#anyway i have feelings for him i don’t know where to put all of them it’s kinda overwhelming maybe i just need to throw up

[iannmin]

What kinks do you think San would have? <3

KINKS SAN WOULD HAVE ⁺₊❆⋆ 최산

🏷️ ⋆ smut, drabble, intentional lowercase, size kink, praise kink, breeding kink (serious), lingerie play, somnophilia, cum play (LOTS of cum)

🗒️ ⋆ RAHHHHHH WTF I’ve been wanting to write this SO BAD!!! thank you thank you so much for the opportunity skjdkskdksk i hope both sides of your pillow are nice and fluffy every time you sleep <3333 also i just couldn’t help but put the edit of long haired san hehe

୨୧ ‘ masterlist ‧˚₊•┈┈┈┈୨୧┈┈┈•‧₊˚⊹ ⋆⁺₊❅⋆ ⁺₊❆⋆⁺₊❅⋆ ⁺₊❆⋆ ⁺₊❅⋆

PRAISE KINK ⋆

no offence but sannie would be on the number one priority list for those who have praise kink. like can you see how he folds and gets absolutely all squishy and subby when wooyoung praises him? like his cheeks gets all flushed and hot,, he’ll probably desire the same with his s/o, whether it’s him giving or receiving. and to be honest san is more of a soft dom, so he’ll love reassurance. just imagine every time when he’s about to enter you he will most definitely whisper softly “you can take it baby, it’s gonna open up so well for me, your pussy’s gonna feel so good, hm?” (and I’ve noticed that san loves to say ‘hm?’ after his sentence a lot in his voice lives and it drives me absolutely crazy)

SIZE KINK ⋆

sannie is a total sucker for size differences and he absolutely builds his ego off of watching his s/o squirm under his huge frame. like just picture him headlocking his s/o from behind, broad chest sticking to his s/o’s back while just absolutely pounding the fuck out of them and whispering dirty things into their ear ughh. and do you remember that one fanmeeting clip of san’s back facing the audience and wooyoung is literally holding his neck attempting to kiss him??? he’ll probably look like that coming home to his s/o from a long day of work,, kissing them at the entrance as a ‘I’m home’ type of gesture. and also,, that’s probably why san hits the gym sososo much, it’s really just to assert dominance and feel big

BREEDING KINK ⋆

don’t even get me started with this once :,) like do you guys realise how traditional san is? like in terms of family and stuff he seemed to have grown up in a very traditional household where his father was strict on him and all that. like just look at how much respect he has for his parents and how well-mannered he is,, and especially do you remember when san mentioned that if he had a daughter he would raise her in a very princess way but if he had a son he would raise him like his father did in a strict way? so anyways,, the whole point I’m making is that san would probably want to start a family early with his s/o so that they can have cute little family outings together, and he can be a dad. so that’s where the feral breeding kink comes in. like he just goes absolutely bonkers the first time his s/o let’s him hit it raw after their marriage, or even better, when he learns that his s/o wants to try for a baby, so he makes sure to absolutely fill their cunt to the fullest, even going beyond his usual stamina of two rounds because for some reason he keeps getting hard after watching his white cum seep out of their hole and dripping onto their thighs :( P.S. he might even have a sex marathon with his s/o on the week their ovulating just to maximise his chances of becoming a dad

FINGERING ⋆

okay okay, I know sannie is a clean type of person and he doesn’t really like making a huge mess, especially when you see how clean and minimalistic his dorm room is but when it comes to his s/o, all morality just gets thrown off out the window. he goes pussy drunk and fingers them until they’re making an absolute mess. and I’ve seen some people commenting that he has chubby hands like cheese-stick fingers but won’t they feel so fucking good when their up in his s/o’s hole? i bet the stretch is a whole lot better with thick fingers like his and it’s definitely enough to get his s/o squirming and whimpering, even squirting.

SOMNOPHILIA ⋆

sannie treats women with so much respect and probably hates non-con stuff which is a great turn-off for him. but somnophilia? that’s his jam right there. the first time his s/o told him up front that they like being fucked awake no matter when, he was slightly hesitant, but he probably discovered a whole new world right there and then when he slid his dick into their unprepped cunt, the raw feeling being absolutely addictive. so even on days when his s/o looked absolutely unsexy, wearing a pair of kiddy-looking pajamas, he will still have a great urge to pull down those cartooned pants and fuck them. he just can’t get enough of the moment when their brows finally knit together and their eyes flutter open, raising their head from the pillow just to see him wrecking their pussy open, and that’s when all senses and feelings process in their brain and they start moaning and squealing.

LINGERIE ⋆

just a bonus kink here hehe,, and not to mention sannie is not the type to rip open the lingeries because he respects how expensive they are, but he’s more of the type to push their panties to the side and fuck them <3

[neptilius]

I feel like a lot of people write gojo when he’s being playful or sarcastic but could you write moments where he’s serious or he’s genuinely having a heart to heart with the reader?

yesss i love these concepts! in my opinion i think he’s sexier when he’s more serious because we rarely see that side of himmmm 😛

“i quit.”

satoru froze in the middle of adjusting his jacket, the sound of your voice cutting through the quiet in the room.

he turned to look at you, his brow furrowing as confusion painted his features.

“what?” he asked, his tone laced with disbelief. his eyes narrowed as he studied your face, trying to make sense of what you just said.

“i quit,” you repeated, your voice steady but quiet.

you were done. done with the constant pressure, the constant fear of what might happen next. done with the world you had found yourself in, a world of curses, jujutsu sorcery, the thought of losing yourself completely, of dying before you even had a chance to live, had become too much to bear.

satoru’s eyes softened, but the confusion never left. “babe… you can’t just quit. not like this. not when things are tough.”

“and why not?” you shot back, unable to keep the frustration out of your voice.

“why do you think i have to keep doing this? why do i have to keep risking my life, getting dragged into these fights, and walking away with more scars every time? i’m just… tired of almost dying.”

your words hung heavy in the air between you two, and for a moment, the room felt suffocating.

