#anyone else go to the toronto show :3

[ivoreene]

select your character! sound on ;p

song links and stills under the cut!

Songs:

Heavenz-P - Even if it's your happiness

nyanyannya - Fräulein＝Biblioteca

Karasuyasabou - Genius Rock

daraku - GEDO

ryo - world is mine

wotaku - literacy

Font: https://www.dafont.com/medinah.font

everything else was my own! i did reference the logo though, but i drew it myself

stills and a little group thing!------------------------------------------

tried posting and tumblr refused to post it so i had to rewrite and relink everything TToTT

[yelenasdog]

vibrant, saccharine, his ☼ (fwb!mat barzal x fwb!fem reader) 

genre: filthy smut, fluff, angst with happy ending

summary: pretending is getting harder, for both of them. and after a hard roadie, mat’s not sure if he wants to pretend anymore.

words: 8.7k (WOAH)

warnings: cursing, excessive use of parentheses, friends with benefits arrangement, smut, unprotected piv, oral (f and m receiving), fingering, blood (reader bit lip too hard oops!), pet names (baby, sweetheart, pretty boy), reader is described as having sisters and a dog, food mention, idiots to lovers, misunderstood situation, reader uses she/her pronouns, and i think that’s it.

a/n: when i started this, i originally was just writing a blurb and then it turned into a full ass fic with a plot?? and fwb??? idk man, im nervy to post this since ive never published for nhlers before but oh whale! and ty to @eminems-skittles for reading this for me and checking it over 🤍 love u

“You played so good, baby.” She breathed, welcoming him home with open arms.

“Not good enough, apparently.” He responded, letting her fingers card through his raven locks. Soft, freshly cut. She loved when he grew it out, but yet again it was him, so anything worked.

She sighed, letting her thumb fall to his cheekbone, knowing what he was referring to. It had been the last stop of the road trip, he’d had a hatty and despite making it to OT, it wasn’t enough in the shootout.

He’d had to wait an entire flight and car ride afterwards to see her, only giving her a brief text when he got off the ice (“We lost. Had a hatty. Fucking Toronto.”) (like she hadn’t stayed up to watch the game) and another when he landed.

And after so long of whatever the two of them had going on, she’d known better than to try to send him some long and winded attempt at a pick me up message. She settled for just responding “I’ll be here.” She didn’t need to say it though, he knew she’d be there.

She always was.

To anyone else it would’ve been sad, how she waited up for him, late nights spent lonely with just her and her dog, as he jetted around North America. In her mind, he was no doubt giving himself away to whatever random puck bunny threw herself his way.

Despite this, she was loyal, even though she had her suspicions about what he did when they were apart. And frankly, it wasn’t a part of the “deal” that they had to be exclusive, and it was none of her business. But truthfully, after so long, she couldn’t count on some washed up juniors player to give her even a fraction of the satisfaction he had.

So, she did this whole routine, whatever this was. She stayed up late watching his games, sitting on her couch in his sweatshirt he left. She wouldn’t admit it out loud, but whenever she wore it, she liked to pretend.

Pretend that she was an obedient girlfriend wearing her loving boyfriends sweater. That as she sat curled up waiting on the corner of the beat up black sofa, 3 coffees in at approximately 1:37 am, she would be rewarded for her efforts come morning time.

That her and said loving boyfriend would lounge around together in bed (after he woke her up in the best way he knew how, showing her how grateful he was. Like I said, she loved when his hair was long enough to tug on, and even though she endlessly made fun of his patchy stubble, she couldn’t deny how delicious it felt burning between her thighs. Especially after they’d spent so long apart.) Then they’d go and grab late brunch, holding hands under the table as they sipped mimosas, which were Mat’s guilty pleasure only her and the waiter knew about, before heading home.

Maybe then they’d FaceTime his mom back in Coquitlam, an early riser with the 3 hour time difference. Mat had felt bad interrupting her morning routine, but she’d never pass up an opportunity to talk to her boy and the girl who she hoped was her future daughter in law.

After they got off the phone, she’d tell him how much she loved his mom, how her cheeks hurt from smiling so much. He’d tuck a strand of hair behind her ear, watching as she leaned into his touch.

“Missed you, Mat.” She’d say, closing her eyes.

“I missed you more.” He’d respond, his voice nearly a whisper. Her eyes would flutter open, and he’d recognize the look in them immediately. He felt his blood rush, and suddenly their proximity, which he’d never get used to, was very obvious.

“Oh yeah?” She asked. “I doubt that.”

He swallowed, his tongue darting out to wet his bottom lip. Her eyes hungrily swept over them, wanting nothing more than to lean forward and capture them with her own.

But patience is a virtue, she supposed.

“Want me to prove it, pretty boy?”

Words failed him, and all he could do was nod. He relaxed into the sofa, watching as she dropped to her knees in front of him. Her hands were on either thigh as he fought the urge to lay his tired head back onto the beat up pleather behind him. It had been too long, he thought. And he’d be damned if he was going to miss out on seeing her do what he’d only imagined in the shower, or over the phone for the past 16 days.

She reached her hands up from the muscle of his thigh up to his tummy, her cold hands shocking him as she reached under his sweatshirt- the same one she’d been wearing before.

Her hands drifted, down, down, down, to the waistband of those damn Lululemon shorts she’d got him for Christmas. He held his breath, watching as they danced around where he needed her most and then-

The doorknob turns, and she’s brought back to reality. Sleep had almost claimed her, iced coffee left abandoned on the coffee table, a ring of condensation already drying on the glass. She attempts to smooth out her hair, hoping that her brief almost-nap hadn’t left her too disheveled.

Not that he’d care.

She stood to greet him as he opened the door, hockey bag, and garment bag, and duffle bag, and backpack, and- God, did he really need all that- and suitcase, dropped unceremoniously as he entered the threshold. He kicked the huge bag to the side, and it landed right under where her keys and her leash for her old mutt, Warrior, hung from the wall.

Above the leash hung a picture of her and her sisters, with her running shoes on the floor beneath it for easy access. They were nearly squished by the gear, and if it had been anyone else’s shit crushing her 160 dollar sneakers, she’d be angry. But the sight of his bag near her shoes was so weirdly domestic, she could’ve cried.

She, yet again, was snapped out of her fantasy by the closing of the heavy door, watching as the man in front of her shuffled forward, immediately allowing himself to be held by her. His head fell to her shoulder, and rather than the usual clash of teeth and shoving to get to her room, (they never went to never his place after a roadie. He needed to be away from the constant reminders of it all for awhile, just to be surrounded by her) she simply dropped a chaste kiss to his temple, letting her arm drop from his hair to his broad shoulders, squeezing once, twice, three times, on either one.

He stood up, and she led him to her room, though he knew the way well enough. Her hand in his felt nice, comforting, even, and he wasn’t going to complain. In the beginning of the arrangement the two of them had, touches like that had been normal. But as time went on, the barely there brushes and gentle caresses stopped all together.

He wanted to say something, wanted to ask her what was wrong, if it was something he did. But when he was off the ice, Mathew Barzal was not a man who liked to push his luck. So he didn’t. He let the touches slip away, and took what he could get from her.

Which right now, was toeing off his shoes, and crawling onto the plush comforter of her bed. It smelled like that sparkly ”fairy dust” shit from Lush he saw sitting on her bathroom counter once, cotton candy and bubblegum infiltrating his senses. That, and her favorite floral perfume he was all too familiar with on her pillow. A combination of scents he usually would find too much, sickly-sweet. But it was her, and that alone made it the most soothing aroma he’d ever known.

Initially when he’d gotten off the ice, the adrenaline had been pumping, and his anger had been rampant. All he’d wanted was to get home to her, have his way with her. To have an outcome he could control.

He’d kept himself relatively calm in the locker room, not having any outbursts towards Ilya, or anyone for that matter. If any of the guys had noticed he was uncharacteristically quiet, they didn’t say anything.

That is, until the bus ride to the airport.

He had been typing out his text to her, (Hatty, lost in OT, Toronto, you know the one), when he had felt a pair of peering eyes. Sitting in the back of the bus, he’d thought he’d done well to avoid such glances, but apparently not.

“Y’know, you shouldn’t be sulking so much.” A certain French-Canadian spoke, the brunette man’s tired eyes lingering over Mat’s hunched over form.

If there was one thing he didn’t need right now, it was more pep talks from Tito. He’d had more than his fill in the locker room. And though he loved the guy, he didn’t need to be told again how he “did everything right” and had a ”killer game”.

Because he knows, and that’s partly why he’s so mad.

Partly. As the other part is the fact that he wants more than anything to come back to NY to her arms. He was exhausted at this point, and rather than having his way with her, he now just wanted to be welcomed home into those ridiculously cozy sheets. He wanted her to light up all those overpriced candles she loved so much from Bath and Bodyworks, and for Warrior to snuggle up by him, stinky dog breath be damned. He wanted her to turn on ”Miracle” in the back as white noise, and laugh as she repeated all the lines from memory. (He may be Canadian, but he can appreciate a heart warming story told by Kurt Russell when he sees one.)

More than anything, though, he wanted her. And not just for an hour or two before he inevitably dragged himself out of those silky sheets that felt heavenly on his back, leaving her sleeping beside him. She looked peaceful in those moments, and he often wondered what she dreamt of. If she was dreaming of him as he did of her.

Bottom line was, Mathew was the victim of a series of unfortunate events. And the man to his left could recognize that it wasn’t just the hockey that was bothering him. (Though, that whole situation did suck pretty bad, he’d admit.)

So when Anthony told him he shouldn’t be sulking, he flashed him a tight lipped smile and a nod, before looking out the window at the Toronto sunset. The oranges and pinks were stunning, and more than anything their vibrancy reminded him of her. The smile she’d give him in her post-orgasm glow, or of the orange blossom on the bottle of perfume on her vanity. Beauvillier’s gaze never faltered, though, recognizing the deep train of thought his close friend was experiencing.

The screen of his phone had begun to darken, the draft of his message just barely visible. Tito’s eyes quickly shifted from the screen and back up to Barzy, opening his mouth and pausing momentarily.

“Who’re you texting?”

Mat quickly turned off the device, the “click” sounding out in the quiet bus cabin, most of the Islanders players catching some shut eye or watching that new Game of Thrones spin off.

Personally, Mat didn’t get the appeal.

“Nobody, just… a friend I’m visiting tonight when we get back.”

Anthony’s eyebrows went up, making a face of understanding as he slowly nodded three times.

“A friend, huh?”

Mathew nods, taking his bottom lip between his teeth and letting it go. “Yup.” He adds softly for good measure, popping the p.

“You visiting a friend after a game like that, this late, hm?” Another pause. ”Must be an important friend.”

“Yeah.” His voice is soft again, compassion coming across his features and he thinks of her again.

“Well“, Anthony starts, popping in his earbuds and opening his phone to his Music app. “I’d say whatever’s going on with this friend seems worth talking to her about.”

Mat‘s head snaps up, and he scoffs, shaking his head.

“I didn’t say that it was a she-“

“You didn’t have to, buddy.” Tito winks in the most annoyingly-Tito way, and chuckles to himself. He then lays his head back onto the navy material behind him. Mat “hmph”s to himself, doing the same. He turns his phone back on again, going to the chat between the two of them. The still blinking cursor seems like it’s mocking him as he runs a hand over his face, hitting send.

If there’s gonna be any deep, emotional shit, it can wait until he’s not 2500 miles away.

7 hours later when he finally crashes through her front door, he swears the relief he feels mixed with the sense of dread it all might be over in an hour, gives him whiplash. But nonetheless, she welcomes him in, and she feels like home.

Warrior watches from the couch, his tail lazily wagging as he observes his owner greeting the man who occasionally slips him bacon from his Starbucks sandwich. His old man (old dog?) body doesn’t find the arrival of the hockey player worthy of leaving his nest on the sofa, as to him that’s all Mathew Barzal is. The bringer of bacon.

To Warrior’s owner, though, he was so much more.

The trek to the bedroom felt like it took an eternity, and as he laid on her bed, he couldn’t help but wonder if it would be a bad idea to push his luck for once. Risk ending it all to gain everything.

She laid down next to him, and he shifted, going from laying with his arms crossed under his head, to one next to her head, the other keeping him stable from his position on top of her.

Her hand crept up to push an unruly lock out of his eyes, and she leaned forward, and he met her halfway. They paused briefly, taking each other in after so long, before finally closing to distance.

He tasted warm, like cinnamon and something she couldn’t place, and she wondered if at the airport he’d gotten one of those pretzels she knew he liked so much. To compliment his psychopath reminiscent black coffee, of course.

His hand went from where it had been cradling her face down to rest on her hip. The soft touch elicited a whimper, and at that he pulled away, resting his forehead against hers.

She recognized that something was off, swimming around in that pretty little head of his. A small frown etched its way onto her face, and she lifted his chin up so he had no choice but to look at her.

“What’s wrong, Mat?”

He took in a shaky breath, looking over to his left, where the TV was on some random wallpaper, a sunset, he realizes. He scoffs, looking back at her.

“Can you just- can we- can I- fuck.” He mutters, slowly falling down so his body weight is nearly on top of her.

“Can you just… hold me?”

She swears she’s never heard him sound so broken.

“Yeah, baby, ’course. C’mere.” She replies softly, allowing him to fully rest on her. It was a miracle that he didn’t fully break down right there, at the feeling of her fingertips dancing over his skin, under his pushed up shirt. His nose was cold against her neck as he dragged it up against her to come to her cheek, pressing a kiss there. His eyes never opened, afraid that if they did, it would all just be another elaborate fantasy he’d created to pass the time.

“Is this a good idea?” Came her voice, cutting through the silence.

He sniffles. “What do you mean?”

“This. Us.” She says, not able to meet his gaze where he’s lifted his head.

“We’re going to get hurt. More than we already have.”

Oh. Oh, fuck this was happening right now. Mat sat up, feeling like a scared teenage boy. Damn you and the way you read people, Beauvillier. Maybe this would’ve been easier from 2500 miles away.

“We don’t have to.”

“What other option do we have?” She said, sounding defeated, like she already knows her answer and she doesn’t like it. “I-I can’t keep doing this no strings attached shit. Not when you do this. Not when you come here all beat up like some sad puppy.”

“I’m sorry,” he said. And he was.

“Don’t be. I should’ve known this would happen.” Her voice was soft, her eyes distant.

“That what would happen?” He questioned. She looked at him like he had two heads.

“That you’d leave, Mat. That this whole pretending bullshit wouldn’t be enough for me.”

He leaned forward again, catching her off guard.

“I’m not leaving you. I’d never leave you.”

She looked away briefly, mentally cursing herself for being so emotional as tears began to well up in her eyes. He fell to her side, forcing her to meet his gaze.

“Do you really want this?” She asked, the tears rolling down her face illuminated a hue of pink from the salt lamp on the bedside table. Mathew reached out a hand, dragging his thumb over the droplet. He hated that she was crying, but fuck, she sure looked pretty while doing it.

His answer came without thought, he’d done enough of that on his way over.

“Yes. I want you in every way, if you’ll have me.”

A small smile came onto the corners of her face, and she nodded, shortly at first, but more exaggerated as they started laughing, a small “yeah?” escaping from Mathew. She responded with the same, and he took that as his sign to reach forward, closing the distance between them.

And like all the times before, they fell into their routine, her hands going down to his hips, lifting the gray material of his shirt over his head. He returned the favor, the two of them moving in sync as she lifted her hips and he gently slid off her shorts. He ran his palms along her bare thighs and she shivered at the feeling, a reaction that didn’t go unnoticed by Mathew.

“I missed you, y/n.” He admitted, running a hand through his, now, unruly hair.

Another vibrant smile came across her face, easing whatever nerves Mat had left over from his confession.

“I missed you more, Mathew.”

He shook his head, dipping down to leave sloppy kisses on her neck. Taken aback, she let a shaky breath escape. He pulled back, satisfied with the response he’d pulled from her.

“Not possible.”

In a moment of boldness (and a slight hope to allow a fantasy to come to life) she challenged him.

“Prove it, then.”

His eyes darkened, then, and he surged forward. Her remaining clothes, which was just his sweatshirt and a flimsy cami, were gone in an instant. She was left in just a pair of black undies, Mat nearly cumming on the spot at the sight, like he’s some horny teenager. His apparel soon joined the growing pile on the floor, as she made a remark about how it wasn’t fair he was still so covered.

She shamelessly raked over his naked form, save for the black boxers, with his firm muscles, sore from the roadie, prominent as ever. She might’ve been drooling, she wasn’t sure. He smirked, the effect he had on her not lost to him.

The two began to kiss again, and there was no other way to describe it other than that it just felt right.

Mathew wasted no time, allowing his hand to trail down and cup her clothed heat, his thumb passing over her clit and past her entrance with a feather light touch. She shivered, her hips lifting up to chase the brief sensation. He pulled her panties to the side, teasing her entrance with his middle finger.

It was immediately covered in her slick, as was the black fabric he’d moved aside. It made him groan just from the sensation alone, making her chuckle at his behavior. Her laugh soon was cut off as he sunk the finger in, giving her no time to adjust, not that she needed it with how ready she was for it, before adding another.

