up the second you saw the options means you clearly wanted both, so I bought you both.”

You reach over and pinch his side, mildly annoyed with how well he understands the way your brain works.

“Quit pinching me you little gremlin,” Luke hisses out, the nickname being one he uses when you’re being stubborn or annoying.

“Quit spending all of your money on me, you giraffe-man,” you fire back.

You can see his shoulder’s shake, your impromptu nickname for him amusing him.

He doesn’t respond right away, the two of you having made it to the entrance to your seats, walking up to the worker standing under the numbered sign.

The usher instructs you to show your tickets to one of the workers at the bottom of the set of stairs.

When you walk into the arena, you notice how large the space feels, the open floor and mostly empty seats creating the illusion of size.

Luke has to nudge you a bit, reminding you to keep walking, too in awe of the fact you’re actually here.

“Not so unhappy with me spending my money on you now, huh?” he leans down to whisper into your ear, making sure you can hear him over the roaring chatter.

You hit him lightly in the chest, a smirk on his face as the two of you walk down, showing your tickets to the usher once you reach the bottom of the stairs, a bright colored wristband with bold letters spelling out VIP FLOOR printed on each one.

You make your way over to a small, sectioned off area near the main stage, seeing the rest of your group already waiting for the two of you.

Jack is the first one to notice you approaching, his eyes lighting up and arms being slung into the air.

“It’s about time! We were starting to worry the two of you got lost!” he calls out, causing the rest of the group to turn their heads and call out greetings.

You smile, having missed those in the group that didn’t live in New Jersey.

Walking over to Quinn first, you give him a long hug, the last time you saw him being when he played his brothers in Jersey months ago. The frequent facetime calls the two of you share not being enough to scratch your Quinn itch.

“Quinnifer! I missed you!” you squeal as you squeeze him as tight as you can.

You can feel his chuckle as he squeezes you back. “I missed you too, Munchkin” he leans back, ruffling your hair.

Although you see Jack nearly every day back home in Jersey, Quinn is the brother you’re closest to. You and Jack are literally two peas in a pod, but there’s something about Quinn that made you feel comfortable with him from the moment Luke introduced the two of you.

He’s like the big brother you never had, always calling him when you need advice or need to complain to someone about Luke.

Anytime you have a particularly nasty argument with Luke, Quinn is the one you call. He always allows you say whatever you need to get out of your system before breaking the problem down and agreeing that his brother is an idiot, but that he also loves you with everything he has in him.

At first you tried to go to Jack with problems surrounding your relationship with Luke, but he clearly didn’t know how to help you. He either told Luke about your conversations, causing the argument to grow worse because Luke claimed Jack had no business knowing about what’s happening in your relationship, or he would shrug his shoulders and say “just don’t yell at him when I’m trying to sleep. I need my beauty rest.”

You swat Quinn’s hand away, trying to smooth down your now tousled hair.

“I see you dressed the goon, tonight,” he points out Luke’s orange shirt.

You turn your head to see him talking with Cole.

“Believe it or not, it was his idea,” you think back to after you bought your dress, trying it on for Luke once you came home from shopping with your girls. He loved the way you looked in it, his eyes widening the second you emerged from your walk-in closet.

He swallowed thickly, his gravelly voice choking out a “Did they happen to have a matching shirt? Because if you’re wearing that, I’m going to need something to match so everyone knows you’re there with me, not up for grabs.”

You blush at the memory, looking back over to Quinn.

“I always knew he was whipped, but damn you’ve got him down bad, huh?” he shakes his head, smiling in amusement.

“Wrapped around my little finger,” you hold up your pinky, wiggling it at Quinn with a giggle.

You feel a pair of arms snake their way around your waist, a heavy object resting itself on top of your head.

“What’s wrapped around your little finger?” Luke asks, his chin bumping against your scalp as he talks.

“You, duh,” you reply, moving your head forward and craning your neck to look up at him.

He looks between you and his older brother before uttering out a “Oh one hundred percent. Couldn’t unravel myself if I even wanted to,” he lets go of you, stepping up to stand beside you.

Quinn just laughs, bringing Luke in for a hug.

After you make your way around to greet everyone, the lights are dimming and the atmosphere inside of the arena changes.

You love the hum of excitement in the air, finding Luke and standing in front of him. You hear the first notes of Overtime as Zach Bryan comes onto the stage, screaming as loud as you possibly can.

Luke has a content, amused smile on his face as you scream out the lyrics, jumping and dancing around as the beat allows.

As the concert goes on, you make the switch from dancing with Luke to dancing with Jack, attempt to get on Quinn’s shoulders to get Zach’s attention, and slinging your arm over Cole’s shoulder to sway back and forth with him during one of the slower songs.

When it comes time for Zach to sing Revival, your favorite song of his, you beg Luke to leave your secluded area to get closer to the stage, wanting to experience being in the crowd for this one particular song.

He looks at you apprehensively, eyeing the large sea of people on top of one another, barely any room between the bodies pressed together. He worries about losing you in the crowd, your small frame allowing you to get swept away easily.

You tug on his arm like a little kid, repeating “please, please, please,” over and over again, assuring him you’ll be fine.

Luke eventually gives in, letting his brothers know where you two are going, claiming you’ll meet back up with them after the concert.

Grabbing your hand, Luke leads you off of the small platform and into the crowd, pushing his way as far up to the front as his large body will allow him.

You stop just a row or two of people away from the stage where Zach had just climbed onto, adjusting his guitar and microphone before starting the song.

As the song rang out around you, you sang along to every word, joining the rowdy crowd as the chorus starts.

You start to jump around in the small space you have, enjoying every second, until Zach walks his way over to the small portion of stage in front of where you stand.

As soon as his figure stands over the crowd around you, bodies start pushing against one another, everyone trying to get as close to him as they can. You feel yourself being shifted towards the metal barricade, not being able to fight against the rush of people.

You start panicking, whipping your head from side to side to find Luke. All you can see around you are strangers, not being able to move your body to look behind you. You have absolutely no control over your own body anymore, being stuck in-between a girl slightly taller than you and a man that has at least a hundred pounds on you.

Squeaking out a “excuse me,” and “can you let me out please?” you try to make your exit from the suffocating situation. Your eyes turn frantic when you realize that no one can hear you or cares to hear you. Your breath picks up, heart pounding in your chest.

You can feel the tears pricking in your eyes, not being able to regulate your breathing anymore, gasping hot air into your lungs as fast as you can.

You’re about to let out a scream, begging someone to pay attention to you and let you out of the mess you’re in, when you feel a familiar hand slip its way into yours.

Whipping your head around, you catch a glimpse of curly hair behind you, not realizing that the body pressed against your back has been Luke this entire time. You figured you had lost him when you were surged forward, unable to see him anywhere around you.

Your breath starts to slow slightly, knowing you’re not alone in this crowd easing some of your nerves. The feeling of your heart pounding is still present, not wanting to be in this situation one second longer.

Luke attempts to tug your body back towards him, but the impenetrable wall of people around you prevents him from doing so.

You manage to wiggle your way in a circle somehow, now facing Luke.

He takes one look at your frightened face and knows he has to get you out of here, now.

Pulling you towards him, he cages you in with is arms, your cheek pressed to his chest. He starts walking backwards, his hockey roots coming in handy as he all but body checks people out of his way. The two of you finally make it to the back of the large crowd, Luke not letting go of you until you were back over in your original section.

Quinn was watching the whole thing from the small platform he was stood on, about to walk over and fish you out himself before he noticed Luke’s head slowly moving backwards, away from the stage.

He can see you’re still shaken, walking over to meet the two of you at the top of the ramp.

“Is she okay? Is she hurt?” Quinn asks, concerned about how frightened even Luke’s face looks right now.

“No, she’s fine. Just shaken up, I think. She got trapped between a random girl and some dude at least triple her size,” he tells Quinn, running his hand down your hair in soothing motions. Your hands were still clutching his t-shirt, not wanting to let go of him just yet.

Quinn stares at your trembling figure the whole time, knowing you don’t want to leave Luke’s embrace but wishing he could do something to help you.

“Let’s get her out of here and to the car, yeah?” Quinn suggests, picking up yours and Luke’s bag of merchandise off of the floor of the platform.

Luke just nods, leading you back down the ramp.

Quinn steps over and let’s everyone know to just meet them in the parking garage before following yours and Luke’s intertwined bodies towards the nearest exist.

Luke manages to get you up the stairs and out into the outer ring of the arena without letting you go. Both pairs of your feet moving in tandem, not once risking tripping over one another.

He leads you out of the doors and into the cool night air.

You finally allow yourself to leave his embrace, instantly feeling better in the openness of the outdoors. Never letting go of his hand, you continue to let him lead you to the large garage.

Luke’s BMW sits right where he parked it, the loud beep echoing in the dark garage as he unlocks it.

He opens the passenger door, lifting you slightly to sit you down on the leather seat. His hands come up to your cheeks, his thumbs wiping the stray hairs that were sticking to the damp skin under your eyes.

“All good now?” he asks you, the frantic look of your eyes now gone.

You nod, looking into his concerned eyes. “M’alright. Just got scared. Too many people,” you mumble out, leaning into Luke’s palm slightly. “Sorry I made us go out there. Just wanted to have fun.”

Luke leans his forehead against yours, shaking it back and forth slightly. “No, it’s not your fault. Just bad timing is all,” he assures you, knowing how upset you’re going to be when you realized you missed most of the last song.

He pulls his head back, standing back to his full height outside of the SUV.

You notice Quinn standing a few feet away, letting you and Luke have your space.

Frowning, you call out to the eldest Hughes. “You didn’t have to leave early too, Quinny.”

Quinn looks over when he hears you address him, walking closer to the vehicle.

“Ehh, show was almost over anyways,” he waves you off. “Had to make sure my favorite little munchkin was okay,” he shrugs, telling you its no big deal.

You smile at him, thankful you not only have your boyfriend to look out for you, but Quinn as well.

“I promise I’ll make it up to you. Both of you,” you look between the two brothers, only ever seeing how alike they look when they’re standing in front of you.

They both tell you it’s not necessary, the main priority being that you’re safe and sound outside of the arena.

“Fine, I guess that means neither of you want to stop for post-concert pancakes on the way to the lake, then?” you tease, watching both of their heads snap up. All three brothers’ secret love of sweets is something you use to your advantage, only ever having to mention how good ice creams sounds before Luke and Jack are ushering you out of the door and driving you to the nearest ice-cream shop.

“Well, I guess if you really just feel the need to do something nice for us…” Quinn trails off, making a smile break out on your face, unable to hide the laugh at the sudden switch up.

“Yeah, that’s what I thought,” you continue to laugh at the pair, Luke leaning in to buckle your seatbelt for you as Quinn climbs in the backseat, sending a quick text to the rest of your group, telling them if they want to join in on the pancake outing, they need to be making their way out of the arena, and fast.

[gentiliana]

can u (pls pls pls pls) do shin (sakadays) as a bf headcannons ........ thank u, sending u lots of love <3

HI DEAR!! tysm for your request 💗

i’m soooo happy someone requested something for shin i love him sm he’s the loml and this was so fun to write./shin fans get ready for january 2025 cuz sakadays episode 1 means shin is going to appear !!

i’m sorry for any grammar mistakes but english is not my first language, i’m trying my best to improve!

🪷 ; gn! reader, it is mentioned once that reader puts on makeup, Shin being the adoptive son of Taro and Aoi.

SHIN ASAKURA BF HEADCANONA

Did I just hear "best boyfriend ever"? Because Shin IS the best boyfriend ever.

With Shin being a clairvoyant, it was way easier for him to know if his love for you was unrequited or not.

But Shin is really unexperienced, he never had a serious partner or experienced any kind of strong love before he met you.

He even asked Sakamoto for advice! Isn’t he the cutest??

During the first weeks of the relationship compliments were not his best card… he tried okay? but he ended up embarrassed and all red… he really wants to be able to do that but he’s lacking confidence.

when that happens PLEASEE reassure him that is okay to not know how to express his feelings.

he loves receiving hugs and cheek kisses from you.

He likes looking at you while you’re getting ready, especially if you’re putting on makeup. He loves watching your focused face and asks you what you’re doing, it’s his way to show you that he’s interested in everything you do!

He’s not a big fan of PDA but doesn’t mind it; he just does whatever you want to.

He smiles like an idiot whenever you hold his hand! He prefers hand-holding since it makes him think that you rely on him and feel safe around him. (Please hold his hand and go on long walks with him.)

Since he knows whatever you’re thinking about, he always provides you with everything you want or need. Want to watch this movie? He’s buying the ticket. Craving a specific dessert? He’s cooking it for you or suggesting a cooking date.

ACTS! OF!! SERVICE!!!! He does whatever you want, whenever and wherever, just to see you smile! He is, in fact, in love with your smiling face.

He’d do anything you suggest. He even agreed once to let you dye his hair. If you have colored hair, he’d ask you to dye a strand of his hair the same as yours so you can match. . . 🥹

If you’re in college and have trouble studying, he’s going to help you in the best way possible. He might not even know what he’s doing, but please bear with him; he’s trying his best! Expect study dates where he tries to help you but ends up stressing over your exams.

About dates…

Dates with Shin are AMAZING!! In everything he does, you can just feel his love for you and how deeply he cares about you.

One time, you two were walking together in a park and he spotted some pretty white flowers. He decided to put one behind your ear, but he did it so gently that you worried you were going to melt under his touch. And the way he was staring at you?? You died instantly.

You’re never going to be alone because the whole Sakamoto family (mainly Lu and Heisuke) follow you around and take the cutest pictures of you two.

Shin is very embarrassed by it but you love his family and you understand that they just want to protect him.

Taro and Aoi love you and approve of your relationship with their “son.” They even invite you to go on family trips with the whole family, and you have to admit, those are the BEST family trips ever! Not only you spend time with your beloved clairvoyant boyfriend, but you also meet and have the chance to bond with his family.

You and Lu prank him a lot, and every time he scolds her and not you, because honestly, he can’t be mad at you.

(Hana asked you to marry Shin and he became so red you thought he was going to explode)

Introduced you to Natsuki and Akira and honestly they couldn’t believe that he got a partner as pretty as you! He was both flattered and offended by that comment…

“oh uhm thank y- WHAT IS THAT SUPPOSED TO MEAN?” (Akira apologized for both her and Natsuki’s way of wording it)

Honestly I think a part of your relationship includes you taking care of him. Since you know what happened during his childhood, whenever possible, you take the opportunity to hug him and whisper sweet nothings in his ear. He loves and deeply cherishes those moments.

Overall 10/10 experience WOULD RECOMMEND!! nice guy with a nice family?? i’m in!

[jihyocentric]

sequel to this

it’s not quite jealousy, what sana feels, but something close to it.

she certainly doesn’t miss jihyo. at least, she firmly believes so. sana couldn’t miss someone who was inevitably close to her — in a way she never wished, constantly showing up at her place, to see her best friend. but a part of her, a part sana would never admit existed, inevitably wished none of that had ever happened, even if momo was at her happiest.

over the years, sana has learned how to hide her feelings even from herself. she eventually reached a point where it became hard to identify them, to know what she truly felt. sana believed that perhaps her body had developed an unique way to tell her when it was time for her to acknowledge her feelings. at those times, she would feel physically sick when things were hard to bear and she needed a break.