“you’re not the only one who’s tired,” he said softly, but there was a firmness beneath his words that didn’t match the softness of his expression.

he took a step toward you, like he was trying to reach out to you in the only way he knew how. “but quitting isn’t the answer. when things get tough, you don’t just quit.”

he didn’t understand. how could he? he was Satoru Gojo. nothing fazed him. he was invincible, or so it seemed. but you weren’t like him. you didn’t have that same untouchable strength. you were just human, and your body was starting to feel the toll of everything you had been through.

“you wouldn’t understand anyway,” you muttered, barely able to meet his gaze. “i don’t know why i even bothered telling you.”

the words felt like a slap in the face to him, and you immediately regretted saying them. his eyes hardened, but the anger didn’t burn, not the way it normally would when he felt disrespected.

“don’t say that,” he replied, his voice low, almost too gentle.

“i may not understand what you’re going through, but that doesn’t mean i don’t care. i’m not gonna let you throw everything away just because it’s hard. if you quit, you’re just letting the world win.”

“maybe that’s what i want,” you shot back, the bitterness slipping out before you could stop it.

“maybe i want to stop fighting. i’m exhausted, satoru. fighting, training, always putting myself in danger for some cause that doesn’t even feel like mine. all i’ve done is survive—barely. and for what? to risk my life over and over again? i’m done.” you exhaled sharply, trying to hold back the tears that had been threatening to spill. “i just don’t care anymore.”

satoru’s expression shifted. there was no anger, no frustration anymore, just a deep sadness. he stepped closer, closing the distance between you two until there was barely any space left. he gently placed a hand on your shoulder, his fingers curling around the fabric of your shirt.

“i get it,” he said softly, the words so different from the usual brashness of his character. “i get that you’re hurting. but you can’t quit. not like this. not because it’s hard. i won’t let you give up on yourself. i can’t.”

he paused, his thumb gently brushing your skin as his eyes locked onto yours, as if searching for something.

“look, i don’t know what it’s like to be where you are. i don’t know what it feels like to be on the edge of giving up, but i do know this: you matter to me. a lot. and i’ll fight beside you because i care about you. i care about you more than you know.”

the sincerity in his voice cut through you like a knife, and despite yourself, your heart ached.

“i’m not letting you quit,” he continued, his words steady. “if you want to stop fighting, that’s fine. but you’ll have to do it with me. i’m not going anywhere.”

you could feel your chest tighten, the weight of your emotions threatening to break free. you had been so consumed by fear, by exhaustion, that you had almost forgotten the one thing that truly mattered. not the curses, not the missions, but the people who cared about you. and the one person who was always there, even when you tried to shut him out.

you closed your eyes for a moment, taking a shaky breath. “i just don’t know if i can keep doing this,” you admitted, your voice barely a whisper. “i’m scared.”

“i know you are,” he replied, his hand gently cupping your face.

“and that’s okay. but you don’t have to be scared alone. i’m here, and i’m not letting you go through this on your own.“

you stared at him, the weight of his words settling in your chest. maybe you couldn’t quit. not like this. not when you had someone who would stand by you, even in your darkest moments. and maybe, just maybe, that was enough to keep going.

[cherryssodapop]

Billy Hargrove astrology chart analysis

Though I could be wrong about the time, the aspects are pretty much the closest I’m gonna get (Unless somehow Dacre or the Duffers have released the information of Billy’s birth time and I just don’t know. I punched in 'March 29, 1967 11:06 AM San Diego USA' my fellow astrology baddies do what you will with this information Either way the main planets SHOULD stay the same but his houses might be different BUT we’re proceeding with what we have!).

Now, mind you I haven't done this in a while, I'm SUPERRR outta practice so to my fellow astrology baddies if I miss anything I'm so sorry 😭.

Alr lets get into it, same as the readings I did for Dallas and Darry I'm gonna go by planet and house and basically explain what it all means.

Sun in Aries (in 10th house) - okay so this is so interesting because even prior to me calculating his chart, I always knew Billy was some sort of fire sign, I mean, LOOK AT HIM??? Like HE'S a fiery little cracker (hahaha cracker... I'm sorry im jk I love u B).

But anyways the sun in 10th house is really interesting, I found a post on here that really explained in depth that aspect and how it affects the natal person (Post here) Basically, people with this placement crave recognition, they stand out with confidence and charisma that often draws attention towards them without fail (we see this the second he arrives at Hawkins, he draws attention towards himself immediately). They naturally gravitate toward leadership roles, even if they didn't ask for it (everyone gravitated towards him and put him on the pedestal of being the "King" and dethroning Steve from the social hierarchy). Their drive for validation stems from fragile self-esteem, leading to feelings of underappreciation despite their efforts. Failures can be deeply personal, like they take failure personally and it affects them greatly, but their ambition and resilience pushes them to rise again, embracing challenges as part of the path to success (started working full time the second he graduated so he could work towards leaving his abusive father).

But back to his sun though, Aries is so interesting because that's so accurate???? Like he's intense, he's passionate. He's very straight forward and will say what he has to say with his chest. People tend to follow him around where he goes, Aries are leaders. They can be spontaneous and impulsive. Stubborn but also a bit reckless. These people are your typical "act before think" people, but like who doesn't love a little chaos 🤪. They're ruled under Mars so this sign is all about action and getting shit done. They'll talk their shit and rock your shit, so messing with them isn't really a good idea. But if an Aries likes you they can be a lot of fun. They're very energetic and active people. You'll be anything but bored with them.

now onto his cutesy little moon

scorpio moons are have my heart because they're so sensitive and emotional, that often it's overwhelming even for them let alone an outside person.

People with Scorpio moons often have traumatic childhoods especially his being in 5th house, so probably exposed to big dramatic fights, or the conflict or circumstances were very grand and outrageous (bro kinda witnessed his mom get beaten by Neil and in turn gets beat himself now that he's older). At the same time these are very strong and enduring individuals. Because they tend to always think about the worst possible scenario, have a very cynical and distrusting view on the world. But at the same time, let's not forget, they are water signs, so that sensitivity will always be there, deep down this sign is scared of being alone. There will always be a part of them that will crave intimacy, like true, deep, raw (lol) intimacy. However because of this deep desire, these people can also often be a little.... delulu per say. Like obviously once you've lost a scorpio moons respect they will immediately cut you out like literally, they will treat you like your dead. But Scorpio being the sister sign of Taurus and being a fixed sign, it would take a lot for a scorpio moon to leave like they will put up with A LOT, which is why they often can get taken advantage of in relationships (:/// ). So yea scorpio moons need to be protected and wrapped up in a blanket with some hot coco and be kissed on the forehead.

