#and thank god i had an excuse to go completely minimalistic for once. all in all i'm quite happy with the result

[seaofreverie]

Sparkstember Day 19: Lil' Beethoven (Ride 'Em Cowboy)

First of all, let this very important fact be known: the love I have for all three albums in the Lil' Beethoven trilogy cannot be overstated. I think I can safely call them my favourite pieces of art ever made. You know, when you look forward to something and it not only lives up to all your expectations but it's also just SO SO much more? Something about this neoclassical / dada / deconstruction of pop music / whatever-you-should-even-call-it approach is absolutely PERFECTLY suited for my tastes, and I didn't even know I was looking for something EXACTLY like this until I found it.

I think the circumstances of my first hearing of this album are pretty funny and something I got pretty lucky with actually (I often think about this with Sparks in general, as much as I wish I've known about them sooner I also do feel like they appeared in my life when I needed that the most. But anyway.) I was very eagerly looking forward to hearing it and finally seeing for myself what the genius of this album is all about. But I insisted that I can only do it through a physical format because yesss, let's make it even more *special*! The moment I've been waiting for! So yeah let's gooo, I need to wait until my CD arrives in the mail (that was one of the longest weeks of my life). And then I started to wonder, well, maybe I actually won't like it that much. To hype myself up to this extent and then be severly dissapointed - would have sucked!

Well, I was NOT dissapointed. Instead I was perplexed, confused, but also very intrigued and quite, ok not just quite, *completely* amazed already. That was the initial reaction and I think it's a rare but very beautiful moment when this happens - no need to *fully* grasp it right away, but enough to be all like "oh that was SOMETHING. I need more." As I said after that first listen (and I actually have my whole LIVE reaction to hearing LB written down lmao, that's how much of a big deal this was for me), I felt like it actually has to grow on me a bit still, gradually but surely with each next listen, rather than the 1st listen being THE prime listening experience. And that was very true! But it wasn't even gradual, it was very fast, seriously. And something very important that stood out to me right away too were the melodies - something about them, and that continues into HYL and ECOTD too. It's this classic feeling of: this always existed, or at least it feels like I've known it for years already. And as I listen more and become more familiar with them the magic still grows.

It's of course no coincidence to me that an album that relies so much on extreme levels of repetition is so addicting, even hypnotising. And once upon a time I thought that I couldn't like something that's too repetitive and therefore could be considered monotonous or "predictable". But nothing is predictable about LB actually. (Besides... ok, I'll get to that one bit later). But yeah, it's good for the brain. And it's been said before by others but this music definitely has this certain neurodivergent appeal thanks to all this, and, well, I love that aspect of it so much and I definitely relate to it on some level that goes even deeper than just song topics and instrumentation choices. It's in the structure and the fundaments of it all too.

I legally can't finish this without a dedicated paragraph to the 2004 Live In Stockholm performance because HOLY SHIT. Feeling so lucky again that all three of these albums got this treatment and we have recordings of these half-concert-half-performance-art pieces that we can now marvel at. I will say that like, a pretty big part of the sum of the appeal that LB has as an album is stored in this show and its visual and narrative elaboration on its themes. And also it's just so fun to watch! Sometimes I thought about how this might be an even better introduction to LB / this era of Sparks / Sparks in general than the actual album but well, never had a chance to test that and you know. Maybe shouldn't recommend Sparks with one of the most leftfield things there is to be found from them. Either way, very good, very important, felt like experiencing the power of LB for the first time all over again.

So now, please hear my exact reasonings for why I so deeply love (almost) every single one of these songs......

The Rhythm Thief

NO song made such a big impression on me the first time I heard it as this. I might have gotten more used to it after all this time but man, The Rhythm Thief, you will always be the realest one to me. This is what made me look forward to the whole album so much and convinced me that it would be like nothing else I've heard before. And that turned out to be so very beautifully true!

How Do I Get To Carnegie Hall?

I could listen to this one a hundred times in a row over and over and not get sick of it one bit. That's it, idk what else to add, beautiful and ethereal in every way

What Are All These Bands So Angry About?

Mostly I just want to direct everyone's attention to the bridge section, at the 2:26-2:52 time mark, which as far as I can say is the most heavenly piece of music ever made. Feeling like that Winnie The Pooh soul leaving his body gif each time I hear this

I Married Myself

Aromantic anthem, to me. Not that much to say actually but it's just, a very sweet and pretty song even when it might be taken as just this sort of ironic piece, I think it's this situation where a song can be taken more or less literally and it doesn't lose anything, rather the sincerity takes on a new sort of meaning? Because yes, maybe this hyperbolic situation (marrying yourself) COULD be the solution to the heartbreak of failed relationships. Ever thought about that??? Ok, stopping right here and leaving my I Married Myself analysis for another day

Ride 'Em Cowboy

My mind is blank on this one suddenly. But it's so good believe me. I love it a lot. It just has this LB spirit that makes it very addicting to listen to

My Baby's Taking Me Home

This was sort of the first Sparks song I've ever heard, or maybe that I quote-unquote purposefully listened to, and I think that's pretty important considering that it was the moment that ultimately lead to... all this. This song has always been incredibly beautiful and powerful to me, but lately it just makes me emotional to an extent that makes it hard to listen to most of the time. I WOULD sell all my material possessions for even one chance to experience this song live by the way

Your Call Is Very Important To Us. Please Hold

Earns soooo much as a live version, but even without that I think it's genius in the same way as The Rhythm Thief, and maybe the most disquieting piece here overall... If we ignore the next one maybe

Ugly Guys With Beautiful Girls

Sitting there hearing the intro of this song all like "huh, this is so chill and calm... too calm..." and then being hit with, well, everything that's going on in this song afterwards was truly THE MOMENT back in the day (and re: the predictability thing. idk though, it's not like, really an issue). Later on I decided that this sort of narrative nature of the song makes it have less replayability value than the rest (???) but I abandoned that opinion soon enough, thank god. I love it how long it took me to realize that this song and the ending of MBTMH are the only times when drums appear on this entire album (I mean no, I'm not very proud of that fact actually, as the self-proclaimed biggest LB fan in my area. And The Rhythm Thief literally saying "say goodbye to the beat"... come on man). So yes, sometimes less is more! I adore this song now it's such a treat I would gladly terrorize my neighbours with it

Suburban Homeboy

Ok, I'm sorry Suburban Homeboy fans but this is the only song here that I'm not a HUGE fan of. I still think it's brilliant and an incredibly fitting ending for the whole thing - the mood whiplash is amazing as this is the only "vaguely happy sounding" song on here, per my words from months back. And what's better than yelling WE ARE THE SUBURBAN HOMEBOYS! (I'm actually awaiting today's Sparks karaoke rating reveal very impatiently lol the reveal happened before I posted this and I'm very happy about it)

One more actually, a quick word on Wunderbar because it gave us two things that we might have not been able to do without: 1) this whole album actually (the fact that LB exists because of Wunderbar giving the Maels the idea to continue meddling with this style. Up there as one of my fav pieces of Sparks trivia) 2) anddddd the 21×21 performance of it of course

[headoverheelsforramsey]

Hello, hello! This week, we are going on a little:

Home Tour!

Notes: Answer the following with pictures (dialogue from your characters is optional!). Collages are highly encouraged if you want to answer a question with multiple pictures because tumblr mobile only allows 10 total pics. Otherwise, tumblr on a desktop lets you add multiple pictures (non-beta)!

For both:

What does the outside of the home look like? (Front/back yard, garden, pool, etc)

Living room and home office (if any)?

Kitchen and dining room?

Bedrooms? (Master, guest, others)

Other rooms?

Do you own your dream home? If not, what does that dream home look like?

What is your favorite room to spend time in with each other?

Super super late to this, because of my stupid exam but now we are here so let's go! 💃🏽🏠

A/N : I am placing this two years and seven months after the wedding, because I HC Ethan and Meera staying at Ethan's apartment for two years after the wedding and they only start house hunting when they have the baby talk and start trying for a baby. So technically not newlyweds anymore. Now let's get started! ✨

Meera opens the door and greets Bree.

Meera : Hii Bree, welcome to our humble abode.

Bree (chuckles) : This place is anything but humble. I hope I am not causing much trouble.

Meera : Absolutely not. Who else is going to make me feel like a youtuber?

Both laugh, Ethan joins and greets Bree.

Bree : Congratulations on the good news Dr. Ramsey. How far are y'all?

Ethan : Thank you Bree. It's been 3 months already.

Meera (cradling her small bump) : Yup one trimester down two more to go.

Ethan (kissing her forehead) : And then there will be a mini version of you running around these halls.

Meera : Nope it's gonna be a mini you.

The couple shares a look as if challenging each other.

Meera : Fine, Bree, whose team are you on? Do you think it'll be a boy or a girl?

Bree : I am happy with either because at the end I'll be interviewing him or her too.

The three of them share a laugh.

Bree : Let's get started, shall we?

Ethan : Sure.

What does the outside of the home look like? (Front/back yard, garden, pool, etc)

Front :

Meera : We were looking for something modern yet chic, something that is totally us. I fell in love with the design whereas Ethan was in total awe of the open space and glass doors. Needless to say our heart was stuck on this no matter how many more houses we visited.

Backyard :

Ethan : The backyard also doubles up as the garden but it's not quite completed yet.

Meera : Yes it's been two months since we moved, and we haven't been able to work on the garden because of work and the pregnancy. Ethan : But we want to build a garden with a tree house and maybe some swings.

Meera (too excited) : Ohh swings! Yes please add it onto the list. Why didn't I think of it before?

Pool :

Meera : Definitely my favorite part!

Ethan : She is a water baby through and through so that's no surprise.

Meera : Don't act like you don't appreciate me in a swimsuit, Ramsey (winks)

Ethan : There is no denying that.

Living room and home office (if any)?

Living room :

Ethan : Meera was hell bent on having an L-shaped couch.

Meera : Those things are so bougie I had to have one because now I can finally afford one. But yeah the living room is so relaxing with a beautiful view of the outside.

Home office :

Meera : Honestly speaking, I do not understand the utility of a home office, I didn't understand back at his apartment neither do I understand now. If I am supposed to work from home I can do that on the couch or on my bed or even better on the daybeds by the pool.

Ethan (shaking his head) : You'll get it darling. When you start your maternity leave I'll see how you make zoom calls with the pool as your background.

Meera shrugs.

Kitchen and dining room?

Meera : This part was all Ethan so I'll let him do the talking.

Ethan (proudly) : A Poggenpohl kitchen with a granite-topped island adds an ultramodern touch. Glass shelves display colorful glassware convenient to the wet bar. A translucent sliding glass door below the shelves hides the more utilitarian gadgets. And finally playful mod pendant lights seem to levitate over the dining table, which is meant to resemble a river running through the woods.

Meera : You sure you didn't miss your true calling as an interior designer babe?

Ethan (smirks) : Nope, just the fact that I tend to excel at everything I do, Rookie.

Meera : And that makes you 10 times hotter!

Bedrooms? (Master, guest, others)

Master bedroom :

Meera : The bedroom has a different color scheme and tone from the rest of the house because I wanted it to stand out and break the monotone.

Ethan : Again the chandelier was Meera's opinion.

Meera : Finding common ground between his minimalistic taste and mine was difficult but we made it through.

Master Bathroom :

Ethan : Meera I don't think it was necessary to bring Bree in here.

Meera : It was absolutely necessary! Just look at this tub Bree! The bubbles and champagne dates we have here are a total hit.

Guest rooms :

Ethan : We have two guest rooms and both are styled the same way, but unfortunately we haven't had any guests yet. 

Meera : Is it unfortunate Dr. Ramsey? Bryce is just a call away from crashing here. 

Ethan (pinching the bridge of his nose) : Anyone but Lahela.

Meera : We haven't thought about the baby's room yet. But we have the nursery now. 

Ethan : Yes, maybe we'll turn the nursery into a bedroom or one of the guest rooms in a few years. Let's see.

Nursery : 

Meera : This was completed just yesterday hence the delay in the interview, Bree. 

Ethan : We decided to keep the gender of the baby a surprise so we went with a gender neutral nursery that matches the colour scheme of the house. 

Meera : Also because Ethan Ramsey would rather die than paint the walls of his house pink and blue. 

Ethan (rolls eyes) 

Other rooms?

Home library :

Meera (takes in the smell of books) : Better known as my safe haven. 

Ethan : This was absolutely non-negotiable for Meera. 

Meera : We both own a lot of books and the collection keeps on increasing now with the baby incoming. And look at this reading space. It's from my dreams. 

Ethan : This is tucked away in a far corner of the house and is the most serene place around here. Once, I returned home from the hospital and called out to Meera a hundred times, she didn't answer, I started panicking and then found her silently sitting here in her own world. 

Meera : If I ever go missing please check here before running to the police, because once I am in here I forget the existence of the world.

Bree picks up "Peppa pig's super noisy Sound Book" which was kept on a thick medical journal with a smile. 

Ethan feels embarrassed but Meera laughs. 

Meera : Yes these are the new ones in our collection. Ethan was reading it to the baby before you arrived. 

Home Bar : 

Ethan : The wine cellar grew into a home mini bar because we had this unused space left. 

Meera : He loves showing this and his collection off. 

Ethan : Excuse me! If I remember correctly your friends were very impressed as well. 

Meera : True that. Bryce went bat shit crazy during the housewarming party. He said he felt he got back his bartending days.

Ethan (proudly) : And Jackie's exact words for that evening's toast was "to hell with Donahue's" 

Meera : Yeah yeah, you did a great job honey. Also the more surfaces the better for us. 

Ethan : Keep it PG for the love of God. 

Meera (shrugs) : Pregnancy hormones. 

Bree (points) : And that? 

Ethan (facepalms) : The only thing that doesn't match with the vibe here.

Meera : Nonsense! It was a housewarming gift from my friends and I absolutely love it. Ethan just feels it is a cheaper and juvenile version of his favourite game, soccer. But don't worry Bree, I'll get him to play someday. 

Ethan (smirk) : I would very much like to see you try Dr. Ramsey-Bose.

Meera : And I'll see how you say no when your son asks. 

Ethan : It's gonna be a daughter. 

Meera : We'll see. 

Do you own your dream home? If not, what does that dream home look like?

Ethan : For the majority of my life home for me was a structure of bricks and cement with a ceiling but Meera was the one who brought all the love and light and showed me what a real home felt like. So for me, my home is where my heart is and for this lifetime it's kept safe with this gorgeous woman whom I fortunately call my wife. 

Silence lasts for a couple of minutes then Meera snorts. 

Meera (drying her eye) : Damn you pregnancy hormones, I am not even wearing waterproof mascara. It was super cheesy Ethan, a non pregnant me would have definitely called you out on your cheese but this pregnant Meera has to agree with you. Even a stable is my dream home if I have my dream husband with me. (she kisses Ethan) but I wouldn't mind a Jacuzzi, a home theatre, a game room (laughing)

Ethan (an easy smile on his face) : Always knew you were in it because of the money Bose. 

What is your favorite room to spend time in with each other?

Meera : The library. Just him reading to our unborn child like he isn't already the most perfect man in the world. 

Ethan (a very satisfied smile on his face) : First I am very surprised that you kept it PG. So the obvious answer is the bedroom but other than that, the patio, which is not a room though.

Ethan : Meera has a slight deficiency in vitamin D so to avoid complications, we spend a lot of time here in the sun. We play board games, read and even discuss work here sometimes.  

Meera : Ooh yes! This was another great investment and a great way to utilise the humongous outdoor space we have.  

Ethan : I hope you had fun Bree. Thank you so much for doing this. 

A quick shoutout to @a-crepusculo and @jamespotterthefirst who came to my rescue when  I couldn't add more than 10 pics. Also thank you Bree for doing this you are a star and an angel. 💜

Tagging my usual : @starrystarrytrouble @mm2305 @charisworld @choicesfanaf @potionsprefect @genevievemd  @shanzay44 @little-flowers-on-heaven @schnitzelbutterfingers  @coffeeheartaddict  @gryffindordaughterofathena @chemist-ana @adiehardfan @custaroonie @ireneadlerisseggsy @takemyopenheart @natureblooms24 @mainstreetreader @izzyourresidentlawyer @a-crepusculo @quixoticdreamer16 @starryeyedrookie @barbean

+ @openheartfanfics

Please let me know if you want to be added or removed. And if you want to sit out only the answers to the ask games hit me up too. There won't be any hard feelings. I promise. 💜

[lov3nerdstuff]

Wicked Game {Part 2}

~Professor Hiddleston AU~

*Tom Hiddleston x reader*

Part: 2/30

Words: 4k

Warnings: Professor x student (college AU), little language

Summary: After transferring to a new university for the last year of your master's, you meet Professor Hiddleston and soon find yourself unable to stay away from him.

A.N.: I really suck at summaries, I'm so sorry 😅 this is a slow burn romance with lots of pining 💗 this chapter is sweet but a little painful, sorry not sorry 😁 but you're gonna love the next chapter so stay tuned!!!

[Part 1] [Part 2] [Part 3]

All Parts can be found on my Masterlist!

______________________________

Your alarm blared loudly, making you groan and hit the snooze button. It was too early and too cold outside of your bed, especially after the long night you'd had… So you just lay under the warm covers and thought about the day ahead. Today, you'd see Hiddleston again and you were determined to not be caught off guard by him once more. After all, you didn't even know if he was worth swooning over and all you could tell was that he looked like a god and was nicer than an angel. Wow, that thought didn't help at all.

After another fifteen minutes filled with scrolling through various apps, you finally felt ready to tackle the day and got out of bed with a long sigh. You were in dire need of coffee and made a mental note to stop by the small coffee shop you had noticed yesterday on your way to class. For now, your first problem was that you didn't really know what to wear to class today. Usually questions like that didn't bother you much and you just wore whatever was decent enough, but today you felt like making an effort. You were trying to convince yourself that it wasn't because of Hiddleston, though.

After you had finally settled for black skinny jeans, a dark green wool pullover and boots with semi-high block heels, you added some dainty golden jewelry and already felt like you looked a lot nicer than ninety percent of the rest of the year.

As you went to pack your bag, you realized that you still hadn't found your keys. Sighing you put on some music and dug through your whole room, without any results. The damn keychain was gone and you sat down on your squeaking bed in despair. You'd had such high hopes for your last year and for the new college… but at the moment, everything was going pear shaped. It was getting quite late and you still wanted to get some coffee, so you packed your books and supplies into a leather backpack (mindful to not repeat yesterday's mistake of bringing a broken satchel that wouldn't close), then wrapped a big scarf around yourself and made your way to the metro.

The ride wasn't too long, just enough time for you to get out your headphones and listen to a few songs. In no time you reached your station and made your way towards the coffee shop you'd seen yesterday. It was on a quiet corner a little off campus and to your surprise not all that many students were inside. Must be because of the Starbucks that was right on campus… You didn't mind Starbucks, but preferred good coffee over status symbols.

You ordered your favorite beverage in as large as possible (yes, it was necessary) and waited patiently for your order while quietly singing along to the song you were listening to. When the customer before you received his order, the minimalist logo on the cup caught your attention. Wasn't that the same kind of cup Hiddleston had kept in his office yesterday? That's when an idea struck you, an idea both stupid and very much necessary after making such a fool of yourself. You'd bring him coffee as a thank you for being so nice.

"Excuse me…" You turned to the girl behind the counter. "Uhm… is there any chance you'd remember the tall man with the incredible blue eyes who was here yesterday morning?"

"Kinda curly hair, glasses, handsome as fuck?" She chuckled.

"That's him." You smiled back. "Do you still remember what he ordered?"

"Uhm, yeah, I think so." She thought for a moment. "Must've been a large filter coffee with a tiny dash of milk, no sweetener but a teaspoon of cocoa. He was very precise about that."

"Then please add that to my order." You said and let out a breath you didn't know you were holding. It was set, you'd bring the man in question coffee. Maybe that was inappropriate, but if you could build a good (and professional) relationship with him, maybe he would be willing to supervise your thesis at the end of the year. You'd worked so long for those degrees and he seemed like a good fit since he was an expert in both fields of your study. For now, that was a good enough justification for your behavior.

A moment later you picked up your order and slowly made your way to class. This time around you knew how to read the weird room number on your schedule: first the tower, then the floor, then the corridor and finally the actual room number. That truly was one disadvantage of a bigger university… too many rooms! Making your way towards your room, you continued to silently sing along to your music in an attempt to ignore the people around you until you reached your destination.

The room was open but yet empty, so you made your way to the second row (first would've been too… weird, after yesterday), set down the coffees and your bag and finally sat down yourself. There were still ten minutes to go until your class would start, so you closed your eyes and enjoyed the music for a while.

"You can sing really well." His voice made your eyes snap open in an instant and you had the immediate feeling of a dejavu. You hadn't even realized that you had been singing along loudly, but obviously you had, and just embarrassed yourself in front of your professor once again.

"Mr. Hiddleston!" You shrieked, stopping the music and putting away your phone and headphones. "I didn't notice you coming… Sorry."

"It's alright." He smiled as he set his bag down at the front. "Have you considered joining the university's choir? I mean it's none of my business, but I'm sure they would welcome a great voice such as yours."

You blushed furiously, and he also seemed to be taken aback a little by his words. For a moment, the whole room was silent.

"Uhm…" You remembered the coffee and rose to your feet, taking the cup and slowly walking towards the front. "I… I brought you coffee. As a thank you for yesterday. You really saved my ass with those room numbers…"

His eyes widened slightly as he slowly reached out to take the cup from you. Then, for a short moment, he just stared at you in disbelief and you felt your heart sink to the floor and even lower. It had been a bad idea after all, stupid even, how could you have thought…

"That's very thoughtful of you, but not at all necessary." He finally said in a kind voice, breaking your downward spiral of thoughts. "I'm just glad I could help." Then he smiled once more as if nothing had happened.

"I just thought you'd appreciate it." You smiled slightly and went to sit back down.

"I do." He muttered quietly as he took a sip, frowning once more once he tasted his signature mix. The irritation and surprise in his face made you smile a little too widely and you would've paid quite a bit to see it again.

"How…?" He laughed, pointing at the cup and then at you.

"I'm good at guessing." You shrugged and couldn't help but smirk at him. However as he rose an eyebrow at you in amusement and pushed his glasses up, you laughed out loud.

"I asked the barista in the coffee shop. I noticed how you had their cup on your desk yesterday, and that gave me the idea in the first place." You admitted, shaking your head to yourself.

"Very clever, Miss L/n…" He mused, taking another sip with an expression of pure bliss and you followed the example.

"I hope you'll say the same after class." You chuckled, getting your books out of your backpack and hoping that your heart rate would slow down soon. But his voice was like honey: once you'd enjoyed its sweet sound, you were bound to be drawn in and kept within it's comfort again and again.

Mr. Hiddleston walked back to his table at the front and also grabbed his materials from his bag, preparing for the class ahead. Meanwhile a bunch of other students filed into the room, taking their seats around you. A girl with green hair and quite a few piercings sat down next to you, throwing a judging look at you.

"I'm Sky." She said simply, waiting for a response.

"Y/n." You smiled at her without any judgement, which she obviously didn't expect.

"You… you're new here, right?" She asked, now a lot friendlier.

"Do I look that lost?" You chuckled, thankful for the distraction from staring at Hiddleston.

"No, but I've never seen you around. What's your major?"

"I'm doing a double degree in cultural studies and literature." You sighed. "It's my last year."

"Wow…" Sky said, clicking her pen a few times. "Because of him?" She pointed to the front where Mr. Hiddleston stood, flipping through a fancy green journal that instantly caught your interest. However you remembered the conversation you were having and shook your head a little too eagerly.

"No!" Your voice sounded an octave too high. "I… I don't even know him. I…. I've been in this degree for two years already, and this is only my second day at this school and…"

"Woah, calm down!" Sky laughed. "I was just kidding!"

You let out a shaky breath and tried to smile. "Not funny…"

"Well, but funny is that everyone is crushing on him." She mentioned around the room. "That's why his classes are always completely crowded. He's a darn good teacher, but pretty demanding."

"Good to know." You sighed. "What's your degree?"

"Literature." She shrugged. "Only one degree, two more years to go. I'm not that much of an overachiever."

You snorted, shaking your head at her comment. "I'm aiming for a career in academics. One gotta stand out to get there, you know…"

"Oh geez, Hiddleston will love you then…" She chuckled.

"So, you've taken his classes before?" You assumed, looking at your new acquaintance with sincere interest.

Sky opened her mouth to answer, but Mr. Hiddleston interrupted your conversation to start the class.

"Hello everyone. I'm Professor Thomas Hiddleston and this is my lecture about advanced literature analysis in context of hermeneutic theory. Today, we're going to handle things a bit differently than you'd expect. We start straight with the first topic, formalities will be covered at the end of class." He announced, glancing at you for just a short moment. You looked down at your notebook with a small smile, happy at the prospect of actually learning something. Sky on the other hand looked at Mr. Hiddleston, then at you with an amused smirk, before focusing on her own notes.

The rest of the lecture went by without any further interruptions and you focused solemnly on your studies. Most of the things that were covered today you had already read the night before and thus you could focus on learning the small details he was giving. When the lecture was over and everyone had asked their questions and collected their syllabi, you tried to resist the temptation of staying behind to talk to your professor. You wanted to tell him how much you enjoyed the class and how interesting the topic had been, but you also knew that it would leave the wrong impression. The last thing you wanted was to annoy him and he probably didn't want to talk to you anyway. You'd already had your daily dose of awkwardness when you had bought him coffee.

So you quickly packed up and walked towards the door where Sky was waiting to grab lunch with you.

"Miss L/n!" Mr. Hiddleston called after you, pushing his way through a crowd of female student who wanted to talk to him very desperately.

You squeezed your eyes shut for a moment, pulling yourself together to not become a blushing mess once again.

"Miss L/n…" He said as he stepped closer to you, so close in fact that you could faintly smell his cologne. "I found your keys. In, uhm… in my office… last night." He fished them out of his pocket as unsuspiciously as possible and placed them in your hand. When his fingers brushed against yours, as lightly as a feather, you could practically see him jump and shudder, but he quickly regained his composure and put on a fake smile. The small action made your heart drop a little, but you chose to ignore it. If he was so uncomfortable with you, even at this minimal and accidental touch, you would do him the favor and stay away from him outside of class.

"Wow, thank you! I was so worried I'd lost them." You said and then smiled at him encouragingly. "This class was amazing. Thank you, professor." With a small nod you closed your hand around your keys and took a few steps backwards, before turning around and heading for the door.

"What was THAT about?" Sky smirked as you walked down the hallway together.

"He just gave me my keys back." You rolled your eyes. "I forgot them at his office yesterday."

Now Sky straight-out stared at you with utter amusement until you realized how what you had just said must sound.

"Gosh, that came out so wrong." You sighed and hid your face in your hands. Sky laughed and led you to the cafeteria for lunch, while you told her about your encounter with Hiddleston from the previous day.

"He really brought you all the way to your room? In the E tower?" She asked while chewing on a bunch of fries. "That's kinda cute."

"It's not!" You complained, stealing one of her fries. "He had to teach a class in the same tower anyway."

Sky laughed, shaking her head. "Did he tell you that?"

"Yeah, I told him he didn't have to and he said it's fine, he'd have to go there anyway." You shrugged, sipping on your water.

"Such a liar!" She grinned. "The E tower is for foreign languages, he's got nothing to do there."

You felt your skin heat up for a short moment, but even when it faded, the tingles remained. "Well, maybe he was just trying to be friendly. Or his class was moved to a different room. Who knows. Isn't he always nice to his students?"

Sky shrugged. "He's one of the nicest people on campus, that's true. Except for… well, that won't happen to you anyway."

"Tell me!" You inquired. "Except for what?"

"Well, he gets really into his studies and the topics and stuff… and when students disrespect him or act like asses he can lash out pretty badly."

"And… does that happen often?"

"Nah, don't worry about it. It usually only hits people who really deserve it." She waved it off and you nodded.

"So… you're not crushing on him then?" You asked after a few minutes.

"Hell no!" She laughed out loud. "I'm not into… well, anything actually. I'm very happy on my own. Are you? Crushing on him, I mean?"

You breathed deeply and frowned. "I don't think so… I mean he's nice and stuff, but he's being nice to everyone and it didn't mean anything that he showed me to my room. And most importantly: I don't even know him really!"

"Very true…" She nodded. "And he's a professor after all… if he's interested in anyone, it'll probably be someone who's on the same level as him, like, cognitively and academically and stuff…"

You nodded and finished your sandwich, not even hungry anymore. The feeling of being absolutely ridiculous had taken over your body and you were in desperate need for some alone time to get your messed up emotions sorted out. And you were granted just that, as Sky excused herself for she had a class in five minutes. With a tired sigh you took another look at your schedule and then headed to the library to do some more reading on today's topics.