��what are you-” sana hears a gasp. momo appears in front of her in a matter of seconds, grabbing a plate with the cupcakes she had left on the counter to cool down. now, they were half eaten. “these were for jihyo!”

“jihyo isn’t into sweets.” sana says, as if she doesn’t feel guilty about stealing food from a pregnant woman.

jihyo didn’t look like one yet. it had been no longer than three weeks after jihyo announced her pregnancy to them, and she hadn’t changed at all in terms of appearance. perhaps if jihyo was already showing, sana would regret. but jihyo was far from that, and sana could still pretend nothing was going on until jihyo showed up again, looking for momo, because of course jihyo would want to stick close to the one who made her pregnant.

sana rolls her eyes the same time momo’s bottom lip sticks out, and with her index finger momo counts the number of cupcakes left for jihyo.

“she’s just picky but she likes them,” momo mumbles, a small groan passing through her lips, but she wasn’t angry. momo rarely got angry. sana had never seen her truly, genuinely like that — not with her, at least. “it’s fine, you can eat them. i’ll just make more.”

of course you will, sana thinks to herself as she grabs the cupcakes left and heads somewhere else, slightly irritated with momo’s lack of reaction. if she wasn’t eating in a hurry, wanting to leave before jihyo arrived, perhaps sana would’ve given her a grumpy answer to push her buttons.

sana has, maybe, been trying to get momo to be upset with her. that’s because momo was bothering her, constantly asking her random things about jihyo, as if sana knew everything about her, when in truth, sana knew very little about her ex. her ex. momo seemed to have forgotten about that part of the story quite quickly, because she acted as if sana had only been an acquaintance to jihyo, and then sana started to feel like the impostor between them.

exhibit 1. three days after the fainting incident.

“sana,” momo knocks at the door of sana’s room, getting in before sana got to invite her. “is jihyo into sports? i got, uh… tickets. ‘s for this weekend… but i could only buy two, so don’t be mad!”

that was the first time momo had made her a question about jihyo’s taste for things.

when momo tries to justify wanting to have a date with jihyo without her, sana thinks about telling momo that, in fact, she hated anything related to sports and consequentially hated watching games with her, but there was a chance momo would be sad if she knew about that, so sana doesn’t mention it.

“maybe? i think she plays tennis, or something.” sana doesn’t take her eyes off her phone, not wanting the conversation to last long. “why don’t you ask her?”

“uhhh,” momo scratches her nape. “i just want to impress her, i guess.”

momo only gives sana half of an answer. jihyo made her nervous, which was only natural as she was momo’s first girlfriend — not that momo had really asked her to be her girlfriend, but jihyo was. she became her girlfriend only a few minutes after momo woke up from fainting.

in a certain way, their situation was comic. momo’s three days long girlfriend had also been sana’s first girlfriend. it was like sana was being a good friend and testing the waters so that momo could dive in. deep. and with no fears.

“oh, trust me, jihyo is very easy to impress,” sana lets out a sort of laugh, slightly sarcastic with her words. “was that all you wanted to ask?”

sana can smell the chocolate from the second batch of cupcakes from her room as she got ready to go out. she had actually done a good thing by eating the ones momo had previously made, as jihyo would get even better ones — they would still be warm by the time she ate them. and momo had apparently added more chocolate to the second batch.

again, thinking about jihyo and momo’s happiness makes sana feel uneasy.

exhibit 2.

“i need a real job, right?” momo says randomly one day, when they’re mindlessly catching up with a tv show they only watched together. “jihyo told me she wants me to meet her parents. but i can’t meet them if i can’t promise i’ll take care of her and our baby’s needs. i can’t jus’ show up at their house and say i’m broke and stuff... she’s loaded and all, but...”

“you’re not broke.” sana answers simply, not really paying attention at first to what momo was trying to say.

“because i only spend money with myself,” momo whines. “do you know how expensive a baby can be? because i don’t. but i have a feeling that it’s going to be a lot more than what i make with volleyball.”

upon listening about jihyo’s pregnancy, sana no longer wants to stay in the living room with momo. her mood changes completely, and the popcorn she’d been snacking on was no longer tasty. she leaves the bowl at the table near the couch. “have you talked to jihyo about this?”

“we don’t… talk a lot.” momo blushes and redirects her eyes to the tv instead of sana. “w-well, next time we’re together i’ll try to talk to her about this. but i should, right?”

“if i were you, i would probably look for an extra income.” sana says, giving an honest, jealousy-free advice. her throat tightens, as if her body was refusing to help momo. sana forced her voice to come out. “a baby is expensive. even if jihyo can deal with the expenses on her own, you should do your part.”

sana’s advice makes momo drink her soda like it’s beer, wondering why she came inside and ended up in such a situation. instantly, she thinks about sex with jihyo and her cheeks become red. remembering her nights with jihyo is enough for her to stop making herself stupid questions and start wishing they could do it all again soon.

before leaving, sana lets momo know that she would probably return later at night.

she shouldn’t leave that night — she was starting to feel sick, her body was warm from what seemed like the beginning of a fever, but sana knew that was all her mind’s fault. there was no reason for her to feel that way other than her repressed feelings, and there was no better way to fight them than being busy with better things.

unfortunately, sana’s date never arrives at the place they had agreed to meet on. the girl cancels their date over texts and apologizes for the inconvenience, but sana doesn’t text her back. she ends up in a bar instead of going home, the thought of returning sober and possibly having to see things that would bother her when they shouldn’t encourage her to stay.

sana usually doesn’t drink a lot. never more than she could bear. she did when she was with jihyo, because jihyo, despite being way more responsible than her in most aspects, was keen on getting drunk for fun. that was yet another thing momo didn’t know about jihyo, and sana wonders if the question would ever come up, like all of the others.

sana wasn’t the only one having a bad day, it’s something she notices rather quickly. she watches, curious, the grumpy bartender’s every move from the moment she realizes the girl was quite anxious to leave. tzuyu doesn’t hide it, really, sighing as she made drinks for the clients, checking her phone every couple of seconds, only growing frustrated the more mina made her wait.

when mina eventually arrives, tzuyu is quick to switch places with her.

“you’re late. by an hour.” tzuyu complains, “an hour!”

“bike broke on the way here,” mina grunts, quickly patting her pants and passing her hands over her hair, as if her gestures would make her look more presentable. “i’m sorry, okay? i went home and tried to fix it. didn’t work out, so i walked.”

“again?” tzuyu asks, not doubting the sincerity of mina’s words. she looked like someone who walked all the way there. “just get a new one.”

“i like my bike,” mina says, in defense of her (not so) reliable bicycle. “it’s vintage.”

“and awful. get a new one.” tzuyu says as if it’s an order, quickly changing places with mina and handing her the apron that had been waiting for her to arrive — for about an hour. “i’ll leave early tomorrow. you better be here an hour earlier. oh, and try not to give the blondie over there more alcohol. she’s already had too much.”

“that’s fair, i guess.” mina sighs. “see you tomorrow,” she mutters, with little excitement in her tone.

the confirmation is all tzuyu seems to need before she leaves, closing the door that led to the back of the bar as mina put on her apron.

it’s only then, when sana catches a glimpse of the bartender starting her shift, that she guesses her night didn’t have to be bad all the way to its end. sana raises her hand, getting mina’s attention, wanting to be her very first client of the night.

“i’ll have another of these, cutie.” sana smiles after dropping the pet name. mina sighs.

“are you sure?” mina asks, recognizing the blonde woman tzuyu had talked about. “you haven’t finished your drink yet.”

“oh, are you worried about me?” sana lowers her tone, chin on her hand, crossing her legs in a way that made her skirt rise. unfortunately, mina couldn’t see her thighs the way sana intended her to see, not behind the counter.

mina seems unimpressed with sana’s attempt of flirting. she smiles and offers sana a short nod, as if she was putting an end to their brief conversation, and starts to make her drink. clients like sana were frequent, mina has learned how to deal with them — keeping a nonchalant face usually sent them away.

“it’s sana, by the way.” sana says, sipping the remains of her drink. the alcohol wasn’t as strong as it was when she started drinking, but sana guesses that her tolerance had grown after the amount of those she’d drank.

mina prepares the drink in an almost robotic way. she didn’t love working as a bartender, of course she wouldn’t as someone who quite enjoyed peace and quiet, but sometimes it was therapeutic, as if she was playing a cozy game — except for the fact that she also dealt with drunk people and there was loud music playing at all times, which wasn’t cozy at all. her job became considerably harder, though, when she had clients like sana.

mina feels sana’s gaze on her the entire time she’s preparing her drink. she places the final product on the counter for sana, and, without starting a conversation, she gets other people’s orders. surprisingly, sana doesn’t try to talk to her for a good while, until she’s ready for another drink.

“c’mere, cutie,” sana calls, making mina sigh before she turned to her. “another one, please. or should i get something else…”

“sana,” it’s the first thing mina says, refusing to call her ‘lady’ or ‘miss’. “you’re here alone, aren’t you? would you like anything without alcohol?”

“so you are worried about me,” sana taunts. “perhaps you’re right. i’m alone and i’ve had enough, but if you go home with me i won’t have any trouble.”

“my shift won’t end any time soon.” mina replies.

“i can wait.” sana offers.

“i have a girlfriend.” mina lies, wondering if that would make her client give up.

“i don’t mind. she could join,” sana muses. “or… we could do it behind her back.”

“so persistent,” mina laughs. “the answer is still a no. would you like some juice?”

sana pouts. “a no won’t do. give me your number.”

fortunately for mina, a client interrupts their conversation. she wouldn’t give her number to a complete stranger, despite finding sana rather cute. young people like sana and herself were usually at bars due to their broken hearts, it’s something mina had learned from experience. mina stayed away from complicated people, no matter how pretty they were — and she didn’t make exceptions.

minutes later, sana’s body is complaining and begging for her bed. she had been there for longer than she should’ve stayed, interested on the cute bartender who couldn’t care less about her. the difficult ones were always the most fun to play with, sana thinks, keeping a smile on her face as she got up and made her way to where mina was, standing face to face with her, the both of them only separated by a counter.

“can i at least know your name?” sana asks, propping her elbows on the counter, showing mina her cleavage, but mina’s eyes never strayed from her face.

mina decides to make her happy one time that night. her first name was a simple information, surely it would be harmless letting sana know about it. “mina.”

“give me your number, mina.” sana insists, trying to give mina her phone so she could type her number.

“i could give you a fake number, did you know that?” mina answers, offering sana an amused smile.

“oh, come on!” sana whines. “i really need to go, cutie. let’s make this quick.”

sana’s back luck didn’t seem to end that night. a group of people soon grab mina’s attention, and sana knew she couldn’t stay any longer. it wasn’t all that bad, though, that she had to leave — mina worked there, and all sana had to do was return to the bar in order to see her. getting her number couldn’t be that hard, right?

if momo knew dating someone could be that good, she would’ve done it sooner. or maybe not, because it wouldn’t be with jihyo then. only if she stole jihyo from sana, and it’s not like she hadn’t, but it’s not like she had either.

it was a fair exchange, really, at least momo thinks so — sana didn’t want jihyo, all momo did was take her when they weren’t together anymore. she did it for sana’s sake, and because she wanted jihyo. back then, in a different way than she does now, but momo still wanted her.

“sorry, bbuyo is a bit lazy.” jihyo explains, slightly embarrassed about her cat’s antics.

the moment jihyo lets go of her hand to grab her cat from the ground, momo closes her fist to find heat, feeling cold when jihyo’s hand is no longer keeping hers warm.

they hadn’t been walking for long. boo seemed like he could be walked for hours, but bbuyo had hardly spent ten minutes walking and he was already tired, meowing for jihyo to pick him up. she eventually did, but only when he stopped walking and laid on the ground, making it impossible for them to keep going.

“let me hold him for you,” momo offers. “he’s quite chunky. must be heavy for you.”

momo did that a lot — not letting jihyo hold heavy things. or whatever she deemed heavy. and jihyo knew it wasn’t necessary, she could perfectly lift heavier items and she held bbuyo like that a lot at home, but when she was with momo, she became suddenly incapable of doing those things. both because momo was always eager to help and because she liked being treated like that, desperately so, wanting to be doted on by momo, never rejecting her help.

“thank you.” jihyo smiles, her eyes almost closing as she does, grabbing boo’s leash after momo takes bbuyo in her arms.

then, boo is the one who wants to make a stop. while bbuyo prefers his owner’s arms, he doesn’t fight against being held by momo. boo, on the other hand, lets his paws reach jihyo’s knee, as if asking to be held as well.

“we should probably sit somewhere,” momo says, looking around to find an empty bench. “there!” she points with her finger.

the weather was particularly cold that day, enough to make them wear thicker clothes. while making their way to the bench, jihyo intertwines her arm with momo’s, leaning her head into her shoulder in search for warmth once they take a sit.

neither of them have the courage to start a proper conversation. from the moment momo started calling jihyo ‘her girl’, they had been a mess. momo was nothing like sana, and jihyo was still trying to figure out how to act around her. as for momo, she didn’t want to mess up, and she’d usually wait until jihyo started a conversation in order to speak.

momo eventually breaks the silence. this time, she has really has to, as it was an important matter she wanted to talk about.

“have you…” momo starts, her nose slightly red due to the weather, cheeks pink. “have you told your parents?”

“i want you to meet them,” jihyo replies, as shy as momo. “but not yet. they’ve been busy, a-and i’m a little… they won’t react badly, i know that, but i don’t know how to tell them.”

momo hums, scratching the back of her neck. the sincerity in jihyo’s voice is concerning, letting momo know that jihyo was just as lost as she was. even then, momo feels some sort of comfort in knowing she wasn’t the only one who didn’t know what to do.

jihyo pulls away, only so she could sit straight, her hand tingling as boo licked her palm. “have you told yours?”

“not yet.” momo shifts the arm supporting bbuyo, letting the cat nuzzle into the other arm. her free arm passes behind jihyo’s back, hand holding her waist. it’s the way momo finds to get her closer, not possessive but caring, as if telling jihyo she wasn’t alone. “we should do this together.”

jihyo relaxes upon hearing momo’s words, surprised that she was tensed up to begin with.

“that would be better,” jihyo says, evident relief coated in her tone.

“next week i’ll start looking for a part time job.” momo says, thumb moving up and down against jihyo’s waist, caressing her covered skin.

“but… what about college?” jihyo instantly searches for momo’s eyes, their noses almost touching as she did little effort to pull away. “y-you don’t have to do that. i can take care of-”

making use of their closeness, momo leans in, lips touching jihyo’s softly, effectively silencing her.