His palm just barely grazed her begging clit as he pumped in and out slowly. And as she continued to lift her hips trying to feel him deeper, push his hand closer to her clit, she fully expected him to push her down and put her in her place.

But this whole thing was about showing him how much he missed her, how much he appreciated her. To show her that he was staying. And him staying meant that he’d have plenty of chances in the future to be an insufferable tease, but right now wasn’t one of those times.

“Matty, please-“ it was more of a breathy whine, not intelligible to an untrained ear. But thankfully for her, that wasn’t Mat.

“You want more, baby?” He questioned, knowing the answer. She nodded, hair splayed around her like a halo on the pillow. She was still illuminated from the TV screen and the salt lamp, making her look like an angel of sorts, not of this world.

“Look at me then, sweetheart. Wanna see that I’m makin’ you feel good.”

Her eyes that met his were glazed over and doe like, and it melted Mat’s insides at just one look. He did his best to push down the mushy feeling that arose, before realizing he didn’t have to anymore. He could feel as sickeningly in love as he wanted, no consequences.

“You’re so beautiful, baby. So needy, fuckin’ perfect girl.” He remarked, adding in a third finger. She let out a borderline pornographic cry, and Mat picked up his pace. His gaze only faltered from her face, contorting in pleasure, back to where he was pumping in and out of her, unable to resist the urge to watch in amazement.

Though her legs were flailing, going from propped up to sliding down and spread, rustling the comforter, she somehow had enough mind to reach a hand down. She attempted to run tight circles around her clit, but not before her hand was pinned to her side by the center above her,

“No, baby. Lemme.”

His range of motion was wider and his thrusts harder as he curled his fingers to perfectly hit that spot inside her that made her see stars, fully trailing his hand over her sex. He repeated the action again, and again, and again- and fuck, she didn’t know how long she’d go on like this but she never wanted the feeling to stop.

He felt her tighten around him, and he picked up his pace, knowing she was almost there.

“Mat!” she managed to get out between strangled moans and panting breaths. He leaned down, kissing below her ear on the one spot he knew drives her crazy. She was halfway thinking, well, less than halfway with her state at the moment, that he would cruelly pull his hand away as she reached her peak. So she clamped her thighs together in an attempt to trap him, subconsciously more than not.

It didn’t stop him from grinding his palm against her like he had been, leaning down to capture her lips with his in a searing kiss.

Everything at once was just so much, the obscene sounds coming from both their mouths and her wet heat, the feeling of Mathew’s bare skin on top of her, the feeling of warmth radiating from his body, and oh my God, after so long it’s fucking finally happening-

He felt as her chest seized and she pulled away from the kiss, her head slamming back before falling to the side. She cried out, her orgasm hitting her like nothing had before.

He found her lips in the chaos beneath him, his hand parting her thighs as she went lax, lazily pumping in and out as she rode out her high. Her slick coated the inside of her thighs, and Mat pulled away momentarily and she whined, like the little brat she was allowing herself to be.

He only smirked, leaning down to kiss on her collarbone, letting his tongue sweep over the seemingly shimmering expanse of skin before him. He moved further down, savoring the taste of her, how it felt to be so close to her. No guards up, no shields, no screening involved.

She moved her ring clad hands to run fingers through his locks, that fucking smile coming across her face. He looked up from where his hands were holding either side of her waist, his fingers digging into the soft flesh just enough to not make it hurt, but to say “I’m here. I’m not leaving.” His chin rested above her bellybutton, and he felt suddenly seen, bashful almost. He continued his trail down in a half assed attempt to hide his face, her breath hitching when he made it to her mound.

Her breath barely returned to her as he skipped over where she thought he was headed, instead opting to take her right leg over his shoulder, moving down the expanse of it to her ankle. He brought his eyes to meet hers, and a tender hand ran up and down the distance of it. He kissed the inside of her ankle, making his way up to the skin where her thigh met her already aching sex.

He lightly nudged his nose against the area, before attaching his lips. He started sucking on the skin there, licking her clean. Satisfied, he moved to the other side, beginning his good work.

“Mat,” she broke her silence, her voice splintered and low, “don’t tease. Please.”

He raised his eyebrows, seemingly in jest.

“I think we’re a little far gone from teasing, eh?” He asked, and truthfully, one mind blowing orgasm later, they were.

She chuckled, rolling her eyes. “Yeah, yeah. Whatever hotshot.”

“New nickname?” He questioned. “I like it.” He huffed, returning to his place between her legs. “But I fucking love this pussy, baby.”

And with that, he dove in. He immediately groaned at what he had found. (Which, obviously, caused her to tug at that perfect head of hair, eliciting another groan.)

If possible, she had become even wetter with the mix of his spit and her nectarine juices. It dripped down his chin, and he wanted to stay there forever. He’d found solace there, he thought. No Maple Leafs, no Tito, no hatty that meant jackshit in the end.

Just her and her consummate being. Vibrant, saccharine. His.

He wasn’t sure how long he spent drawing her closer and closer to the edge, but somewhere between repeated chants of praises and whatnot, he’d slipped.

“Fucking love this cunt, fucking love you-“

He hadn’t realized what he said, and if he had, he didn’t seem to care. But his words alone were enough to rip an unassuming orgasm from her. She didn’t allow herself long enough to think about if he meant to say it or not, or even to ride out the aftershocks rolling through her nerves. She grabbed him by the shoulders, forcing him away from her glistening cunt and up to where she connected their lips.

A small sound of surprise, not reluctance, escaped from where they were joined. Her hands came to cradle either side of his face, and Mat thinks that he might’ve cried from the tender action. He wasn’t sure, but he wasn’t going to ask. Hey, it’d been a long day.

“You mean it?”

He realized what he had said, then, eyes wide and somehow his face even more flushed than before. He considered lying, like when Tito had asked who he was texting and he’d said a friend.

But where would that leave him, he wondered?

“Yeah.”

“Yeah, I did.” He added after a beat of silence.

And in those few moments nothing had seemed scarier.

Not when he was 18, getting skipped over by teams in the draft, and that voice in the back of his head had told him that, somehow, everyone had collectively decided to skip Mathew Barzal. Not when he was 19 playing in his first game for the Isles, having to follow up Auston Matthews first NHL game where he had four goals. Four. Fuck.

No, all that was topped by this. By the same fear he’d had earlier when he’d been on the bus, or when he’d arrived at her apartment.

But all of that fear was dissolved in a second after her laugh sounded out in the small bedroom, her eyes crinkling at the edges. She pulled him down towards her, and the sound of her laughter pulled a radiant smile from the hockey player that he felt like hadn’t seen the light of day in a long time.

She rolled over on top of his chest, leaning forward and throwing her arms around his neck. His chain was glinting, now, in the light she had previously been bathed in, and it caught her eye as it rested against his milky complexion.

“You looooove me.” She regarded in a sing-song voice, and Mat rolled his eyes despite the smile growing on his face. She leaned down, and Mathew’s grip on her bare hips tightened, all too aware of the wet spot left on his stomach from her leaking sex.

She mirrored his previous movements down his chiseled body, a regular Adonis in his own right. She left open mouthed kisses, the wet patches from them adding to the thin sheen that covered his body. She made her way down to his boxers, the obvious tent making her stifle a laugh. He caught it though, of course, and rolled his eyes for what seemed like the millionth time.

“Laugh it up, babe. Laugh at my misery.” He commented, to which she only shook her head.

“Patience is a virtue, Mathew.”

“You’re one to talk.”

Well, he had a point there.

So rather than talk, she decided she’d put her mouth to good use. She pulled down his boxers at a painstakingly slow rate, watching as his cock slapped up against his stomach. Her mouth watered at the sight, the tip red and weeping, begging to be attended to. He kicked off the boxers, paying no mind to how they slipped onto the floor, forgotten. She didn’t either, as she was sure he had to have some extra in one of his gazillion bags sitting in her entry way.

Her nails scratched down his stomach, angry red lines puffing up and decorating around the expanse of his skin. They were accompanied by freckles and marks and scars that she could have mapped together with her eyes closed. She knew Mathew like the back of her hand. And with that, came knowing how to make him come undone in her hands.

She started leaving small kisses at the base of his shaft, before swiping the bead of precum from his head down to the rest of him. She pumped her hand a few times, and Mathew let out a strangled moan. She thought he couldn’t get any louder, feeling bad for her neighbors at whatever hour in the night it was, but she was quickly proven wrong.

She licked a long stripe from the bottom to his tip, before taking as much of him into her mouth as she could. She bobbed her head a few times, jacking off whatever she couldn’t fit with her hands. She hollowed her cheeks, and the rise and fall of Mathew’s chest quickened. The sound he let out was animalistic, and it sent another wave of arousal through her body. She moaned involuntarily, and the feeling caused Mathew to buck his hips.

“You’re doing so good, baby. ‘M not gonna last with you going at me- shit- like that.”

He brought a large hand down to the side of her face, lightly stroking her cheek. It was a moment of wholesomeness that reminded them what they were now, what he had said.

Mat could tell she was tired, her pace decreasing. The look in her eyes never changed, though. And as he went to speak to tell her it was okay, and she didn’t have to (and because since it had been so long, he was scared he’d bust his load if she wasn’t careful), she pulled off.

A string of saliva followed, and the sight looked like a thumbnail of a shitty porno. Her eyes were droopy and glazed over, and Mat’s hypothesis was proven correct.

“It’s okay, sweetheart. You don’t have to finish. Let me take care of you.” He repeated his sentiment from earlier. She only shook her head, continuing to jack him off with her hand. Oh. He thought. That’s not what I was expecting.

“S’okay, Matty. Wanna make you feel good.”

She ran her thumb over his tip again, her glassy and swollen bottom lip hanging ajar as she concentrated. The moans he was letting slip free could only be described as pathetic, the 190 pound hockey player putty in her hands.

“I’m gonna cum if you don’t, God, baby, shit! I-If you don’t stop.”

And then she pulled her hand off, and he let out a quick breath at the momentary relief, if that was even the right word. But it was short lived, and she managed to hoist herself up, dragging her folds along his cock, before stabilizing herself with hands on his chest. He slid inside of her, and the sounds they both let out echoed off her walls.

She started moving, and then it was “You’re fuckin’ amazing, you know that? So fuckin’ amazing. My girl, my perfect girl.” He rambled, the events of just that day alone scrambling his mind trying to keep up. Similarly to how she felt earlier, everything was just too much for the poor man. She felt like Heaven around him, and he watched in awe from below her as she moved, enamored by the woman he loves.

As she became more and more tired, her movement slowed, reduced to her grinding herself down on his cock. Mat was barely hanging on, trying to make it last as long as possible. He could tell she was close too, as she squeezed him like a vice, and put her energy into picking up her pace.

“Fuck, Matty. Feels s’good. Love you- shit! I love you so much, baby.” She told him, her eyes closed and her face screwed up as she chased her high. But something snapped in Mathew at her confession, and with a quick “fuck” under his breath, he flipped the two of them without ever leaving her.

He was relentless.

He slammed in and out, and at the sudden change in position and pace, she was blindsided. She thrashed around him, her hands everywhere at once. Her hair, his hair, grasping at his shoulders, scratching down his back. She settled for his biceps, as his hands were planted. One on the right side of her head, the other gripping her hip bone so hard, she was sure it’d bruise.

“It’s only ever been you, baby. I promise you.”

“Shit, Mat!” She cried, tears forming in the corners of her eyes. She loosely draped her legs around his middle, allowing him to reach new depths within her. He was fucking her senseless, and they fucking loved it.

“It’ll only ever be you. I love you. Fuck, I love you so much, Y/n.” His hair hung in his eyes as he fought to keep them open. He shook it out of his eyes, wanting to see her as she came in all her glory.

“Love you, Mat. So much, baby. You have no idea.”

His pelvis snapped harder against her, just barely reaching up and grazing her clit in the most exquisite way. The rope in her stomach began to tighten for the third time that night, so close to breaking she could almost taste it.

Actually, she could taste it, she realized. She had been biting down so hard on her bottom lip she could taste the metallic tang on her tongue, and fuck, it was all the more delectable.

“Mat!” It was another exclamation, followed by more babbles. “‘S too much, Matty, can’t do it.” Her voice was small, and despite the nature of the statement, Mat felt his heart flutter.

He shook his head. “Yes, you can, baby. I know you’re tired, but you can do it, Y/n. You’ve got another one in you sweetheart, pull through for me. I’ve got you.”

And never one to disappoint, especially not her Mathew, she did.

She came, and she came hard. But it wasn’t dramatic the way you’d think it’d be, at least not outwardly. Her breathing stopped, her toes curled, and her nails dug into the skin on Barzy’s arms. It wasn’t accompanied by a loud scream, or a drawn out, high pitched moan. It was a breath of relief that left her when she came, her head falling to the side and her eyes closing. A quiet moan of Mat’s name, and she was clamping down on him.

The sweet way his name fell off her tongue, mixed with how she was so damn tight around him as she came, and he was done for. It triggered his own orgasm, and he felt the same feeling of peace wash over him that she had as he spilled into her. He fucked her through it, soft thrusts calming whatever aftershocks they both were experiencing. She had gone limp under him, her eyes opening as she gave him the sweetest smile he’d ever seen.

He stayed in her, lowering himself onto his side, then maneuvering them so she was laying on him. They were a cliché and they knew it, but they couldn’t seem to care. A few moments passed in comfortable silence, before it was broken by Mathew’s scratchy post-sex voice. Swoon.

“So,” he started. She raised a brow, wondering where he was going with this.

“You looooove me, too, then?” He mimicked her tone from earlier, and they broke out in a fit of laughter as she slapped his arm and rolled her eyes.

“Yeah, yeah. I guess you’re alright.” She feigned annoyance, propping herself up on her right arm as she faced the man she loved. Mat scoffed, blowing a strand of hair from his forehead. “Just alright? You’re crazy, lady.”

“But you love me.”

Not a beat passed before “I do.”

She smiled softly, lifting up a hand to run a finger along his jaw. He caught it with his own, never breaking eye contact as he kissed her palm. Again, swoon.

“I know.” She responded, wanting to stay in that moment forever. But, she knew that if she stayed where she was too long, she’d more than likely fall asleep in record time. So, she pressed a chaste kiss to the corner of his mouth, which he turned to catch before she could go, pulling her back for a “real” kiss at his protest.

A petulant child, that’s what he is.

She pressed one more to his lips for good measure, before pulling himself off of him. They both let out disgruntled sounds at the sudden losses, and it took all her energy to sit up on the edge of her bed. She felt a strong jaw on her shoulder, and she leaned into it.

“Where you goin’? Leaving me all alone isn’t very nice.” She could hear the frown in his voice, and even though she knew he was joking, it tugged on her heartstrings that little bit.

“Gotta pee.” She said, standing up and walking towards the connecting bathroom. “Sorry baby, no UTIs for me.”

The frown stayed cemented on his face.

“You should be grateful,” she threw over her shoulder, shutting the door. “No UTIs, more fucking, yeah?”

He chuckled at her bluntness, deciding to go and get her some water and maybe a snack. Shit, he didn’t know. What was he supposed to do? Usually when they fucked before, her or Mat would be out the door as soon as possible, still trying to ward off those pesky feelings. But now, he was allowed to feel said pesky feelings, and he’d be damned if he fucked it up.

So, snack. And water? Yeah, water, for sure. He was hungry and thirsty, why wouldn’t she be. He had no idea the way around her kitchen, nor how to, er, actually make anything, so this would be rough. But, first, a pit stop.

He would have walked butt-ass naked into her kitchen, really, but then he remembered Warrior was out there and he didn’t have a need to traumatize that dog any further than he already was.

(It was one time, okay? He didn’t know she had a dog, he’d been asleep on his bed by the TV when they’d gotten to her place. And at the time, Mat was too preoccupied to notice.)

He looked around on the floor for the offending clothing item, slightly grossed out when he did finally find them. It was only for a minute, tops, is what he told himself, as he pulled on the boxers from earlier in the night.

He tiptoed, for literally no apparent reason, through the dark apartment until he found the bag he was looking for. He grabbed what he needed from it, struggling with the zipper while trying to close it, before giving up. On his way back to her room, he gave Warrior a nod and smile, and he swore the mutt gave one back. Okay, actually, on second thought, he remembered the clock on her microwave saying it was 3:18 AM, so, maybe he didn’t.

It was late and he just had the best sex of his life with the woman he loves. Give him a break. So what if he’s delusional and thinks he can communicate with dogs? At least he’s pretty.

When he gets to her room, he pulls on the newer, clean, pair of boxers, setting the other pair he grabbed from his bag on the bed for her when she got out of the bathroom, along with an Islanders shirt that he’d secretly always wanted to see her in. Too soon? Maybe. But after so long yearning for everything domestic and wholesome and good that he was convinced he didn’t deserve with her, he was indulging a little bit. So sue him.

His next stop, snacks. And water, can’t forget the water.

The water was easy enough, he got lucky. He grabbed her “emotional support cup” as she’d called it before when she thought he wasn’t listening, and went over to the fridge. He got a few ice cubes and put them in, and then went over to her Brita. He stood there, pressing down on the little lever, watching the steady stream of water into the cup. It was almost laughable, how he stood there in the dead silence, concentrating so hard. He was determined not to somehow do something wrong, even though it was just pouring a cup of water. Cute.