The rest of the day you spent studying, passing time up to your evening class. For some reason it was way more difficult to focus in this class, let alone to enjoy the topic, as you had already taken pretty much the same class at your old college. But the class was a requirement here and you were determined to do well in it despite the inevitable boredom. So when you got some homework at the end, you headed straight back to the library. It was already eight in the evening and campus was pretty deserted, except for the poor souls such as yourself who happened to have night classes. The assignment was easy, horribly easy even, and you had double- and triple-checked your work by nine thirty and handed it in per email at shortly before ten. Finally done for the day, you raced to the metro to head home (the last train left shortly after ten and you weren't going to walk that damn long way home at night), where the inevitable noises of your roommate's friends made you want to cry. Oh, how desperately you wanted to move out… but yet, you hadn't found a better place to live and honestly, you couldn't really afford any of the fancy apartments around.

When you were in the safety of your room, the day finally caught up with you and you felt dead tired, ready to sleep for a very long time.

Three weeks went by like this: you worked your ass off, every day and every night, in an attempt to distract yourself from your thoughts about your professor. In class, you had gotten so far ahead that you could answer every single one of his questions, sometimes before he even asked them. Sky remained your only friend at uni, but she knew better than to try talking to you about Mr. Hiddleston. She noticed however that after the day he had given you your keys back, he avoided talking to you, or even looking at you if it wasn't for the sole purpose of having his questions answered in class. And you had to admit, it broke you. The more you tried to be good enough, to prove your worth in class, the more he pulled back. It wasn't like he was straight out ignoring you, but after the day you had brought him coffee (which, in your eyes, had gone really well and he had seemed genuinely happy) he had still been very friendly to you, but in a forced, fake way and he was distant if possible. In one of the rare moments when you had caught him off guard in the hallway, his eyes had been a blazing storm, deeply torn and full of questions. When he had looked away, you'd known that whatever you had done wrong, it wasn't easy to be made up, if it was to be made up at all. At least he was still giving you (well deserved) top grades in all your assignments, and as long as that stayed this way you would stay away from him and try to study as hard as possible. However at the beginning of the fourth week, when you were unable to fall asleep on Monday night, you had to admit that you had been lying to yourself. Every time you had gotten the chance, you had heavily insisted that you had absolutely no feelings for and no interest in Thomas Hiddleston. But lying was getting too difficult, it was too exhausting to pretend anymore. So on Monday night, you decided that you would be honest about it, if only to yourself: you were desperately falling for him. Of course you knew that it was wrong and stupid and utterly hopeless, but you'd let yourself dream that in some other world, he could maybe be yours.

_______________

Tom had always thought that the biggest problem in his career would be a student unhappy with their grade, or maybe one of those horrible plays the faculty made their professors do every few years.

But as it turned out, his biggest problem liked to drink coffee in class and to stay at the uni's library until closing time.

The day he had found you sitting all alone in the classroom, singing along to Zombie, he had been more than determined to treat you like everyone else. But when he had heard your lovely voice, singing a song he adored, he just couldn't help but comment on it. And that's when things had started to get really difficult for him. You had brought him coffee, his favorite kind from his favorite coffee shop… of course you didn't have any ulterior motives behind that, but he had been momentarily stunned by the kind gesture. It was really uncommon, sure, but he'd appreciated it so very much… more than he should have. For that day's lecture he had noticed how his eyes had darted back to you whenever possible, and he had felt horrible about it. If it hadn't been for your keys, he would gladly have gotten some distance between you and him. And then your hands touched… and he was gone, lost in the desire to be closer to you. You had complimented his teaching, then left quickly. Oh, he had felt so stupid after that, especially when the usual bunch of female students had tackled him and followed him all the way back to his office.

During the three next weeks he had tried once again to force you out of his brain, but you made things very difficult for him. The things you knew, your brilliant opinions and ideas… he didn't even have to ask, you could always tell what he would be saying next. And if he would've let himself, he would've spent the entirety of class only talking to you. However he feared that the two of you had slipped into rather the contrary of what he wanted so badly: you stayed away from him as much as possible if not to answer a question, hardly even looking at him. And he had known it was for the better if he stayed away from you as well. He had felt creepy and wrong for wanting to be near you, and surely it would only get him in a lot of trouble if he acted on this… whatever it was.

The worst thing was that he didn't even know anything about you and he had absolutely no reason to even feel the way he did… but that's just what it was about, he WANTED to get to know you, as more than just another student. And the fact that almost every girl was practically chasing him while you did everything to stay out of his way was probably a good thing too. He didn't know if he could deal with another direct encounter with you, outside of class… he didn't know if he could keep himself from doing something stupid. Like asking you out, to grab a coffee with him. Or to help him grade the first-year assignments. Though the first idea would be more fun.

For now, on a stormy Monday night, he sat in his apartment, drinking a double Jameson on ice and asking himself if he would lose his interest in you if only he didn't act on it. After his fourth whisky he came to the lasting conclusion that he wouldn't do either: he won't allow himself to act on it, but he would allow himself to dream.

_______________

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Everyone who's crosses out, Tumblr wouldn't let me tag! I'm very sorry about that...

If you'd like to be added to the tag list comment down below 💗✨💚

[weirdochick56]

Mr. Evans- Chris Evans AU Chapter Seven

Teacher!Chris Evans x Student!Reader

Warnings: TeacherxStudent relationship. Slightly Underage reader x adult teacher. An almost-sexual-assault scene. If this triggers you please don’t read. Violence. (just a small fight scene)  Disclaimers: I don’t own CE or you. I don’t condone any relationship of this kind. This is for fictional and entertainment purposes only. 

A/N: Also, can we all just agree that if at any point a woman or anyone else says “no” or “stop”, you have to respect their wishes? CONSENT IS EVERYTHING PERIOD! Word Count:  4, 392 words

Read Chapter Six Here!!

*

(Gif isn’t mine!)

The thing you hated about parties the most was the fact that they never seemed to end.

Well, actually, that was the second thing you hated about them the most. The thing you actually hated the most about parties was having to dress up.

“God fuckin- Margo,” you groan, tugging at the soft fabric of your black cocktail dress.

“What?” She looks at you from the corner of her eye, gaze trained on the road ahead of her.

“This thing is too short.”

Laughing, your best friend shakes her head at your apprehensiveness. “You can not be serious, Y/n. That dress is like, six inches above your knees. Max. And it’s long at the back so...”

You lean back into the comfy seat of Margo’s sedan, grumbling. “I don’t like heels.”

She wiggles her brows. “They make your legs look great, though.”

You can’t argue the point with her any longer and hated to admit she was right. The strappy heels which wrapped all the way just below your knees and off-shoulder dress that hugged your top but spread out at the bottom required a considerable amount of cash from your father's bank account but looked really good on you.

The style was so far from your usual jeans and sneakers minimalist fashion but tonight you actually looked...pretty.

But that was just you. Margo insisted that you always looked pretty. The only difference tonight was that you looked “extremely fuckable.”

Not your favorite choice of wording but fair enough.

While getting ready, you’d asked her to go easy on the makeup (which she did not want to do) in exchange for you to let her do whatever she wanted to your hair.

She’d reluctantly agreed, only applying a thick layer of mascara to your lashes, shimmering eyeshadow to your lids and a pink-tinted lip gloss.

She didn’t do as much as you would’ve thought with the hair though, opting to curl it all instead of the crazy up-do you’d been expecting. The curls were big and loose and sexy. You looked bold and sophisticated and for once you felt good about your appearance.

“So this party,” you start. “How long is it gonna last?”

“Oh. As long as you want it to, baby.” She smirks in that typical Margo fashion that made you uneasy as hell.

“Oh no,” you groan softly under your breath.

Tonight was going to be a disaster, you just knew it.

*

Jenna Miller’s mansion was huge. Huge as in it may actually have been an entire estate.

The music was loud and even as you made your way up the steps of the front lawn, your feet still vibrated with the strong bass of “Pumped Up Kicks” by Foster The People.

You almost hold back a wince at the multiple couples on the literal brink of having sex right then and there. Almost.

Margo, who wore a tight red dress showing off all her incredible curves and monstrous black heels, hugged you to her, puckering her ruby red lips. “C’ mon Y/n. Stop being such a prude. A little kissing never hurt anyone.”

You laugh at her incredulously, pointing to a nearby couple practically dry-humping eachother. “That is not kissing. That is full-on sex.”

She smirks. “You mind now, but I’m sure if it was a certain English teacher kissing you, you wouldn’t mind in the least.”

You flush almost immediately at the sound of Mr. Evans and kissing in the same sentence, gulping a lump in your throat. If only she knew.

“Let’s just go in, yeah?” You rasp, walking in ahead of her.

She mumbles something about you “acting weird lately” under her breath but follows you all the same.

The inside of the house is not much better than the outside, with people drinking and hollering loudly. Some are making out in various places of the living area and most are just dancing like crazy.

You link your arms with Margo almost instinctively, your social anxiety kicking in at the overwhelming sight. I should’ve stayed home watching the rest of the third season of Breaking Bad, you think regretfully.

Margo smiles down at you softly. patting your hand reassuringly. “It’ll be okay, Y/n. Just relax. I’ll be here with you every step of the way.”

The third thing you hated most about parties happened to be that Margo thrived in them. 

Which meant it’d hadn’t even when an hour before she’d gone to get you drinks that she’d been surrounded by a crowd of her other friends, obscuring your view of her except for her head as another crowd of sweaty teens came in, blocking her off completely.

This immediately makes you anxious and you push your way through the crowd but it’s almost impossible. A string of “excuse me’s” and “sorry’s” follow close behind as you practically shove people away in desperate search of your friend, but when you make it to the other side where Margo had previously been in, she was gone.

You look around the immediate premise for her a bit more, but she’s nowhere to be found. You just hope she’ll eventually make her way back to where you’d been last.

You assumed she’d gone off to mingle and didn’t want to interrupt whatever socially-strengthening experience she was having right now. Just because you were incapable of holding a casual conversation with others doesn’t mean you had the right to hold her back from doing so. You were already enough baggage as it was.

So you sigh, throwing yourself back onto the couch you had found in a dark corner. You hoped no one else happened to stumble upon it in the time it took Margo to come back.

Time ticked by torturously by. You watched a game of beer pong going on in front of you and laughed along to some of the stupidities the dares these kids had come up with. Somewhere nearby, a clearly not-sober girl had begun a striptease to the tune of “Partition” by Beyoncé. Guys hollered and you gasped, about to go save the poor girl’s dignity before another girl quickly steps in and takes the girl off the table, giving her her shirt back and using it to cover her as she tugged her away. 

So there you are, bored out of your fucking mind, playing random games on your phone and trying to remain as inconspicuous as possible. It's been twenty minutes already when you feel the spot on the couch next to you sink.

Looking over, you raise a brow at who’s decided to sit next to you. He smiles that well-known charming smile of his and you suddenly realize why every girl in your school is in love with him.

“Hey,” James greets you warmly.

James McDaniels. Typical fuckboy. Hot as hell, dangerously charming and your town’s resident golden boy. The son of some big CEO who’d moved from another town down south, everyone believes he’ll make it to play football professionally.

But that’s beside the point. Why was the most attractive/popular guy in school talking to...you?

“Um...hi?” Rather than a greeting, you sound like you’re questioning yourself. You don’t wait for him to respond before you turn your attention back to your phone.

“Want a drink?” he draws your attention back to him, offering you a red solo cup.

You look at the cup then slowly trail your eyes from his hand to his -quite honestly- muscular arm to his handsome face which is pleasantly curved into an eye-blindingly sexy smile.

Immediately, your defenses go up and you shake your head disinterestedly. “No thank you. I don’t take drinks from strangers.”

He chuckles lightly, clicking his tongue. “I didn’t spike it if that’s what you’re thinking. Not that kind of guy, princess.”

His voice is incredibly attractive. Raspy and smooth and he has the hint of a southern accent which somehow makes it all the more attractive.

You finally look at him, putting our phone away in your clutch.

James McDaniels is not your type at all. He’s not dumb per se, but he’s not exactly an intellectual either.

And most importantly, he’s not Mr. Evans...

His eyes were a pretty hazel but they weren’t that gorgeous baby blue that occasionally turned into a deep aqua blue you loved so much. His hair was a dark brown, not a light dirty blonde you always have the urge to run your fingers through. His face was freshly-shaven and didn’t have the hints of a beard you utterly loved scratching your face. And his lips were nice, but they weren't Mr. Evans’s lips.

The thoughts infuriate you. Why are you still thinking about Mr. Evans, Y/n? That was a one-time thing and it was never even meant to happen. It’ll never happen again anyways. He’ll never be able to be with you in the real world. Wake up.

Shocking even yourself, you take the cup from James’s hand with a small smile. “Thanks.” And then you throw it back, drinking its contents in one go.

Immediately, you start coughing erratically, the alcohol burning your throat intensely. James laughs, patting your back lightly.

“Not used to drinking, I assume?”

You smile lightly at him, wiping your mouth. “Nope.” You frown. “What was that?”

He shrugs, downing his own drink easily. He crushes the cup in his hand and throws it over his shoulder. “Vodka maybe? Who even cares? It’s good, right?”

You find yourself smiling lightly, nodding along. “Yep.”

He smirks mischievously. “Wanna get more?”

You nibble on your lip, considering the offer lightly. It sounds fucked up, but for a few seconds, you were able to forget about Mr. Evans and the torture of not being able to ever really have him. You felt...good. Numb. So nothing, really. But that still was better than feeling the pain. You wanted to feel like that forever.

Plus, James McDaniels didn’t seem like bad company. You’d be cautious anyways.

You smirk at him. “Yes, please.”

*

Needless to say, as someone not used to drinking at all, your body did not grow accustomed to the alcohol that was constantly flowing into it fast enough whatsoever. 

It started out casual, but over time you’d become less and less defensive about the drinking, simply craving the feeling the alcohol gave you. The freedom from the memory of Mr. Evan’s lips on yours it offered you.

You were a lightweight and before you knew it, you were drunk.

Everything felt so much better when you didn’t feel like yourself. Even James, who you had no particular interest in became much more interesting with the alcohol. 

He was nice and flirty and over the time you’d spent conversing, he’d slowly moved in closer to you, expressing his interest in you with little brushes on your shoulder and face and legs...

You barely noticed, too lost in the euphoric feeling of the alcohol currently coursing through your system. Your muscles were loose and your smile came easy and you’d never felt so careless and free.

Margo never really made her way back to you but you were too buzzed to give a shit.

“So I fell off the fucking bleachers and landed on my ass,” James finishes his story and you can’t help but snort, quickly falling into a fit of giggles thereafter.

You don’t even know why you’re laughing so much, it’s not even that funny but you can’t help it. 

You calm down enough to ask, “oh my God, you really let that tiny guy shove you like that? For a girl?”

He shrugs with a soft smile, caressing your arm softly then looking into your eyes sincerely. “For the right girl, yeah. Sure princess.”

You can’t help but scoff, downing your tenth to eleventh vodka shot of the night.

“What?” James chuckles a bit confusedly.

You look at him with a grin. “Nothing, it’s just...you’re good.”

He raises a brow. “Good?”

You nod enthusiastically. “Yeah. Dangerously good. I mean c’ mon! ‘For the right girl, sure’?!” You huff. “That has got to be the cheesiest line I’ve ever heard!”

He smiles in a cute sheepish way that you suspect might also be rehearsed.

“Did it work at least?”

Feeling strangely bold, you smile flirtingly at him, slowly leaning in close enough to have your lips brush slightly. Your chest pressed against his, your finger makes a small trajectory from the sharp line of his jaw to his neck, chest, abs then lower... lower... it stops just above his belt.

You bite your lip seductively, looking into his eyes from underneath your lashes.

“Hm...” you hum softly, watching as his breath falters and his pupils dilate with desire. His lips part and his lids drop halfway.

“No.”

You lean back with a smug smirk on your face, almost bursting into uncontrollable laughter at the look in his face. He looked so disappointed. Your humor grows uneasy, though, when you think you think you see a pissed look flash across his face. It’s gone just as fast as it came and you wondered if you were imagining it when he laughs loudly along with you.

Shaking your head, you get up, slightly wobbling on your own two legs. You giggle at this.

“Where are you going?” James frowns up at you.

You smirk. “Calm down, dad. I'm going to piss, I’ll be back.”

You spin on your heels, almost tripping in the process and make your way to the back patio in an utterly clumsy manner. Truth be told, you just needed to breathe a little. All those people pushing up on you was suffocating. The heat was unbearable.

Stumbling your way outside, you take notice that the place was practically empty and sigh in relief. Silently, you take your phone out of your clutch. Typing quickly, you press Margo’s contact and write her a text message.

To: Bestie❤

Hey, where the hell are you? You better not be drunk cuz I’m hammered and you’re our driver.

You laugh stupidly at the text and it only takes a few seconds before she answers.

From: Bestie❤

Shit. I tried calling you, Y/n! After we got separated I was pulled off to talk and a few minutes later I got a call from my mom that there was a family emergency I had to leave for. I tried looking for you too, but you were nowhere to be found so I assumed you’d left.

I’m soooo sorry, babe!

You frown down at your phone. Crap.

“Shit!” You curse into the cool night but before you know what’s happening, the alcohol seeps into your brain, dismissing any coherent thought you could have. Soon, you find yourself shrugging dismissively and going back into your contacts in search of someone to call to come to pick you up.

“Dad? No, he does not know I’m here and we’d like to keep it that way, thank you very much,” you mumble to yourself. The rest of your contacts are Margo and fast food services and restaurants. 

“Should I call Dylan from Dominoes to come to pick me up?” You snort at your own little joke feeling careless as shit. “Hm...it’s times like these I wish I had more friends.” You sigh, about to give up on when you suddenly stumble across an unexpected contact name.

“Mr. Evans? When did I get his number?” You let out a small confused sound then smirk mischievously, a dumb idea suddenly popping up in your brain.

“Hm, doesn’t matter either way. I can have some fun with this.” You squeal excitedly and without a second thought, press on the contact name and put the phone to your ear, biting your lip to hold back the excitement equivalent to that of a five-year-old child on Christmas morning.

The plan was no plan, really. You just had a sudden urge to call him. To hear him. You felt so brave doing this.

It takes three full rings before he answers, his voice raspy and sexy with sleep.

“Hello?”

You can’t help but laugh, biting your lip even harder to suppress an inexplicable enthusiasm within you.

“What the-” you hear shifting for a second and assume it’s him moving the phone away from his face before he puts it back on, his voice suddenly more alert. “Y/n? What the hell is going on? It’s two in the morn-”

“You’re hot,” you impulsively blurt, immediately covering your mouth afterward.

“What?” You can hear him moving around as you giggle.

“You are. Like, stupid hot. You’re like out-of-this-world hot. I mean, you must know that right? Someone that looks like you do has to know they’re stupidly attractive, no?”

“Wh-”

“And you’re smart. Oh! A-and kind. Actually, you might be the kindest human being I know. It’s kind of funny actually. You are the one person I want to hate the most. But you’re literally impossible to hate.” You giggle. “Impossi-bleh. Ha. That’s a funny word. Impossi-bleh.”

“Y/n, are you drunk?”

You ignore his question, babbling off with a slur in your words. “It’s not fair you know? How can one person be so perfect? And why does that same person happen to be the only one I want but can’t be with?” Your voice grows softer towards the end, cautiously tender. 

He doesn’t respond at first so you continue, your voice strained with pain and utter desperation. “A-and why did you have to kiss me? That just ruined everything, ya’ know!? I was fine with having a stupid crush on my stupid English teacher because I was convinced it’d go away. But then-” you swallow the sudden and painful lump in your throat. “B-but then you kissed me, and that just ruined fucking everything!” You whine like a little girl. 

He sighs dejectedly over the phone. “Where are you, sweetheart? I’ll come to get you.”  

You laugh humorlessly, your mood abruptly turning sour. “See? This is exactly what I’m talking about! Here I am telling you I literally hate how fucking perfect you are and here you are, saying shit like that and being all concerned for my wellbeing.” 

He sighs exasperatedly. “Sweetheart-”

“Stop calling me that!” You find yourself screaming hysterically into the phone, your grip on it tightening before you speak again. “You can’t call me that and assume it means nothing.”

“Okay, okay. Y/n,” he corrects himself gently. “Can you just tell me where you are so I can come to get you?”

You huff into the phone. “James is nice, you know? And cute. And he likes touching me a lot. I don’t really like it, but he brings me drinks so I guess it’s okay.” You giggle, shrugging and disregarding the fact that no one could see you.

“Oh no,” he mumbles worriedly. “Y/n can you please just tell me where you’re-”

“Anyways,” you cut him off. “I’m going to go back to drinking and forgetting about your stupid lips now Mr. Evans. Bye!”

“No! Y-” He tries to protest but doesn’t get to finish before you end the call, heading back inside with a small smile on your face.

That’ll show him, you think triumphantly.

Once you’ve made your way clumsily back inside, a red plastic solo cup is already waiting for you. You grin, walking over and sitting next to James excitedly.  

He smiles lazily and swiftly moves his hand to rest on your knee.

You paid it no mind, opting instead to squeal as “Toxic” by Britney Spears came on.

“I love this song!” You grin excitedly.

James gets up, offering you his hand and motioning to the dance floor where a bunch of people were already dancing. 

He smirks. “Would you give me the absolute pleasure of letting me take you out to dance, princess?”

You giggle softly, shaking your head. “Oh. I can’t dance.”

He raises his brows. “I can’t either.”

You laugh a bit and reluctantly place your hand in his. “Fine.”

He pulls you to him, placing a hand dangerously close to your butt and leading you to the dance floor.

Immediately, you’re squished together with James, the bodies of sweaty drunk teens sliding up next to you. Usually, you’d be gagging with disgust, but you just didn’t care right now.

James wraps his hands around your waist, pushing your hips to move. You look up at him weirdly for a second but your mind is far too fuzzy to even care about what he’s making you do, so you begin to dance as he instructs.

The music was far too irresistible to your intoxicated ears and you couldn’t hold back from moving your hips along to the beat, letting your hair be free in its movement. 

It doesn’t take long and frankly, you barely notice when you spin around and begin grinding on James, brushing your ass against his crotch and kissing his neck teasingly light.

He pulls you close to him, thick arm wrapped tightly around your waist and hips still moving against you.

“I knew behind all that good girl act you put up you’re actually a freak in the sheets, princess,” he rasps sultrily in your ear.  

Something about that doesn’t rub you right, even in your drunk state and you immediately cease your movements, looking up at him. “Let me go, please. I’d like to sit down.”

He frowns. “What? Why? We were having such a good time, princess. I like you and I know you like me.” He leans down, kissing your neck softly.

You don’t like the feeling and immediately shove him away, stumbling back on your unstable legs and heels. “What the hell makes you think that?” You snap drunkenly.

He laughs incredulously, reaching out for you again. “Uh, maybe the fact that you were practically flirting with me the entire night?”

You purse your lips, recognizing how that might’ve looked on your behalf. It’s just...you’d never really felt powerful and sexy and the alcohol gave you the courage you’d never had otherwise to express your sexuality. 

You were still sticking to your plan though. And giving your virginity to a guy like James McDaniels was not your plan. 

“Hey, James. I’m really sorry if I g-gave you any reason to believe this was going to go any further than what just happened.”

You struggle to stand upright and suddenly it occurs to you that James didn’t look all that drunk despite having been bringing you drinks all night.

“I-I think I’m just gonna go.” You point shakily over your shoulder, unable to keep from laughing at the stupidity of, well, you.  

At that moment, the same pissed off look you thought you’d been imagining before comes onto James’s face again, and this time it doesn’t leave.

“The hell you are, you big tease. You’re were the one who started this. And now you’re going to finish it,” he growls, gripping your wrist tightly, his fingers digging into your skin and making it abundantly clear he didn’t plan on letting you go.

You immediately tug at your wrist, shaking your head firmly. “Let me go, James.”

He grins darkly. “No can do, princess. You got me all ready for action and now you’re going to come through whether you like it or not.” 

And just like that, he starts dragging you away toward the staircase where the bedrooms were situated, you assume.

An uneasy feeling grips your gut painfully tight. He looks like he means it. 

“James! I’m serious, let me go!” You tug harder to no avail as his nails dig deeper into the skin of your wrist. You yelp in pain. “Someone help!” No one seems to even notice you, too lost in their little worlds. Your panic intensifies and your heart starts racing at an erratic pace. “Please James, let go of me!” He spins around in a fit, gripping your jaw bruisingly tight.

Panic takes over your mind, but you’re weak in your intoxicated state and not a match for the football player’s strength.

“Listen, slut, either you shut your trap or it’ll be worse for you. That’s a promise.” He roughly shoves your face back. 

But he doesn’t get a chance to spin back around and tug you into your worst nightmare before a fist comes crashing down into his jaw.

James groans in pain at the powerful attack, falling on his back with a hard crack.

You gasp, holding a horrified hand to your mouth as the figure, who you now realize is wearing a dark hoodie and sunglasses hiding his identity, straddles James and begins punching the living hell out of him.

Fist after fist strikes the harasser in the face, painful groans and yelps leaving his mouth whilst your aggressive savior only lets out breathy grunts and under-his-breath mumbles when his fists make contact with James’s face.

And although you were thankful to have been saved, blood was spraying on your legs and you knew if this continued, he’d kill him.

James begins picking himself up, though, landing some blows of his own. The stranger barely grunts in pain upon impact, his blows to James becoming twice as powerful as before and pummelling his fists down on him.

People quickly gather around you three, creating a huge crowd of people recording the fight and a string of “oohs” from multiple of them. No one steps in to stop them from killing eachother though.

Suddenly feeling sober, you jump in, gripping the stranger’s bicep tightly in your small hands. “Hey! Hey, stop! Stop it! That’s enough!”

At the sound of your voice, the stranger instantly stops the assault and gets up, gripping your arm firmly without a word. The grip was not enough to hurt you, but enough to easily sweep you out of the house, past the probing crowd and down the front lawn. 

You stumble along in your heels, still trying to make sense of everything that just happened.

“Hey!” You scream at him. “Where- ah!”

But before your still-buzzed mind can place exactly what it is that’s happening, the man is picking you up bridal style.

You squeak a little, wrapping your arms around his neck to stabilize yourself.

“What the hell, dude!? You just saved me from a scum-bag and now you’re-”

“Damn it, sweetheart. We need to get out of here!”

You freeze. You’d recognize that voice anywhere.

“Mr. Evans?” you breathe.

Read Chapter Eight Here!!

***

Hehehe... Told ya’ shit was gonna go down this chapter...

A Special Thanks To:  ( I apologize for those of you I said I’d tag, but didn’t. I’m bad at keeping track of things. So please if you’re not here when I said you’d be, let me know!)

@bombsandsparkles

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And of course my forevers!

@jessikared97

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@mogaruke

[artificialqueens]

as the stars align 7/? (branjie) - rujubees

A/N: hollywood enemies to lovers au; 5.2k - also on ao3

Brooke ended up enjoying her time in Vancouver more than she’d expected to. Life on a TV set was fast-paced and constantly busy, so there was little time to miss Vanessa or wonder what more could’ve happened between them had the timing been right.

It was certainly weird being thrust into a new role so soon after Stars, and Brooke knew that playing two queer characters so close together would raise more questions about her own sexuality, but she was used to the mindless gossip and speculation by this point.

Even stranger was working with a love interest that wasn’t played by Vanessa. Her new on-screen girlfriend was played by Violet Chachki, an actress Brooke greatly admired, but she wasn’t attracted to her despite her gorgeous looks. When they filmed their first kiss and Brooke felt nothing, she almost wanted to laugh at how she ever thought she didn’t have feelings for Vanessa, when their scripted kisses had been completely different to any other Brooke had ever experienced.

Even so, Brooke returned to Los Angeles three weeks into October, convinced that she was over Vanessa. ‘Out of Sight, Out of Mind’ had been working out well for her, having not seen the other woman for over two months, and having had barely any time to stalk her Instagram or catch up with her over text. They’d exchanged a couple of messages here and there, mostly in the form of promises to meet up once Brooke was home, but they didn’t bring up That Night, and Brooke had no expectations of it happening again.

Which she was fine with. And maybe Brooke hadn’t slept with anyone else since Vanessa, but it was just because her work was tiring and any days or nights off that she had, she wanted to keep to herself rather than share with other people. Besides, it had only been two months — hardly an unbearable amount of time to go without having sex.