“it’ll be alright,” momo assures, all but whispering her words. her lips meet jihyo’s once more before momo moves away, and jihyo’s head falls instantly on her shoulder, the younger girl evidently shy. momo wasn’t far behind, flushed like jihyo. “i’ll keep studying and i won’t leave volleyball, don’t worry about that. both of you are my responsibility now. i’m just taking care of you.”

momo hardly knows how she manages to give jihyo such reassurances, with words that seemed rehearsed due to how nicely they fell past her lips, but she’s relieved she’s able to do that. jihyo melts into the embrace of momo’s arm, cheeks burning as her words sink into her head.

she was momo’s responsibility now. for the first time in her life, jihyo felt like she truly belonged to someone.

much against sana’s wishes, jihyo’s visits start happening more frequently. seeing her with momo became a regular occurrence. they looked happy, always with big smiles on their faces, looking flushed around each other but still incapable of not being in each other’s arms at all times.

sana wonders why jihyo didn’t invite momo over to her apartment instead. she lived alone after all. that was one of the multiple things sana vividly remembered about jihyo — she’d been there plenty of times, enough to remember how jihyo used to complain about wanting her to stay for longer every time sana would leave, because she felt lonely when sana left.

sana had quite a lengthy list of things she didn’t like about jihyo, but her clingy behavior was what bothered sana the most, especially now that she wasn’t hers. jihyo was never truly hers, at least not from sana’s perspective at that moment, but a sulking voice in sana’s head would tell her that the girl momo had in her arms more often than not used to be hers.

and it’s not that sana missed jihyo, if she missed anything it surely wasn’t jihyo herself, but she wanted what momo had. it’s not like what jihyo and momo were living could ever happen with her — if jihyo had never gotten with momo, she would’ve been forgotten rather quickly. and sana didn’t have what it took to get her pregnant by accident.

whatever momo and jihyo had was never meant to be sana’s story. and yet, the most egoistic part of sana crumbled as a consequence of their happiness. that very part of sana also made her ask herself how they could be so happy when they had just ruined their lives with an early kid, and they hardly even knew each other.

of course that would only result in trouble in the future, sana thinks. momo had yet to know the controlling, obsessive person jihyo hid behind a seemingly innocent character, and jihyo would eventually find out that momo would never be what sana knew jihyo wanted her to be… they wouldn’t live happily ever after, there had to be something that would get in their way-

“we’re going out.” momo announces, hand in hand with jihyo, the backpack she wore already letting sana know she wouldn’t return that day, but momo tells her regardless of that. “…and we’ll play tennis tomorrow, my sister will be there. will you come with us?”

“i have a date tomorrow.” sana lies, both wanting to see if she would get any reaction from jihyo and making up an excuse. “have fun you two.”

it’s hard to detect sana’s change of behavior when she’s busy with loving — momo was falling deep for jihyo, without even knowing what she felt was love.

it blinded momo to sana’s obvious change with her. sana wouldn’t usually pass up a chance to hang out with momo and her sister, especially not for a date, but momo guesses sana didn’t want to go because of jihyo, which was understandable.

when momo and jihyo leave, momo’s hand is on jihyo’s waist and the both of them are laughing to something silly momo says. sana feels bitter all over again. conveniently enough, she ends up making use of the bartender’s name and finds her social media. sana tries sending a message, and, unsurprisingly, she is left on read.

“what’s the menu for tonight, chef?”

a tired, soft voice reaches momo’s ears. she’s busy looking for the greens in their groceries, wanting to start the recipe with them, when jihyo’s arms sheathe her waist. momo smiles at the feeling of a plump cheek against her back — jihyo is like a cat staying where she deemed a good place, uncaring of her weight falling against momo, using her as a support.

“remember that old lady i told you about? the cheesecake lady,” momo takes green onions out of the bag.

“the granny you flirted with?” jihyo utters, teasing momo with her question.

“yep,” momo’s confirmation makes jihyo laugh against her back. “she was trying to have her way into my heart and gave me this family recipe. i wasn’t expecting lasagna, but, apparently she’s italian! she does have an accent,” momo mutters, putting the items of a grocery bag out, on the counter. “do you like spinach?”

jihyo nods, letting momo feel her gesture, and hums, a soft noise similar to a cat’s meow. “so you really like her. should i be concerned?”

it’s not sudden, but a deepening of the warm feeling in her chest — momo feels her heart thumping with the display of jealousy. they were only just getting used to each other and momo knew she could do that forever: having jihyo’s smaller frame lying comfortably against hers, casually talking about trivial things, being teased sweetly by her girlfriend. momo loved that. already loved jihyo.

“i really like you.” momo says, slightly defensive, her voice reaching a higher pitch. “but maybe you should.”

jihyo pinches her tummy and momo hears a whine. “you shouldn’t be saying these things to your pregnant girlfriend, hirai.”

“you like my name.” momo coos. she’s no longer separating the ingredients for their dinner, her hands are on the counter, fully distracted by jihyo. “should we use it on our baby?”

jihyo blushes at that, heart racing at the direct mention of their baby. “only if i get to pick their first name.”

“fair enough.” momo turns around, making jihyo have to release her momentarily. the lack of physical contact doesn’t last long, and soon momo is the one with her hands on jihyo’s waist, making the younger girl wrap her arms around her neck. “you’re very pretty, jihyo.”

jihyo had been told that very same thing plenty of times. such praises weren’t new to her, yet momo was the only person who made her believe it. momo wasn’t just saying that to try and take her to bed — in the past, jihyo wouldn’t mind to hear those words while being fully aware of the intentions hid behind them. now, the same words are but sweet reminders that she didn’t need people like that, like sana, to feel the way momo made her feel.

“even without makeup?” jihyo asks.

“even more without it. and you smell so good,” momo moves closer, nose bumping into jihyo’s neck. “i should’ve joined you in the shower.”

“i could always take another with you,” jihyo whispers, closing her eyes at the tender impact of momo’s lips on her neck.

momo smiles, her hands falling down to jihyo’s bare thighs, learning that jihyo wore nothing but her panties under the big shirt she had on. “i thought you wanted to sleep before dinner.”

“d-did i say that?” jihyo lets out meekly, a weak moan leaving her lips as momo slid her panties down, letting it fall to jihyo’s feet.

“uh huh,” momo teases, “you said you were tired and i can’t let my girlfriend skip her rest. besides, you need energy for tomorrow.” momo says, lips against jihyo’s neck, hands on her hips. before jihyo gets to protest, momo offers a solution to their problem. “i’ll just have to make you sleep then. i have a few ideas, wanna hear about them?”

when momo pulls away from jihyo’s neck, looking at jihyo’s eyes and waiting for an answer, she receives a kiss instead, and legs wrapping around her waist.

it takes more effort than it should for them to make it to the bedroom.

momo bumps into some furniture and a couple of walls, incapable of not doing so with such needy lips glued to hers, lips that would complain if she broke their kiss in order to see where she was heading. if jihyo wasn’t already carrying, perhaps momo would make her a mother right then and there, this time fully aware of what she was doing.

exhibit...? (sana should probably stop counting.)

“is it too early to marry jihyo?”

the question is made the day after jihyo meets momo’s sister, as soon as momo joins sana in the living room. it takes sana off guard, but momo seems rather serious about her question.

“it’s been two months since you met her.” sana says. her head aches all of a sudden, and sana fixes her posture on the couch in order to look at momo. “you’re not really thinking about that, are you?

“i am,” momo replies. she smiles, reminiscing the days she spent with jihyo. “my sister loved her. i love her. we’re having a baby together,” momo gives out her reasons. “wouldn’t it be appropriate to just marry her?”

sana shakes her head. “you don’t have to marry her just because you got her pregnant. you barely know her.”

“it’s impossible to know everything about someone.” momo pouts. “i don’t know everything about you, but i love you and we live together. we are kind of married if you think about it.”

“it’s different, momo.” sana sighs.

“i know her enough.” momo says, softer this time. but more serious.

sana doesn’t give her an answer this time, choosing silence over saying what she might regret.

“it’s just… even though we were together only a couple of hours ago, i miss her. i never felt this way before,” momo mutters, frowning as she speaks. “it’s like… i’m constantly yearning for what i already have. and i know she feels the same.”

“marriage is not something you decide on this quickly.” sana replies. and neither is having a baby, but at least that could happen by accident. sana doesn’t say what she wants to say, feeling a burning discomfort in her chest in return. she stands up, ending their conversation shortly. “i’m going to bed. need to wake up early in the morning.”

momo is left alone in the living room, confused as to why sana seemed upset when she left. even sana’s behavior wasn’t enough to make momo stop thinking about marrying jihyo, and sana is long forgotten so that momo could think about her situation with jihyo.

that night, momo can only sleep after jihyo sends her a photo of her in bed with her cat, smiling as she cuddled with him, still with her glasses because she had been reading.

momo almost tells jihyo she loves her then, but telling that to her without being able to kiss her wouldn’t be as fulfilling. all momo can do is wish to see jihyo again soon, so that she could let her know about her feelings and see her pretty smile when the three words were revealed to her.

[marchsfreakshow]

hiii duckie!! i've seen your reblog about soulmates prompts, and i could only think about warren (ofc i remember him when i "see" you + i am writing for him rn🤭)

what about the prompt number 2? orrr i thought far away with the 22 one, with a confused/insecurity warren with commitment issues?? i love thinking about him being loyal and committed bc i am a sucker for happy endings😭 but this 22 made me think!

that's it! love ya, have a nice day! 💗

Commitaphobe In Love

Angst :3

Ougghh Lia i LOVE you for this one. You're so right and thank u for sending me this.

Warren wasn't the one to commit. Never.

However, It was getting to a point, where Warren was scared he may never be able to commit fully to someone. Never love them back the way they love him.

So the fact you moved to a whole new state never helped much. Iowa was fine, you supposed. Yea sure family was good and all, but you just missed Warren. And Spencer. Wherever one went, the other was there. You were too busy to call him within the first few weeks, so once you got the chance you picked up the phone immediately. "Warren.."

His words almost gave you whiplash. "I want to marry you. Because I miss you." They were blurted out like some truth serum working magic in his veins. What? He wanted what? He never wanted to marry you before this. In your head, Warren was going to find a new party girl within the next few weeks and then be done with you.

"Warren? What do you mean?"

It took a few minutes for him to respond, and the silence made tension grow thick. "I want...you."

"You always do."

"no not like that." He sounded, scared, and insecure for...maybe the first time in his life, and it almost worried you. Warren was never usually like this. Never one to be scared of anything, never afraid to do anything. Apart from commit. Warren immediately started to ramble, talking nonsense into your ear. He loved you, more than anyone. Bit cliché sounding. But you didn't mind. His honesty basically won you over again, and it made your heart hurt.

Your plane ticket to Iowa was one way. You'd need to buy another one to even think about going back to Kentucky and seeing Warren.

"I'll come to you."

"what?"

"you said you're in Mt Pleasant, right?"

"Yea?"

"I'll drive over."

You needed a moment. What on earth was he saying? Before you could ask what Warren meant, he said one thing before he hung up.

"I love you."

As the line went dead, you found yourself whispering out a response. "I love you too." Was he telling the truth? Was Warren really wanting to marry you? Well, you could hope.

[larryisinlove]

MY LTWT 2022 vs MY FITFWT 2024 EXPERIENCE

This past Saturday, May 18th, I went to Louis’ show in Argentina, and I have a lot to say about it…

Let’s start with the show in general. When Louis announced the stadium he would be performing in (one show at Vélez Sarsfield - Capacity: 50k), in my mind I was already considering there was no chance of a sold out show, I already knew it wasn't going to happen. And it’s not that I don't believe in him or the amount of fans he has, but these are basic math to do and simple comparisons with his show in 2022 (two shows at Movistar Arena - Capacity: 15k). I won't go into details, but the chance of him selling out were a few, I won't say it was impossible, but it was difficult.

Here in Argentina, attending shows has become something that not everyone can afford to do, due to the high prices of the tickets. Besides the fact that many fans come from other provinces or distant cities, they need to pay for transport, hotel, food, etc. So, we can also blame the country's economy for not being able to sell out.

Although I maintain that the stadium was too big for him.

Let's not forget (or at least Argentinian fans still remember) that Louis did fill that same stadium, but with One Direction in 2014.

Something strange to note, and that some fans decide to pretend that it’s not strange at all, was that after months of tickets being on sale, and only a few sectors were completely sold out; only three days before the show, the rest of the sectors began to sell out completely. Are you going to tell me that in five months nobody could buy, the fans were collecting money, doing raffles, and in one day magically everything was sold out?

Now let's talk about the show…

My friend @anchorandrope (who I went with) and I had the cheapest sector, one of the highest stalls in the stadium. Both we and the fans who bought that sector were prepared, not only to withstand the cold that we knew we were going to suffer, but we also looked for comfort because we had seats and we were going to be able to be calmer in comparison to the general and VIP fields.

It was two hours before the gates opened, and the stadium staff started to tell us that we were going to have to move to another sector, specifically to the field. Nobody agreed, we paid for a specific ticket and "at the last minute" they decided to change us to another sector. There were long minutes of shouting between the fans and the stadium staff, where they gave us excuses as to why they were changing us, threatened us with not letting us in if we didn't accept this change and even blamed us for following an artist who didn't fill stadiums.

The funny thing is that they couldn't agree on a good excuse. While we were told it was because of problems in the toilets, a group further away were told it was a problem with the sound. If they knew days ago that they were going to change us, couldn't they agree on their lie?

I won't make this part of the story any longer, but much of my sector ended up in the general field, a much better sector than we originally had. But what was the problem? The problem was not being in that place, because I saw him much better than if I went where I should have been. The problem was the mistreatment, the thousand excuses they gave, being uncomfortable, because many of us didn't even have clothes for that sector, or we had backpacks that were too big with too many things, and if you know what it's like to be on the field, you know that you have to go with as few objects as possible.

The problem was all the parents who accompanied their children and got the cheapest seat for a reason, and they had to endure all those hours standing when they had purchased a sector with seats. And even if there were any children, I doubt that they would have been able to see or enjoy the show. There were people with a cast on their arm or with a disability that made it necessary to have a seated area, and they didn't care.

Let's move on to talk about the fans…

The atmosphere was tense.The hours of queuing and the hours of waiting inside the stadium were tense. Louis’ fandom is not what it used to be, and many of those who attended follow some trends imposed by a few fans on Twitter, so we were surrounded. With my friend we spoke in code or omitted to name certain words, because you never know who you have next to you, and at that moment the idea wasn't to look for trouble. You didn't feel that fandom togetherness that there was, and I know about that, I've been in fandom since 2011.

For example, during the queue before going in, an alarm I have on my phone for my contraceptive pill goes off and the song is Silver Tongues. My friend and I were laughing, and I told her that the song I used to use was Kiwi. I knew that she would understand me, that she understood the reference and wouldn't say anything, after all it was a joke with no offense intended, but you never know. The fans around us looked at us as if we were crazy or missing a joke (or just pretending not to understand).

I feel that this fandom lives in a cycle where every now and then we repeat the same “trends” over and over again, but that's a topic for a separate post. 

Regarding the age of fans, I don't have a problem and I don't have anything against new fans starting to listen to Louis, in fact, I strongly encourage him to continue to grow as an artist. But as a 23 year old, it was strange that every single person I talked to was under 20 years old. There were no fans my age, only a few exceptions, not even older. How can this happen? Where are all those fans who grew up with his music? Where are all those fans who were still his fans in 2022?

It wasn't just the tension between fans that was a factor in saying it was a strange show. There were no signs, no flags, as you could see at the 2022 show. Only the brave had been an iconic song at the last show, with its fan project of the LGBT+ flag created by lights in each sector. But this year, I could swear I could count on my fingers the flags I saw. I even read fans on Twitter saying that there was no point in bringing them to shows anymore, as if it was a temporary trend, or something from the Walls era.