Moving onto his Mercury (smiles in mercurian dominant myself)

I find this so interesting because on one hand pisces mercurials can be really wise and intelligent (being the last and oldest of the zodiac), these people can have an "old soul" type of mentality so I can totally see them being into topics like philosophy, spirituality, creative arts, anything to really boost their imagination. his 9th house boosts this even more since 9th falls under sagittarius which is all about philosophy and teaching. Because of this, often people with this placement are really good writers. (so I totally agree with the head cannon of Billy secretly writing poetry, and being good at playing games like dnd).

This placement often gets mislabeled as "dumb" or "ditsy" but they're not stupid they just process information slower than most people.

These people are also really good liars. Like they're some manipulative lil bitches (we saw how he lied to mrs. wheeler that he was worried about Max when he was actually raging mad.) They'll lie about almost anything. Sometimes they do it to keep peace around people and avoid conflict and to get people to leave them alone. But yea this placement certainly has a silver tongue innit, helps them get away with stuff but it also means they're really good at rizzing people with their words; speaking of...

our boy over here has a Taurus Venus. like first of all, this comes with so many pluses because Venus is right where it belongs. Taurus is ruled by Venus so this planet is right in its home sign. So my boy is a romantic lil bachelor 😜. Now his mars kind of makes him a fuckboy (most scorpio and sagittarius mars' are but the difference is is that sags often can't tell the difference between love and lust so they just pursue the person anyway whereas scorpio mars' are just horny fucks with strong game) BUT once he finds someone he wants to be in a relationship with, ouuuu girl he's such a gem.

Taurus Venus's value things like stability, security and comfort. He will very much pamper you. He'd give you the best he humanly possibly could. Taurus's are all about luxury and savouring the physical pleasures of life. He WILL be super affectionate, gifting you things, always touching you right, buying you or cooking you your favourite foods. Taurus's like routine so he will memorize your schedules and routines, coffee orders and all those small things. Although Billy would typically be impatient, he'd take his time pursuing you. Especially with his Scorpio Mars, he'd come in strong and steady .I don't wanna say like a predator stalking his prey cause that's more Scorpio Venus but bro definitely wouldn't back down easy. He won't mind playing the long game if he thinks you're worth it. The main thing here with this placement is their ACTIONS say a lot about their feelings towards their s/o. His Pisces Mercury will soothe you with sweet words, but his Taurus Venus will show you with his generosity and sensualness. He definitely knows how to make his girl happy and will stay loyal for a long time if he's certain about her.

Billy has so many aspects that indicate strong sex appeal and attractiveness, like it's written all over his chart lmfaoo his Venus trines his Pluto, His Venus also sextiles his ascendant.

His eros also trines his mars so he has a very passionate and intense drive, especially in the bedroom. No matter what you are to him, sex with him will always be intense. There's nothing soft about the way he engages in intimacy.

Billy has a cancer rising, for those of you that don't know your rising is in charge of your looks and people's first impressions of you. So cancer risings often have rounder faces, softer features and big eyes (I mean look at him bro, he's so baby girl). They also have curvier bodies (have you seen this man's thighs) shorter limbs too. Cancer rules over the chest so cancer risings can have large chests or big boobs ( he certainly has boobs). Also cancer risings are very pursued after, almost as much as scorpio risings but the difference is that Scorpios are very intimidating so often people don't wanna get past the sexualness of it. But with cancers, people simp over them emotionally too because cancer is considered as the "divine feminine" or "mother" in astrology, so basically people wanna wife them up as well as fuck them (literally his entire fandom). But yeah, anyway, Billy is a pretty boy we all know this, even his chart does 😭.

Alright now more about his mars-

Its in the 4th house, which is also another indication of his abusive childhood :/

His is in Scorpio and yes he's a kinky little shit and a great lover in the bedroom, however that's not all that Mars represents in a natal chart. It also represents how a person takes action to something. How they pursue and how they behave and manage their more aggressive and angry side. On one hand, Billy has the potential to be very good at achieving what he wants in life. He's capable of having a really strong mental fortress as scorpio is a very driven and determined sign. Tactical and calculated but also very loyal people. However at the same time, it makes them lowkey control freaks. They're the type of people to always want the last word in an argument and to have control over everything and everyone in almost every situation (though it does make them strategic leaders at the same time, it's kind of annoying). But yeah these people stand on business they will fuck your shit up if necessary because this planet is also in it's home sign, but Scorpio is also ruled by Pluto so it's the darker one of the mars ruled signs. So their anger can be very explosive and dangerous (we saw how he beat Steve to a bloody pulp), so don't piss them off, it takes a lot for them to loose their cool but once they've lost it, it's gone and not coming back.

Last thing I'll talk about is potential career placements he has because we never got to see him thrive and flourish in life because the duffers hate to give us nice things so I'll just tell you what it could've been with his chart

10 house/ MC in Pisces

So this is so cute because this means that he could actually be successful with a writing career, as this placement flourishes in creative careers. So these people are often musicians, actors, writers. They can also be philosophers, and teachers/mentors of some kind (he taught the kids at the Hawkins community pool how to swim). He'd be such an influencer 😝 I can totally see him being a model for Calvin Klein because he's literally built like a model (this is so possible with his 11th house in Taurus) As well as Leo in his second house, he'd live a very lavish lifestyle if financially stable and would really thrive in a position where he shines in his own spotlight.

Anywayssss that's everything for now, if there's anything else in his chart you guys want me to talk about don't be afraid to inbox me.

I hope you guys enjoyed this as much as I enjoyed writing this <3

[hermanoga]

It's Kinda Nice to Help People Find Their Precious Thing : The timeless journey of love, regret, trust, death and hope through Shiguang's life in Link Click Yingdu Episode 1

part -1

It's a very personal rambling actually, not a very critically sound one, if you still wanna read, just letting you know, you are not alone, I went through a lifetime of emotions while watching this.