It was a Tuesday when Brooke finally opened the messages she’d had stored on her phone since the day prior, having then been unable to face socialising after her travels back from Canada. She hated to admit how one caught her eye immediately.

Vanessa: Halloween Party at mine next Thursday! U better come, I know ur home then bitch. ;)

Brooke laughed, excitement bubbling inside her at the thought of getting to see Vanessa on one of her favourite holidays. She sent a quick text in confirmation that she would be present, and immediately began coming up with all of the costume possibilities, feeling thankful that her hectic schedule from the last couple of months meant that she’d forgotten the occasion was so near, and subsequently she had failed to commit to any plans for the night already. She had put so much effort into convincing herself that she was over Vanessa, but still nothing could persuade her that there was any better way to spend Halloween than in her co-worker’s company.

Brooke had a rummage through her walk-in closet on the off chance that she would find something right for the event, but all she had was last years mummy costume that had worked perfectly with her ballet training. Who was she kidding, anyway — of course, she was going to use the party as an excuse to treat herself to something new and custom made. It would be the first time seeing Vanessa — and probably the rest of the cast and crew — in months. She had to look good.

It wasn’t long before the perfect idea came to mind. She only had a week, but luckily Brooke knew just the designer who would be up to the task.

—

On October 31st, Brooke stood in front of her dressing table mirror, adding the finishing touches to her lipstick, proudly admiring her work. She had to admit, she felt like this was the best she had ever looked. The luxury of having a week off meant she’d gotten tons of beauty sleep the night before, lying in before taking her time to pamper herself in the shower, spending hours carefully applying her makeup and gently curling her platinum hair that she had allowed to grow long.

She’d decided to go as Catwoman, and enlisted one of her favourite local designers, Raja, to tailor her the perfect latex catsuit that fit like a second skin, clinging to her hips and ass so much she felt explicit. She’d decided against a mask, wanting to show off her freshly bleached, tumbling locks, and settled on a pair of matching cat ears to complete the look. It was minimalist, yet sexy, if Brooke did say so herself.

“Brooke! The car’s here!” Nina yelled up the stairs, Brooke slipping her feet into slick black heels and grabbing her clutch and phone. She checked the time, noticing that it was already half nine, meaning the party would be in full swing by now. Brooke also had a couple of casual texts from Vanessa that she’d held herself back from replying to, for some reason feeling the need to play it cool as much as possible.

“Tequila shots before we leave?” Brooke suggested as she descended the stairs as elegantly as one possibly could in sky-high heels that she really should’ve waited to put on.

“Girl, oh my God, look at you!” Plastique let out as she came into view. She looked pretty cute herself in a pink Playboy bunny outfit. Brooke didn’t know the girl well, having only had brief exchanges with her during filming, but she had seemed to form a group somewhat with Shuga, Yvie and Scarlet, while Brooke had been focused on Vanessa the whole time. She thought it was about time she got to know them all a little bit more, and the idea of turning up to Vanessa’s in a group comforted her —

— hence the gathering at her house right now, the four women ready in the hall, plus Nina of course.

There was a chorus of wolf whistles and compliments as Brooke did a little strut to the kitchen — she knew that in another life, she could’ve been a full-time model.

“Who you tryna impress tonight, bitch?” Yvie asked, leading Scarlet hand in hand as the rest of the girls followed Brooke into the kitchen.

“Oooh, Brooke Lynn, please tell us!” Nina exclaimed dramatically, as if the last time they spoke in person hadn’t consisted of Brooke claiming she was over Vanessa and Nina telling her she was nuts. Brooke fixed her with a stern glare, hoping she could put her off of pulling this shit all night, but it had been a long time since her manager had been intimidated by her.

“Oh, guys, hush. It’s no one, I’m just trying to make my LA society comeback in style, that’s all,” Brooke said with a shrug.

“Well, it’s a damn waste if you ask me. You look fine as hell tonight, honey,” Shuga hummed. “You know, if I didn’t have a husband…”

“I know what you mean, Shugs. If I were single, I’d be all over that,” Scarlet teased, Yvie sticking her tongue out at her in response. “Seriously, Brooke. You can score whoever you want in that getup.”

“Okay. Why are you guys being so nice? I mean, I’m not the only one dressed up here,” — a quick glance at Plastique’s wide-eyed face confirmed Brooke’s suspicions that something was up. “Nina. A word?” she said through gritted teeth.

The other girls scurried off into the hallway, leaving Nina to mindlessly clear up the glasses as she tried to avoid Brooke’s gaze.

“I’m your manager, not your housekeeper you know —“

“Did you tell them about Vanessa?” Brooke jumped to the point.

“See? Your mind went there even though you think you’ve moved on. You totally aren’t over her!” Nina whizzed round to face her.

“I — what? I am. Clearly you don’t believe me and told them about her — us — anyway.”

“B, look, everybody knows. It’s been obvious for months, and even now, you still talk about her in the same way as before. You guys had sex!” — Brooke shushed Nina frantically — “She wants you back, I don’t understand why you’re trying so hard to pretend you’ve moved on. Isn’t this what you’ve been hoping for the whole time? Why are you trying to downplay it?”

“Actually, I don’t know that she wants that. When we slept together, I made it clear it was a one-time thing. I have no reason to think she wants a relationship or to even have sex again,” Brooke whispered.

“Brooke, you — why did you say that? God, you’re so dumb.” Nina was shaking her head like Brooke was beyond her help and she was finally giving up.

“It was just easier. She’s so young and, like, the biggest romantic I’ve ever met, and she’s the most beautiful goddamn person in the world. I wasn’t about to try and tie her down only to abandon her for Canada a week later,” Brooke revealed sadly.

“Oh, Brooke. You’re so in love, it amazes me how you don’t see it.”

“I — what?” Brooke all but yelled. “I’m not — I’m not in love, I told you, I’m… I’m fine,” she spluttered, which probably wasn’t helping her case. “I don’t even have feelings for her anymore. You’ll see, Nina.”

“Brooke, don’t make yourself unhappy to prove a point,” Nina pleaded with her. The words made Brooke uneasy. She wasn’t in love. She’d had a crush on Vanessa, sure, but she’d never let it get that deep. Nina didn’t know shit.

“Y’all, some of us would actually like to get to this party before the clock strikes midnight,” Shuga called from where the rest of them were stood waiting.

Nina sighed before trotting off, Brooke trailing behind as soon as she could compose herself, her walk lacking the confidence she’d been full of before.

—

“It’s ten o’ clock, where is she?!” Vanessa exclaimed between nervous glances at her phone and sips of her cocktail. Time Warp was ringing through her large, bustling open plan apartment, and as much as Vanessa was proud of her Halloween playlist, she really just wanted to turn it the fuck down so she could listen out for any signs that Brooke had arrived.

“Bitch, chill, you’re being too much. She’s probably on her way. You’ve already texted her enough times,” Silky huffed at her, her iffy The Wiz cosplay making her one of the least menacing costumes there.

“And she ain’t even read ‘em. What if she wants nothin’ to do with me anymore?”

“Calm yo melodramatic Libra ass down. I’m serious, Vanj, you need to play hard to get.”

In spite of Silky’s words of wisdom, Vanessa knew she’d be unable to relax and enjoy herself until Brooke finally showed her face.

She missed her so, so much.

When Brooke announced that she was going away for work in Canada, Vanessa briefly thought that maybe she would finally be given the distance she needed to move on. That possibility flew out the window just as quickly, as after she slept with Brooke, she knew that she couldn’t just move on from her. Not now, possibly not ever.

Vanessa remembered how Brooke had propositioned her, and how she’d almost hoped that the sex between them would be bad. Almost hoped that they were incompatible, since Brooke had made it very clear that she wasn’t after a relationship, or even a friends with benefits situation — she wanted a one night stand, and Vanessa wanted so much more.

But, cliché as it was, the exact opposite had turned out to be true, and Vanessa couldn’t say she was surprised. It had been some of the best sex she’d ever had, passionate and intimate and short and sweet because it had been such a long time coming. And there was no getting Brooke out of her head after that.

After a few more minutes of socialising, pretending to be immersed in conversations but really just wishing it was Brooke she was talking to, Silky pulled Vanessa aside.

“She’s here,” Silky announced like they were in some sort of spy movie. Vanessa tried to break free of her grasp, but Silky had more advice to give. “Be cool. Trust me, if you want her to fuck you again, act like you barely even remember who she is.”

“Silk, that’s ridiculous,” — but Silky was shaking her head disapprovingly, and the more Vanessa thought about her strategy, the more she supposed there wasn’t any in harm in waiting for Brooke to come to her first — “but if Brooky don’t wanna answer my texts, maybe she does to deserve to be left on read for a little bit. Like, in real life.”

Silky frowned at that, perplexed.

“It’s an analogy, bitch.”

After a few more minutes of conveniently failing to notice Brooke’s arrival, Vanessa turned around and found the woman of her affections already staring at her, though she quickly diverted her gaze after getting caught before returning it and giving Vanessa a small wave and a shrug. Vanessa smirked in response, causing a blush to rise in Brooke’s cheeks, clashing endearingly with the sexy, badass character she was portraying.

Brooke looked so hot she made it hard to look away, but Vanessa didn’t want to give her the satisfaction of thinking her newfound presence had that much of an effect on her. Didn’t want Brooke getting any impression of Vanessa waiting for hours, longing for Brooke to show up.

Even though that was exactly what she had been doing.

—

Brooke wasn’t one for conspiracy theories or jumping to conclusions, but all night she’d had a sinking feeling that Vanessa had been avoiding her.

It started when she’d arrived, when Vanessa certainly hadn’t seemed as enthusiastic about their reunion as Brooke felt. She’d given Brooke a quick smile in recognition, and then gone back to her interactions with the group of people she was currently socialising with, barely sparing Brooke a second glance.

She felt self-absorbed even thinking it, but Brooke had at least hoped she’d come over and say hi — she’d even kind of been expecting it after Vanessa had dropped her so many messages about the party. But maybe she was just being polite. Maybe she’d had too many people back out already, and she just wanted to make sure.

Whatever the reason was, it hurt more than Brooke could fathom. She became deflated and dejected, trying not to sulk as she mingled with her other co-stars and crew members, knowing that she was probably looking like the lamest, most miserable Catwoman to ever exist.

It stung to think that perhaps Vanessa regretted what had happened between them, but then again, why should she still be caught up on that night? If Vanessa ever felt something for Brooke, she’d more than likely moved on by now. After all, Brooke had.

If one good thing came out of Vanessa ghosting her, it was Proving Nina Right.

“I told you so,” Brooke said when she finally caught up with her best friend again, at around midnight. She was straddling the line between tipsy and drunk from all the alcohol she’d been knocking back in self-pity.

“I don’t know what you’re referring to, but I doubt you did. You know I’m never wrong,” Nina replied with a smile.

“Vanessa. I’m over her.”

“And have you been thinking a lot on this night about how you’re over Vanessa?” Nina laughed.

“I mean it, bitch. I haven’t talked to her since I got here. Not once, nope.”

“By choice?” Nina questioned, narrowing her eyes.

“Well. Not exactly,” Brooke scrunched her nose in response. “It’s just… I think she hates me.”

Nina huffed dramatically, seeming uncharacteristically impatient with Brooke Lynn.

“Right. That’s it. I don’t even wanna hear this. You two are the worst communicators in the world and I’m tired of it,” — she grabbed Brooke’s hand and dragged her across the kitchen and out onto the deck, where Vanessa stood, a literal angel, glowing under the moonlight.

“Vanessa! How good to see you! Love the party, dear,” Nina called loudly, Brooke feeling like a bratty child being forced to apologise on the playground.

“Hi, V,” Brooke greeted Vanessa, warmth surging through her when Vanessa grinned back at her.

“Sorry, I have to just take this,” Nina butted in, gripping her silent phone, “after all, a manager’s job never ends.”

“How was Canada?” Vanessa started after Nina had left them to it.

“Good. Really good, actually,” Brooke confessed eagerly. “How’s LA been?”

“Same old, you know how it is, girl.”

“Yeah.”

There were a few moments of awkward silence which Brooke used to subtly take in Vanessa’s costume. She was wearing a detailed white corset and bra, huge wings, and a bejewelled headpiece, plus matching stockings that made Brooke want to stare at her thighs all night long. And maybe touch them a little bit, but that was fine, any self-respecting lesbian would feel the same way.

“Brooke, about what happened between us, after the wrap party —” Vanessa began, making Brooke seize up in a panic at the elephant in the room finally being addressed.

“We can forget about it,” she blurted out, her ego unable to handle Vanessa’s words of rejection right now. “It’s no biggie.”

Vanessa said nothing, snapping her head away from Brooke to look up at the moon again.

“Sure, let’s do that. It’s for the best,” she agreed finally.

“Yeah,” Brooke whispered, at a loss for what else to say.

Vanessa faced her again, and shit, she was a terrible actor. Her eyes were wet and had she really been crying this whole time while Brooke was unaware right next to her? Not that Brooke could blame her — she was already feeling like they’d gone and fucked up the tentative friendship that had been formed between the two of them. Brooke felt her throat constricting as she realised how much she hated this. How different it felt now.

“Good talk, I guess,” Vanessa summarised, and she was gone from Brooke’s side in a flash.

—

Brooke had decided to call it a night soon after her conversation with Vanessa, no longer in the mood for any kind of festivities. She was quiet the entire Uber ride home, and was grateful when for once, Nina chose not to pry.

They couldn’t avoid each forever, though, as that Saturday they had their first press gigs for As The Stars Align. As Brooke spent the morning getting ready, she regretted how much she was not looking forward to the day’s schedule — first a panel with the whole cast, and then some paired interviews; naturally, as co-leads, Brooke and Vanessa had been put together for all of theirs.

The panel rolled around too quickly, and Brooke found herself on stage in a line with Michelle, Asia and Katya to her right, Vanessa and the rest of the cast to her left. There was an audience of a few hundred in front of them, and their moderator was a woman called Monét.

“Hi everyone,” Monét began, receiving cheers in response. She introduced each person on stage and gave out some background information on the movie before scrolling on her iPad and launching into the questions. Brooke spared Vanessa a glance, but her co-star seemed strangely out of it. Brooke wanted to bring her back to reality, check she was okay, but she couldn’t catch her eye. As a result, Brooke missed the first couple of questions, and was thankful that none of them seemed to be directed at her. She made a mental note not to watch the panel back later and scrutinise herself for a lack of professionalism that would no doubt be obvious to her own eyes.

“Katya, I wanna talk about your decision to be involved in the creative process of the movie. What made you want to take an active role in the production of As The Stars Align?” Monét asked as Katya’s face lit up.

“This project is my baby,” Katya began with a slight chuckle. “This story is so special to me and to be honest, I don’t trust these bitches unsupervised,” — the audience laughed and Katya’s eyes widened as she apologised and asked whether she was allowed to swear.

“But in all seriousness, I did want to make sure it was done right. A lot of LGBT people, especially young ones, have told me directly how much my book means to them and I didn’t want to let them down. It’s why I wanted the diverse cast and crew that we have. Unfortunately, they happen to be horrible monsters to work with,” Katya joked.

“Speaking of monsters…” Monét grinned wickedly. “Vanessa, what was it like working with the Brooke Lynn Hytes? And playing love interests no less?”

Brooke blushed slightly, turning to Vanessa with a quirked eyebrow. Vanessa looked caught off guard.

“Lemme think how I’m gon answer that,” she teased after a few seconds. “And get your camera phones out, I know y’all be recording and tagging.”

“Please, everyone's dying to know if the diva rumours are true,” Monét carried on sarcastically.

“Working with Brooke Lynn was… an experience,” Vanessa began, earning some stifled laughs from those on stage who knew their shared history. “She’s damn fierce at what she does — if I’ve had even a fifth of the career she’s had by the time I’m her age, it’ll be a blessing.”

“You calling me old, bitch?” Brooke quipped, and the audience laughed again in delight, but Brooke had seen Vanessa smile enough times to know that her heart wasn’t in the one she was giving her right now.

The rest of Monét’s questions went off without a hitch, but when they directed the line of enquiry to journalists in the audience, Brooke felt a sinking feeling in her stomach at the unpredictability of it all. One of the paparazzi introduced himself as being from Fox News, and Brooke wondered how she was going to pretend to be nice to this man.

She’d expected casual sexism or homophobia, but she almost threw up a bit at the actual words that the words left the reporter’s mouth.

“Brooke and Vanessa, we’ve had many inside sources claim they saw you both enter the same hotel room on the night of the wrap party. What I want to ask is, is there any truth to the speculation that the two of you are romantically involved?”

Monét had to hush the rumblings of the audience, giving Brooke a few extra seconds to think on her feet. Vanessa looked horrified (which Brooke would’ve taken offence to if she didn’t feel so bad for her) and was choking on air, most likely thanking her luck that they had been saddled with passing a few microphones around rather than wearing them.

“Brooke, Vanessa, feel free not to answer that. I’m speaking to the management about vetting as soon as this is over,” Monét said, only half kidding.

“It’s okay. Vanessa and I aren’t together, but wouldn’t that be quite the story?” Brooke replied, the words tasting like salt. “However, she has become a very good friend of mine, and, um, she deserves the world. All the amazing humans on this stage do.” The audience aww-ed and ahh-ed, touched.

“Y’all heard me earlier, I wouldn’t be caught dead with her senior ass,” Vanessa exaggerated, Brooke laughing despite the joke made at her expense, gratefully that Vanessa was able to lighten the mood.

After another twenty minutes of audience questions, thankfully none as invasive as the first, they departed the stage and took a lunch break before their upcoming afternoon of paired interviews. Everyone ate together at a big table, Vanessa sat a few seats down from Brooke, and she was still being unusually quiet.

Brooke hated not hearing her loud voice soaring above all the rest.

—

Vanessa’s Halloween party had not gone to plan.

She had envisioned it so well — Brooke would arrive just as Vanessa was a couple of drinks in wearing a bomb costume; they’d lock eyes from across the room and the spark would be reignited. They’d spend all night catching up, just the two of them in their own corner, and maybe one of them would make a move.

Maybe she’d had her hopes too high expecting a grand love declaration or a kiss that swept her off her feet, but she thought Brooke would at least be down to continue whatever they started. Instead, her day had ended with Brooke telling her that she wanted to pretend that night had never happened.

Vanessa was fucking crushed.

She had never experienced heartbreak, not really — her only relationship had been Matt, and she had been more relieved than sad when it was over. But she was completely devastated to realise that her fantasies of a future with Brooke would remain fantasies. Vanessa hated herself for falling for Brooke so hard and fast, especially since the intensity of her feelings were clearly unreciprocated.

Vanessa was also, despite being a professional actor, completely terrible at hiding her feelings. When she was in character — following a script — she was mostly able to detach herself completely and convey any emotion regardless of whether it was one she able to empathise with, but when she was being herself it was no use.

She was sure fans would pick up on it, would question why Vanessa wasn’t her usual bubbly, loud self on stage. If only they knew.

Her first joint interview with Brooke was with a tall, blonde woman named Alaska, who wrote for an LGBT magazine. When Vanessa joined her in the small press room, Brooke Lynn was already there, early as ever (except for her Halloween party, Vanessa thought bitterly).

“Hi, girls,” Alaska drawled. Her questions were pleasantly thoughtful, focussing on the message of the movie, allowing them to give in depth, individual answers, though afterwards they were ordered to up the chemistry between the two of them, so clearly they hadn’t been everything the publication was looking for.

And she had to give it to her — from then on, Brooke did start making an effort to connect with Vanessa in her responses, even though Vanessa struggled to put their personal issues aside.

After more interviews that seemed to go on forever, mostly with male reporters who were as boring as they were old, they had one final discussion with a girl named Tatianna, which would be printed rather than filmed. She was more gossipy, but just as sweet as Alaska had been.

“Ladies, this one’s a little personal, so just let me know if you want to move on and we’ll cut it out. I don’t know your identities, but I was wondering whether your own experiences with sexuality have influenced the way you play these characters, and your decision to take on LGBT roles.”

Vanessa looked at Brooke, hesitance etched over her features, and it suddenly clicked that Brooke was a celebrity, and her sexuality wasn’t public knowledge — Vanessa had been oblivious before Brooke had come out to her. She didn’t know why the thought had never occurred to her before, but she realised that Brooke was most likely being intentionally private about her sexuality for whatever reasons and she didn’t want to put her in a compromising situation, no matter how frustrated she was with her right now.

“Obviously, I can’t speak for Brooke, but yeah, it definitely played a role for me. I’m bisexual, and there was such a lack of bi representation for me growing up — there still is now, and of LGBT representation in general. I always assumed I was straight, ‘cos I didn’t even really know that liking more than one gender was a thing. There was no bi figures, in fiction or the media, or if there was, they were constantly being erased… but that’s a whole other discussion, Mary.” Vanessa noticed that Brooke looked utterly engaged in what she was saying, and it was nice to feel heard and understood.

“So yeah, I was definitely conscious as a bi person about taking queer roles. We deserve to tell our own stories, you know? I feel like having a movie like this with such a diverse cast would’ve really helped the teenage me who was just trying to figure herself out.”

Tatianna nodded compassionately, before turning towards Brooke.

“I, uh. I agree LGBT representation is so important, and the way it’s handled is always an indicator on quality in a script. I feel like people of any sexuality can relate to queer roles — especially women, or people of colour, anyone who knows what it feels like to be marginalised or a minority. But yeah, there’s definitely a lot of me in my character,” Brooke confessed, smiling half-heartedly.

“Well, this has been a very insightful conversation. Thank you both for your time,” Tatianna concluded, shaking their hands.

The interviewer began talking with the behind the scenes people whose jobs were a mystery to Vanessa.

“Girl, what a day,” Vanessa yawned, hoping they would be given the okay to leave soon.

“Ness, I… I’m proud of you, you know,” Brooke said. Vanessa’s heart melted with both affection and sadness at Brooke’s gentle voice, and properly looked her in the eyes for the first time in days.

“Bitch, don’t get soft with me.”

“I’m serious… you just, like, came out to the whole world. That’s a big deal.”

“Well, not the whole world, just Refinery29 readers,” Vanessa joked. Brooke laughed a disproportionate amount.

“You ever think you’ll do it? I just realised we never talked about all that —” Brooke’s face became immediately pensive at Vanessa’s question.

“Sure,” she decided after a few moments of reflection. “I mean, I have my hang-ups, but if I got into a really serious relationship, I wouldn’t wanna hide it, y’know?” — Vanessa nodded — “but sometimes I worry that I’ve left it too late. Like, what if everyone feels I’ve been lying by omission all these years and I end up betraying both straight people and the LGBT community at the same time?”

“Ima stop you right there, girl,” Vanessa cut her off. “You don’t owe nothing to nobody, got it? If you do it, it’s gotta be on your own terms. Gay people won’t give a shit that it didn’t happen earlier, they know how it is. Trust me, if they ever find out Brooke Lynn Hytes is one of them, they ain’t gonna be mad.”

Brooke raised her eyebrows, and Vanessa wondered if she knew she was projecting.

“And I’m not done. To address your other concern. If homophobes are pissed then you’re doing something right. You finessed them and got their homophobic coin, be proud, bitch!”

“You know, surprisingly, that made me feel a lot better. Thanks, Ness,” Brooke shared with a small smile.

And Vanessa felt better, too. The issues between her and Brooke couldn’t be magically fixed, but for now, a weight had been lifted.

[satorisa]

Lift the Veil - Chapter 13:  Alone with You

Rating: T

Summary: After living in Tokyo for the past six years, she decides to head back to Azumano to escape the big city. However, she now has to face everything that she tried to flee from all those years ago. How exactly will she fare when the pages of a long forgotten book start turning once more?

Alternate links for reading available in my description!

Hover over that chapter link again for some easy listening while reading!

I should note that, I too, have recently moved and that was no fun, but living in my apartment is great fun, a great breath of fresh air, and I’m so sorry this chapter too so long to update. ;;

Please enjoy~

Chapter 13 – Alone With You

I'll wake up tomorrow; it's something to borrow, but something that you could keep.

While scrambling in the mess of my room, I felt some hair escape my disheveled bun as the strands softly grazed my cheek before sticking to my sweaty neck. You’d think that packing wouldn’t be so hard, especially since most of my stuff sat untouched in the boxes downstairs since I moved back to Azumano, but I just had to unpack the behemoth of my closet because I thought I needed all those work outfits. And my whole book collection thinking that I’d actually have time to calmly read in the midst of gluing the broken shards of my life back together. And whatever else I decided to unpack for the hell of it.

God. I hate moving, and I only have myself to blame for making this all the more stressful.

Riku still had yet to barrage me with the news of her marriage proposal, but I kept myself updated with her trip by scrolling through the many photos she’d upload on her social media. Sometimes, she’d send me photos she decided not to publically share, and they either made me laugh or wish that I wasn’t stuck in my room facing my hoarding tendencies.

“We’re done taking inventory of your things downstairs,” Hiwatari announced, walking in holding a water bottle. “Your mother has the list if you need to check it later.”

“Thanks.” Hiwatari handed me the water, and I took several large gulps before handing it back to him. “What are they doing now?”

“Packing all the stuff they’ve bought for you.”

I groaned. “I already told them not to!”

“Clearly, they’re not listening.”

“Thank you, Captain Obvious.”

Hiwatari frowned at my sarcastic remark as I collapsed onto the floor. The more I brought, the more I’d have to unpack. Their hearts were in the right place but—ugh. If I actually liked what they’d gotten me, I wouldn’t have minded so much, but…

“Dammit…”

“Hey. Finish packing up your room before you stress out about them.”

“I refuse.”

“Even if I offer to help?”

“I refuse slightly less”

“I will let them know that what they’ve bought you isn’t enough.”

“…fine! Does your offer for help still stand?”

“No. The period to accept my help has expired.”

“Hiwatari-saaaaaaaaaan.”

He stopped at the doorway with a smirk on his face before coming back to help me up. I trudged back to my closet, pulling out my clothes and tossing them haphazardly onto my bed. Hiwatari busied himself with packing up my books, stacking them neatly onto the floor.

“Harada-san, have you even touched any of your books since you’ve arrived?” he asked.

“Some of them! Things have been pretty hectic since Vienna, so I haven’t had much time to sit down and read lately.”

“I am sure you’ll be able to do that once you’ve moved in.”

“Hopefully! Unless work kills me first. We’ll see.”

He laughed, and I watched him take the large stacks of books and neatly place them into one of the empty boxes nearby. Deciding I shouldn’t waste any more time, I went back to organizing my clothes, neatly folding them before sorting them out.

We mostly worked in silence until Hiwatari finished packing up my books and moved onto whatever else I needed to pack. Somehow, he knew what I had brought from Tokyo and what I had left in Azumano (which was simultaneously both disturbing yet amazing), so he didn’t speak up often.

During one of those lulls of silence, I heard light humming coming from the hallway. I glanced at my doorway to see my mother holding a tray with a plate full of sliced apples and two water bottles. On her face was a knowing smile as she motioned towards Hiwatari, who was too preoccupied to notice my mother’s presence.

“Hey.” Hiwatari looked up from the bubble-wrapped item in his hands. “Break time.”

He placed whatever he was holding in a nearby box before walking up to my mom and thanking her. She returned his platitudes before looking at me again with that same smile she had walking into the room. Clearly, I was missing something here. While Hiwatari was busy biting into an apple slice, my mother gestured towards him once more, and only then did I realize what she was insinuating.

“Mom, it’s not like that!”

My mother only giggled. “For now.”

“Mom!”

…

When Hiwatari finished packing up his share of my stuff, he silently slipped away. And when I finally finished, setting up my last suitcase outside my bedroom door, I headed downstairs to see Hiwatari and my parents at the dining table, chatting over a bowl of edamame. I slipped into the seat next to Hiwatari.

“How long does it take for you to pack some clothes?” Hiwatari asked.

“Some clothes? Were you blind to the mountains in my room?”

“You only have your hoarder tendencies to blame for that.”

He was right, but he had no business exposing me like this in front of my parents. “One more word, Hiwatari-san, and you’re barred from stepping foot into my new place.”

“One more word.”

“That’s it!”

My parents laughed as Hiwatari and I squabbled for a bit. And when we both calmed down, we finalized tomorrow’s move-in plans. Hiwatari dismissed himself once we finished since he was coming by to help tomorrow morning, leaving me and my parents alone in a house that was far too big for just three people.

“Thank you for your help,” I said, picking at an edamame skin in my hand. “You didn’t have to.”

“We’re more than happy to,” my mother said.

“And I don’t really need the extra stuff you packed for me. I mean, I’m grateful, don’t get me wrong, but—”

“No buts,” my father interrupted. “Just say thank you.”