When the show started, you could tell it wasn't the feel of a Louis’ show, there was something weird going on. The fans were silent, not singing along to the songs, including Walls. They were just recording. I understand if you don't know a cover from another artist, because I admit, I didn't sing both covers, but songs from his first album… How could you not know them? I could swear I could hear myself singing them and Louis.

The other sectors were silent as well, and those with seats were completely immobile.

In 2022, Copy Of A Copy Of A Copy was one of the songs where the fans sang the loudest, now none of them knew it, as if Louis was singing new songs. I know there are fans who didn't live through the One Direction era, or even despise everything related to it (another topic for another post), but how can they not sing songs like Night Changes or Where Do Broken Hearts Go? Again, in 2022 these covers would have been screamed until fans’ voices were gone.

You couldn't see the dedication or fanaticism for Louis. I could easily believe they just grabbed people passing by the door and let them in. I wouldn't even find it crazy if they had done it either.

In the two years that have passed between shows, it’s disappointing and sad to see this change. And if it wasn't for the fact that I was accompanied, I don't think I would have had a good time in all those long hours of waiting. I would understand if it was the other way around, and this was Louis' first show, and he didn't have the years of career that he has, and the recognition that he has.

Since Saturday, I've had a bad taste in my tongue because of everything that happened at the show. And I'm not the only one who can say these things. I know there are fans who are blinded by their fanaticism and will say that everything was perfect, or will argue that Louis could have sold out (because it happened to me), but it's a matter of taking a moment, thinking and being realistic.

It doesn't make me a bad fan to say his fandom is being horrible lately, it doesn't make me a bad fan to say he wasn't going to sell out. And let's stop blaming each other for this situation and start looking at who are the real culprits in all this?

There is a lot more to tell, but the post would become too long. If anyone wants me to tell more, they can send me an ask and I’ll be happy to continue to explain this.

[calamitoustide]

"am i too late?"

I gotta be so honest I forgot about the prompt list and was very confused for a second 😭😭 but I remembered! and had an idea so I thought I would just write it now

speak now - jegulus - microfic - 1k

Regulus wasn’t even going to go. He was invited, of course, James said he really wanted him there, but he didn’t beg when Regulus said he’d be busy. He wasn’t busy. In fact, his only plans for the day were to sit in his apartment rotting away in bed while constantly refreshing his Instagram to see all the pictures of the party streaming in. He’d see her in her perfect dress and perfect hair. He’d see James lovingly gazing into her eyes, beautiful with the ocean behind him. It had to be a beach wedding. Of course, it had to be. James always had his thing with the ocean. He’d drag Regulus there every single summer to his family's place. Well, every single year until she came along and then Regulus wasn’t as inclined to go. 

Regulus was still James’ best friend, but Lily Evans was… well his everything else. His girlfriend, his fiancé, the love of his life. Now she can  add bride and wife to that list of terms. 

Regulus isn’t at all upset over this. James chose his life. He had his choices and Regulus wasn’t even an option, and that’s fine. He’ll still be apart of his life. He’ll watch his home from the outside, peering into windows and occasionally being invited in for family dinners in a family he’ll never truly be apart of. He’ll be uncle Regulus and nothing more. The guy who comes around occasionally. So no, he wasn’t going to go to the wedding of all things. He doesn’t think he could handle it. He can’t watch the life he wanted go up in flames because he was too stupid to say something. He didn’t say a word and now James is going to be happily married, or well… he wasn’t going to go. 

That was before Sirius called him drunk the night before. It’s a destination wedding, and they all went out the night before as a pre-celebration or whatever you’d call it. It was clear that Sirius had too much to drink, especially when he kept spouting on about how this was Regulus’ last chance. Apparently he had enough of Regulus’ pining and his inability to actually talk about his feelings. He kept going on and on about how Regulus was obsessed with James since he was small. From the moment James walked up to him grabbed his hand and said they’d be best friends forever he’s had Regulus. Even if they were young. Even if Regulus knew nothing of what love meant, he was spoken for. James was it. There was no other light. No other love. He handed over his heart that day and he’s never even asked for it back. Sirius never mentioned it, or at least not since Lily came into the picture. Regulus isn’t sure what made him last night. He’s also not sure what made him buy a last minute plane ticket to Greece of all places. 

He’s late by the time he gets there, and when he’s in the first car he could get traffic is blocked up too far, like an idiot he runs all the way to the venue. He’s sweaty and out of breath by the time he makes it there. He’s definitely not dressed for a wedding he looks awful and his clothes are all wrinkled from the flight but none of it matters. He makes it to the beach. He finds the arch just in front of the beautiful waves, but there’s not a single guest to be seen. It’s vacant. Nothing but the sand and ocean water. 

“Am I too late?” He mumbles, more to himself more than to anyone. After all this time of running behind it really shouldn’t a surprise that when he finally got it together he was too late. He’s always too late but the ache in his heart is the same, like a slice through his liver, and cracks in his ribs. 

“Depends on what you’re here for.” 

Regulus eyes widen as he turns around, to find James behind him on the stairs. Still in his suit, beautiful coated with the colors of the setting sun. “You’re still here.” 

James shrugs, “Had no where else to go,” he says, walking passed him to the sea to stand under the arch. He picks off flowers from the sides of it, watching as the petals fall to the sand, “I couldn’t go through with it.” 

“Oh?” 

James smiles sadly, looking down to the ground as he says, “I thought…” he shakes his head, “When you said you couldn’t make it for a second I was relived, you know,” he says, “I thought I could actually go through with it as long as you weren’t here too. As long as I didn’t see you.” He looks up finding Regulus’ eyes through the aisle, “Without you though it was just so much clearer what I was missing I couldn’t—I couldn’t go through with it.” 

“James…” 

“I understand,” James says quickly, “If you don’t feel the same way. If this is completely out the blue I just—I didn’t love her like I should and it has to be right. It has to be right and I tried to make myself believe that it was but I—“ 

Before James can finish rambling Regulus is already down the aisle and grabbing the front of his shirt bringing him down. Regulus really hates the cliche but deep down it feels like he’s a teenager kissing James now, back when they should’ve figured this out. They were so fucking stupid, and while kissing James, Regulus swears he can feel sparks fly against them; it’s a firework show. 

James pulls away, a smile tugging at his lips, “Oh.” 

“Oh,” Regulus giggles, he fucking giggles, like he’s thirteen or something. He’d be embarrassed if it was anyone but James. Hell, James is giggling too. 

That is until James takes a pause and questions slowly, “Wait, did you come here to break up my wedding?” 

Regulus opens his mouth but no words come out, truly there’s nothing to be said. No defense he can take. So he rolls his eyes instead, tugging James down again, “Shut up.” 

[brf-rumortrackinganon]

I often wonder what was that one particular thing, ingredient X, if you may, that made Harry succumb to Meghan in June 2016?

I understand that he had psychological trauma from his mums death, from his dad's bourgeois parenting style, from the very fact that he was Windsor male for that matter. I also agree that he is quite simple minded, so now in hind sight we can say he is increasingly motivated by resentment towards his perfect brother, his own greed and need for adulation etc. But back in 2016, he was on a good path. Settling into his job. Enjoying the perks of his popularity. And it's safe to assume that both William and Harry, were used to the fact that women threw themselves at them both. So they also had some sense to know that not everyone had good intentions.

It's also been speculated that Harry did meet Meghan a year before in 2015, at Soho Istanbul (according to many bloggers). And may even have met her in 2014 at Miami (according to Shauna, Vintage Reads). So he had enjoyed her company and still evaded her clothes then.

And not just her, he probably had come into contact with many wannabes who he hooked up with and managed to shake off.

So why 2016? When everything seemed to be going so well for him? His family circle was fairly well grounded. He had an independent profile of his own royal work. He had a good team and loyal, competent staff. He had a great, extensive friend circle. He could have anything and anyone he wanted. He seemed nice, engaged with people, showed empathy and some commonsense when out and about. So I am so perplexed as to how and why, that "blind date" at Soho in May/June/July/whenever led to his spectacular downfall.

I know this isn't really the blog or the platform where we can psychoanalyse Harry correctly and succinctly. But it's just a question that I'm fascinated by. In 3 years, he lost every single thing he had - his family, his relationships, his work, his friends, his honour, his glory, his legacy, his prospects at any royal relevance. How were mental defences so down, so ineffective, how was he so walled-in into his trauma that he had no chance at being saved? It sure couldn't be as simple as greed for more money or a Hollywood lifestyle?

And let's be honest, Meghan isn't that great a catch where someone like him would just lay down everything at her feet and be like "here queen, feed on my guts, eat my flesh raw". Urghhh

I'm so confused and so perplexed.

All of Harry's friends and cousins were getting married and settling down in 2015/2016. That's a lot of peer pressure and expectations on him, even if it wasn't overt and directly applied.

And when everyone around you is coupling up, settling down, getting married, and having babies, that can give you beer goggles because now you're rushing through relationships to catch up with them. We've all seen it happen in our own friend groups, I'm sure. I've got a few friends who were so bothered by being in their 30s without partners and families while the rest of their friends are planning weddings and having babies that they marry the first guy who shows interest. Sometimes it works out, sometimes it doesn't.

That seems to be what happened to Harry. Everyone was settling down. He was feeling left out. So he met someone that suited his needs, said "to hell with the rest" and married her ASAP.

And also this: "He could have anything and anyone he wanted." isn't true. He wasn't getting the girls he wanted. He wanted someone like Kate - pretty, British, media-trained, from a good family, and well-off - and all those girls were staying far, far away from him. They knew what he was really like behind closed doors; needy, paranoid, cheap (he once made Cressida buy her own plane ticket for a trip he had invited her on), and heavily partying. The 'anyone he wanted' that Harry was going after wasn't into that.

Also, anon - if you haven't already, you might want to give Tom Bower's Revenge a read. Specifically Chapter 13, "A Troubled Prince," has a little bit of psychoanlysis of Harry that you might enjoy.

[fangirlfrom-hell]

Music Fest || Jay and Will Halstead x Halstead Sister

Warnings (that are not really warnings): language and dirty lyrics of a song, but nothing really bad. *I translated the song from one in Spanish 🤫

"No!", both Jay and Will said unison looking down to their little sister.

"But, like, why not?"

"You're still too young...those music festivals are always full of drunk people", Will said without even raising his head to look at her.

"...and I don't want to be all night stuck to the radio listening to every incident that happens in said event. You have no idea how wild they get", the detective completed.

Becca just rolled her eyes, her brothers were exaggerating everything, as usual.

"You don't have to, I'll go with my group of friends, won't be alone"

"Oh! you mean the same friends that leaved you alone that night in the middle of the street and you had to call me scared and crying to pick you up?" Will raised his brows, still mad at the memory.

"That was once and no, I'm not going with them. I'm going with my friends from acting class"

"Oh, well, that changes...nothing", he joked.

"In fact...", Jay intervened while pouring some coffee in his mug, "that only makes it worse"

"Oh, come on! I'll buy the ticket with my savings! You don't even have to give me money!"

Jay took one hand to rub his face, the same conversation had been repeated countless times during the week and he was getting tired of it "Stop wasting your energies! The answer will always be the same..."

"No!", both of her brother repeated with a stern but tired tone. She didn’t have a chance to win.

"Ugh! You never let me do anything fun!" The youngest Halstead said while slamming the door of her room, which put an end to the conversation.

Undazed, Will and Jay remained in the kitchen as if nothing had happened, they were already used to Becca’s teenage outbursts.

A few days passed and the girl was still mad at her brothers, she was already a grown up and was able to take care of herself, why wouldn’t they let her go? Life was unfair.

Becca was on her bed when a knock on the door interrupted her toughts, and knowing it was Jay, she laid her head down pretending to be asleep. She was upset and playing to be offended.

"I know you're awake", he said coming into the room.

"What?" The girl slowly raised her head, pretending she didn't know what he was talking about.

Her brother laughed, "Am I wasting my money in your classes? Because you are a terrible actress"

She rolled her eyes and sat on the bed, "What do you want, Jay Jay?”

He sighed before speaking up, hands on his hips “Do you still have the money for the ticket?”

Becca opened her big eyes wide and turned to face him, answering even before he could finish the question, “Yes! Why?”

“Ok. Here’s the deal, you can go, bu—” in an instance, she was hanging from his neck, “But I’m not giving you any money…”

She suddenly became suspicious, “Wait! Is this a trap?”

Jay strangely smirked, “No, is just…you were very excited…”

Becca was shouting out of happiness, jumping on her bed “Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!”

“I gotta work that day, so Will’s taking you there and picking you up at 10, not later!"

“Fine”

“No alcohol!” Jay pointed towards her with each pronounced word. “If I find out you drink a drop of alcohol, you’ll be grounded and locked inside the house for the rest of your life, you hear me?”

“I’ll get an underage ticket, they won’t even sell me anything even if I wanted to”

“Hmm”, he crossed his arms incredulous trying to read if his sister was just acting innocent or she was really naive. Whichever the answer was, didn’t help for the fact that he didn’t really wanted her to go.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you, Jay Jay!" She hugged him one more time and he smiled.

Time passed by really slow since she got her ticket, excitment filled her body as the day approached. This was an important date, her very first music festival! She wanted it to be perfect in all ways. She wanted to look good, aesthetic and pretty. The chosen outfit was a skirt with red squares to her waist and fishnet tights with a translucid blouse; for her feet, her favorite platform black boots. She felt pretty that way, until she went out of her room and Will’s expresion lowered her bliss

“NO!” He said as soon as he saw her sideways, “Go change, you are not leaving the house like that!”

“Why not?”

“Are you really asking?”, her eldest brother crossed his arms. “Skirt’s too short and I can see through your blouse”

“Yea, and I have a bralett under, no big deal”

Her brother’s face started to match his red hair.

“I’ve used these clothes before right in front of you and you’ve never had any problem with it!”

“Yea, because you’re always out with us, your big brothers, one of them an ex-soldier and current cop who could kill with his sight, which means you are safe! But now you are going all alone to a freakin’ festival full of drunk and drugged people”

Becca couldn’t do anything but pull a face.

“Go find something else!”

“Fine!” She shouted with watery eyes.

“No one is going to ruin my day”, she muttered to herself while changing her clothes. “I can still look good and cool on jeans”

But Will only approved after she changed five different times.

“Much better”, he clapped when she finally came out with mom jeans and a oversized band t-shirt, which still made her look pretty, but not the type of pretty she expected.

“Let’s get out of here, please! I’m already running late”, she hurried with a gesture of annoyance.

Will leaved her where her friends were waiting, “10 PM I’ll be right here. One minute late and you’ll have to deal with Jay”, he threatened one last time before parting.

“Wow, you weren’t joking about your brothers”, a girl said as they all walked to the entrance.

“Yea, they have seen some shit at work, that’s why they are the way they are”, Becca aknowledged and felt a bit bad for the way she had reacted to all this festival matter, after all, they were only trying to take care of her.

When their tickets were checked, they crossed to line up to the filter, before they could actually get in.

“But, hey! There are no more brothers here! No parents either”, noticing Becca’s seriousness, a girl crossed her arm around her neck “We’ll have fun and they don’t even have to know about it, right?”