He checked the pantry once the cup was full, with the lid safely screwed on top. The rustling about caught the attention of Warrior, who hopped down from where he’d been on the couch, moseying on over.

Mat, who still was slightly wary of Warrior, despite the fact the dog would cause him no harm, shook his head at the mutt.

“Sorry, buddy. I don’t have anything for you.”

He turned his head and gave him puppy dog eyes, pulling out all the stops. Mat sighed, looking back to the pantry. He saw a box of Milkbones, and looked back to Warrior, who was egging him on. (They’re telepathically connected, remember?)

He reached in the box, pulling one out, and tossing it down. Warrior gratefully accepted, taking his treat and waltzing off to his bed to chow down. Mat looked in the pantry, going to close the box, when he sees it, his saving grace.

White bread, hallelujah.

He can do toast. Mathew Barzal is a totally capable 25 year old man who can make toast. So, he takes the bag, going over to the toaster. And-

One look at all those fancy buttons, and he’s tapped out.

Okay, it’s okay, he can remember seeing a vending machine on his way into her apartment. Yeah, he remembers her telling him about having to sign off on some HOA form for it, even though she was just renting. Apparently, her landlord hadn’t signed, which made it her job. Whatever, that’s irrelevant.

He figured that there wouldn’t be anybody out in her hallway at 3:23 AM, so he grabbed his coat with his wallet, shrugging it on over his bare back. His slides were somewhere in his hockey bag and the last thing he wanted to do was stink up her whole place by opening that Pandora’s box. So, barefoot it is.

He does his best to sneak out the apartment, leaving the door ajar as he makes the short walk to the vending machine, grateful his search was over. He let out a long sigh as he stood, wondering what to get her.

For himself he decided on a bag of cool ranch Doritos, and a bag of those tiny cookies. For her, he racked every corner of his brain for potential options, before realizing how long he’s taking, and how long he’d been gone. So, not wanting to waste any more time, he elected for one of everything.

He punched in the numbers and paid, attempting to grab them from the machine. Trying to pick up the few that had fallen, he leaned down. His attention was called elsewhere by the ”click!” of a door a few units down. His head snapped to the source of the sound.

“You’ve got to be shitting me.” He muttered under his breath upon what he saw.

A man probably not much older than himself, suitcase and backpack in tow, donned in, you guessed it, a New York Islanders hoodie a lá number 13.

The man had yet to notice the star player down the hall from him, and Mat was considering just making a run for Y/n’s place. But either way, he would have to go past the man, or the man would have to go past Mat to get to the elevator. Maybe he’d take the stairs? He hoped. Shit, who was he kidding, he’s not taking the stairs.

Starting his walk over, the unnamed Islanders fan lifted his head, stopping in his tracks. His jaw dropped, and if it wasn’t purely because of being in the presence of Mat Barzal, he had a hunch what it was.

Said hunch, was that it was due to the fact Mat Barzal was standing in front of him, in an apartment complex definitely not boujee enough for him to be living in, at 3:25 in the morning, naked, except for boxers and some fancy trench coat, holding several bags of snacks.

Mat would’ve laughed at the guys face, but he thought he wasn’t quite in the position to do so.

“Hey, man. How’s it going?” And a stupid bro nod, was all Mathew could manage.

-

While he was facing that debacle, Y/n was having one of her own.

After she’d gone to the bathroom, she decided to try to do her nighttime routine, too. She put on her robe from where it had been hanging in her bathroom, beginning her little routine.

When she emerged 10 minutes later, Mat was nowhere to be seen.

His bags were still by the door, albeit one of them hastily thrown open. Was he leaving and had gotten some clothes and an Uber? Did he have last minute regrets? The door to her place was left open, and an overwhelming sadness began to take over her system. As the tears began to well up, she looked over to Warrior, only to notice him chewing on… a milkbone? How the hell did he get a milkbone?

She sniffled, wiping her sleeve under her nose. She sat down on her couch, looking at where her iced coffee from earlier was still sitting, ¾ of the way empty. The tears started to flow freely again after that, and she stood up, deciding that she should at least shut the door. She didn’t need to deal with a robbery, too.

As she stood and turned, she was met with a very discombobulated and very underdressed Mat trying to shove his way through the door.

“Have a good flight, man. Enjoy Miami!” Mat called over his shoulder to what sounded like her neighbor Gian, based off of the “Thanks bro, good luck this season!” she heard back.

She slapped a hand over her mouth, trying to not bust out laughing at the sight in front of her. Hearing her snickering, he looked up gesturing to the bags in his arms.

“Hungry?” He asked, the smile on his face falling when he saw the red around her eyes. He dropped all the snacks on the couch to his right, making his way over to where she stood.

“Hey, hey, why’re you crying? What’s wrong sweetheart?” He questioned, and his sincerity made her smile widely.

“Nah, I’m all good, don’t worry about it. Just thought you’d left, that’s all…” A pause. “But I see now that you just had a case of munchies, apparently.”

He wrapped his arms around her shoulders pulling her towards his chest. His chin rested on her head, and she closed her eyes, inhaling his scent.

“No, baby. God, no, I’m not leaving. I just wanted to do this whole thing right, and I thought you might be hungry, and I tried to make toast- your toaster is really complex by the way,”

She pulled away from him as he rambled, her smile reaching her eyes.

“And I filled your water and set out clothes for you and I really did try, baby. I didn’t mean to fuck anything up, really.”

She giggled again, taking hold of the shoulders of his jacket, shrugging it off. She folded it over the back of a barstool, then turned back towards Mat.

“And Gian?”

“Oh yeah, he’s cool. Ran into him in the hallway and introduced myself. Going to visit some family in Miami.”

She raised an eyebrow, nodding her head in understanding. She stepped closer, wrapping her arms around his middle.

“So, am I gonna have to compete with him for your attention now whenever you come over?”

He reciprocated the action, one hand coming up to rest on her chin.

“I mean, he’s gonna be gone for two weeks, but after that…” he shrugged, trailing off. She hummed, and he smiled at her, leaning forward. He searched her eyes for any remaining upset, unable to find any, before he pressed his lips to hers. It was sweet and gentle, with not a hint of rush or fervor.

When they pulled apart, she was smiling again. Her hands found their way back to his neck.

“And baby, you’re amazing. You didn’t fuck up anything at all, I promise.”

“Promise?”

“Promise.” She whispered, leaning in again to connect their lips. She let her tongue sweep over his bottom lip, biting down just barely before pulling away. She pushed down the sleeves of her robe just a bit, exposing her shoulders. Y/n took his hand, and started walking backwards, letting it slowly slip out of hers as she did.

“Come on, hotshot. Come to bed. Snacks will still be there in the morning.”

She smiled again briefly, before walking towards her room, the robe slipping down as she went. Mat stood watching her in total awe, glued in place, until he was knocked out of his trance.

“Hurry up! And lock the door, too, please!”

He had never obliged to anything quicker in his life.

(And as for the snacks, they were not still there in the morning, thanks to a certain mutt who managed to rip open all the packets on the couch. The next morning was spent at the vet, who had told them Warrior would be fine, just fat. The vet had only said this, though, after Mat had consoled a crying Y/n, who was under the impression he was going to be poisoned.

The rest of the day after that? Making up for lost time.)

FIN.

YO idk if that was good or not i kind of feel like i imagined writing the entire thing and it was a fever dream. but. anyway! if you liked it, be sure to reblog <3 thank u i love u! go eat some protein and drink some water. 

xx, hj

[mammameesh]

12 days of fandom

Merry Christmas (Eve) my friends! I've been very busy, but I still wanted to participate so enjoy my 12 days of Christmas all at once!

In No Particular order:

Noble Beloved by AWorldOfDreams @a-noble-dragon

from the author : Schitt's Creek has a secret. And it's a rather large one. David's not at all pleased that this secret involves him, becoming a Dragon Liaison Officer. Because Dragons don't exist... right?

2.

Marcy's Girls by Turkey_Virgin @tyfinn

from the author: Marcy is left alone with Alexis and Stevie after David has to pick Patrick up from a vendor run. Alexis and Stevie both turn to Marcy for relationship advice, and Marcy finds herself to be a substitute mother to the girls.

3.

Marcy's Innocent Questions by Characterassassination @characterassassination-at-9am

from the author:

A series of chapters wherein Marcy Brewer, mom extraordinaire, is a little naïve about Patrick and David's relationship, and maybe gay relationships in general? "Queer things" in general? Not sure where this one's going to go, but I love Marcy and I love embarrassing her and Patrick a just a touch....so we'll see. I just thought it'd be a fun idea to explore.

4.

Apricity by Demora00 @demora00

from the author: “‘ – advised by the Council that in a bid for reconciliation, any members who cannot prove significant and meaningful attachments in North America within 60 days are to return to their originating nation.’"

5.

Conversion (Part One) by Obsessedwithdavrick @obsessedwithdavrick

from the author:

Patrick Brewer had grown up within the confines of the Catholic church.

He was baptised in the nave of the St Celeste church, received his first holy communion in tandem with his cousins and attended the small primary school adjacent to it until he was old enough for high school. He then joined his cousins and the other children of the town, travelling thirty minutes by bus to Ingleside to attend the Catholic high school, where the cohorts were split by gender.

When he wins a coveted Baseball Scholarship to play and study at the University of Toronto, he is matched with an enigmatic roommate, David Rose. David upends Patrick's life (in the best possible way) and takes him on a journey of self-discovery he hadn't realised he desperately needed.

6.

Everything's Too Cold... But You're So Hot by ApothecaRose @apothecarose

from the author:

When David's ex, Sebastien Raine, unexpectedly shows up in Schitt's Creek, David enlists the help of a stranger on the street to pretend to be his boyfriend in an attempt to get rid of Sebastien.

7.

102 Words by RamonaFlow @ramonaflow

from the author: This is a collection of 102 ficlets consisting of 102 words each using this prompt list

8.

[Art] Painted Pride by lizzie_bennetdarcy @lizzie-bennetdarcy

from the author:

David and Patrick paint themselves for Pride

9.

dinner by flowertrigger @flowertrigger

from the author:

Patrick’s parted lips are as shiny as the glazed ham Marcy pulled from the oven twenty minutes ago and looking just as delicious.

10.

Won’t Love Anyone Else Like I Love You by LikeItsAllInfinite @like-its-all-infinite

from the author:

David Rose is about to turn eighteen and his whole world is going to change when he swaps bodies with his soulmate. Patrick is here to help, but what will David do when he wakes up and Patrick isn't his soulmate? And how will he tell his soulmate he can only ever love Patrick?

11.

Hydrate. Caffeinate. Medicate. Repeat. by coffee_and_glitter @fictasticvoyage

from the author:

Patrick starts meditation to help with his mental health. He and David try a 30 day challenge to focus on their mental well-being, sometimes individually, sometimes together.

12.

It's Photoshop. by jesuisici33 9-1-1: Lone Star (TV 2020)  @jesuisici33

from the author:

TK meets a friend who also likes bearded dragons. And Carlos' secret comes out.

[annieqattheperipheral]

ok i got thoughts on leafs contract negotiations and they may be unpopular... or you're just not interested, which is actually v smart bc it only ever makes ur blood boil to get riled up over something u have 0% control over. Just not a smart way to live life

AM34 does not deserve to be the highest paid player in the league. puhleeeeez *rolling my eyes in natemac* this is a salary cap league and he barely comes in clutch in the playoffs. Like what nonsense world are we operating in rn dude

Bunts isn't going to get re-signed by Leafs and i think that's a good thing for him. He got more eyes on him here in Toronto after arizona and now needs to go build his own rep outside of here cuz rn he gots leafs stank on him practically a stigma. His style of play and willingness to defend his teammates is seen as a negative by the league when that's a prized trait on any other team. So yea time for him to fly the coop he needs to go off into the land and show the refs and league what a dedicated and devoted team player he is and stop fuckin picking on him (that playoffs 3-game suspension would've been 1-2 anywhere else; that was penalization for being a leaf. george parros career ended vs the leafs so we get pigeon-shit on at every turn)

Willy deserves to think he should be in the range of the salaries of am, mm, jt. Only gd fella who shows up for the playoffs and continuously improves and just had his best season and scored on par w AM. If he doesn't get it here its leafs own fault for having set their stars' salaries that high compared to other teams when u know you're operating under a salary cap (yes yes i know it's harder to attract & keep stars on Canadian teams). I want the best for willy and if he doesn't get it here then yes go get ur bag elsewhere styles. This unbothered king will not be affected and will give it his all wherever he is. But he is thru n thru Toronto style and loves it here and i hope we get to keep him bc i love him and want to keep him in my tiny Toronto condo

Mitchy is our best player. Anyone in any of the comments of any post/tweet/article on leafs contracts who says mm should be traded for the cap relief-- why would we trade the singular player who makes everyone else on the ice better omfg with u idiots i cannot anymore pls gtfo

JT is only now returning to form after that scary injury. 21-22 season was a wash for him returning from that and no one should've been saying shit about him. 22-23 he showed his worth. Truly beautiful stuff. Yes he's overpaid but yea we're stuck w that. Idk. Also he needs to step up on the team culture side of things and get his ducklings in a row; he may be too much of a disciplined parent to be in the loop w the core. Maybe this season connecting w knies in his basement will get him back down w his ppl [insert "how goes it fellow teens" skateboard meme]

There's a 50/50 chance of keeping ROR and my goodness that would be an enthralling coup. His entire short leafie stint he maintained an outsiders perspective and w his keen experienced eye observed shit. The leafies have a history of learning from and bonding deeply w these short-term elders dubas would bring in for playoffs... It would be incredibly useful for the core to become one w ROR and truly embrace his drive on the ice. (also ror u haven't kissed jt firmly on the lips yet after winning the cup together so like idk where u think ur going)

Schenn... All i can say is ty ty ty for coming in embracing this place like the home its always been for u and instilling such a sense of family and comraderie. Like wtf do u mean these dumdum idiots never before did team dinners during playoff away games until u came along????!??!???? They never heard of getting on the same page???? That kinda stuff translates right to the ice. Like i don't even play team sports anymore and i could tell u that. Pls stay. Pls let treliving & shanny understand how valuable u are to team culture. And you're the other half of Mo🥺🫶😭

I love Mo and he should never be let go ever and i fear the day will come when we are all old and graying when they will set him free on an ice drift a la Avs EJ and i will cry enough to shut the city down from flooding and the subway will go out of order.

Ok phew glad to empty my brain of these idiots for a bit while we wait for news instead of speculation. ty for reading if u did💙 GLG😭

[jimothystu]

New Year, New Beginnings (1634)

Fic length: idk the word count but it's long lol Notes: this is for my lovely husband @donttelltheelff!!! enjoy hehe <3 oh, also i'm still waking up and this is unedited so pls excuse any errors, inconsistencies, or mediocre writing lol

Tag list: @zackcollins @elvisparklewriting @lam-ila @jamiedryssdale

Mitch leaned his shoulder against the wall as he brought his beer bottle to his pouty lips. Across JT's crowded living room stood Auston, chatting and laughing with some friend he brought to the party. Some tall, buff, attractive friend who had no right having such a strong jawline.

When their captain said they could bring friends to the Leafs' New Years party at his place, Mitch didn't think Auston would bring someone so... so handsome. It wasn't fair, Mitch thought as he took another drink of his beet that was starting to taste rather bitter on his tongue.

Mitch had brought his brother with him, who was in Toronto visiting him for the holidays. His brother was mingling somewhere, leaving Mitch standing alone, watching Auston talk with that insanely handsome guy.

"Someone piss in your beer or something?"

Mitch craned his neck to give Bunts a look. "No," he replied, a little sharper than he'd intended.

Bunts held up his free hand. "Sorry. You okay?"

"Fine," Mitch replied, though that was so obviously a lie. He could feel the tension in his jaw, the furrow of his brow, the slight hunch of his shoulders. He knew he looked upset, but he couldn't for the life of him make himself relax.

"Want to talk about it?" Bunts asked, voice growing quieter. Which, for anyone else, would just be a normal speaking volume.

"Nothing really to talk about." Mitch tipped his head back and finished off his beer. "But thanks."

Bunts patted him on the shoulder. "Well, if you change your mind, come find me."

Nodding, Mitch watched Bunts go off to mingle with someone else.

Mitch sighed and made his way to the kitchen to dispose of his empty beer can. He then got an unopened can from the fridge.

"Hand me one?" a smooth, almost melodic voice came from behind.

Turning quickly, Mitch nearly gasped. Auston's handsome friend stood a couple feet away, giving Mitch a smile.

"Uh, yeah, yeah sure," Mitch stammered. He turned and opened the fridge, feeling the cold air fan his warming cheeks. He grabbed a bottle and gave it to the guy.

"Thanks." The man uncapped it and smiled. "I'm Elliot, by the way. Auston's friend."

"Mitch." He stuck out his hand, then mentally cringed upon realizing how cold it must be from holding his beer.

"I know," Elliot said and his wide smile showed off a row of nearly perfect teeth. "Aus told me."

Mitch stalled responding by bringing the bottle to his lips. "So, uh, how... how do you two know each other?"

"I went to school with his sister," Elliot replied.

"Oh, cool," Mitch said, trying not to get his hopes up that this guy might just be a friend. "You live in Toronto?"