What’s wrong with the timeline? : Before discussing this, I want to talk about Lu Guang’s age. I have this formula,

Lg’s age : X + 3n, X= his original age, n= the number of times he has dived back in the past to reach the situation of our timeline where Cheng Xiaoshi survived season 1 and made it to the end of the season 2. I am presuming that ‘n times Cheng Xiaoshi dies’ stopped in our timeline, so let us denote our timeline as ‘n*’, which has successfully changed Cheng Xiaoshi’s fate. (For people thinking, where did I get that ‘3’ in my formula, the episode of the lost child in season 1 says that the kidnapping of that little boy happened three years ago, when Shiguang were supposed to be in Yingdu. Basically Shiguang first met and went to Yingdu in 2018.)

The first four minutes of the episode 1 (Successfully made me cry like a wounded hyena left in the middle of a cold desert): What timeline is it? It is one of those timelines of ‘n’ where Cheng Xiaoshi died. Cheng Xiaoshi dies in every nth timeline, except n*. The first time he dies, let us call that timeline ‘n0’. And the first four minutes, let’s suppose it is nEp-1. Is n0 = nEp-1? If yes, then why Vein is punishing Lu Guang for changing the past? It implies that Lu Guang attempted (and succeeded kind of? since he is accused of changing the past) to change the past before? Why would he? For what reason? I have an answer to this convoluted question – Vein is punishing a past Lu Guang (‘innocent’ Lu Guang who didn’t dive and do shit) for the deeds a future Lu Guang committed. Eh? Every theory I suggest contradict with the thing I say next.

Still what I feel is that the narrator Lu Guang who gives the ‘butterfly effect’ speech is not the one who dives in the given visual. The hesitation in the visual suggests that Lu Guang is diving for the first time. I don’t have galaxy brains to understand the timeline theory anyways. And it is probably too early to start guessing.

Basketball symbolism: Life, death, trust, partnership.

I think now we all understand that the basketball motif really stands for a deeper philosophy of life and companionship. And Haoling actually puts that theme in big fat words in case someone missed, “It is so precious to have a trustworthy partner in life”. It is not about basketball. The exposition of first 1 minute 25 seconds deals with it.

1:26 – I howled. That’s not the point. The point is that Vein is actually interested in shooting Lu Guang, he wants his life, not Cheng Xiaoshi’s, he just physically defeats him. (My poor kitty, what the fuck did you do to deserve this, if my theory is right then…). Cheng Xiaoshi fucking dives to take the bullet.

Now, um. Why am I re-watching this? Cheng Xiaoshi dies and transfers his diving power to Lu Guang, the basketball symbolism recurs. Qiao Ling is dead and captain Xiao is dead too. Good. Cheng Xiaoshi says sorry for some reason and asks Lu Guang to save ‘them’, it’s his death wish. So, I am presuming that Lu Guang started diving because it was Cheng Xiaoshi’s last wish to Lu Guang (I need ibuprofen). From my perspective, Lu Guang when he dives, he is not sure what he is able to achieve. He probably goes back to the past just to relive those moments, those three years again. If everything goes well (LMAO my audacity) and Cheng Xiaoshi survives in this Yingdu arc, I am presuming that is our story then will be directly continuing in the two seasons.

Now let us heal a bit. First of all, congratulations to all, Lu Guang is gay. I don’t care what anyone opines, he is gay. He is the owner of that freaking Shakespearean sonnet book and he is the literal tsundere, come on, guys, it should be canon now.

Lu Guang holds his hand as if trying to say, “Please, don’t go”.

You are in acute denial if you say the visuals are not romantic. The white butterfly sits on the basketball he is holding.

That visual is so pretty! The butterflies remind me of tgcf ngl.

Bro, what kind of house does he live in. He is damn rich.

Cheng Xiaoshi : Partner, lets play basketball together again tomorrow. And the content smile Cheng Xiaoshi gives.

Still, somehow, The Eye is the most moving piece of animation I have ever seen, it feels like life with all heartaches and smiles present. I will carry this song with me till the end of time.

Oh, also. How are Vein fans doing? Just checking :D

This song is causing me physical angst.

I wish I can cosplay in my uni’s anime club’s event one day.

Okay so, a friend of mine pointed out that Lu Guang cosplayed as the hero of that RanXi chronicles when there was an attempt to dress Xiaoshi as the heroine. Ok.

Lu Guang checking that damn watch once in a while breaks my heart.

Parallel narrative, foil characters again – metanarrative, two-folded narrative embedded within the narrative (that girl’s story about perseverance, hope, regret, passion, taking the damn risk and further hope, story of RanXi chronicles and Lu Guang explicitly saying how he relates to the story of RanXi’s heroine)

Now I am saying again, I am Sapphic and Qiao Ling, that is Sapphic behaviour, my love, me and my Sapphic friends approve. “That girl is so lovely” the way she says it. AND YES QUEEN! Link Click never forgets to address social issues. Btw, I personally related to that girl when she was rebuked vehemently for voicing her career choice. My acceptance of what I really wanted to do in my life and pursuing it changed the trajectory of my life too. Life is not a flower path but “there are no regrets in dedicating your life to something you care about” – again it echoes the central theme of link click.

Also, (with a shiver) I am realising how the interpretation of the first and second season is rapidly changing (and I like it).

Cheng Xiaoshi, are you jealous?

The chibi shifts are so cute!

Lu Guang has this deep sense of lack of agency, understandable because it arises from the agony of the death of a loved one and this depressive existentialist mood makes him conform to the ‘power’, even though he can be rebellious but that threshold is only initiated with Cheng Xiaoshi’s active intervention.

Again saying, idk what kind of concept of queerness people (most of them who are not queer at all, how do they know what queerness is? How are you dictating?) have, but your friend’s image reflecting in your eyes when he brings a moral and ideological change to your mind and shatters your conformity, that surely is. This continuously happens in season 1 and 2, but we don’t get to know, you know why? Lu Guang’s pov was silenced deliberately. Without him soliloquizing, it’s impossible to know what his real emotional undercurrent is. The way Haoling crafted Lu Guang as a complex and delicate character, man. Man, I would die for him.