They all laughed, but a familiar gentile voice made Becca’s blood run cold, “Please, open your bag, young ladie”. Slowly and not wanting to, she raised her head to meet Burgess’ gaze. The police officer was smiling, mocking her for the surprised expression she made when she saw her.

“You are all good, Beccs”, she handed her pertenences back, “You can go in”.

But the girl was in a zombie mode, for another peculiar voice was heard at her back. She quickly turned to witness how Adam was checking her male friends’ pockets, “You can’t bring opened boxes of cigarretts in. Wait! You can’t even smoke, you’re underage. Give me that!”

In a moment, Ruzek’s eyes met the Halstead sister and he waved his hand to her, “Oh! Hey, Becky Beccs”

“Oh, fuck!” Becca couldn’t help to say outloud.

“This was the reason why they had let me come out of the sudden”, she was so into her toughts. “The place is full of Intelligece cops that would not take their eyes off of me. They must’ve been lacking personal and Sergeant Platt asked them to do extra hours, that had happened before. I should had known better, that’s why Jay said he would be working today”

Wait.

“Jay said he would be working that day meant that he is here, right here at the festival”

As they walked in, Becca couldn’t stop looking around to see if she spotted her brother. She was now feeling anxious, couldn’t even pay attention to the conversations her friends were having. Even when she couldn’t see Jay, she was sure he knew where she was.

Whenever she tried to forget about it and do something fun, she found another familiar faces: first it was Kevin, who approached her to fist bump and tell her where he would be all night if she happened to need something, “You’re the safest girl in this place”, he winked. Then, she witnessed how he pointed at her while talking to her fellow cops, as giving instructions; later, she ran into Sergeant Platt, or better said Trudy yelled her name loudly, and decided to take a picture with the girl; the only detective that gave her space was Hailey, who smiled at her from the distance when they saw each other, altough maybe it was only because she was busy scolding a drunk girl to the ambulance.

It was already night and Becca had barely enjoyed her time at the festival. She regretted that. When you wait for something with such anticipation and excitement, it is very easy to get dissapponted when something doesn’t go as planned, even if it’s a small thing. She was feeling a bit sad, but at the same time she was invaded by a feeling of freedom when she saw her friends dancing and singing loud under the moon. One of them stretched her hand inviting her to dance…

You’ve got such a good view when you put me on all fours

And Becca decided she could enjoyed the rest of the night by pretending she wasn’t the sister of her brother, ignoring the cops around.

If my dad finds out about this he’ll kill you

As she started to have fun, the music sounded louder in her ears…

Check out my trick, be careful

And she forgot about everything and everyone around her, it was just her an her friends. Soon, she was among them dancing and singing her lungs out.

An amazing bitch, curvy and eloquent

Her eyes were closed as she was guided by the beat.

Magnificently colossal

And when she finally was having fun, she opened her eyes.

Extravagant and animal

And Jay was right next to the crowd staring at her with eyes like saucers. He was visibly mad by the way she was moving and the election of song. He was slightly saying no with his head, his lips as tight as his crossed arms. She freezed, couldn’t even blink, but anyway raised her hand to say hello in an akward way. She noticed how Hailey was draggin him by the arm trying to take him out of there. Needless to say she couldn’t keep dancing.

Becca was outside before 10:00 PM, what she wanted the most was to get out of there before Jay would reach her. That scene was on the top 3 of her most embarrassing moments of her life.

Will arrived punctually, “How was it?” He asked, laughing while starting the car, of course he already knew the answer.

“Oh, it was so much fun”, she said from the back seat, frowning to the window.

[collapsedglasshouses]

Maybe Sometime || Nick Folio x OC

Pairing: Nick Folio x OC (she/her)

Summary: When Nova found herself at the birthday party of her childhood best friend Danielle, she didn’t even know what California got in its pockets for her this time.

Warnings: mentions of death of a family member, mentions of alcohol consumption, MDNI, 18+, fingering, steamy make out session I guess lmao, let me know if I forgot something ♡

A/N: Surprise! ♡ I've been working on this the last couple of days and planned it to be a two part series. Let me know if you liked it :)

IF YOU WANNA BE ADDED TO THE TAGLIST PLS LET ME KNOW IN THE COMMENTS OR DM ME

The late-summer morning sun of California hit her skin when Nova left the airport building, her mission clear in her head. Finding her best friend and making it back to her house without getting a sunburn since she wasn't used to being in the sun anymore.

Her new job at a legal office made her leave her hometown San Francisco and brought her to Seattle, while her best friend found her soulmate back here in San Francisco about three years ago.

So, when she saw her at her car, kissed by the sun with her auburn hair perfectly blown out and smiling from ear to ear while waving at Nova, she couldn't help but feel jealous for a second. It wasn't that she didn't think Danielle deserved it all, she was more than happy for her. But when she was truly honest with herself, she really wanted to have a snippet of luck that her best friend had.

While Danielle grew up with rather wealthy parents and had time to figure herself out when it came to jobs and careers, Nova's always been very clear. She grew up in a middle-class family with two older brothers and a single mother. She had a beautiful childhood, but compared to her best friend Danielle, she was often very aware of the fact that nothing in life was simply given to her.

When she started her journey to become a lawyer at 18, she knew she had no chance but stick with that choice, leading her to the point where she was now. In her last year of law school and working part-time in a legal office to get work experience.

When she finally reached Danielle, she felt like looking the exact opposite of her friend. Her colored black hair hanging on her shoulders without any volume while her eye bags almost began to look purple because of the sleep deprive law school and work gave her.

"It is so amazing to see you, Nova." Danielle exclaimed while hugging her childhood friend tightly. "How was your flight?" - "As good as a two-and-a-half-hour flight between a crying child and a snoring businessman can be."

Danielle gave Nova an apologetic look. "I'm so sorry you had to go through this, if you want, I can buy you a ticket for business class for you flight home." - "Please don't, you know I don't like you gifting money to me."

Danielle grabbed Nova's bag and put it in the trunk before she got into the driver's seat while waiting for Nova.

The drive to her house was rather quiet, the old friends chatting about the past and catching up.

When they got to her house, they were greeted by Danielle's fiancé Derek, who gladly showed Nova the room where she would be staying for the next two days.

It was around 9PM and the party was going well. Nova took a sip out of her water cup, letting her gaze roam around the garden area, when someone sat down next to her.

"I'm Nick." - "And I'm not interested." She said not even looking at him. Nova didn't want to be that rude, but parties always freaked her out. She didn't like crowds of people and she liked them even less when they were drunk.

"I'm sorry for bothering you, imma just-..." The boy next to her said while standing up but before he could go away, she stopped him. "No wait... I'm sorry for being rude. I just don't feel that comfortable at parties."

He raised his eyebrows at her, before slowly sitting back down next to her again. "I'm just here because I've literally known Danielle since forever." - "Same here but with Derek."

That sparked her interest and for the first time she looked at the person next to her. He wore a black ripped jeans and a black tank top, displaying his tattoos in all their glory. He had big brown eyes that almost looked doe-like and his short dark hair set perfectly on his head.

He noticed her staring at him, so he asked her: "Are you okay?"

"Totally." She answered finally breaking her gaze to not hyperfixiate on the nostril that decorated his nose. She too had one when she was younger but had to take it out due to professional reasons at work. Nova found that rule stupid, but she would have found it more stupid if she had let herself get fired over metal in her nose, so she just took it out.

"Where do you know Derek from?" She asked the boy interested. "He is the bassist in a band that toured with us." - "Toured with you?" - "Oh yeah... I'm the drummer of a metalcore band... Bad Omens... If you ever heard of us."

"No, sorry. But that actually sounds really cool." She answered him honestly. She remembered being heavily obsessed with Black Veil Brides when she was younger so she definitely knew what she would listen to on her flight home.

"Do you live somewhere around?" He asked Nova and shot her a smile that made her stomach tingle a little. "Uhm... No... I live in Seattle at the moment, because of my job." - "What do you work as? If you don't mind me asking." - "I'm in my last year of law school... I'm becoming a lawyer."

"Woah, that's awesome." He took a sip from his cup. "Yeah, you better not get in trouble or imma kick your ass in court."

"Maybe I need to get in trouble so I can hire you and see you every day." Nova's mouth fell slightly open at his statement. Was he flirting?

"What makes you think I would defend you?" She flirted back, trying to get a reaction out of him.

"Oh, I will convince you." - "And how exactly you wanna do that?"

He licked his lips before looking her in the eyes. "I can't just share my tricks with you. They won't work anymore!"

Nova laughed at his statement before taking a sip out of her water cup.

"You're not drinking?" Nick asked carefully. "No, I don't drink at all.”

He nodded. "Is there any reason for it? Or do you just not like it?"

"I don't wanna get all sad and shit." She joked halfheartedly. In fact, there was a very specific reason.

"If you don't mind sharing, I would love to hear it." He encouraged her.

For a couple of seconds, she thought about if she should share the story with him. When she looked at him, she saw something she couldn't quiet explain. His gaze made her feel understood.

"I can tell you, but I don't wanna shout it over the music." She answered him and he instantly stood up and reached out his hand to her. Hesitantly she took it and with that he safely dragged her through the groups of people gathered in the garden area.

Within two minutes they found themselves on the couch in the small living room upstairs. Only a small lamp lit the room. She couldn't help but calm down a little. She had never been a big fan of large groups of people and even less of parties.

“I really don’t know how I haven’t freaked out already.” Nova let out under her breath.

“I totally get that. Even though I should be used to the noise and tumult by now, I just don’t like this whole thing. Don’t get me wrong I love performing, but this is something totally different.” Nick explained himself and brushed through his hair with one hand.

Nova now noticed that he in fact had abandoned his drink. “You shouldn't have left your drink.”

“But I wanted to. I don’t wanna get drunk if I have the opportunity to get to know someone as interesting as you are.” Nova blushed. “How do you know I’m not boring as hell?”

He began to smile a little. “You’re gonna be a lawyer. You have a mysterious background story, and you look extremely beautiful.”

Nova started to smile while rolling her eyes. “Are you doing that with everyone you find attractive? Luring them into an darkened empty room?”

“No, only with those I want to kidnap.” Nick said with a blank expression before starting to laugh. “I’m kidding.”

After that they fell into a comfortable silence for a couple of minutes.

“Do you still wanna tell me why you don’t drink?” Nick carefully asked, making sure Nova was comfortable with it.

"If you pity me for a second, I'll get up and leave and you'll never see me again, got it?" Nova stated causing Nick to nod frantically. "I swear, I'll not pity you."

"My dad died when I was fifteen." - "Oh." - "Oh my god! You already start to pity me!" - "I'm not but how am I suppose to react if someone tells me their father died!" Nick defended himself.

Nova examined him for a good second and it didn't go unnoticed by her that his cheeks blushed a little while she did so.

"Okay. I believe you." She started again. "So, he died. To find better words, he was actually kind of murdered." Nicks eyes widened in shock but he decided not to say anything that scared her away again. "He was run over by a drunk driver almost eleven years ago. They never found the driver."

Nick nodded when Nova looked at him again. "That is really brutal, I hope you talked to someone about it." - "Yeah, me and my older brothers have been in therapy ever since and I kinda coped with it by becoming a lawyer. I want to make sure everyone gets their right punishment."

"Soo, you're kinda like Batman?" Nick joked and with that Nova started to laugh. She really did expect everthing but not that a cute drummer accused her of being Batman in the middle of the night.

Without even thinking, she spoke her next words. "So, you wanna be my catwoman?"

With that the atmosphere in the room shifted. Nova's cheeks felt like they were burning. Did she really just suggest to a total stranger to be her love interest? It wasn't that odd for her to drop the bomb about her dead dad but this was totally out of place for her. She was very careful about the people she chose to have around her and even more extreme when it came to intimite connections. Random hook ups weren't her thing, but something about Nick made her change her mind in an instant. He fascinated her. The way he instantly built a comfort zone around the two of them just by the way he presented himself intrigued her.

"I think that is the most charming thing someone ever said to me." Nick confessed to her and than chuckled. "I actually would love to become your cat woman if we had more time."

"I'll fly back tomorrow. But if you'll ever happen to be in Seatlle please let me know." Nova answered him honestly while sliding closer to him.

"I would love that." Nick mumbled. His gaze wandered to her lips and than back to her face. "I would really like to kiss you." - "Than do it."

With that he pressed his lips to hers and within seconds she found herself on his lap, one leg on each side. His lips slightly tasted like the whiskey he consumed before and even though she hated alcohol she couldn't get enough of him.

She let her hands wander to cup his face and pressed him even closer to her, while his hands found themselves on her hips. She couldn't help but sigh when he grabbed her a bit harsher.

Slowly but surely his lips started to wander. He placed soft kisses on her jawline and than on her neck, quickly finding her sweet spot. Nova gasped and without even thinking she grinded her hips against him. He quietly moaned her name. With that she knew she would do anything to have Nick closer to her.

His hands started to wander, while their lips met again, and quickly found their way to the button on her shorts. With a skillful movement he opened her shorts. He broke the kiss. "Is this okay for you?"

"Yes, don't you dare and stop now." She moaned and moved her hips again, causing him to moan quietly as well.

Quickly is hand found its way into her pants and underwear. He ran his hands through her folds. "God, you're so fucking wet. Is this all because of me?"

"Yes." She moaned out. Quickly he found her clit and started to move his fingers in slow circles. Immediately she let her head rest on his shoulder and moan his name.

"Be a good girl and stay quiet for me." He demanded and she instantly obeyed. Her hands found there way into his hair her while he fastened his pace.

Than his fingers began to wander again. "You think you can handle my fingers inside of you?" He groaned in her ear causing her to look at his face again. His pupils almost looked black in the dim light of the living room, sending shivers down her spine. She began to nod.

Right when his finger started to push inside of her, Novas phone began to rang, shooting them straight back to reality.

"Really?" Nova breathed out before grabbing her phone, Nick's hand still in her pants. It was Danielle calling her.

She showed Nick and gave him an apologetic smile before answering her phone. What she didn't expect was Nick still continuing to push his finger into her and even adding a second all at ones. So she suppressed a moan before she spoke. "Hello?" - "Where are you, Nova? I haven't seen you in almost an hour."

Nick began to curl his fingers inside of her. She took a deep breath before answering with a slightly breathless voice. "Oh, I needed a break from the people. Imma be back in a minute." - "I hope so, it's ten minutes before midnight and therefore my birthday, lady."

Nick began to attack her neck with kisses and again found her sweet spot in almost milliseconds.

"Yeah, give me a second. I-... I'll come… I‚lol come down."

With that she quickly ended the phone call and whimpered.

"As much as I would like to continue but if we don't show up downstairs within the next minute, Danielle will kill me." Nova told Nick breathless.

He let out an disappointed sigh and slowly removed his hand from her, causing her to whimper at the loss of connection. He again shocked her when he brought his fingers to his mouth and licked them clean. Nova's mouth fell slighty open at his action but he just smirked at her and brought his lips back to her mouth.

She tasted herself on him and almost lost it again, but she knew they needed to get downstairs.

Sadly she needed to pull away from him.

They quickly rushed downstairs and managed to join the group of people right in time for Danielle's birthday.

For the rest of the evening they were glued to each other's side and both of them hoped their night, full of not so innocent touches and innuendos, would never end.

