#anyway a little internet crush isn’t enough for me I need it to be on someone I physically see and get shy around like hello

[wutang4never]

I want to have a crush on someone like what is life if there’s no desire……..

[wayfayrr]

By your side from day one <3

finally set aside some time to finish off wilds turn for being self aware, the smartest one who found a way to get out without breaking your tv and getting the glass shards of screen everywhere. I'll be back on requests and such soon though!! <3

[masterlist]

“Come on [name], you can’t be serious about missing out on plans just to talk to someone you don’t even know is real.”

“You say like I would want to go clubbing tonight either way, besides he’s said he’s just been working up the courage to video call.”

“And you trust that?”

They’ve got enough of a conscious to look a bit ashamed when I look at them, I know they’re worried for me but of all the things to be so worked up about this seems harmless. 

“What if I told you that he was messaging me and telling me to stop talking to you.”

“Can you show me the proof.”

“Well… no. he deleted them immediately afterwards.”

Are they just jealous? This is so unlike them that it’s offputting. I know they can get a little worked up when I get close to other people but accusing my online friend - accusing wild - of threatening them? It’s petty and childish. Are they afraid I’ll replace them or something? 

“Okay, alright. This isn’t going to make me cut him off you know?”

“[name]...”

“Reach out when you don’t feel like senselessly trying to cut me off from others. I’ll see you around.”

Hopefully, it’s sooner rather than later, but if they don’t? It’s their own fault they thought they would need to sabotage my other relationships to get closer to me. They even have the audacity to call out after me as I’m leaving, still trying to warn me about him, like they can’t accept I would dare get close to anyone else. Not like it doesn’t feel awful potentially losing a friend like this, but what can I really do?

The trip home seems to pass in a blur, until I’m already collapsed onto my couch with a familiar notif going off on my phone. Opening it proves it is exactly what I expected it to be, a message from him, asking me how my day has gone showing me more care than nearly every other person in my life ever has. Not expecting me to drop everything on a dime for him, even if recently he’s been getting more possessive in his messages like he wants to be serious when I’ve never seen his face. 

- I’ve been decent, met up with a friend. Not much really, you? - 

- Had to do chores for someone I don’t like >:( wanna get away from everything tbh - 

- why not just up and leave? - 

- I mean, it’s not like I haven’t been planning something - 

Seems like the possessive streak has worn off now then, so I don’t have to worry about mentioning friends again. There isn’t even a reason he should be possessive of me though, unless he’s got a secret crush or something. Which I hope he doesn’t, he’s been speaking to me for barely a couple of weeks. 

- You free to call tonight? It’s been a while. - 

- I’m good rn if you are. I’ll just grab my headphones - one sec - 

- :DD perf perf - 

Honestly a call will be nice, I can just zone out for a bit, play some games and chat. It’s the perfect way to destress after everything that happened earlier, I still can’t believe they threw away our friendship over something so small. Maybe I should just block their number and drop them even if they do try and apologise, I don’t really need people like that in my life. 

“So then love, any plans for tonight?”

“I thought you said you were gonna drop calling me that?”

“It’s silly and you didn’t answer my question anyway.”

“Nah not really. I’m just loading up breath of the wild, been a bit since I’ve -”

“Oh shit.”

Has wild been link this whole time, wait - how did he get access to the internet, HOW IS HE SENTIENT?  

He’s just sitting in his hateno house, holding the sheikah slate like a phone and silently, through the switch anyway, talking. The look of horror on his face is gut-wrenching though.

“You - you…”

“Oh - uh - I mean. Come on love it’s not that bad is it? I - I’m not going to hurt you, I swear.”

“I don’t think I want to deal with this right now… I’m sorry I just.”

The look of horror and shame shifted terrifyingly fast when he noticed me moving to turn off the switch, replacing itself with fear and anger before he steeled himself, and presses his hand against the slate’s screen?

…

He - he’s reached through my phone to grab onto my wrist. 

“No, don’t turn me off, I can’t go back to being just a voice. Please”

“How… how are you DOING THIS?”

“That… Isn’t what matters right now.”

His grip feels so nervous, he looks it too - which makes sense, I would probably be petrified if I lost my body just because I was trapped in a game. I can’t turn him off that would be cruel… he deserves better than that. 

It instantly lightened as I moved to sit back down, a sigh of relief echoing through both my tv speakers and my phone, as he let go the second I sat with his hand retreating through my unbroken phone. 

“Okay, you promise you won’t try to turn me off?”

“I won’t if you’ll explain.”

“That - that’s fair, I can do that for you love and - if I told you that I think I’ve figured out a way to get out? Would you let me live with you?”

“So that’s why you were so forward abou- yes you can. When you’ve explained everything. And made it certain you’re not planning to kill me because you’re scared of me sending you back.”

The reverb’s stopped now, which makes talking a lot more pleasant and less like he’s trying to intimidate me now, not that I blame him for it if I was about to condemn him back to that hellscape. I just, I really hope he isn’t trying to get out just to kill me, I don’t think I would ever be able to get over my childhood crush wanting to kill me even if he has every right to want that.

“What- No no I don’t - why - why would you think I would ever want to even hurt you let alone KILL. I - love I. I love you. That’s why I’m doing all of this - I - I.”

He’s crying. I should’ve known that he wouldn’t do anything like that - it’s within his right to - but he’s link, he’s the hero, the protagonist who was stuck to my side through it all. I know I shouldn’t have said that it wasn’t meant to be cruel but it was careless enough to hurt him. 

“I’m sorry, I came on to strong, you - you have every right to be scared of me. I promise though love I - I will never hurt you ever.”

“I know… I just panicked. You can explain now I won’t overreact again I swear. Or if you’d prefer -”

“If I would prefer..?”

“Why not get out first, then explain?”

Lighting up a firework in my face would have been less blinding than his smile in that moment, it’s such a sweet smile - a genuine one too. Meaning that I said the right thing, that I’m doing the right thing by giving him this chance. 

Hopefully, I won’t regret it.

“Really? You’ll let me do that?”

“I think it’s a good idea, it’ll be easier to talk to you as well. Just - how are you going to go this?”

“Um, oh, well uh, I think I could possibly make your switch into a mock version of a warp medallion? Then link my slate to it and just well”

“That makes sense, you can go ahead then, shouldn’t take long right?”

“No, no it won’t.”

A couple of seconds was all the wait it needed for him to stumble out of the blue lights and right onto me, clearly disorientated by the shift into reality. Probably not as bad as any of the 2d links would have struggled to be fair to him. It was an even shorter wait for him to jump onto me and cling even tighter than a koala could ever hope to, nuzzling up against my neck like it’s the only - because - it’s the only real touch he’s ever felt. 

“So you want to explain then?”

“Could we wait? That took much more effort than I thought. I just want to rest a bit if that’s alright.”

“As soon as you’re rested enough to. You going to sleep for a bit then?”

“No I still want to talk, just about something less taxing?”

Seems like he’s more dodging the topic than anything, which is fine I can get him to talk about it later, there really isn’t a rush for anything. It’s fine. Besides he’s like an excited kid that’s staying up way past his bedtime right now, where’s the harm in staying like this for a bit?

“Mind if I ask why you’re so determined to call me ‘love’ then?” 

“Because you’re everything to me, my light, my love, my life - you’ve been with me through everything. From when I woke to killing ganon and you didn’t abandon me there. You’ve shown me your favourite cities, stuck with me when you had the choice to choose others because you said I am you favourite, so really? How could I not love you?”

“You were aware even in Mariokart?” 

His giggle is sweet, he’s so charming right now, especially with how unaware of it he is. It’s so earnest and unfiltered, just so raw, I could go the rest of my life with that being the only thing I ever hear again. Compared to how he acted in cutscenes as well? He’s happy. Tired but happy.

“Oh before I forget, You should be expecting a delivery actually!”

“What.”

“I’ve been wanting to get out of the game for a while so I ordered some things to try make myself more appealing to you.”

“Like what? Link you didn't need to do anything like that.”

He just shrugged, seems like I won’t be getting an answer to that till whatever arrives whenever it does. Seems he really wasn’t lying about being tired though, he’s already starting to fall asleep laying against me like this. Thankfully he’s light enough to move to a more comfortable position, although theres nothing I can do about how tightly he’s holding me and truthfully? There’s nothing I want to do about it.

“Y’know I think I could get used to this.”

“Yo’ will I pr’mise, I’ll make you addicted to m’.”

“Well that isn’t ominous at all… and you’re already asleep.” 

[anakinskywalkerog]

Hope this is okay to ask. You mentioned a few times that you have ocd and that it interacts with your “obsession” with Hayden. Would you mind elaborating on that a little? I’ve wondered before how fandom obsessions and ocd can interact…

sure i don’t mind talking about this

an important thing to know about OCD (or any illness, i guess) is that it isn’t an exact science. there are lots of different types of OCD, and many of them are not easily recognizable and are not portrayed in the media. i was only diagnosed a few years ago, and that’s because my OCD isn’t the, *licking doorknobs counting things checking to see that the burner is off 7 times* kind of OCD that i recognized from tv shows and books.

OCD is characterized by obsessions and compulsions—my OCD is heavily focused on ruminating thoughts, so, the easiest way i can explain that is things get stuck on my mind in a loop and i can’t get them out. sometimes it’s bad things, like horrific images or things i’m afraid will happen, but sometimes it’s random things, like specific words. my compulsions are less intense than some other types of OCD, but they come out in weird ways—i have small tics that i’m usually able to hide from other people, but often my compulsions change depending on the situation. i also have other adjacent symptoms, like echolalia.

the Hayden thing—i went through a big life change about 6 months ago, so the Hayden obsession coalesced with the fallout from that and also it being a few months before the Kenobi series premiered. Hayden was obviously my first childhood crush and i’ve always loved him and the SW prequels, but with my OCD i can develop obsessions randomly and because i was already not going well, i started compulsively looking at Hayden content on the internet. i watched the movies over and over again and it started as, “i’m just comforting myself by watching movies i love,” but i couldn’t stop watching them…like i felt sick/unwell/upset until i was watching a star wars movie. i was thinking about Hayden and the movies and the new show ALL the time, i had a hard time not bringing it up in conversation, and i was scouring the internet for every single interview he’d ever done. when new stuff from the press tour would surface it was like crack to me lol. idk how to explain it other than to say it was extremely uncomfortable. i couldn’t think about anything else, i was constantly on my phone, and at that time i made this Tumblr because looking for content wasn’t enough for me anymore and i felt like i needed to interact and talk to others about Hayden, bc my obsession was so deep. it’s like scratching an itch, but scratching it so much that it started to bleed/hurt, but not being able to stop scratching it.

this has happened with other things before in different ways. and the obsession has slowly faded. as i mentioned, it’s not really clinical anymore, though i do think i’m still struggling a bit with compulsivity with Tumblr and fanfiction etc. but it isn’t nearly as bad as it was. and i’m sure that whenever i’m doing poorly mentally an obsession like this will happen again for something else. but whenever it gets bad like that i have to remember that it won’t last forever and that it will pass.

anyway, OCD doesn’t ever go away but there are definitely periods when it’s better 😋 and i’m in therapy obviously so that helps too. if anyone is reading this who also has OCD, i hope you feel the camaraderie i’m sending you through the screen!

[neo-culture-taste]

Intrinsic: Jade - Ch 8

Genre: AU, college, frat life, drama, romance, smut, friends with benefits to lovers, secret relationship

Pairing: Taeyong x Reader (fem)

Rating: M for language, adult themes, sexual content, alcohol use

Word Count: 8800+

Summary: Being an alternative influencer on social media was a fun way to express yourself, until you could no longer relish in the joys of playing pretend, and the masks inevitably had to come off of everyone involved.

For more chapters and stories, see masterlist.

It was now or never. The point of no return. 

And even if you did turn back, where would you go? You were already at the airport in a mountain town thousands of miles away from your home and university. You were already waiting at the terminal to board the plane that was going to take you to Taeyong's hometown. To Taeyong’s parents. 

You were so restless you couldn’t stay still and constantly fidgeted in your seat within the plane terminal. Taeyong obviously knew you were nervous. And if he couldn’t tell by the way your legs continued to bounce up and down, then he definitely knew by the way you kept grabbing and releasing his hands over and over, playing with the rings he wore on his fingers, turning them around and around in attempts to distract yourself from the crushing weight of your anxiety.

You nearly jumped out of your seat when the lady on the intercom announced that it was time to board your flight. As you made your way through the queue and navigated to your seats, you watched Taeyong as he seemingly went through all the motions of boarding the flight with serene calm. Was that how you looked to him when you first flew to your hometown to meet your own parents? You imagined you looked exactly as nervous as Taeyong did on that flight. He looked like he was going to throw up any minute that day. And now you felt like you were going to throw up that very second.

The plane had taken off from the ground at this point, and as you gazed out the window at the clouds, you finally accepted that this was actually happening. You were hours away from meeting your boyfriend’s parents. And if they didn’t like you, what were you going to do? Would Taeyong break up with you if they didn't approve? No, he would never do that. But if there was a possibility that he would, what could you possibly do to try to prevent it?

Next to you, your boyfriend had his head on your shoulder, using it as a pillow for a light nap. How was he able to relax right now? He should have been more nervous than you at this point. Did he have a backup plan if things were to go sideways? What was his main plan anyway? All he told you was that you didn't need to do anything but be yourself, but being yourself was the last thing you wanted to do in front of well established aristocrats.

"What are you thinking about," Taeyong asked you after hearing you sigh deeply for the fourth time.

"Jumping out of this window."

He let out a sigh himself and then lifted his head from your shoulder to look you into your eyes. He grabbed your hand that was in your lap and laced your fingers together. "Try not to think about it too much," he attempted to console you, automatically knowing what was actually on your mind. "Don't worry about trying to impress them."

"How the hell am I supposed to do that? Impressing them is what's going to get them to like me, isn't it?" You looked down at your hands and then frowned. A little bit of the tattoo you had recently gotten on your wrist was peeking out from the bottom of your long sleeve. You cursed yourself for not placing it somewhere easier to hide. "I bet Reign didn't have to go out of her way to impress them," you mumbled with no actual intentions of saying it out loud.

"Don't," Taeyong warned, squeezing your hand. 

"I'm sorry. I just...I don't feel like I've prepared enough. Like, what am I supposed to tell them when they ask me about my career?"

"Just tell them the truth."

"No way! You actually want me to tell them I pose half naked on the internet?"

"They're going to find out eventually, so you might as well be upfront about it."

Your eyes widened in horror. "What do you mean they're going to find out? Are they actively online?"

"Not themselves personally, but if they want to know anything about someone, then they have people to go find it."

"And you didn’t tell me this before?!"

"I guess I'm just used to it?"

"They're going to see everything! My ass is on there!"

He shushed you to keep your voice down. "I know, I know." He lifted your hands that were joined together and brought your fingers to his lips, pressing a soft kiss against them before smirking to himself. "I'm the one who took the pictures."

"Taeyong, this is serious. I don't want them to see any of that and get the wrong idea about me."

He sighed once again against your fingers. "Look, I've thought about this for a long time. I've already put you through too much. I don’t want to bring you face to face with my parents and make you any more uncomfortable by pretending to be someone you're not." He repositioned his hold so he could place a kiss on the back of your hand. "You're already amazing just the way you are."

Even though your insides melted at his words, you couldn't shake off the worry that had taken over your entire body. "If you had to think about it this long, then that means a part of you still thinks I should lie. I at least can't go in there with those pictures still up. I have to archive them."

Before he could protest, you pulled your hand away from him so you could bend over and grab your phone out of your bag. After making sure it was still in airplane mode, you connected it to the plane's wifi and then opened the Instagram app. You quickly scrolled down your feed and began a mental list of photos and videos of yourself you wanted to archive that presented way too much bare skin--which was almost 60% of your content. How else were you supposed to show off all your tattoos if not half naked? 

"I'm just going to have to private the whole thing," you sighed in defeat. "Do your parents have hackers, too?" He was quiet as he actually tried to remember whether or not his family contracted assistance from hackers or not. "I'm going to delete everything."

"That's not necessary. You shouldn't have to do any of this."

"But I do. That's why--" You stopped talking when your eyes scanned across a picture of you sitting on Taeyong's lap while he was wearing his mask. In your frenzy to hide your numerous risqué photos, you had forgotten about all of your pictures with LongFlight. "Oh shit. We forgot to fake break up!"

Taeyong put his hand over your phone screen and pushed the device down into your lap. "We don't have to do that anymore. So will you please just calm down?"

You blinked forcibly as your brain caught up with his words. "Why not?"

He used his other hand to poke the space between your eyebrows and moved his finger around to stop you from creasing  them together. "Because I'm going to tell them."

"But you said one thing at a time."

"And I just told you I've been thinking about this for a while. I know what I said before and it's my fault you're as scared as you are now. But you and LongFlight are both huge parts of my life that my parents are just going to have to get used to."

"But what if they make you choose between us?" Your voice came out small and wrapped in fear.

"Then of course I'll choose you," he answered without a second thought.

In so many words, Taeyong had just confessed that he would give up everything he's worked toward with LongFlight if that meant he could be with you. As much as that made your heart swell, you would never purposefully want Taeyong to stop pursuing his passion for your sake. Oh gosh, what if they made you choose between your work and being with their son. Wouldn't you also give everything up for him without having to think about it? Well, duh. You were already irrationally contemplating deleting all your profiles right there on the plane, so you were very capable of making the sacrifice. But if it really came to that decision? Would you actually be able to do it?

The plane finally made its landing at the airport in Taeyong's hometown. Prior to deboarding, Taeyong had put on a pair of sunglasses and a privacy mask in addition to his knit beanie and large winter scarf. He said he'd only put that stuff on so no one would bother him while walking through the airport, but if you saw anyone dressed like that then you'd definitely think they were a celebrity or something and you'd actually pay more attention to them. In order to not stand out like a sore thumb while walking next to Mr. Inconspicuous, you also put on a pair of sunglasses in addition to your own knit beanie to cover the majority of your hair color. 

One of the Lee family’s personal drivers was awaiting your arrival at baggage claim. The older man greeted the both of you before collecting your luggage and loading them onto a cart, transporting them all the way to the car parked in the airport’s garage. Taeyong casually talked with the driver as he drove you through the city, bringing him up to speed on Taeyong's progress in school and briefly telling him how the two of you met through mutual friends, though he didn't go into too much detail. Your stomach was in knots during the entire ride to the Lee family estate, and by the time the scenery outside had changed from rows of tall buildings to rows of tall trees, you felt like throwing up again.

There were no words to describe how big his house—no, mansion was. Gargantuan didn’t even fully encompass it. Taeyong had described it to you before, but the picture you had in mind wasn't anywhere close to what you saw in person. Upon entering the large double doors, you were greeted by an older woman who scooped Taeyong into a tight hug. He introduced her to you and mentioned that she had served his family for a long time. You assumed this was the woman who acted as both his nanny and housekeeper while growing up.

After taking your coats, Taeyong instructed the driver to carry your luggage to his bedroom. You held onto him for support as you gazed fancifully at the years worth of collected lavish decor that surrounded you within the large foyer. Taeyong grew up in a house like this and he preferred to stay inside a cramped dorm room in some old frat house? Make it make sense! You were honestly so unprepared for the sudden exposure to this exceedingly wealthy environment, that the look on your face revealed to everyone just how out of place you felt.

At every new turn of a corner as Taeyong showed you the mansion’s many rooms and amenities, the more you felt like absolute garbage. Or rather absolute garbâge —spoken with a fancy accent. A normal person would be excited to visit their insanely rich boyfriend’s insanely large estate. And you were at first, but the more you gawked at the expensive paintings adorning the walls or the antique vases in perfect alignment along the spacious hallways, the more you felt as if you didn't deserve to be called Taeyong’s girlfriend. It was a different space, yet it was another place where you felt like you didn’t belong.

You never thought twice about how much money Taeyong had in his pockets. It was just an added bonus that came with the man you fell in love with. If he had turned out to be a huge jerk, then you would have cut him off immediately. No amount of money was worth putting up with and pretending you were in love with some douchebag. 

To be honest, you were already privy to the fact that his family had money before you even really got to know him. However, you didn't know exactly how many zeros they had sitting behind their name. You were definitely off by at least three in your original assumption. You probably never would have known either, since Taeyong didn't act like he came from a place like this. The only time you ever really remembered he was rich was whenever you would go out and he'd never check the prices for things before he purchased them. But now you were standing in a blatant reminder that was screaming just how different your two worlds were.

When you finally made it to his bedroom, which was more like a large studio apartment without a kitchen, Taeyong pulled you into a hug and spun you in a half turn. "So what do you think?"