Btw, I too agree that putting a hand over his mouth is the second best option to silence him.

Ik it's bittersweet, but princess Guang-guang, don't run away from your fated prince! ( HOW THE FUCK AM I CRYING AGAIN)

this roughly wraps up to 34:30. I can't do more pain today, maybe tomorrow.

[11queensupreme11]

Hey!! I’m back😭😭😭was on vacation after my brutal exams!!! I passed!! But it was INTENSE! Anyway, I just read ur recent chapter and OMFG!!! WTF!! That was literally insane!! It felt like I was reading pure cinema! Like, I completely didnt think u were gonna have Demeter just straight up deleted like that💀💀😂😂.

(Although, not to be a hater, but she lowkey had it coming… I mean…that’s POSEDION’s daughter ur messing with hun. How else did she thing this would go?)

On that note, I DO feel a little bad for Persephone (only a little, tho, because who basically tries to get their cousin “date-raped” by their uncle so that they can get out of their own marriage 😑. Like girl don’t piss me off 😤👏) at the same time tho. Even tho I didn’t really like him, Zagreas (totally butchered that spelling😭😭) was still her son and I can imagine that no mother wants to have to chose between their kids like that.

(Even if she did have it coming)

With that thought tho…it does lead me to wonder…

If, hypothetically, Percy was ever put in a situation where she has no (absolutely NO) way to save all her yan children which group of kids would she choose to spare amongst the yan children?

Personally Im thinking…

Chances of survival (which group of Percy’s children is she most likely to chose all the way to least likely):

1: Anthonius kids (obviously)

2: Apollo kids- okay so I actually have a reason for this!!! Personally from what I can remember of past asks. Of all Percy’s children the Perpollo kids are the most likely to not turn out complete psycho’s like the rest of the yans because their dad actually raises them like a normal parent would. Apollo has experience with raising children too! And almost all of them were raised to be decent people. So their kids will have the most stable (as stable as it can get for a god I mean) household out of all the yans and are the least likely to be overly violent and sadistic.

3: Anubis kids- same as above^ honestly I think that Anubis’s kids will be pretty chill most of the time, like their father (unless extremely provoked), and stay pretty low key. They might be a little spoiled because Anubis seems like the type but not overly so. Like Apollo he also has experience so I think that their kids will turn out better than the other yans kids and I can’t see Percy as being the type to hate her children solely for their father’s actions towards her

4: Hades Kids- same as above.

5: beelzebub Kids- this is where things start to get…interesting. Percy loves all her kids but I’d imagine her kids with beelzebub will have it rough in a situation like this because if their anything like Beel… I’d imagine that they flip flop between cruelty, sadism, and/or indifference

6: Poseidon kids-bruh💀💀. With the way Poseidon be raising kids Percy would be lucky if they weren’t all sadistic monsters. She’d love them DEEPLY (I just don’t think she would LIKE them very much, you know?)

7: Loki kids- same as above

———————————————————-

8:Cu kids- I don’t know too much about their children yet but I don’t think they would be too bad so TBD

omg hey i missed you 🥺💖 i feel like it's been forever omg 😭😭

about your question, it reeeeaaaaally depends on the kid SPECIFICALLY in most cases. like for example, not ALL of poseidon's kids will be evil menaces.... or at least maybe not to a high degree lol, but since we're going my majority i'll judge them based on which yan dad are the most likely to have mostly unhinged kids 😂

1: anthonius obviously 💖 there's no damn way percy and anthonius would ever raise their kids to be evil, they would literally be the most normal, kindest, and empathetic of the bunch

2: cú chulainn! ok so i don't have much on sécy kids yet, but i plan on giving them more daughters and he sucks at handling girls cuz he's too clueless (he'll try tho!). but tbh, i think even the sons would just be huge assholes then psychos really 😅

3: anubis!!!!! you saw how he is with kebi, he's a really good dad 🥹 and he listens to percy (mostly) so he won't corrupt the kids too much.....

4: apollo! as long as they don't fall in love 💀

5: hades! hades is a decent dad so they won't be that bad.....

THE ABSOLUTE WORST WHERE PRETTY MUCH 90% OF THE KIDS ARE SHIT

6: loki. this guy is fucking crazy and unstable. YES HE IS A GOOD DAD but holy shiiiiiiit is he a bad influence on his kids

7: poseidon 💀

8: beelzebub 💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀

[happy-snake-noises]

I just read the UTRH comic and have thoughts about Jason Todd and Red Hood and don’t know where else to put them.

But I keep thinking about his motives for just everything he does during Under the Red Hood: we get every perspective but Jason’s true feelings. At the start, we understand from how Batman and Nightwing are interacting with Red Hood’s actions that they think he’s just some guy who’s trying to take over Gotham’s underbelly (to make it better/control crime or just fuck with Black Mask doesn’t really matter, they just disagree that they dont have the control)

Black Mask thinks he’s just caught in the crossfire between Red Hood’s and Batman trying to fight for some reason: but that reason is never made explicit. In the movie, Red Hood needs Black Mask to be his enemy so he’ll go looking for Joker and release him from prison, but in the comics, Jason finds Joker through other means and doesn’t strictly need Black Mask for that.

So that kinda begs the question of why Jason takes over Gotham’s drug scene at all; to spite Bruce and show him he can do it better? That’s solid and honestly in character for Jason to do, to still want to help in a way he thinks is helpful and maybe spite Bruce in the process by doing it.

And I can only imagine he stopped getting written like that because they didn’t want Red Hood to continue being an anti-hero to Batman.

Why is also sort but not sort of links into motivation/was it pit madness? Because reading the comics, not even the fucking narrator knows, which is fun but I don’t think it’s unrealistic to assume that in the rush of it all, Jason didn’t have time to calm down from the pit madness and once it had actually dissipated like a minutes/hours later, he felt he was left with no other purpose but vengeance/to be avenged.

Like the injustice of not being avenged is the only feeling that stuck with him after the pit left, and with no family, and no need to survive because Talia took care of finances, it’s not unrealistic to assume that he just followed that feeling.