"Nah. I was flying back homme to visit my family, but my connecting flight got cancelled." Elliot shrugged. "So, I texted Aus and he offered me his couch for a couple days."

"Oh." Mitch frowned. "I'm sorry. Travelling this time of year is always iffy."

Elliot shrugged. "Nah, it's fine. Gave me a chance to catch up with Aus. And get to know some of you guys."

Nodding slightly, Mitch brought the bottle to his lips. His eyes trailed out to the living room, searching for the one man he wanted to talk to. The one man he'd wished had been talking to him all night, but hadn't seemed to have the time. Every time Mitch had looked for Auston, he'd been chatting with someone else.

"He sure is nice to look at, isn't he?"

Mitch practically choked on his beer. He felt a blush heat his cheeks and he shot Elliot a look. "W-what?"

"Auston," he replied casually. Like it was no big deal. Like it was just normal small talk for two strangers to have.

"I... I, uh..." Mitch didn't know what to say to that. Of course he thought Auston was nice to look at, but he wasn't going to admit that to this guy.

"I've seen you staring most of the night," Elliot said, shrugging. "And I doubt it's been at me."

Mitch swallowed thickly. "Um. I uh. No, I've been... just... people watching."

Elliot smirked. "Right, sorry, I'll let you get back to your drink. Nice meeting you."

Mitch was barely able to stammer out a "you too" before Elliot was walking away to chat with Mo and Tessa.

"Dude."

Mitch groaned and looked over to Willy who, based on his expression, had heard a good chunk of that.

"Don't," Mitch pleaded.

"Dude," Willy said, voice quiet, "I already know you like Tone. You're so not discrete in your ogling, y'know."

Mitch's cheeks burned. "I... don't know what you're talking about."

"Sure." Willy moved closer. "Crazy idea, but have you, like, talked to him?"

Mitch shook his head. "No. I don't even think he knows I... you know."

Willy raised an eyebrow. "Maybe you should try talking to him."

"After he brought that freaking model with him?" Mitch shook his head again, so quick it made him dizzy for a moment. "No way. There's no way he's interested in me. Not when that literal hunk is interested."

Willy sighed. "God, it's like pulling teeth. Just go talk to him."

Mitch frowned. His eyes moved across the room again and he spotted Auston. He was always able to find Auston in a room, no matter how big the crowd was. Mitch stared for a few minutes. Auston was chatting with Elliot again, and Mitch's heart began to sink. Then, Auston looked up and met his gaze. Mitch must have looked pretty upset, for Auston's brows instantly furrowed and he said something to Elliot before weaving his way through the living room.

"You got this," Willy whispered before ducking back to the crowd.

"Hey," Auston said, "what's the matter?"

"Who says anything's the matter?" Mitch replied.

"Your face." Auston pursed his lips together and folded his arms over his chest. He did a once over, as if checking for wounds or anything. "Too much to drink?"

Mitch shrugged, trying and failing to calm his pounding heart. "Sure."

"Did Elliot say something?" Auston asked. "I saw him over here. He means well, but sometimes he's a bit... blunt."

"Yeah," Mitch muttered. "It's okay, though. He seems nice. And... attractive." He forced out the word. He needed to see how Auston reacted. To both Mitch's admission of finding a guy attractive and to the idea that Elliot was attractive.

Auston's eyebrows raised and his eyes widened slightly. "I guess so. Not really my type."

There it was. Auston wasn't attracted to Elliot. So why did Mitch suddenly feel so bad?

Not really my type. As in, male?

"But if you think so that's... that's cool," Auston continued, though his tone was off. Like he didn't really mean it.

Mitch's heart lodged in his throat. Auston wasn't homophobic, right? He wasn't judging Mitch for maybe thinking a guy was hot?

"I... um." Mitch swallowed. "I mean, he's... he's like. Model hot. But not... not um. I'm not interested in him."

Auston nodded silently, looking lost in thought.

Mitch felt a bead of sweat prickle between his shoulder blades. "I shouldn't have said anything," he said quickly. "Forget I said anything."

Auston tried to meet Mitch's eyes, but Mitch was staring off at the cabinets.

"No, it's fine," Auston said, and Mitch swore he moved closer to him. "I don't really care. I mean, I uh, I do. But not... not like, you know."

Mitch's eyebrows knitted together. Not like I'm jealous or anything, Mitch could practically hear the end of Auston's sentence in his head. "Right," he forced out.

Silence stretched between them for a moment, then Auston spoke again. "So you uh. Aren't interested in Elliot?"

Mitch shook his head.

Auston scratched the back of his neck. "Cool. Cool. Uh. So when the clock strikes midnight...?"

"I'll be standing in here alone," Mitch said lightly. He even forced out a short laugh. But it was very, very forced.

"No you won't," Auston said. "I'll be here."

"What? Why?"

Auston smirked. "Because I want to. And I... Uh. Was kind of hoping we could... Kind of ring in the new year together."

Mitch stared at him. "Well, if you're going to stand here with me, then yeah, we will."

Auston's smirk grew. "No, like... together."

Mitch blinked. Realization hit him so hard he could barely breathe. "Oh. Oh. T-together. Like. Together-together?"

"Yeah," Auston said. He took half a step closer. He was close enough Mitch could smell his cologne. "If you want to, of course. Maybe I'm just crazy but I swear there's something more than just friendship between us."

"You're not crazy," Mitch said, voice coming out much quieter than he'd intended. He placed his beer bottle on the counter and rubbed his cold hands together.

"No?" Auston asked, almost hesitently.

"Not at all." And with that, Mitch grabbed Auston's shoulders and pulled him closer. He pressed his lips to Auston's before he could overthink the situation.

Auston reciprocated the kiss instantly. His hands went to Mitch's hips, grabbing at them and pulling him close enough that their chests bumped.

"Oh shit," Bunts yelled, "is it midnight already?!"

Mitch heard murmurs ripple through the living room.

"No," Willy said and he laughed. "We still have ten minutes to go."

JT spoke next. "Then why are they-- oh."

Mitch felt Auston smirk against his lips. Mitch's heart fluttered, in part from embarrassment and part from pure joy. He was kissing Auston. And Auston was kissing him back. He and Auston were kissing.

But also the entire team and their respective guests were watching them.

Mitch moved back, face burning hot.

"Fucking finally," Bunts exclaimed.

Auston licked his lips and met Mitch's gaze.

Mitch knew the two of them would get tons of chirps and questions from the guys. He and Auston also still needed to actually talk, but preferably when they didn't have dozens of sets of eyes on them.

"Happy New Year," Mitch murmured.

"Happy New Year," Auston replied, smiling wider than Mitch had ever seen.

[eusuntgratie]

Hello, I came across the 'fighting in Ice Hockey' Wikipedia page and was very intrigued! Now several youtube compilations (Best nhl fights, then funny moments, then best goals etc) and several Hockey AUs for pairing I'm already a fan of later, I'm ready to continue my hockey journey (descent?) - do you have any blogs you can recommend? Also do you have a place to start re teams and or like essential viewing or reading? Normally I can just watch a show or read a book, but this feels a bit different and I don't know where to start 😅

Also I see the is quite a bit of RPF on Ao3- totally chill with that good writing is good writing after all, but is there any like background on why certain pairings are popular?

oh goodness, hi! and welcome to the madness that is hockey fandom/hockey rpf! i'm probably/definitely not the best person to answer this as i'm pretty new to hockey fandom and only closely follow three teams, but i'll do my best <3

okay *most* hockey blogs are focused on one or a couple of teams. so it's a little tricky to point you in a direction if you aren't already attached to anyone. you can find a lot of good hockey primers on tumblr if you search for a team or a ship + primer.

if you have a local or localish team, maybe start there? descend into tumblr tag hell. many of us start out going oh haha i'm just going to read fic, and maybe reblog some gifs, and then end up attached to teams that are far away and spend obscene money to see those teams when they travel close to us. (my favorite team is in a different conference, so they only come to my city once a year).

there are definitely teams that have more fandom activity and those that have less. all based on the narratives, baby. my local team isn't very fandom active on here, so while i generally root for them and follow them and go to games, i'm not fandom feral about them.

MY team is the pittsburgh penguins. i do not, nor have i ever, lived in pittsburgh. but the pens have the longest serving trio in professional sports, and i am completely and utterly in love with them (but not as in love with them as they are with each other). our captain, sidney crosby (fat of ass and genuinely one of the best hockey players EVER) and his two alternate captains, evgeni (geno) malkin and kris letang, are all obsessed with each other. sidgeno is definitely one of the most popular pairings in hockey rpf. i read and write a lot of them. you can browse #fave 8771 and #sidgeno on my blog to get a glimpse of why.

(note that hockey ship names are unpredictable. sometimes numbers mushed together, sometimes names mushed together, sometimes something else, sometimes there's not really a ship name).

some other big ships are travis konecny/nolan patrick of the philadelphia flyers (love these two... they don't play together anymore... theres a lot of backstory there. theres lots in #tknp on my page), auston matthews/mitch marner of the toronto maple leafs (not my jam i'm no help), alexander ovechkin/nicklas backstrom from the capitals, leon draisaitl/matthew tkachuk (more of an enemies to lovers type scenario), and jamie drysdale/trevor zegras of the anaheim ducks. these ships are popular bc they are insane about each other in some way. oof there's so many more though? these are all popular on ao3 so there's lots of fic out there; perhaps a good starting place.

let me know what you're looking for and i'm happy to point you in a direction! a team, a ship dynamic, a type of 'character' you like, a type of fic you like; we got it all. tell me what you're into and i can spin you around and give you a gentle shove towards some unhinged gifs, a lovely fic, or a nice fancam :)

dying to know which pairings you're already into and why 👀 that might also be a good starting place. (you're welcome to dm me if you'd rather do that)

hockey friends PLEASE feel free to chime in!

[condos2homes]

Should You Invest in a Condo in Oakville?

Pre-construction condos in Oakville are catching the eye of many investors. Oakville sits on Lake Ontario's shore, close to Toronto. It's growing fast and offers a great mix of city and quiet living. But is buying a condo here a good idea? Let's look at the good and bad points to help you decide.

Why Choose Oakville?

Oakville is booming. New businesses and people are moving in every day. This makes more people want homes here, especially condos. The town has a strong economy and offers a great life. It has good schools, lots of parks, and many things to do. Families and workers both like it here. The average family earns $192,562 a year. This shows how well the town is doing.

Why Buy a Pre-Construction Condo?

Buying pre-construction condos in Oakville has some perks. You often pay less when you buy early. As they build the condo, it might go up in value. This means you could make money if you sell later. You can also spread out your payments, which is easier on your wallet. Sometimes, you can even choose how you want things to look inside your condo.

What Are the Potential Risks?

Buying early isn't always perfect. Buildings can take longer to finish than planned. The final condo might look a bit different from what you expected. Condo prices can change while they're building. If prices drop, you might pay too much. It's smart to check the builder's history and what they plan to build nearby.

How to Make a Smart Choice

You can’t make a smart choice if you don’t have enough understanding or knowledge of it. Pre-construction isn’t that straightforward and you’ll need a professional’s assistance. Get help from experts. Find a real estate agent who knows Oakville well. They can show you the best deals. Sometimes, they can get you in to see new projects before anyone else. Talk to a lawyer too. They can help you understand what you're signing.

Think about why you're buying. Do you want to live there, rent it out, or sell it soon? Each choice needs different planning. Look into Oakville's buses and trains, and what's nearby. This can help you guess if your condo will be worth more later.

Oakville has some exciting new condos coming up. North Oak Condos 3 is near a busy area with lots to do. Gemini Condos will be in the middle of shops and restaurants.

Views on the Preserve by Mattamy Homes is smaller but close to the old part of town. It is a beautiful 5-storey condo development with brightly colored exteriors with unique building features.

These projects show that pre-construction condos in Oakville come in many types to fit different needs.

Buying a condo in Oakville can be a good move if you plan well. The town is growing and offers a great life. But like any big buy, it has some risks. Do your homework, get expert advice, and think about your long-term plans.

[chaos-and-recover]

CORRECTION, Toronto tickets are not available through Ticketmaster, they were sold directly through Massey Hall's website, https://masseyhall.mhrth.com/ (https://masseyhall.mhrth.com/tickets/sleep-token/ specifically for Sleep Token show details)

These tickets are not mobile and will be sent as PDFs and available in your Massey Hall/RTH account starting 7 days before the event.

DO NOT BUY TICKETS ON ANY OTHER WEBSITE.

PDF tickets are honestly sketchy and I don't love this. For one thing, they're easy to manipulate. A bad actor can also sell the same ticket to multiple people by sending the same PDF and if it's even genuine, the first person to get there will get in and anyone else will be left to take it up with the third party reseller.

If anyone is saying they have tickets for Toronto that they can send you right now, no they don't.

Also, for what it's worth, at least for Laval, you can only re-sell tickets for what you paid for them. This pops up if you go to the event page for that date:

[img desc: a pop-up from Ticketmaster that reads:

What You Need to Know

Important Information

The artist wants to give fans, not scalpers, the best chance to buy tickets at face value. If you purchase tickets and can't attend, you'll have the option to resell your tickets to other fans at the original price paid on Ticketmaster’s Face Value Exchange. Please note, tickets to these events are mobile only and restricted from transfer. A valid bank account or debit card within the country of this event is required to sell on the Face Value Exchange.]

Because of dynamic pricing there still may be a range of prices available, there may be extra fees because it's still Ticketmaster, but you shouldn't see any exorbitant pricing like you will on StubHub/Vivid Seats/GameTime/whatever the hell else. You'll also have the real, original ticket in your account so you'll know it's yours.

Check back frequently, and check religiously 2-3 days before the show if you're not successful before then. This is when any leftover production holds are released (sometimes it's day-of).

It's not over til it's over, but do not ever buy tickets from anywhere other than the official ticket seller.

This is a reminder to everyone in North America who is unable to get tickets for the pre-sale and general sale of Sleep Token’s Teeth of God tour. DO NOT buy resale tickets through third-party vendors like StubHub, Seat Geek, Vivid Seats, etc. Tickets for the Teeth of God tour are mobile-only and non-transferable. This means the seller will not be able to transfer the tickets you purchased from them. The only reliable way to purchase tickets to this tour is through Ticketmaster or your local venue’s ticketing system. Please protect yourself and do not get scammed. If you do not have tickets and need tickets, check out the list I’ve created below the cut. Once pre-sales/general sales are over, I’ll update this post with more links. For more context, check my post here.

Saturday, April 27 – Las Vegas, Nevada Sick New World Music Festival Purchase Tickets through Sick New World’s Website. Third-party sites and sellers can transfer mobile tickets.

Tuesday, April 30 – Phoenix, Arizona Arizona Financial Theatre 400 W Washington St, Phoenix, AZ 85003 (602) 379-2800 Purchase tickets resale through Ticketmaster.

Wednesday, May 1 – Albuquerque, New Mexico Revel Entertainment Center 4720 Alexander Blvd NE, Albuquerque, NM 87107 (505) 321-0406 Purchase tickets resale through Prekindle.

Friday, May 3 – Austin, Texas H-E-B Center 2100 Ave of the Stars, Cedar Park, TX 78613 (512) 600-5000 Purchase Tickets resale through Ticketmaster.

Saturday, May 4 – Dallas, Texas Toyota Music Factory 316 W Las Colinas Blvd., Irving, TX 75039 (469) 840-9730 Purchase Tickets through Ticketmaster.

Monday, May 6 – Tampa, Florida Yuengling Center 12499 USF Bull Run Drive, Tampa, FL 33617 (813) 974-3111 Purchase Tickets through Ticketmaster.

Tuesday, May 7 – Atlanta, Georgia Coca-Cola Roxy 800 Battery Ave SE #500, Atlanta, GA 30339 (470) 351-3866 Purchase Tickets through Ticketmaster.

Wednesday, May 8 – Asheville, North Carolina ExploreAshville.com Arena 87 Haywood St, Asheville, NC 28801 (828) 259-5736 Purchase Tickets through Ticketmaster.

Friday, May 10 – St. Louis, Missouri The Factory 17105 N Outer 40 Rd, Chesterfield, MO 63005 (314) 423-8500 Purchase Tickets through Ticketmaster.

Sunday, May 12 – Morrison, Colorado Red Rocks Amphitheatre 18300 W Alameda Pkwy, Morrison, CO 80465 (720) 865-2494 Purchase Tickets through AXS. Third-party sites and sellers can transfer mobile tickets.

Tuesday May 14 – Des Moines, Iowa Vibrant Music Hall 2938 Grand Prairie Pkwy, Waukee, IA 50263 (515) 895-4980 Purchase Tickets through Ticketmaster.

Wednesday, May 15 & Thursday, May 16 – Chicago, Illinois Salt Shed 1357 N Elston Ave, Chicago, IL 60642 (708) 967-2168 Purchase Tickets through Ticketmaster. Third-party sites and sellers can transfer mobile tickets.

Saturday, May 18 – Columbus, Ohio Sonic Temple Art & Music Festival Purchase Tickets through Sonic Temple’s Website. Third-party sites and sellers can transfer mobile tickets.

Sunday, May 19 – Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Petersen Events Center 3719 Terrace St, Pittsburgh, PA 15261 (412) 648-3054 Purchase Tickets through Ticketmaster.