"I don't know what I was expecting, but everything looks like it's from a movie. With a very expensive budget."

"I can tell you're overwhelmed," he said softly before placing a kiss on your forehead. "My parents are at a fancy evening soirée or whatever where they have to show their faces and hobnob with everyone else in their tax bracket. So, you have a little more time to relax before you have to meet them." You smiled at him weakly in response before looking down forlornly at his chest. "Don't worry. I'll be right beside you."

Even though Taeyong was being calm and reassuring, he was an absolute mess of nerves on the inside. Nonetheless, he pushed all of his worries aside so he could be strong for you. He couldn’t be a walking blob of jelly when he was the only person you had to lean on in this situation. The situation that he himself put you in.

About an hour and a half later, an older male servant informed you that Taeyong’s parents had arrived. You took a deep breath to prepare yourself and didn’t release it until you were in the main family room. But then, standing right in front of them, it was incredibly hard to breathe. The pictures Taeyong had showed you of his parents didn’t compare to how good looking they were in person. They were strikingly elegant, poised, and very well put together. Compared to their formal evening wear, you felt like you were dressed like a hobo with the oversized sweater you considered to be airplane chic. You internally cursed yourself for not changing your clothes in the time you had before they came home.

His mother’s face lit up when she saw you and she greeted you cheerfully, gushing at how pretty she thought your hair was. His father stayed close to her side, smiling widely as he took in your full appearance. You stuttered a flustered ‘thank you’ before Taeyong officially introduced you to both his parents. You bashfully shook their hands and then, with the smile still on his face, his father asked you to have a seat and to get comfortable. You sat down on the couch, your back straighter than it had ever been before. Taeyong sat close to you and wrapped his arm around your waist, holding it there for the entire time you talked with his parents as a form of reassurance and support.

They asked you to tell them about yourself, the dreaded question you spent the entire plane ride obsessing over. Do you tell the truth? Do you lie? You had sort of planned to do a bit of both, but the overwhelmingly dignified aura of his parents were making you tongue tied. You felt like you were being interviewed for a job, one you certainly did not have an outstanding resumé for. 

Somehow you were able to manage words, and told them about where you were from and what you were studying at the university. Later, his father made a joke about your hair, asking you if green was its natural color and then complimented you when you jested back that it was. Knowing his father was capable of making corny jokes calmed you somewhat, and made it easier to transition the conversation to talking about your interests in fashion and the beauty industry. They asked you more questions about your hobbies and what you did during your spare time, as they seemed very interested about who you were. You told them you liked to dabble a bit with photography--absolutely omitting the part about what type of photographs you habitually took. 

Although nerve-racking, the conversation with his parents went more smoothly than expected. They were both very pleasant and polite and it didn’t seem like they hated you on sight. They actually were very relaxed in your presence. Taeyong’s mother had removed her heels and taken off most of her jewelry during the conversation, and his father had also taken off his shoes, removed his suit jacket, and untied his tie. 

When a servant from the kitchen staff politely interrupted to announce that dinner was ready, everyone stood to make their way to the dining room. After his parents left the room, you looked at Taeyong with hopeful eyes. He smiled before placing a sweet kiss on your lips and sending whispers in your ear of a job well done. With his praise, it felt as though a huge weight had been lifted off your shoulders. You had completed the seemingly impossible task of giving his parents a good first impression of yourself. For a moment, you briefly felt like you could accomplish anything.  

At the dinner table, you were considerably more relaxed than you were in the main family room. You were all smiles as you watched Taeyong and his family interact with one another. His parents updated him with information regarding some of the townsfolk: who was getting divorced, who was taking over what company, who was going bankrupt. They even gossiped a little bit about some of the people they fraternized with earlier that evening. You tried your best to follow along, but they might as well have been speaking a different language. You didn’t know any of those people they talked about and you didn’t think you’d ever meet them--or that you ever wanted to meet them. 

At some point, you did begin to space out and focus on eating your food, but you were brought back into the conversation when Taeyong’s father asked you to hand him the seasoning blend in the shaker you had just used. You happily obliged, and out of habit you pulled up your sweater's sleeves so as to not get any food on them when you passed the item. 

“Oh, how interesting,” his father said when you handed him the shaker. You tilted your head slightly to the side, a bit confused as to why he would say that about you doing something so normal. But then you followed his gaze to where it landed on your bare forearms openly displaying some of your tattoos.

Your eyes widened with dread when you realized what you had just done and you stiffly pulled your arms back to your side of the table. How could you have been so careless?! The whole point of wearing long sleeves was so they wouldn’t see your tattoos this early in the relationship; and you had just waved some of them right in front of their eyes. The plan was for them to get to know your personality without making any prejudgements about you based on your tattoos. You knew you were going to fuck up some kind of way. You shouldn’t have let your guard down for even a second.

You looked over to Taeyong who had stiffened, still as a statue in his seat. He wasn’t looking in your direction. Instead, he was closely watching his mother, gauging her reaction to your premature reveal. She looked away from your arms and directly at your petrified face before pressing her lips into a smile that didn’t completely reach her eyes. “Don’t be ashamed to show us, dear. We appreciate many forms of artwork and self expression.” 

She hadn’t lied. Taeyong had told you before that his family did enjoy many different types of art and music. But he also told you that they were very judgemental towards the types of artistic expression they didn’t like.

Even so, immediately after his mother encouraged you to show her your arms, Taeyong’s eyes locked with his father’s as they proceeded to have a seemingly telepathic conversation.

You lifted your arms back up and warily presented them to his mother. "The designs are very unique," his father began after peeling his eyes away from his son. "And the artwork is very well done. You went to an amazing artist." He genuinely seemed very impressed by your ink and examined your tattoos as closely as he could across the large dining table.

"Um, th-thank you,” you stammered. “Ten actually designed this one," you added in an attempt to redirect the conversation. You lifted up your sleeve and bit more to show the entirety of that particular tattoo. “I had to beg him for a while before he actually drew it for me.”

"Oh, you're very good friends with Ten as well," his mother said as a statement rather than a question, as if something was finally made clear to her--as if she finally knew the reason you and her perfect son were ever in the same room together. You recalled Taeyong telling you that his parents weren’t particularly fond of his friendship with Ten for pretty much the same reasons you both thought they wouldn’t like you for. But if they were able to look past their son’s best friend having tattoos, multiple piercings, and prancing around half naked on a stage, then they would be able to do the same for his girlfriend, right?

You were certainly being overly optimistic.

You nodded and placed your hands back into your lap. "Ten is the person who introduced us to each other," you answered. You turned to Taeyong and gave him a knowing smile. "We'll, he reintroduced us, actually." Taeyong smiled back at you fondly as you shared a moment silently reminiscing about the night you first met him as LongFlight. Even though it was a bit of a drunken blur, it was still kind of romantic if you squinted. 

"Reintroduced?" His mother's question had cut short your impromptu walk down memory lane. 

You glanced back at Taeyong, a question now in your eyes. He understood what you were asking and he inhaled deeply as he subtly shook his head. Now was not the time to tell his parents about LongFlight. 

"We knew of each other but we never hung out,” Taeyong began. “She’s childhood friends with some of my frat brothers. At the beginning of the summer, we ran into each other at one of Ten’s shows.” He paused, and reached over to grab your hand to hold it in order to calm himself down before continuing. “But we’ll tell you more about it later. It’s getting pretty late and my body is starting to feel the effects of all that traveling we did."

Something flickered across his mother’s face--an emotion you couldn’t quite catch. She could definitely sense that her son was retreating from the conversation. She could sense that he was hiding something else about you from them. 

“Yes, of course,” his father started after taking a quick glance at his wife’s neutral expression. “You’ll be staying for the entire week. We have plenty of time to catch up and get to know each other. Go rest and enjoy your vacation together.”

You both excused yourselves from the table and made your way back to Taeyong's bedroom. “I don’t know if she likes me anymore,” you said once you were far enough away from the dining room and out of his parents' earshot. No matter how polite his parents may have been, you weren’t completely oblivious to how the mood had shifted when you accidentally showed them your tattoos. “But I think your dad kind of does, though, right?”

“It’s too early to tell.” 

Taeyong knew how his parents operated. It was way too early to tell what his parents were thinking, but he had a pretty good idea about what was currently going through his mother’s head about you. And he knew she was going to put up a farce until she got you alone so she could really speak her mind. He wanted to avoid that at all costs by refusing to leave your side.

From your perspective, it was even harder to get a grasp on how his parents felt about you as the days passed. You spent most of your time with Taeyong as his parents were very busy with organizing and attending various business and charity events, so you didn’t have many opportunities to spend one on one time with either of them. But whenever you were all together, they still treated you the same way as they did the first day you arrived, kindly and very curiously, as if you were some kind of puzzle for them to figure out. 

You were on your best behavior, of course. You didn’t have a single alcoholic drink while you were there to avoid the possibility of running your mouth about something they shouldn’t or didn’t need to know. You made sure you kept your arms and legs covered by clothing whenever you were in their presence so as to not remind them of your tattoos again. Out of sight, out of mind, right?

From where you stood, you genuinely got along pretty well with his father. He was a pretty easy going guy and tried to make you feel relaxed whenever he could. However, with Taeyong’s mother, you could tell that she was testing you. Sometimes she would make an effort to include you in conversations about topics you knew very little about, and then make little comments about how you couldn’t possibly know those things because of your different upbringing. You tried not to think too hard about it. You convinced yourself that she wasn't doing it to make you look stupid, but actually doing it to look out for her son.

Even though Taeyong had said you didn’t have to, you privated all your social media accounts anyway as a precaution. After spending time with his family, you knew they were the type to dig for information about you. Privating your accounts would give you a little bit of time before they found a way around that obstacle. You even made Taeyong archive all his pictures with you on LongFlight's Instagram before he told his parents about his secret. 

He wanted you to go with him when he told them. You sitting next to him would keep him grounded, and you would be there to back him up if needed. But finding the right time to tell them was difficult. Before he knew it, it was your last night staying in his home before the two of you boarded a plane the next day to return to your university. That night, the four of you sat inside the family room as you all watched a TV show his parents were heavily invested in, but you found to be incredibly complicated and boring. You weren’t exactly sure if Taeyong was paying attention to the show or not by the way he stared blankly at the TV screen, but you quickly figured out his thoughts were completely somewhere else when he suddenly blurted out that he had a double life.

“What?” his father asked, very confused. It took a moment for his parents to register that it was their son that had just said that.

“I’m a musician,” Taeyong stated as he nervously turned to face his parents.

“Ohh,” his father’s shoulders visibly relaxed after hearing Taeyong’s confession. He thought his son was about to admit to being in a crime syndicate or something. He was immensely relieved to hear that Taeyong was just secretly making music. However, his mother continued to be on guard in her seat. 

“What kind of musician?” she asked him. And you could tell she was anticipating the worst.

“Like Ten.” Taeyong said after a hesitant pause.

“Oh, son…” His father visibly frowned and he reached for the remote to pause the show on the TV. It was the first time you had seen him put on a negative expression the entire time you had stayed in their home. It almost made you sad to see him that way. The disapproval in his voice was thick, and you could practically feel the disappointment emanating from the other side of the room.

His mother? She was quiet, but her brows were knitted together in concentration.

“But I’m completely anonymous,” Taeyong continued to explain himself to his parents. “I keep my face hidden with a mask and nobody knows who I really am.”

“At least you did that right,” his father mumbled as he exasperatingly ran a hand through his hair. “How long have you been doing this? Has it been lucrative at all?”

Taeyong winced slightly. Of course his father wanted to know whether he was making a profit out of doing this or not. He just wanted to know whether or not Taeyong was wasting their family’s money on some frivolous hobby. “Almost two years, and yes.”

“Two years?” his father asked incredulously, causing his mother to scoff in disbelief. 

“He’s really talented,” you chimed in to alleviate some of the tension in the room. “He’s an amazing writer and composer. And he’s already gained so much popularity that well known artists are asking him to produce songs for them.” You place your hand onto Taeyong’s shoulder, communicating to him that you were always going to be there to support him by doing so. He put his hand on top of yours as a gesture of thanks, and accepted your support by intertwining his fingers with yours. “He’s very successful.”

His mother looked at the interaction between your hands before one of her eyebrows raised and her lips pressed into a thin line. 

“Really?” his father leaned forward in his seat, genuinely intrigued. He was back to his regular relaxed nature and you felt as if someone had opened a window to let out all of the hot air in the room. “How did you go about starting this? Let us hear some of your compositions.”

Taeyong proceeded to tell his father about how he got his beginnings and the processes he took to get where he was today. He was also visibly at ease now as he chatted excitingly to his father about something he was very passionate about. The two of you even went on to tell his parents the true story of how you met–leaving out very specific and graphic details of course. His mother still hadn’t said anything during the conversation. She quietly sat next to her husband and sipped on her tea the whole time. However, her facial expression had gone back to being neutral. She could see just how much her son lit up when he talked about his music. So she decided to keep whatever comments she had about it to herself.

For now.

The grandfather clock in the foyer signaled to everyone that it was now 10 pm. Taeyong’s father looked at his wristwatch and was surprised by how late it was. He and his wife had an early meeting in the morning so they needed to start preparing for bed. The four of you stood and said your goodnights to one another. But before you walked away, Taeyong’s mother called you back.

She told you how nice it was to meet you and have you stay with them for the week, and if she didn’t see you in the morning before you left for your flight, then this was her goodbye to you. Her husband followed suit and did the same, and held his hand out to you for a handshake. His mother, however, had caught you off guard. After you shook her husband’s hand, she wrapped her arms around you in a hug. 

You couldn’t believe what was happening. You were pretty sure–no–almost positive that this woman did not like you. But here she was hugging you goodbye. Even though it felt extremely weird, you immediately reciprocated and hugged her back, quickly deciding not to waste this uncharacteristic gesture of affection. When she let you go, she smiled at you and told you once more that she enjoyed your company, and then she walked over to her son and kissed him on the cheek before she and her husband retired to the master bedroom.

After they left, you immediately turned to Taeyong. “What?!” you whispered to him in shock.

“I don’t know!” he whispered back equally as stupefied.

You closed the short distance between you and your boyfriend by jumping up and wrapping your arms happily around his neck. “Did we do it?! Did we actually do it?!”

“Maybe?” he answered you with a big smile.

You squealed inwardly before planting kisses all around his mouth in your excitement.

“Hold on, hold on,” he said to stop the onslaught of your lips on his face. “We don’t know for sure yet.” If there was one thing he knew about his mother, it was that she was very skilled at maintaining a poker face.

“What do you mean? She hugged me. I don’t think she’d do that if she didn’t like me.”

You had a point. The only people Taeyong had seen his mother hug besides him and his father were other members of his family and a few of her close friends. Hugging anyone else was extremely out of character. So what did his mother hugging you actually mean?

“Let’s go celebrate,” you said, breaking him out of his thoughts. You grabbed his hand and then skipped through the hallways as you guided him to his own bedroom.

Perhaps he was overthinking it and his mother hugging you did actually mean that she liked you. Or maybe, she had noticed just how happy you made her son and accepted you regardless of how she felt about you. Well, that thought made him feel good. It made him feel really good. And the look on your face, the smile you had plastered on from ear to ear as you clumsily wriggled out of your shirt and pants, it made him feel extremely good.

Did he actually do it? With all of the hiding and all of the sneaking around, and all of the bullshit he had to make you do just so his parents wouldn’t get wind of you before you had a chance to meet them? Did it all actually pay off?

The two of you passionately made love in his bedroom that night, drunk and happy on the idea of the two of you finally being able to love each other openly and freely. You went to sleep naked and wrapped in each other’s arms, believing that you would now be able to do that every night without ever having to worry about living up to anyone’s standards except your own.

When the morning came, you were woken up by the movement of your boyfriend as he unraveled himself from you and made his way out of the bed. He noticed he had woken you up and apologized before kissing you good morning. He started to get dressed by putting on a t-shirt and a pair of shorts he picked up off the floor, prompting you to ask him where he was going. He said he wanted to catch his parents before they left for their meeting so he could tell them goodbye one more time. 

Taeyong made his way to his parents’ bedroom, but they weren’t in there. He thought maybe he had missed them and decided to check the garage to see if one of their cars were gone. But on his way to look, he ran into the housekeeper who told him that his parents had just finished having breakfast in the kitchen and were about to leave. 

“Hey, mom, dad,” he addressed them upon entering the kitchen.

“Hey, son,” his father returned his greeting with a smile.

“What’s wrong, dear,” his mother asked him, sensing her son had something he wanted to tell them. Mother’s intuition.

“Nothing’s wrong. I just wanted to say goodbye again and I wanted to thank you. I really appreciate you accepting my music career and my relationship with Jade.”

His mother abruptly hiccuped. The corners of her lips twitched into a smile as she tried to hold in her sudden laughter, but she ultimately couldn’t and had to bring her hand up to her face to conceal her snickering. Next to her, his father let out a loud sigh and shook his head at his wife.

Taeyong furrowed his brows in confusion at their contradicting reactions. “What’s so funny?” 

She removed her hand from her mouth and smiled widely at her son’s perplexed face. “How long are you going to keep doing this act?”

Your boyfriend’s confusion further continued. “What act?”

His mother rolled her eyes. “Taeyong, dear. You can’t fool us. It’s too obvious what you’re doing.”

“I’m not doing anything.”

“Oh, please," she waved her hand dismissively. "We knew you were up to something long before you got here when you stressed to us over the phone how different your new girlfriend was. And after seeing her for ourselves, well, your father and I knew immediately why you had brought her here. So we decided that we wouldn’t ruin the poor girl’s stay by giving you the reaction you wanted. So we did the opposite.”

The reason he brought you? The reaction he wanted? But they did give him the reaction he was hoping for. He had brought you there for them to get to know you and accept you. So what was his mother even saying? “What are you talking about?”

She rolled her eyes dramatically once more. “Okay fine, I’ll say it out loud if that's what you really want me to do. With your double life aside, you have successfully pissed us off by bringing a girl like her here. Congratulations! You’ve pranked us!”

Taeyong was too stunned to speak. He stood there wide eyed in shock as he looked back and forth between his mother and father. He had been completely fooled. Here he thought his parents had finally accepted him for being different, that they had finally accepted him wanting to lead a different life than what they had originally planned for him. That they had finally accepted the fact that he could and would love whoever he wanted.

“So, when you’re done playing around with Ten’s little groupie,” his mother continued. “Make sure that she isn’t too attached to you and doesn’t try to run off with any more of our money.”

Taeyong became furious. His mother had no right to talk about you like that. She barely knew you and she was only making assumptions about you based on how you looked and how he met you. Exactly like he knew she would. He couldn’t believe he let himself be tricked so easily. He couldn’t believe he didn’t notice what was going on before he let them trick you.

“She’s not like that,” Taeyong rebutted with a clear edge to his voice. "And she’s not going anywhere.”

His mother took in the way her son’s posture had become more rigid, more defiant. And she couldn’t deny the intense emotions she saw burning in his eyes. “You’re serious,” she spat in disbelief. Now her posture had changed. Her weight had shifted on her feet as her stance changed into one of threatening authority.

“Yes. We’re in love.”

He could see the veins in his mother’s temple twitch as she tightly clenched her jaw. Her eyes bored into him, unblinking as she mentally filtered through all the possible reasons her son could honestly want to be with someone like you, until she finally settled on the reason she feared the most. “Is she pregnant?” she hissed through her teeth.

“Not yet,” Taeyong challenged.

Before his wife could erupt with rage, his father stepped in between them. “Take a deep breath, honey. He’s just being rebellious right now. You becoming furious is what he wants. He’s just trying to get under your skin.”

“No!” Taeyong exploded. “I’m not playing any games right now. I’m going to spend the rest of my life with her.”

His mother angrily pushed past her husband and stomped towards her son. Taeyong flinched as she got close to him and jutted her index finger into his chest as she railed into him. “How dare you insinuate insulting our family by proposing to that trashy woman. Do you actually think that we didn’t do our homework? After you told us about your secret music career, we easily found out everything we needed to know about who she really is and about the indecent behavior she displays on the internet for the entire world to see. The first results that show up when you search LongFlight are all from gossip rags talking about your dating scandal. You were smart enough to keep your identity hidden when it came to your undignified rap music, but you weren’t smart enough to realize you were being seduced by someone who only wanted to take advantage of your name. You may have been successful in hiding her from us and hiding yourself from the paparazzi right now, but one day you’re going to get caught and the damage it will do to this family will be irreversible.”

Taeyong was speechless again, but not because he couldn’t find the words. He was angry. He was frustrated. He was sad. He knew his parents would more than likely disapprove of your relationship with him, but he didn’t think his mother would reject you so vehemently. It hurt. It hurt him so much because he loved you and he loved his family. All he wanted was for the both of you to get along.