But all this speculations just boils down to my frustrations at not being able to properly encapsulate or understand what Jason was thinking—because writing is just trying our hardest to encapsulate complex feelings or motivations into simple words but all we have is our lived experience and until further notice, nobody had died and come back from the dead to ask their father why they weren’t avenged.

Anyway, Jason Todd is a dope character, I just wish I knew why he did what he did, how much was influenced by his need for answers and how much was pushed by his desire for justice.

[witchygagirlwrites]

Fallen

Kelly Severide x Reader

"I can walk" "You've proven you can fall too."- in which Kelly doesn't hate you like you think he does @desimarie12

Since the first day you walked into firehouse fifty one as a new hire paramedic the ongoing feud between you and Kelly started. You tried to be understanding at first, you were replacing someone they lost, someone who according to Gabby had meant a lot to Kelly. Your understanding only went so far. After the first month passed and the best you ever got out of the squad lieutenant was a grunt if you happened to say excuse me if you were trying to get to the coffee pot? You wouldn’t actively try to kill him but you may render aid to a stray dog over him if they were both hurt at the same time.

The most infuriating thing of it all? Kelly was the most good looking guy you’d ever laid your eyes on. Easy smile and blue eyes that would stop any woman dead in her tracks and watching him be so at ease with every other member of the station house just made you feel like you would always be an outsider. 

You were helping Gabby to restock the rig and she asked you to grab some supplies from a closet inside that was just past Boden’s office. You knew where everything was by now, you’d been at fifty one for over six months. Everyone had welcomed you in and you felt like part of the family by then, well most everyone.

You hopped out of the back of the ambulance and headed inside, shooting Matt a smile when he held the door open for you when he was on the way out. “Thanks Casey” he nodded “Of course” 

You headed for the closet and walked in, quickly finding what Gabby needed and turned to head out but not before running smack into a bare chest which nearly caused you to drop everything in your hands. You felt hands on your waist, steadying you and was about to thank the owner of them when you looked up to see they belonged to Kelly “Christ have mercy” you groaned and he grinned “What’s wrong sweetheart? Can’t even keep your balance walking through the hallway? How do you take care of patients?”

You shook your head, trying to ignore the urge to let your eyes roam across his chest. Why the hell was he shirtless when it was January anyways? “You do talk a lot for a man whose life would depend on me if you got hurt”  he took a step closer and you could feel the heat coming off of him and smell his body wash still fresh from the shower “Are you saying you wouldn’t save me?”

He was close enough you had no choice but to crane your neck to be able to continue looking him in the eye and not be staring directly at his chest “I’m saying I’d do it but I wouldn’t be happy about it. You’ve been a pain in my ass since I got here. I know you don’t want me here. You haven’t hidden that fact but do not act like I’m incapable. You and I both know that isn’t true”

You stepped around him and headed back outside to the bays but stopped and looked over your shoulder “And put on a damn shirt, it’s thirty degrees outside and you’re walking around looking like you’re a stripper instead of a fireman” he grinned slightly “Are you calling me hot?” you shook your head “Of course that is the only thing that would stick in that thick brain of yours”

_____________________

When you got back outside it must have been written in your expression something was wrong because Gabby raised an eyebrow “Did Kelly start again?” you shrugged “It doesn’t matter” she sighed “I’m telling Matt. This is getting insane. It’s been over six months!” you shook your head “No! It’ll just get worse if it looks like I got you to tell on him. I don’t know what I did to make him hate me so much besides replacing Shay on the rig and it’s not like I tried to defile her memory or anything. The position was open, you needed a partner!”

She reached a hand out to rub your knee. “I don’t think he hates you, he just…” she laughed “Kelly’s an ass at times sweetie” “Oh really? I never would’ve known!” you laughed and she grinned “Just keep throwing it back at him. It keep him on his toes and it’s fun to watch for the rest of us when you catch him off guard” you winked at her “Oh I will, believe me”

A call blared out for a three car wreck requesting fire, rescue squad and the ambulance. You cut your eyes up at her and smirked “Oh yay” before you both hopped out of the back of the rig and ran to the front, hopping in amongst the chaos of everyone running to the trucks.

You cursed when you slid on the ice again and heard Capp giggle right before he fell flat on his face. “See?” you laughed, walking past him. Luckily it seemed most of the injuries sustained had been superficial but considering the thin layer of ice that had settled in different areas on top of the snow just clearing the scene was proving to be tricky.

You felt yourself slide and tried in vain to keep your footing. One foot went one way and one went the other and you ended up skidding down the small embankment and landing right at the feet of none other than the rescue squad’s lieutenant, you would have rathered the fall had killed you.

He looked down at you and a small smile slipped onto his face “Falling for me sweetheart?” you glared at him from your position on the ground “If I could get up without falling I’d kick your ass Severide” he laughed and leaned down, slipping one arm under your legs and the other under your neck, holding you against his chest before calling to Cruz “I’m taking our little spitfire paramedic back up so Gabby can make sure she didn’t hurt herself” you glanced down and realized he had different boots than you, of course he did.

“I can walk Kelly” you argued and he nodded “I know this, you’ve proven you can fall too. So for once don’t argue with me and just let me get you back up” you really didn’t want to fall again so you sighed then nodded. He tucked you against his chest and grabbed the rope to walk up the embankment while holding it.

_______________

Once he was on solid ground you expected him to put you down but no, he carried you all the way to the triage tent Gabby had on a cleared patch. “Dawson, your partner took a spill. Make sure she’s ok. She hasn’t tried to kill me in the last five minutes” 

He sat you down on the stretcher and winked at you “Be careful” you shook your head “Why? Because you want the pleasure of killing me?” his eyes trailed from your face down your body and considering you were currently covered in snow you felt yourself warm from embarrassment “Kill you? No. I could think of a few other things I’d rather do” 

He turned to walk away while your mouth was still dropped open from shock. Gabby looked from his retreating back to your face before she cracked up laughing “That explains so damn much!”

Once the scene was clear and everyone was back at the house you set out to find Kelly, hopefully alone. You ended up finding him on the roof with Matt’s help. He turned around when you stepped out of the door and smiled “I see you’re walking all on your own, I’m proud”

You shook your head “What the hell was that at the triage tent?” “What?” he asked and you waved your hands around “I could think of a few other things I’d rather do” 

He shrugged and let his eyes rake over you again and you were grateful you’d had the presence of mind to change before seeking him out “I wouldn’t wanna kill you over other things” you shook your head again “You’ve gotta be freaking kidding me! You’ve been an unbearable ass to me sinceI got here and now, what? You want to sleep with me?”