Monday, May 20 – Philadelphia, Pennsylvania The Met 858 N Broad St, Philadelphia, PA 19130 (800) 653-8000 Purchase Tickets through Ticketmaster.

Wednesday, May 22 – New York, New York Radio City Music Hall 1260 6th Ave, New York, NY 10020 (212) 465-6000 Purchase Tickets through Ticketmaster. Third-party sites and sellers can transfer mobile tickets.

Friday, May 24 – Boston, Massachusetts MGM Music Hall 2 Lansdowne St, Boston, MA 02215 (617) 488-7540 Purchase Tickets through Ticketmaster.

Saturday, May 25 – Laval, Quebec Place Bell 1950 Rue Claude-Gagné, Laval, QC H7N 0E4, Canada (514) 492-1775 Purchase Tickets through Ticketmaster.

Monday, May 27 & Tuesday May 28– Toronto, Ontario Massey Hall 178 Victoria St, Toronto, ON M5B 1T7, Canada (416) 872-4255 Purchase Tickets through Ticketmaster.

[a2on1break]

So the Tampa Bay Lightning have done it again! And no one really seems surprised. I certainly am not.

On May 14, as soon as the final horn sounded and the handshakes between Toronto and Tampa Bay were over, I said to myself, "If the Lightning could beat us, they can beat anyone else in the East. If we couldn't topple the kings of the hill, if we couldn't make them believe it should be over, no one can." And I was right. (Can I be called a hockey prophet now? Maybe just until I'm proved wrong about something, like everyone else, lol.)

But I wanted to recap my thoughts on this series against New York, and game 6 in particular.

I thought it was going to be a cake walk for the Lightning, especially with New York coming off a game 7 and one day's rest. Four, maybe five games. But even the greats have to stumble on their way, and Tampa Bay got caught loose and flatfooted in those opening two games. The Rangers made them pay, all the way up to putting Tampa Bay down 2-0 in game 3. Tampa Bay woke up, fought back, and... won the next four games. (Which I also called, as soon as they lost game 2.) Over all, it was a great, hardfought series.

The goaltending, particularly in those last four games, was unbelievable. If Auston Matthews loses the Hart to Igor Shesterkin, I can't complain. Once Tampa Bay got their focus back, he was the biggest reason the games stayed so close. He was freaking amazing. But opposite him, Vasilevskiy turned up his own brilliance. I was most impressed by Vasey's stickhandling, the coolness with which he would take the puck and play it off to his defence, even when a Ranger was there about to steal. Or the confidence in how he'd make a glove save, and then put the puck right back in play, knowing exactly where he wanted it to go, which teammate's stick it needed to be on.

Third star for game 6: Andrei Vasilevskiy

Second star for game 6: Igor Shesterkin

But my first star for game 6 is this guy:

Captain Steven Stamkos

He broke the scoreless tie late in the 2nd, with a beautiful snipe from the top of the circle that went far side on Shesterkin. I just... love seeing him do that. Seeing him now, as a veteran, as a guy who's getting into the latter half of his career, who's hung with this team for so many years, it just thrills me when he shows how much of 'it' he still has. Then the 3rd period, he took a stupid holding call on Alexis Lafrenière, and the desperate Rangers scored on the power-play. As Stamkos skated back across to his bench, the Tampa Bay coach John Cooper pointed at him, calling out, "That's on you. That's on you." And how did Stammer respond?

Scored the winning goal on his next shift, 21 seconds later.

THAT IS LEADERSHIP. THAT IS A WINNER. THAT IS STEVEN STAMKOS.

-Cooper and Stamkos, Coach and Captain

For me that resilience and knowledge of each other as a team, was Tampa Bay's greatest strength. The way passes clicked, the way everyone knows exactly who to take on the backcheck, the bonds of trust and familiarity between everyone from Vasilevskiy to Maroon to McDonagh to Palat. Steve Yzerman may be gone now, but the work he put in to lay the foundations for this team is carried beautifully onward by Coop, Stammer, and the rest. Tampa Bay is sitting in that sweet spot of a winning family, and no matter what happens in this Stanley Cup Final, I hope they can enjoy that for awhile yet.

Onward and Upward!!

[undyingskies]

Snow Day Firsts

Hi everyone, I hope you enjoy this one! I had a lot of fun writing this one! I am such an Owen Joyner stan that all my ideas for imagines are for him! I would happily take requests or ideas from anyone and for any of the JATP characters or cast members! Also I would love some mutuals, anyways enjoy! xoxo

Warnings: None, just fluff!

________________________________________

“You know, it does scare me that you just have your phone right above my face and you haven’t stopped staring at if for the last 20 minutes. What if your hand falls asleep and you drop it on my face?” You laugh as you hear the words escape from the boy who’s head is in your lap. 

You quickly lock your phone and set it beside you on the couch, making eye contact with the cute blue eyed boy who’s already looking up at you. Your free hand still running through his blonde locks. 

“Well Joyner, do you have a better idea of what to do? It’s about 20 degrees outside!” 

“I like when you call me Joyner.” That’s all you get back from Owen before he turns back and stares at the tv. He’s always making random comments and then quickly moving on to whatever else he pleases.

You’ve gotten used to days like this recently.  You met Owen a few months back, your family is from Canada and you were visiting them in their small Canadian town. One day they decided they wanted to show you Toronto, you’d never been and you thought it would be fun. You quickly feel in love with the city and never wanted to leave. 

You were actually visiting family because a month before you decided to switch to college online, feeling really lost and without a purpose so you thought some time with family in a place you always loved would do you good. Little did you know that you’d fall in love with Toronto and decide to stay until the New Year. And that’s when you met Mr. Owen Patrick Joyner. 

You were out one day, just a few days after you had finally settled into your apartment and decided it was a good idea to go for a walk to find some coffee. Well, you were wrong. It got dark way quicker than you expected and you had no clue where you were. 

You were wondering the streets until you saw a group of some guys and girls. They looked like they knew what they were doing or so you thought. You approached them asking for some help. 

When you got to them, you quickly realized they were all actually arguing over where to go. Before you could turn around to leave, they had already noticed you and all eyes were on you. 

Before you knew it, you were introduced to the whole group, Charlie, Jeremy, Carolynn, Madi, Savannah, Tori, and Owen, and they had you wrapped up in their argument and along for the ride before you could even blink twice. While trying to find where they were going and you lived, you came to find out you lived across the street from Owen and Charlie, the opposite apartment building. You were able to end the night making some new friends and safely in your new home.

You had hit it off with all of them, but something about Owen was special. You started spending their days off with them when they weren’t filming, had movie nights with them, and went to nights out with them as well. The whole time sparks flying between you and Owen. No one was shy to point it out either. 

It took about a month of hanging out every week and texting almost every day before Owen finally asked you out on a date. Now here you are almost 3 weeks later. 

He still hasn’t made a move yet either, it’s something you and Savannah constantly talk about. You don’t want to be too pushy about it but you were feeling frustrated. Every time it felt like it was the moment, that he would finally kiss you, something interrupted the moment or he was quick to turn and change subjects. 

The closest you guys got was this, his head in your lap with your fingers combing through his hair or your head on his chest while you guys cuddled up watching movies or hanging out. You did enjoy this of course but you couldn’t stop yourself from questioning why he hasn’t kissed you yet or made you guys official. 

“You look pretty cute when you got your face all scrunched up like that in thought, Y/N.” Yet again Owen pulls you from your thoughts, this time sitting up and facing you.

“What’s on that pretty little mind of yours?” 

“Oh, nothing really. Just kinda thinking about random things, ya know.” You say trying to brush the topic away. 

“Oooo what kind of random things?” He asks inquisitively, leaning forward to rest his head on his arm. 

“I was just thinking about when I first met the group, it’s been pretty great getting to know everyone. I feel pretty lucky.”

“Getting to know everyone? Or getting to know me?” He says with a wiggle of his eyebrows. 

“Ya know I was thinking more getting to know Savannah and Charlie. No one has ever met me on my level of pranks until them.” You say hoping to get a reaction out of him, especially because he was the last one you guys pranked. 

“Oh really? Just Charlie and Savannah?? Alright then.” He says going to turn away from you, but you grab his arm to keep him from doing it. 

“What can I say Joyner? They just get me!” You say laughing watching his face, you know he thought you would take it back or say something nice. 

Before you know it, he’s on top of you tickling every inch of you that he could get too. Shrieks start leaving your mouth, you couldn’t breathe from laughing so hard.

“O...O....OWENNN!! Stooooppp, I can’t breath.” You say laughing hard trying to shove his hands way. You get a quick swipe of his hands and he drops chest to chest losing his balance. 

You guys both breathing hard but not saying a word. Just straight up eye contact, a small smile graces both your lips. You feel him bring his hand up to brush your hair out of your face, he drops it slowly letting his fingers brush against your lips. You suck in a breath, looking back into his eyes. You can see him leaning in, his warm breath against your cheeks. 

Is this the moment? It’s finally going to happen? He’s finally going to make his move and kiss you. And then-

“Guys!!! It’s snowing look! It’s finally snowing!” Charlie comes yelling into the living room running full speed.  Startling both you and Owen, causing Owen to fall off the couch. 

You didn’t think twice, you ran right to the window next to Charlie jumping with giddy. You’d never seen snow before, you were born and raised in California. Instead of snow season, you got fire season.

You always wanted to see snow, you dreamed of it. It always looked so peaceful and magical, something about snow just always made you feel warm inside and you didn’t know why. 

“I appreciate the help and concern you guys.” Owen says sarcastically before joining the two of you at the window. He can’t help but smile when he sees the glimmer in your eyes looking at the snow. You had talked to him about snow before and how you always dreamed of seeing it. 

“You know Y/N, we could go outside and see it.” A giant smile graces your face and you look up at him. If his smile could get bigger in that moment it would because of the look on your face.

“Really? I know you’ve said you think it’s too cold…”

“I think your first time in the snow is a good enough reason to brave the cold! Let’s go get our sweaters on. Charlie you joining us?” Owen asks while grabbing your hand to take you to get your warm clothes on. 

“Nah dude, as much as I love the snow, I’ve seen it my whole life and I’m not really in the mood to get all bundled up.” Charlie says while waving to you guys going back to his room. 

You quickly get everything warm on you can, hoping the faster you moved, the faster Owen would so you could get outside. You’re almost running out there once you’re both ready.

As the doors open a giant gust of cold wind hits you, making you stop in your tracks. You look around at the snow. It’s falling from the sky, leaving little flakes in your hair and on your clothes. The ground is already covered in a layer of it. You can’t believe it’s real! Before you could take in the peacefulness of it any longer you’re hit upside the head with something cold. 

You turn to your side, seeing Owen facing you with a wide smile, laughing at the look on your face. He just threw a snowball at you and before you could get over it, he threw another one at you, laughing! He’s quick to start grabbing more snow.

“Oh it’s on Joyner.” You laugh while collecting up snow. You launch what one would call a pathetic snowball in his direction. He laughs at your attempt before hitting you head on with another one. 

You laugh some more while trying to get a better snowball together. This time with the launch of your arm, it hits Owen right in the face. The look he makes could make you pee from laughing so hard. 

“You’re gonna be sorry for that one Y/N!” He says laughing whole running in your direction. 

You let out a shriek and start running away from him. You can hear his laughing and his feet behind you. You may be fast but he just so happens to be faster. You can feel his hands grab onto the back of your jacket. 

You’re quick to turn, trying to loosen his grip on you. Instead of freeing yourself, you lose your balance knocking into Owen. You close your eyes waiting for the impact of the fall but instead you make impact with a puffy chest. 

You open your eyes to see that you not only lost your balance but made Owen lose his as well. You landed right on his chest, face to face for the second time today. Belly laughs leaving from the both of you.

He looks so beautiful. His cheeks and nose just slightly pinker then usual because of the cold, he has snowflakes that got tangled up in his eyelashes, and the blue of his eyes just look that much bluer due to the bright lighting of the snow. You can’t help but stare into them, as your laugh dies off. Not knowing that he’s thinking the exact same thing as you, he thought you never looked prettier than you did in this moment right now. 

“Hi.” He says looking up at you, breaking the silence.

“Oh hello Joyner.” You say with a small laugh, going to lift yourself up from his body.

Before you could lift yourself up, you feel his arms tighten around your waist, keeping you in place and his lips on yours. Yours eyes widen at the contact, but slowly drop as your lips start to move in sync together. He has your bottom lip between his two, and nothing has ever felt as perfect as his lips on yours. 

You slowly pull apart, but leave two small pecks on each other’s lips before you do. The kiss leaves you breathless and with butterflies in your stomach. 

“Be my girlfriend.” You hear him say.

“I’m sorry what?” 

“You heard me, be my girlfriend! I’ve been waiting so long to do that and now I want you to be my girlfriend not that I didn’t want you to be my girlfriend before but I was just nervous because I suck at making moves and I-“ 

You cut off his nervous rambling with your lips on his. This time you feel his lips melt into yours. You can’t help but let a big smile take over your face, you’ve been waiting what feels like forever for this and you can’t believe it’s here. Owen looks up at you mimicking your smile. 

“I’ll take that as a yes?” He asks you while laughing. 

You nod your head yes enthusiastically, almost too enthusiastic. At the motion Owen is quick to pull you in for another kiss. 

He pulls away and you almost feel bare from not having his lips on yours. You’re also suddenly colder than you remember being, a shiver taking over your whole body. Owen noticing, he’s quick to push you off and help you get up. 

He grabs your hand and starts to lead you back into the apartment to escape the cold. 

“Wait...” You say and he turns to look at you to give you a questioning look. 

You pull him a little closer and stand on your toes to reach up to him. You press your lips against his, taking in the feeling of his lips and the snow falling around you. Nothing has ever felt more perfect. 

“I just wanted to do that one last time.” You say with a smile. Owen smiles down at you, squeezing your hips before leading you inside. 

You make your way inside thinking today’s firsts could have not been more perfect. Maybe snow was just as magical as you always thought it was. 

[anna-pineappel]

Again I was tagged twice ( @ghosthorse-tracks and @frau-wilhelm-klink - thank you both!) so here I am!

Last Song: Lonely is the Muse by Halsey (can’t get it out of my head!)

Favourite Colour: Turquoise/Teal

Last Book: I read a lot of reference books for work, but last fiction would be Where the Crawdads Sing

Last Movie: Nightmare before Christmas (classic Halloween AND Christmas movie!)

Last TV Show: currently watching The Sopranos

Sweet/Spicy/Savoury: all 3 at the same time 😂 but if I had to pick only one, it would be savoury.

Relationship Status: Married, celebrated 5 years a couple weeks ago!

Last Thing I Looked Up: boring, but GO transit schedule. Because fuck driving into Toronto for any reason!

Current Obsession: My current WIP, untitled Prequel to Peace in the Moonlight. Also, Peace in the Moonlight. I will yap to anyone about either work, feel free to send an ask or a DM if you want to know more!

Looking Forward to: the train ride home to continue writing the Prequel (I gotta name this thing soon lol) 😅

No-Pressure Tags: @whatisthismandoinghere @someguywriting @annieslytherpuff21 @tuttle-4077 @fireinthefireproofvault and as always, anyone else who sees this and want to play along ☺️

Thanks for the tag, @peter-newkirks-smolder! (Clean copy of the game beneath the cut, in case y'all are interested.)

Last Song: "Hey, I Don't Work Here" by Tom Cardy

Favorite Color: Purple.

Last Book: That's a good question - I haven't read an actual book since 2019😂 My last fanfic...crap, it's been a minute since I read any of those too. I'm entirely too far behind on my fic updates😭 Pretty it was Peace in the Moonlight by Anna_Pineappel, tho.

Last Movie: Beetlejuice Beetlejuice

Last TV Show: Hogan's Heroes

Sweet/Spicy/Savory: Either sweet or savory, depending on my mood. Can't eat spicy foods.

Relationship Status: mentally dating my F/Os Wilhelm Klink and Robert Hogan (aka single)

Last thing I looked up: The Munsters

Current Obsession: My massive self-insert fic Dropping Into Stalag 13 (both volumes) and whatever lovely snippets @whatisthismandoinghere decides to yeet at me😍

Looking forward to: The remaster of Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver & Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver 2 coming out next month on PS5

No pressure tags: @lost-gamer-archives, @anna-pineappel, @whatisthismandoinghere, @fireinthefireproofvault, @fiddler-sticks and anyone else who wants to play!

Last Song:

Favorite Color:

Last Book:

Last Movie:

Last TV Show:

Sweet/Spicy/Savory:

Relationship Status:

Last thing I looked up:

Current Obsession:

Looking forward to:

Tagging:

[spine-buster]

The President Wears Prada (William Nylander) | Chapter 33

A/N:  Hope you guys enjoy this one...⛪️

August 7th, 2020

Aberdeen Bloom was nervous as fuck.  

It was Game 4, less than 24 hours after giving up a 3-0 lead, and the Leafs were on the brink of elimination.  The boys were quiet.  Focused.  Only had one thing on their mind.  They didn’t want to leave the bubble.  They wanted to prove everybody wrong – everybody.  Their coaches.  Their bosses.  Their fans.  Their haters.  The media.  Themselves.  This was their opportunity to show everybody what they could do.  