If only they had thought about exchanging numbers...

[am-i-the-asshole-official]

AITA for not accepting an apology even though it was sincere?

I have been close friends with someone (A) for about five years. This spring I planned to go on a solo trip, but opened it up to my friends (A and B) because I'm moving away. The two agreed that they wanted to go, but had to see if their schedules were okay. A asked if another person (C) I'm not so close to, but enjoy the company of when I do see them could join since A and C were originally planning a different trip together. I said of course, accepting that the only time we can go is a time that isn't really what I wanted (busy touristy season), but we can work it out.

About a month before the trip, we finally get together to plan. Despite being driven by A and C, I'm the last person to hear that they plan to do both trips, so they're only partially joining ours. I only hear this because A whispered it to B while I was finishing paying for my portion of lunch. I don't bring it up because I don't want to start anything, but on the car ride home I tell A and C that what they did was rude and hurt my feelings. B and I get a hotel for the four of us and buy plane tickets for the days we'll be there and we wait to rent a car until we hear the date A and C will fly in.

Two weeks before our trip, B messages me that they're not joining us at all and instead will do their original trip. I had to cancel the hotel room for a cheaper one and deal with the fact that we planned everything on their schedule. If B and I went alone, we would have done more convenient dates for both of us, as well as us being able to rent a car. and the main activity I wanted to do only had one option I didn't like, so I would have had an easier time with that, too.

After both of our trips, I messaged B that I no longer want to be their friend and explained how it was rude for them two hurt me twice in a row like that and why the trip was important to me. They sent many messages and over-explained themselves to be clear and communicative because I said I need that in a relationship, but I'm not one who believes in second chances and even if I did they already got one. I just don't think change can come in a day. I know this was a group trip, though, and a lot of my side of the arguments are about how things would have been better for me, so I feel like I am an ass about being selfish in what I wanted to do and when I wanted to go, but since they didn't even go at all, I feel like I should be able to feel those things.

While this relationship won't change (I would feel like a bigger ass going, "lmao I changed my mind"), I want to know in future contexts… AITA for not accepting that apology? tl;dr: A friend decided to go on a trip, decided to only go for half the time, and then decided to not go at all despite everyone else having to plan around them. I called them out twice to not communicating well and will not accept their apology and ended the friendship.

What are these acronyms?

[humorisstoredinthetits]

The Heathers + Veronica go to the Arcade

They're gaymers, get it, gay-mers

Being a small town, there isn't really that much to do in Sherwood

Besides the mall and the movie theater, the main place that people go for recreational activities is the local arcade

Yes, there somehow is still a honest-to-god arcade operating in the year 20XX

And being the incredibly irresponsible and immature people that they are, the Heathers and Veronica spend a lot of time there

It's not the biggest or best arcade out there, but it's what they have

When they arrive they head straight for the prize counter

It's the same junk you would expect at any arcade, you got your plushes, candy, Nerf guns, animal toys, etc.

They each figure out what they are aiming for and head to the token machine

Chandler used to say that they shouldn't spend that much and that they can just buy what they want on Amazon right before her gfs got 500 bucks worth of tokens each

Now she just internally sighs before also getting an absurd amount of tokens

They get so many that they bring one of those giant plastic tubs to carry all of them

They get so many, in fact, that the arcade simply does not have enough tokens to give all of them at once, and once they are done with the first batch the employees have to go and get the tokens from the machines to give back to them

They'll give out some of their tokens to the kids who are there, they really don't need all of them

Same thing with prizes, if they see that some kid is upset because they didn't get enough tickets to get what they wanted, they'll get it for them

They each have a particular style of game they gravitate towards

Veronica goes to the coin pushers

The arcade has a Spongebob, Willy Wonka and Marvel machine

She tends to go to the Willy Wonka one because even though each card individually is worth less, the complete set is worth more compared to the other two

She'll just stand in place for hours, hitting the button over and over again

She enters an almost catatonic state, hypnotized by the coins

One time Chandler came by just to check in on her and see how she was feeling, and when she tapped her on the shoulder she jumped and almost punched her

She plays it over and over and doesn't stop to play something else bc then someone might jump on and win all the cards she pushed forward

Onetime she won all of the cards out of it and when she tried to ask the employee to put more in they told her that she won all of them and that they didn't have any more to put in the machine

Then she moved on to the other two and cleaned them out as well

Duke plays games of chance

Stuff like Big Bass or that Pirate Spin Wheel one, she lives for the thrill of landing on that Big Bass Bonus

She plays them so much that she knows when the machines are about to pay out and so she'll wait, watching all of them, until she sees the signs of a pay out and rush over and get it

While she waits she'll go over to the classic cabinents, stuff like Pac-man or Galaga

Her and Chandler have a 'friendly' competition going and by friendly I mean downright vicious

If she sees that Chandler has beaten one of her high scores she will abandon all ticket-making endeavors to secure her rightful place as Queen of the Arcade

Her name on the machines is HDK and Chandler's is HCN

Speaking of Chandler, she focuses on games of skill

Stuff like Quik Drop, where you have to get all of the balls into moving cups, things where skill plays a major part in how many tickets you get

With these she can rack up a lot of tickets very quickly, her output far surpassing that of her gfs

Bc of that she feels like she can spend her time on games that don't give out tickets, like the classic arcade games

Mac isn't as ticket hungry as the others, she knows that they'll have more than enough for whatever they want to buy, so she does a little bit of everything

She is godly at Skee Ball, always landing in the 100 loop

She spends a lot of time at the claw machines, but she isn't very good at them so she usually ends up getting frustrated and walking away, before getting Chandler to come over and win whatever she was trying to get

DDR is probably her favorite, and she always drags her gfs to play with her

None of them can stand up to her might, and they usually step down breathing heavy and covered in sweat

She also holds the highest score on Pac-man, a record which Chandler and Duke have tried to beat for years but never have been able to

They usually stop around lunch time and order some food

They get two large pizzas, one for Veronica, the other for Mac and Duke to split

Chandler gets a salad bc she thinks their pizza is too greasy

Once they've spent all their tokens they put all of their tickets into the ticket eater, a process which takes close to 45 minutes to complete, and they go help the poor employee at the counter count out all of Veronica's coin pusher sets

They get an average of 200,000 tickets

They split the amount up 4 ways and each get what they want

Duke usually goes for the big expensive prizes, for example one time she was able to get a PS5

If there aren't any bigger prizes, she'll get all the nerf guns and insist upon having a nerf war when they get home

Chandler shudders at the thought of picking up nerf darts in random areas for months

One time she decided to just see how many of the 10 ticket mini army men she could get, just for fun

She ended up leaving with 5,000 of them, and they now sit in a box somewhere in her closet, just waiting for the day Duke comes up with some scheme

Mac likes going for the big stuffed animals

She has a whole collection, her room is just covered in them

Chandler tells her that she has enough and Mac says 'preposterous, you can never have too many'

She also gets the tiny animal toys

Veronica, like Duke, goes for the bigger prizes, but if they have any pokemon cards she'll get those, open them, and regret getting them because she pulled nothing

Chandler usually gives her tickets to her gfs because theres nothing she's interested in, but she occasionally gets something

One time she found this Mickey Mouse toaster that burned his face into the bread, which she thought was just fucking hilarious for some reason

She got it, expecting it to last a few weeks at most

It ended up lasting them 3 years, and they all got kinda upset when it finally stopped working

Before they leave they head into the photo booth

Chandler insists on having one normal picture and they can have two silly ones, but her gfs don't listen and always do something silly

She keeps each and every one of the photo slips

She pins them to a board in her room, and whenever she gets stressed out or angry or upset with her gfs, she goes to the board and looks at the photos and just thinks about how much she loves them, even if they can be infuriating and immature at times

[dearestvante]

stars around my scars; kth. | 03.

pairing: taehyung x fem!reader genre: college au, goodgirl x badboy (sort of), angst, fluff warnings: lowercase writing, swearing, drinking, infidelity (not between you and tae), taehyung calls you 'angel', can be confusing at times (i'm a beginner and not a native english speaker), taehyung's "bad" reputation is slowly revealing, jungwon is a dick (nothing new), the end is kinda nice?? idk you tell me summary: people are not always what they seem. you learned that the hard way, when you caught your boyfriend cheating, the night that was supposed to be one of the best ones you ever experienced. but on the same night you also learned that in everything bad, there’s always a little bit of good. wc: 4.8k

series masterlist

after that night you never missed a chance to hang out with your newfound friends. well, mostly taehyung. the two of you would hang out on campus, study in the library accompanied (correction: annoyed) by jungkook, or get together at his place. you found out that he has a dog, a cute ball of fluff named yeontan, with the meanest expression you’ve ever seen. it seemed like he hated you, but taehyung reassured you that he behaves like this with everyone except him, so you shouldn’t take it personally. you didn’t, but also didn’t stop trying to make the little pup like you. no luck so far.

as you spent more and more time with taehyung and the closer you got to him, the harder it was to see him as the “bad boy” everyone paints him to be. at first glance, maybe, he seemed cold, but all it took is to catch him smile to see how warm of a person he actually is. he was kind-hearted and comforting with a beautiful, box-shaped smile that would make anyone else smile as well. what you didn’t notice about him though, was the fact that he was like that only around you. for everyone else, he remained as the mysterious boy with a mean expression and a bad reputation. a reputation he didn’t even earn, but they didn’t know that. you did.

november passed so quickly like this, and december was on the same track. by the time you noticed the fast passing of the months, it was time to pack for christmas break. usually, this time of the year was your favorite, but recent events weakened the relationship between you and your mother, so you weren’t so eager to go home. on the other hand, meeting her might be great opportunity to finally get on the same page.

as soon as you got off the train, the chilly december wind immediately made its way under your coat, making you shiver. you grabbed your suitcase with one hand and your bag’s strap with the other and carefully cut through the crowd, looking for your mom. passing a few overly emotional parents, you finally noticed her. she immediately made her way towards you, smiling wide. you didn’t realize just how much you missed her, until she appeared in front of you. differences or not, she was still your mom, the one person who was always there for you, no matter what. you dropped the bag from your shoulder on the top of the suitcase and greeted your mother with an embrace.

“i missed you.”

“i missed you too, sweetheart.” she replied, hugging you tightly. “how was the ride?”

“y’know, just the usual. loud, crowded and never-ending.” you said, picking your bags up as the two of you headed towards the car.

“why didn’t you buy a first-class ticket?” your mom raised an eyebrow as she opened the trunk.

“i did, but it’s christmas break, everyone’s coming home.” you explained, helping her pack your bags in the car.

“i’m glad you came home safely.”

on your way home, she asked you about your studies, which was one of her favorite activities. she never forgot to remind you that she had to go through the same experiences, always asking about her favorite professors - even though most of them already retired years ago - and giving you advice on how you should do this and that. you hated when she did that, trying to control your life, but now, as long as you didn’t have to talk about your ex, everything was fine.

stepping inside the house, you instantly felt your whole body fill with warmth, literally and metaphorically. it felt good, being at a place that didn’t feel empty and cold.

you unpacked most of your stuff and helped your mom with the last touches of the christmas decorations. ever since your dad left, you and your mom spent christmases by yourselves, decorating the house, and the tree, baking cookies, planning what you will make for dinner on christmas eve and giving each other personalized gifts. it wasn’t any different this year either, christmas passed pleasantly and peacefully, and you thought that your home’s atmosphere would stay at this state ‘til the end of winter break. but you were wrong. so wrong.

your family had a tradition, to organize a dinner party between the two holidays. on december 30th, all your family friends would gather at your house for a fancy, champagne-sipping type of event. although the number of guests slowly decreased ever since your dad wasn’t part of these events anymore, your mom still decided to organize it every year. it meant a lot to her. and that’s why, no matter how much you wanted to go, you had to skip taehyung’s birthday, in order to support your mother. jungkook begged you to go, standing in front of you with joined hands every time he caught you alone somewhere. it took him a whole week to understand that you have to be there. you thought about going, you thought about it a lot, and you really wanted to but you just couldn’t let your mom down.

“so, who’s coming tonight?” you asked, stealing a cupcake from the tray while your mom was busy organizing the table.

“the lims and kangs will be present, haerin said they will have to bring nabi too, their babysitter quit again.” nabi had a new babysitter almost every month, not everyone could handle her shenanigans. but you were one of the few who did, so you were happy they’re bringing her along too.

“oh, and of course the parks. jungwon is coming too. maybe you two can work on your differences tonight.”

and there it was, the names you feared the most. you couldn’t believe what you just heard. it’s not enough that he’s coming here, to your house, your mom expects you to talk to him? talk to him and treat him like he didn’t just ruin your life?

“you are unbelievable. i thought you let this all go, that you finally believe me.” the gathering teardrops burned your eyes, but you were more stubborn than to let them fall.

“i do believe you, sweetheart. i just don’t want you to hold a grudge forever.”

you didn’t say anything, just turned around and went upstairs to your room. you were too angry to cry, besides, you promised yourself that no more tears will be shed for jungwon, cause he does not deserve it. instead, you took a deep breath to clear your mind and figured that if you’re stuck with this dinner, you might as well make the most of it. so you dug up the hottest dress from the bottom of your dresser, paired it with some high heels, did a full face makeup (not just the usual mascara and lipgloss duo) and styled your hair. adding the final touches, standing in front of the full-lenght mirror, you were quite pleased with the outcome. nothing was too extreme on their own, but the little black dress, the makeup and the styled hair together created a look that was rather eye-catching.

as the clock passed seven, tonight’s guests slowly started arriving. every time the door opened, you quickly found a chore for yourself so your mom would greet the guests instead of you. the kangs were the first, as always. they were a precise and meticulous couple, with no kids. they were too busy, plus mrs. kang is a neatnik, so it’s probably better it’s just the two of them. the next guests were haerin and soohyuk, and their adorable baby, nabi. they were quite the opposite of the kangs, never on time, always leaving or losing something, let it be nabi’s pacifier or haerin’s keys, something always gets left behind. they might have been a little bit chaotic, but their always bright and kind nature certainly made up for it. they were followed by the lims, the eldest of the bunch, and last, the park family. haerin was very happy when she realized, that this is the first time they aren’t the last ones to arrive. you, on the other hand, weren’t so happy they showed up.

you were in the living room playing with nabi when you felt a light tap on your shoulder. you turned around to see who is it, letting out a deep sigh when you faced them.

“hi.” jungwon greeted you with a smile. too bad you can’t return the favor. “you look pretty.”

“thanks.” you reply, and divert back your full attention to the baby girl, who seems just as annoyed by jungwon’s presence as you are, but you might have been just projecting.

“can we talk?” he was still standing there, not taking the obvious hints.

“no.” you answered, picking nabi up in your arms. you took her to the kitchen, which was, luckily, empty. she looked up at you, confused as of why you took her away from her toys, silently demanding an answer.

“sorry little one, the bad man was bothering me.”

“he is bad man?” nabi’s widely opened eyes suggested that you will need to elaborate on that statement a little further.