His mother stepped away from him and pinched the bridge of her nose. “Give up this game already. You’ve lost your mind if you think for a second that you’ll be able to pull this off. Don’t drag this out too long and get rid of that girl quickly if you know what’s best for her.” 

Taeyong forced himself to look up at the ceiling as he desperately held back the tears behind his eyes. He knew what she meant by what was best for you. He knew exactly what she meant and he wanted to believe he could prevent the worse from happening. But in that moment he felt helpless–powerless against his mother’s authority.

“I have a headache,” she told her husband as she released her nose. “Talk some sense into your son, but make it quick. The meeting starts within the hour. I’ll be waiting in the car.”

After his mother exited the kitchen, his father walked up to him and placed a comforting hand on Taeyong's shoulder. “I know that was a lot to hear, but she’s right, son. Take care of this so neither one of us has to step in. You know what your mother is capable of.”

His father had now exited as well, leaving Taeyong alone in the kitchen to process. He had begun to shake, attempting to hold in everything he was feeling. He tried to calm himself down with rapid deep breaths but it wasn’t working. He needed to see you. Seeing you and hugging you–it was the only thing he could think of that could calm him down. But he couldn't see you like this. He wouldn’t be able to hold face. You would know something was wrong right away.

But you didn’t even have to see him to know something was wrong. You would know before he rounded the corner to exit the kitchen. You would know before his eyes locked onto your tear streaked face as you leaned against the hallway wall with your hand covering your mouth to hide your violent sobs.

After Taeyong had left you in bed, you tried your best to fall back asleep but you couldn’t. For some reason you felt very restless, and you found yourself thinking about too many things at one time. You were still just so giddy from last night’s events, that you couldn’t stop your mind from making up scenarios where you and your boyfriend were happy and married and all kinds of other cheesy romantic stuff.

Now that you were fully awake, you realized that you were hungry, and then after that you came up with the idea to make breakfast for you and Taeyong before you had to leave to go to the airport. So you got up, threw on your robe, and started on your way to the kitchen. But sadly, as you made your way to the hall, you were unfortunately able to make out the voices of Taeyong and his mother in a heated argument, stopping you dead in your tracks as you forced yourself to listen to her accuse you of all the horrible things she thought you were doing with her son.

Taeyong's chest tightened in anguish at the sight of you in the hallway and he immediately started to rush towards you, but you lifted away from the wall and bolted back to his bedroom. He wordlessly chased you back into his room, physically unable to call your name due to the enormous lump in his throat. Once inside, you fell to your knees and let out the most gut wrenching sob he had ever heard you produce.

“I’m so sorry…” he managed to croak out, still continuing to fight back the tears he refused to let fall. He had to be strong. He needed to be strong for you.

“Stop saying that!” you screamed. “You knew I wasn’t good enough for you from the beginning!”

“That's not true…” he whimpered, getting down on his own knees to be level with you.

“Yes it fucking is!” you yelled while turning around to face him. “The sneaking around, the lies, the fact that you care so much about how you'll look being seen with me! You started off playing fucking games with my head and I’m still being played by you right now!”

Taeyong managed to swallow the lump in his throat before speaking again. “No baby, that's not true. What happened between us…what I did in the beginning was before–”

“Before what? Before you decided to trick me into this relationship just so you could piss off your parents? I heard what she said! You were never serious about us to begin with!”

“That's not true and you know it!”

“Then what is true, Taeyong? Is any of this true? Was any of this ever true?!”

“Of course it is! Don’t ever think that my feelings for you aren’t real! I love you so much it hurts!” He crawled closer to you on the floor. “I’m willing to go against my family for you. I know we can handle whatever they say or do to try to break us apart.” He reached out his hand to grab yours, but you recoiled away from him.

“But what if I can’t handle it? You keep saying ‘we’, but did you ever think about what this was going to do to me?”

“Yes! I think about that constantly! That’s why I want to prove to them that you’re--”

“If you’re willing to go against them, then why do you have to prove anything? If you still have to prove I’m worthy, then that’s not going against them at all! You’re too scared to do it! What do you think is going to happen to us that you’re so afraid of? What aren’t you telling me?!”

“They will do anything to get rid of you! Anythi--fuck!” He started to get choked up again and began to steady his breathing. “I’m afraid of every possible thing they could do to make me lose you. I know what they’re capable of and I'm telling you that it will be nothing compared to what you heard today. I know, okay! And I know I keep fucking up because I don’t entirely know what I’m doing and I keep putting you through so much shit, but you have to trust me! I don’t know exactly how I’m going to solve this, but I just know that I have to do something! I don’t want to lose you! I can’t!”

Taeyong brokedown as his entire body crumpled in on itself. He was completely bent over on the floor, crying into his hands as he struggled to keep himself from shaking from the painful sobs that felt like they were going to rip him apart.

“That’s not fair,” you said with a fresh batch of tears running down your face. The anguish on his face, the horrible aching you felt inside your chest. It wasn’t fair for the two of you to have to go through any of this. And you didn’t know how much longer you would be able to keep going through this pain. “I want to believe you, but it can't…These empty promises…I can’t take it anymore…”

He snapped his head up from his hands and looked at you mortified. “No, baby, I know!” He reached out and grabbed your wrists and you allowed him to pull you closer to him. “I’m not trying to force you to believe anything. I just…” His sentence trailed off as he looked into your red puffy eyes. The sorrow he saw in them–it was all his fault. He did this to you, he was doing this to you. He knew what he had to do to stop it from happening. He couldn’t make you continue with this pain. “I just…” he repeated, and looked down at the floor, swallowing the second freshly formed lump in his throat as he fought back his entire being from telling himself not to say the words that were about to come out of his mouth. “If you don’t want to--”

“I don’t think…” you started, cutting him off. “Staying in this…isn’t going to work out the way we want it to…”

Taeyong’s hands gripped your wrists tightly and his forehead hit your chest as he failed miserably to fight back the sob that choked out of his throat. He didn’t want to end it, but he knew that was the only thing that would make things right.

None of it was fair. It wasn’t fair that he fell for you the very next day after the night in the bathroom. It wasn’t fair how quickly he realized that you were the missing piece to completing him. It wasn’t fair how he had to try so hard to change something he couldn't control just so he could stay with you. 

It wasn’t fair the way your insides twisted into agonizing knots when you watched his heart crack into pieces before your eyes. It wasn't fair the way you wanted to hold him in your arms and tell him that everything was going to be okay when you knew for a fact it would only get worse. It wasn't fair that you still didn't want to let him go when you knew your relationship was doomed from the start. It wasn’t fair that you couldn’t picture yourself living without being with Taeyong.

It wasn't fair that the two of you were the unfortunate victims of falling in love with someone they weren't supposed to have.

“But…” you started again, placing your hands on his head in a tender embrace. “We can keep trying.”

Taeyong audibly whined, letting go of your wrists to wrap his arms around your torso to hold you close as he let out sobs of relief into your chest. 

You petted your hands against his hair in gentle strokes, reassuring him that you didn’t want to go anywhere–that you didn’t want to leave him if there was something, anything, that the two of you could do to prevent the inevitable.

😢 - D

For more chapters and stories, see masterlist.

[thefanficmonster]

Stranger In The Crowd

Corpse Husband x Reader (Female)

Warnings: None

Genre: FLUFF, Humor, RPF (Real Person Fic)

Summary: Having recently ended the process of moving, Y/N is rightfully very tired but also very excited for the new chapter of her life. Funnily enough, this new chapter includes a newly formed long distance friendship/crush with a very special person from San Diego.

Requested by @boiled-onionrings Hi darling! Thank you so much for your wonderful request and I’m really sorry you’ve had to wait so long for it to be posted but here it finally is and I hope you enjoy the read! Love, Vy ❤

I let out a heavy sigh, relieved to finally be at home after such a long day of standing around in the Georgia heat with only a thin layer of fabric to protect my eyes and head from the scorching sun. Yeah, anyone who says that tent did well at protecting everyone under it today is nothing but a liar. I was in a short, strapless white summer dress, the fabric of which barely had any weight and consistency to provide heat of its own yet I still damn near melted. Ok, I’ll admit, some of the roasting heat probably came from the energy and force I put into singing the songs of my band’s new album ‘Starting At The End’. 

The mini concert we held in this large open field was meant as an introduction to the city of Savannah where all the band members - myself included - are actually from but we all moved to the West Coast to pursue our music career. And now that we’ve grown, and the majority of us are married, one of us is a father now as well, we’ve decided to return to our hometown. The decision was so spontaneous and was executed so quickly due to no one objecting to it that it still hasn’t me that I’m no longer in LA. The heat isn’t helping my ‘processing’ process but I’ll get to it eventually. Do I miss LA though? Not sure I do - I think I more miss the people I was closer to while I was there.

Suddenly, as if perfectly timed, my phone dings, notifying me that I’ve received a message. I don’t have to look to know it’s from - there’s only one person I actively text and his name is....

C ~ Your virtual buddy Corpse here, making sure you didn’t die of a heatstroke today. If you did indeed survive, just reply to this message, if not....don’t do anything, I guess.

I can’t help but giggle at the sight of the message. I promised Corpse I’d text him after the concert to let him know I was ok, but the even dragged out for longer than anticipated so I’m guessing he got worried.

How cute.

Me ~ Alive and well, but I do feel like a popped tire of an overloaded truck. Hope that’s a visually appealing description

Corpse and I met on the charity livestream Jacksepticeye organized and invited our band to so we could play Among Us with some of the best gamers and streamers on the internet. It was a huge honor and a ton of fun, definitely an event I’d like to repeat in the near future because I had such a good time and I know all my bandmates did too. We all got acquainted and even became official friends with the gamers that were practically our hosts, Corpse becoming the closest friends I’d earn. That livestream happened months ago and we still text just as consistently.

C ~ Oh I know EXACTLY what you mean. Anyway, as to not exhaust you further to force you into typing, how about you send me pictures to sum up your thoughts and emotions and plans for the evening

This is OUR THING trademark, mine and Corpse’s and no one can take it away from us. It’s a significant element of our friendship that enables us both to understand one another when one of us feels the way I described in my message - a popped tire or a deflated balloon. I’m usually the exhausted one - blame the many shows we do and the many meet-and-greets we organize for our lovely fans. It’s the type of exhaustion none of the band members mind at all, but we definitely need some time to recover from it.

As I go to sit down on my couch, the flower crown I’ve been wearing slips off the top of my head, falling on the floor, creating a soft noise that attracts the attention of one of my many cats - Sasha. She’s the youngest and most curious kitty in the family, always protected by the other four - Luna, Cassie, Silver and Lynn. Those four are far lazier and a lot more disinterested in comparison to Sasha who immediately runs over to see what’s fallen.

I smile to myself, taking the flower crown and undoing it to lessen it by a few stems to make it smaller, all the while being watched by the curious Sasha whose interest is rewarded in the end when I put the now adorably tiny flower crown on her head.

While she still hasn’t shaken the thing off I manage to snap a pic which I send to Corpse who opens it mere seconds after it was delivered. 

C ~ Sasha’s pulling off your aesthetic better than you. Sorry, someone had to let you know

I burst out laughing for two reasons - 1.The message itself, damn it! It’s hilarious; 2. Corpse has learnt the name of each one of my cats and never mixes them up - not even Luna and Lynn who look almost identical. That amount of attention to detail is astonishing and very meaningful to me, it genuinely warms my heart and that may or may not be dramatic but it’s definitely not exaggerated.

Me ~ You think I haven’t caught on yet? 

C ~ Well, if it makes you feel any better you pull off my aesthetic better than I do

He’s referring to the e-girl look I did for one show the band had in downtown LA one night. I was drunk and looking forward to trying new things so I improvised the hell out of my outfit but I apparently looked presentable enough to leave a good impression on Corpse despite the pic I sent him being a bit blurry and being a mirror selfie in the bathroom of the very bar we were performing in. It goes without saying that the mirror was dirty too - had a bunch of writing on it which Corpse said only added to the aesthetic. Looking back on it now I kinda agree, and luckily so did the fans in the comments of that same photo when I posted it on Instagram.

Me ~ Means a lot actually. Nowhere near enough to aid the burn of having a cat pull off cottagecore better than I do, but still helps XD

As if sensing that we’re talking about her, Sasha hops on the couch, poking her head over my phone to look down at the screen.

Now this is gonna be golden.

I take a selfie with my phone in my lap, the camera capturing both me and Sasha at a rather unflattering angle which has me losing my mind laughing when I send the picture to Corpse who immediately sends back a string of cry-laughing emojis.

C ~ I can’t tell which one of you is cuter

Me ~ If that was a compliment, I gotta say I appreciate it greatly

C ~ Just telling the truth ;)

It’s times like these that the butterflies in my stomach remind me just why I’ve started catching feelings for this man despite all the distance between us and despite barely knowing him - he knows me more than I know him but I don’t mind it, oddly enough.

I’m fond of our connection and though I sometimes dream of something more, I’m also content with what we already have considering that ‘something more’ seems rather unattainable as of now.

My phone dings again, clearing the fog of thoughts and presenting me with a new message from Corpse.

C ~ Oh, by the way, look what I got....

That message is followed up by a picture of a ticket. A plane ticket to Georgia! 

While I’m still busy stomaching this and dealing with my quickly rising excitement, he sends another message.

C ~ I hope to catch a The Silver Rays concert while I’m there. Heard they had an adorable frontwoman ;)

My breath catches in my throat as a wide grin spreads across my face. The thought of having Corpse so close to me sends those aforementioned butterflies in my stomach into a raving mood and they practically explode my insides with excitement and joy like I’ve never felt it before. I can’t wrap my brain around the fact that we’re about to go from having an entire country between us, to being just some ways away - him in the audience and me on stage without a single clue of who to look for. That’s part of the excitement though, I guess, part of the guessing game that’s gonna make our meeting all the more interesting.

He’ll be a stranger in the crowd and I’ll be a performer on a stage - seemingly two people who have no relation whatsoever. But damn does it go beyond that: No one has to know how hard I’m falling for that stranger in the crowd.

Me ~ I’ve heard so too, can’t confirm it though

If this is gonna be a guessing game, I’ll flip the tables a bit - I won’t take any guesses. I’ll let the answer come to me. I’ll give the first move over to the stranger in the crowd, let’s see what he does.

C ~ I’ll check and let you know, don’t worry

Not worried whatsoever, Corpsie. I’m not worried at all.

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[thecarnivorousmuffinmeta]

ok, so we have paranoid bella and all other incarnations, but what about Bella who is just a complete sociopath. She completely understands what a vampire is and what she's getting into by wanting to be one. Bella just wants to be immoral and powerful regardless of the consequences. Edward can't read her mind and I imagine Bella has learned social cues and hiding evidence enough to be about at an equal level social standings wise with already weird book Bella. How does the twilight series go?

Anon is referring to Paranoid Bella.

And oh boy, alright, let's do this I suppose.

On Why Bella Doesn't Have to Be the World's Greatest Actress

Of a note, I don't think Edward would even notice that Bella's... odd. Even if she were a fantastic actress (Bella is notably in canon a very poor liar and very easy to read).

This is because he doesn't actually care what Bella is like, he projects onto her, and she smells phenomenal. In other words, he'll still tell himself Bella's a feminine Carlisle Cullen knock off even if she's drowning puppies in a well.

So Bella doesn't need those social cues, Edward genuinely will not notice, and he will not care.

Regardless, you've set the stage with a completely different character and I guess we're going with that.

The Tale of Sociopath Bella

As in canon, Bella immediately notes something is off about the Cullens. Then Edward tries to eat her in Biology. In canon, Bella was terrified in this moment and genuinely thought this boy might kill her. She later tells herself this was irrational and tries to shrug it off, but none the less, she was terrified.

You don't give me too much to go off of with Sociopath Bella in terms of personality traits, but I imagine she still fears for her life in this moment.

I imagine what she does is, after collecting herself, try to get Edward Cullen thrown out of school. Bella is now a sociopath with no empathy towards others, Edward Cullen makes her uncomfortable and appears to actively wish her harm, she's going to do something about this.

I imagine, rather like Amy Dunne from "Gone Girl", she accuses him of sexual assault and goes about fabricating evidence, including harming herself. When asked, others agree that Edward was acting very strange in Biology towards Bella Swan and is generally kind of creepy. Even the administration agrees that something odd appeared to happen, as Edward tried to switch out of his Biology class immediately and then he disappeared without warning for a week after having appeared perfectly healthy the day before.

Something happened in that class, or after it, and that something seems to revolve around Bella Swan.

There's no real evidence, but there's enough suspicion that Edward is granted his wish when he returns: he gets moved into Physics. Edward, of course, is appalled. That girl not only humiliated him and ruined his life by merely existing and smelling delicious, but now she's spreading slanderous lies about him. His family, of course, knows the truth and tries to comfort him (it doesn't really matter, there's no evidence and they'll be gone in a few years anyway, as it is they can leave early if they have to and no harm done) but Edward seethes.

He makes a point of confronting Bella, both to notice if she noticed anything odd (as in canon), and to get revenge for her slander. Unfortunately for Edward, again, there's a little too many witnesses, and Edward looks... unfriendly. Bella files for a restraining order through her father, it's approved in record time.

Edward is now livid.

This woman is the devil.

Well, that there seals Bella's fate. She is a great evil upon this earth, the worst kind of woman, and in a way just as monstrous as the rapist pigs he used to eat. She's destroying his family's reputation in this town, destroying his school life, and he won't stand for it. Carlisle wouldn't approve, but at some point, the demon wins.

Edward gleefully eats Bella in her bedroom. The crime scene is as grotesque and bloody as you can imagine.

Which, of course, also makes him the primary murder suspect (correct in this case, well done Charlie). With the advent of the internet, with cable television, and with Edward now having to disappear before they start trying to get DNA, the Cullens have to go off the grid and exit society.

They now live in a cave, thanks to Edward and Bella.

But That Wasn't What I Wanted!

I get the feeling you wanted to get a little further into canon than that. So, for once, I'll oblige.

Sociopath Bella, for whatever reason, holds her tongue and takes no action when Edward is terrifying as fuck in Biology. He disappears for a week, she finds this very strange, then he returns, clearly interested in her, which is also very strange.

Bella continues to have no sense of self-preservation (for some reason) and still does not take action against Edward. Even when he confesses to wanting to eat her on numerous occasions.

By the time Bella figures out Edward's a vampire, she wants to be one, desperately. Edward doesn't seem... amenable.

But unlike Canon Bella, Sociopath Bella isn't here to please Edward. After the James incident, and she's met the family, I imagine she takes stock of her options and tries to see who is her best mark.

I imagine Bella lands on either Carlisle or Jasper. Carlisle, because he has the best control and has clearly turned several already, and Jasper because he has shown no hesitation on doing what he believes needs to be done regardless of the family.

If she approaches Carlisle, I imagine she points out the peril her life is in. Edward could crush her at any moment, she nearly died thanks to James, her very existence puts his coven in peril and Edward does not seem inclined to let her go either. This is untenable. (I imagine Bella also learns during the course of this conversation about the Volturi Law, as Carlisle undoubtedly explains it in clearer terms than Edward initially did). Edward has condemned her to death, they both know it, and it's best Carlisle turn her sooner rather than later.

Carlisle is deeply uncomfortable with this but doesn't disagree. I imagine he tries to argue for after Bella's graduation, when she can more easily disappear. I imagine she pushes for that summer, plans a hiking accident and forces his hand with "sooner is better than later".

If she goes to Jasper, Bella points out the same thing. This is untenable, she's breaking the law by existing, she must be turned. Jasper fully agrees (and would like not to eat her) but he doesn't have the control to turn her. He would in turn go to Carlisle (leading to the above scenario).

Now, through Alice's visions, Edward would likely find out about all of this and throw the greatest fit the world has ever seen. He rages at Bella, then himself when he realizes she has a bit of a point and he's condemned her to be a vampire, then rages at her again because the Volturi need not ever know and EDWARD WILL LEAVE HER DAMN YOU!

I imagine Bella keeps pushing, which may get her mercy killed by Edward.

In the event that his guilt is all-consuming and he can't even grant her mercy for he is such a wretched beast, Bella turns, and...

I imagine she's a perfect Cullen.

Bella has superb control, to the point of ridiculousness, more the Cullen lifestyle appeals to her beyond just immortality. They have stability, material wealth, and while Bella doesn't care about the familial connection she won't say no to it either.

Being a man eating nomad has no appeal to this Bella.

She'll follow the diet meticulously to a t, do the high school routine perfectly, and ignore Edward's spiral into depression and despair now that he's ruined Bella Swan's life.