He took a step closer to you and you shivered feeling the heat coming off of him “When you first got here, yeah I was an ass because Shay was still a very sore spot. Then the longer you were here the only time I could get your attention was when you were pissed at me or else you ignored me all together so I took what I could get. If I could change how I acted when you got here, I would but I can’t” you laughed lightly “What the hell Severide?” 

He took another step closer which put his chest nearly touching yours “So, do you want to kill me?” you cut your eyes up at him, a grin slipping onto your face “Well, now that I know there’s other options..maybe not so much” his eyes fell to your lips so you laughed “Dammit Kelly just kiss me and get it over with” he shook his head “You really are a romantic sweetheart” before crashing his lips into yours.

[generic-sonic-fan]

That Twisted Mirror - Chapter 1: Shadow

Summary: Team Dark is transported to a reality where they must face the worst versions of themselves. To get home, they must work with the most unlikely allies- if Omega can stand not killing them on sight, if Shadow can get over his guilt enough to act, and if Rouge can bring herself to care about the fate of this timeline, that is.

4205 words

Green poured into the cracks of his eyelids, shining so bright he could do nothing but cower before it. 

When Shadow forced his eyes open anyway he found nothing. In nothing he stayed, for a few seconds, before he could feel long stalks of grass press against his fur. A summer day's breeze drifted past his nose, and only then did the rest of reality fade into his vision.

He pushed himself off the ground. Stray dizziness, as if he’d had his inhibitor rings off, rung in his head. 

But the groan to his left had him on his feet in less than a second.

“Rouge!” He called out.

“Ugh, what the hell. . ?”

Rouge pulled herself from her own imprint in the long grass. She rubbed her head and her balance wavered. Shadow ran to her side and offered an arm. 

“ ‘m fine, fine.” 

“Omega.” Shadow remembered. “Did he-”

“SYSTEMS REBOOTING. . .”

“Gee, some new toy Eggman had.” Rouge mumbled. “Omega! You alright?” 

“STATUS: OPERATIONAL. DISCONTINUITY DETECTED IN MY CHRONOMETER. UNABLE TO CONNECT TO GLOBAL POSITIONING SYSTEM.” 

Rouge scanned the area. “I don’t know where we are either. I could scout-”

“Wait until you’ve recovered.” Shadow said. 

“Sure, sure.” She wobbled back down onto the grass. 

“STATUS?” Omega tromped to her side. 

“Feel like I’m going to lose my lunch.”

“It felt like a chaos control.” Shadow said. When Rouge shook her head, he added, “one that was poorly done. Not like mine.”

“Yet Eggman called it a ‘disintegrator’.” Rouge replied. “I’m beginning to believe he didn’t think too hard on where all his test subjects went.” 

“WE HAVE BEEN TRANSPORTED?”

“Well, that would explain why you don’t know where we are, wouldn’t it?” 

Before Omega could reply, he stiffened, his head rotating towards the horizon. “INCOMING.” 

Omega held his hand out, and Shadow used it as a step to hop on his shoulder. From here he could get a better picture- something was cutting through the long waves of grass, the shockwave flattening the stalks behind it.

“Sonic?” Shadow asked.

“NEGATIVE! BADNIK DETECTED!” Omega drew his miniguns.

Shadow jumped down and landed beside Rouge. Dizziness struck him again when he tried to call up enough energy to chaos control, so instead he picked her up and dashed behind Omega’s frame. 

Seconds later, the stranger arrived. 

And Omega did not fire. 

Nothing moved.

“What? What is it?” Rouge asked. 

“IMPOSSIBLE.” Omega said. 

“IMPOSSIBLE.” Omega’s voice echoed back from across the way. 

Shadow tried to channel energy into his skates. “Omega, what’s-?” 

“ULTIMATE LIFEFORM DETECTED! COMMENCING EXTERMINATION!”

Shadow dived out from behind Omega’s frame. Only to find, standing in the stalks ahead, an exact mirror replica.

“INFERIOR MODEL! HOW DARE YOU IMITATE ME!” The Omega closest (his Omega, Shadow reminded himself) opened fire. 

The mirror Omega dodged, switching through weapons faster than Shadow thought possible. By the time he’d ignited his rocket skates, replacing the mirror image’s hands were thin, silvery rods tipped with light. 

Shadow jetted out of the way just in time for twin lasers to scorch the grass where he had just been. He made for the opposite horizon. Rouge’s nails buried into his skin. 

“Put me down and go help him!” She shouted. 

There was no place with cover, no place to hide, and before he could think to set her down there was the familiar hiss of E-100 rocket boosters. A spared glance, a glance too much, showed the mirror image gaining on them. Omega struggled to chase. 

Shadow cut his skates and slid to a stop. The mirror Badnik, with the same heavier mass as Omega, could not stop in time, flinging past them. Shadow then sprinted towards Omega.

“Take her!” Shadow cried. “He’s following me!” 

“IT WILL NOT SURVIVE MY WRATH!” 

Omega did not change direction. He charged straight at the mirror image, raining a hail of bullets. Only a few found their mark in the gaps of the mirror’s plating. This did little more than cause it to stumble. 

“CURIOUS, ULTIMATE LIFEFORM.” The mirror Omega said. “YOU WOULD BUILD A COPY OF ME? HOW FLATTERING.”

“HE DID NOT BUILD ME!” Omega replied. He cycled his weapons.

But in the time that he was switching to his missile launchers, the mirror image blasted forward, grabbed his shoulders, and flung him towards the horizon. 

Rouge pushed herself out of Shadow’s arms. “Kick its ass.” 

With both arms now freed, Shadow lifted his hand to summon a chaos bolt. But the dizziness hit him once more, this time paired with a jolt to his head. 

The mirror image blasted forward, grabbed his arm, and slammed him into the ground ahead of Rouge. 

“Shadow!” Rouge cried.