“…thank you,” I sheepishly echoed.

“Dear…’

“You should go to bed. We need to be up early.” He got up from the table. “Good night.”

My mother tried to stop him, but he was out of reach by then. She then turned to me with a smile.

“I’m sorry about your father. You know he means well.”

“I know that, but I don’t need the extra stuff. Really.”

“Risa, please, just take it.”

“Mom, I appreciate the sentiment, but it’s all hideous! In what realm does ancient antique go well with modern minimalistic? What were you thinking getting me all that?” I pouted. “If you’d gotten me kitchenware, that’d be one thing, but—”

She just started laughing. “Your father chose it for you.”

“And you didn’t stop him?”

“You know how he gets when he has his mind set!” My mother put on a gruff expression before clearing her throat. “‘I know she said she wanted this! Trust me!’”

I laughed. “Yeah, when I was four!”

Eventually we managed to calm down our hysterics. “I’ll hide what your father bought you before I sleep, and we can go shopping so you can choose what you’d like with the money we get back after we return everything. How does that sound?”

“Amazing! Smart thinking, Mom!”

“Of course, Honey. Even I wouldn’t want to be on the receiving end of what he bought you.”

We laughed before finding ourselves in silence. I was about to stand up and dismiss myself to go to bed when I noticed that smile on my mother’s face. It was the same one she gave me when she came up while I was packing.

“So, about Satoshi…”

Oh my god.

I groaned. “Yes, what about Hiwatari-san?”

“Riku’s practically engaged by now, and you’re not getting any younger. And Satoshi is such a nice young man, helping you out so much since you’ve gotten back. You two got along so well when you were younger, too.”

It was one thing to have everyone else hounding me about Hiwatari, but it was an entirely different monster in my mom’s hands. Commenting about our closeness when we were younger while insisting that he’d be a good match for me, completely oblivious to everything that occurred behind closed doors?

Mom, you wound me.

“We’re not as close now.”

“Hm? Your expressions when you were talking to him earlier say otherwise.”

“I’m not even on a first name basis with him. You are.”

She pouted. “Well, I’m not responsible for fixing whatever happened between you two back then. And to think that you used to be so in love with him, too.”

I gasped. “Excuse me?”

My mother knew?

“You can’t hide these things from your mother. To be fair, though, you were so painfully obvious, you couldn’t have hid it from anyone. Even your father knew.”

My father knew, too?

“Mom…”

“Although, now that I think about it, I’m sure he returned your feelings.”

I bit my lip. How the hell did my mother figure all this out? Was this truly the power of her mother’s intuition?

How terrifying.

“Mother…” I braced myself for whatever truth she may spit out next.

“…with a good-looking man like that, how would your children look?”

“MOM!”

…

I woke up the next morning to the smell of breakfast. Still drowsy, I left the warmth of my bed and headed downstairs to see my mother toiling away at the stove. My father read the newspaper with a steaming mug of black coffee close by. And Hiwatari, looking as bleary-eyed as I probably did, just grunted in acknowledgement.

He did not need to get up this early.

“Good morning!” my mother greeted.

Too tired to bother returning it, I just grumbled before slipping into the seat next to Hiwatari. He put his head down, and I followed suit, too tired to even stay upright.

“Ready to move-in today?” she asked with a cheeriness that was a crime that early in the morning.

“Mhm…”

I stayed unmoving until I felt a tap on my shoulder. Slowly sitting up, I saw my mom’s blinding smile before she placed a plate of French toast in front of me. She woke Hiwatari up in the same way, placing a vegetable-packed omelet in front of him before returning to the stove. We looked at our food before looking at each other knowingly and exchanged our plates. I’d puke consuming that much sugar in the state I was in, and Hiwatari’d probably faint later if that was all he ate.

While Hiwatari still had more than half of his plate left, I headed upstairs to get ready. When I finished freshening up, I brought my bags downstairs to make it easier for the movers. Hiwatari ambled out of the kitchen once I placed my last bag down, looking much better than he did when I saw him earlier that morning.

“I hate you,” I grumbled.

He looked at me, confused for a second, before shrugging my vitriol off. “Isn’t it a bit too early for this?”

“I couldn’t sleep because my mom was talking about you after you left.”

Hiwatari nodded knowingly. “I’ve been on the other side of that conversation several times. Your mother’s intuition is so spot on that it’s…uncomfortable.”

“Tell me about it.”

“How do you feel?”

“Disgusted. Disturbed.”

“Um…I wasn’t asking about me. Or your mother. Or that conversation.”

“Oh, uh, sorry.”

“Nice to know you think so highly of me.”

“I’m glad we’re on the same page.”

I toyed with the luggage tag on one of my bags, unable to say anything. Awkward silences were bad enough, but they were doubly worse with Hiwatari after a somewhat serious topic.

“Sorry.”

“Again with the apologies when you’re not one for apologizing, Harada-san? What’s the occasion?”

“For being mean to you like that.”

“You were always like this back then. If you like me, you don’t have to try so hard to hide it.”

“Hey! Who said that I like you, now?”

“If your mom brought me up, that must mean—”

“Hiwatari-san!”

“My apologies.” The playful smile disappeared from his face. “How do you feel? About moving out, that is?”

Oh, so that’s what he meant. My bad. “Like everything’s falling into place. There’s just something about having your own space to call home. It’s like…it’s mine and mine alone.”

“I understand. After I moved out of the Niwa’s house into my own apartment, I felt at ease, especially since I was paying for it now.”

“Exactly! You understand!”

“Not having to wash your dishes immediately after using them…”

“Walking around in just your underwear…”

Hiwatari paused before giving me a quizzical look. “…you do that?”

“…you don’t…?”

“I’m afraid I don’t…”

My face flushed. “Then forget I said anything.”

“How could I? You’ve just given me more ammo to tease you with.”

“Not cool, Hiwatari-san…oh.”

“Oh…?”

“It’s because we act like this! That’s why people keep getting the wrong idea!”

“I’m not going to give up one of my joys in life to avoid quick judgements from others. I’d rather be misunderstood.”

“…really?”

Hiwatari just ruffled my hair with a soft smile. “You worry too much about how you’re perceived by others. Just do you, Harada-san.”

“It’s you doing whatever that isn’t helping me, you know.”

Before he could say anything we heard someone knock on the door. Hiwatari rushed over to open it, and I saw the movers greeting him.

It’s showtime!

…

“Hello, hello!” Akane greeted when I opened up the door for her. “Sorry for coming so late, but we brought some food to make up for it!”

“You didn’t have to! You two even offering to help is more than enough.”

“No, we did,” Takeshi countered. “Boss, how do you think I feel knowing that the Chief’s been up since the crack of dawn to help you move?”

“…glad that you didn’t have to wake up that early?”

“Risa, we both woke up super early today.”

I shot them an incredulous look. “What did you do before you two came here?”

“Secret!” they simultaneously chimed.

“Anyways,” Takeshi resumed as they both walked past the threshold, “The Chief’s showing me up with all that dedication of his, and it’s killing me; I’m the better friend, right?”

“Considering I hated you for a majority of my childhood, I think both of you are on the same level of being equally awful.”

“Say it isn’t so, Boss!” he cried while his girlfriend just giggled next to him. “Say it isn’t so!”

“Now, what would I gain from lying to you, my good friend?” I smirked. Takeshi’s crestfallen look made Akane snort, and I couldn’t help but laugh at the scene.

“Boss, you wound me.”

“If I must be honest, Hiwatari’s dedication is wounding me. Not that I don’t appreciate it, but I wish he’d save it for when he’s actually in a relationship.”

A sour look appeared on all of our faces as we all reached a mutual understanding that this was the extent we were willing to let that conversation go. Takeshi scoped the living room before looking at me with a confused expression. “Where’s everyone?”

“In my room reassembling my furniture. Do you want to join them?”

“And finally live my dream of becoming a carpenter? Boy, howdy, I sure do!” he joked as he bounced towards my room. I heard the muffled sounds of everyone greeting him while I returned to the kitchen to arrange my things exactly where I wanted them. Akane joined me, humming the tune of the ending theme of a currently airing drama.

“Is Riku here?” she eventually asked as she tip-toed to put my mugs away.

“Nope; she’s in Zurich right now.”

“Zurich?”

Takeshi conveniently left my room at this time as he headed to my fridge and grabbed a water bottle “What’s this talk about Zurich?”

“You didn’t hear?” I asked, genuinely confused.

“Didn’t hear what?”

“Daisuke’s planning on proposing to Riku during their trip to Zurich.”

“WHAT?!” Takeshi screeched a little too close to my ears for my liking. “Why didn’t I hear about this as one of Daisuke’s certified best friends?”

“Because you’re loud and don’t know how to keep your mouth shut.”

“Pot, meet Kettle!”

“Hey!”

Akane laughed as I argued with Takeshi. Eventually, he gave up, going onto my balcony to watch the ocean, half-filled water bottle in hand, as he grumbled something under his breath. He left the door open, and I heard the rhythmic sounds of the waves quietly echo through my room.

“Marriage, huh?” Akane sighed, almost dreamily.

“What? Wish you were in Riku’s shoes right now?” I teased.

“Well, of course! I can’t wait for T-kun to propose to me, but…”

“But?”

“It’s—I feel like I just started dating Takeshi yesterday, but we’ve been together for two years. I can’t believe marriage is already a possibility now.”

“What’s so odd about it? I mean, I’m sure you two have talked about it seriously by now, so why can’t you believe it?”

She giggled. “We have, but it still feels like a fairytale, you know? Finding someone who loves you so much that they want to spend the rest of their lives with you. I mean, sure, the sentiment is there when you dating, but marriage feels…different.”

“The finality of it all?” I joked.

“Risa-chan, I thought you’d understand my romantic musings!” The pout on her face gave way to a small smile before a wistful look fell onto her face. “Maybe it’s the reassurance of their presence in their life? Or that there’s someone willing to ride the waves of life with you no matter what happens? Something’s just different, yanno? You get what I’m saying, right?”

I shook my head, offering an apologetic smile. “I understand, in theory, what you’re saying, but I honestly can’t grasp what you’re trying to insinuate here.”

She gasped. “You’ve never been in a relationship?”

“Nope.”

I wasn’t lying to Akane. Technically, I had never been in a relationship because the two people I dated never made it official enough for me to brag to the world about a new boyfriend, so, for all intents and purposes, I have been single since day one.

Akane didn’t need to know about them. Nor should she ever need to.

She looked genuinely shocked at my answer. “I can’t believe it!”

“Why not?”

“My gut is telling me that you’ve been in one, and my intuition for this stuff is spot on!”

“Maybe it’s because I’m so pretty?” I ask, hoping that my vanity would get her to drop this topic.

“…you know, you may be right.”

Takeshi snorted, but Akane, undisturbed by the disgusting, guttural sound that came from her boyfriend, went back to organizing whilst humming. Her conversational silence did not last long, though.

“You’ve at least dated people, right?” she asked, breaking the rhythm I was mentally keeping.

“I’ve been on several dates, yes.”

“Are you opposed to going on another one?” she asked, eyes shining with elation. Before I could open my mouth to say that yes, I was extremely opposed to going on a date at this time, she continued. “Because I think you should go on a date with Satoshi.”

I nearly dropped the bowl in my hands. Akane just looked at me, innocently waiting for my response, so I turned my attention to Takeshi whose eyes, wide with concern, met mine. So he knows at least this much, huh?

“You guys get along really well, and that’s a great foundation for a relationship!” she continued, oblivious to the heavy atmosphere settling in and the discomfort and pain each of her words dealt. I couldn’t hear my parents and Hiwatari from my room anymore.

Oh, god. Were they listening?

“Just because—”

“I know the two of you are just friends, but you should at least give him a chance! Who knows? Maybe, by changing your perspective, you might find the love of your life?”

“Akane, I know you mean well, but—”

“I feel like this might actually bloom into something! And, trust me, I have a knack for these things!”

Takeshi barreled through my balcony door, covering Akane’s mouth before she could inflict more damage. He shot me a somewhat proud yet apologetic smile.

“That’s my honey for ya!” He forced a laugh. “I’m so sorry about that! She gets this way about these things.”

“It’s okay. I get that way about these things, too.”

But my words fell on deaf ears. Takeshi whisked Akane away, furiously whispering in her ear as he dragged her into my bedroom. Hiwatari’s head popped out seconds later.

“Are you okay?” he mouthed.

I nodded. “Are you sure?” he mouth again, eyebrows furrowed in disbelief. I nodded again, and his head disappeared as if these measly gestures had contented him.

I really was fine. Truly. So Hiwatari had read me right. (Queue relief with a side of insatiable discomfort here.) I always got rattled when someone’s intuition was a little too spot on for my liking.

When Akane returned with my mother in turn, she kept apologizing until my mother managed to calm her down while they organized one of my drawers.

“You know, I wouldn’t be opposed to you dating Satoshi,” my mother whispered to me, shooting me a snide smile before returning to the task at hand.

I only shot her a polite smile to hide the screams threatening to escape from my diaphragm. If she actually knew, I would be the one wearing the smirk.

…actually, I take it back. No one would be wearing a smirk in that instant. There would just be bloodshed and no survivors. I mentally shuddered at the image and from the immense stupidity I always found myself experiencing at the worst moments.

…

Takeshi and Akane left after we had dinner, wishing me and my parents the best before shutting the door behind them. And once everything was unpacked, albeit messily, my parents started to feel the consequences of their hard work and dismissed themselves, leaving me and Hiwatari lounging on the sofa. My furniture was all set up, but I still had a whole day of tidying up waiting for me tomorrow. What fun.

“Are you heading out soon?” I asked him. I sat, curled on the sofa, back against its arm, as I moved my toes. Hiwatari just looked at me questionably.

“Probably. I am tired.”

“Clearly. Your eyes are droopier than usual.”

He nodded, too exhausted to even go along with my joking, before getting up. I expected him to head to the door, and I had almost gotten up to close it behind him when he went into my room. He returned with an ivory box in his hands before sitting back down.

“What’s that?” I asked. I remembered seeing it in my room, but I didn’t think much of it even though it didn’t seem familiar.

“Your house-warming gift.” He handed it to me. “I packed it into one of your boxes.”

“…and you didn’t think to give it to me personally like a normal person instead of smuggling it in?”

“I wanted it to be a surprise.”

“Still would’ve been a surprise considering I don’t know what this is.”

He yawned. “Please hurry up and open it. We don’t have all evening.”

I rolled my eyes at his roundabout way of doing things before gingerly opening my gift. Inside, nestled in its packaging, was the tea set that caught my eye back in Vienna.

I gasped. “You didn’t have to…”

“No, I had to. It would’ve been a shame for you if you had just left it there.”

I nodded before smiling. “Thank you, Hiwatari, for helping me move in, for this gift, and for being a tolerable friend.”

“Tolerable? I was shooting for wonderful, but as long as I’m a better friend than Takeshi, I suppose I’ll take it.”

“In your dreams, Hiwatari-san. Takeshi beats you by a longshot.” I playfully stuck out my tongue.

He shot me a smile while shaking his head. “Anyways, you’re welcome, Harada-san. It’s the least I could do.” He then yawned again before glancing at his phone. His brows knit in concern as he pressed his lips in a line.

“Harada-san, could I ask you for a favor?”

“Depends on what you need. What’s up?”

“Could I possibly sleep over? Sorry to impose, but I’m not up to commuting home right now.”

I laughed. “No need to get so upset over asking me that! Be my guest, and go knock yourself out on my couch. Literally.”

He smiled, relieved that I didn’t kick him out of apartment (which would’ve been extremely rude considering he spent the whole day helping me move in), before taking my tea set to the kitchen. I grabbed a blanket and some pillows from my room and returned to my living room to see my sofa bed pulled out. Hiwatari grabbed them from my hands as he set up his bed for the evening.

Before I walked into my room, I turned back to see him straightening the sheet.

“Hiwatari-san?”

“Hm?” He looked up from his work.

“Good night.”

He smiled. “Good night, Harada-san.”

…

Even thought I had gotten into bed. I decided to read a book, Severance by Ling Ma, until I started to feel drowsy. And when I did, I headed to the kitchen to pour myself some water.

Hiwatari seemed asleep when I came out but when I turned around to head back, I saw him sitting up, squinting in the darkness. I nearly screamed.

“What are you doing still up?” he groggily asked.

“I was reading a book. Why are you still up?”

“I can’t sleep.”

Nodding, I headed back to my room, exchanging my glass of water for the music box on my nightstand. When I handed it back to him, he examined it in his hand.

“What is this?” he asked.

“A Hikari artwork, apparently. Kei gave it to me when I was having problems sleeping in Vienna.” I didn’t elaborate, and Hiwatari didn’t pry. I expected some sort of reaction, whether at me claiming this trinket was a Hikari artwork or at my mentioning Kei’s name, but he maintained his blank expression. “Just wind it up, and the music should, hopefully, put you to sleep.”

“Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.”

I headed back into my room and tucked myself into bed. Despite my closed door and the walls separating me and Hiwatari, I could hear the tinny notes, albeit muffled, as they lulled me to sleep.

…

I woke up the next morning expecting to see Hiwatari awake before me, but I came out to see him still fast asleep. He faced the balcony windows, somehow unaffected by the strong sunlight filtering in, as his chest rose and fell rhythmically.

Had I been in high school, I probably would’ve ogled over this image. Whenever I’d wake up in the mornings, Hiwatari would be long gone, leaving only a faint warmth from where he laid next to me the night before. But now, it felt too perverse for me to see Hiwatari in such a vulnerable state.

The great Hiwatari Satoshi asleep on my sofa like a newborn baby! I would rather have another go-around of that emotionally grueling time in Vienna then subject myself to this sight. It was too much: having him asleep, in front of me, on my sofa having the spent the night over, but hey! This was my life now.

No use in complaining over the fact that I couldn’t cut him off like a sensible person.

I checked my phone, thinking that maybe Riku would’ve sent me a message, but I had nothing from her. Chalking it up to her being busy, I started cooking breakfast, hoping it would ease Hiwatari into consciousness.

…

Work hadn’t improved much, and Hiwatari’s insistence in walking me back every night since I moved into my new apartment brewed a slew of office rumors I wanted no part of. On the way home, he would diligently listen to me complain about my day while staying silent about his. Once we arrived, he would leave without bothering for dinner, which only increased my guilt over him giving me his time for something so inconsequential.

Luckily, the couple’s week in Zurich was almost up, and I was excited to have them back for some news. We planned to meet at my place, obviously, so the newly engaged couple could see the apartment while we caught up.

Hiwatari and I spent most of the day cooking and cleaning my apartment for their visit. Once they landed, Hiwatari headed to the airport to pick them up. He would drop them off at their houses so they could freshen up and rest a bit. Hiwatari would come back to help me finish getting ready for them, and the couple would arrive once everything was, hopefully, done.

When I heard the knock at the door, I expected to see Hiwatari. Instead, I saw Riku’s fuming face.

“Riku? What are you doing here? I—”

“Was it Satoshi?”

“E-excuse me?” I asked with fear lacing my voice.

Oh no.

“Was it Satoshi who hurt you?”

“Why would he—”

She slammed her hand on the doorframe. I flinched. “Don’t play dumb here!” she screamed. “Daisuke told me everything and—”

I blocked out what she said as the despair settled into my stomach. Daisuke finally appeared next to her, winded and panting heavily. He looked ready to say something but, after seeing the situation, kept silent.

“Why the hell did I have to find this out from my drunk fiancé?! How could you not tell me something like this?!

“How could I have told you when the very thought of sharing it terrified me!?”

Riku and Daisuke winced on the receiving end of my high-pitched, shrilly voice. The frown on Daisuke’s face drooped even more once he recovered. But Riku?

She clicked her tongue. “Well, if you had just told me, I could’ve done something.”

“Like what?” I asked, voice grating my own eardrums, as tears budded at the corner of my eyes. “With someone who’s practically family? Tell me exactly what the hell you could’ve done!”

The ferocity she possessed faded in an instant as she tried to answer my question. And when she couldn’t, she shook her head in defeat.

“Then don’t come in here screaming about how I should’ve told you and done something when there was nothing you could’ve done! Now, congratulations on your engagement, but you need to leave.”

“Risa—”

“Leave. Now.”

Riku left looking deflated.

“Risa, I’m so—”

“I don’t want your apology.” The curtness in my voice took Daisuke back. I sighed, feeling my heightened emotions leave with my extended exhale. “We can talk about this later. Just…take care of her right now. Please.”

He nodded dutifully before going after my sister. Hiwatari appeared, after emerging from wherever he was hiding, looking like a puppy who knew he was in trouble.

“I’m upset. Not at you, not at Daisuke, not at Riku, despite how that looked earlier, but this idiotic situation,” I explained, glad to feel level-headed again. “God, I can’t help if when Riku’s like that.”

He nodded cautiously. “Do you…need help cleaning up?”

“No offense, but I don’t want you around right now. Thank you for the offer though. You’re more than welcome to grab some food before you go.”

He slipped by me, careful not to accidently brush against me, as he headed to kitchen to pack some food. After a deep bow, he left, and I closed the door behind him. I slunk to the floor and buried my face into my hands.

Oh god.

[the-canary]

Retro - B.B (3/8)

Summary: Please, third times the charm, right? Because James Barnes is tired of failing at this thing called love. (Modern AU!Reader/Bucky Barnes).

Prompt:  “If you focus on what you left behind, you will never be able to see what lies ahead.”

A/N: This is for @buckyofthemyscira 5k challenge.

Part 1 | Part 2 | Masterlist

Please enjoy! Feedback is always welcomed.

“What do you mean you said no?” Pepper asks, after you finish going over your story from the week before. You didn’t want to give your neighbor a bad reputation, but his ask had been a little strange. However, before you can respond --  

“The one man in all of New York crazy enough to ask you out,” Tony exclaims from his side of the office, as his girlfriend rolls her eyes, “And you say no!”

“I wasn’t going to have my first date with my cute neighbor be at his ex-girlfriend’s wedding!” you respond back, as all three people within your little office look at you with an array of emotions for confusion to acceptance of your decision. You sigh before taking a seat and play with the ends of your chiffon shirt.

“She does have a good point,” Rhodey adds his own two cents into the discussion, while looking over next month’s editorial, as you give him an appreciative smile, “He could have wined and dined her first.”

“Thank you,” you remark, as both Pepper and Tony can’t help but agree.

Everyone moves forward from this little discussion and into working on the magazine for next month. You and Rhodey as current editors --of news and culture, respectively-- spent most time together in getting everything down and ready for circulation each month.  And while, Tony and Pepper owned the magazine and at this point didn’t have to do anything, both liked to have a hands on approach to its completion every once and awhile, especially when an event interested them.

Said event for them being a large photography exhibition that Pepper’s company was funding for both new and veteran photographers near SoHo. Reviewing the list of artists and photographers for the event, you can’t help at the sight of a familiar name.  

“Is the name of the photographer James Barnes ?” you ask with an uptick of nervousness that only Pepper seems to catch, as Tony proceeds to go on a personal tirade of how he loves the young man’s work. Green eyes look your way in worry, as you shake your head.

God, how common could that name be.

 “I don’t think it would be all right for me to go to a wedding, especially as a first date. I’m sorry, James. ”

Bucky groans at the memory before taking another chug of his drink. He had gotten ahead of himself due to nerves and spilled all his problems to his neighbor, and while she had given him a sympathetic smile -- she turned him down completely. He hadn’t meant to take her to Natasha’s wedding as a first date, but as the first thing on his mind -- it just came out that way. James tried other women last minute, but he just couldn’t get his neighbor out of his mind.

Bucky now knew that he was falling hard for her, but he might have messed it all up. Thus, he was once again alone, watching the second love of his life dancing with her new husband.

“Don’t you think you should stop drinking so much?” Steve asks before sitting next to him, as Peggy simply shakes her head before saying that she is going to grab something from the buffet table. Bucky simply shakes his head, as he keeps staring at the dancing couple before looking at his best friend.

“It’s not like it matters, anyways,” Bucky mumbles before scratching the back of his head in annoyance -- with the situation, but most of all himself.

How could everyone around him be so happy and together? Why couldn’t he find that one person that wanted to be with him? Was he that unlovable?

Yes, James Barnes, the photographer, could have anyone in the world if he said the right words and for a time --after Natasha and him broke up-- that’s all he did until he was where he was today. Everyone loved him and his pictures in a surface sort of way, but James found himself growing tired of that. Each new date and interaction showed him what he didn’t want, but just a couple of glimpses from his neighbor showed him that she might be what he was looking for --- if only he wasn’t such a damn idiot.

“I’m gonna end up alone, Stevie,” Bucky groans before lying flat on the table, completely passing out.

Steve shakes his head at the hopeless sight of his best friend before turning to see a certain redhead looking in their general direction. A shake of her head is all that he is met with before she looks away, though Steve knows that he won’t hear the end of this later on.  

 You get out a bit later from work than usual and after a trip to the exhibition location and the local shelter where you volunteered -- you were finally home with some takeout from your favorite place. As you took out your keys, you couldn’t help but glance at the door next to yours. You hadn’t seen James in a couple of days and even if you did reject his offer for a date, you honestly did want to go out with him. He intrigued in a certain way, which was saying something since you didn’t often enjoy interacting with people outside of Pepper, Rhodey, and Tony.

But, there was something different about James Barnes, if only just a little.

“Come on, buddy,” you hear an unfamiliar and two steps come off the elevator, as you turn to see a blond man carrying said man with his arm over his shoulder -- James was clearly drunk and sleeping it off already. You pause and look turn around to have the beautiful blond man give you an annoyed smile, as James mumbles something incoherently.

“Ahh, a little help, please,” the blond asks just a little hesitant as you nod and head to his direction, only for him to motion for you to grab the keys out of James’ jacket pocket. You open the door quickly, as he proceeds to take in the man.

It’s then that you take in James’ apartment and its minimalist interior of black and white, though there are pictures hanging from the walls and on shelves that pop up in color within certain corners of the room. It’s nice in some ways, if not a bit depressing to see that there is a lack of livelihood outside of that -- almost like James didn’t really live here, and you understood that in a way.

“Do you need help with anything?” you ask awkwardly from the entrance of the doorway, as the man puts James on the couch. He huffs out a breathe before finally looking at you like an old friend with a warm smile, as he proceeds to introduce himself as Steve Rogers -- an architect and old friend of “Bucky’s, though the nickname confuses you for a second.

“I’m sorry to bother you,” he starts as you shake your head, “But, if you could watch him, so he doesn’t do anything stupid.”

Note to self: Steve Rogers probably had great stories about James doing stupid things -- you would have to ask if you ever saw him again. However, for the moment, all you did was nod as he gave you a relieved smile before walking out the door with the excuse that his wife was waiting for him in the car. Thus, leaving you in the middle of your neighbor's living room with a very sleeping and drunk James laying down on the couch. Nevertheless, in a very casual fashion, you just shrug it off and went into the kitchen to see what he had to drink to accompany your take out.

Thus, you camped out in James Barnes’ living room most of the night, only going to your apartment to get your charger and laptop. It was almost like a one person slumber party, as you stayed seated on the loveseat until the computer showed 1am. You were ready to call it a night, putting a glass of water and medicine you had near him along with a blanket, until James moves from his position and causes the record player to start witha song you weren’t so familiar with.

You yelp, which causes James to jump from his place on the couch. Wild blue eyes looking around until they land on you in his living room, like he has been dreaming of for quite sometime now.

“W-what?” he questions, mouth dry and still a little sleepy that you can’t help but grin at his bed head for a moment before declaring.

“Good morning, neighbor!”

 It takes Bucky a good while to put everything together, as he takes a drink of water while watching his neighbor (wearing green pants and a blue long-sleeve underneath her matching coat jacket) makes herself at home from the corner of his eyes, and while it was a sight he could get used to -- he needed to understand how he ended up at his apartment from Natasha’s wedding reception. He keeps looking around causing her to laugh and a warm feeling to rush to to his cheeks.

“Your friend Steve brought you home,” she explains, setting down her laptop on the black coffee table, “He asked if I could watch over you since his wife was waiting. You must of come from a big event, then.”

She nods, motioning to his crumpled up black suit, as if silently asking only for James to respond: “The wedding.”

“ Oh ,” she says a little shocked, but unmoved by the whole event that she almost went to, “So, what happened?

Bucky lets out a puff of air as he tries to gather his thoughts together. He goes over his day: watching Natasha and Clint getting married in this simple ballroom not too far from the reception and that’s where he ended up getting shit-faced drunk until he passed out and Steve took him home. She could only shake her head at his antics and it caused a spark of a question to burn inside his heart that needed to be asked by the romantic in him, as he remembers the song that had been playing just a while back before he turned the record player off.  