[somerpmemes]

The Owl House Starters

Change as needed

“No! My only weakness! Dying!”

“That doesn’t count, right?”

“Do you have any friends? Real ones?”

“Tiny trash thief!”

“Oops, that happens sometimes.”

“I’m a squirmy little fella.”

“I like food, I like love, just let me write about it!”

“Oh, he gets so cute when he’s thirsty for power.”

“I’ve never actually broken any of your stupid laws… in front of you.”

“I hate everything you’re saying right now.”

“We’d be the strongest power couple ever.”

“Self-doubt is a prison you can never escape from.”

“Anyways, let’s bounce before any more monsters fall in love with me.”

“I am not your cutie pie!”

“No one wants an un-oiled snake.”

“Remember, never befriend a man in sandals and always measure twice, cut once.”

“Be back by nightfall or risk mortal peril!”

“I know I’ve had enough delight for one day.”

“Sorry to break it to you, ___, but no one here is that well-dressed.”

“This has been a rough day.”

“Big houses always belong to big whack jobs.”

“Today just got good.”

“Wizards are just old people with glitter in their pockets.”

“Anyways, your food is gone and we are too.”

“Never trust a man in casual drapery.”

“All that mean-spirited laughter made me sleepy.”

“I don’t like this. I really don’t like this.”

“All your food was so tiny and cute.”

“If you can think of a better plan I’d love to hear it.”

“Betrayed by my own cool accessories.”

“I didn’t have to be part of this!”

“I… don’t like this.”

“I think I’ll head home and look at pictures of animals that are still… alive.”

“Wow, you’re so unnoticeable I almost rolled into you.”

“It’s okay, the thorns only went through a few layers of skin.”

“Alright, into the darkness you go.”

“Oh my god, I haven’t eaten real food in so long please give me some.”

“You can’t just cut open a human, can you?”

“Keeping junk in my pocket saved my life!”

“Ahh, baby’s first wanted poster.”

“Even demons have inner demons.”

“This is my paying attention face.”

“Look, now we’re boo boo buddies.”

“It’s like a rainbow, but looking at it turns you inside out.”

“I respect your cunning but I also hate you for it.”

“Oh, gross. Can I keep that?”

“This is terrifying, so why do you look so happy?”

“Oh no, a twist!”

“I’m kind of over that nickname, but okay.”

“Oh, what lovely thing do we have here? It’s just so dang shiny, oh my.”

“And look, I drew flip book.”

“I will literally do anything to stop this.”

“If I’m seen, I could go to jail… again.”

“Alright, let’s see this mess.”

“That’s probably fine.”

“Time to prepare for bloodshed.”

“Welcome down to my level!”

“I know I should be repulsed but that look is fierce.”

“I’m gonna steal everything that’s not nailed down!”

“I was up all night poison tasting and, for some reason, I don’t feel great.”

“I need an extra pair of eyes looking out for pickpockets. And an extra pair of hands in case I want to pickpocket.”

“I got leaves in my pants. And I like it.”

“I was a strange child.”

“You think this can stop me? I can still bite your ankles.”

“If you’re gonna eat me, just do it now!”

“___, you’re getting all swoony again.”

“Rivals are meant to be annihilated, not befriended.”

“Witches eating babies is so 1693.”

“Ugh, you.”

“I thought we were as cool as cucumbers but we’re as sour as pickles.”

“Whoa, I almost passed out.”

“It’s been hours, how can it keep screaming!?”

“Say that again and I steal your tongue.”

“Keep going, this is fun to watch.”

“Isn’t that taking it a bit too far?”

“Just go away before things somehow get worse!”

“This never happened.”

“And who doesn’t like their name in lights?”

“That’s the incorrect reaction!”

“I smell an easy mark.”

“Well, I hate her.”

“It’s like demonic possession with the ones you love.”

“This is just like my favorite early 2000’s movie!”

“I’m so old… and pointy.”

“I’ve got some very confusing emotions right now.”

“My life’s not a joke! But yours is!”

“Novelty costumes are where I draw the line.”

“I am not above disrespecting my elders.”

“This vacation just took an alarming, back-alley turn.”

“Geez, I thought I’d like being babied. But I feel small and helpless, like some sort of baby.”

“Hey, take this, society!”

“I didn’t like her telling me what to do before, but now I love it!”

“Let’s go let out some teen angst!”

“This is how the cool kids ride. Super backwards, on purpose.”

“Your life is pretty terrible. But, hey, it’ll probably be over soon.”

“This is some of my best work, really captures the shame.”

“That’s sweet, kid. Now let’s never speak of this again.”

“Show, don’t tell, man.”

“Oh, look what you did. I’m gonna go rub it in.”

“That seems like a potential problem to me.”

“You being the razzle, I’ll bring the dazzle.”

“Do you always have confetti on you or—?”

“You’re just gonna be unhelpful, huh?”

“Okay, time to run for no particular reason!”

“Oof, I’ve had this nightmare before.”

“Like I’d actually apologize.”

“I want power, and I want drama.”

“Are you ready to give up?”

“I was afraid, I acted stupid.”

“I just wish you told me the truth.”

“You know, it didn’t taste as bad as I thought I would.”

“Impressive, still alive.”

“This is a throne worthy of a tyrant!”

“No, no, keep those sticky hands away.”

“No one wants to see that.”

“Since when are you into sports?”

“Gross, sympathy.”

“Don’t spend all night plotting revenge.”

“Oh, this is an interesting development.”

“I’ll take that weird grumble as a yes.”

“I’m feeling confident about this plan.”

“Trust must be earned.”

“If you run, you’ll just make it harder for yourself!”

“Your pride has destroyed you.”

“So tiny, so angry.”

“I don’t think I’ll ever be clean again.”

“If you ever want to search for the truth, I’ll help you.”

“Aww, that’s a horrible lie.”

“Partake of my free snack samples!”

“Why isn’t anyone paying attention to me?”

“A, eww. B, I’m bored. C, I feel like pickpocketing some dork while they browse.”

“I know my good angle.”

“Ugh, what are the basement dwellers doing out in natural sunlight?’

“Hey, there’s more to life than shipping.”

“___, I know you’re trying to help, but I think you’re crossing a line.”

“Ooh, I love punching.”

“You’re ominous, and I like it.”

“And of course you would be here just to be a nuisance.”

“I wanted to compare sunglasses.”

“Fame can really box you in, you know?”

“Besides, if anyone’s putting you down it’s gonna be me.”

“If it’s disappointing in any way I’ll spend the rest of my life trashing it.”

“He scammed us. Can you believe he scammed us?”

“Good entrance. But that outfit? Hah!”

“I’ve got a new crush and her name is education!”

“Ahh, fresh garbage.”

“I have never seen such an extravagant earring.”

“Wow, a surprisingly peaceful domestic moment. When will it be ruined?”

“Weaponizing my pride, well played.”

“Sorry, whoever’s over there!”

“Well, go on. Eat the snow.”

“Huh, it’s no fun if they don’t tremble.”

“Oh, okay, alright. Yup, an idea’s happening.”

“Shh! I don’t need your validation!”

“Get back here before that thing bites you!”

“No, we’re gonna die.”

“Cool. I didn’t actually think you could do it.”

“It’s not a secret.”

“Alright, your adorable banter is literally making me sick.”

“Believe it or not, I’ve seen worse.”

“Aww. I won’t be doing that, but thanks.”

“Quitting: it’s like trying, but easier.”

“You humans are filled with liquids, right?”

“I guess I have always liked pouring things into other things.”

“Time to scrounge through the trash.”

“I ain’t no desk jockey.”

“You don’t know diddly dang about squiddly squat!”

“I love secret rooms!”

“You have an aura of lies.”

“Also, you can eat trash.”

“Do the right thing, you dingus!”

“It just goes on like this for an hour.”

“Carnivals bring crowds and crowds bring suckers.”

“We’ve got scams to run.”

“I know poison when I see it.”

“You can’t scam a scammer.”

“You should really put a lock on your closet.”

“I love crimes!”

“Now this is my kind of weird.”

“That’s way safer than becoming blood brothers.”

“Beat up the man and steal his things for me.”

“This mama is ready for trauma.”

“All right. Approval!”

“Curse these stubby legs!”

“Sketchy carnival rides are not to blame this time.”

“___, you’re lucky I can’t be mad at your adorable antics.”

“Just when I thought I couldn’t respect the law any less…”

“Aww, what a supportive sign.”

“Yep, I just counted to one million.”

“Looks like we ruined his life for a second time.”

“I’ve always wanted to own a jagged piece of cheap metal.”

“Yes! Bread puns, bread puns forever!”

“Now I know what friendship tastes like.”

“I think today is a talons day.”

“It’s fun because it’s stupid.”

“I’ll admit, I was adorable.”

“Be careful with my brain.”

“Wouldn’t you rather talk about it?”

“That’s my motto after all, ‘Out of sight, out of mind.’”

“No schemes, no plots, no ruses. None.”

“I can’t believe I made him cry.”

“Are you solving a crime or about to commit one?”

“Sadly this is one problem crime can’t solve.”

“I’m supposed to choose someone interesting, accomplished, and noteworthy. People aren’t meant to be all those things!”

“Yup, her brain’s burned up real good.”

“Be still my fantasy-loving heart.”

“I’m pretty good at getting stuck inside people’s heads.”

“Hey, I found something magical.”

“I’ma put my face in it.”

“It’s like a little doghouse for angels.”

“If you’re handing out attention, I deserve it.”

“Eww, I mean, aww.”

“I really messed things up.”

“It’s eggs, it’s full of eggs.”

“No one turns down an interview with someone this pretty.”

“Me? Avoid? What? No. But let’s skip it.”

“There’s levels to me, kid. Levels I say!”

“Oh, right, I put people in there.”

“I’m gonna hug you so hard you’ll never forget me again!”

“I regret teaching you about the internet.”

“Ah, a severed hand. Perfect response.”

“Hmm, the demon at my shoulder makes a good point.”

“Always trust a shoulder demon.”

“The more I look at him, the more uncomfortable I get.”

“Man, you’ve got some quick grabbers.”

“I can’t wait to get overdressed, take awkward photos, push all the buttons!”

“We’re gonna turn this bloodbath into a fun bath.”

“Do you think I could pull off red eyeshadow?”

“Girl, you could pull off anything.”

“We’re style geniuses!”

“Ominous footsteps, creepy woods, this is no problem.”

“Dang, I look great.”

“___, you always go overboard and I end up bailing you out.”

“Now, what’s the fun in watching a kid get eaten by a monster if it’s my kid?”

“___, I don’t think you’re ready but we’re literally out of time.”

“Why so twitchy, witchy?”

“Teenagers are brutal. They’ll boo anyone and that kind of public humiliation will stick with you for life.”

“You look nice. Strange, but nice.”

“Honestly, I’m kind of amazed with how fearless you are.”

“You’ve done things I could never do.”

“Thing is, you’re sitting in my personal chitchat zone, which means you gotta talk.”

“I am a little weirdo.”

“You gotta pander.”

“Cheating a isn’t anything to brag about.”

“Well, can’t reason with crazy!”

“I’ve been talking for too long.”

“Feeling sentimental?”

“I love water.”

“I don’t know much about sports but I do know about sports movies.”

“What happens in the montage stays in the montage.”

“Not everything can be solved with a good attitude and a dope movie soundtrack.”

“Sorry, I just really love backstories.”

“You just destroyed your social life.”

“That’s such a stupid rule!”

“You’re not gonna show this to anyone, right?”

“I haven’t forgotten what you promised me.”

“Ahh, you’re a thorn in my side but you always dig your way into my heart.”

“Jeez, you’re morbid.”

“Ahh, it’s a fate much worse than death if you think about it.”

“Please don’t make me regret taking you here.”

“Love me a properly ventilated castle.”

“I spy with my little eye something coming this way!”

“I’m going away and I don’t know if I can come back this time.”

“And  ___, thank you, for being in my life.”

“I want her back as much as you do.”

“Don’t look at me like that, this is for your own good.”

“Ah farts, I got caught.”

“You understand, don’t you?”

“Please tell me that’s not as bad as it sounds.”

“To be great, you have to make sacrifices.”

“Ahh, ___, you chose the wrong side.”

“I like your spirit, but try that again and things won’t end well for you.”

“Go on, then. Go be a hero.”

“I may have lost but so have you.”

“I can teach you what I know, and what we don’t know we can learn together.”

[miraculous-sunflower]

science teachers ARE cool

Mrs. Mendeleiev’s POV

Beatrice Mendeleiev sighed. She did not like the fact that Marinette Dupain-Cheng was expelled without proof, and that Lila’s parents did not come when she was supposedly pushed down the stairs. She tried to get Mr. Damocles, another fool, to look at the security cameras during Miss Dupain-Cheng’s expulsion, but he denied, saying that if she wouldn’t stop badgering him, he would fire her. She reluctantly obliged, though secretly thinking that the school didn’t even have cameras, because of course the principal used the funds from the mayor to buy his foolish “hero costume”. Ms. Mendeleiev kinda liked Marinette Dupain-Cheng, even if she came into science class late every time. She was a good student, getting straight A’s, and her family made the best pastries in Paris, though she knew pastries weren’t even relevant in this incident. She knew she had to help out Miss Dupain-Cheng. Even if she got fired from her job, it was okay. She didn’t like her job very much, as everyone here was a fool, and she could find another job somewhere else, but it was her job, as a teacher, to protect her students. _______________________________________________________________________

Ms. Mendeleiev scoured the internet, trying to find the Italian Embassy’s number. She heard Lie-la -oops i mean Lila- talking about how her mother was a diplomat, so she had to get in contact with her to tell her all about her daughter’s antics - if she knew. She finally found the number, and dialed.

“Hello, what can I help you with?” the person on the other line asked. “Hello, I’m Beactrice Mendeleiev, and I’m trying to get in touch with Lucia Rossi?” Ms. Mendeleiev questioned.

“Actually, I’m Lucia Rossi. I’m the secretary of the Italian Embassy. What do you need?” Heh, another thing Lila was lying about. Her mother was the secretary. Still must be hard work.

“I’m actually your daughter Lila’s science teacher, and I was wondering about all of Lila’s absences and missing assignments. I questioned her about it, and she said she couldn’t do her assignments because of her arthritis and many other disabilities she has.” Ms. Mendeleiev stayed up all night, trying to come up with the perfect story to seem like she was calling for something besides exposing Lila.

“Arthritis? Disabilities? Lila doesn’t have any disabilities? And absences? Are you sure she said that?” Mrs. Rossi was very surprised. Perfect. Ms. Mendeleiev grinned.

Lucia Rossi’s POV

The other woman on the other line was too surprised. Disabilities? Lila didn't have any disabilities. She was a healthy little girl, her little bambina. Was her baby spouting lies? She doubted it. Perhaps this teacher didn’t properly hear her.

“Yes, I’m sure, and on top of all her disabilities, she said that she has a lying disease which causes her to lie, by accident. She said this one a fellow classmate of hers, Marinette Dupain-Cheng, apparently pushed her down the stairs. Marinette did no such thing, and the expulsion was reversed. If you don’t believe me, take a look on the LadyBlog. It was a blog dedicated to the Heroes of Paris, but now your daughter’s face is plastered on it. If I had a daughter, I’d never want her to be bragging about her accomplishments!”

Mrs. Rossi was shocked when she said lying disease. She looked at the “World’s Best Mom” cup on her desk. Lila gave it to her when the school apparently “shut down”. Was her little bambina lying this whole time? And blog?

“LYING DISEASE?!?! I have to call the school. What has this girl been doing? Also, I want to hear more about her absences.”

“I can help you set up an appointment with Mr. Damocles. As for her absences, Lila has been claiming that the Prince of Achu, Prince Ali, has invited you and Lila personally to visit the kingdom for 2 months. Were you not there?” Ms. Mendeleiev sounded confused. Oh dear, it sounded like she also fell for her daughter’s lies.

“ACHU? 2 MONTHS? Lila told me that the school was closed for 2 months because Ladybug and Chat Noir were too incompetent to defeat the akumas!” Mrs. Rossi exclaimed. Now here, she understood. Her daughter told her that the school was closed down, and her teachers that she was traveling, to get out of going to school! She could get in trouble for truancy for that!

“I assure you, Ladybug and Chat Noir are not incopetent. They usually take care of an akuma in less than 3 hours. “Oh, this is a lot to take in right now. I’m sorry, but Lila lied about everything. Thank you for calling me, I really appreciate it. I’ll come by the school this week.” Mrs. Rossi finally breathed out.

“I’m glad I did. Clearly, you were not informed of this, and Lila was lying about everything this whole time!” Mrs. Rossi showed a little smile, but it quickly went away. Before she hung up, she had to ask-

“Before I go, was there anything else Lila said?”

“She said that she saved Jagged Stone’s kitten off an airplane tarmac, and that she knows Clara Nightingale. She also said she’s best friends with Ladybug. Now that I think about it, she probably framed Marinette to get her expelled, now that I know she lied about having a lying disease.”

Saving kittens? Being best friends with pop stars? Best friends with a superhero? She could get sued for all the stories she’s spouted! And if these stories were heard at the embassy, she could get fired! Oh that girl...

“Oh my goodness, I will have to apologize to Miss Dupain-Cheng on behalf of my daughter. Thank you again, Ms. Mendeleiev.”

Sure enough, later that day, the mother searched up the LadyBlog, and of course, her daughter’s face was there, next to the headline, “I’m BFF’s with Ladybug’s BFF!”. She sighed. She was going to expose her daughter for the liar she is, because her daughter fooled the whole school, not to mention hurt one of her other classmates!

Mrs. Mendeleiev’s POV

After the call ended, Ms. Mendeleiev smirked. Lie-la will have no idea what’s coming to her now. __________________________________________________________________________________

Marinette’s POV

“Me and Clara Nightingale are sooo close, that we’re practically sisters! I helped her with most of her dance moves for her newest music video!” Lila bragged.

“OMG girl! That’s amazing!” Alya exclaimed.

“Wow, Lila, you have a heart of gold!” Rose and Mylene gushed.

“So awesome.” Juleka mumbled.

Marinette rolled her eyes. They were talking about Lila as if she was a saint, though they probably did. She was sketching out a new design, and it was Rena Rouge inspired. Alya, Marinette thought. Her and Alya were still friends, but they were a lot more distant. All of her friends were like that. She thought about Adrien for a second, and then quickly dismissed the thought. Adrien was irrelevant, at this point. He gave her that stupid piece of advice, take the high road, and basically got mad if she did anything to prove Lila wrote if the witch spouted another lie. Her crush on him was long gone, which gave her more time to focus on her guardian work.

Marinette continued sketching her design, but then suddenly, she heard a faint but sharp, “Miss Dupain-Cheng?” She looked over to where the voice came from. Ms. Mendeleiev was signaling her to come outside. This is it, she metally scolded herself. You came to class late too many times. She’s gonna call Maman and Papa, and tell them you’re late every day, and they will try to find out what’s up, and then they’ll figure out you're Ladybug, and then they’ll forbid you from fighting akumas, and then Hawkmoth will win, AND PARIS WILL BE DOOMED! She silently walked out of the classroom.

“Hello, Miss Dupain-Cheng. You’re probably wondering why I called you outside, but don’t worry, you are not in trouble. This is regarding Miss Lila Rossi.” Ms. Mendeleiev said.

Marinette was shocked at first, then nervous. “Ms. Mendeleiev, I can assure you, whatever Lila said isn’t true! She lies with-”

“Every breath she takes. I know.” The science teacher cut in. “I called her mother recently, and she too had no idea about Lila’s antics. She will be coming in today to discuss with Ms. Bustier and Mr. Damocles, and I can assure you, she will be exposed for who she truly is.”

Marinette was stunned. Her science teacher knew that Lila was lying? She was sure that she was in trouble. Marinette blinked, “Wow, that’s a lot to take in, but thank you. This means a lot to me, Ms. Mendeleiev.” She was grateful for her teacher.

Mrs. Mendeleiev smiled. “I truly do not like liars either, so it was very tempting. I see that none of your other classmates or teacher has figured out she was spinning a tale this whole time, have they?”

Marinette thought for a second, and said, “There is one who knows. It’s Adrien, Adrien Agreste. He knew, but he thinks avoiding conflict makes it go away. He told me to take the high road.”

“Really? That certainly wasn’t good advice. Avoiding conflict isn’t going to make it go away. It will only cause more chaos. Anyways, I have to go, Miss Dupain-Cheng. Have a good day.” Ms. Mendeleiev concluded.

“Have a good day as well!” Marinette said. “Wait,” she started. Ms. Mendeleiev turned around and looked at her. “Ms. Mendeleiev, is there any way I can be moved into your class?”