“don’t worry, he won’t hurt you” you said, softly pinching her cheek, as she smiled in relief.

since every one of the guests was here, it was time to start the dinner. you and your mom prepared a three-course meal for tonight, consisting of an appetizer, the main course and dessert. neither of you liked to brag about it, but both you and your mom were really great cooks, which was one of the key factors of tonight’s success. the dinner was quite delightful, when you weren’t helping out your mom, you spent most of the time talking to haerin and entertaining nabi, so her parents can eat in peace. you were in the middle of a sentence, when you heard your name from somewhere across the table. it was jungwon’s mom, trying to get your attention.

“yes, mrs. park. can i help you?”

“not me, darling.” she smiled forcefully, then turned to his son. “go on.”

you raised an eyebrow, not having an idea what is about to happen. does he want to publicly apologize?

“um, y/n i… i think you owe me an apology.”

you physically had to hold yourself back from yelling “what the fuck” in his face. after all, you couldn’t curse in front of a three year old.

“what do you mean?” you asked instead, clenching your fist so tight, you could feel your nails digging into your skin.

“your behavior towards me. it breaks my heart how easily you switched up on me, without listening to my side of the story.” he would be an excellent actor. so convincing that if you were just a little more gullible, you would actually believe that it’s you who is in the wrong here. he’s playing his part to perfection, making all the guests believe that what happened is actually your fault. suddenly the whole room is quiet, all eyes are on you.

“oh, how rude of me.” you say, dramatically touching your chest. he wants drama? well, he can get it. “i’m sorry for breaking up with you after you neglected me and our relationship for weeks. oh, and after you cheated on me while i was trying to fix our dying relationship. i am a terrible person for doing it, am i not?” you didn’t hold back, put your personal life all out there for everyone. you were tired of his lies, it was time to clear it all up. and that’s all it it took. you snapped him out of the act in seconds. you could see his eye twitch, his grip tightening around the utensils he’s holding. he opens his mouth to speak again, but your mom precedes him.

“you didn’t tell me that.”

“cause you never asked!” the awkward silence in the room made your voice sound even louder. she realized just now how wrong it was not to trust her own child. she opens her mouth, but closes it immediately, the guilt is stopping her from answering. there’s someone else in the room though, who’s guilt is not as strong, unfortunately.

“don’t try and blame it all on me!” jungwon says, out of nowhere, his whiny tone makes him sound like child. “let’s talk about that shady guy you left with during halloween, do you still hang out, hm? i’m sure your mom wouldn’t like you to be around such people like him” he glances at your mom to see her expression and when it’s what he’s hoped for, he continues “that’s why you didn’t tell her, right?”

“y/n? what is he talking about?” your mom, finally able to speak again, turns to you. you’re furious, eyes locked on the the loose-lipped guy sitting across you. your mind is in shambles, unable to think straight, so you squeeze your fists under the table even tighter, nails digging deeper and deeper into the soft skin of your palms, to prevent you from losing it. he’s enjoying it, that he has control again, diverting all attention from his wrongdoings back to your personal life. the other guests are shamelessly attentive, silently compelling an answer from you. when you don’t give one, jungwon turns to your mom and answers instead.

“kim taehyung. i’m sure it rings a bell for everyone.” he leans back into his chair, arms crossed, trying hard to hide how proud he is of himself. the room that was quiet until now is filled with gasps and oh my gods.

“are you out of your mind, y/n?!” your mom raises her voice to get your attention. “that’s the son of a criminal!”

all these people around you, acting like they know him just because they heard what his father did, made you even more frustrated. they had no right to talk about him the way they did, not when they don’t know him like you do. the picture they saw when they heard taehyung’s name couldn’t be more different than who he actually was, but none of them were interested in that. it was easier to place him in that box full of lies an misconceptions.

“i’m done.” you said, getting up from the table. you weren’t ready to have this conversation right now, when you knew that you can’t tell your side of the story nor change their minds anyways, no matter how hard you tried. thanks to jungwon, they already decided what the want to believe and clinged to it tightly. your mom tried to stop you from leaving, demanding an explanation, but you just shook her hands off yours and left, without looking back. you grabbed your coat and with the front door’s loud slam, you were gone.

walking aimlessly on a cold december night certainly helped you to clear your mind. you weren’t angry anymore, but undoubtably disappointed. first in your mother, but mostly in yourself. all these years have passed, yet you still can’t stand up for yourself, nor for someone you care about. though you rarely gave up without a fight, there were two people who always overpowered you. jungwon and your mom.

walking long distances in high heels was never exactly your strong suit, so when you reached the “lover’s bench” just a few blocks away from your house, it felt like a reward. rumor has it, if you sit on this bench with someone, you will end up falling in love with each other and stay together forever, and it did work out for some. not for you, though. soojin and jungwon both sat on this bench with you, and, well we see how that worked out.

as you sat there, massaging your sore legs, you noticed a car, slowing down as it approached you. you grabbed one of your heels, ready to use it as a weapon if it comes to that. the dark window rolled down, and behind it, a familiar face appeared. someone you haven’t seen in years.

“y/n, is that you?” the man was squinting his eyes, trying to recognize you in the dark.

“dad?! what the hell are you doing here?” you asked, eyes wide open.

“it’s… complicated. get in, you must be freezing out here.” he opened the door from the driver’s seat, but you refused.

“no way. not until you tell me what you want.”

he took a deep breath, contemplating how to tell you. “i came to apologize. now get in.”

he wasn’t wrong about you freezing, so after a few seconds, you gave in. in the end, he’s still your dad, it’s not like he’s gonna kidnap you.

“you’re a a few years late with that, don’t you think?” you turned to him, after closing the door.

“i know i am.” he turns to you too, after pulling over. “i want to apologize for what i did. and for taking so long to do so. i was a coward and ran away instead of facing the consequences of my actions. i’m sorry, but i couldn’t look in your eyes after that. i was ashamed, and i ran.”

you’ve never seen your dad like this before. so vulnerable, speaking from his heart. this was the first time hearing his side of the story. up until today, all you knew was that he cheated on your mom and ran away with the other woman. but if what he says is true, the latter never actually happened.

“so.. you left us because you felt guilty and ashamed and not because you loved someone else and wanted to be with her?” you ask after a few silent moments.

“i never saw her after that night. it was a reckless mistake, nothing more.”

“that doesn’t make it right, though. it changes things, but only slightly.” you’re aware how harsh your tone is, but you don’t really care. what he did was still wrong, and you’re not going to forgive nor forget so easily.

“i don’t expect you to forgive me, but thank you for listening.”

you nod quietly in response, not knowing what words would be appropriate in this situation.

“do you think your mom would listen to me as well?” he asks after a few moments of silence.

“oh, yeah definitely. she’s quick to forgive cheaters these days.” you scoff, causing your dad to stare at you with a shocked expression, reminding you that he’s kind of out of the loop.

“my boyfriend cheated on me, but she insists that i forgive him or something, cause he’s her best friend’s son.” you explain it quickly.

“oh.. wow.” your dad is still in shock, hence the short response. “that’s why you aren’t at the dinner right now, cause he is there, isn’t he?”

“that dinner was a whole mess.”

“no drunk stories from kang?” he asks with a playful smile, remembering the times he used to be part of this event, bringing out mr. kang’s not-so-perfect side. your dad made him drink just a bit more than he was supposed to, and he turned into a whole new person, telling stories from his young adulthood, which were mostly true, but definitely spiced up a little, for entertainment purposes. he even made his uptight wife smile once or twice.

“no, not this time.” you smile faintly, as the memories return, and you have to admit - although, only to yourself - that these dinners weren’t the same without your dad. nothing was. your mom tried to make up for everything that was missing after he left, and you appreciated her efforts, but something was always missing, and even though you hated to feel that way, there wasn’t a day when you didn’t miss your dad. you surpassed those feeling during the years, but now as you’re sitting beside him reminiscing the moments of the past, they’re slowly breaking free.

“i figure that home is the last place you want to be right now, so you’re welcome to stay at my hotel room, if you want.” he offers after a very accurate observation.

“i’ll think about it, thanks.” you nod with a weak smile.

“is there anything else i can do to make you feel better? i might not know what happened, but i can see that it’s tearing you. and i hate to see you like that.” there he is. the man that always sees right through you, no matter how deep you hide your feelings.

“actually, there is something you could do..”

before you entered the apartment complex, you took out your phone to leave a short message for your mom. sure, she was mad at you and you were mad at her, but you knew that she’s probably worried sick, cause you left a long time ago, and haven’t returned. you informed her that you’re fine, and told her not to wait, cause you’re probably not coming home tonight. after pressing ‘send’, you slipped the device back to your pocket and headed upstairs. the click-clacks of your heels were awfully loud in the quiet hallway, but luckily for the residents (and for you too, let’s be honest) you didn’t have to climb a lot of stairs to reach the apartment. you knock on the door once, no answer. you knock again, still nothing. you raise your hand to try again, but then the door suddenly whips open, revealing a furrow-browed boy behind it. his eyes widen at the sight of you, a grin forming on his lips.

“heeey, you made it. though you might be a little overdressed.” jungkook pulls you into a tight hug after scrutinizing you from head to toe. he did mention that this birthday party is not exactly a party, considering that it’s just him, taehyung and yeontan, so your appearance was, indeed, a bit too much. but your presence was appreciated anyway.

“yeah. change of plans. the birthday boy?” you ask, after quickly scanning the room.

“in the kitchen, preparing the goods.” jungkook imitates drinking from a bottle as he replies. “hurry up, hyung, your angel is here.”

“since when do you call me angel?” you look up at him, one eyebrow cocked, while taking off your shoes.

“can’t help it, fits so well.” jungkook says, helping you take off your coat.

as you approach the kitchen, you’re held off by yeontan, who’s sitting right in front of your feet. he looks up at you, tiny head tilted, his tongue peeking out. you bend down a little to pat his head, but as your hands gets closer, he growls, like always.

“tan, be nice.” taehyung appears behind him, handing you a glass of something as you straighten up. “i’m glad you could make it.” he says, smiling shyly.

“me too. happy birthday, taehyung.” you clink your glass to his, returning the smile.

the two of you join jungkook in the living room, who’s currently laying on the floor, for some reason. you stare at him, confused as you sit down on the couch, which he notices soon.

“it’s good for your back, trust me. well not yours, but mine.” he says, and sure, he is right, but right now you can read his behavior as a side effect of being tipsy. he downed the drink taehyung made technically in one go. looking at him do it, you decide it’s time you taste yours. you weren’t a big fan of alcohol, never understood how can people like something that tastes so horrible. you took a sip, and for your surprise, it tasted quite good.

“what’s in this?” you asked, pointing at the glass.

“it’s a secret.” taehyung and jungkook replied in sync, both of them having a mischievous grin on their faces.

you couldn’t help but let out a small chuckle at the sight. during the past few weeks you had a chance to observe the friendship between jungkook and taehyung, and the best term to describe it was partners in crime. they were always up to something, giggling and doing their own personalized handshake while doing so. it was, indeed an endearing sight, and you always caught yourself smiling whenever you watched them together. but between all the mischief and bickering, there was also love and caring. neither of them were the type to say it out loud, but it was there, in the small gestures. watching them sometimes made you feel something, deeply, in the innermost nook of your heart. that used to be soojin’s place.

the rest of the night went on quite pleasantly. thanks to jungkook’s shitty memory, in the end you could personally give taehyung his gift, - which he made you promise not to buy, but it’s not your fault that his favorite artist has an exhibition and you were lucky enough to get tickets for it. in exchange, he insisted you go with him, saying that jungkook doesn’t appreciate art and he would end up making fun of the displayed pieces, so you agreed. during the night you told the boys all about the adventures of the dinner and that your dad is back. their shocked expressions were priceless and a perfect representation of how you felt the whole night.

after a few more drinks, and jungkook passing out on the couch, you called your dad to take you home. well, to his hotel. it was really late - or early, depends on perspective - so you didn’t want to bother your mom with your late arrival nor your dad’s sudden appearance. he agreed, and after a short debate on whether leaving jungkook alone like this is a good idea or not, taehyung decided, he will walk you out anyways. you two walked down the sidewalk quietly, waiting to spot your dad’s car somewhere in the parking lot. both of you felt that something in the air, but none of you could break the silence, not even with all that liquid courage in your system. at some point you stopped, taehyung did the same, and without giving too much thought to it, you hugged him, wrapping your arms around his waist. you noticed his heart rate increasing, thanks to your impulsive act, but he was quick to bring it back to normal, pulling you closer, resting his chin on the top of your head. even with you high heels, you were still short next to him.

“thank you for coming tonight, it really meant a lot.”

“i’m sorry i couldn’t come sooner, it’s just, i had to be there for mom…”

“hey, it’s fine,” he cuts you off, lifting your chin, to look at him. “you still made it, that’s what matters.”

as you locked eyes with him, standing there in the pale moonlight, accompanied by nothing but the deep silence of the night, the whole world around you seemed to disappear, leaving just the two of you, standing there, wrapped in each other’s arms. at least that’s what it would’ve felt like if the sharp sound of your message notification wouldn’t have pulled you back to reality. you let go of taehyung, reaching into your pocket. it was your dad, informing you that he’s here. the moment you had disappeared in a blink of an eye, which made you believe that you were thinking too much of it.

“it’s my dad, i gotta go.” you looked up at him once again, though this time, with a little more distance between the two of you.

“sure. i should go check on jungkook anyway.” taehyung said, standing a little awkwardly now, with both hands in his back pockets.

“say goodbye to him for me. good night.” you smiled softly.

“will do. take care, angel.”

sitting in your dad’s car, now on your way to the hotel, you could still smell taehyung’s cologne on yourself. you weren’t complaining about it, though.

“so, who is the boy?” you dad inquired.

“that’s taehyung. it was his birthday.. well yesterday.” you replied, glancing at your watch.

“i mean, who is he to you?”

“oh.. he’s a friend.” you answered naturally, but your dad did not seem convinced. sure, you spent a lot of time together, you knew all things he likes and dislikes, or how he gets shy and fidgety when complimented. and sure, every time he smiled at you, you would get flustered, every time he looked at you, you felt like you could get lost in those chocolate brown eyes of his, and you loved how your name - whether ‘angel’ or your real one - sounded in his deep, velvety voice. and sure, you might’ve been fantasizing about how it would feel to kiss him, not even five minutes ago, but that was just a silly little thought, friends can still be like that, right?

a/n. hello lovelies! here i present the third chapter. i think i worked the most on this one, but it's my favorite so far, even tho a lot of things happen at once lol. anyways, i hope you like it, and look forward to the next. likes, rbs, comments always appreaciated. take care ❤️‍🩹

[adamwatchesmovies]

Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (1971)

In 2005, Tim Burton directed an adaptation of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. It was generally well-reviewed and made nearly $500 million at the box office. I’ll call it a good film. Watching 1971's Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory, you can understand why someone felt like it could use a remake/the book needed to be adapted again. That said, the artistic decisions at the writing, musical, performance and tonal level accompany all of the weird “of the era” choices. Combined, they make this movie the kind that transcends the decades.

Poor, kind Charlie Bucket (Peter Ostrum) lives in a small house with his mother (Diana Sowle) and his four grandparents. One day, legendary candy maker Willy Wonka (Gene Wilder) announces he has hidden five golden tickets in his world-famous Wonka Bars. The children who find them will be allowed access to his mysterious factory and receive a lifetime supply of chocolate. As the world madly scrambles to find the golden tickets, Charlie continues to believe he has a chance of finding one too.