“Have you ever been in love before?” he breathes out, as she pauses for a second to think about it.

“I think, once,” she answers with a shrug, as Bucky can’t help but be let down just a little by her answer, “ Maybe .”

“What you would answer like that?” Bucky can’t help but keep pushing, as she frowns at his continued questioning.  

Didn’t everyone want to fall in love? W as he so wrong to believe in that?

“I don’t know. I tend to run ahead of things,” she explains in a sort of monotone voice, like she has gotten too used to the fact, “Most people don’t take the time to catch up.”

“I’d catch you,” he lets it slip out without thinking or maybe it’s due to the alcohol still in his system, but it doesn’t have the desired effect as she stares at him with suddenly narrow and suspicious eyes.

“You shouldn’t say such things so easily, James,” she states much softer than he had ever heard her speak before, as a bittersweet smile blooms onto her face, but before he can say anything else on the manner -- defend his statement the best he can-- she is already getting up.

“Since you seem fine now, I’ll just let myself out,” is all she says a she gathers her things. She moves across the living to the entrance, and as badly as James wants to stop her and ask her why she is suddenly shutting down around him to one simple statement, he can’t seem to find the energy or determination to do so.

“Goodnight, James,” is the last thing she says before closing the front door and leaving him there in his living room.

“Goodnight,” he weakly answers back, unsure of what landmine he had just triggered to change his usually smiling neighbor into such a distant person.

And through it all, he was just more determined to find out all he can  about her because of it. 

Part 3 

[paperficwriter]

My Own Worst Enemy

Here is a KiriBaku request I wrote for @batneko based off this fantastic prompt! Thank you for your commission, Bats!!

If you are interested in commissioning me for Boku no Hero Academia or other series, please check out my commission guidelines here!!

Cut is for length, not for content.

Of all the things that Kirishima had done in his life, including getting accepted to UA, the top hero school in the country, it all seemed like absolutely nothing compared to being able to kiss Bakugou Katsuki.

And not just kissing him. Kissing him in his room. On his bed. No one else had ever even been allowed to go into his space in the dorm, and although there wasn’t much to speak of so far as belongings went (Bakugou was pretty minimalist), he did have an actual bed. He could still remember the first time Bakugou invited him in, his heart pounding, and he lit up into a smile.

“Dude! No futon?! Seriously?”

Bakugou had rolled his eyes. “When my quirk manifested, I had to have more space, and if I didn’t sleep on a mattress I got pissed and burned holes in the floor.”

Kirishima stifled back a laugh as he jumped onto it. It was the most comfortable surface he had ever been on: a little firm but also soft. Pillowy. “That sounds like you, for sure. Does Momo know you have a bed too?” he teased.

“No. And it’s going to stay that way, Shitty Hair.”

He wasn’t sure what else they did that day. Probably studied, maybe watched some videos on his phone, but he knew that at some point he had put his head on Bakugou’s shoulder and dozed off. Class had been busy that week, he recalled, and he was stressed, and with his back pressed against the wall Bakugou had been so close and warm and…

If someone had asked a year or two before if he ever thought he would wake up with a blanket around himself and Bakugou stroking his hair...well, he would have just zoned out and fantasized about it for a minute, then shaken his head and said it would never happen. And yet. It happened, Bakugou’s fingers carding through his hair, quite obviously breaking up the product so it was soft and mostly down when he sat up.

“What?” Bakugou had asked, a pink glow brightening the bridge of his nose.

Kirishima didn’t know how to answer. In fact, he hadn’t known how to for weeks until finally he was in that room again, and he blurted that he had wanted so much for Bakugou to kiss him that night, and Bakugou stared at him and then…

Kissed him.

Had it seriously been that simple?

And sure, maybe he would like to say now that it was a romantic movie kiss with all the bells and whistles. He would have liked to look back and say that Bakugou Katsuki, who would never let anyone come even in arm’s length of him physically or emotionally, swept him off his feet, but...it was awkward, leaving him wondering if it was his first kiss too. One with too much teeth, a tongue thrust into his mouth like a creature seeking a hiding place, and at some point he thought he cut himself on one of Kirishima’s canines. A false alarm, but an alarm nevertheless.

“I guess we’ll just have to practice,” Kirishima joked, his smile turning melty when Bakugou fingered one of the spikes of his hair.

“Whatever.” Bakugou had been dismissive that day, but the following afternoon, he dragged Kirishima into his room. Then again. And again.

And he really had improved. He wanted to ask, to tease, if he had been practicing on some other pair of lips, but he was too busy falling into that warm afternoon of sunshine and ice cream and a cool breeze and all his favorite things wrapped up into one that was Bakugou kissing him. His memory about everything else sucked (at least that's what Aizawa would say) but this…this he gripped tight in his brain.

Bakugou's arm around his waist, holding him against his front where he laid on his side.

Warm, soft lips opening and then closing over his, brushing one moment, pressing hard the next.

The wet noises, the little breaths, even the brush of his fingers against his cheekbone.

If Kirishima opened his eyes - and he didn't often because Bakugou somehow always caught him and snarled at him to “stop fucking staring, weirdo” - he could see how soft Bakugou's face would become. The eyebrows normally knit in an angry 'v’ would go loose. Maybe even turn up a little. The angry line of his mouth now came in to touch his, open or puckered slightly or…

Bakugou's phone vibrated.

“Really?” Kirishima chuckled, balling his fist into Bakugou's black shirt like he was going to fight him. “You left your phone on?”

“Like you turned yours off.” There was the glare again.

“It's at least on silent!” The vibrations started again, obnoxiously loud on Bakugou's dresser. “Want to get that?”

“Fuck ‘em,” he grunted, and he gave Kirishima's bottom lip a wet lick, kissing him again as soon as his jaw dropped. “I'm busy.”

Busy. That was about the extent of it. Whenever Kirishima was in his room and either one of their friends or a classmate or even Midoriya came by, he was always “busy.” Or, if they called him while they were out together eating lunch or dinner in the city, he was “fucking busy.” And if they wandered back into the dorms together and anyone even breathed in Bakugou’s direction to ask where he had been, he’d scream that it wasn’t any of their fucking business.

Kirishima waited for that to bother him. He waited for some sort of pain to settle in, to feel maybe a little bitter or angry or upset, that Bakugou wasn’t telling everyone about him. But then...he liked this. He liked having this something with Bakugou. And he loved everything that went with it, too.

When the phone finally got to the edge of the table, Kirishima pushed Bakugou away to reach out for it. “Oh my god, dude, I can’t handle it anymore. If you’re not going to answer it, at least let me.”

Bakugou groaned as he rolled over on his back, and Kirishima had zero doubts that he would have just let it dance to the edge and clatter to the floor. “Do what you want.”

Kirishima pressed the button on the side of the phone, and there were several texts from Kaminari. Many of them were just Bakugou’s name, but the most recent one said, “Baku, you have to come see this guy. He’s huge. He has some apex predator quirk?? WHAT ARE YOU DOING??”

“Kaminari is talking about some...guy?”

Bakugou took the phone and glared at the screen for a second before he swung his legs up to stand next to the bed. Okay, maybe now Kirishima regretted messing with the phone. He wanted to go back to kissing, and instead Bakugou opened his door. A new challenger had approached and Bakugou clearly had to see if his territory was being threatened. “Come on. Let’s check it out.”

Once they were both out in the hall, they could see and hear clearly that there was a commotion down by the common room. Both boys and girls from not only 1-A but other classrooms were gathered around a single figure, a figure so tall that they loomed over the heads of the students. It was hard not to notice the dramatic bearing of the person who frankly looked more like a teacher than one of their own, and it was only the uniform that gave it away. He (Kirishima didn’t want to make assumptions about gender, but it was difficult not to, given his physical appearance) was broad-chested, and he had the traits of a lion. Kirishima had seen other people with animal characteristics - Tokoyami, of course, and Hound Dog came immediately to mind - but this guy was…a lion. With a gorgeous full mane around his head, gold eyes, and rich sandy fur that seemed to cover his entire body. When he smiled, he showed off perfect, sharp teeth.

“Wow,” Kirishima breathed.

“What?!” Bakugou snapped.

“Nothing! He’s just…” He whistled low, avoiding Bakugou’s narrowed gaze. “You have to admit he looks really cool.”

“Appearances aren’t everything,” Bakugou huffed, crossing his arms over his chest as they wandered up to where the crowd was a steady buzz of sound. When he heard Kaminari’s voice, Bakugou glanced up again when he joined them. “So what’s with this guy, Drooly?”

Kaminari’s face appeared as excited as Kirishima felt. “So his name is Yuri, right? I mean, that’s not really his name, but that’s what he chose for his exchange name. And he’s a transfer student from a sister city in another country and he’s going to live with us for a few weeks and he’s super nice and cool and --”

“Fuck, just suck his cock already,” Bakugou interrupted, rolling his eyes. “What about his quirk?”

“Oh yeah!” Kaminari, as always, was completely unfazed by Bakugou’s attitude. “He was talking about how he has this quirk that kind of jives with his lion genes from his dad’s size of the family, and he can, like, grow his fangs and his claws and run really fast and --”

“I guess it doesn’t suck,” Bakugou concluded. “Where does he rank in his school?”

Kirishima elbowed him lightly. “Somehow I doubt he’s bothered talking about where he places in grades, unlike some people...”

“Actually, he’s third! Just like you, Bakugou!”

He couldn’t be entirely sure, but did Kirishima see Bakugou just tense slightly? Sure, he could get pissy about the fact that Iida and Yaoyorozu were both ahead of him, but Yuri wasn’t even enrolled at UA. Why did he care?

“Excuse me.”

Bakugou, Kirishima and Kaminari turned at the sound of the voice. Yuri was standing right in front of them, two duffel bags casually over one shoulder, and the crowd had parted but remained hovering around him, watching the interaction with close interest. He smiled, and Kirishima had never thought that he would care that much about what someone’s voice sounded like, but Yuri could read the dictionary and he’d be happy. It was smooth and rich, the deepest voice he had ever heard, and despite his accent, he spoke their language flawlessly. “Are you Kirishima Eijirou?”

“Me? Yeah. Yeah! Hi!” Why was he feeling nervous? He shook his hand rather vigorously. “Nice to meet you!”

“I read about the fight you were involved in when you were serving as intern with Fatgum and cooperating with the professional heroes in this region. It was very impressive.” Man, oh man, that voice. So manly. “When I saw that I would be staying in your school’s dorms for a week, I hoped I would be able to meet you.”

Kirishima blushed, and it was only because he had turned his head down sheepishly that he caught the expression on Bakugou’s face, one that was close to scathing. “You’ve probably heard of Bakugou Katsuki, too!” Kirishima blurted. “He won the sports festival during our first year.”

“Ah, yes.” It was hard to read the tone Yuri’s words took on, then, but he spoke slowly. Deliberately. “You were quite something, Bakugou. Although it did not seem you were satisfied with the result, despite your success. I could not help wondering if your fellow classmates appreciated your careless regard for your win.”

Kirishima and Kaminari exchanged a glance.

“Maybe they should have been fucking better, and they could have gotten that piece of shit medal, then.” Bakugou squared his shoulders. Kirishima knew he was waiting for Yuri to throw some other slight his way so he could knock it out. That’s usually how these interactions went, anyway.

But it never happened.

It was like a light switch being flipped. Rather than following up, Yuri returned his full attention to Kirishima, blinking slowly as his dark lips spread into a grin. “I will be staying here in the city for some time. Perhaps we could go have some dinner together?”

It took Kirishima at least ten seconds to realize that he was being asked out. And maybe it wasn’t a date but...it wasn’t not a date either.

“Maybe!” he finally chirped. “That could be fun, right, Bakugou?”

He wished he was more surprised when he turned to see Bakugou stalking away. Yet somehow, that was just the way he was: Bakugou Katsuki, volatile and yet somehow completely predictable, more ticking time bomb than hand grenade.

---

“I don’t like that fucking guy,” Bakugou said as he stabbed his spicy curry with his chopsticks. He hated that he kept glancing up at Kirishima talking to that giant housecat. They would grin and talk, and now and then he would catch him flexing for Kirishima, or showing his sharp claws, or…

“I think he’s nice!” Ashido gushed, sipping her tea. Kaminari and Sero nodded in agreement, and he scowled at all of them. What did they know?

“You would.”

“I think he’s just pissy because Kirishima is spending more time with Yuri than he is with him,” Sero pointed out, like Bakugou wasn't sitting right there in front of them.

“Fuck off. I don’t give a shit who he hangs out with.”

“Oh yeah? Is that why you keep shoving Kirishima into the classroom when Yuri is calling for him down the hall?” Kaminari volunteered.

“Or why when Aizawa was going to partner Yuri and Kirishima for sparring you practically screamed that you volunteered to fight Kirishima instead?”

“Or when you pretty much yelled in his face that Kirishima had a study date with you and that’s why he couldn't go out for karaoke?”

“All right, you fucking asshats, I didn’t ask for your opinion!” When Bakugou got up, his chair clattered to the floor behind him. He didn’t have to listen to this shit. Flipping them off, he stormed over to the garbage can to throw away the remnants of lunch. Hell, he’d barely touched anything. He had thought when he bought Kirishima lunch that he would finally get a chance to just sit down with him and talk for five seconds, but the minute Yuri came over, that had been it. Maybe it wasn’t that big of a surprise that he lost his appetite.

As he shoved his hands into his pockets and headed out to the lawn, kicking the door open in front of him, he could still hear those three fuckwits laughing in his ears. They hadn’t been wrong, and that was the worst of all. It made his insides feel as explosive as his hands when he thought about each of those occurrences. And not once had Yuri been a shit to him about it, not like Bakugou would have been if the tables were turned. Despite his big, bad appearance, Yuri completely tuned him out, his entire focus on Kirishima.

Kirishima, who definitely didn’t seem opposed to the attention.

And it wasn’t like Bakugou had gone silently into this whole situation. He had mentioned it to Kirishima at least several times. “I don’t get why you even like hanging around him,” he said, lying on the bed. He had wanted to go back to where they were that first day, but Kirishima kept sitting up, legs crossed, looking at his phone and reading over snippets of translated articles about Yuri and his school. “Don't get used to him. He’s going to be gone before you know it.”

“He’s really an awesome guy,” Kirishima said, not looking up. “He’s in all these clubs, and he interned for a big-name hero in his country. He has a lot of great stories! Give him a chance!”

“I have to focus on school. And you should be, too, jackass.”

Kirishima had shoved him over, grinning down at him. “I’ll catch up on studying! I promise.”

The whole scenario had left a bitter taste in Bakugou’s mouth.

“Bakugou?” Even at the sound of his name, Bakugou didn’t turn as he kicked his way through the manicured grass. He didn’t have to. He recognized Yuri’s voice immediately, the cadence with which he said his name, the consonants popping on his tongue. “Can I speak to you for a moment?”

“Better keep up, then. I’ve got shit to do.” Maybe he would get tired of following him. Why was he here? He didn’t want to talk to this guy…

Even despite his efforts, he could hear the grass crunch as Yuri jogged up to his side. The wind rolled across the quad, ruffling his mane in a way that made Bakugou hate him even more, because it was perfect, like a goddamned commercial with his stupid face on it. “There is something I am not clear about, and I have been unable to confirm this with you or with Kirishima.”

“Yeah, what?”

“Is Kirishima your boyfriend, or is he not?”

That got his attention. Bakugou stopped walking. “What the...why the fuck are you asking me that?”

Yuri put his hands on his wide hips, and Bakugou hated how much taller he was, forcing him to crane his neck up. “I can tell that there is something between the two of you, but...you are never...particularly kind to him. There is a physical chemistry, but I cannot tell if you have a relationship or if you do not.”

Bakugou wasn’t sure what he was going to say but even the start of the word crackled and dissipated in his throat. He tried again. Nothing. “That’s none of your fucking business!” he finally expelled. That had worked fine before with everyone else.

And yet…

“It is my business, Bakugou,” Yuri said patiently. “Because I wish to court Kirishima, but I cannot do this if I do not understand the nature of your bond.” Now Bakugou was fuming. Courting? Bond?! “Are you intimate with Kirishima? Are you engaging in --”

“Shut up! Don’t ask me that shit!” For lack of further response, though, since Bakugou did not want him to continue that line of questioning, he finally allowed himself to admit, “But yeah, we make out and stuff.”

A slow nod. “But you are not boyfriends?”

“What the fuck does that even mean?!”

“So...you are not.”

“I...We…” Bakugou felt like he was choking. Suddenly he was reminded of the sludge monster, of drowning in the black ectoplasmic goo when he was trapped by the League of Villains. As much as he wanted to reply, he couldn’t. Couldn’t focus, couldn’t find the words, couldn’t get the air behind what might have been the words.

Yuri’s expression changed. Suddenly he seemed less annoyed, and more...sympathetic, and that only made Bakugou’s rage build. “Do you have feelings for him?”

Bakugou wanted to run away. “Do I look like the kind of asshole who would make out with someone I don’t care about?”

“Have you spoken with him about how you feel?”

“He knows!” Small explosions set off in Bakugou’s palms without him even intending for them to, and his voice had become so shrill it echoed in the field. Kirishima knew. He had to know. Right?

Yuri didn’t look away, not even flinching from Bakugou’s quirk triggering. His words were flat. Calm. “Are you certain? Perhaps your ‘making out’ is enough for him. Maybe you are not together because he is waiting for someone who is more deserving of him. Someone who will treat him like a whole person, who will do ‘stuff’ with him but also be kind. Who will love him.” He shrugged. “Maybe he does not want you.”

Maybe he does not want you.

Bakugou didn’t remember what happened between the field and his dorm room. He might have bitten off another curse at Yuri, or he might have just run away. It didn’t matter. His stomach was in knots, and it hurt worse than when All Might had gut-punched him during their exams in the first year. His brain was trying to play back recordings of every conversation between him and Kirishima, and each one brought back...nothing. He had always been left assuming that this - whatever this was - worked for Kirishima, that he was happy with it.

But now…

Doubt.

Doubt that left him lying on his bed for several hours until there was a knock at the door. One that he recognized. God, was that how well he knew him? That he could tell when it was him knocking on his dorm room door? Bakugou stayed where he was, until he knocked again.

“Bakugou? You around?” he finally called.

“Go away.”

“That sounds like a ‘yes’!” Fuck, he could hear his smile, and it hurt to picture it, to recall the taste of it. “Can I come in?”

“Which part of ‘go away’ don’t you understand, Shitty Hair?”

Of course the door opened, and Kirishima walked in like he owned the place. He had changed out of his uniform into his t-shirt and shorts, plopping down on Bakugou’s bed across from him. “You know that if you don’t tell me just ‘yes’ or ‘no,’ I’m going to interpret what you’re saying as Bakugou-speak for ‘I want you around but I’m too much of a baby to tell you.’”

“Oh, fuck off.” Bakugou grabbed his pillow and shoved it against his stomach. For a moment, everything in the room was silent. Why was Kirishima just staring at him? “So. Did Simba ask you out or what?”

“Yeah.”

Here it comes. Bakugou braced himself for it. “What did you say?”

Kirishima smirked. “What do you think?”

Maybe it was the way Kirishima responded, but it sparked at the circle of gasoline that had been soaking around Bakugou’s heart, and he all but yelled, “I think you should just fucking say ‘yes’ and get it over with. Have lots of fucking manly furry babies for all I care. You two deserve each other.”

And then something happened that Bakugou wouldn’t have expected in a million years.

Kirishima laughed at him. He laughed and grabbed him up, pillow and all, and pulled him into a hug that he refused to loosen. “Is that what all this has been about?! Is this why you’ve been acting so cagey the last few weeks?”

Bakugou figured he would push him away, shove him off the bed, or even roll away, but he didn’t. He might have slapped a little at Kirishima’s chest, but it only made him more intent to have his way and cuddle Bakugou into submission. “I said I don’t care,” he mumbled bitterly.

“Yeah, you very clearly don’t care.” Kirishima’s fingers stroked his wild blonde spikes, and even in spite of himself Bakugou could feel his body relax, his muscles loosen. “I said ‘no,’ you know. I wouldn’t do that to you. Obviously.”

“Don't fucking ‘obviously’ at me.”

Another laugh. “You're the one I want.”

“Even though we’re not…” Bakugou buried his face in Kirishima’s shoulder. “I’m so shitty with this kind of thing. I wouldn’t have blamed you if you weren’t serious.”

“Are you serious?”

“I’m always serious.” He reached his arm around his side so he could tug his shirt, pull him in closer. Even without his quirk, Kirishima was a rock. “Especially with you.”

“You don’t think I know?” Kirishima paused to kiss his temple, and Bakugou made a little sound at the affectionate gesture. “After all those study dates and massages and buying me meals and cheering me up? Those mean a lot more to me than any ‘relationship talk,’ dude.”

Bakugou was still, breathing in the clean scent of Kirishima, of his freshly laundered clothes, the shower he had taken. They had gone so long without talking about any of this, and he wasn’t about to start, but… “You’re really okay with this?”

“By ‘this,’ do you mean...you?” Kirishima sounded so tender, soft and sincere, and when he rolled Bakugou over to kiss him, Bakugou let him take the reigns.

“I wouldn’t want it any other way.”

[eternalsterekrecs]

can you recommend some soulmates au fics ?

Well, you should definitely start with our SOULMATES tag! After tag, check all these new recs we have for you (there are so many of them)!

SOULMATES

An Unpredictable Amount of Turtles by skoosiepants

Stiles says, “I have a five year plan. A five year plan to popularity that will tank the minute I meet this guy.”

“I feel like you’re exaggerating,” Scott says, but Scott has a katana-wielding badass waiting for him at the other end of the rainbow, and Stiles has terrariums.

Or—

A soulmate au with turtles and angst.

Honey, Can’t you See (The Bloodstains on my Teeth) by Loup_Aigre, TroubleIWant

“Mr Stilinski.” Deaton’s usually impassive face betrays a hint of surprise today, maybe even disappointment. “You haven’t changed your mind.”

Stiles tips his chin up, smiling against his irritation. “Nope,” he confirms, so cheerily it bites. They had arranged this weeks ago, yet Deaton was apparently betting Stiles wouldn’t go through with it in the end. Fuck that. He doesn’t know what it’s like out there, not really. He can afford to hold himself aloof and uninvolved, knowing his druid power is enough to keep him safe in this little office. Stiles can’t. Scott’s pack has got to protect this whole town, and Stiles’ spark isn’t enough to protect all of them while they do it.

The thing is, magic isn’t like the fairy tales. It’s blood and risk and sacrifice. Nothing comes without a price, and anyone who tries to say different is baiting a hook to gut you on. Stiles knows that, has known it since he was a kid and his mother started training him for the inevitable day when he’d need to fight for his life.

That day had come four years ago when she died, and it hasn’t stopped yet.

Of Soulmates, Pseudonyms and Misunderstandings by halcyon1993

Ever since he asked his mother one evening why she had his dad’s name tattooed on the inside of her left wrist, Derek has dreamed of finding his soulmate. There’s only one problem—the name that appears on his wrist on his eighteenth birthday is something he can’t even read.

Weave Soft Spells Over My Sight by AgnesBlue

Derek had blossomed steadily over the past year, growing into his ears and turning even more handsome, if that were possible. But instead of going out and melting the panties off the girls, suddenly he was coming to Stiles all bashed in, demanding that he patch him up like Stiles was some freelance nurse. It was a familiar pattern by now.

AU in which Stiles has been living with the Hales for a few years as their assistant and friend. He needs to deal with Derek, who keeps coming to Stiles with bruises and cuts to be treated, while trying to figure out what the elderly alpha of the Hale pack is up to.

Sometimes It Just Works by MellytheHun

“Fic where, in a fit of post-break-up, drunken depression, stiles throws together a truly pathetic love spell (really, Lydia would be so unimpressed she’d probably disband their weekly magic lessons) in an attempt to find the perfect partner.

But, like everything else in Stiles’ life (and as proof to how much joy the universe gets pulling one over on him) everything goes horribly wrong and instead of the feathery light, rose petal path he’d been expecting to appear and lead him to his true love, a half naked man with harlequin biceps and a beard that could rival most lumber jacks appears in his minimalist studio apartment looking grumpy and endearingly confused.

Cue Stiles’ imminent freak out that includes shoving the man in his hall closet because “Oh my god, I manifested a burly mountain man out of thin air!!”

When really, the spell had just transported Derek from whatever secluded cabin he’d been holed up in for the last few years right into Stiles’ life.”

all else perished by keskasi

There are only so many times a person can fall before the world becomes a vertical blur. Life, Stiles has found, is much the same way. There are only so many times a person can be born, live, and die before the epochs start to smear into one long, eternal day. Or night, as the case may be.

soulmates tbh series by bleep0bleep

Stiles is probably the world’s greatest cynic about soulmates. He couldn’t care less, except that he’s just found his.

Your Mark on my Skin by afullrevolution

Everyone had a mark scrawled somewhere across their body. A name, usually a signature to represent their soul mate, their one and only true love. Stiles has known who his mark belonged to since the third grade. He doesn’t understand how Derek can be so oblivious.

i feel you in every heartbeat by warlocks

Suddenly his entire body felt tingly and sensitive and he could swear gravity had failed on him just then; he couldn’t feel the chair he was sitting on, or where he’d planted his feet on the floor, or the clothes he was wearing, or the pen he was holding, and then his vision started blurring and morphing into a picture of some place that was not his classroom.

“Oh, shi—”

“—it,” he finished with a different voice.

Or, the AU in which, on their 22nd birthday, a person will switch bodies with their soulmate and is left to figure out whom they’re temporarily inhabiting, and how to get back to each other. But because Stiles is Stiles, he forgets that it’s his birthday, and the bodyswap takes him by surprise.

Soul-Mark by PaigeRhiann

His wolf purrs happily because it has taken eighteen years and getting his family killed to finally discover the name of his promised. The person he’s destined to be with. Or, as Werewolves call it – Mate.

“Genim S.” He repeats

“That’s a really fucking weird name” Laura snorts, turning back to the movie.

“Yeah, it is” he nods.

And I Never Thought I’d Ever Say Forever by suchfun

“That was stupid.” He bats the kid’s hands away and rearranges the items in the bag. He’s mixed canned goods and dairy, does this kid even know how to efficiently pack a bag? “The TiMER is a gift.” He says it automatically, because that’s what his mom says. That’s how he was brought up. That’s what he’s supposed to think.

He used to believe it, back when he was sixteen and idealistic, before he actually got his TiMER, back when he was so sure that his soulmate would be Paige. Back when he believed in the romcoms, in his mom’s books, in the elaborate advertisements for TiMERs—the ones with all the interviews with loving real life couples, with testimonials to their effectiveness and their ability to make you happy and fulfilled, with guarantees of an improved quality of life and even life expectancy. Back when he thought meeting his soulmate was an inevitability, not a slim possibility.

Colors by PencilTrash

Soulmates AU: When soulmates visit the same place on the same day, they can see color in the places where the other has been. It allowed you a world full of color for one single day. A day.The universe was cruel like that.It gave soulmates a single day to find each other and seal the bond between them permanently or the color would vanish forever… and so would the bond.

(im)Perfect System by theroguesgambit

Stiles has always felt pretty lucky about his soul mark. After all, how many conversations tend to start with “This is private property”?

(Apparently more than you’d think.)

Countdown by actingup

0000d 00h 00m 37s

He always imagined meeting his soul mate would take forever; that time would slow down and he would see them walking towards him, he would know without a doubt who it was. It might have been someone he’s seen before but never talked to, or it might be a complete stranger that he never would have guessed. He didn’t imagine it in front of about a hundred people, maybe two-hundred, at a Dolphin show.

Soulmate - Delayed Reaction by Verya

When a person turns eighteen their soulmates first words to them appear on the inside of their dominant wrist. Of course it had to be the week when Stiles broke his hand!

Mental Synchronization by kits_lightning

“All at once everything is different, now that I see you

Now that I see you.”

Stiles ended with jazz hands and Scott laughed and took the seat across from him.

“Keep laughing, buddy. I haven’t forgotten Isaac’s two month obsession with Taylor Swift before you two met.”

“We agreed never to bring that up again.”

~*~*~*~*~*~OR the Soulmate AU where you sing when you’re soulmate does.

i carry your heart with me (i carry it in my heart) by yodasyoyo

Stiles is six years old when he first hears Derek’s voice in his head.

Or what happens if you have a soulmate bond, in a universe where soulmate bonds don’t exist?