Aberdeen couldn’t even think about it without trembling.  She never in a million years thought hockey would make her feel this way.  It didn’t help the love of her life was a major part of it.  And it didn’t help that Alec had texted her early this morning.

Looks like the boys might cost you a writing job if they get eliminated early.  Not many shenanigans to get up to in, what, ten days?  Article might be a bust.

I’ll have 10,000 words written for you as promised was what she texted back.  She didn’t want to stroke his ego, play along with his games, or have him think she wasn’t going to produce just because he thought they might leave early.  It didn’t matter to her.  Even if they did leave early, she could still do it.  She knew she could.  She knew she had to, because she couldn’t blow this opportunity.

They morning had been anxiety-ridden at best.  She hadn’t gotten a good night’s sleep, tossing and turning after getting off the phone with William, and then because of the text, she was barely eating breakfast.  Apparently, it was noticeable to the boys, because John had come over to her table and brought her a plate stacked fruit.  “If we can eat, you can eat,” he said as he set it in front of her.  Mitch ended up coming to sit across from her at the table, and John took the other seat.  William approached, standing six feet away, and Auston too.  They were congregating, which made her even more nervous.  

“Thanks,” she mumbled, forking a strawberry and putting it into her mouth reluctantly.  “You guys aren’t nervous?” she posed the question to all of them.

John shrugged.  “We know what we need to do.  We just have to go out there and do it.”

Aberdeen didn’t know how he could be so calm, as the captain of the team.  Then again, he was John fucking Tavares, and calm seemed to be his middle name.  She nodded her head.  “I don’t mean to be a nervous wreck.  I’m just not used to playoff hockey, as you can imagine.  This is all new.  I never knew I could feel this way about a sport.”

That made John laugh a bit.  “Not about a sport, but definitely about a book, right?”

She couldn’t help but smile slightly as she forked at a piece of watermelon.  “Definitely about a book.”

“How’s the article coming along?” William asked.

Aberdeen almost dropped her fork on her plate.  All the guys turned their heads towards him at the same time skeptically, then towards her at the same time, their eyebrows furrowed.  Her body felt like it was on fire.  She hadn’t told anybody about the article – except William, of course.  She assumed Brendan sort-of-kind-of knew since he set her up for it, but she hadn’t said anything to him.  William was the only one who knew.  Her cheeks flushed red.  

“What article?” Mitch asked, turning his head back and forth between the two of them once more.

“Yeah, what article?” Auston asked.

“It uh, it’s—um, it’s a thing for Toronto Life,” Aberdeen stuttered out.  

“Toronto Life?!” Mitch repeated excitedly.  

“Yeah,” she nodded slowly.  “Brendan uh, Brendan put me up for it.  It’s, like…an audition.  I don’t know.”

“An audition?  So like if it’s good they’ll publish it?” Mitch kept asking questions.

“Basically, yeah.”

“Well what’s it about?”

Aberdeen gulped.  “Um, life in the bubble.”

The boys looked taken aback for a brief moment.  She knew they were trying to hold back the emotion, but she could see it in their eyes.  She wondered if they were thinking the worst now.  She wondered if Auston was looking at her and thinking that all she wanted to do in this bubble was get a scoop like Steve Simmons.  She wondered if Mitch was looking at her and thinking that she was going to write some scathing article about how he was being paid $10.8 million to not show up in the playoffs, like most articles were saying.  She prepared for the worst, honestly.  She really did.  Because she knew these guys had been betrayed before.  She knew the media were constantly down their throats.  She knew all they wanted was a little reprieve from that.  And now, someone they knew, someone they worked with – someone they trusted completely – was writing something about life in the bubble?  When she was in the bubble with them?

“Life in the bubble, huh?  So, like how we play video games the entire day ‘cause we can’t do anything else in here?” Mitch asked.

Her stomach was in knots.  But that follow-up from Mitch was definitely not was she was expecting.  Truth be told, she didn’t know what she was expecting – anger, maybe?  Caution?  Suspicion? – but it definitely wasn’t Mitch saying that.  “Something like that,” she said.  “I’m trying to, like, capture how hard it is for you guys to be in here.  How hard it is to be away from your families.  How you guys are…you know, human, and not just hockey players.”

Mitch smiled.  “I think it’s gonna be a great article, then.”

“How’d William know?” Auston asked.  “How’d he know before any of us?”

William knew he had to think fast.  “I saw her writing it the other day when we went out to the gym,” he said.  He had approached her on the sidelines that day for a brief minute or two, during a break in his workout, so if anyone was paying attention and saw them, it was an entirely plausible scenario.  “She told me what she was writing.”

“Why didn’t you tell any of us?” Auston asked him.

“Because it was Aberdeen’s news to tell, not mine,” William said.

Auston looked towards Aberdeen.  “You’re not writing, like, gossip about us, are you?” he asked.

“Auston, what the fuck—” William began.

“Buddy—” Mitch intervened.

“Hey now—” John piped up.

“No no, it’s fine,” she waved the boys off, staring directly at Auston.  She knew exactly where Auston was coming from.  She knew he trusted her.  He admitted so during the phone call when his Covid-19 story became national news.  She knew she had to be one hundred percent honest with him if he was going to have no qualms or suspicions about this article.  “They want me to.  They want me to write about shenanigans.  The stereotypical stuff.  But I’m not.  I refuse to.  I wouldn’t…you guys know I wouldn’t do that to you.  And I mean…I—I haven’t told them yet that I refuse to pander to that shit, but they’ll know when they get my article.”

Auston’s entire demeanour softened at her words.  It was like his entire body relaxed.  He knew – he always knew – he just needed the affirmation.  But then he realized what that meant.  “But then what happens if you don’t get the job because you don’t give them what they want?” he asked.  

Aberdeen shrugged.  “Then I have keep looking for writing jobs at other magazines.”

Then and there, he realized what was on the line for Aberdeen.

***

As Aberdeen wallowed in her room, she was nervous.  As she showered before the game, she was nervous.  As she did her hair, she was nervous.  As she got dressed, she was nervous.  As she opened her door and walked out into the hallway, meeting some of the guys, she was nervous.  When she got off the bus and the team went one way while she, Brendan, and Kyle went another, she clutched at her iPad pro.  She looked at the boys one last time, catching Willy’s eye, before the disappeared down the hallway, where no doubt a photographer was waiting to get pictures of their outfits before they went into the locker room.

As she sat in the box with Brendan and Kyle, as always, she saw Brendan look her way.  “Don’t even think about asking me how it’s gonna go tonight,” she said before he could even open his mouth.  

He held his hands up in front of him.  “Excuuuuuuse me.”

“I’m so nervous.  I barely ate today,” she elaborated.

“Somebody get Aberdeen a Coca Cola,” he called out to no-one in particular.  “She’s gonna need the sugar and the caffeine or else she’ll crash by the third period.”

She couldn’t believe how light-hearted he was being.  She didn’t know if it was some type of coping mechanism or if it was because he was generally in a good mood.  “How can you be so…calm?  Such a jokester?”

Brendan shrugged.  “If I was doom and gloom all the time, I wouldn’t still be president.”

***

Aberdeen was on the verge of tears.  

Cam Atkinson had scored in the first period.  Vladislav Gavrikov scored in the second period.  Her heart was heavy.  Her stomach was in knots.  And now, the impossible: she was watching Jason Spezza fighting.  The last person who should be fighting.  A part of her understood what he was doing, somewhat – trying to fire up the guys – but the other part of her kept asking why the fuck does he have to do this?  Where the fuck are they?  Why aren’t they playing?  WHY AREN’T THEY PLAYING?!

“I can’t believe they’re fucking doing this to him,” she mumbled under her breath through gritted teeth as she watched Jason skate off the ice.  Her knuckles were white for how tightly her hands were in fists in front of her mask.  Her leg was bouncing uncontrollably.  She couldn’t believe what was happening.

“What was that?” Brendan asked, apparently hearing her, his own voice indiscernible but also just…void of any emotion.  

She glanced at him quickly before shaking her head.  “Nothing.”  She looked over at Kyle.  She couldn’t tell what he was feeling, either.  What was it with these men and being so stoic?  

She pressed the palms of her hands together and intertwined her fingers.  “God, if you love me…” she began, mumbling into her hands.  “If you love me, God, don’t let them go out like this.  Not.  Like.  This.”

***

Boone Jenner scored in the third period.  It was 3-0.  This was it.  

Aberdeen had to come to terms with the fact that they were leaving early.  She had to come to terms with the fact that the boys would lose, again.  They’d be out of the bubble.  She knew that was probably a silver lining, but these guys so desperately just wanted to play hockey and play hockey and win, and for them to crash out like this was just going to be the worst.  They’d never hear the end of it.  Bee McTavish told her about last year, about how they lost to the Boston Bruins in Game 7 and how hard it was on the boys, particularly Morgan, and how awful the media was to them, and Aberdeen didn’t want to think about what the media would say now.  She didn’t want to think about what they’d say about Fred.  About Mitch.  About Morgan.  About John.

About William.  

But just as Aberdeen came out of her thoughts, she noticed something weird on the ice.  It wasn’t the regular line out there.  Sheldon was doing something different.  It was…well, it seemed to be the nuclear option.  All the top goal scorers were on the ice.  William, Mitch, Zach, Auston, and John.  Hustling all over the ice.  Passing the puck.  Shooting at the net.

And then, with just less than four minutes left, William scored.

Aberdeen jumped out of her seat and screamed.  The boys celebrated briefly, but they knew more work needed to be done.  She looked over at Brendan, who wasn’t blinking as he looked down at the ice.  She looked at Kyle, who wasn’t blinking either.  

“Please God…please…” she whispered to herself.

Sheldon kept out the nuclear option.  They were young.  They could do it.  

John Tavares scored only forty seconds later.  

“Holy fucking shit,” Aberdeen stood up from her seat, saying her words loud enough for Brendan and Kyle to hear.  “Holy fucking shit.  Holy fucking shit.”  

She barely breathed a single breath for the next two and a half minutes.  She was standing with her hands over her mouth over her mask and her body was completely still as she watched every move on the ice like a hawk.

William, to Auston, to Zach, who scored to tie it at 3-3.

“HOLY FUCKING SHIT!!!!!” she screamed as the boys really celebrated on the ice now.  She banged her fists on the counter in front of her as she watched Zach jump on top of William as all the boys on the ice huddled together excitedly.  She swore she heard some happy swears from Kyle, and she definitely heard some happy swears from the extra players who were sitting in the seats right below them where the seat covers ended.  She barely remembered the period ending.  

“They’re gonna fucking do it,” she said to no-one in particular.  “They’re gonna fucking do it.  They’re gonna make a comeback.”

Everything was a blur as Aberdeen sat back down into her seat.  The overtime period.  The lines.  The minutes.  She felt like she was in the twilight zone – some alternate universe where time stood still and nothing else mattered besides hockey.  Not even just hockey – nothing else mattered besides this game and what was happening right here, right now.  Seven minutes into overtime, Morgan drew a tripping penalty.  An enraged Nick Foligno was sent to the penalty box.  The puck dropped.  It was passed.  Marner to Tavares.  Tavares to Matthews.

Auston let it rip and scored.

“WHAT!!!!!  WHAT!!!!!” Aberdeen screamed louder than she ever had in her life as she jumped up from her seat like a rocket and threw the pen she was holding out into the stands.  She began pumping her fist in front of her and pointing out onto the ice.  “THAT’S WHAT I’M TALKING ABOUT, BABY!  THAT’S WHAT I’M TALKING ABOUT!” she shrieked, her jaw somewhere between her face and the floor but her smile taking up her entire face.  Then came the excited, can’t-believe-what-I-just-witnessed high pitched uncontrollable laughs.  She looked over to Brendan and Kyle.  They were stoic.  She liked to believe they already freaked out and she missed it.

“Down 3-0 in the third period!” she screamed at them.  “Down 3-0 in the third period!  Can you believe it?!”

“What are you doing waiting up here?  Go down there,” Brendan said, nodding his head towards the exit.  

Aberdeen bolted out of the box and rushed towards the locker room as quickly as her feet could take her.  Once she got there, she saw the boys filing in, screaming ‘Woooo!’s and ‘Let’s fucking go, baby!’s.  William entered the locker room first.  He noticed her standing in the room almost immediately and rushed over to her.

She held her breath.  

He picked her up and spun her around, causing her to squeal until he set her down.  He was wet and sweaty and she could see the droplets of sweat dripping down his face but God if he didn’t look incredible and like the perfect human specimen.  “Let’s gooooo!” he screamed once he set her down.

“Let’s gooooo!” she repeated, noticing more of the boys make their way in.  Clifford.  Spezza.  Kerfoot.  Barrie.  Kasperi.  Hyman.  Engvall.  Rielly.  Tavares.  Holl.  Dermott.  Everybody.  Everybody.  They all came in screaming and did the exact same thing that William did, lifting her up and spinning her around excitedly as they continued to scream and go their stalls and start stripping in front of her.  They probably weren’t allowed to do that – they definitely weren’t allowed to do that, be that close together – but it didn’t matter right now.  Nobody cared.

“You guys gave me a fucking heart attack!” she yelled at them, clutching her heart as she looked around the room at all of them.  She saw a couple of them giggling as they undid their hockey tape and threw it into the garbage.

“Wouldn’t have been a Leafs series without one!” Morgan joked.

Sheldon walked into the room and high-fived Aberdeen.  Then Auston walked in and the boys started screaming and yelling all over again.  “Let’s fucking goooo, Aberdeen!” he screamed as he picked her up too, one last twirl, before setting her down.  “Let’s fucking go, baby!” he screamed to everyone in the room.

It was at that point that Brendan and Kyle walked into the room.  Aberdeen composed herself as much as possible as she faded into the background, watching Sheldon give his post-game speech.  Everybody looked so happy.  So excited.

They could fucking do this.

***

Aberdeen was typing like a furious mad woman in the Notes on her phone.  She wanted to write – needed to write all the authentic feelings that were in the air right now as she waited on the bus for everyone.  She needed to remember this moment.  Every single detail of it.  What was said.  What was heard.  The smiles.  The spins.  How she was still dizzy.  

“Hey Aberdeen!  You made it on to TV!” Mitch yelled from the middle of the bus.

Everyone’s head popped up, and she watched as all the guys already on the bus took off their headphones.  “What?!” she shrieked.

“They caught you celebrating in the box!” he said, turning his phone and showing her the video.

Aberdeen heard all of the boys get up out of their seats and crowd behind her to watch the video.  She noticed the Sportsnet logo on the bottom of screen first and foremost, then listened as she heard the announcers describing the scene, which they replayed in slow fucking motion.  “I think that young lady is indicative of most of Leafs Nation right now!” she heard Jim Hughson’s voice as the video showed her jumping up from her seat and throwing her pen.  The boys behind her were howling as they watched, and when she began pumping her fist in front of her, they laughed some more.  Slightly embarrassed, Aberdeen buried her head in her hands and shook her head.  “It’s always me!  Why is it always me that gets caught doing these things?!”

“The camera loves you, Aberdeen!” Mitch giggled.  

“It happens to all the wives and girlfriends at some point,” Morgan said as most of the guys went back to their seats on the bus.  

“But I’m not a wife.  Or a girlfriend!”

She could tell Morgan was smiling behind his mask.  “Not yet,” he mumbled to himself, shrugging.

Aberdeen turned red.  She sat back down in her seat and continued typing away on her phone furiously, making sure nobody saw her skin hue.

***

It was only when everybody got back to the hotel when Aberdeen had to stop typing, but by then, she was sure she’d gotten every feeling.  Everybody was still buzzed as they rode two at a time in the elevator up to their floor, and she could still feel the energy even when she was bottled up in her room – like everybody else – and it was eerily silent after just having been so loud.

She had just finished changing into her pajamas when she heard her phone buzz.  She knew it was William texting, so she grabbed her phone immediately, ready for his request to FaceTime.

open ur door really slowly so it doesn’t make any noise

Her eyes bulged out of her head.  She set her phone down and rushed over to her door, not bothering to look out the peephole, but doing exactly what she was told.  She opened it slowly, carefully, making sure not to make a peep.  She looked out into the hallway, down to the other wing, and saw William’s head popping out of his own room.  He rushed out, closing the door quietly before rushing over to her wing.

“William,” she whispered.  Her heart was beating out of her chest.  He was not allowed to do this.  He was not allowed to do this.  She watched as he made his way over.  “William what are you—”

She was silenced by his slipping past her and into her room, putting his hand over hers to shut the door slowly so it didn’t make a clicking sound.  When it was closed, she tried one more time.  “Willy—”

Her attempt was futile.  He crashed his lips against hers, wrapping his arms around her as he squeezed her against his body, so much so that he could lift her up in his arms and she could wrap her legs around his torso.  He stuck his tongue down her throat.  She moaned out at the sensation before realizing that he was walking them into her bathroom – her bathroom that faced the open area in front of the elevators, and not facing or sharing a wall with her room neighbour.  He kicked the door closed with his foot before setting her down on the marble vanity sink, her legs still wrapped around his body keeping him close.