The premise implies it, but Charlie does eventually find one of the golden tickets and he invites his beloved Grandpa Joe (Jack Albertson) to join him on the factory tour. I’m still labeling this fact as a spoiler because it’s about a third to halfway through the movie before Charlie finds his golden ticket. A sizeable chunk of the running time is dedicated to showing our hero as kind, good-hearted and full of hope despite his circumstances, while the other people who find the tickets… are exactly who you think they would be. The film teases you and builds the anticipation. Charlie is poor. He has to scratch together the money needed to buy a single Wonka bar while some of his classmates open over a hundred. There’s a cruelty to the fact that any other year, a single bar for his birthday would be the most wonderful thing Charlie could’ve dreamed of but this year, the bar is a disappointment because it doesn't contain a shiny invitation. You want Charlie to see the inside of that factory because you like him and you know what it would mean to the boy. It’s equally important that he finds one because everyone else who's going doesn’t deserve to go like he does.

Until we get to the factory, director Mel Stuart frequently cuts to gags showing us the extent of the globe's Wonkamania. Scientists have developed machines to find tickets without opening the wrappers. As the worldwide supply begins to dry up, sealed boxes of Wonka bars are sold at auction houses for ridiculous sums. We even see a woman whose husband has been kidnapped hesitating to pay the ransom: her stash of Wonka bars.

Is it a surprise that the children who find the Golden Tickets are all loathsome in their own ways? There’s the gluttonous Augustus Gloop (Michael Böllner). He loves chocolate but just looking at him constantly stuffing his face makes you feel a little ill. Next is Veruca Salt (Julie Dawn Cole). She got her ticket because her father bought millions of bars and dedicated the entire staff of his peanut factory to rip the packaging open until they found it. She's the definition of "spoiled". The last two children, chronic gum-chewer Violet Beauregarde (Denise Nickerson), and television-obsessed Mike Teevee (Paris Themmen) are brats consumed by their bad habits. I guess there’s nothing THAT bad about chewing gum the way Violet does (though her obsession is pretty gross) or the way Mike obsesses over his shows (boy does his rotten attitude make him detestable, however) but they both give you a headache. There’s something pretty funny about the fact that some of these kids’ “deadly sins” are so juvenile and you’re happy to see all of them taught a lesson.

The odd thing about Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory is that there aren’t any character arcs. The bad children are taught lessons but in the process, they leave the factory tour and the movie. Charlie is already the person he’s meant to be so what the film does is introduce him and the world outside the factory, introduce the other children, then whittle down the cast as we explore the chocolate-making process and get to know Willy Wonka. That’s an unusual structure but it suits the film well. We anticipate the inevitable even before realizing their lessons come with musical numbers.

The competition for which piece of music is the best is fierce. Despite going on to become a hit after its rendition by Sammy Davis, Jr. and fitting in the movie perfectly, I don’t think The Candy Man is as memorable as (I've Got a) Golden Ticket but is the latter’s ability to stick in your mind due to the music & lyrics, or because of the scene that introduces it? The real contenders are Pure Imagination and the Oompa Loompa song, which gets my vote. It’s got an iconic melody, memorable lyrics and has the added bonus of being easy to expand upon or parody. It’s another reason to look forward to the bad kids misbehaving.

There’s a lot to say about Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. Visually, it’s not as slick as it could be and there are times when it’s so strange (that scary tunnel ride) that you can understand why someone said “We should try this again”. The thing is, the strange choices aren’t bugs; they’re features. Yes, it is occasionally unexpectedly weird/scary but if the movie was nothing but sweet songs and bright-eyed children learning nice lessons, it wouldn’t be any fun. The moments when Willy Wonka is a little bit nasty towards his bratty guests mirrors the way you feel about them. The release of 2023's Wonka only makes the film's evergreen quality more apparent. (November 29, 2024)

[v4mpires0ap]

I decided instead of getting my fic done first I'm just now gonna tell y'all the full story about my meeting with Tenoch

AND BUCKLE UP CUS IT'S A LONG ONE 🤠

So how this all started was in the group chat I was told about the fact that Tenoch was gonna be at C2E2 and I was like I WANNA GO SO BADDDDDD IF I GO IMAGINE IF I MEET HIM OR SOMETHING and I decided I wanted to buy tickets but I couldn't afford to. Then one fateful day, my uncle texted me asking if I wanna go to C2E2 with him. For further context, I told him about how much I love Tenoch and his role as Namor and all that since me and him are marvel geeks + he works for marvel. I didn't believe he was being serious at first until HE SENT ME PROOF OF ALL THE TICKETING INFORMATION STUFF. Then asked if I would like to meet Tenoch Huerta. ONCE AGAIN, I THOUGHT THERE'S NO WAY HE'S BEING SERIOUS HE HAS TO BE PLAYING WITH ME BUT NO HE WAS BEING DEAD SERIOUS. So I said yes of course I'd love to.

Then I told the chat I'm going to the con and I was just thinking about what my meeting with him is gonna be like. Then that led to me worrying that he's not gonna like me. The day before i left to Chicago I was having a mental breakdown over that thought + personal things I'm not gonna mention. I couldn't stop crying over it. I was genuinely out here thinking this man is gonna hate me when highly likely that won't happen. Just me being irrational for no reason. But hey it's that mental illness innit 🤩

So I had to get up early in the morning so my uncle can pick me up and go to the airport. We left a day before the con started so we can be there tomorrow on time. I hated the plane ride because heights scare me but at least I took a peaceful nap. This was the first time I been to another state outside of Nevada or California. But it is what it is

Now day 1. Day one did not go so well. Here's how it went down.

So my plan was to wear two outfits for day 1 and 2 and bring my backpack with the picture I wanted him to sign, a letter a friend of mine written for Tenoch, and a kuromi plushie. Now why a kuromi plushie? Why not? I wanted to be different I guess 💀 plus I decided to be all sappy and take a sharpie and write "you're my hero" on the tag. My outfit for day one was a shirt with Namor on it, a black floofy skirt, fishnets, and black combat boots. Because I'm edgy and I wanted to show everyone what I'm about 😭😭 I was having fun for a little bit I was talking to some people there and walking around listening to my music, waiting for Tenoch to get here. Then later I didn't even realize Tenoch got here already 💀 BUT HOT DAMN HE'S EVEN PRETTIER IN PERSON 😳 I WAS LIKE "Y'ALL ARE TELLING ME THIS MAN IS ACTUALLY REAL?" LIKE SHITTTTT

So i went to go get in line to meet him. However, the line was longer than I anticipated and it was kinda hot as hell I was sweating a little. Then I realized I left my backpack in the hotel room and I felt like an idiot. Really was in the autograph line when i had nothing for him to sign that day 😭😭 As the line was moving up, i started to feel anxious. And it was getting worse the more closer I was getting. I was clenching my fists so hard my knuckles were turning white, i couldn't breathe, my heart was beating hella fast, it was getting too much. When it was almost my turn, i felt an anxiety attack going on and I ran out of the line and I'm pretty sure Tenoch saw me run away. I hid away and started crying. My anxiety got the best of me and when I decided to go back in line, there wasn't a line anymore. I was too late. My uncle found me all teary eyed and asked what happened and I explained it all. We left the place and went back to the hotel room and I was so upset with myself because I missed out on my chance of meeting him because of my anxiety. But turns out, on day 2 I have a second chance.

Day 2 went better. Here's what happened

I was feeling more confident for day 2. I didn't forget to bring my backpack this time and I wore a different outfit. I had another namor shirt on (i only have 2 btw) black shorts, thigh high socks, and my busted hello kitty converses. I felt like I dressed a little more casual this day but it's whatever, not the point. This time i didn't feel anxious in line. And i wasn't all the way in the back of the line like last time 😭 When I got closer, I was starting to feel nervous again but I know not to run away this time. Just go for it. Once it was finally my turn, I took a deep breath and went up to him. I could barely make out a "hello" i was nearly speechless. Tenoch smiled at me and said "it's okay, you can do it" and I took another breath again and said hi 🧍🏻‍♀️ I said it's nice to finally meet you and I told him I was the girl who ran away before I got to meet him. AND HE KNOWS. I felt so embarrassed about it. But OMG?? He was so sweet and gentle with me 🥹 he looked at me and said "I'm proud of you for showing up today" and that made me tear up a little. I said thank you and then I remembered was like OH WAIT I have stuff for you!! So i handed him the picture I wanted him to sign, then the letter and then the plushie. I told him to read the tag. When he saw the tag said "you're my hero" he gushed and said aweee 🥹🥹 I said "I'm glad you like it and I'm sorry I'm so shy" and I teared up again but instead of just being teary eyed, I actually cried. Then he got up and hugged me. HIS HUGS WERE SO NICE AND HE SMELLED SO LOVELY LIKE WHAT DID I EVER DO TO DESERVE THIS. I told him thank you for being the amazing human you are and you deserve all the good in the world. I was worried my time was gonna be up but I wanted to just live in the moment for now. I wiped my tears and he tucked my hair behind my ear and said "hey, it's okay. You did good today. I'm proud of you." And I tried to take in a deep breath to hopefully stop my crying and then we went and took our picture together. (I'll post it when I feel like I'm ready to) and before time was up, i asked him for another hug and he hugged me again. His hugs were just warm and comforting.

This is a day I'm going to remember forever.

[countrymusiclover]

16 - The White Dress Ticket

Part 17

The Texas Tire Family

I feel like the next chapter will be the last one because I am stuck on ideas. If you all have anything you’d like to. See before I finish this book let me know 🤗

Tags just ask - @supernaturalgirl30 @bvbwestfall @bubble-blu @patriciaplictisita @liesanddreams @bethanymccauley

The bed dipped where I rolled over waking up slightly started where I smiled sleepily up at Georgie running his fingers through my messy hair. We had been home back in Texas for a few weeks and I had been checked out by the doctors in our hospital. The baby doctor also said that there was a light bruise around Montana’s neck but it was fading away just fine. “Sorry I couldn’t wait for you to wake up. But the girls have a surprise for you in the kitchen.”

“Surprise. What kind of surprise exactly?” I asked tossing the bed covers aside letting my feet hit the bedroom floor of our house. Following him into the living room of the house I gasped seeing that Connie, Mary and Mandy were standing in the kitchen.

Aurora and Evelyn ran forward in front of them cheering in unison with them. “We’re going dress shopping, mommy!”

“Wait what. We haven’t even talked about anything else for the wedding since Montana was born. Georgie, we really don’t have to put a lot of money into this.” I explained squeezing his hand intertwined with mine.

He leans forward kissing me on the forehead declaring simply at me. “Look babe, I know that we have been busy with our baby boy but you deserve a real wedding. I couldn’t give you one fit for a princess or whatever when we first got engaged but I can now. So take today with our family and have fun. I can handle our little man.”

“Thank you, Georgie.” Flinging my arms around his neck he wrapped his arms around my waist burying his face in the crook of my neck breathing me in until we broke the comfortable embrace.

Changing into some dark blue and a red flannel shirt I pulled my hair up into a loose ponytail. Pulling on a belt through the belt loops of my jeans I added it on some light brown boots. Mary insisted on driving so that Mandy and I could get some drinks if we wanted and Connie would only get a drink if we went to the Mexican restaurant to get Margaritas. “This is sweet of Georgie to watch the kids so we can do this. We just have to pick up Missy then we can go dress shopping.” My mother in law smiled yet I could see some tears form in her eyes clearly thinking back to her husband.

“Yeah I honestly haven’t even had a chance to talk with him about the wedding. With the kids having to make up for the days of school they missed during Sheldon and Amy’s wedding and then the birth of Montana. We haven’t had a moment to ourselves really.” Running my fingers through my hair I leaned back in the passenger seat.

Connie leaned forward in the backseat seeing as we were pulling to Missy’s place. The copper twin came outside climbing in the car waving to all of us. “I can’t believe we are actually taking you dress shopping. It only took over ten years, three babies and two proposals before you got to wear a white wedding dress Y/n.”

“Yeah all cause your husband couldn’t slow down his role to sleep with the woman he loves.” Connie responds sternly.

Mary scolded her mother. “Oh mom…we shouldn’t focus on that anymore. It’s in the past. Now we can just focus on the fact that you are getting married.”

“Exactly Mary. There are sometimes though I wonder what would have happened on my twenty first birthday and everything after we graduated high school if I wasn’t pregnant.” I trailed off in thought.

Georgie and I walked into a steak restaurant that was a few hours away from home since he wanted to make my twenty-first birthday as special as he could. My birthday was a few months after his and I had taken him out to buy a new truck that he had been wanting since I had the money saved up for a while that would help us with raising two growing daughters. He held open the door for me and we headed to go sit at the bar. “I didn’t expect you to take me out tonight. I feel like we owe Mandy a free dinner or something more for all the babysitting hours she had done for us.”

“I just know she doesn’t like me sometimes so I’ll let you sweet talk that deal. To be honest everyone loves you, not as much as me though.” He leaned forward kissing me quickly before a bartender came over to us.

Georgie and I got some beers and there was one specifically that I liked that was called Angry Orchard. Raising the bottle to my lips I glanced at his direction seeing him smirk at me. “What is that look for?”

“We should make this a thing from now on. Going out when we feel like we need to just be teenagers since we missed out on some other stuff. What do you think, darling?” He asked, sitting down his beer bottle hearing some music starting to play by a live band that was playing here.

Sitting my drink down I climbed down from my barstool dragging him towards the dance floor grinning brightly. “That’s perfect. Now let’s go dance.”

He placed one hand on my waist with my other on his shoulder. Leaving our freehands to intertwine together where we were longingly watching the other not focused on the crowd of people around us. “One of these days once the girls are older I am going to do my best to give you the life that you wanted before we became teen parents.”

“Georgie, you don’t have to do anything more than you have. I have two beautiful children and who knows we might have even more after our little girls. I am married to the first guy I truly cared about, if that isn’t a life worth living I don’t know what is.” Shaking my head he twirled me underneath his arm and away from his chest.

I giggled, throwing my hair around before he spun me back into his embrace, brushing his nose with mine smiling the whole time. “That may be all well and good yet I’d still love to see you in a white wedding dress.”

Mandy drew back the curtain letting me walk through where she didn’t dare take a peek at the dress since I wanted everyone to see it at the same time. Standing in front of the large mirror I had tried on a few dresses earlier but I could tell this was the one. “So what do ya’ll think of this one?”

“Oh it’s beautiful.” Mary clasped her hands together on the verge of tears.

Connie took Mandy’s hand in hers where they said the exact same thing in unison. “You look so wonderful in that.”

“You’re a freaking princess, Y/n.” Missy jumped up to her feet running over and hugging me as much as her pregnant belly would allow her too. “My brother is gonna find you so dang hot.”

Turning back to face the mirror the dress had a long train in the back that had lace going down my back and around my waist. It had short sleeves that reached just to the start of my elbows. And there was a slit in the right side of the dress where you could see my cowgirl boots sticking out. “If only I could go back and tell the teen me that everything is going to be fine. This is the dress I want now let’s go get some Mexican food and drinks.” Everyone in my group of close friends and family cheered knowing that Georgie and I couldn’t wait to get to our wedding and we knew that Sheldon and Amy with their friends would come out here for the ceremony.

Comments really appreciated ❤️