“I’m not sure, but after this, I’m hoping that the leadership and staff at this school will improve after this incident. Now, run along, or you will be late for class.” Ms. Mendeleiev waved.

Marinette walked back to Mrs. Bustier’s room, feeling much more optimistic than she had 10 minutes ago. _______________________________________________________________________

In Ms. Bustier’s classroom, they were learning about authors of the world, and were taking turns saying who their-

“LILA ALEXANDRIA ROSSI! WHAT ARE THESE STORIES YOU’VE BEEN SPOUTING?!” A woman who looked like a much older Lila burst into the room. Marinette straight out smirked.

“Mama! It’s not what you-” Lila started.

“Not what I think? You know what I think? I think you’ve been lying to me this entire time! You’ve misplaced my trust, taking me for a fool! Saying that the schools were closed because Ladybug and Chat Noir were too incompetent to take care of them! Saying that you took a 2 month vacation at the Kingdom of Achu! Saying that you know all these pop stars! You realise I can lose my job if your stories wound up at the embassy! Non cercare di scappare via.” Her mother yelled.

Alya became mad. “What do you mean, she said Ladybug and Chat Noir are incompetent? Ladybug is Lila’s best friend!”

Lila’s face was panicked. She knew that if she spun the right tale she could weasel out...

Lucia Rossi took a breath and said, “I’m afraid my daughter has been lying to you all. Everything she said was fake. I’m sorry on her behalf. Also, may I speak to Marinette Dupain-Cheng?” A girl with dark blue pigtails and bright bluebell eyes raised her hand. “I’m so sorry, Miss Dupain Cheng. I wasn’t aware that my daughter framed you to get you expelled. I hope you are doing well.”

Marinette looked at her kindly. “Thank you for the apology, Mrs. Rossi, but please don’t feel bad. You weren’t the cause of this, and you certainly didn’t know.” Lila’s look she aimed at Marinette was murderous.

“Thank you, Miss Dupain-Cheng. Lila, come on. You should be happy you aren’t sued for slander and use of name.” The mother barked out at Lila.

“No, mama! They are under a spell! They are lying! DOn’t listen to them! I never said anything about traveling to Achu, or being best friends with Ladybug!” Lila knew she could get out, of course she could.

“NO LILA! YOU ARE LYING. YOUR SCIENCE TEACHER SHOWED ME THIS BLOG, AND IT HAS ALL OF YOUR FALSE CLAIMS ON IT! DON’T EVEN TRY TO WIGGLE OUT IF THIS MESS YOU CAUSED!’ An akuma showed up, and was heading toward Mrs. Rossi.

“CoMe HeRe, little akuma!” Lila sung. She deliberately tried to grab for the akuma, only to be stopped by a particular bluenette. Marinette pushed Lila over and trapped the akuma in a jar, and placed it on a desk.

“Why am I not surprised? Of course you are working with a well-known terrorist. LILA! HOW STUPID ARE YOU?!” Her mother screamed at her.

Lila was so mad, and wanted to rip that goody-two shoes apart.”YOU!” she began at the bluenette, “You ruined everything! Everything was going so well, all these sheep believed me, and Adrien was so close to being mine! You went and ruined it!” She stomped over to Marinette, and was about to slap her, until…

Alya’s hand gripped Lila’s arm so tight, there were marks. “Because of you, my blog is ruined. What’s even worse, is that you ruined my friendship with my best friend.”

“Well, it’s not my fault you didn’t fact check. You ARE a terrible reporter.” Lila smirked, but was pulled by the arm of her mother.

They left, and Marinette’s classmates immediately surrounded her, begging her, yelling out apologies, and saying how sorry they were for not believing her. “While none of you directly hurt me, it really did hurt that none of my friends had my back,” she looked at Adrien, who looked guilty, “or even believed me! You believed a girl with crazy stories over me, your friend. It’s going to take time for me to trust you all again, but I’d like to build up our friendship again.” She finished.

“We understand, Marinette. We are so sorry!” Rose cried. “Not cool what she did…” Juleka mumbled. “Girl, I’m so sorry. I should’ve researched her claims, I’m a horrible friend and reporter,” Alya concluded sadly.

“While you didn’t research her claims, the snake is very convincing,” Marinette said. “Just remember in the future, take the word of the friend you trust the most.”

Ms. Mendeleiev smiled at the scene. She was secretly watching after she came from the principal’s office. Mr. Damocles and Ms. Bustier were fired by the school board because of their incapability to control a lying student. Mr. Damocles was also charged with a fine for using school funds for personal gain, and Ms. Bustier was lectured because of her insisting that “bullies will become better people if you let them get away with everything”. Ms. Mendeleiev was now Principal Mendeleiev, as she was promoted.

Beatrice Mendeleiev chuckled to herself. “Well, Lie-la Rossi. You didn’t get away with your tricks. No matter what, I will always protect my students. And possibly get promoted while at it.”

[softluci]

hello yes can i just say i l o v e d your gen z hcs and may i acquire more

for starters, i am not religious, but i am PRAYING you don’t think i was ignoring your ask. i’ve been thinking about it since i got it, it’s just that i’m a college student with worms for brains, so hopefully you understand. this is something that i’ve had on my mind for a long time [i’ve been at this on and off for months], and it most definitely can be associated with/attributed to gen z. 

for a fleeting, wonderful period of time, there was a trend on tiktok that went, “buss it, buss it…” are you familiar? 

that should be enough of a summary, right? ah—for future reference, “o7” is like a saluting emote, for anyone who might not know. reader is g/n as usual, enjoy!

[a/n: so because this is so long, this part is going to be, like, the lore, and then the actual headcanons will be right here]

trendy 

the two things most corrosive to the human spirit are easily named—capitalism and boredom. while it would be easier and less taxing to explain the former, the latter was the problem at hand. it’s not that there was nothing to do in the devildom—quite the opposite, actually—it was just that you wanted some time to yourself every now and again. the trouble with trying to take time for yourself in a completely new location, the residents of which are always enamored with you in one way or another, is that there isn’t anything to do. the house was full of adventures for you to take—the trap door under the rug in the library, the other trap door under the dining room table, the small door behind the couch in the living room, and whatever other poorly hidden doors your seven roommates thought you didn’t know about. 

trouble was, you didn’t want to leave your room. you, intelligent creature that you are, knew that the chances of you running into mammon or satan or beel or asmo were all too high, and even higher were the chances of you agreeing to spend time with them if they asked, and you knew they would. what were you to do? 

you stared at your ceiling from your bed, d.d.d. resting on your stomach as you let your mind wander. your d.d.d. was full of things for you to do, the devildom’s ethernet at your fingertips, but you weren’t interested in finding new things right now. you wanted something familiar, like—like your phone. 

what was the point of lucifer taking your phone, anyway? it’s not like you could use it—being here rendered it a useless brick of glass and metal, so it wouldn’t have been a big deal if you still had it. it was funny, though, that you couldn’t use your actual phone when it was still possible to access the human internet from down here. 

at least, you assumed so. 

how else would levi be able to keep up with his human idols, get tickets for their shows—the works, you know? luckily, you were fully capable of asking. 

d.d.d. now in your hand, you rolled onto your stomach and found your messages with levi, nails clacking against the glass as you tried to reach him.

hey, you texted, can you help me with something?

his reply came faster than you expected: ?? what do you need 

how do i access human websites and apps, you asked, rolling onto your side. you know how to, right?

lololol, it’s not possible :p

a grunt, more aggravated than you’d care to admit, escaped from the back of your throat.

don’t lie. 

a few minutes passed with no response, and you wondered if you were too harsh. 

“he’s a sensitive guy,” you mumbled, inhaling deeply. “i probably came on too strong or something.” 

just as you started typing out an apology and a, “forget i ever said anything,” you got a response. 

a vpn and a proxy site. 

a smile crept onto your face as air came out of your nose, the closest thing to a laugh you could muster. 

can you set it up for me? 

after another few minutes of no response, you sit up, wondering how you could’ve possibly fucked up a second time, your d.d.d. buzzed. 

levi sent you a file and a link, with a host of instructions. 

click on the file and it’ll take you to the vpn you need to download. don’t worry about bugs or anything, i made it myself. 

you let out a low whistle, flopping onto your back once more. 

“this guy gets up to more than i thought,” you said, eyebrows raised. “someone get this man some physical affection.” 

you continued to read, growing more fond of him with each sentence.

once you install it, pick the country whose network you want access to. from there, you’ll have a list of that country’s most used applications available for you. again, don’t worry about bugs. 

what’s the link for? you asked, excitement getting the better of you. 

for when you download internet applications. it’s added security, paste the link in before you search anything or you’ll trigger the firewall alarm. 

you blinked. 

you’ll trigger the what? 

i’ll trigger the fucking What? 

levi’s response was the fastest one yet: the Fucking Firewall Alarm. barbatos’ design. he has no idea i know how to bypass it. just do what i said. don��t try to solve any potential issues on your own, come to me for everything.

roger that o7, you replied, thanks levi ^_^

yeah, yeah. come to my room for a hxh binge tomorrow night.

you snorted. what a fucking nerd—in the greatest way possible. 

of course bestie :] ily

ily2 normie -_- 

in his room, unbeknownst to you, levi felt like he made a mistake of some kind. it’s not that he didn’t trust you, it’s just that you had a tendency to end up in undesirable situations, even if it wasn’t always on purpose. he was probably just worried over nothing, or so he tried to tell himself, but whatever. this isn’t even about him.

you sat up once more, this time leaning against your pillows as you started setting everything up. everything went so quickly that you barely wondered if all of this—subverting hell’s firewall, personally designed by a man eerily similar to a 2D crush from when you were in middle school—was worth accessing a few silly apps from the human world. 

a few minutes later, your d.d.d. now a much, much cooler copy of your phone, any and all thoughts of regret and hesitation were absent from your mind. 

your first order of business on your upgraded d.d.d. was logging into your tiktok account, however surprising it was that you even remembered the password. you put your headphones in and adjusted your volume, going back into the dumpster fire that is your for-you page with open arms. 

after around half an hour of stifled laughter and small, offended gasps from being targeted by the algorithm, you came across a rare dancing video. the person on your screen was in casual clothes, making minor, silly dance movements as the music dwindled, only for them to drop into a squat in time with the music, suddenly dolled up. you shot forward, taken aback by their transformation and by their dancing post beat drop. did you watch it on a loop for a few minutes? well, that’s nobody’s business but yours. you clicked on the sound in hopes of finding similar videos, and much to your relief, there were plenty. about ten videos in, a smile still on your face, you got an idea. 

you slipped your headphones out, arbitrarily looking around your room, before whispering to yourself, “i could—i could do that. i could totally do that.” 

and you were right. you had nice clothes and makeup from various shopping occasions with asmo. your room had led strips, courtesy of levi ordering the wrong ones and being so kind as to give them to you. you could do it. 

levi was the only person you’d spoken to since you retreated to your room a few hours ago, and the lights have been off the entire time, which meant that if you worked quietly enough, everyone else had reason enough to assume you were asleep. good! how could you possibly explain what you were doing getting all dolled up at, like, 11:00 on a wednesday night? you couldn’t, even a little bit—not in a way that convinced anyone, anyway. 

come midnight, you were sitting cross legged on your bed, watching your final product. not to be vain or anything, but you were looking very respectfully at yourself. since when could you move like that, anyway? the wonders of being alone, you supposed. 

you didn’t post it publicly, electing to save it as a draft just so it would save to your d.d.d. maybe you’d post it once you were back in the human world, when your friends wouldn’t swarm your comments asking where the fuck you were. 

yeah, lucifer told you, “everything was taken care of,” but regardless of whether or not you believed him, you knew it wasn’t a good idea to risk finding out if he missed something. 

boredom creeping up on you again, you elected to go through the messages on your d.d.d. it would be better to make yourself laugh before you were fully bored again, right? you stood up and stretched, opening the group text with the adults. luke doesn’t know about it; he thinks the one with everyone is the main one, and everyone lets him think that so he feels included. 

walking around your room in small circles, you scrolled up to the older conversations and read through them, rolling your eyes and chuckling to yourself. very rarely did they talk about anything of importance. it was mostly diavolo, barbatos, and simeon making quips and jokes at lucifer’s expense for everyone to see. it was gold in its purest form. 

you contemplated sending one of the many cursed things sitting in your camera roll, just to keep them on their toes, but just after opening your gallery, you resigned not to, figuring it would be best to leave him alone. 

you stretched again, the hold on your d.d.d. a bit looser this time. it nearly slipped out of your hands, but you caught it, tossing it onto your bed. as soon as you resigned to start getting ready for bed, you turned back around and picked it up. 

there was no rhyme or reason to your actions; if someone in that moment were to ask you why you did it, you would’ve said, “just ‘cause.”

human intuition is a wonderful thing.

your d.d.d. was still on, still open to the group chat. you’d sent something, evidently a second ago, as indicated by the time stamp. the thumbnail was of you, in casual clothing—the casual clothing you were wearing before you got dolled up, actually. huh. 

huh. 

the weight of your mistake came crashing down on you in full force, a chill sinking into your skin and running up your spine.

you were suddenly acutely aware of the concept of time, how it was of the essence and you had absolutely none to waste.

what were you to do? it wouldn’t be long before your favorite person saw it. you had to do something. 

you could say nothing. you could tell the truth and say it was an accident and that you were embarrassed, but that was even worse than saying nothing because it meant you were set to be the target of teasing you didn’t even wanna try to imagine. you could say it was an accident and be confident about it, telling them, “enjoy!” but that was a dangerous game to play, and you knew it. 

well, i do admire you for taking time to think, but, unfortunately, there was a checkmark next to your message. oh, a number as well—eleven. you just can’t catch a break. what were they all doing up at this time, anyway? it was a school night🤨. 

[princessofprocrastination]

Not Suitable (Quackity)

MASTERLIST

pairing : quackity x female reader

summary : quackity has always had a specific vision of what he wants his partner to look like and certain qualities he wants in them. unfortunately for you, you are the opposite of what he wants. (ANGST) 

-

as a kid, you loved the whole girly look. you wore dresses, short heels that came in a princess toy set, and wore pink lipstick all the time. 

but as time passed, as you grew older, your look changed completely. you like to say that you simply matured, that it wasn’t at all serious. slowly but surely as you were in your teenage years, your favourite colour became black. 

that didn’t mean you didn’t like pink or these other “girly” colours. sometimes, you’d even incorporate some of those bright colours in your outfits to make a statement. you just seemed to like black, it matches with everything. 

although you kept wearing black outfits or have black or dark nail polish on, your hair never stayed black or a dark colour. you just hated the look of the natural colour on yourself. it sure did fit other people, though. 

you liked to describe your style as trendy. you always follow the trends of recent times and wore what you thought looked good on you. 

-

you sat down next to sapnap, dream in the next room. you and sapnap had been friends since highschool. you skipped a grade, making yourself one of the youngest in that class which meant that you were lonely and no one really wanted to make friends with you. 

but that quickly changed when nick came up to you and offered to eat lunch with you. since then, he had been your soulmate. platonic soulmate. 

of course, being friends with nick meant that you were bound to meet the other two boys that he considered his best friends, too. it just so happens that you, george and clay ended up building an amazing friendship really quickly.

three guy bestfriends. that technically equals to having three big, protective big brothers. they really cared about you and you can see that, even if they often make fun of you. 

nick started his stream, facecam on as you sat on an extra gaming chair that clay had next to nick. you typed away on your phone as he started rambling about random things while waiting for more people to come on. 

apparently today you and nick were meant to play some scary game, you controlling the keyboard, him on the mouse. nick often forgot that it takes you a lot to get scared. 

“we’re making this video inspired by quackity and karl’s stream from a while ago.” nick told his stream, you nodding your head to agree. 

you smiled softly at the name he mentioned. quackity. it was apparent to everyone that you had some sort of crush on him. the small smiles, the little blush that rose to your cheeks if someone were to mention your ship name or tease you about it. 

it was all too obvious. of course the three boys you call your best friends knew, you’d never keep such a secret from them. but no matter how annoying the boys can be, they never once told anyone else about your not-so-little crush. 

but that didn’t mean they didn’t tease you. they enjoyed it whenever your face would turn red, whether it being you’re embarrassed or you’re mad. 

the only weird part is that nowadays, they don’t even bother to tease you anymore, not like they used to. you knew they were hiding something from you, you just didn’t know what they were hiding. 

for example, you seated next to sapnap, grinning as he mentions quackity’s name. he would never let you live down that moment. he’d tease you senseless. but this time, he only glanced at you and looked back to the stream.

and what was that? seemed like a pity glance. almost looked like he felt bad. 

you two continued the stream as the ‘scared counter’ keeps going up as sapnap keeps getting scared, you constantly laughing at him. 

“HOW ARE YOU NOT EVEN FLINCHING?” nick screams in your ear. 

“cause i’m not a pussy.” you answered him simply. 

“oh shut up, will you.” he rolled his eyes, you laughed at him being a scaredy-cat. 

you two played for a while more as the counter on the bottom left of the stream screen gets higher and higher. soon enough it reached it’s limit which meant that sapnap needed to end his stream. 

-

it was weird how time works. one second, things were mellow and slow, just like how your everyday is, and the next second, your name was trending everywhere. 

you didn’t even want to check why at first, since you knew how weird and surprising your followers are.

“dude, you need to check twitter.” nick told you in a hurry while he runs from the second floor, to the kitchen in the first floor where you were sitting, editing a video for your channel. 

so you did exactly that. you scrolled through the trending page and clicked on your name. then, you saw hundreds, if not thousands edits and videos of quackity and your video. 

the video of yours that was posted was the part when you smiled at the mention on quackity’s name but as you scrolled more, it seemed that everyone had dug through and collected snippets of you blushing or smiling when quackity was mentioned or when you were on call with him. 

you and quackity were no stranger to each other. the two of you knew each other, sapnap and him being friends and all. you just couldn’t help but fall for him. he’s just extremely charming. 

although your exterior showed otherwise, you really swooned just by looking at his pictures. 

and that’s why all the stans are going crazy. they didn’t think you’d fall for someone, especially not a man who act like a child on the internet. but you can’t predict people, especially not who they like, or more, love. 

you slowly panicked. this was embarrassing to you. more so that it’s all over the internet. there was no way you could erase all of the posts. 

on the outside, you looked composed, like it didn’t effect you at all. but nick knew you well, he knew you had a million thoughts in your head at that point. 

you were just a second close to getting into a panic attack. “hey, hey. calm down, everything’s good.” nick coos in your ear as he pulls you close to him. he knew that you hated to be left alone when you panic. 

you hated this feeling. it felt so unnecessary and it felt like you were making matters bigger than it actually is. 

but the boys would tell you otherwise, they’d make sure that thought leaves your head as soon as it reached.

your body being rocked back and forth helped you calm down as you slowly start to forget the reason of your panic in the first place. 

-

when you do come back to stream regularly, you tried to play off like nothing had happened, like it was all a dream. 

that is one bad habit you couldn’t get rid of for some reason. you liked to just run away from your problems, big or small. you would often play it off like it didn’t matter to you, eventhough it is very much the opposite. 

you’re just scared of getting hurt. you didn’t want to hear the rejection, you could never brace yourself for that kind of pain. 

but somehow this was different. you braced yourself. you didn’t know what drove you to it, but you did. maybe it was the small signs your friends showed you that you never noticed. it was like you knew that rejection was bound to happen, and that this one would hurt the most. 

you told yourself that you would never let yourself get hurt over someone, especially males. it just never made sense. they were never really worth your time, anyways. 

although personally you’ve never ended a relationship of yours badly, just maturely, you’ve read and heard how painful relationships can be. and you never understood why people kept going back into relationships when they hurt so much. 

but you get it. he’s simply addicting. you felt like you couldn’t distance yourself from him. but you needed to. and you knew that. all your friends told you that. 

you weren’t going to let some man put you down because of what you look like. 

granted, it hurt at first, but you learnt to heal, you learnt that although he probably isn’t going to be the only man who hurts you, you needed to suck it up and not show him the pain you felt. you didn’t want to give him the satisfaction. 

to summarise it all. quackity finally beat around the bush and came out with a statement on his own on his stream. 

content creators or public figures often learn that they need to leave things for private, that they can’t spill everything out for people to hear. that causes drama. 

but he didn’t stand back at all. everything he thought about you was shared on stream for all his viewers to know. maybe you liked him for his persona after all, not the real him. 

-

“talk about it?” quackity read his donation. 