“Take this off,” he mumbled as he tugged violently at her pajama shirt, almost ripping it as she shoved her off her body and threw it across the bathroom.  She pulled on his t-shirt too, throwing it in the same direction as they crashed their lips against each other’s again.  

“We’re not supposed to be doing this,” she whispered out after he bit down on her bottom lip and pulled it away from her.  “You’re not supposed to be in my room.  We’re breaking the rules.”

“Isn’t that half the fun?” he quipped, a small smirk on his face.  Aberdeen could feel her body get hot – hotter than it already was.  This was so wrong.  So wrong.  He wasn’t supposed to be in her room.  They weren’t supposed to be touching.  They weren’t supposed to be kissing.  They weren’t supposed to be doing any of it, yet here Aberdeen was, her body heating up and her core getting even hotter.  She scratched her nails down William’s broad and toned chest as he kissed a trail down her neck and to her breasts, sucking and biting down at her nipples gently, causing her to gasp out.

He immediately put his hand over her mouth.  Her eyes went wide.  He looked up at her from where he was at her breasts.  “You can’t be too loud or else we’ll get caught.”

Oh my fucking God.  Now she really felt her body light up like a fire.  She whimpered slightly.  “But Willy—” she tried to mumble against his hand.

“Shhhh…” he cooed.  “Can you be quiet, Aberdeen?  Can you be quiet while I fuck you?”  He was waiting for an answer.  She felt a shiver run up her spine.  She nodded her head.  “That’s my girl.”

William continued paying attention to her breasts before kissing his way back up to her lips and sticking his tongue down her throat again.  Aberdeen ran her fingers through his hair and tugged on it slightly before scratching down his back and pulling down his trackpants and underwear.  He did the same to her, letting his fingers play with the wet folds of her pussy until he heard whimpers from her again.  “Quiiiiiet, Aberdeen,” he cooed once more, bringing his hand that was just playing with her pussy up to her lips.  

She grabbed his hand in both her hands and sucked his fingers into her mouth.  “I’m not going to be able to,” she whispered, shaking her head.  

William pulled her off the marble vanity, grabbing her hips and spinning her around so her back was against his chest.  They were able to see each other through the mirror.  Aberdeen watched as William’s hand snaked around her body and down to her hot core again.  “You’re going to have to be quiet or we’ll get caught,” he whispered huskily in her ear as he played with her core again.  Her legs were shaking at the feeling.  She gripped on to the vanity.  

“Fuck me raw, Willy,” she begged.  She had her own tricks up her sleeve.  If William was going to play this game, she was going to play hers.  She watched his reaction in the mirror and could see his pupils dilate.  “I started birth control.  It’s okay.”

“You what?”

“I started birth control a month ago.  It was supposed to be a surprise but—”

“—Aberdeen—”

“—Please Willy,” she begged, her voice breathless.  She could feel his hard cock against her body and was so desperate for it, she didn’t care how wrong this was.  “Fuck me raw.  Fuck.  Me.  Raw.”

He bent her over the vanity.  She stuck her ass out and kept her eyes on him through the mirror, watching as he positioned himself at her entrance, sliding into her easily.  She cried out at the sensation, feeling his hand almost automatically cover her mouth to silence her.  When he began moving in and out of her, the sound of their flesh smacking together, she didn’t know if she should close her eyes to revel in the feeling of his slick, hard cock filling her up, or if she should keep her eyes open to watch him fucking her hard and fast through the mirror.  She chose the latter.  She and William had had many sexual escapades before (sexcapades, if you will), but nothing had been as hot or as raw or as dangerous as this was.  The exhilaration of doing a completely banned act – banned since they figured out they were working together, even more so banned now – was giving her the ultimate rush.  

His hand was still over her mouth as she arched her back and William pulled her back against his chest.  She could feel herself getting close, and when William’s other hand snaked around once more to play with her clit, she tried to cry out but couldn’t.  “Are you gonna be quiet when I make you cum?”

She shook her head.  “I won’t.  I can’t.”

He thrusted into her harder, trying to make a point.  She whimpered again and his hand somehow tightened around her mouth.  “Are you gonna be quiet?” he asked again.  She looked at him through the mirror, seeing the absolute fire in his eyes.  She knew what he was looking for.  She knew he would tease her and tease her and tease her until she agreed to what he was asking.  She nodded slowly.  He smiled.  “Good.”

He quickened his pace, harder and faster and rougher than before, and Aberdeen continued to watch them fucking through the mirror until she could feel closer and closer to her sweet release.  Eventually, her legs began to shake, and she could feel an intense orgasm rush through every single inch of her body.  She tried to stay as quiet as possible, but the feeling was too much, and her whimpers escaped her, though they were much quieter than the usual vocal performances she usually gave when she and William had sex, and though William still had his hand over her mouth.  At the sound of her stifled whimpers she could feel William’s hot cum spill inside her.  The feeling was hot and raw and simultaneously everything she imagined it would be and feel like but also completely new and unlike anything she could have ever expected.  His own small grunts escaped his mouth as he felt himself empty inside of her, revelling in the feeling of filling her completely.  He eventually let go of her mouth, and her body bent over against the marble vanity again, unable to stand up straight due to the long, intense orgasm.  He tried to catch his breath as he continued to watch her body shake, the last of her orgasm rushing through her.  He could see her chest rising and falling from her trying to catch her breath.

It was a few minutes before Aberdeen and William could regain their breaths.  He slipped out of her slowly, and she whimpered again at the loss of him, still bent over the vanity, though she could still feel a slickness between her thighs.  She felt his body bend too, his chest on her back, and felt him kiss her shoulders delicately.  She craned her neck to get a look at him.  “I better get a writing job soon.  I don’t think we’re gonna be able to hold it back for much longer,” she whispered.

William giggled – a low, rumbly giggle from his chest as he smiled and continued placing kisses on her shoulder.  “I agree,” he whispered back.  “We gotta make sure you get that Toronto Life job.”

She bit her lip.  “Did it feel good for you?”

He nodded.  “Of course.  What about for you?  Did it feel different?”

“It felt fucking amazing,” she nodded.  “It…it did feel different.  I…you’re the first one I’ve ever let fuck me raw,” she admitted.

William nodded in understanding.  He knew what she was really saying – that this was, at least physically, the ultimate form of trust, and he was the only one in her life, ever, who she trusted that much.  “We can keep doing whatever you’re more comfortable with,” he said.

“I liked this.  I don’t know if I’ll be able to go back,” she giggled slightly.  

William smiled.  He pulled her back upright and, at that point, she could stand on her own again.  She spun around so she was facing him and wrapped her arms around his shoulders, pulling him down to kiss him.  They stood in her bathroom kissing for a while until William pulled away slightly.  “I love you so much,” he mumbled.

“I love you too.”

“Sorry I made you break the rules…yet again,” he smiled mischievously.  

Aberdeen winked.  “Isn’t that half the fun?”

[ladyc0312]

A Jikook Guide to RunBTS: 66-80

Things in this batch start out a little slow, KM-wise, but seriously pick up around the Toronto episodes. It features the episodes where both RM and Jin ask if JK and JM are a couple, so it includes the giggly hand-push game that helped make me a jikook believer! 

As usual, let me know if I’ve missed anything or should take another look at something. :)

Ep 66 "BTS in a Comic Book Cafe Part 1" (Ep: 2 / KM: 1)

The one that I can’t help but feel would be more fun if I was more familiar with the comics involved, but the guys make it cute anyway

3:08 - This is a little hard to see because they use weird angles and cuts, but JK sings a piece of a theme song and JM catches his eye and sings with him.

9:23 - JK leans in over JM's shoulder to see how many people are on the comic book page

10:18 - JM does the same when it's JK's turn

BEHIND 10:29 - JM jokes around with JK and does the playful chest tap thing

Ep 67 "BTS in a Comic Book Cafe Part 2" (Ep: 3 / KM: 1)

None

BEHIND 7:28 - JM asks JK if there's a comic book he wants and says he'll buy it for him if so

Ep 68 "Heart Pang" (Ep: 1 / KM: 0)

The one where I can't for the life of me understand the board game they are playing

None. 

Ep 69 "BTS in Toronto Part 1" (Ep: 4 / KM: 5)

The Toronto one where Jikook wear matching denim shirts while going to Niagara Falls, getting lunch, and playing games

2:36 - RM says there are certain people who will struggle with the wake up challenge. JK and JM readily seem to admit it's them. 

6:29 - JM hangs back (to walk with JK?) when the rest of the group starts heading for the Falls.

8:06 - There's a "teleporting" moment where Jin is in between JM and JK, then the camera cuts away, then it comes back and jikook are next to each other. They stay next to each other as they walk on.

9:52 - You can see jikook interacting in the background.

12:25 - JM takes a photo of JK and gets him to giggle, then they huddle to look at the pic.

13:56 - JM puts his arm around JK and takes a selca in the background, causing RM to ask "what, are you a couple or something? Both wearing denim shirts?" He says it fairly seriously for a line that seems like it's supposed to be a joke and they don't laugh or say anything in response - it looks like JM looks away and flips his hair while JK shifts and awkwardly rubs his forehead. You can also see a quiet exchange after between RM and JM where RM says no to something, then nods at JK. Unclear if it's related, but including it just in case. 

15:25 - JK doesnn't try to distract JM while he did the staring contest like he did with Hobi. When Jimin passes, JK is the only one to clap. 

18:04 - Quick moment where you can see JK start to rub the arm of JM's shirt before the camera cuts away.

18:50 - JM laughs and touches JK's chest after JK loses the rocks paper scissor game, too.

19:53 - When the other five walk away and JK is doing something with his mic, we don't see where JM is.

22:02 - JK appears to help JM with something with his camera in the foreground.

BEHIND 4:12 - After JHope scolds JK for letting Suga pour everyone's water, JK goes to pour JM some water, then puts the pitcher down. JM seemingly tries to help him out by saying it's a new trend for the oldest to pour water. 

Ep 70 "BTS in Toronto Part 2" (Ep: 3 / KM: 5)

The Toronto one where the guys go shopping, pick beds, and play games

1:15 - JK slows down to walk side by side with JM.

2:00 - When JK messes up the game he was confident he'd win, JK laughs and playfully shoves at his chest.

7:23 - When JK loses a game and has to buy the others hoodies, JM sneaks a hat into the pile while JK has his back turned. RM rats him out.

8:01 - JM quietly puts the hat back in the pile, then walks over and hugs JK.

8:40 - JK walks over to Jimin to show him something (sunglasses he wanted?).

20:30 - When they're all joking around about whether they can fit four people on a bed, JK moves JM into an L-shape and then lays down nested with him.

BEHIND 0:09 - JK calls out "Jimin-ssi!" and tosses JM that hat he bought him.

4:49 - When the guys are all stretching and JM is in an inconvenient place, JK calls him "Jimin-ssi" again, essentially feels up his calf, and then pushes his upper thigh, all purportedly to get him to move over.

5:28 - JK kneels down behind JM, who's on all fours, and holds his hips to correct his position (I am literally just describing what happens in the clip, but I kind of feel like I'm writing porn, here...). JK then picks Jimin up to move him over a bit. Both giggle as JK starts to stand up and then the camera cuts away.  I can't even begin to think what exercising looks like for these two when there aren't cameras on them...

6:55 - JK reads out the words on the Jimin shirt they're all wearing, which happen to be, "BTS Park Jimin, I love you! I root for you! I'm ARMY!" with a huge grin on his face. Jimin laughs - no one else does - and then jokes that they should wear the shirts back to Korea, prompting JK to tell him "bye!" and wave while giggling. 

7:37 - Jimin shows the parts of the shirt design he would change by poking JK's chest, and then JK and JM share a fairly steamy look until RM interrupts. 

7:52 - JK folds up the shirt so JM's face looks weird and Jimin points to him doing it and laughs. No one else does.  Man, these two were really in their own world this whole Toronto trip, weren't they?

8:02 - JM tries to give JK some advice on the game he's about to play. Before starting, JK starts what seems like it's going to be a silly pose, but ends up being him dragging his fingers down his face, neck, and chest. Sadly for JK, JM wasn't looking. Happily for us, we can look as much as we want. 

8:18 - When JM wins a game, JK claps for him. You can probably guess by now that he's the only one who does. 

10:09 - JM steals a piece of steak, then JK does some cross-cut teleporting to come over and sink down into a chair next to him. JM overdoes making his eyes look big and innocent (perhaps hoping to get caught and scolded?).

10:35 - JM makes Jin move when he takes JM's seat next to JK I feel like just the Behind for this episode needs it's own jikook rating! And most of it is watching JK lead the guys in a workout. If you're going to watch just one Run Behind, consider making it this one!

Ep 71 "BTS in Toronto Part 3" (Ep: 3 / KM: 3)

The Toronto one where the guys have dinner, have breakfast, and play games

14:28 - Maybe nothing, but just to note it - in this and the next shot, you can see JM heading towards where JK is lying back on the couch after losing a game, then there's an abrupt cut and everyone is in a totally different position. 

29:20 - JK tells JM the "super-pancake" he made is for him since he has to do the penalties. 

BEHIND 6:59 - JM says that he thinks JK will want to eat and calls out for him.

Ep 72 "BTS and Mafia" (Ep: 3 / KM: 2)

The one in which we learn that BTS is so terrible at the Mafia game that it almost comes back around to being impressive 

3:10 - When Jin says JK is suspicious because he isn't talking, JM defends him, saying "you know he doesn't talk much." 

8:34 - JM seems to direct his appeal to be spared to JK.

18:16 - JK compliments how well Jimin is doing at the game.

20:13 - After Jimin says he's ARMY, JK asks, "do you like me that much?" Then there's a quick cut and Jin is doing a Jim Halpert face at the camera.

28:03 - Confusing maybe-moment - let me know if it's clearer to anyone else! - but after JH is sending finger heart guns, JM points gun fingers directly at JK for no apparent reason. 

BEHIND 2:39 - Before they start playing, JK predicts that JM and Jin will be good at the game.

Eps 73-76 “Run BTS Drama Parts 1-4″ (n/a)

The ones where BTS spend four episodes making a “comedic” skit

01:09 - After JK explains that he had a wisdom tooth taken out, Jimin adds the info that they had to take out the whole root.  09:10 - Even though V is the "director" of Jimin's scene, JK speaks up and takes over the role, saying that directors use informal language and repeating twice in informal language "Jimin, let's go!" He continues speaking informally when Jimin messes up and JK scolds him.  11:40 - When it's JK's turn to deliver a line and he gets nervous about remembering it, JM reads it out loud for him. He also says as soon as JK delivers the line that he did the best job and adds to Hobi, "he doesn't get embarassed, I told you."  16:26 - It's a little hard to see for sure, but it looks like Jimin votes for JK when it's time to choose who should be the skit's director. I'm going to be totally honest with you guys - I didn't rewatch these episodes past this. I first saw it months ago and remember being disappointed and fairly bored through most of it past the first half of the first episode - I don't find the skit funny and the behind-the-scenes stuff isn't amusing enough to make a four-part episode about. I’m sure there are others who completely disagree with me and no judgment if you don't share my opinion! But I'm doing this guide for fun and I don't want to spend two hours rewatching them. 

I don't recall a ton of jikook beyond the above - I think there's a moment in part 3 where JK is getting tired and Jimin offers to take over slating for him. So, anyone who is a fan and knows / finds more jikook moments, please let me know and I will update this guide to reflect that. Otherwise, let's happily move along. :)

Ep 77 “Food Guest Part 1″ (Ep: 4 / KM: 5)

The weirdly-named ones that are prob better translated as "food connoisseurs" but the specifics of the foods theme don't really matter because JIKOOK  

07:41 - When Jin says JK and JM will be competing in a palm-push game, JM says he's already lost (because JK is strong).

07:55 - I'm fairly certain that, if you're a jikook-er, you've seen this moment. It's so unabashedly flirty a description can't really do it justice.   JK and JM are supposed to be playing a game where they put their palms together and shove to see who can make the other lose their balance. JM shoves lightly at JK's chest before they even start the game, then both start giggling. Still giggly, JM asks if JK's ready and JK says he is. JM pushes at JK's palms and JK just swings his arms back as they look at each other and smile. Jin interrupts to ask, "are you a dating couple?" (that's the most direct translation - V app translation is "are you two together?"). JK and JM both laugh, the latter so hard that he spins around, thus losing the game. 

17:08 - JK is staring so intently at Jimin on his knees with a blow-pen in his mouth that he completely misses RM trying to give him a high five. Jin has to call for JK to please respond to RM before JK looks away and returns the high five, laughing and apologizing. He looks back immediately after. 

BEHIND 0:58 - JK gives JM a shoulder massage while holding his chest as JM makes satisfied noises. I've seen this clip in compilations before, but hadn't realized it was also from  this episode. It's really the gift that keeps on giving! 

4:29 - Just prior to the above palm-push game, JM reaches out to do something to JK's sleeve (I think?). The camera cuts before we see clearly.  

4:31 - Slightly different angle of JM and JK giggling at the start of the palm-push game.

7:11 - Reveals that RM actually tried to high five JK and was ignored TWICE before Jin called JK's attention away from JM on his knees with a blow-pen in his mouth. 