Second Chances by rootbeer

“A lot of times the ‘markings’ were common, simple things you said to strangers all the time. ‘Excuse me’; 'thank you’; 'hello’. Some got extremely romantic things like 'it’s you isn’t it? I’ve been waiting for you’ or 'Wow you’re really pretty’. And they were always the first words their soulmate would ever say to them.

Of course, having 'You are the fucking worst kind of person in the world’ tattooed down your side, didn’t bode well. How fucked up was Stiles Stilinski that even his fucking Soulmate hated him? High School had been a special kind of hell when all the kids learned what his tattoo said—despite his best efforts to keep it a secret.”

and i thought it only a dream by bleep0bleep

Derek only started getting the dreams a few years ago, and he knows what it means, his soulmate is younger than him. Laura teases him incessantly about it, but Derek doesn’t pay her any mind. The dreams are fuzzy at best, he only has a fleeting glimpse of plaid shirts and laughter and a pink mouth.

As Laura and he start on their roadtrip back to California from New York, the dreams start to get clearer. Every state they cross, Derek can see the outline of his soulmate get more defined, knows that he has brown eyes, a gorgeous smile and fluffy hair that looks soft to touch.

[d00dt00nz]

New Album - Coming Very SOON!!

Hey everybody! Much like Taylor Swift, I bring my tumblr back pretty much exclusively to talk about an upcoming album. Actually, I already used that joke in something that will be posted later. Oh well, it's a joke so good I have to make sure you ABSOLUTELY saw it. I've completed work on an album, and have also sat on it for months, being a freak about it. It is finally time to send it out into the world and relinquish all control. I think I like it. I think I hate it too, but this is something I've been working on for like three years at this point. It's beyond my timeframe and I got far more obsessed with this – like to the point where you're no longer aware if the thing is good or not, and you're also constantly second guessing the things that you were certain were good before. That said, when stepping back and taking a very mechanical, craftsmanlike look at the album: I think it is pretty good. The important stuff is audible, the sound is full, the tracks are mastered adequately, the singing and playing are in tune and in time. It is probably my most “professional” sounding job of recording to date. I guess, shockingly, if you spend ten years working at something you will eventually improve.

The album right now is submitted to Spotify and youtube music and all of that junk that I don't like/use but pays me (some) money. They'll be up soon enough unless something weird happens. I'll be trying to do a series of writeups for each track on the album. I guess you could call this self promotion, though I hardly think this blog is trafficked enough for that to be a good tactic. Maybe I'll put some advertising money into it if people like the album. Mostly I think this is my own indulgence – Partially to decompress from this long long long time spent working on a project, partially because I've had a weird energy lately where I feel like I have to do something productive and put some thoughts down somewhere or else I'll explode. It'd be great if people read this, but that's more of a luxury.

My real reason for writing this post, however, is to thank my pal Ellie for her incredible painting work on the cover. Hell, I just want to show this thing off. I've just been finding excuses to look at this picture. I put it together in photoshop, which is why the design work is maybe a little weaker. Thankfully I have these cool pictures to draw people's attention away from the high-schooler photoshop job. Look at that fucking sick airplane, that's cool. I had originally designed a cover that was more minimalist. Honestly, people seemed pretty positive about that cover. I want to clarify that if there was anything better about my minimalist design, it was the fact that it was a better design job, which is on me. I ultimately didn't go with it because it didn't have a cool airplane... And also:

I want to catch people's eyes. I think the busier, more bombastic style will draw more attention

Minimalism, in the context of pop culture-centric art, is perfectly good and viable. It has, however, unfortunately been co-opted by a bunch of pretentious reddit dudes who seem to see it as some kind of shortcut to some weird intellectualism. Like, no, Ant-Man and the Wasp isn't more intelligent because you made a flat shaded movie poster in illustrator.

God willing, I will actually keep at this. I put a lot of work into this album. Ironically, I think it is a little more fun than some of my other albums. It's a little more visceral at times, and it has a little more sexual energy, which is to say it's maybe the first album that I've made that's not entirely asexual. It's not necessarily a better or worse thing, but there is maybe some sideways motion. It's the first thing in a long time where I've tried to actually write proper meaningful lyrics. I tried to push outside of my comfort zone for a lot of this. I maybe half-succeeded in that respect. There are about 8 unused tracks which I don't think are all that great. Towards the end of the process I scrapped a lot of the original songs and wrote a bunch of new ones which I like more, but are a bit less outside my comfort zone. That said, sometimes that “I gotta push myself” ethos resulted in something that I probably wouldn't have done before so I'm mostly happy with it. I've tried to “mature” my sound, and if I succeeded it's self consciously so. I truly, deeply hope that you enjoy the album. I hope that I can create a ride for you to go on as we move through the tracks together. I learned a lot and feel very practiced for something in the future, whenever that is. Until then, enjoy the spotify/youtube/itunes/ect release once it's up (Trust me, I'll make sure you know). And until then, enjoy the cool cover art!

[aryareyes]

The moment our eyes met...

Chapter 2

Wattpad link : https://my.w.tt/VXt651wY86

JUVIA'S POV :

The cool air brushed my hair and sent chills on my spin as I watched my hometown through the car window. Further I go further I felt the same familiar warm feeling inside me as the first time.

- " Juvia? " I turned to face Jellal at his call.

- " Are you okay? " he asked concerned. I gave him a reassuring smile in response. As he seemed unconvinced I added  " Jellal, I'm fine. Really ". He smiled softly and turned to face the road.

- " Good we'll be there in five minutes, I'm not sure if there's everything you need there, let me know if you need something..." he stated.

- " All I need is a long bath and Coffee! " I retorted.

- " So you're too a coffee addict huh ?"  He grinned.  " Don't know what you girls find in coffee..." he trailed.

- " Dude! No coffee no life! Besides girls are not the only coffee addict...Don't be a sexist." I defended myself.

- " Ok.Ok. Maybe you're right but still it's more girls who are coffee lovers than guys..." 

- " Well you guys are smokers so we're even."

- " Hey! I don't smoke...I actually hate it!" He exclaimed offended.

- " I said guys not Jellal Fernandez" I chuckled and I rolled my eyes.  " However, we have a point in common..." I stated.

- " You hate smokers too ? " he asked.

- " Of course, I hate the fact they kill their selves so dumb fully! " I said back.

- " Agreed...and here we go." He was parking his car in front of the flat.

- " I'll carry your stuff your Majesty, you may go inside...here's the key..." he joked handing me the key.

- " Thank you my knight of shining armor." I countered him back. He laughed before pushing me inside the building. I stopped laughing by the by time, I arrived in front of Gajeel's flat which was in fifth floor, second door at left.

I opened the door and entered the apartment. It's little different from two years ago, it's more furnitures and decorations. Yet, it's simple and minimalist but cozy. I liked it. Weird, Gajeel is not too keen on decoration or house management. It's probably the girls doing. (AN : photo on media)

I didn't find him in the living room so I went to his room and he wasn't either. I frowned but then remembered what Jellal said earlier.  Gajeel couldn't come to get me because he had an impediment. I sighed, I was so excited to see him here. I shook my head to chase unnecessary thoughts. If Gajeel couldn't be here then it was really important. That doesn't mean he'll get away with this so easily, I'm gonna piss him off with this once he's back.

I then opened the curtains and the balcony door to let the morning sun light enter. Perfect. I stepped out on the balcony with my fireflies bottle in my hands and took a look at outside. It was nothing new, a town with small buildings and shops but not a lot. It wasn't crowded, it's calm and peaceful. Just like I like it. I saw a long river running in the middle of the town a took a mental note visit it.

I then hanged the fireflies bottle near the hanging flower pots on the balcony and went inside.  I entered the a room which I assumed mine because it looked unused. The other two are filled with things. One's Gajeel and the other seem more like a common room.

I looked at the untouched room which only had a bed, a dresser, a table with its chair and a small sofa with its stool. It looked like a hotel room to me, I added my room decoration in my mental notes. Though the fact that with my stuffs, it won't be so empty. That's when I looked around me. Where is Jellal ? It's been almost fifteen minutes I'm here and he won't take that much to bring my luggage here. through the lift for God's sake. Maybe he completely forgot? I went to the living room to see but no he's here. Where the hell is he ?

I need a bath and coffee to clear my head, I thought as I went in the bathroom taking a new towel in visitor's room, thank god, Gajeel thought about leaving a towel for visitors. I can take one of Gajeel's t-shirts until Jellal comes back with my things.

I closed my eyes as I felt the water on my skin, I sighed in content and made my self comfortable. Water always makes me feel at ease. I feel free, pur and natural in the contact of the water on my skin. I always have loved it since childhood. That maybe a reason why I like swimming and fortunately I'm good at it.

After a long hot bath, I wrapped the towel around my body and got out of the bathroom to find a t-shirt in my brother's room. That's when I regretted to not bringing it before, at the time I so wanted a bath and now the room is in the opposite side. I have to cross the hall to get there. I sighed and prayed Jellal shouldn't be here before entering the living room.

I was mid way in the hall when I felt the fresh air on my skin, with the rays of the sun light. I smiled in delight as I felt shivers on my body. I then frowned, before going in the bathroom I closed the window so how...

I turned to see a strong silhouette leaning against the edge of the balcony. I could see his biceps,his toned muscles and his sculpted abs forming a perfect V shape through his white t-shirt. He had a chiseled jawline and then all I saw is a back of the black mess of hair.

Shit. Was I really ogling on Gajeel? Beurk! I mentally slapped my myself and shook my head. I then remembered that Gajeel is just in front of me, I haven't see him for two years and now he's here. I squealed in my mind and approached him slowly and silently.

I stopped behind him before slapping his butt playfully. He jumped in surprise startled and I laughed out loud.

- " OMG! Your—Your reaction!" I laughed harder.

- " Why...are you so sur—surprised Metalhead ? Who...else will slap your... butt if it's not me ? Hmm... maybe you expected it to be your girlfriend..." I choked my own words as I was laughing throwing my head back. I had tears on my eyes and and my stomach was paining. So I stopped laughing with so much difficulty and narrowed my eyes at my brother's face as he was now turned to face me with his arms crossed against his chest.

Oh no. My expression turned into horror in a second, if I before was red from laughing now it's redder from embarrassment. I opened my eyes and mouth wide and blinked. And then shouted in shock.

- " Who—who—-ar—are you?! " I stuttered blushing and trying to pull the curtain to me as I suddenly become aware of my lack of clothing. I just had a thin white towel on my body for God's sake!

- " Who are you ? And what the hell are you doing in my house ? " I raised my voice as the stranger kept staring at me. Damn it. He's hot. He's such a handsome face—-Shut it Juvia! He's a fucking stranger! And you were drooling over him a minute ago and slapped his sexy butt.——Shut the fucking mouth of yours conscience! I was only saying the truth...——Shut it.

- " Excuse me, who are you ? " he raised an eyebrow.

- " I'm—-Wait, I don't even know you why should I tell details about me and for God's sake, you're in my house! Get out of here! " I retorted.

- " Geez...So you can slap a stranger's butt but can't say your name..." he smirked. It caught me off guard.

- " I—I—-I confused you with someone else—-" I said heat rushing to my face as the embarrassment took over me. "...Sorry...I swear I was confused that my brother's butt was flat and all but then I saw the black hair and..." mumbled as I bobbed my head down ashamed, my cheeks burning in embarrassment.

- " So you think mine is well shaped..." he murmured with a smirk. I ignored him.

- " However that doesn't explain your presence here." I looked up at him frowning in anger.

- " It's our place so of course I'll be here! What I don't understand is who the hell are you?! " he retorted for the first time raising his voice.

Idiot. How dare he come in my house and raise his voice against me ?

- " How dare——"

- " Raindrop?! " That idiot and me turned to see Gajeel on the door.

- " Metalhead! " We exclaimed in unison and started at each other shocked then back at Gajeel.

- " Shit. I missed you troublemaker! " my brother exclaimed as he walked to my spot rapidly.

- " Fuck you! " I hissed at him. The stranger idiot laughed as Gajeel stopped a feet away from me and blinked, once he processed what I said, he gave me a death glare. But a second later his glare was directed to the stranger idiot as he was laughing.

- " What the hell are you doing here stripper!" It was my turn to laugh at the nickname and as if to prove Gajeel's says that idiot hadn't have his t-shirt.

I found my eyes wondering on his amazing torso and looking his cross chain curiously before getting back to my sense. The stripper idiot was now glaring at my brother and me. I bite my lip to bit laugh and I felt my cheeks puffed as I was controlling my laugher.

- " Who the hell is she?! " he asked irritated.

- " She's—" Gajeel started But I cut him off.

- " Oh! Mister, calm you ass down! Don't talk to me like this! "

- " Oh! Madam, Cut it off Ok?!" He retorted. I was about to reply when I looked at a dumbfounded Gajeel between us and then at him to see that he was doing the same as me.

I stared at Gajeel again then at him and couldn't control myself. I burst out laughing, along with him. Each time we tried to stop, just a look at each other's face is enough to double our laugher over.

After few minutes, I was leaning against the wall to support my weight and holding my stomach in pain. He was sitting in front me on the floor, now with his t-shirt on, seeming to be in the same state as me.

- " Man...I don't remember laughing this much in my life! " he exclaimed. I chuckled and nodded giving him a thumbs up as I was so tired to talk.

- " Ok. You know what I'm not even gonna ask why the hell are you two puffing like dauphins!" Gajeel said from the living room, I didn't saw him going there between my laughers.

- " That's a great idea Gajeel! " I approved wiping my tears.

- " Whatever. Raindrop this is Stripper prick, Stripper this is Raindrop" He gestured a hand between us lazily from the sofa.

- " What a great way of introducing people..." I said sarcastic. The other guy sneered and stood in front of me.

- " I'm Gray. Gray Fullbuster." He gave a hand with a handsome grin. My lips curved in a slow smile as I took his hand.

- " Juvia Lockser, pleased to meet you." I shook his hand giving him a sincere smile.

- " That's not what it seemed to be half an hour ago but guess, pleased to meet you too." He half-grinned. I chuckled.

- " So you're Gajeel's friend huh? "

- " Yeah...and you're flat butt's sister right?" He teased.

- " It'll hurt his ego if hear this..." I said in a small voice chuckling. He sneered.

- " Bless you. You're alive for all those years being Metalhead's sister." He mocked.

-" What did you say Ice prick ?!" Gajeel shouted from the kitchen.

- " Gajeel?" I called him sweetly.

- " Yeah?"

- " I need a coffee! Please!" I cried. I can imagine him rolling his eyes and sighing from here.

- " it's actually not that bad." I said to Gray. He chuckled before murmuring :

- " A free advice : next time don't slap any guy's butt." I blushed bright red and remembered I had only a only towel to protect my dignity.

- "Cover your eyes! Don't peek! " I warned him before moving myself from behind the curtain and sprinting to my room. I heard him laugh even after I closed the door. I leaned my back against it and I tapped my forehead in shame, with a small smile on my lips.

[cannibalisticskittles]

sweet as strawberries

pairing: rika/mc (named oc) notes: a day late but this is for day 2 of rika week -- relationships/sweets

“It's not that I don’t like my birthday,” Sun-hwa tells her, snuggled close to watch the latest in a string of fun-but-terrible direct-to-video movies she really shouldn't own so many of. “I just don’t… do anything for it.”

It’s with no small measure of trepidation that Rika had even brought up the topic -- she certainly doesn’t want to talk about her own complicated relationship with her birthday, and if Sun-hwa feels the same, she has no desire to dredge up old wounds. And, of course, it’s not that she’d had her heart set on some grand celebration -- even before she’d wondered why her girlfriend’s birthday merited less fanfare on the calendar than the reminder to visit the farmer’s market, she’d known that Sun-hwa's tastes skewed to smaller, casual affairs.

But, to her relief, Sun-hwa only laughed at the question. “Not for any big reason, I don't think, and I definitely remember birthdays filled with confetti, streamers, balloons -- the works. Just seemed… mean, more and more as I grew up, to make my mom have to ask for time off to celebrate when it meant spending more money, anyway… and then when I moved away for school I didn't have the time or money or… company to make it seem worth making noise for.”

She tightened her arms around Rika, then, and hummed something that sounded content.  “I'm glad you're here with me. That’s already more than enough for me.” Sun-hwa punctuated this statement with a soft kiss on the top of Rika’s head, and Rika curled herself tighter into Sun-hwa's embrace. “I want whatever makes you happy. I mean it, babe, if you wanna do something, just pick something you'd like to do, and I'll love it because you do. Kay?” And with a decisive nod and a kiss, the matter was settled.

Only it wasn't, of course.

Rika has been given the go-ahead to do anything with the promise her girlfriend will adore it, and she has an idea in mind -- make Sun-hwa the best goddamn birthday cake she's ever had.

It's not as simple as it sounds. Sun-hwa has been surrounded by cakes and pastries at work for so long that she's grows sick of most, just by the sheer association to creepy customers. For Rika to make something her girlfriend would truly enjoy, she has to set it apart from what Sun-hwa is used to.

But Rika knows the following: she is absolutely, without a doubt going to make Sun-hwa that cake.

When it's for love, a competitive streak can be forgiven, right?

Preparing is tricky. It's best if it's a surprise -- and while she's sure that if she got everything beforehand, stuck it in a box, and said, “It’s a surprise for your birthday, don't look,” Sun-hwa would shrug and agree, but that's not enough. So, Rika works a little more under the radar.

Butter and eggs are easy, no need to make excuses for those, and there's plenty of sugar already. She can make do with the pots and pans already here, both what Sun-hwa once had alone and what they’ve gotten after moving in together. Sun-hwa, miraculously, had a flour sifter already -- though she confessed to barely using it. “Too much trouble for too little difference,” she'd said.

So, most things are taken care of. But Rika still has to dash out the door after Sun-hwa leaves for work, for soft-enough cake flour and for fresh strawberries -- the most important part.

As for the non-cake aspects of her preparation -- okay, yes, she did actually shove decorations in a box and hid them, but that’s different. Thanks to the miracle of one-day shipping, she’s reasonably sure that Sun-hwa didn’t stumble across any of it, anyway.

She goes as quick as she can, trying to make the most of the time she's got. She reaches for a knife the moment she gets back to the apartment, prepping the strawberries to be puréed, and when they're simmering to a reduction on the stove, she's starting on the rest of the cake.

From there, it’s just a matter of making sure no time is wasted.

She moves through the steps so quickly that she almost ruins it by sneezing at a cloud of flour and powdered sugar, but Rika powers through it.

Once the cake is in the oven, she moves on to the frosting, and when that's done, she's scrambling up and down ladders to make sure each decoration is perfect and neat, as minimalistic as it may be -- though that's probably a better look, anyway. Thank god she’s alone, too; she can only imagine how many jokes about her height she’d be hearing otherwise.

Then there's frosting to do, and careful placing of strawberries, and there it is. The best goddamn strawberry cake she has ever laid eyes on, certain to impress her girlfriend.

Excellent timing, too. She's able to get candles lit and everything squared away -- well, almost everything. She'll just… let those dishes soak for a while, she's worked hard enough already -- before Sun-hwa comes back.

Sun-hwa is heralded by the heavy creaking of the front door and -- “Heyyyy… babe, holy shit.”

Rika preens at the open admiration in Sun-hwa's face, and she waits for her judgment. Sun-hwa's bag slides from her shoulder, dropped by the wall, as she takes in the room with slow steps.

Finally, she says, “You make streamers look fancy, I don't know how you do it. Balloons, too? Tasteful.” And then she grins and wraps an arm around Rika’s waist. “Babe, this is beautiful. I can't believe you did this for me. Thank you.” Rika’s face tints pink as she stretches up to meet Sun-hwa in a kiss.

Of course, she's not done until Sun-hwa has actually tried the cake -- which ends with Sun-hwa pressing her palms flat on the table, eyes closed as if in bliss.

“Oh, my god,” she says softly, mumbled a little through the bite of cake. She swallows and opens her eyes. “Oh my god.”

“Good, then?”

“You know it is.”

Rika laughs.

“Have you known this recipe the whole time, or did you look it up, or what, because -- I don't wanna tell anyone about this cake, I wanna keep it to myself so it can be all mine, holy shit.”

“Oh, and none for me?” Rika teases.

Sun-hwa opens her mouth as if to correct herself, and then her lips quirk up. “Mmm, no. It's for my birthday, right? So technically…” She laughs as Rika feigns outrage, complete with a hand splayed over her chest, even though she's near giggles.

“Babe, you're so good to me. Everything looks great, and this was so good. And it's such a versatile gift, too.”

“Is it? How so?”

Rika shivers pleasantly at the wicked edge Sun-hwa's smile takes on.

“Of course! See, we can have more fun with this--” And she reaches down and swipes a little puff of whipped cream off the cake, raising it to Rika’s lips and slowly, gently, smearing it on her mouth. “--later.”

[all-things-haikyuu]

Hellu! What about a fluffy scenario with Bokuto where he and his fem s/o go to a wedding together? Like they're dancing and casually chatting and then they spontaneously make the decision that they also wanna get married?

Hellu to you to Anon~ Firstly, I am extremely sorry  that this one is too late. Secondly, you have no idea how much fun it was for me to writhe this one. Hope you enjoy this . 

XOXO 

Admin Em

Spontaneous [Bokuto Koutaro]

When you started datingBokuto , the first trait of his that you came to know was that he wasspontaneous. And not just simply spontaneous , spectacularly and unimaginablyspontaneous. In fact, you knew it when you went on your first date with him. Bothof you were at a party which was thrown by your senior and being thespontaneous person that he was , he had come up to you , introduced himself andasked you out on a date out of nowhere. In no time you had found yourself atthe Rainbow bridge,his hand in yours, your head on his shoulder. He was spontaneous when he threw stones atyour window on your one month anniversary , beckoning  you to jump out and took you on a long rideafter which he surprised you with a self-constructed mini burger cake at the24hr fast food joint that he took you to. He was spontaneous on that one day when he wanted to spent time with youso badly but  both of you were alreadyinside college and he grabbed you and both of ran outside as though ghosts werechasing you.

It has been almost six yearssince and today you are  at Bokuto’s veryclose friend-Kuroo’s wedding. It is at a chapel not far from Tokyo andhonestly, it is the most beautiful palce you have ever seen. The roomwhere the vows  are going to be exchanges  has a beautiful overview of the gardenoutside. The benches are all white and adorned with pale ivory lace and white hydrangeas. The decorations are really minimalistic yet sophisticated. There are already a lot of people inside and as soon as you enter Bokuto   isn’t able to keep his hands off his pantsand keeps dusting the area near the pockets.

 “Stop being so figity , Kou. Comeon . Lets go in .” you say, taking is left hand and waling in. “ I am not beingfigity . Its just that I am not comfortable wearing such a costume.” , he says.Bokuto dusts his pants once more before  tagging you around as he goes and greets many people. You spot Akashi andhis girlfriend standing near  a pillarand beckon Bokuto to head their way. “Akaashi! I missed you a lot! How have youbeen?!” , Bokuto semi-screams, hugging him.  Akaashi  and his girlfriend greet  the both of you with their matching  calm smiles. “I am doing good,Bokuto-san.Thank you.It has been long.” The four of you exchange pleasantries and head towards Kuroo to congratulate him . Honestly, you feel like you are at your relative’s wedding ratherthat a friend’s because  Kuroo and Bokutohad been and still are really close friends. He was practically family.  As soft music starts to play , indicating thatthe bride is about to enter the room you and Bokuto excuse yourself and go andfind a seat for both of you.

 “It’s happening [F/N]-chan! Kuroo is finallygetting married ! I cannot believe this !”, he exclaims animatedly while takinghis seat.

The ceremony goes on reallywell. Hoots and flower petals are in the air and  Bokuto  is hardly able to contain himself when the priest announces that the bridegroom can  now kiss the bride. Adult , my ass. You arestill a kid at heart, Kou, you think to yourself. After the ceremony , all ofyou are made to occupy a super huge banquet hall . Kuroo and his wife come outto the center and Kuroo gives a  speechthanking everyone for their blessings and for attending the wedding .He thenannounces that the DJ would be playing music and exits after asking all of themto dance their hearts out. “I’ll be right back “, Bokuto says , as he let’s goof your hand and walks towards the newly marries couple. The three of themexchange  and Bokuto comes back with agiddy smile on this face.

[F/N], let’s go! Its dancing time !”, heexclaims before tugging you to the middle of the dance floor. “Oh my god,Kou! Iabsolutely cannot dance with these shoes on . They are already killing me.And Ihave my clutch too. How can I even dance ?” , you say while pouting . “Okay,come here .” He takes you by your hand , the other wrapped around your lowerback as  makes you sit on a chair .He bendsdown to remove your stilettoes  , takesthem along with your clutch and places it near Akashi’s girlfriend’s things andcomes back to you with a silly smile. “That’s all settled. Now let’s dance!”You give a giggle as you are pulled into the dancing crowd by him and startswaying your body to the beats.

You hardly feel the timepassing by . Both of you lose yourselves in the music when the fast beat –popsongs play. During the slower - romantic ones, Bokuro’s hands find themselves around your waist as the both of youexchange long , blushing gazes. At one point of time,  both of you are so exhausted that you go andsit down for sometime . The waiter next to you serves some champagne and somesweets and treats and Bokuto speaks up ,” [F/N]-chan. Look at that.” You lookto where he is pointing and find yourself looking at the just-married coupledancing with big and shy smiles on their faces. “ They look really goodtogether, don’t they?” ,he asks you. “Hmm….” , you hum. “They look like theyhave been made for each other don’t they?”, he asks again. You hum once more inreturn.  “[F/N] , you and me will looklike that too,don’t you think?” Bokuto says this time ,staring at you softly as he gulps some champagne. You turnyour gaze to him and smile softly. “Kou, they are obviously made for each other. Jus-just look at them! Being all lovey-dovey and cute in front of all theguests. Gosh. They are completely adorable.” “Right? We would look adorablelike that too. You and I ~ You would look really adorable in a wedding dresstoo.  “, he exclaims , a little to excited.You narrow your eyes.

 “Bokuto Koutaro, what to you mean by that statement youjust made ?”

 “ Ah , [L/N]-chan. It’s nothing . Nothing actually. Umm…. Do youwant to go dance for some more time?” , You notice that his cheeks have a lightred tinge to them and you find him completely adorable.

 “Koutaro, if you wantto get married , you just have to tell me . Why are you beating around the bushso much?” You notice that his blush had deepened even more. “I-I am not beatingaround the bush. I just wanted to know if you wanted to get married. Its lifetime commitment , you see. Um..  I just thought you wouldn’t be so comfortablewith it.” 

“ With what?”

 “Getting married.”

 “Why would I be uncomfortable?Infact , I  do want to get married toyou. We have been dating for like six years now? And in those six years , Ihave had so many ups and downs . But when I am with you, I feel that I can takeon anything that comes my way . And now I feel that I cannot get married toanyone else but you. Because you have been there for me , whenever  I needed you and you are such an amazing guy, an absolute sweetheart  , the bestboyfriend that I could ever ask for. After going through all that has happened, I really don’t think I can live without you Koutaro, because Ilove you so much.”  Bokuto slouches , dumbfounded for the next fewseconds .

 In a split second he on your side, hugging you so tightly that italmost chokes you. “[F/N]! Oh my god! Yes yes yes. Lets get married.Lets getmarried !!!” You laugh at his silliness .This guy may be in his twenties but hesill acts like a silly child. There is a contended feeling in your heart, nowthat you have told Bokuto how you feel. You look to you side at him and thatgoddamn smile of his hasn’t disappeared. “AHH!! [F/N], wait here for a second.I’ll be back.” , Bokuto tells you before disappearing off into the crowd. Noteven two minutes have passed by when  gentlytaps your shoulder and you turn to see Akaashi’s girlfriend standing  behind you. “The bride is about to throw thebouquet. Let’s go try our luck.”, she says with her gentle voice and hersignature  soft smile. You get up ,wearing your shoes and taking your clutch in your hand.

 “ Umm… Did you seeKoutaro anywhere ? He told me he would be back in a minute or so and heisn’t.”, you slowly whisper into her ears. She gives you a weird look beforesaying, ”Um.. No, actually. I was with Kei all this time.”  You search a littlebit more for him before sending him a text saying that you  were joining the other girls for the bouquetthrowing ceremony.         

When no replycomes from him , you give up and join Akaashi’s girlfriend, who is standingnear the front row. The bride announces that she is throwing the bouquet andyou get ready. She throws it and you turn to see who got it . A chorus of eehsand oohs follow as you turn to see that she had faked her actions before and isstill holding the flowers in her hand. “I am throwing it guys , this time forreal . You guys ready?” she says.  Thegroup yells a big yes. You laugh really hard at her silliness and how she ismaking the whole group restless. She fakes her trough once more before turningaround and walking towards the group. Ooohs and yooos and all other forms of exclamatorycomments are thrown loudly into the air as she stops in front of you and handsthe bouquet in your hand.