“sure, i will.” he started. here it comes. 

nick told you that in order to heal and move past the pain quickly, you can’t run away from your problems, to face the current issue. so he made you watch quackity’s stream. 

you didn’t feel like shedding a single tear today because of how exhausted you are from crying for hours on end, but still agreed to your bestfriend’s wishes to sit through a long stream. 

to be honest, you weren’t expecting him to speak on it, given the amount of time he’s waited. it’s been a couple months since it happened so you could only imagine the shock of his viewers when he finally did say something. 

maybe the constant spam finally got to him.

“she’s not my type, chat.” he said. oh, that wasn’t so bad. no pain just yet. 

“she’s far from it.” okay that pinched you a little. were you really that bad. you waited for his explanation. 

“she looks so emo all the time, it’s scares me. does she ever not wear black?” ouch. and yes, yes you do.

“she’s just not what i like in women. i like soft girls who are respectful and know when to keep their mouth shut and definitely a little more conservative.” whoa. okay, maybe that hurt extra than the rest. 

you turned to nick, he had the same shocked look on his face, clearly not expecting to hear that come out of his good friend’s mouth, especially on stream. 

quackity doesn’t end there. he pulls out his phone, typing away. soon he pulled up a picture of you from your instagram account, showing his stream. 

“she looks like she barely graduated highschool. she’s not one with a future, chat. just stop shipping us. i don’t like that.” he finally finishes, locking his phone and putting it down, continuing playing his game from earlier. 

you closed your eyes for a while, trying to process it all. 

“are you going to cry?” your bestfriend says from next to you. you shook your head. 

“i’m furious.” you told him, voice soft but slightly menacing. 

“holy shit. i’ve been waiting for this.” nick says, jumping in his seat. you knew exactly what he meant. 

you aren’t the type to get mad. you only got mad jokingly. and as much as you look emo and depressed all the time, you’re practically a walking sunshine, you just don’t show it due to your resting bitch face. 

and although nick and you have been friends for god knows how long, it wasn’t often he saw you mad. and it excites him to see you enraged, to say the least. to him, you always ‘pop off’ when you’re mad. 

you made sure you cooled off slightly before you go off on the man. you didn’t want to do things you would regret, after all. but to you, you didn’t think you’d regret anything at this point. 

you waited a couple days before you tweeted something. 

it was simple, your tweet. just two photos. first, it was a photo of your acceptance letter to harvard law school from a year ago, followed by a photo of you carrying thick and heavy textbooks for school that was taken by nick when he visited you in campus. 

it was captioned, “not one with a future.” simple, but it was obvious that this was going to blow up. you looked up from your phone to nick before you tweeted it. 

you two shared a smile. a grin, if you will. it was like the two of you knew what that tweet would do. 

you knew this was going to be surprising to your followers, too. you’ve never spoken about going to school after highschool. sure, if they scrolled far enough on your channel and listened through everything, they might know you skipped grades, which was the reason you met nick but most of them didn’t know. and you didn’t blame them. 

what you would blame them for is that they sat and listened to everything quackity said in that stream. they all thought you were just one dumb, depressed girl who had no future. one that relied on a social media career. 

only if they knew how wrong they are. well, that didn’t matter now. they all knew. 

that was the only tweet you sent out regarding the matter. you didn’t want to prolong it, it isn’t worth your time.

when you did stream a couple days after you sent out that tweet, your twitch viewers sky-rocketed. it was weird, almost. but they weren’t there to patronise you. the opposite, really. they said sweet words, donated generous amounts and gifted plenty of subs. 

you would answer questions as donations slowly came in. and one in particular caught you eye.

“why aren’t you in school.” the monotoned woman asked. 

“i’m not currently in school because it is closed due to the pandemic. but i’m currently attending it online.” you answered swiftly, not really focused on the question but more to the parkour you were doing. 

from time to time, your eyes glanced at your chat to see if they said anything that caught your eye, apart from the ones that bashed you for liking their favourite content creator. 

it cracked you up to see how far stans would go to protect their favourite creators. granted, it made you feel a little envious seeing how many people unfollowed you when the drama happened. you wanted to know just who would stand with you, besides your actual friends. 

“what would you describe your style?” the monotonous woman spoke once again as a donation came in. 

“thank you for the 10.” you started, and then pausing to actually think about it before you answered. 

“i think my style is a little more dark but not emo, as most people call it. i also don’t dress conservative.” you finished, feeling good about your answer. 

you were not brought up in a conservative family, so that was shown in the way you dressed. no, you never really left the house in your bra and jeans, not saying that style isn’t cute, but you never stopped yourself from showing a little bit of skin. 

you also were not the type to get insecure, so reading through comments on your posts have never really affected you. but there was something about the comment quackity said that made you rethink about a lot of things. 

you hated that feeling, though. you hated that you let a man say things about you and made you feel apologetic about it. you knew it should never be like that. why did you let a man step all over you? it irked you that you stooped so low. 

things also never got easy after the little drama. sure, you gained a little more publicity, but you felt nauseous knowing what attracted them. you’re just now constantly reminded how you got a higher number of following. 

nonetheless, you’re grateful for the platform given to you, although this wasn’t the path you chose to take. 

it didn’t take you long to recover from the tiny insecurity you found yourself having. you started not caring even more, posting even more photos of you. some might say you grew to be a narcissist. 

but you enjoyed it. it showed people just how much you grew and learnt from what happened. 

you’re glad you moved forward from it and never dwelled on the things he said about you. 

also, did you mention that quackity apologised? 

guess not. 

Part 2

[pinkhairedlily]

Chapter 8 - Student Council President Sakura

SCPS AO3 | PREVIOUS CHAPTER

“Oh, hello there Sakura.”

She almost lost her balance when she saw her next customers. Standing beside Kakashi with her arm entangled in his was a brunette, a spitting image of Dr. Aki Nohara, a giveaway that this was her sister. Sakura’s surroundings dimmed out of focus, and her hearing became muffled as if she was submerged underwater.

“Couldn’t mistake that green eyes for anyone,” Kakashi continued. “I’ll have a caramel butterscotch with extra whipped cream – make it super heavy – and Rin –“

“That’s supposed to be my order, you dummy,” the woman replied beside him. He chuckled in fascination and tightened his hold on her arm. “Besides, you don’t like sweets.”

“You’re still on a specialized diet so allow me to eat and drink whatever you want while you stick with – “ Kakashi glanced at Sakura, and she immediately mustered a tight-lipped smile. “One iced americano in your smallest size please. Thanks, Sakura.”

She took in a deep breath, suddenly aware that she wasn’t able to acknowledge her teacher and his companion, but so many things have been running through her head – like how did he know it was her? Why was he with Rin? Did he propose already? She hasn’t even confessed yet.

Somehow, in the dragging silence in her ears, she heard Sasuke cleared his throat. That was enough to break her from the spell, and she put on her bravest mask. “Hi Kakashi-sensei. Nice of you to drop by! I’ll have your order ready in a jiffy.”

Kakashi turned around and waved lazily at Sasuke. “One of my students is here too. Are you on a red eye advance study?”

“Can’t sleep so might as well have caffeine.”

“You’re too young to have this energy.”

Rin jokingly slapped Kakashi on the arm. “You talk as if you’re old already.”

“But aren’t I?” The pair slowly drifted away to find a table, but Sakura noticed the flash of recognition when Rin took a long good look at Sasuke, but her friend stared at them like he was throwing sharp draggers.

“He looks happy,” Sakura noted as she fixed their drinks.

“I want your favorite coffee,” Sasuke quipped out of nowhere.

“There’s a thing called palpitations. It’s caramel macchiato.”

“Might do me some good while I wait for you to finish your shift.”

Sakura sighed, feeling the tiredness come upon her all of a sudden so she relented. “Just take it to-go. I want to get out of here.”

She quickly asked permission from the manager, saying she felt sick and fatigued, and with her clocking overtime in the past few weeks, her request was immediately approved without deductions. The mixed winter and spring air hit her lungs as soon as she stepped outside. Sasuke waited for her across the street, a gesture that implied she could go to him or separate ways right now. As she vied for time to decide, she took one last look through the window.

It was a foreign sight. She has never seen Kakashi’s attention torn apart from his books. Even if he was talking, there would be an open page on his side, stealing glances on passages when the conversations got boring, yet there he was, fully attuned to whatever Rin was saying with no book around him…like she was his favorite book and he enjoyed reading every letter of her.

And Sakura realized she could never be the story he would even want to pick up.

She felt the tears coming so she started her pace on the same road. Across from her, Sasuke got the signal and went the other way.

--------------------------------

The last term of their second year came like a bazooka. Sakura threw herself on her pet project as a sort of coping mechanism. The announcement was done during the general assembly which did not generate the intended buzz or reaction. After all, it was a tricky topic to handle and many facets of which were still stigmatized when talked openly in public. Naruto, ever the people magnet, broke the agitated atmosphere in the auditorium with a slow clap and was soon joined by many others.

The council created a Google form which allowed students to anonymously register, and they get assigned a schedule on the day their contracted psychiatrist comes to visit. All they had to do was provide their designated client number. The council further complemented this with short programs that serve as mental health breaks for the student body. Sometimes, this would be as light as a block screening of a coming-of-age film or heavy like a conference with faculty and teachers and questions and concerns are remotely flashed.

Then came Valentines’ Day, and the council organized this some kind of literary showcase that presented the opportunity to mingle woes of personal sadness and griefs with confessions that would have been left unsaid. Naruto and Sasuke both helped in constructing the makeshift stage in the middle of the soccer field that would be used later that afternoon.

“Cookie points for my crush,” Naruto grinned as he hammered away. “Thanks for picking the poem I will be reciting tonight, grumpy. Didn’t know you were into literature.” He jokingly elbowed the raven-haired beside him, and he got a death glare in return.

“Do it properly. Look at that nail sticking out like your porcupine hair,” Sasuke grumbled. “And yes, I’m not as uncultured as you are.”

“But I still don’t understand it though.”

“Ugh, just use the internet to search its meaning, idiot.”

“Meanie!”

A fellow runner peeked into their work area and knocked on wood. “Hey Uchiha. Some girl is looking for you.” Her face expressed grimace, having done this for more than five times already within the span of an hour. If it wasn’t Sasuke, it was one of Naruto’s fan girls or boys.

Sasuke went to her and fumbled around for cash in his pocket. “Next time someone looks for us, tell them we went home for the day. Here’s money for your date later. If you have anyway.”

“Whatever grumpy.” The runner replied, still half-angry, half-frustrated, but she took the money all the same and told the girls that ‘They told me to tell you they went home for the day so shoo shoo.’

Naruto laughed at Sasuke’s successful attempt at bribery. “Look at that rich money. I wonder whether Sakura will give us chocolates.”

“Have you seen their office?” Sasuke flipped open the curtains that will be hang as backdrop. “Their desk is filled with chocolates from her admirers – platonically, romantically, whatever. Some people from other schools dropped by too. You got serious competition.”

Naruto chuckled nervously. “As if I do not know that already. Haven’t you told me before- she likes everyone and everyone likes her.”

Not really true at all now, Sasuke thought to himself. But ignorance is bliss, Naruto.

--------------------------------

The three sat on the grass beside the stage, having full view of the student body listening to the reciters. Throughout the program, Sakura went through each package given to her, visibly stressed with evident signs of sleepless nights under her eyes.

“Before I forget, happy Valentine’s day you two. My council-mates told me you didn’t get any chocolates,” Sakura gave each of them a pouch of small chocolate bars. Sasuke didn’t have to guess if it was store-bought or homemade based on the cuts on her fingers.

“Sakura, stop eating. I almost gagged at the seventh chocolate,” Naruto complained. He tried to get the basket of sweets from her, but she just moved it away from his reach.

“Everything tastes bitter,” she muttered under her breath. “I need sugar. My energy can’t keep up with the countless interviews. I understand that the school board liked the exposure, but the burden falls on me. At least have a teacher back me up?”

“Heard Kakashi-sensei volunteered to accompany you in interviews?” Sasuke was too late in shutting Naruto up, but the most that question got out of Sakura was an eyebrow raise.

“I need more sweets.” She proceeded to jam the rest of the Hershey’s kisses in her mouth.

“Okay, we have a submission from Uzumaki Naruto,” the announcer said. “Shout out to our rookie MVP!” A round of applause. “And who might be the recipient of this poem? We heard through the grapevine that he hid from his admirers all day. I know several people are waiting to confess to him!”

Sasuke instructed him earlier to send the poem anonymously and address it to Sakura, but the dumbass blonde mistakenly exchanged it. He rubbed his forehead in annoyance, but he can’t bring it up right now.

“Just read the poem!” Naruto shouted on the side, clearly embarrassed now. Sakura looked up at him, genuinely curious now, and her sticky chocolate-filled mouth was on the edge of firing him questions.

“Sasuke and I sent in poems! Just to support your program, nothing really too deep into it ehe.” Naruto glanced at Sasuke with slightly widened eyes. “Right, Sasuke?”

“Sonnet 18 by William Shakespeare,” the person started.

“Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day

Thou art more lovely and more temperate.

Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May,

And summer’s lease hath all too short a date.

Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines,

And often is his gold complexion dimmed;

And every fair from fair sometime declines,

By chance, or nature’s changing course, untrimmed;

But thy eternal summer shall not fade,

Nor lose possession of that fair thou ow’st,

Nor shall death brag thou wand'rest in his shade,

When in eternal lines to Time thou grow'st.

So long as men can breathe, or eyes can see,

So long lives this, and this gives life to thee.”

Sakura slapped Naruto on the arm. “Didn’t know you read Shakespeare! What a romantic!”

“Isn’t it a tragedy?” Sasuke remarked, a look of disgust in his face when Sakura mindlessly offered him a toblerone. “No sweets for me.”

Sakura guffawed at Sasuke’s remark, and her laughing was a rare sight recently. She was in too deep in her student council functions that they barely see her. And when they did, she’d be a little bit closer to fatigue.

“What’s funny? Who’s Shakespeare? Let me in on the joke!”

“Let’s call on Kakashi-sensei, our very own student council advisor and youngest teacher in the university. He’ll be reciting a poem by Pablo Neruda. A man of culture, we see,” the emcee announced.

Sakura stopped laughing as soon as she heard his name. If Sasuke could glean into her thoughts, she’s probably making up excuses to escape right now.

Kakashi stood in the middle of the stage, holding an open book. “Let me just ramble on here for a bit. Neruda is a Chilean poet and a politician, but just as much as he is a revolutionary, he is a romantic and a worshipper of ideals and ordinary things. He often compared his muses to earth and nature – basic providers of our existence. It’s interesting to see. Now, this poem is what I would have wanted to say to someone who is fundamentally part of my existence, but she won’t listen to me.” Kakashi smiled even more at the onset of outburst of giggles from the students. “So you’re gonna be the audience whether you want it or not.”

I crave your mouth, your voice, your hair.

Silent and starving, I prowl through the streets.

Bread does not nourish me, dawn disrupts me, all day

I hunt for the liquid measure of your steps.

I hunger for your sleek laugh,

your hands the color of a savage harvest,

hunger for the pale stones of your fingernails,

I want to eat your skin like a whole almond.

I want to eat the sunbeam flaring in your lovely body,

the sovereign nose of your arrogant face,

I want to eat the fleeting shade of your lashes,

and I pace around hungry, sniffing the twilight,

hunting for you, for your hot heart,

like a puma in the barrens of Quitratue.

A thundering applause followed Kakashi’s poem and random shouts of, “Drop her name sensei!” “Good luck to your love life!” “Happy for you, sensei!”

As the lights went out on the stage, Sakura fished another pouch from her vest pocket, and Sasuke knew at once that it was Kakashi’s. She popped a bar into her mouth, staring blankly ahead.

“God, it’s so bitter.” Her lips started to quiver, and she started to cry.

Naruto threw a worried glance at Sasuke, but his expression must have given something away because the blonde didn’t prod, and he looked as if all the puzzles fell into place.

Sasuke just didn’t expect to be confronted about it as soon as the program finished. He was carrying blocks of wood to the shed when Naruto dropped the question – a question he already knew the answer to.

“You like Sakura.”

Sasuke inhaled sharply and halted his steps. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.” He stacked the wood against each other and turned to face the blonde. “Besides, shouldn’t you be worrying about exams?”

“What exams? We’re exempted from it,” Naruto bristled.

Sasuke smirked. “No, you’re not. You didn’t qualify for finals.”

“Oh shit.”

--------------------------------

“What do we get in return?” Sakura asked as she munched on her bento box. Shouts of the practicing dragonboat team filtered through their space.

“But last time you volunteered!” Naruto said.

“We’re friends so my services don’t come free anymore,” she chided back.

Naruto glared at Sasuke. “If she’s not gonna do it, you’re gonna do it.”

Sasuke nonchalantly shook his head as he skimmed through Naruto’s notes. “What she said.” They weren’t notes per se, but doodles of Sasuke and Sakura and interestingly, projections of different batting stances. “I’m also not gonna forgive you with the duck butt hair.”

“But you have a duck butt hair!” Naruto crossed his arms and huffed menacingly. “Ramen?”

“Same old, same old.” Sakura finished her lunch and started to sip her cranberry juice. “Give us something new.”

“Ramen and…..karaoke?”

Sakura brightened up at the prospect. “Deal.”

“At least add snacks to your place,” Sasuke interjected. “And not just ramen. Put some nuts or fruits in your fridge.”

Naruto grumbled but raised two thumbs up in defeat. “Deal.”

--------------------------------

Sasuke has thin patience when it came to teaching Naruto, Sakura observed. She didn’t know how these two managed to do the supplementary math lessons when she wasn’t a part of their group yet. She didn’t mind teaching, but Naruto’s short attention span was a devil of its own. He would be attentive to her for 15 minutes and then drowse off so Sasuke and her agreed on non-negotiables.

“No ramen break for you if you don’t finish this set of problems,” Sakura told him.

“You’re demon spawns,” Naruto cried out in defiance.

“If you don’t get a passing score on this sample test, no kani toppings for you.” Sasuke raised the stakes.

“Demon spawns,” Naruto repeated.

“You won’t call us demon spawns if you see your name on the list of passers.” Sakura started the stopwatch on her phone. “Now go.”

This took her mind off things, from Kakashi’s public confession to the blank career form hidden within the pages of her history textbook. It was a good distraction until the penultimate exams day. Naruto came in with a bandana on his forehead with FIGHTING written in the middle of it. Sasuke, as usual, breezed through it, already finished by the thirty-minute mark.

And she? Well, she liked exams. The time limit and the pressure allowed her the reprieve to shut the rest of the world out so she relished answering each number until the bell rang. It was a moment where she can focus fully on the paper in front of her, the sound of her pen scribbling, and her mind working full force to cull out the answers in her memory. Her utmost concentration on questions suspended her own questions on her feelings for a teacher, on her parents’ divorce, on her future.

When the school plastered the results on the bulletin board, she couldn’t help but release a satisfied chuckle. She turned to Sasuke who was surprisingly stoic about the results. “First place! The bonus point really helped.”

“Why should I bother with a teacher’s middle name for the bonus question?” Sasuke grumbled back. “Congrats. Stop rubbing it in my face already.”

Naruto was too busy pointing his name on the board and bragging about it to the student body, most especially the freshies. When he found them on the back of the crowd, he rushed to them and placed his arms around their shoulders “Drinks on me!!!!!”

--------------------------------

“He really shouted drinks on me in the middle of the school, sauntered in here like he’s loaded, and ordered two pitchers of iced tea.” Sakura kept bringing this up since they entered the karaoke room ten minutes ago.

Naruto was preoccupied with inputting song numbers on the machine to respond to Sakura’s banters. “Technically, they’re still drinks!”

Sasuke was on the phone with the kitchen, and from what she could hear, he was ordering almost everything on the menu. When he sat down on the adjacent couch, Sakura leaned forward to him. “Are you gonna finish all of that?”

He jutted his index finger to Naruto. “No, but he will.”

The first notes of Michael Jackson’s Thriller wafted through the room, and the blonde made a quick impression of the artist’s famed moonwalk.

“Why are you opening with that?” Sakura cried out in amusement. “It’s not even Halloween!” Sasuke watched Naruto try to dance with a straight face, but she thought he was itching to face palm the whole time.

Naruto kept beckoning Sakura to join him in the middle of the room, but she was busy laughing at him and taking videos. “I’ll send these to Haru as a pick-me-up. I think this is the best remedy.”

Next was Sakura’s pick – Heaven is a Place on Earth by Belinda Carlisle. She couldn’t contain her laughter in between verses when the two boys finally heard that she was tone deaf. Naruto joined her with the other mic, trying to drown out the off-key notes. By the bridge, Sasuke stood up with them, a glass of juice in his hand, and mouthed the words.

“You know this song!” Sakura said excitedly.

“I don’t live under a rock!” He yelled back amid the loud music.