Ep 78 “Food Guest Part 2″ (Ep: 3 / KM: 3)

15:00 - JK jokingly asks what the answer is and Jimin giggles at him as the on-screen text says, "how adorable." Unsurprisingly, the others are less enamored. (JK's biggest fans = 1. Jimin  2. Run BTS on-screen text writers)

BEHIND 9:56 - JK watches JM dance playfully, then wiggles his own hips, seeming to want JM's attention. Jimin smiles and starts to say something that gets cut off. 

10:03 - JK films JM as JM dances and smiles while looking into the camera. Jimin is doing silly dance, but JK zooms in on his joyful face. He quickly licks his lips as he watches. 

[slaughterneko]

Also attended counter protest at Toronto -

Local Union orgs and queer counter-protest combined in the morning at Queen's park, queer one organized by 519 from Barbara Hall park. Initially I don't think most people knew where the protesters even were, then word spread that they were gathered on the North side of Queen's park while we were on the South (not sure if this was by way of police shepherding us to avoid them, or protesters hearing that we were there and trying to go someplace else, or if that's standard for counter/protests at Queens Park). While we were on the south side some guy from the protest came over and tried to aggress and got ushered away by the cops. Another woman walked through the counter protest playing "Another Brick in the Wall" by Pink Floyd while towing along her two very small and confused-looking children which really just felt like she was using them as a shield.

Eventually - since it made no sense to counter protest where they weren't even located - we marched to the North side and where the protesters actually were. I'd say we had them outnumbered by probably 2 or 3 to 1 and enough people to surround their group. You could tell that they were visibly shocked when we arrived (like they didn't expect there to by that many queer people? Lol) and based on the looks on their faces I'm confident that they thought we no-showed and we shook them up quite a bit.

There was a mix of people with (surprising no one) inconsistent fascist messaging. Lots of signs that made no sense as per usual - some obviously made for their children to hold, some hockey sticks with "NO SEX ED" on them, signs saying "We go to school to learn Math and Science", "Fuck Trudeau" etc. About what you would expect, all vaguely nonsensical and clear they had no consistent message aside from fash stuff and anti-sex ed.

Once we arrived word spread cops would be showing up and if people wanted to leave safely they should do it then, but most people stayed and I'd even guess it got bigger while we waited. From what I saw the cops largely kept a line between us and the protesters and secured a route out for them out (since they were pretty well trapped by us). Eventually the protesters were made a path to leave, leaving their mic setup and like a dozen small children and some stragglers around the ages of like 6 or 7 to babble into it - who obviously were just parroting their parents. The kids at the rally were all just doing what they're told, but you can tell were being taught to hate us; plenty of making faces, pointing and laughing, trying to goad us like their parents were. None of it was their fault, but it felt really sad seeing these poor children being raised as bullies. The adults were acting equally bully-like, lots of making faces, older couples shouting back. Fortunately by and large I felt the counter protesters were louder and it was difficult to make out what the protesters were saying half the time past our chants.

I'm not sure what anon experienced but IMO it was an excellently organized counter-protest; they kept people safe, manoeuvred us efficiently to spaces that needed it, and the 519 and unions gave excellent materials and organizing tips to people. They did march a ton of folks back to Barbara Hall Park afterwards (and had a couple encounters with fascists in their cars who we sent on their way). Some folks stayed at the statue, but largely the protest was over and thus was the need for the counter-protest so no one really stuck around. I don't think 519 'stabbed anyone in the back' and I think it's disingenuous to imply that they weren't reliable. I'd personally follow their leadership again.

I left independently and then encountered the 519 again on my walk, so I followed them to the queer village, grabbed some lunch and headed home.

While I definitely noticed most of the white fash "Fuck Trudeau" folks leaving when we chased them away, on my walk down Yonge street I saw the Muslim protesters again marching down the sidewalk escorted by a police car. Seemed like it was a much smaller number of them than earlier and probably an impromptu march thanks to being chased out of their site, but seems like some might have stuck around to unofficially annoy the general public.

A Toronto anon here, transphobic protestors here had similar tactics. They got their kids on the mic and would berate them if they didn't repeat what their parents wanted them to. Guy called my partner a pedophile while stripping (in front of his kid!) to try and fight him. Also the 519 (local lgbt org) lowkey backstabbed us lol they announced shortly after my partner and I stormed no-mans land and took back the center that the protest was gonna move to another park. It wasn't, it just dispersed leaving the fascists to go on uncontested. They left us to the riot police. We're hoping we can sort out some more centralized leadership for the 22nd.

~~~~

[swiftgronmasterpost]

Glee Live Tour Part 3 - ShirtGate

The first thing you need to know about ShirtGate is that Lea and Dianna started holding hands during Amber’s solo at the end of Somebody To Love back in May of 2009 at the fox upfronts.

Here’s the first known instance of the handhold:

Notice how nobody else holds hands?

They did this all through the 2010 Glee tour as well as the start of 2011 Glee tour.  Sometimes they would link arms or hug instead and at one point they even played footsie but that part of the song was Their Moment.

But then something happened and they quit holding hands.  Here’s a visual of every instance of that moment in the tour throughout all the shows.  Notice how they stop holding hands for about 10 days starting on June 6:

So what happened on June 6th?

Well Dianna tweeted this the night before:

Then the handholds stop.  Was Lea mad at her for mentioning that moment publicly?  Did the network forbid them to hold hands after Dianna tweeted that?  Did Lea encourage her to tweet it and then get mad at Dianna when she walked it back by saying she was hacked?  Was Dianna actually hacked? (I really don’t think so.)

Whatever happened it does seem to have caused some kind of issue because they stop holding hands (not only that but Lea goes out of her way to put her arm behind her back) but then...Dianna shows up on on June 11th on stage wearing not the Lucy Caboosey shirt she was supposed to be wearing but this:

Let the revelry begin!

Girl was feel. ing. her. self!!!

my favorite moment when she tugs on the shirt to flaunt it and make everyone see:

Twitter and the L Chat explode.  Everyone thinks Dianna has come out!  But...

Early the next day, perhaps even that night, Dianna takes to tumblr and pens a 3,500 word essay explaining that she isn’t a lesbian, she simply wore the shirt to advocate for gay pride (which had started on June 2, nearly two weeks earlier.)

I’m going to post the essay in full in the next entry but here’s the part that stands out to me;

Dianna performs at the next day’s show in Toronto again and there’s still no handhold but then she tweets this mysterious message and then is absent from the Detroit show:

Rumors about why she missed the show swirled and for a long time it was thought that the official party line was that she was sick while fans speculated that she was being punished for trying to out herself (and subsequently Lea, the top two billed women stars of a show that hinged on both their heterosexual appeal to men).  

However she did perform at the June 12th show, why punish her one show later?  

It’s possible news of her little outing adventure didn’t get back to the true powers that be until the next day and they held her back from the Detroit show.

However years and years later (summer of 2020 actually) Kevin and Jenna reminisced about the Glee 2011 tour on their podcast Showmance and they mentioned that Dianna actually missed the Detroit show because she forgot her passport so while they let her into Canada, they wouldn’t let her back into the states.  I have confirmed with some Canadians that this is pretty common.  Canada is a bit more lax at the border.

Who knows what happened.  But I firmly believe she was trying to out herself.  I’m not sure if she missed the Detroit show as a punishment or if it was a coincidence.

Back to the Somebody To Love handholds - While Dianna misses the Detroit show Lea holds hands with Chord and then Achele doesn’t hold hands again during the June 14th show either.  

But the next show on June 16th Dianna reaches out and gives Lea a shoulder rub.  Then the handholds are back in full force.

Lea tweets this mysteriously in the next day or two while backstage during Born This Way (in which she usually didn’t perform):

Achele holds hands (or plays footsie or links arms) during the rest of the tour except when Lea puts her arm behind her back in London on June 28th and when Dianna was out sick on June 29th and July 2nd and they end the tour like this:

Conclusion - 

Dianna and Lea were 100% on during the tour.  Even if she had already met Taylor (which of course there is no public record of) Dianna is still very much involved with Lea, even if they are having their ups and downs.

Lea’s public boyfriend ended up showing up on tour and that may have been the cause of some ire between the two, resulting in some missed handholds and Dianna running off with Naya but I do not believe in any way Dianna would be involved with Taylor and then acting like this with her ex-girlfriend.

I also believe that ShirtGate was probably very traumatizing for Dianna.  She was probably forced to write that essay under the threat of losing her job.  I think that’s part of why she’s never come out and possibly why she never will.  To try and out yourself and then be shoved back into the closet on such a public stage would be traumatic for anyone.

(Gifs sourced from Achele references)

Click here to keep reading!

[margridarnauds]

Things I Wish I Had Known About Being A Celticist (Before Becoming One):

1. If you’re North American, you’re going to have to work twice as hard to get the same level of respect as your peers from Europe. Get used to that now, because it won’t get any easier as time goes on. You’re also going to very likely be in classes with people who, while not FLUENT in Gaeilge, have at least some background in it. This can be a blessing and a curse - The curse is that you have less of an idea of what’s going on, the blessing is that the professors will focus a lot of the tougher questions on them, at least at first. 

2. “So, do you have any Irish family?” You will be asked that question. All the time. If you’re North American or English. Unless you have, say, a grandma from Tipperary, the safest answer is always “No, not at all! I just love the literature/history/language/etc.” 

3. Love languages? You’re going to! On average, depending on your program, it’s likely that you’ll at least be learning two languages. At enough of a level where you can get pretty in-depth when it comes to the grammar. Most Old Irish experts are expected to know Old Irish, Middle Welsh (at least enough for comparative purposes), and German, with Latin often being brought in. You’ll also be expected to be able to comment on the development of Old Irish, Middle Irish, Early Modern Irish, and Gaeilge - It’s essential if you’re going to date texts. There are also multiple other Celtic languages (Breton, Manx, Cornish, Scottish) that, while they might not be ESSENTIAL for whatever you’re doing, are still going to be cropping up at different times for comparison purposes - I’d be lying if I said I knew them WELL, and most people tend to stick fairly firmly to their area, BUT you will probably be learning at least a little of them. (Personally, no one asked me, but I honestly think that I couldn’t call myself a Celticist if I just knew one Celtic language, it’s why a longterm goal of mine is to build up as much knowledge of the others as I can.)  I’ve seen quite a few scholars go in thinking that the linguistics part won’t be important, only to be slammed by the program early on. Even if you just want to do literary analysis, you’re going to have to explain the meaning and development of individual words, as well as situating it in the broader scope of the development of your language of choice. (IE “This is a ninth century text, and we know that because it has intact deponent verbs, the neuter article’s dying out, and no independent object pronoun. Also everything’s on fire because Vikings.”)

4. You’re very likely going to have to move. This applies mainly for North Americans who want to do it (unless you happen to live directly in, say, Toronto or Boston, in which case ignore what I said and, Bostonians, polish off your GREs and prepare to listen to Legally Blonde the Musical on repeat because you’re going to be applying for Harvard). There are very few Celtic Studies programs in the world and, in general, most of the major programs, sensibly, are in Celtic-speaking countries - So, if you want to study Scottish, you go to Scotland, you want Irish, you go to Ireland, Welsh in Wales, etc. If you already wanted to move to Europe for a year or two while you’re doing your MA, then great (and for EU students this doesn’t apply, since they can relocate much easier...unless they were planning on going to the UK in which case.....my condolences), but if you didn’t have any sudden plans to move, keep it in mind. From an American perspective, it was literally cheaper to move to Ireland and do my MA there than to deal with the school system here, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t other inconveniences associated with moving to another country. Even if you’re European, the field is fickle - An Irish scholar might find themselves moving to Scotland, an English scholar might find themselves moving to Ireland, etc. etc. These things happen when you have to take what you can get. 

5. You don’t need Old Irish to go for your MA in Celtic Studies. You do not need Old Irish to go for your MA in Celtic Studies. When I first applied for my MA, I thought I didn’t have a chance because I had a general Humanities degree and didn’t have any formal experience with a Celtic language, least of all Old Irish. As it turns out, most programs do not expect you to have a background in this sort of thing beforehand, and quite a few have different programs for those who have a background in this stuff VS those who don’t, so don’t feel, if this is what you REALLY want to do, like you can’t just because of that. Show your passion for the field in your application, talk a little about the texts you’ve studied, angles you’re interested in, etc., make it the best application you can, and you still have a shot even without Old Irish (or, for non-Irish potential Celticists, whatever your target is.)  

6. It’s competitive - Just because you get your MA, PhD programs are fewer and farer between. Academia in general isn’t known for its phenomenal job security, but Celtic Studies in particular is very fragile, since we generally are seen as low priority even among the Humanities programs (which, in general, are the first to be axed anyway.) If you focus on medieval languages as opposed to modern ones, you might very well find your program ranked lower in priority than your colleagues in the modern departments. Especially since COVID has gutted many universities’ income. I found that getting into a MA program was significantly easier than planning on what to do afterwards, since, for a PhD, you generally have to go someplace that can pay you at least some amount of money. Going into your PhD without any departmental funding is a recipe for burnout and bankruptcy, and there are very few Celtic Studies programs that can pay. Doesn’t mean you can’t try, and, when paid PhDs become available, they tend to be quite well publicized on Celtic Studies Twitter/Facebook, but keep in mind that you’ll be in a very competitive market. Networking is key - Your MA is your time to shine and get those treasured letters of rec so that you can get that sweet, sweet institutional funding for your PhD. 

7. You’re very likely not actually going to teach Celtic Studies. Because there are so few teaching positions available worldwide, it’s much more likely that you’ll be teaching general Humanities/Composition/etc. This doesn’t mean that you’ll be giving up Celtic Studies (conferences are always going to be open, you don’t have to stay in one department for your entire life and can snag a position when it becomes available, and, even if you go outside of academia, the tourism industry...well, it was looking for Celticists, before The Plague), it just means that if teaching it is what you REALLY want to do with your life, it might be good to check your expectations. A few programs even have an option where you can essentially double major for the sake of job security. (So, if you always wanted to be the world’s first French Revolution historian/Celticist/Gothic Literature triple threat......................the amount of reading you’d have to do would likely drive you insane but................)

8. Make nice with your department. Make nice with your department. Celtic Studies departments tend to be small and concentrated, so you’re going to be knowing everyone quite well by the end of your first grad degree, at least. You don’t have to like everyone in it, but they aren’t just your classmates, they’re your colleagues. You will be seeing at least some of their faces for the rest of your life. I can say that my MA department remembered students who left the program a decade ago. Your department is supposed to have your back, and they can be an invaluable source of support when you need it the most, since they understand the program and what it entails better than anyone else can. You’ll need them for everything from moral support to getting you pdfs of That One Article From A Long Discontinued Journal From The 1970s. I’ve seen students who made an ass of themselves to the department - Their classmates remembered them five years later. Don’t be that guy. Have fun, go to the holiday dinners, get to know people, ask about their work, attend the “voluntary” seminars and lectures, and do not make an ass of yourself. That is how you find yourself jumping from PhD program to PhD program because your old professors “forgot” your letter of rec until the day after the deadline. Also, since your departments are small and concentrated, it’s a good idea to prepare to separate your social media for your personal stuff vs your academics as much as you can, since it won’t be too hard to track you down if people just know that you do Celtic Studies. 

9. Some areas of the field are more respected than others. If you want to do work on the legal or ecclesiastical aspects, excellent. If you want to focus on the linguistic elements, excellent. If you’re here for literature.....there’s a place, though you’re going to have to make damned sure to back it up with linguistic and historical evidence. (There’s less theory for theory’s sake, though theoretical approaches are slowly gaining more acceptance.) But if you’re here for mythography or comparative approaches...there is a PLACE for you, but it’s a little dustier than the others. There are fewer programs willing to outright teach mythology, mainly because it’s seen as outdated and unorthodox, especially since the term itself in a Celtic context is controversial. Pursue it, God knows we need the support, but just...be prepared to mute a lot of your academic social media. And, really, your social media in general. And have a defense prepared ahead of time. With citations. Frankly, I think my Bitch Levels have gone up a solid 50% since getting into this area, because consistently seeing the blue checkmarks on Twitter acting like you’re not doing real work while you’re knees deep in a five volume genealogical tract tends to do that to you. If it ever seems like I go overboard with the citations when it comes to talking about the Mythological Cycle, this is why - I have to. It’s how I maintain what legitimacy I have. I’d still do it if I’d have known, but I would have appreciated the heads up. (On the plus side - It means that, in those few programs that DO teach mythology, you’re golden, because they want all the serious students they can get.) 

10. If you really, really love it, it’s worth it. After all this, you’re probably wondering why anyone would sign on for this. The work’s grueling and often unrewarding, you might or might not get respect for what you do based off of where you were born and what your interests are, and you’re subject to an incredibly unpredictable job market so you might never see any material compensation for all of it. But, if you can check your expectations of becoming rich off of it, if all you REALLY want to do is chase it as far as it can go, then it’s worth it. There’s a lot of work to be done, so you don’t have to worry too much about trotting over the same thing that a dozen scholars have already done. You might get the chance to be the very first person, for example, to crack into a text that no one’s read for over a thousand years, or you might totally re-analyze something because the last person to look at it did it in the 19th century, or you might get to be the first person to look at an angle for a text or figure that no one’s considered. If finding a reference to your favorite person in a single annal from the 17th century makes you walk on air for the entire day, then you might very well be the sort of person the field needs.