By now , you are blushingreally hard.  She moves a bit to her leftand  you see Bokuto waking towards you , giggling , with a bright smile on his face.  His face is a light shade of red, so is his neck.His hands , you can see ,  are sweaty . Youare a full on mess now and you become an even more of a smiling , blushing messwhen he kneels in front of you  with avelvet box in his hand. Your eyes sting as tears threaten to fall . But you haveno control over them  when Bokuto finallyaskes you with his broadest smile  ,

 “[L/N][F/N], will you marry me ?”

[heoltrouble]

Stranger (2)

one two three four five six seven eight

         "Is he one of us?" You asked Jay. There were only you and these three dorks in your room, Simon and the good-looking-but-looked-sad-guy left to meet the doctor. As far as you knew from them, his name was Gray.

          Gray..?           You frowned, wishing something came up to your mind to remember. But nothing came except headache.

          "Yeah, he's close with you. He’s part of us." Jay emphasized the word us as if it’s really important message to remind you.

          "How close? Like me and Kiseok oppa?" You tilted your head, curiosity took over you. Simon was the closest person among them. You knew him since you were baby.

          Just when Jay wanted to tell you, his words cut off by someone.

         "Just a close friend." You heard someone replied instead of Jay. It was Gray, smiling at you but his eyes told you the other way. His eyes were sad and lonely.

         "Sorry.." you mumbled when he approached you, feeling guilty that you couldn't find any single hint about him in your memory.

          “It’s fine..” he smiled, “we’ll get along in no time, I’m a fun friend, you know?” he joked but you didn’t think that way. However you still uncomfortable with his presence around you, you unknowingly squeezed Jukyung’s arm due your uneasy feeling.

           And Gray noticed it, he stared at your hand which landed on Jukyung’s arm, asking for comfort. He felt like he was a threat for you but in reality he was the one and only you used to rely on, he wanted to lash out his anger to Jukyung but it wasn’t his fault either. You needed time, and all he needed was patient.

          “S—sorry if I scared you.” Gray whispered softly

          An awkwardness filled the room before Simon cleared his throat, “y/n, doctor said you can go home.”

          “Uyeaaaah~” Jukyung grinned at you, “noona, should we throw a party? Ouch—” he cried in pain and quickly stepped back before Jay hit him again

          “This little shit—” Jay hissed, and the rest of you burst into laughter.

          “Let’s go home.” Gray suggested as he offered his hand to help you get off from the bed, but you hesitated to take his hand.

          “Can I go home with Kiseok oppa?” you looked at Simon with pleading eyes, going with Gray would only make you more uncomfortable. His presence really confused you, you met him three times this day but he already gave you different feeling in each meeting. Warm and soothing when you saw him at your first awake, then you felt guilty because you couldn’t remember him, and the last was you felt him intimidating because his nonstop gaze at you, looking at you as if he wanted to do something but he couldn’t. It gave you goosebump.

          “Sure, I’ll prepare your room.” Gray smiled but this time you caught his red eyes, probably because he was too tired? But you chose only nodded, understanding before saying thank you.

           Gray bid goodbye right after he said he would prepare for your room, then Jay volunteered to drive you and Simon to your home while Jukyung and Loco excused for their farewell because they had schedule on that day.

          “Why did he say he would prepare my room?” you asked Simon who sat in the front seat beside Jay.

          “You lived with him.” Simon replied in careful tone, trying his best to not make you surprised.

          “We live together? Is he my brother? As long as I remember, I have no siblings. Am I right or?” you knitted your eyebrows as you tried to think hard but your head stung in pain.

          “You okay?” Simon turned his head to you, he noticed your expression from the rearview mirror.

          “I’m okay..” you shut your eyes, wishing for the pain to go away.

          “Stop thinking too hard, we’ll help you to remember. Okay?”

            “I hope you’ll be comfortable here.” Gray gave you a spare key for the bedroom and he wrote his password code on sticky post it as well. Both of you stood in the main bedroom, Simon and Jay already left ten minutes ago. They already reassured you that you were going to be more than okay and safe with Gray, he will protect you no matter what happen. That’s what Simon said and you believed him. Gray was so polite and nice, he looked a lot better than the time he was in the hospital. He bought you a new phone because your phone was broken and told you that he already saved his number and all your friends as well.

           “Thank you.” You smiled, this time you felt so safe in this apartment. It felt like the safest and warmest place on earth for you. This apartment gave you familiar vibe in every inch of its part.

          “I rarely at home, I spent my time mostly—”

          “In the studio? Making music?” you grinned, actually you surf on the internet to find out who he was with Simon’s phone. Google said he was a producer and part of AOMG, he made music that make people’s jaw dropped.

          “You know me?” he grinned, unintentionally showing his perfect white teeth.

          “From google.” You replied shyly.

          “Thanks for trying to remember me.” His voice sounded sad.

          "Gray?” you called him.

          “Yes?”

          “Gray? Can I call you that?" you weren’t sure what’s going on you, but seeing him with his sad and pain eyes were very bothering you. You had an urge to get to know him.

          "I prefer Sunghwa but it's okay, Gray is also my name. Go with whatever you feel comfortable with it.." he replied and didn’t stop smiling.

          “Okay, Gray..” you said his name again and he chuckled.

         “It feels weird but as long as it’s you, I’m fine with that nick name.”

         And you blushed out of blue as respond.

         “I’ll be in the living room, call me if you need something.” He ordered before he closed the door and left you alone. You stared at the big master bedroom then scanned your surrounding, this bedroom was simple and minimalist. It was dominated by dark blue, white and grey which was not your favorite. This bed room almost filled with masculine color except for walk in closet, dressing table and bathroom, they were all white and had feminine vibe. Then you spotted a polaroid picture patched on the mirror of dressing table, it was you and Gray on the picture. He was sitting on the couch with you on his lap, his arms wrapped around your waist while your arms happily wrapped his neck. Both of you looked happy and from the angle of this picture, it taken when both of you weren’t aware that someone taking this picture.

           Was he really this close to you?            This picture perturbed you, if you looked really close and happy with Gray but why you can’t remember him? Then you walked inside walk in closet, there’s tons of male clothes as well beside yours. It made you sure of one thing: You shared the same room with him!

           Was that why he looks so sad when you forget about him? Why did he say that he’s your close friend? What’s his relationship with you? Why he—

           You shut your eyes tightly, feeling a lot of prick on your head. Instead of decreasing, the prick changed into jolt and made you lost your balance. You palpated the air, searching for the wall to hold on. Once you found the wall and door, you walked slowly to the bed and sat on the edge. The pain slowly faded as you remained calm. This was so confusing for you.  

           “Did I hurt you in the past?” your questioned made Gray almost choked, you handed him a glass of water before he took a sip and starred at you in surprise.

          “What? Uh— no. Why?” he avoided eye contact with you then back to dig his food. You were having dinner with him after both of you took a nap, he bought both of you Chinese cuisine and called you to join him.

          “You looked sad from the very first time we met.” You reasoned, hiding the fact the you found a polaroid picture of him and ascertained fact that both of you shared the same room in the past.

          Baby, I’m the one who hurt you badly. “It’s because you got an accident, I feel sad knowing you suffered.” He wasn’t lying, it was the truth. But the other reason of his sadness was only God and he knew how much he hurt your feeling when he harshly sent you home before you got an accident.

          You nodded understanding, feeling his tense as well. He probably won’t tell you what kind of relationship you had with him in the past because something happened, which you had no idea what it was. But you would find out by your own, if he had special bond with you then why he acted like Jukyung and others?

          “Thank you for concerning me..” you looked at your food, didn’t have enough courage to look at him.

          Gray smiled hearing your words, “you’re very welcome, everything about you always concerns me.”

          There’s definitely something about him, you felt there was a butterfly creeping on your stomach. It was the second time he made you feel that way, Gray’s presence made your heart flutter and warm.

           Your dinner went in smooth and peaceful silent, you knew that Gray often glanced at you but you decided to not mind it. You wanted to ask about the picture and all guys stuff in walk in closet but it might become something impolite, well.. he was nice and kind to you, asking too many question would displease him, right? At least not tonight, there will always tomorrow.

           Gray noticed you didn’t eat a lot and kept playing with your chopstick, “you didn’t like the food?” he asked you in concerned, his eyes warmly scanning you then your plate.

           “It’s delicious.” You shook your head then took another bite of fried dumpling, it was your everything. Fried dumpling was definitely on your top list of favorite food, blessed this good-looking-and-gold-hearted-who-named Gray for buying them and feed you.

          “Is there something bothering you? I can order another food for you, pizza? Ice cream? Pancake? Burger—”

          “No, it’s fine. I swear, it’s enough for me.” You shook your head and added your hands then waving it as you decline his offer. You were really fine, it’s just your thoughts that bug you. There was nothing wrong with the food, they were all perfect and you loved Chinese food. Gray had it right whenever it comes to your favorite, food, snacks, color of your phone, everything he had done to you were completely your favorite.

           He scanned your expression again before asked you the final question, ”really? I don’t mind if you want to eat another food.”

           Was he always like this? So persistent, his eyebrows knitted together which you found it adorable, the way he licked his lips in nervous and worry as if he did something bad to you. You couldn’t help but chuckle at his question. He looked at you dumbfounded but followed you to chuckle in a seconds.

           “What so funny?” he asked himself but still chuckling.

           “You’re funny, are you always like this?”

           “Like what?”

           “This..” you mimicked his serious expression when he asked you about your food, “I don’t mind to buy you another food..” then you tried your best to imitate his voice which made him laugh.

           “I’m not like that.”

           “Yes, you are.”

           “You’re bad at mimicking me, try harder!” both of you laughed harder and giggled like crazy, what so funny anyway? You didn’t even know, but when you saw Gray continued giggle childishly, leaning his back on deeper on the chair board while his arms around his stomach, trying his best to stop giggling but he couldn’t. He looked so familiar, so warm, so lovely.

             Three weeks passed and you still had no idea who was Gray and there was nothing about him that you could recall on our memory. He was stranger who slowly became closer to you, he also told you that the room where you use right now was his room which indirectly gave you explanation for your curiosity. He let you use his room because it was more spacious than the other room and he wanted you to be more comfortable, he rarely use his room because mostly he spent his time on the studio. Sometimes he asked your permission to enter his room to take some of his clothes. At first you insisted to go back to the other room but you finally succumbed on Gray’s persistent, he was really caring to you and you didn’t want to piss him.

           In addition, you started to feel something strange whenever he was around you. Happiness, shy, nervous and sometimes his gaze gave your stomach butterfly feeling which made you confused. As far you knew, he always tried to hang around you often, even in his packed schedule, he took his time to accompany you instead of resting or getting some sleep. His action made you feel so special.

           This morning, you were preparing breakfast when Gray came to the kitchen with his basketball shorts and black T-shirt, his bed hair which looked like nest made you chuckle when you spotted him standing in front of counter, watching you. You didn’t aware that he had been standing behind you for a quite long time.

           "Good morning.." you smiled at him then placed his plate which full of homemade sandwich on the table, inviting him to join for breakfast.

           "Morning.." he smiled then took his seat in front of yours.

           "I made sandwich, hope you don't mind to have it for breakfast." You looked at him and gave your shy smile as you caught his eyes staring at you. You had no idea why he always looks great even when he just woke up from bed.

            He grinned broadly, "This is more than enough, thank you bab— uh y/n."

            "You're very welcome, Gray." You replied and then in seconds Gray already took a bite, enjoying his breakfast.

            "What's your plan today?" he asked after finished his first sandwich and his hand automatically took another one. It’s glad to see him enjoy your food.

            "Maybe shopping, since I'm still on my day off. I will go to Jukyung's store, we had appointment last night." You told him your plan, last night you had to threaten him to accompany you. Jukyung said you should’ve asked Gray to accompany instead of him, but you didn’t. Having Gray around you was like sweet torture, you would be happy but also nervous at the same time and you didn’t know why. Going out with Jukyung was more safe for your own mental health as you thought.  

            Gray's face changed, he looked not very happy. "Just two of you?" he asked again, hoping that he misheard you. You had been often hangout with Jukyung lately, which made Gray feel left out. Moreover you looked so carefree and laughing a lot when you were with Jukyung, he hated that. He used to be the one who make you laugh and happy, and the fact that you were more comfortable hangout with Jukyung than him was unpleasant for his own. He really wanted to smack Jukyung for whatever he did to you.

            "Yepp, he's free.. I miss hanging out with him." you nodded.

            But babe, you definitely happiest when you hang out with me. Trust me, hang out with Jukyung will only give you stress. "Are you sure you'll be okay?" he gave you a worry look as if going out with Juyung will put you into trouble. Well, as far as you know.. Jukyung is harmless, he’s more like ball of joke and tease which sometimes made you want to strangle his neck because his over joy and teaser personality.

          "I will, beside.. I can call Kiseok opp—"

          "Don't." Gray cut your words, earning your questioned face. Then he laughed dryly, "I mean, Kiseok hyung is busy and he has girlfriend. Yoora probably jealous if you often call him." he reasoned. He tried to not sound suspicious, but only God and Gray himself knew how much he hate the idea you became close with the others than himself. He made mental note to put Simon and Jukyung aside from your sight for awhile, those two were bugging his confidence and slowly taking your attention.

           "Oh right, I would be pissed too if other girl calls my boyfriend.” You agreed, Simon has his own life and you shouldn’t bother him.

           "Call me." Gray said in his warm tone, causing you looked up at him, making sure that you heard him right.

           "Eh?"

           His gaze never leave you when he said, "If there's something happen, just call me. Not anyone else." 

[dreamscript]

HEY IT ME AGAIN-- LITERALLY SAME I GOT SICK AND LIKE IM STILL COUGHING AND I WANT IT TO STOP. LIKE. RIGHT. NOW. I hope you feel better soon! I can only imagine how bad you're suffering! Make sure to get lots of rest and binge watch Naruto hehehehe// I got sick around Christmas so it's kinda just here// But yeah lol just excuse me late responses (; 7 ; ) and yas girl just embrace you're inner otaku its okay xD (i wanna re-read Naruto actually//) OMG YES PLZ I LOVE YOUR FICS AND-

{CONT} YO HOW DARE YOU WRITE THAT JUNGKOOK FIC IM SHOOKED JKSDFNKJD// LMAO IF THAT AINT ME IN ANY MATH CLASS FUKFFKFKKFKF BUT ITS OKAY YOU CAN DO IT I BELIEVE IN YOU! There was freezing rain here a day or so ago. That was fun . u . (sobs) IF YOU COULD TWEEK MY BLOG OMG ID LOVE THAT. But the theme isn’t originally mine and I’d assume the original owner wouldn’t want the original code changed?

{CONT} IDK I wanted to change my theme for a while now // Something not endless scroll but just boxes for previews? Also I wanted a minimalistic theme based with pastel colours and black and white hehe/ ANYWAY NO NO WORRIES SOMETIMES IM JUST HERE WONDERING IF YOONGI SUED BIGHIT FOR DYING HIS HAIR TOO FREQUENTLY AND NOW HE BALD (LOL) BUT YEAH APPARENTLY THEY ARE SUPPOSE TO HAVE A COMEBACK IN FEBRUARY AND MY WALLET IS UPSET. I ALSO WANT THE NEW ARMY STICK FOR NO GOOD REASON AT ALL LOL

{CONT 3 xD} I’ve only read Naruto Manga so if you wanna screech with me about that lets do it ahaha/ HECK YES I WILL READ THEIR FIC- I WILL NOT STUDY JAHAJSDSDKJF Shout out to Cat and Fae too like i seriously love their fics- your Christmas series had me shooked!! Anyways I have so much work to do and so i will bother you later :) - Sakura !

IM HEALED AND BETTER NOW THANK YOU I HOPE YOU’RE FINE NOW TOO??!?! but i remember my doctor telling me once that if you’re still coughing like a month later you should get it checked out or something D:

and oh. my. god.

naruto.

LISTEN I LITERALLY CRY EVERYTIME IT MAKES ME SO EMO. I WATCHED NARUTO THE ROAD TO NINJA MOVIE LIKE TWO NIGHTS AGO AND I CRIED LIKE A BABY WATCHING HIM INTERACT WITH HIS PARENTS AND ALL LIKE D’:: highkey still hated on sasuke though

but yeah no it’s okay! i have super late responses as of late…. and it’s really only because i’ve been too emotionally spent by the end of the day or tired or busy or just “not feeling it”

idk, but i hope to get back into being more active. i miss this place. i miss interacting with others, as little of it i seem to be doing right now (guh _ _)

LOL I HAVE SO MANY SEX SCENES ALREADY PREWRITTEN OUT FOR HTE JUNGKOOK FIC AND SO NOW THAT I’VE GOT THE HARDEST PARTS DONE, IT’S JUST DOWN TO FILLING IN THE PLOT AND SUCH. aaaand that’s kinda hard too, but i think i’ll manage. hopefully.

(help)

dude it was rainy and windy and cold today and i had to go outside and the entire time i was walking/running/dying to class i was thinking a) why b) this was a Mistake

ah well in regards to your theme, usually the theme makers are okay with minor changes (sometimes major ones too) as long as you keep the credit and the changes are for personal use (as opposed to commercial use/redistribution, etc). just to be sure, you can just check their rules. they usually have that whole page/pop up or will simply include it in their theme code.

hmm what do you mean by boxes for previews? i don’t think i’ve ever seen such as thing. it sounds interesting, though. are they previews for like posts or…?

YEAH OMG I’M REALLY EXCITED BECAUSE FEBRUARY IS BOTH MINE AND ALSO @taesthetes​‘ BIRTHDAY MONTH SO ITS LIKE A BIRTHDAY PRESENT WOOHOO

thank you for loving our collaboration! i’m still amazed on how quickly we got things put together and everything… honestly… cat and @zephyoongist​ are so talented i don’t know what i’m doing here :’) (or where i would be without them)

and now finally…

(for the maaaain event)…

okaY OKAY I WILL SCREECH WITH YOU ABOUT NARUTO. RIGHT HERE. RIGHT NOW. just under the cut because spoilers:

I’M SUCH AN EMOTIONAL WRECK OVER NARUTO THE ONLY BEST WAY I CAN TRULY EXPRESS MY THOUGHTS AND FEELINGS AT THE MOMENT IS JUST THROUGH BULLET POINTS SO:

i love kakashi

i also love gaara. i can’t choose between the two, but lately i’ve been more biased towards kakashi. i blame it on my sister because she’s always had a thing for him

(i still love you gaara its okay my sand child)

kakashi’s backstory had me in tears… like… with obito died and he’s telling kakashi he’ll give him his sharingan (the sharingan that he’d always been talking about that would get him to hokage) to be his eye to see the future…

i just..

fucking broke down man like dude… stop… you’re killing me here… and then how kakashi really changes afterwards

(okay but listen child kakashi was savage as fuck though and it was hilarious)

(also i know it’s a filler but that one episode in which it showed guy and kakashi comparing dick sizes as kids….,,..,.

….,,..i wasn’t expecting that at all but i don’t mind the info heheheheh heh /dies)

OKAY BUT THEN RIN DIES WHY

literally if she hadn’t died a lot of the issues in naruto wouldn’t have occurred but they fucking did

no i’m not blaming her she died for a noble reason okay it just makes me really sad i’m sorry

AND FINALLY MINATO DIES TOO AND KAKASHI IS THE LAST OF HIS TEAM IM EMO

on a side note minato and kushina were cute as fuck

ANYWAYS GAARA OH MY OH MY GOD MY POOR BABY as a kid he was so cute and just wanted some friends and was out helping all those villagers and such but then his damned dad just had to go and screw those things up like STOP IT HE;S MY CHILD

even though i love those two, my favorites are actually the akatsuki

like. they hate each other but istg they secretly love each other like have you seen kakuzu and hidan’s interactions??? they tease and insult and threaten (and have killed) each other but kakuzu is actually patient with hidan’s rituals and such, and hidan will still accompany kakuzu to the collection centers

also, when he sees asuma’s guardian shinobi thing the first thing that comes to mind is kakuzu and how he’d want him for the money and he’s like u gh but like !!!

and AND when hidan at first thinks he’s accidentally killed kakuzu in his fight with shikamaru & co., he has that look of panic ooooh my god I JUST GASHUDFJSDIJASD

also hidan is just hilarious. like when they go to recruit him he’s like “who are you guys, all wearing the same clothes?? are you guys an orchestra or band or something?”

/points at kakuzu/ bet you play the bass

/points at konan/ bet the girl does vocals and keyboards

/points at itachi/ …or do you do vocals…?

and then the first thing hidan and kakuzu do to each other is kill each other

the look of utter disbelief on both of their faces

“what the–why aren’t you dead?”

“bitch that hurt–wait. why aren’t you dead?”

but anyways we can’t forget about itachi and kisame either, now can we?? like. they are actually like the only partner group that openly got along with each other, and they were sad oh my god they were sad upon realizing each other’s death’s

and idk just the way kisame says “itachi-san” does something to me

 i t a c h i

oh boy i have so much to say about this kid

but before i move on i must! address! the others!!

okay so like deidara is actually op as fuck and sometimes idk i feel like he doesnt get enough credit?? idk.

BUT LIKE LISTEN OKAY HE GOES THREE DAYS AND THREE NIGHTS TO SEAL THE ICHIBI AKA SHUKAKU AKA GAARA’S TAILED BEAST and then immediately after decides to take on naruto (and kakashi)

AND HE ONLY HAD ONE ARM AT THE TIME HAVING JUST LOST ONE IN HIS FIGHT WITH GAARA LIKE WHAT IS THIS STAMINA AND HOW DOES HE NOT BLEED OUT THIS KID IS FUCKING AMAZING WHAT THE HELL

and he’s 19 like lol what bye

but anyways, after his “fight” he loses his other arm because kakashi and now he’s armless BUT THIS KID STILL HOLDS HIS OWN though completely on the defense AGAINST TEAM GAI LIKE WHAT THE FUCK HE’S AMAZING and then he manages to create a bomb without using any sort of handseals and fools them all into thinking he’s dead

like

i love this boy give him a metal why did he have to die so early why (yet another reason why i dislike sasuke lmfao)

black zetsu scares the fuck out of me (esp when i learned of his true past and intentions) but white zetsu!! he’s such a sweetie holy shit

I JUST REALLY LIKED THAT TIME WHEN HE BURSTS INTO THE 5 KAGE SUMMIT AND HE’S LIKE “HALLLLOOO!!!!!!” WITH THE ARMS AND EVERYTHING DAW OMG

and also unlike so many others he actually likes everyone and when he saves deidara he’s like “you’re a fun guy to be around” and then and then later when he’s talking to tobi he reveals that he’s sad that so many of the akatsuki members died like D::

let’s not forget when black zetsu called him weak (they had split in two at the time) and white zetsu just kind of D: and wilts a little like ooHH NO oo baby it’s okay it’s okay

ahem

konan is so strong… holy crap… like… her ultimate attack? with the bajillion paper explosive tags disguised as a lake?? that go off for 10 minutes? holy fuck.

yahiko’s pretty damn hot if you ask me (yes i know he’s a cadaver in the main time period but listen)

idk my favorite arc of the entire thing was pain’s invasion of konoha… like from the moment jiraiya’s message arrived to when everyone got revived…. and then kakashi almost became hokage…

it was fantastic

i think it’s mainly because it was a mystery, race against time, battle thing all in one and it was so neat i guess

also you could see everyone in the village working together, fighting their hardest, showing their potentials for like, the first time ever

um um um okay sasori mentally scarred me as a child, and now whenever i hear the rattling puppet noises i immediately think of these scary nightmares i had after watching his fight with sakura… yeah, puppets scare me a lot now

orochimaru is a creep ‘nuff said moving on

tobi! i love this alternate ego of obito/”madara” like idk he’s so jumpy and honestly it’s fucking hilarious watching him because he’s so secretly op certain people underestimate him at first (and then others overestimate him because of his association with akatsuki)

like. when he was warding off konoha from itachi vs sasuke’s fight (which i am still emo about) he was just like playing whack-a-mole with them and then he’s like lemme use this ability! frill-necked lizard!

and they all kinda stand and stare at him intensely execting something legit

but in reality that’s it. the extent of htat ability is just him hanging upside down with the cloack falling behind him to look like a frill-necked lizard

and it’s fucking hilarious

i also thought it was fucking adorable when he and deidara first confront sasuke

and the little bitch goes ahead and slices through him

literally through him

and HE MAKES THE MOST ADORABLE NOISE BEFORE FALLING FLAT ON HIS FACE GAH

but sasuke thinks that he actually killed him and sasuke’s all like “one down”

and deidara just kinda

ugh this kid

and tobi gets up and brushes himself off like wow that was rly fast!!! and sasuke just >:/

URM OKAY ENOUGH ABOUT THE AKATSUKI MEMBERS

sorry i thought i should make this clear but i lowkey highkey have this vendetta thing against sasuke like this little shit

i mean ofc i know the reason for his disillusionment really isn’t all his fault like @ itachi really?

like really when he goes back to konoha and sasuke tries to kill him… he goes and easily breaks his wrist

and he kinda just considers him for a moment like

…hm

how about i….. make his situation even worse…?

and then traps him in a genjutsu that forces him to relive their parents death for 24 hours like why the fuck this is literally all your fault

and also on a side note, fuck danzo. why the fuck did the 3rd not kill him when he was supposed to. why. all the wrong people lived for far too long.

anyways

but yeah no idk i just really don’t like sasuke after he defected and became a Vengeful Teen

AND ITACHI’S STORY MAKES ME CRY EVERY TIME HOLY SHIT IT MAKES ME SO SAD WHY DID THIS BOY HAVE TO SUFFER SO MUCH and then mess up his little brother’s psyche to the point in which he starts killing like everyone wtf

AHEM

another favorite moment arc of mine is the very beginning

like the first 15ish episodes

IRUKA SENSEI

he’s such a blessing. he’s literally one of those crucially important side characters and i appreciate him and i love him and it would’ve been nice to see more of him, but hey, that’s okay too.

(his part in the naruto road to ninja movie had me in tears. like at the end. fucking tears.)

like naruto and kakashi may be super close and stuff, but when he needs someone as a guardian, naruto turns to iruka and idk i feel that says a lot about their relationship and it makes me cry all the fucking time

um anyways yes i also love zabuza

he’s so strong and empowered

AND THAT WHOLE ARC MADE ME CRY A LOT TOO AND THE FACT THAT IT BECOMES SUCH AN IMPORTANT PART OF THE STORY MAKES ME SO FUCKING HAPPY

i have a lot more the say probably but it’s getting late and i need to take a shower and sleep and get up early in the morning to make food so i’ll just leave it at that

(i wrote a lot i know i’m sorry)

(hope i didn’t blow you away with any spoilers D:)

[musingsofanangryginger]

31 Days of Horror 2017 Round up

Hello and welcome to the fruits of my labour. Below is a list and mini-reviews of each thing I watched during my 31 days of Horror. Some reviews are a bit beefier than others but I hope you enjoy nonetheless.

Day 1: The Invisible Man:

So I decided to start my horror by going old school…very old school, like 50 years before I was born old school. Back the 30’s Universal had a chain of monster movies which by today’s standards might be considered a bit on the tame side but from what’ve seen of that era and this one, this film stands up. So unlike the big-budget remake Hollow Man (come on now it is a remake), there is no transformation scene but instead, we meet our character after the damage has been done and we join him through his journey and his descent into madness which is excellently portrayed by Claude Raines.

Day 2: Shaun of the Dead: 

After telling a few folks at work about watching this as part of my 31 days of Horror they immediately claimed it was horror. I respectfully disagreed, at least I think it was respective. Yes, of course, it falls way more into the comedy genre but it’s very clearly a horror comedy. I can’t imagine that there are folks that have yet to see this film but for the uninitiated, Shaun’s life is going nowhere fast, content to frequent the same pub over and over, stuck in a dead-end job (Pun count 2) his lady kicks him to curb. Turns out you need a good zombie outbreak to give you that motivational boost. Directed by Edgar Wright and penned by Simon Pegg & Wright and what’s delivered a genre comedy which wears its love of that genre on its sleeve. Hilarious, Gory with some emotionally powerful punches throughout. If for some reason you’ve been in a bunker with the Mole Women your excuses are limited as to why you’ve never seen this slice of fried gold.