“OOOH BABY DO YOU KNOW WHAT THAT’S WORTH OOH HEAVEN IS A PLACE ON EARTH. THEY SAY IN HEAVEN, LOVE COMES FIRST. OOH HEAVEN IS A PLACE ON EARTH!”

“Okay who’s next?” she asked when the next number flashed on the screen. Sasuke silently took the mic from her and faced the monitor with a hand in his pants’ pocket.

Naruto gripped the mic harder when the song started. “I’ll be your second voice, grumpy!”

She immediately went to the front and started recording. “One for the road.”

“No videos, Haruno,” Sasuke warned.

“Come on, it’s my remembrance,” she whined. He wasn’t able to clap back when the lines started to move.

“Turn around…” Naruto sang.

“Every now and then, I get a little bit lonely and you’re never coming ‘round,” Sasuke’s baritone voice filled the room like an empty coliseum.

“The fuck. You can sing?” Sakura gasped out loud. “How can you have that voice and not sing - like you know, every day?!”’

Sasuke gestured her to stop as he belted, stoic-faced, through the chorus with Naruto singing like a slaughtered pig in the background. Sakura stopped recording and joined them for the rest of the song.

Two hours and three pitchers of orange juice later, they finally settled on the couch and munched on Naruto’s leftovers of fries, buttered chicken, nachos, and calamari. On the karaoke monitor was David Bowie singing Heroes.

“Can’t believe we’re already seniors two months from now.” He stared at the ceiling, his eyes following the tag game of disco lights. “Elections of officers will be tomorrow which means Captain Haru will be formerly stepping down.”

Sasuke reached out and shook his hand. “Good luck next captain.”

Naruto immediately pulled out from his grasp. “What do you mean next captain?”

Sakura chuckled and patted his back as assurance. “Everyone knows it’ll be you. Have you seen how your teammates look at you when you’re discussing strategies?”

In the dimness of the room, she saw the flush on Naruto’s cheeks, and she found it amusing how he cannot take compliments.

Naruto scratched the back of his head. “Well, everything is possible, right? That said, I still haven’t filled out my college form, but I’m really set on getting an athletic scholarship and eventually be part of the national team! How about you grumpy? Changed your mind yet?”

“About what?” Sakura glanced at the silent raven-haired guy beside her. To be able to see this much of him was a nice privilege.

“I’m moving away after high school.” Sasuke fiddled with his half-empty glass, his eyes trained on the slushing juice. “I already sent applications to some universities in Europe.”

“We also have good medicine programs here. I don’t get why you have to move away so far. I’m so bad with converting time zones.”

Sasuke scrunched his nose in annoyance. “Are you dumb? The schools you listed are also out of this district.”

She seemed to be moving farther and farther from their exchange. Like an outsider peeking in, she understood the frailty of the moments in front of her, and by the time the next two months set in, the stopwatch would have started running its last lap. The bonds she has made so serendipitously were in danger of being cut off by dreams. She breathed in, engulfing the noise and scent of this room, panning every color and shape assembled like supercut in her head, praying that someday if she would lose herself, she’d come back here right at this frozen memory and relive the wonderful indecisiveness of adolescence and the chance to say I don’t know without repercussions.

“Sakura to earth?” Naruto’s voice.

“Idiot. It’s earth to Sakura.” Sasuke’s voice.

She blinked fast, returning to the moment that wasn’t finished playing out yet. She quickly brushed her hands on her eyes as if something got into her eyes, hoping they don’t see the small droplets of tears that have formed. “Oh uh, I have a list of prospects, but I’m not quite sure what to take.” The form was still blank actually.

“That’s a usual problem of anyone who’s too good at everything,” Sasuke replied.

“Are you complimenting me?” I wish I was.

“Should I take it back?” He proceeded to gulp down the remnants of his glass.

The monitor suddenly turned off, indicating their time has run out. “Hey guys, for our last term, let’s make the most out of it, all right?” Naruto asked. “I’m so happy we became friends.”

“No hugging please,” Sasuke said, but it was too late. Naruto’s arms were too strong to pull away from so the two allowed him a few seconds of skinship.

Naruto’s words struck a chord in Sakura; it was a resolve she tried to form and disfigure for several months now. Before they could stand up to fix their things, Sakura blurted it out loud before her courage took the best of her.

“For our last term.” She flexed her fingers and curled them up against her palm, placing weight on her lap as she ground her fists onto it. “For our last term, I’m gonna confess to Kakashi.”

AO3 LINK | NEXT CHAPTER | CHAPTER 9

[satsuma-saturn]

This might be silly but how do you think the boys (or just Lucifer) reacting to seeing MC simping over their favorite fictional character (only to learn that they share some similar traits to them)

A/N: Okay, so I’m not entirely sure if you wanted me to answer this like answering a question or in the form of headcanons, but I just decided on headcanons. I also chose to do all of the brothers. Beel’s and Satan’s are a little shorter b/c I didn’t know what to write about, but I did my best lol. Enjoy!

Warnings: none

The Brothers’ Reaction to an MC Simping Over a Fictional Character Similar to Them

Lucifer

- He doesn’t understand why you love a fictional character so much

- When you give more attention to a fictional character than him, he’s a little bitter

- It reminds him of Leviathan

- If you start ordering random fan items off of Akuzon, he is going to take your internet privileges away

- He’s had enough to deal with with Levi’s orders causing the whole household trouble

- In fact, you only started the show when Levi wanted to watch it with you

- He makes a mental note to ground Levi, since he got you attached to a show that’s consuming your attention

- Normally, he isn’t bothered by others’ interests, but for some reason, it’s all he can think of

- One night, he kidnaps you to his room to waltz to classical music

- Maybe you’ll develop a more...refined habit, such as waltzing

- He doesn’t need you becoming a shut-in like Leviathan

- He watches it with you after a lot of convincing

- The show is stupid, but the character you like so much is actually somewhat likable

- A refined man who enjoys the simple things, like classical music and fancy alcohol

- Very loyal to another character, who reminds him of Lord Diavolo

Mammon

- Damn it, you’re just like Levi, obsessing over some fake person

- Don’t get him wrong, he’s not jealous

- In fact, he doesn’t even care that you’re in love with this fictional character

- That’s why he's currently researching this character

- HE IS NOT JEALOUS OF A FICTIONAL CHARACTER, OKAY?

- As he reads about the character, he notices something familiar about this character

- Something about crushing on another character and being unable to admit it, as well as being kind of a money-obsessed moron

- Sounds like his kind of guy

- If the character was real, he could imagine being friends with them

- Wait, no. If they were real, that would give MC more of a reason to be in love with them

- Damn it, MC! 

Leviathan

- He gets it, having plenty of fictional characters that he loves and simps for

- That still doesn’t stop him from being jealous, but that’s in his nature

- Of course you’d like a fictional character and not a yucky, shut-in otaku like him

- Hold on a minute, this character is also an otaku

- Wait, that doesn’t matter. The character is an attractive otaku, not a yucky otaku like him

- Maybe you’ll like him more if he was more like the character

- A lightbulb goes off in his head

- He begins work on a cosplay, so that he can attempt to emulate this character

- Even if he looks like the character, he isn’t good enough for you to like him more than the character

- He understands wanting to live in a 2D world over a 3D world

- Just please don't abandon him

- He really loves you, even if he knows that you'd never like a yucky otaku

Satan

- Another brother who doesn’t understand

- After all, it isn’t like you can actually speak to said character, so it doesn’t make sense

- He doesn’t want to judge, though. Everyone has their own coping mechanisms

- Still, he is curious about the character

- The character is reminiscent of himself

- Book smart with a charismatic persona

- Also a bit of a temper

- Unlike most of his other brothers, he isn’t jealous

- From what he’s noticed from Levi, latching onto a fictional character is some sort of coping mechanism

- He does want you to have healthier coping, though

- Unlike Levi, you’re mortal and you can’t just waste your life on a fantasy world

- That’s why he’s dragged you to the library

- Reading is a much more interesting and intellectual hobby than rotting your brain on a television show

Asmodeus

- You remind him of Leviathan and his weird obsession with Ruri-chan

- Why can’t you like something normal, like makeup or skincare?

- He sits in your room one day, painting your nails

- The character you like so much almost reminds him of himself

- Except he’s way more attractive than said character

- Even so, if the character was real, he’d want to date them

- He doesn’t want you to want to date them, though

-Why would you want to date anyone but him?

- He’s perfect

- Come on, MC. Why are you obsessing over a fictional character when you can obsess over me? ♡

- Still, he isn’t going to let it bother him. There’s no way you can adore a fictional character more than you adore him~

- On the off-chance that he starts to feel jealous, he’ll just have to convince you that a 3D lover is much better than a 2D lover

Beelzebub

- Watches a show with you one night, after you bribe him with popcorn and candies

- The main character of the show kind of reminds him of himself

- Well, the always eating part

- He doesn’t pay much attention to the character’s personality, which is emotionally intelligent and kind

- The food is what keeps his attention, looking like Studio Ghibli food

- In fact, the food looks delicious and he’s already finished his popcorn and sweets

- When his mouth starts watering, you have to turn off the tv

- You don’t want him trying to take a chunk out of your tv

- The next day, he asks you to make him the food from the show the two of you watched

- Don’t refuse him, or it might upset him

- He just wants to know what the food from the show tastes like

- It looks so good

Belphegor

- To be honest, he doesn’t even notice your obsession over a fictional character

- He’s too busy with other things, like sleeping

- Still, he does notice that his napping partner hasn’t been napping with him

- Why are you being difficult? He just wants you to nap with him and now he has to put in the effort to find you

- After wandering around, he finds you in your room, watching some show

- You blew him off for a tv show?

- He’s a little grumpy, especially when you refuse to turn off the show

- Fine, he didn’t want to nap with you anyway

- Why aren’t you trying to call him back to your room?

- Fine, he’s staying. He isn’t happy, but you can’t get rid of him

- One more episode and you have to nap with him

- A character on the show seems to always be sleeping

- That he can relate to

- He notices that you seem to be really fond of that character

- Is that why you watch the show?

- Well, he’s basically the same as the character, but he’s real

- He’s not jealous or anything, but he does shut off the tv

- Just nap with him, you don’t need a fictional character

[recurring-polynya]

What’s your opinion on pre-canon Renruki?

I think that they already had a romantic or almost romantic relationship back in the Academy, maybe even back in Rukongai, and the reason it wasn’t explicit is because firstly it would have spoiled the endgame couples, and secondly it’s a shonen, so it’s implied.

I think they fooled around when they were orphans in Inuzuri. They grew up together, they were always together in their “teenage” years (however adolescence works for souls😅), I think it’s not impossible that they had their first experience, if just their first kiss and make out session, with each other. When they joined the Academy, they spent less time together due to their different courses, and I think Rukia’s sad expression when Renji leaves for the mission in the real world depicts that (along with worry for him, and maybe even jealousy for his achievements compared to hers). By then I think they were quite intimate, they fooled around sometimes (with the little time they had) and knew the other’s and their own feelings, but never said anything like “I love you”, or talked seriously about the depth of their relationship. If they were “just friends”, as some antis like to claim, they wouldn’t have been so heartbroken, have so many regrets and felt so guilty during their separation. And why that separation in the first place? It’s not a matter of class difference, because Rukia did talk to people of inferior status, like her Squad mates. What’s actually forbidden to people from different classes is relationships. If Renruki was just a friendship, there would have been no problem, but their bond was beyond that. Rukia wanted Renji to tell her to stay with him, but his feelings of inferiority and belief that Rukia deserved better (maybe even better than him) prevented him to do it. Their separation doesn’t feel like an end to a friendship to me, it feels like a breakup. They avoided each other because it hurt so much, and they couldn’t bear to have any relationship other than a romantic one, which was impossible once she became a Kuchiki.

After the Soul Society arc, they got back together. They were physically too comfortable around each other to be just friends, like when he basically hugged her to encourage her to go back to Soul Society when Orihime is kidnapped (and maybe he was also comforting her), or when, during the fight with the Fullbringers, he casually placed her head resting on his thigh. By then they were secretly dating, in my opinion. In the last arc they were always together, it’s so easy imagining them as a couple.

What do you think? Is my interpretation far fetched? I’d like to hear your theories about their feelings, when they blossomed, when they confessed, if they had something going on during their Academy years…

Thank you if you decide to answer!🤍

Well, as you say, Bleach is a shounen, and also I don’t think Kubo was particularly interested in including romance in the story, so I don’t think there is a correct or incorrect interpretation. It’s left to the reader to imagine what they like. I don’t think “spoiling the endgame” has anything to do with anything.

I don’t think your interpretation is “too far-fetched,” although I don’t happen to agree with it. There’s very little to go on in canon, people can fill in the gaps in whatever way makes them happy/makes sense to them. I have exactly 0 interest in arguing with people on the internet about stuff like this. I enjoy reading fanfiction that has wildly different interpretations from my own, I generally love to hear a variety of ideas, although I generally prefer the format of a narrative over Tumblr posts (funny, since I do seem to write a lot of them).

Anyway, here are a bunch of opinions. This is way, way too long, so I'm gonna throw it under a cut.

That being said, you have some really amatonormative ideas in there that I do take issue with. Friendships absolutely can be as deep and important as romantic relationships. I categorically reject the idea that a romantic bond is stronger than a friendship one or that acts of physical affection necessarily imply a romantic relationship. I actually have no beef at all with people who want to read Rukia and Renji’s story as a very strong friendship. I do think it was still reasonable for Renji to avoid her during their separation, even if his goal wasn’t romance. He wanted to see her live a better life, and didn’t want to drag her down. Yeah, sure, if he just wanted to be a casual workplace friend, he probably could have joined Squad 13 and seen her once in a while. But, especially in the early days, it would have been a bad look for Rukia to continue socializing with people deeply below her station, and I feel in my heart that Byakuya would have forbidden her from seeing Renji if he found out she was hanging out with someone from her Inuzuri days, even if it was just casual. Yeah, there exist people who say Rukia and Renji are "just friends" for the sake of other preferred ships, but also, like, so what? Who cares? That’s a lot better than making Renji out to be a bad person or trashing his character. To be honest, I am generally happy to read a fanfic that had some other Renji or Rukia pairing if it actually contained some solid Renruki best friend content (I have found a few 369 fics that do this, and maybe also in the little bit of RenIchi content I have read, so, uh, good job, my gays. This is sometimes touched on in ByaRen fics, but usually not as much as I want, althought I also tend to hold these to a high bar, because if I have to deal with Byakuya in my fanfics, they should have to deal with the Rukia-Renji friendship 😂)

Anyway, you asked for my interpretation, so here it is . These are all just, like, my opinions, man:

Life in Inuzuri just really, really, really sucks, and Rukia and Renji both have a lot of trauma and emotional hang-ups from that time. I think they forged a deep emotional connection during this time that was probably a little too codependent to actually be healthy. They had no models of healthy families or relationships. I also think they were incredibly close to Fujimaru, Kosaburou, and Mameji, and that even if they wanted to have a romantic relationship, they wouldn’t have, at the risk of ruining the more important bonds of the larger group.

In my fanfic, in their last days in Inuzuri, I do have them fool around for a brief period. It coincides with the deterioration of the bond with their last surviving friend, leading to his death. I did this for trauma reasons, because that’s how writers are.

“Communication” is probably the most important theme in my writing, and a thing I bring up all the time is that young Rukia and Renji had a thousand ways of communicating survival-based things between each other, and 0 ways of communicating how they felt about each other.

I did a post on this recently, but their whole gang was incredibly powerless in Inuzuri. They lived on the fringes of society and stole scraps to survive. I think that their number one duty to one another was to survive. In the anime, Rukia swears that she will never leave Inuzuri, that she will always stay with her friends. I think the reason she does an about-face is not just because their friends are gone, but because she realizes that she will lose Renji next, and the only way to prevent that is for both of them to get stronger. Neither of them actually wants to become a soul reaper. They do it for each other.

I think that Renji would have remained in Inuzuri and tried to make a life as best they could, but Rukia knew this was futile, and where Rukia goes, Renji follows.

I think they purposely maintained distance at the Academy. Just as in Inuzuri, their primary duty to one another is to survive and thrive. They were rejected and mocked for their low origins, and hanging out together would have made this worse. I think it hurt Rukia that Renji made new friends, but on the other hand, they were exactly the sort of people who would help him get a leg up in the Gotei. Rukia’s Academy days were very painful because she saw Renji succeeding, just as she wanted, but leaving her behind in the process. Conversely, Renji got super focused on doing well, with the idea that he could pull Rukia up behind him, except for the part where he never actually told her that.

I feel like I’m in the minority here, but so much fanfic focuses on Rukia and/or Renji being “wrong” in the scene where he tells her to go to the Kuchiki, but I disagree! Everything they have done is in order to get to a better life! It is Renji’s duty to encourage her to leave him behind. He doesn’t want to be an anchor holding her down. Likewise, Rukia knows that if she doesn’t go, she’s just gonna be a burden on him. Their relationship has always been about each of them surviving separately over having happiness together. Up to now, they’ve always managed to find each other again, although this kinda looks like it might be it for them. Do these kids need to go to therapy? Yes! Did they do anything wrong? No!

I think about this a lot, but even if Rukia had turned down the adoption (which… I’m not actually sure she could have), even the offer would have ruined their relationship. Imagine that Renji asks her to stay, and she does. Maybe they even get together at this point. Every rough patch, every time there’s money troubles, this spectre of “Rukia could have been a Kuchiki” is going to hang over them. In fiction, there is often an idea of sacrifice being a one-time romantic gesture, but in my real life experience, this sort of thing hangs around like an unwanted ghost. I can, in fact, envision a scenario where this is exactly how Aizen manages to get his hooks in Renji, by offering Rukia an unseated spot in Squad 5, even though she “isn’t really good enough to deserve it” and “taking care of them.”

I am really fascinated with Rukia’s crush on Kaien/Miyako. Bold proclamation here, but I think there is something developmentally healthy about young people having crushes on the older people in their lives, provided that said older people treat them with respect and dignity and don’t take advantage of it in any way. Crushes are, by their nature of being unreciprocated, a safe way for young folks to imagine the sort of people and relationships they want to have in their lives. I headcanon Rukia as bisexual, and maybe also a little bit genderfluid, and she had these two extremely cool people in her life, whom she maybe wanted to be and maybe wanted to kiss and maybe to have a marriage like that some day. I… like to think that their role in her life healed some of her trauma before their death caused even more.

Fully into headcanons now, but I like to think that Renji had a parallel experience, with, of all people, Ikkaku and Yumichika. Like him, they came from the ass-end of Rukongai, but they stuck together instead of bowing to the social mores of the Seireitei. It is critical to note that they were able to do this through strength. This is literally not a thing that Renji and Rukia could have done, but at the same time, Renji sees this as the kind of relationship he wants to have with a partner. He doesn’t want to look after Rukia and protect her, he wants to fight back-to-back with her and then make out afterwards. He’s still convinced that he needs to go through the proper class channels to see Rukia again, but without their influence, I don’t think he ever would have been able to say “fuck it” and turn on his captain during the Soul Society Arc.

Meeting Ichigo and dealing with his unreasonable need to protect everyone he cares about, personally, was also a huge blow to Rukia and Renji’s “I cannot allow the other person to take any risks for my sake” hang-up. Ichigo has his own traumas, which are entirely different from Renruki’s, but the one thing he had was growing up in a loving family. (Isshin has his problems, but I feel strongly that he always made his kids feel like his love was unconditional). I’m not saying that making friends with a shounen protagonist is a good replacement for therapy, but it does have healing properties.

Entirely off-topic, but I feel like Ichigo is incredibly selfish in the way of Terry Pratchett’s witches: “All witches are selfish, the Queen had said. But Tiffany’s Third Thoughts said: Then turn selfishness into a weapon! Make all things yours! Make other lives and dreams and hopes yours! Protect them! Save them! Bring them into the sheepfold! Walk the gale for them! Keep away the wolf! My dreams! My brother! My family! My land! My world! How dare you try to take these things, because they are mine!

Where were we? Oh, yeah. I honestly think that it is unknowable when in canon Rukia and Renji confessed. I already covered this pretty thoroughly in this post. I hate the idea that they were secretly dating. Renji worked incredibly hard to get his post and I think that both his job and Byakuya’s respect are very important to him. I do not think he would put either of those things at risk like that, nor would Rukia want him to. I tend to prefer a slow-burn approached, and I honestly think they got together during the 17-mo timeskip at the earliest, and more likely post-canon entirely, although I think them confessing in the Royal Realm is the spiciest possible outcome, so that’s what most of my fanfic cleaves to.