 Day 3: Gerald’s Game:

 King’s back in a big way thanks to the success of IT and so it seems there appears to be some clambering to get his work adapted, this one such effort being a Netflix offering. Directed by Mike “Oculus” Flanagan we’re treated to minimalist horror which takes place for the most part in a single room with some passionate naughtyness goes tit’s up (Pun machine). This is bolstered by two great performances by Carla Gugino and Bruce Greenwood. Unsettling and just that little bit harrowing this was an enjoyable surprise. I don’t want to elaborate too much on this one as I feel that going in blind is the key. I will say that Mike Flanagan has the uncanny ability to creep me out with violence. What I mean by this, is that I’m so ridiculously desensitised to film gore and violence that media would probably label me and some kind of mental. In 2 of Mike’s films to date, I’ve shuddered and shivered one being this and the other the aforementioned Oculus which is also brilliant. I also completely recommend Hush as well.

Day 4: Red State:

Again another debateable horror. I firmly plant this in the horror genre as it completely uses so many of the tropes. There’s the young high school guys looking to get laid and it going badly. By badly I don’t mean “oops an std and a paternity test” no I mean kidnapped by fanatics and faced with their deaths. Where this is different is that it twists all over the place it hardly gives you time to catch your breath. I loved how Kevin Smith described writing this, he said that each time the plot got familiar he skewed off in a different direction to what would be expected and it shows. Fitting in with the “this is horror” claim by myself there is an extremely unsettling vibe in the first half of the film that is perpetrated by the late great Michael Parks. Good god, his sermon monologue is downright terrifying. Brrrrr. One of Smith’s best films and a genre I think he should revisit….well of course there is Tusk. Ha ha Tusk.

Day 5: Ash Vs The Evil Dead (Episodes 1-3): 

 I had seen the first 2 eps a while back so decided to get some of this watched again. This harkens back to the brilliance of Evil Dead 2 (more on that later). Here the idiotic but pretty capable Ash sets loose the deadites once more to the gratuitously gory delight of fans and newcomers alike.  It’s hard not to love Bruce Campbell, He’s a genuinely charismatic presence. This is a show I desperately need to catch up with and feel there’s no excuse that I haven’t. I’m sorry!

Day 6: The Autopsy of Jane Doe:

It may be creepy to say, it may be weird to say, but I’m in love this film. These days you’d be very hard pressed to come across decent horror films which is sad. It’s a genre that has been limping along since the 70’s. Every once in a while though you get that gem that one in a thousand film that comes along and says “Boo” and you squeal. This is not one of these films. “But Mark” I hear you say “You seem to have bigged this film up” Why you backtracking. Oh contraire readers of mine, this here is the finest examples of the genre in last several years. The point I’m making is that it relies very little on the “Jump scare” formula and instead treats you a murder mystery with Horror along for the ride.

In wake of a horrific crime a body is found with no Id and who has no real ties to the crime that can be ascertained. It’s up to the Coroner and his son uncover why she was there, I will say no more. I felt that going into Gerald’s Game completely blind was the way to go, Jane Doe, I'd recommend a sensory deprivation tank of ignorance before going near this. Don’t even read the back of the dvd/blu ray case or google it. No trailers nothing, just rest in the knowledge that this film is entirely worth it. Creepy and gripping throughout with scares and revelations coming in equal amounts. Trust me when I tell you, you’ll want to know how this wraps up.

Day 7: The Scream Trilogy: 

20 years ago this series of films kicked off (technically 21 but who’s counting…oh wait I appear to be sorry!) 20 years since the immortal “What’s your favourite scary movie” line became engrained in popular culture. The premise was simple a killer who had seen waaaaay too many horror films went a bit of a slaughter. Their knowledge of movie trivia is used against unwilling victims…crap, this person sounds a bit like me. Don’t worry folks I use my trivia for good or at the very most to annoy folks slightly. So with the decline of the horror movie genre or more accurately during its current dip Scream was released in an attempt revitalise the industry and to be fair it did. It spawned 3 sequels (with 4th coming out way later) and a current TV series. Like the killer, this franchise stayed alive longer than it should’ve. While 2 was probably my favourite of the original trilogy, this was due to the fact that I owned it on VHS and watched it constantly and that, of course, Sarah Michelle Gellar was in it (What can I say I had a crush on Buffy), I also really like the first one. 3rd is a bit pants but has its moments, notably Parker Posey playing Gail Weathers is hilarious and Kennedy’s cameo is also great. It’s clear though that quite ironically that by the 3rd this franchise was pretty stale. Doesn’t seem to be able to stop it though!

Day 8: The Void: 

This film is absolutely MENTAL. A clear homage to the body horrors of the 80’s with the clearest being references to Hellraiser I felt, this starts off relatively sane and then skips down Insanity Drive, Crazy Avenue with a brief stop-over in Gross-ville. The films kicks off with a bloody bloke popping out the woods conveniently in front of a Sheriff’s car. The Sheriff takes him along to the local hospital where the weird begins. Cultists stop the folk from leaving and from there; well I won’t say too much more.  I will say right out of the gate that this is most certainly not for everyone, most notably my good lady Evonne. She hated it with the passion of a fiery star. I, on the other hand, enjoyed the unhinged nature, body horror creepy vibe. Give it a bash if you’re looking for some nostalgic originality.

Day 9: Slither: 

Before James Gunn was fanboying the crap out of Guardians of the Galaxy he made a horror comedy called Slither. This stars the always likable and charismatic Nathan Fillion as a small town sheriff having to deal with an alien invasion. Much like The Void, this seems to homage the body horror of old with truly Cronenbergian creatures, but unlike The Void this is flat out hilarious. All characters stretch their comedy legs keeping the laughs coming thick and fast but the stand out character for me is Mayor Jack McCready played by Gregg Henry. His intro as a crass a$$hole (there really is no better way of describing him) is comic gold and each time he’s on screen he kills it. I feel that this is a film that everyone should see once because it’s brilliant. Yes, there is a lack of articulation in that sentence so let me just say, It’s gross, a bit violent but extremely funny.

Day 10: Cannibal The Musical:

I want you to read that title again and know a few things. 1. It is not made up and 2 and one of my favourite things, of which there many, about this film, is that it is based on the True story of Alfred Packer. On their way to seek riches in a Colorado gold mine, a party lead by Packer end up being snacks for the would-be guide. Or so it would appear. I know what you’re thinking, this doesn’t sound funny. What if I was to tell you this was made by the guys responsible for South Park. I first caught this on Channel 4 back in the late 90’s as part of a Troma film season. It played late night and with good reason, within the first few moments, the blood and gore flowed in gratuitous and over the top fashion. Of course, that was nothing compared to when the songs began. Much of this can be considered a blueprint of the tropes that would end up furnishing the long-running and widely popular South Park. Poking fun at almost everything in the genre including but not limited Alfred Packer’s lost love Leighanne, it gleefully bashes all kind of clichés, notably of the musical numbers and horror variety. With musical earworms, you’ll find harder to get out of your head than human flesh out your teeth and many numerous comedic moments this is worth your time… or at the least is certainly worth mine, again!

Day 11: Dawn of the Dead (2004):

Oh man do I remember the uproar when this was announced: “Arrrrgh you can’t remake a classic, rah, rah rah etc.” Of course Hollywood was like “Shut it, ya pr!cks” but no doubt in a less Scottish vernacular. What we were presented with was a remake that paid homage to original but was in its own right also original. First off there is no shuffling but full pelt Zombies tanking it after folks, to the point where this out of shape chubby ginger bloke would be a Zombie entre, and while 28 Days Later may have had the same trope 6 years prior Danny Boyle is adamant the 28 Day’s Later is NOT a zombie film so Kudos to Zack. There is a larger group as opposed to original’s 4 which makes for a better character dynamic and there is care when likable characters go bye bye and catharsis when the bad characters join them. This is fairly relentless from the get-go, takes less than 10 minutes to get to speed and opening scene sets you up for a great movie. Potentially get some flak from DC folks over this but I maintain this is Zack Snyder’s best film. It’s Violent, Gory, Action packed as well as funny and emotional at all the right bits. Enjoy!

Day 12 Curve, Night of the Slasher, Blinky & Breathe: 

On the 12th day of Halloween, my true love gave to me 4 GOLDEN SHORTS. Yes I know I’m off on the song and the lyrics but I just can’t seem to care! So I’ll break these down Short by short without going too much into depth because too much means “why would you watch it?” 

Curve is the story of a girl who wakes up Clinging to a smooth, curved surface high above a sentient abyss. What more do I have to say about this that doesn’t have you intrigued; let’s just say that despite the simplicity, it’s very very tense. 

Night of the Slasher is shot in a single take and follows a young lady looking to violate the code of horror by committing all the sins in order to confront her would be killer. This wears its John Carpenter influences all over its blood-soaked sleeve. 

Blinky is the only Short I’d seen prior. The story a young boy and his robot who “just wants to be your friend”. Only he might be the most stable of friends, pretty sure we all have a fair share of those (if not you're obviously the mental one) I do love this short immensely. Emotional and a bit sad and pretty creepy.

Finally Breathe a very short piece in which a ghost who a young gentleman is enamored with, only appears when he holds his breath. Given how short this is I won’t say too much, but I will say it’s quite effective for the runtime.

Day 13: The Babysitter: 

This dropped on Netflix on the same evening and I thought I’d give it a bash. The film follows your standard nerd, bullied, disliked, my childhood before I became the cool hip awesome bloke you all know and love etc etc. The only person who treats him with a modicum of respect is his hot too good to be true, nerd sympathising Orthodontist....pffft, of course, it’s his Babysitter. On a standard evening of Babysitting our Nerd-do-well spies some truly nefarious dealings which features his favourite babysitter and things go pear-shaped. Hijinks and some pretty gratuitous violence are unleashed. A film that doesn't take itself remotely seriously and quite fun. The only pitfall is the shite acting, but I’m not sure if this is a stylistic choice or laziness. All cards on the table I enjoyed this film, though a bit silly, it was a good laugh.

Day 14: Christine: 

How many folks reading this have films that make you smile, that warm you no matter the genre. The equivalent of a comfort blanket? This is one such blanket for me, This here is one of my favourite Carpenter movies and Stephen King adaptation. This is a childhood classic for me and yes I was no doubt way too young to watch it but I’m so glad I did. This just your age-old typical tale of Boy meets car, boy falls in love with car, car turns out to be sentient and evil. No of course on paper this sounds guff and not too dissimilar to King's disastrous foray into Directing “Maximum Overdrive”, though trust me when I say this isn't that. What sets them apart is the creepy vibe present in Christine which is achieved by the acting talent with particular note of the leads decent into madness. The special effects are awesome and practically done and despite being 34 years old have aged better than me. My favourite of these practically done effects is the Flaming car scene. This still rings out a chorus from me screaming “HOW THE FUCK WAS THIS DONE?” The neighbours are not as appreciative as you might think. The final thread that ties this gem together is John Carpenters score. A cherished childhood memory and a long-standing favourite of mine which is yet to get old.

Day 15: Paranormal Activity: The Ghost Dimension: 

Ahhhh the never-ending gravy train that is the Paranormal Activity franchise. By this point I assume Oren Peli is surprised that this franchise just wont rest, yet it endures. Its a very hit and miss series of films with none really capturing the originality of the first. So far I’ve not liked one of them, which was the third. The latest entry is by no means good, in fact its predictably flawed but there is an inherent difficulty keeping things fresh. This one attempts the whole 3D thing, but to be fair that is probably just an obvious attempt to squeeze that little bit of cash. Thankfully I watched it on Netflix and so I didn't have to deal with the 3D. I did however liked the explanation, in that the 3D was due to a modified camera designed to catch spectral energy. Bit flimsy I know, but better than just ignoring why a found footage series is now 3D. The story is one of those predictable flaws mentioned earlier and is on the generic side. The scares are decent but of course because the film is devoid of score builds up a background noise rumble (if you've seen any of the films, you'll know what I’m talking about) which is that cue that basically is telling you when to be scared. I hate this trope in horror films which is usually marked by the rising music. “Get ready to get scared people, woooooooh” Its false tension. If a horror film is well done it doesn't need to rely on this cheap trick. But I digress. The film was enjoyable, there’s something very gleeful in being able to see the spectral entity that the characters can't. Even if looks a tad mucus-y

Day 16: The Sixth Sense: 

A film, like the original Planet of the Apes, that everyone knows ending of. However if for some reason you’ve never managed to see this gem, I shall remain spoiler free here. So why would you watch this a second time despite knowing how it wraps? Well because it’s a very well put together creep fest and a hell of a debut from M Night Shyamalan. Yes that guy who ruined Avatar the Last Airbender. It's hard to imagine but there was a time that he was held in pretty high critical regard, his first two movies are masterworks and The Village is critically divisive but I believe its one of his most underrated films, that's right I said it, come at me, bro, and by bro I mean the internet! Also in recent years The Visit and the excellent Split has Shyamalan on a pretty clear comeback. But back to his feature debut. For those cave dwellers, the film centres on the relationship between Broken psychologist Malcolm Crowe played by Bruce Willis back when he gave a shit and Cole Sear a troubled child with the darkest of secrets. Malcolm see’s Cole as his redemption case and Cole just wants to be helped and to be rid of his curse. You see Cole is visited by some pretty darned scary spectres and he just wants to not be, which is fair enough. The two leads work very well off each other and feel for both but it the relationship between Cole and his mother that really sell this film, at it’s hear despite all the creepiness you have this Mother/son relationship which is not only believable but filled with emotional heft, I challenge you not get overwhelmed by the scene between the two in the car. Another re-watch point is absolutely fantastic score by James Newton Howard, The scares though generic these days are still quite unsettling but what makes this different from other horrors is the aforementioned emotional depth from all involved. This is a movie I’m happy to revisit.

Day 17: The Final Destination: 

This series is an extreme guilty pleasure for me. There is not much in the way of the story of depth and all follow the same generic formula, Big disaster happens or supposedly happens as standard character get the old bit premonition and stops him/her and bunch of other him’s and her’s from being part of the disaster. However given that they’ve gone and wound up Death and he’s like “NO, I’M NOT HAVING IT, THAT’S JUST NOT ON” the survivors are dispatched in creative, over the top and pretty darned gruesome fashion. This entry sees the main disaster set piece taking place at a Nascar race and after all the carnage takes place, shock, our would be protector warns a group of folks off. The deaths come thick and fast after which. This film is probably the worst of the bunch but was put on due to the relative “brain switch offedness” if afforded. There is a few highlight, the swimming pool scene, and my particular favourite Red neck + Tow Truck but this is very much a meh movie. Marred by the whole 3D inclusion the death scenes look a bit pats and very CG’d but it’s enough to switch off and enjoy.

Day 18: 30 Days of Night: 

Imagine a town where once a year there is a month of no sunrise. Now that might be unsettling in its own right but imagine that vampires discover this place exists! Buffet time and humans are the snacks. The isolation and the threat at the heart of this are simultaneously brutal and subtle. Yeah, there are some pretty spectacular set pieces but the film decides to go down a route where the fight for survival is more central. The build-up is quite slow and creepy with strange occurrences happening before we're introduced the Vampires. Carnage ensues but We spend more time with the survivors to in their claustrophobic hideout feeling just as powerless as them. The vampires are dealt with is suitably terrifying fashion, totally selling the predatory habits and ancient lineage. Very few lines of English dialogue is uttered by them, instead opting for the use of an ancient sounding language. These days in the wake of Twilight, it's hard to think of Vampires as scary creatures, this film harkens back to a time where you know you’d sh!t yourself coming face to face with one these Scary b@stards. You should also check out the source material written by Stephen Niles and drawn by Ben Templesmith. Sorry, Niles but it’s Templesmith's artwork that always draws me back, which is not to say the writing isn't good, but pick it up and you'll know what I mean.

Day 19 Holidays: 

An anthology piece around certain yearly holidays Starting with Valentine's day and culminating in New years. There are some truly dark and fuckked up shorts in this film probably taking the cake for latter is St Patrick's day & Easter. The standouts for me were Fathers Day, Valentine's day and Christmas Day. As with most anthology films there are hits and misses and a couple fall short but all in a decent little bunch if segments, like an evil Chocolate Orange!

Day 20: Fist of Jesus: 

Tonight was Games night and so I introduced my friends to the wonder of Fist of Jesus. Now, this sounds like a very dodgy title but it's not that kind of sacrilegious, it's sacrilegious in a completely different. After Jesus performs the miracle to resurrect Lazarus, things go south in an undeady type of a way. It's then up to Jesus and his bestie Judas to dispatch these strolling corpses...with lots of fish. But don't take my word for it, here are quotes from watchers:

"Made me convert to Christianity"- Archie

“Too tired, for this pish Mark!”-Evonne

“I’m at Church every Sunday now”- Liam

This is definitely worth 15 Minutes of your time!

Day 21 The Blackcoats Daughter (February): 

The danger these days with horror is to make a relentless 90 minute to 2 hour Jump scare fest and therefore make the film ultimately forgettable at its conclusion. The horror films that stick with you are the subtle slow burners that will build atmosphere throughout and only employ the jump scare periodically. You see this with the likes of The Innkeepers and It Only comes at night and in this case with February (Aka The Blackoats Daughter). From the outset, there is already something not entirely quite right and the unsettling undercurrent continues to wash over you until the film's conclusion. Often showing very little and allowing you to imagine the scenario that’s unfolded just out of eyeshot. The premise see’s a couple of young girls left at their boarding school for a winter break due to the parent’s “forgetfulness” to come and collect them in time. There is an age gap between the two ladies with youngest of the 2 going through some unsettling changes. I feel in terms of giving a synopsis that this should be enough. I suggest just going in and watching without much prior knowledge. If you prefer your horror atmospheric and slow-burning then this is the gem for you.

Day 22: The Love Witch: 

This film is stunningly shot and immediately gives you the impression you’re watching 70’s era hammer type film. While not your typical horror, it brings you in with a captivating lead and Rom-Com type of premise. Elaine (Played by Samantha Robinson) just can’t seem to make love stay. More accurately every man she falls for kind of ends up not alive, it’s pretty unlikely. Being a practicing Witch she uses her oh so considerable power and allure to reel in the unfortunate gentlemen until of course, she meets the “right” one. She then does everything she can to get him to love her back. This is a gloriously mental, at points funny kind of horror. There not full on gore for those violence hounds and there isn’t an awful lot to be scared about. It skirts the edge of “horror” very well giving you a unique experience that is likely to linger Not for all and I suspect some folks, particularly the horror aficionados may not rate this quite as highly as I do but I suggest giving it a try, you might be pleasantly surprised.

Day 23: Evil Dead 2:

Oh man, this movie fills me with a genuine sense of giddy glee whenever I think about putting it on or previous viewings that have some pretty happy memories for me. Cheesy as it sounds Movies serve for a lot of my happiest memories, taking my mum to see Marvel films, my girlfriends and I’s first date and the source of many others and my collective entourage viewings where I drag a group of my friends to see the big releases or even the tiny ones. Evil Dead 2 has particular significance in my growing up and memories with my Aunt. A day many years ago, two young folks with horror in their hearts trawled the Jack Kane centre park where a car boot sale was taking place. Through the hubbub a young Mark spots Evil Dead 2 on VHS split seconds before his Aunt Claire does and before she knows it he’s bought it from a guy, who let's be honest, shoulda checked the young Marks Id. Claire's frown slowly fades as realises what our afternoon now entails of...we’re bloody gonna watch Evil Dead 2.

I watched these films in reverse order having been shown Army of Darkness first but this is my favourite given its history. That day, as Claire and I sat in front of her tiny TV and watched this splattering of genres was a day I fondly remember and as a result will get just slightly giddy when I hear the narrator say “Necronomicon Ex Mortis, roughly translated “book of the dead” or when Ash has his maniacal laughing fit, or Henrietta in the fruit cellar or the Iconic “Groovy” and punch the air moment. Each of these moments, as well as the rest of the film, will get me goosbumpy. For those who haven't seen this (and come on if you haven't, have a word with yourself) Ash played by the always brilliant Bruce Campbell takes his lady for a romantic getaway in an isolated cabin in the woods. Of course now one draws a line in the fucking sand and Ash reads the Latin, or the latin sounding words. Either way, it's a dead language (been a while since I punned, was getting the shakes). Anyhoo this awakens something dark in woods and what follows is a blending of some excellently brilliant slapstick comedy and genuine moments of terror. It's a mix that should never work, the serious dark tone of the horror and the outlandish ridiculous humour. But man does it work and work extremely well, there's gore, dismemberment, pratfall, hands with evil intentions and a laughing mounted deer head. It's hard to express praise any higher than I already have for this film. It has a special significance to me which will won't dissipate.

Day 24: Happy Death Day: 

Groundhog Day with stabbing. Oh, you want more than that, gosh needy lot are you not! Tree Gelbman wakes up on her Birthday in a strange blokes room and goes about her standard college (University) type of day. Goes to classes, get's off with folks she's generally not supposed to until, when on the way to a party, she’s brutally dispatched. Well maybe not brutally, as the violence is pretty gosh darned tame. She then wakes up in the same boy’s bedroom...at the start of her Birthday. TIME LOOP YAAAAAAS! This rinses and repeats until the film wraps. This film could've been standard plop if not for a charismatic lead played by Jessica Rothe. She is having an absolute blast and you're along for the ride! This is a lot of fun and made me smile. My only real criticism is the lack of gore being that it's a PG-13 in the states. Now neutered horror can be good, this is a prime example but I feel my bloodlust could've been pandered to  Just a little.

Day 25: Halloween: 

Remember what I said about Evil Dead 2? I mean how could you not, its the largest chunk in this. Well, Halloween is another of those memory makers but don't worry I won't gush...too much. So yeah Black Christmas may have come first but this film is almost predominantly responsible for the slasher Horror subset of the genre, it was in the wake of this that Freddy & Jason came along (more on them later). Michael Myers is the Grandaddy of horror villains and despite treatment in recent years, started his tenure as a bloody terrifying presence. John Carpenter uses his bogeyman sparingly first, building suspense before the inevitable slaughter-fest. He stalks the poor babysitters, with Jamie Lee Curtis center stage. It still stands up because of its subtle build up, creative dispatches of those horny teens and that score. Carpenter’s scores are all pretty much iconic and sound excellent live. If you haven’t, watch this film which I was obviously too young for when I first viewed!

Day 26: Jigsaw: 

Let's get this out the way, the first Saw film is an excellent isolation thriller with a gripping story and engaging characters and with the notable exception of the 2nd film the rest of the franchise is pure shite. The films central core is completely overshadowed in the previous entries by the increasingly elaborate gore creating traps and the convoluted ways the keep using to tie each entry into it's predecessor. None have been as clever as the first. The second comes close but it is ALL downhill from there.

So was Jigsaw any good? Well it's premise is suitably intriguing with Jigsaw murders kicking back off 10 years after the franchise villain John Kramer has gone to the trap creating factory in the sky, or perhaps more likely the ground. There are obvious clues pointing to Kramer's unlikely return but something is not quite right. That is   where the smartness ends as the film find it hard to decide what it's gonna do and therefore the big "reveal" is pretty much "saw it coming". Despite my misgivings, I did enjoy this film but more in an " awwww look it's trying so hard to be as good as the first". If you want to capture that previous macabre magic of the first, strip down the budget, the location and characters and tell what seems like a simple story. I suspect there's a Hollywood exec thinking of doing the complete opposite which is why this film and any subsequent entries will ever be as good as the original.

Day 27: Tucker and Dale Vs Evil:

You know the old horror genre trope of those backward Hillbillies being those to avoid horror films cause you'll be "doomed" if you cross them? Well, prepare to have your prejudices reversed. Tucker & Dale Played by Alan Tudyk and Tyler Labine respectively are off to fix up their summer cabin when these pesky kids start dying all over their property. The film pokes all kinds fun at those standard genre cliches by flipping them on their head and keeps poking fun until the end. It's violent but only in over the top to prove it's commitment to its irreverence. Laugh out load throughout and quite heartwarming at others. This is a particular favourite of mine and I'm glad I included it.

Day 28 Stranger Things Season 2 (Episodes 1-5- at the time but. season complete now): 

So we paced this. I firmly believe that binge-watching is not a good habit to get into. It's so easy to sit for 8/9 hours, or higher, straight and tank a series thanks largely to Netflix's model. The problem is that once it's done in record time...you have nothing for a year. Ordinarily, I prefer to watch 2/3 eps at a time over several days or sometimes weeks. Restraint means better enjoyment, so despite having the whole the season at your fingertips pace yourself. So now my rant is over on to How good was Stranger Things S2...VERY! Before I start gushing I'd like to address the Demogorgon in the room by saying Episode 7 haters gee yerself peace! There was absolutely nothing wrong with the episode and it's placement, Jesus they establish the fact that this will be addressed in the very first episode. It gives some much-enjoyed character development to Eleven and despite claims that it kills the pace I think it gives a needed breather, especially if you are binger. Also, anyone else I've spoken to in person very much enjoyed the episode so there is that. So this season kicks off a year after the events of the first. Will is still having a rough time of it with it being claims of him struggling with PTSD but something more sinister is present. Joyce is dating Samwise Gamgee and Nancy and & Jonathan are pretending they don't love each other and so on. Look the story is great and I could outline plot thread by plot thread but lets put it this way if you want to sit through a compelling nostalgia trip with some of the best ensemble of talented child actors to grace the screen in many years then this is your cuppa tea. There are some pretty great stand out moments, Farrah Fawcett Hairspray anyone? I'm curious to see where the Spielbergian Steven King by a jaunt through Silent Hill goes next and will be like the rest of you. Eagerly anticipating Season 3, which just in case you were in speculative doubt has just been greenlit! Can't wait.

Day 29: Brain Damage:

 Saw this back at Dead by Dawn a few years back, it's certainly a film. I have quite the fondness for this schlocky tongue in cheek affair in which Brian awaken one morning not feeling the best. it turns out that this is because he has a new companion in a smooth-talking symbiotic parasite known as Aylmer. Aylmer's friendship is not free, in exchange for some mind-expanding chemicals that Aylmer excretes, Brian must hep his new friend acquire Brains...human brains to be exact. Not to Brian's credit, he remains fairly oblivious to this for the most part due being trashed out of his gourd.

This film is more comedy than horror but there some pretty gratuitous moments of gore and the films core concept means that there is a whole of lot creative ways to dispatch the brain buffet's and I mean creative. For those who have seen this film, You'll know exactly what scene I'm referring to and those who haven't well go ahead and give it a bash. A great but insane 80's offering.

Day 30: Freddy Vs Jason: 

God this movie is stupid. I mean really stupid. But let's put some of the old bit perspective on this bad boy. Before the MCU, before WB was struggling with the DCEU we had a crossover that horror fanboys were geeking out over as much as I did watching the Avengers: Infinity War trailer. This was the showdown that was eagerly anticipated since Krugers Razor accessorised glove dragged Jason's Mask to depths of hell 10 years prior to the closing seconds of Jason goes to Hell. Was it worth the wait, well probably not but I was still excited to see it, to the point I nearly elbow dropped a boy for spoiling it while I was up a ladder adjusting a Finding Nemo banner. Reckon I'm going to leave that there with no hint of context. As stated the film is stupid but sets it's self up is sort of clever SORT OF. Freddy is in a bit of a funk as now he's all but forgotten due to a plot by local police to hide the truth about the previous murders (yup, that's not made up). The irked Kruger decides he'll dispatch a would be slaughterer for hire and goes about waking Jason up from his rest and sets him loose on the Elm st kids taking credits in a bit of a dick move. When Jason won't come to heel, well that's when the old "Vs" comes into play and the scraps take place in Freddy's dream realm as well as in the real world, and I have to say the set pieces are pretty cool. It's not the best film, hell it's not even a good film but it brainless as the "teenage" fodder in the film and pretty darned enjoyable.

31. Train to Busan: 

And finally, my horror films came to a close for the month with this South Korean cracker. A father escorts his young daughter to Busan by train to see her mum for her birthday. A journey the young girl insists she's capable of going alone, you'll be glad the Father decides not to listen to her as all hell breaks loose when some of those pesky living impaired board the train with a lack of tickets and etiquette of the biting of humans. The rest of the film thunders from one tense set piece to another ensuring the sphincter remains puckered throughout. There is some also very surprising emotional heft throughout and moments that make me test my manly non-crying limits. Director Sang-ho Yeon is definitely one I'll keep an eye out for.

So there you have it. Took me a month to write, next year if I do this I'll be sure to write the reviews as I'm going along. I would appreciate any feedback, comments or discussions you want to have as I require constant validation. This includes suggestions for 2018's 31 Days of Horror. If you have made it this far, thanks and I hope you enjoyed this Macabre Madness.