[imagine-lcorp]

Between Two Lungs (One Shot)

A/N: Hello dears, so here it is the infamous fic I’ve been writing. I really hope this fullfils my dream of crushing your hearts once again and that you have a fun time agonizing over this final choice. Because yes, I’ve made this a multiending fic...As always, remember to tell me what you think, is it something you want me to keep doing for other fics? Also, how did you feel after this? pls let me know. Also i made this PLAYLIST if you want to add some feeling to this while reading... Enjoy! 

Lena Luthor x R/Hanahaki AU//Word Count: 3,464

-------------------------------------------------

It is possible to die of a broken heart.

You look it up somewhere in the internet. It's similar to a heart attack, caused by a very strong and emotionally stressful event. The death of a loved one, a breakup, a betrayal. It's treatable and rarely fatal. Following the recommendations of your doctor, you can make a full recovery within weeks. Still, it is possible to die of it.

You don't have a broken heart. You wish you had one. Because love, the one only you feel, is growing inside of you and it is much worse than that.

Thankfully, compared to others your condition it's not as painful as it could be.

You have heard about people with roses inside them, how their thorns puncture their pharynges with every breath they take. Others don't get flowers. They get apple or cherry trees with their fruits pouring juice inside their lungs and out of their mouths. Some others have pines and spruces, with cones constricting their organs and rib-cages until they bones break.

So you look at the small white petal that lays in your hand and think that, in your case, it is something almost magnanimous.

Plumerias have no thorns and, even though some can be a bit thick, their branches are soft enough to bend around your heart and lungs without much trouble. Their petals, small and delicate, rise easily up your throat without lacerating it in a coughing fit.

Maybe, you want to think in a very optimist way, if you can keep that love from growing further, you won't have to suffer through it.

Maybe.

So you prescribe for your own heart solitude and abstinence.

The first one is the easiest.

You tell your friends you are sick and need some time to recover. Most of them get worried as they don't know yet what illness has fallen upon you in these troublesome times.

"You know, If you wanted, I could get you a full medical examination." Alex offers with a raised eyebrow, giving you the look of the always concerned big sister.

"Thanks, but it's alright." You assure them with a smile. "I was thinking about spending some time at home anyway."

After a lot of questions you manage to dodge in the end, they decide there's no reason to doubt your intentions. So they leave you to your own devices.

Homemade remedies, or herbicides depending on who you ask, seem to help as you spend your days at home. Drinking some salt water with lemon in the morning, or a couple of vinegar tablespoons in a cup of tea before going to bed. They don't taste that bad once you get used to the flavor and these help you ease the new bitterness that you taste in the back of your throat.

The second is a bit harder.

You have to stop yourself from dreaming her, thinking her, missing her.

She has texted you a few times already, wanting to know how you're doing and offering her help if you don't feel like you're doing okay on your own. You handle it as best as you can. You text back, consistently enough and with measured time and words, so you don't raise any red flags. When you don't seem to answer she calls, but just thinking about hearing her voice makes your chest hurt a little.

You never answer. She doesn't try to call again. You spit your first handful of flowers after that.

It's all fine, you lie to yourself, at least until the pain reaches your insides and white petals come out of you mouth dappled in red.

"You need to tell her." Kara says softly as she pats your back after another coughing fit.

You cover your mouth with your hand, making sure there are no signs of blood or petals as you tight it into a fist. "Tell who what?"

"Tell Lena about the flowers." She sighs when she fells you freeze under her touch. "Sorry. Alex told me if I could get a clear shot at your lungs maybe we could figure out how to help. I didn't expect it to be... well, flowers."

It shouldn't come as a surprise to you but you are still amazed at how easy it is to forget Kara has x-ray vision when she's not wearing her suit. With or without it, she's still the same caring and protective person you have always known. It also explains why she has been so adamant about having lunch together, at least once a week, after your failed attempt at convincing her you were doing well after a month alone. You couldn't expect less from your best friend, you remind yourself as you catch your breath.

"How do you know it's her?" The taste is bitter as you swallow the rest of blood and petals in your mouth.

"It's plumerias, isn't it?" She rubs your back again as you regain you posture. "They are her favorites."

There are a couple of red tainted petals in your palm when you open your hand. "Yeah, they are."  

Kara looks at you and you see something in her you don't think you have ever seen before in the Girl of Steel. But you recognize it, because you feel the same way. Hopeless. Helpless. Powerless.

"(Y/N)." She says like she's already grieving. "It's spreading fast."

The easiest way to get ride of the disease is by removing its seed from your heart, the doctor says. No more than an hour in the operating room and your respiratory system would be as good as new. Common symptoms after the surgery can include aches between your shoulder blades, ribs, back of the neck or chest, weakness and hoarseness in your voice, and, in general, some memory loss and the inability to experiment intense or deep affection towards another person. Most of these stop shortly after you recover, except for the last one.

More experimental methods have been developed with the help of biotherapy. Experts in Japan are said to have reduced the spread of the flowers with other plants like kudzu or barberry, while someone in Europe has been using thrips to eat the plant and control its growth. It's like using maggots to eat your wounds, the doctor explains more enthusiastic than you feel.

You could, of course, try the simplest of things and confess your love.

It only takes to be loved in return for you to heal before any permanent damage is done. The seed that grows in your heart will almost instantly wither, the cough will purge the last of the flowers out of your lungs, and your recovery will last only a couple of weeks. You will breathe again.

But, if your love goes unrequited, you'll reach your fatal end in a matter of days. Doctors will give you a double dose of morphine or induce a coma trying to ease your pain. Flowers, fruits and cones bloom, branches and thorns grow. You convulse and gasp until your last breath when the biggest flowers come out of your mouth. All until your thorax is transformed, beautifully and violently, into a garden of flesh and blood.

Anyone who has seen it happen will tell you, how shocking it is to witness such a thing.

Whatever the case, this only serves to confirm what you already know. You can't be optimistic anymore.

You're dying and you will die, soon with flowers in your lungs or after many years with a loveless heart. Because this life and death of yours, you think, cannot be, shall not be, decided by a coin in the air.

And yet.

"It's flowers...in my lungs." You can almost tell which direction the flower stalks take inside your chest as the words form in your mouth.

"Oh." Lena says as she starts to fidget with her hands.

The anger, that had been growing inside her after weeks of vague replies and evasions, vanishes in her eyes the moment she understands what you're going through.

"Have you...talked to the other person?"

"No, not really. Not yet." You try not to lose your composure as you feel the flowers threatening to rise up your throat.  

"Will you?" She asks.

You take a deep breath, feeling the gravity pull your already heavy heart down. "It's plumerias."

"Plumerias?" You can see the moment it dawns on Lena, and the look she gives you makes you wish again you could die of a broken heart instead.

"Miss Luthor, I'm sorry but the board meeting will start shortly."    

Jess opens the door a second later and it gives you time to look at the other side and place your hand in your chest. As if that could possibly stop your heart and lungs from collapsing.

"Thank you, Jess. I'll be there." Lena dismisses her with a nod and looks again at you.

She doesn't say anything else and you feel a coughing fit building in your lungs. Stronger than you have ever felt it.

"(Y/N)!" She leaves her chair, running towards you.

You cover your mouth as your chest feels like a boxer is using it as a punching bag. I doesn't feel like it will end quick and when it finally does the only thing that remains is pain.

You thank the chair that holds you in place as you catch your breath.  

"I'm fine. It's fine." You don't want her to see it, but she manages to catch a glimpse of the bloody petals that cover your palm once you recover.

"No, it's not, (Y/N). You're dying and I-"

"It's not your fault." You cut her off, shaking your head and taking a little napkin from you pocket to clean yourself as best as you can.

The death, the break, the betrayal. You feel it all as worry and pity finally merge in her eyes. There's also guilt when she looks at you. It is there along with everything else she doesn't feel for you. So you don't want an apology, especially not from her, especially not like this.  

"You're my friend and I just- I wanted you to know. I got my surgery already programmed."

"Surgery?" You watch her draw back a bit in surprise.

"I'll be fine." You lie again.

"(Y/N), I-"                            

"Miss Luthor, the board-"

"I know!" Lena snaps and, when she realizes the magnitude of her reaction, she retracts, taking a deep breath for herself before answering. "Sorry, yes. Do you think you could hold it for a minute?"

"You should go." You say with a small voice before any of them can say more. "The meeting, sounds important."

"(Y/N)..." The way she pronounces your name makes you want to be over with this already. You just can't stand it anymore.

"We'll talk later." You say. "We got time."

She wants to argue, you know, but you won't, can't, do it. Still, you pull a little smile for her.

"We'll talk later." She replies with a nod.

There will be time for another conversation. There will be time. There will be time. There will be time. You repeat it like a mantra to help you carry yourself out of her office.

Everything else after that passes like a blur.

You know you reach the front door of the building, with the voice of the receptionist behind your back offering to call for help. You stumble on the sidewalk trying to hold onto light poles and signposts to keep yourself from falling. You clutch your hand in your chest as the pain reaches its peak. Flowers come pouring out of your mouth and you gasp for air as you finally fall.

You're delirious by the time you land on the hospital bed.

Many faces come and go then, doctors, nurses, friends, ghosts, both the living and the death. The only constants are your dying gasps and the painful beating of your heart until the morphine does its work. It helps you see, with certain clarity the only face that can make a difference.

"You listen to me, alright? I'm sorry I didn't say anything earlier." You open your heavy lids at the sound of her voice, and you see those emerald eyes for what could be the last time. "I love you, (Y/N), please, I love you."

You hear her words, or you don't, or it is simply to late to care anymore. The coin is in the air and there's no more time.

***

☞ You let yourself drift into darkness as the plumerias are pulled to a better light. The garden is gone and what is left behind is only an empty carcass. You cannot stand the emptiness and your heart does what it should have done from the beginning. It breaks and breaks and breaks...

***

☞ Your mind tries to grasp her words but you find your heart too weak to keep a hold of them. So you let them pass through like a shadow. No need for them anymore as the anesthesia and the scalpel give you a break from all this suffering. There will be no flowers and it is, truly, not as bad as it could be...

***

☞ Her words suddenly hit you in their full meaning and your mind does its best to keep and save them into your heart. Even through branches and petals, it has the effect of an echo chamber, repeating those words like a healing prayer. I love you. I love you. I love you...

[machinatings]

I meant in general not just Taika characters!! Taika characters would be a double diversity win though

OH SORRY ANON for misunderstanding. But if you just want some Jewish characters in that case you’re in luck!!!!

But first- I’m actually gonna have to put this post under a cut because it got pretty long. To be honest though I genuinely thought it would be longer, but when I sat down to write a list I really struggled to think of Jewish characters, at least ones that I liked. Most of the ones that came to mind feel into bad stereotypes, had their jewishness played only for laughs, or only ever mentioned they were jewish like once during a Christmas special or something.

And some of the characters on this list do fall into tropes I don’t like, but there’s enough there for me to still like them. Either way I hope you, anon (and anyone else possibly reading this) find a character you might enjoy! Warning that most of these are comic book characters lol.

Oh and the last thing I’ll say up top here is that if anyone seeing this post knows of any Jewish characters you like that I haven’t mentioned please add on!

With that said. Here’s some Jewish characters I like:

Magneto: always correct. My grandpa <3

Kitty pryde: 💖💖💖 She has The best looks of all time, she yells at Professor Xavier, she has a magen david that can repel vampires. She’s bisexual. She’s the greatest character of all time.

Peter Parker (spiderverse): crushes a glass at his wedding and the director confirmed he’s Jewish. Also. Look at him.

Polaris: She’s magnetos daughter and has green hair which makes her very cool

Billy Kaplan: he’s Scarlet Witch’s son and Magnetos grandson (Debatably. We’ll get to that later) but not biologically, spiritually (comics are weird) but IN ANY CASE all you need to know is that his biological parents are Jewish and he is also Jewish. Anyway he literally has a gay Jewish wedding in space so if that isn’t enough to sell you on this guy I don’t even know

Moonknight. Please let him be Jewish in the tv show please let him be Jewish in the tv show pl

Leah told me to add Lexie (euphoria) and TK (911) which I haven’t watched either but their actors are Jewish and pushed for their characters to be Jewish too which is nice :]

Gray reminded me about ANNIE!!! From community!! I love ANNIE! We would hold hands.

The main character from Crazy Ex Girlfriend I forget her name. REBECCA. Rebecca?? I WAS RIGHT ITS REBECCA. I’ve only watched a few episodes but shes fun

Elsa from JoJo Rabbit genuinely means a lot to me I won’t spoil the film (which. If you haven’t watched it go fix that) but I really love how her character was written

ISABELLA FROM PHINEAS AND FERB. I remember when I was little seeing her celebrate hannukah and it BLEW my entire MIND I was like “CHARACTERS ON TV CAN DO THAT?!?!”.. yes little Ti. Yes they can. Sometimes I wish they would do Anything Else.

And finally, the internet says kronk is Jewish. From emperors new groove. I haven’t watched the film in a long time and I haven’t researched to verify if this is true but I don’t care. If I’ve been lied to I hope I never find out. Kronk is Jewish

Aaand now here’s some dubiously canon Jewish characters for fun:

Peter Parker (comics): this one I really want to put him in the straight up canonical Jewish characters section bc OK LIKE. He very frequently uses Yiddish, has name dropped quote unquote obscure jewish holidays, he was created and written largely by Jewish comic book creators (Stan Lee and jack Kirby) and very much embodies Jewish humour, morals, outlooks. Also Brian Michael Bendis who is a very big comic writer and made miles morales and has written for spider-man a bunch etc etc (I don’t rlly like him but Still) says that peter Parker is Jewish. He literally is Jewish. Buuut it’s technically not canon and is def not canon in the mcu so. Dubiously canon. 😐

OH YEAH ALSO Andrew Garfield is Jewish and said he played his Peter Parker as Jewish so there’s a win for the tasm fans

Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver - magnetos kids. This is dubious because scarlet witch and quicksilver arguably don’t count because them being magnetos children was retconned which is dumb so I ignore it but still there you go. Listen. Comics are weird

Also on that note there’s Scarlet Witch’s other spiritual but not biological son who is Billy’s brother but born to a different, non Jewish, family: Tommy Shepherd. Is he Jewish? You tell me.

Spock! Leonard Nimoy and based the 🖖 signal from a prayer ceremony he saw :] Spock is Jewish to me <3

Aaaand there you have it! A list of Jewish characters. It’s not just me though, this list feels short right?? Granted there are plenty of iconic Jewish characters that I haven’t listed because I just haven’t watched/read the media they’re in but… considering I’m always actively looking out for and take notice of Jewish characters you really would think there’d be more. Im sure I’m forgetting some tho if I think of any more I’ll add em.

Still!! Hope this was the kind of thing u wanted anon lemme know if you wanna know anything else about these characters :D and again to anyone who sees this please feel free to add on!

[johannesviii]

This is a long post about Shaman King I started to write ages ago and I don’t have a good title for it

Let me tell you about Shaman King for a few minutes, okay. Because the new anime adaptation is coming in like 3 months and I’m still not ready for it. Also I started to write this post 5 years ago just because I re-read the whole thing at the time and it’s been in my drafts since then. Oops

But yeah Shaman King was the very first fandom I got into when I first had a real internet access, around 2003-2004. I was around fifteen. The manga was still going. And in retrospect, it was full of problems. Among other things:

Not enough female characters & questionable choices for most of the ones who actually have a part to play in the plot

A black character drawn with big lips (see above), and I REALLY HOPE this is gonna get fixed in the new anime ; I mean even the author stopped drawing him like that a few years ago when he did the “remix tracks” extra chapters so come on please

An imaginary native american tribe who, while pretty cool, is still imagined by a Japanese dude in 1999 soooo yeah there’s some rough corners here and there (edit: got some anon hate about that but I'm sorry, "ancient aliens" tropes always make me uncomfortable)

An art quality which gets worse and worse over time due to deadline pressures and an increasingly exhausted author

Was stopped before it could reach its natural conclusion (the author drew an actual ending years later and tbh it’s great so I’m putting this very low on the list)

So yeah. Manga from 1999. Problematic. Aged badly. It happens.

BUT.

In retrospect, most of it is such a kick in the metaphorical butt of shonen manga as a whole I can’t believe it was competing against Naruto and One Piece at some point?? Like

It’s a shonen so it plays the "dramatic and sudden power jump” game, but it uses it to reach a surprising conclusion (in the “new” ending I mean)

Most of the characters are “shamans” which means they can see ghosts and spirits, and they use them to fight, to work, or to help other people. This is a manga in which you’re gonna see a Russian shaman channeling a Vodyanoy spirit into a drum to create a torrential flood. You don’t see that in every manga

It’s stated right away that no shaman can be truely, irredeemably bad, because only good-natured people can see ghosts and spirits.

So, no matter how bad a villain may be, they must have had a good nature once even if they look like a complete bastard at the moment.

How far is the author willing to go with that concept? Pretty far

Even without talking about the main villain and how the story ends because, duh, spoilers... Like

My favorite character, who gets a full redemption arc later, cuts someone open in his first chapter

He’s one of the good guys 10 volumes later

Speaking of which the amount of gore in this manga has to be seen to be believed, Jump would never let this happen nowadays

If you’re wondering why this is in the “positive” (......?) list it’s because I was 14/15 and all kids that age crave blood and angst

The main character, Yoh, pictured above, is very laid-back, and I mean very. He listens to the in-world equivalent of Bob Marley and constantly wears big headphones. Also he wears sandals, and sometimes there’s a weed leaf drawn on his t-shirt

His parents arranged a mariage between him and a girl shaman even though they’re still teenagers, so this would have potential for High Drama - but surprisingly enough it turns out they like each other and after that he just goes around saying “this is my future wife” and she’s like “hello if you touch him I’m going to end you”

It sounds weird and it......... is, tbh, but it’s also refreshing among all the “ugh, girls, yuck” tropes that nearly all shonen mangas used to have at the time

Yoh’s main goal in life is to live with minimal effort

When his grandfather tells him he must train to participate in a shaman tournament which happens every 500 years, because the winner gets a wish granted by the Great Spirit, he decides his wish will be to make everybody’s life easy so that nobody will ever be forced to work or do shit they don’t want to do to survive anymore

Yoh Asakura is a Millenial icon don’t @ me

Speaking of which

Almost everyone in this series is broke as f█ck

Yoh owns a big house but that’s only because the price was ridiculously low since it’s the most haunted place in Tokyo and nobody else wants to live there. The house is constantly full of other characters (including enemies) who have literally nowhere else to go

The only important character who isn’t broke has money because his family is super rich but he hates all of them because they’re all bastards so it’s super awkward

Another character bought a really cool motorbike but he’s going to be in debt for the next 40 years

Also he’s a hobo

And also bi

What I’m trying to say is: relatable

Also the tournament is held by an imaginary Native American tribe. They’re also broke. All of them. The two judges who are in charge of the main characters live in a cramped appartment and often try to sell souvenirs in the street to pay the rent

I know that’s hashtag problematic but I still love them I can’t help it

Just like in most shonen mangas the hero seems to amass a big collection of Friends but since everyone is a weirdo in a way or another and comes from all over the world it looks even funnier

At some point during the tournament, the main characters have to form small groups of three in order to participate to the next part. Yoh’s team is one of the strongest teams among the ones we’ve met at this point, and is composed of 1) Yoh, a laid-back sleepy kid wearing toilet sandals 2) the aforementioned bi hobo who’s sad because his current crush is in a rival team, and 3) a thirty-something tatooed guy with no legs and an IV drip and who looks like he hasn’t slept since 1997

Oh and they all wear adds for a bath house

Because remember: everyone’s f█cking broke

Spoilers for the mid-point of the manga but I need to talk about it because it encapsulates everything I used to love in it

You’ve been warned

So

At some point the main character, Yoh, is asked to choose between staying in the tournament or resurrect his rival

This is framed as some kind of very heavy, very huge dilemma. Like oh no what will he do. Will he give up his dreams and hopes. Will You Push The Button(tm)

So the choice is presented to him

In a very dramatic way

And he immediately goes “there’s a way to save him?? YES PLEASE”

He doesn’t hesitate a single second and drops the tournament in a heartbeat to save the guy

This scene greatly contributed to make me a better person I’m not even joking at all

I love Yoh

So anyway I don’t have a proper conclusion for this

Shaman King is very flawed and its flaws need to be acknowledged to fully appreciate all the good things in it, and the “old” fandom from more than 15 years ago was a very good formative experience for me because the forum I was on (which was nuked from the face of the internet by a hacker “looking for training grounds” (his words not mine, he posted it on our frontpage a full week before he did it) in 2005, rip) was full of people who were really into criticising every little aspect of the manga but still loved it dearly

And I think that’s a healthy way to enjoy things and I think we should bring this back

Anyway

Shaman King extremely flawed but full of good things

I still can’t believe it’s back

Johannes out