“WHO IS THIS ‘SHADOW’ YOU ARE REFERRING TO?” The mirror image looked at her as it pinned Shadow down. 

Shadow couldn’t push against his claws. Desperately, he tried focus on the open sky above, willing for the smallest trickle of chaos energy to complete a chaos control. 

Only for cold to shoot through his body like lightning.

“YOUR USUAL TRICKS WILL NOT WORK!” This version of Omega’s voice box said with palpable glee. 

“F-fine.” Shadow spat. “Just. Spare. Rouge.” 

“REPEAT?”

“Spare Rouge. She had-” Shadow grunted as another pulse of cold shot through him. “She has nothing to do with this.” 

“YOU, OF ALL PEOPLE, BEGGING TO SAVE THE LIFE OF ANOTHER?” The mirror image loosened his grip, but not enough to be of any use. “A STRANGE LAST RESORT.” 

“Hey!” Rouge shouted. “Do you even know who Shadow is?”

“IRRELEVANT. COMMENCING COMPLETION OF-”

With a quick beat of her wings, Rouge tackled the mirror image off of him. 

“Rouge!” Shadow cried.

“You’ve clearly got the wrong person!” Rouge huffed as she stood on his chest. “If you don’t even know his name, then how can you be sure?”

“DNA MATCH IS 100%!”

“Why’d Eggman build you, anyway? You’re just a copy of Omega!” 

“CIVILIAN: I INSIST YOU CEASE AIDING THE ULTIMATE LIFEFORM. REMOVE YOURSELF FROM THIS COMBAT ZONE IMMEDIATELY!”

“Oh come on, I’m not a civilian! You should know this!” Rouge pouted. “If Eggman doesn’t even consider me a threat, why I’ll-”

“ROUGE. EXTRICATE.”

Shadow snapped his gaze to Omega, who had finally returned to the battlefield. He had both his missile launchers drawn, his aim trained on the mirror image. 

“Hold on, something’s not right!” Rouge replied. She pointed down at the mirror image. “You! Why the hell did Eggman build you?”

“WHO IS THIS ‘EGGMAN’ YOU ARE REFERRING TO?”

Rouge looked at Omega, then back at Shadow. 

“And why do you insist on offing Shadow?” Rouge asked. 

“YOU HAVE NO CLARIFIED WHO YOU ARE REFERRING TO AS ‘SHADOW’.” The mirror image then made a strange, robotic sigh. “IF YOU DO NOT MIND, THE ULTIMATE LIFEFORM IS STANDING. RIGHT. BEHIND. YOU. IT IS A MIRACLE YOU HAVE SURVIVED THIS LONG IN HIS PRESENCE.” 

“I’m not going to. . .” Shadow said.

“DO NOT MOCK ME!” The mirror image shouted. 

“HE IS NOT MOCKING YOU!” Omega shouted back. 

“You see? There must be some other person you’re thinking of.” Rouge elaborated. “Look, if you’ll just give us a moment to explain.” 

Rouge stepped off of his chest. The mirror image ratched upright. When his optics hit Shadow’s frame, the roar of his cooling fans was audible even from where he was standing. 

“We were transported here,” Rouge walked back to Shadow’s side. “Recently. Not quite sure how, but who knows when it comes to chaos emeralds?” 

“What are you trying to say?” Shadow whispered to her.

“What I’m getting at is that this may not be the Ultimate Lifeform you’re looking for.” She put her hand on Shadow’s shoulder. 

“SO HE IS THE ULTIMATE LIFEFORM!” The mirror image exclaimed. 

“PERMISSION TO FIRE?” Omega asked. 

“BUT NOT FROM THIS PLANE OF EXISTENCE?” The mirror image continued. 

“Whoever you’re describing doesn’t sound like the Shadow I know, so yes.” Rouge replied. “And given that you’re certainly not the Omega I know, I’d guess the same with you.” 

“ALTERNATE REALITIES LINKED BY THE CHAOS EMERALDS- AS THEORIZED.” 

“Something like that.”

The mirror image rotated his head to look at Omega. 

“YOU ARE OF THE SAME BASE BLUEPRINTS.” The mirror remarked. 

Omega glanced to Shadow and Rouge’s position, then put one of his missile launchers in front of his face as if he were whispering. “PERMISSION TO ERADICATE THE IMPOSTER?” 

“No, not yet.” Rouge gestured for him to hold. 

“ALTERNATE VERSIONS. . . I MUST REPORT THIS.” 

“Report to who?”

“TO FATHER, OF COURSE.” 

Omega fired. 

Two explosions enveloped the mirror image’s body, kicking up soil and roots in every direction. Shadow covered his eyes, and when he opened them again, Omega had the mirror image’s head in his hands- one small squeeze enough to crush it.

“Omega, hold it!” Rouge flew towards him. 

“HE IS AN EGGMAN ROBOT!” 

“I DO NOT KNOW THIS ‘EGGMAN’ YOU SPEAK OF!” The mirror image cried in his grasp. 

“Let him go! He’s our only ticket to understand this mess!” Rouge tugged at Omega’s arm. 

“NEGATIVE!” 

Shadow approached. As he did so, he could see the mirror Badnik begin to vibrate. No, begin to tremble.

“Omega. Hold him down, don’t kill him.” Shadow said. “I need to know about what this version of myself has done. He could be a danger to us.”

The ‘to everyone’ was left unspoken. 

“DO AS HE SAYS.” The mirror image said quieter than Shadow ever imagined Omega’s voicebox could sound. 

“I DO NOT FOLLOW HIS ORDERS.” Omega scoffed. 

“I’m not going to hurt you.” Shadow said to the shaking mirror image. “Tell me, who built you?”

“DR. IVO ROBOTNIK-” Shadow saw the glint in Omega’s optics, but before his fingers could clench, the mirror image continued “-OF THE ROBOTNIK DEFENSE NETWORK.”

“Defense. From the Ultimate Lifeform?” Rouge asked. 

“AFFIRMATIVE.” 

“One more question for you then,” Rouge continued, “is the name ‘Sonic’ familiar to you?” 

“NEGATIVE.” The mirror image replied.

“Omega, let him go. Whoever built him clearly isn’t Eggman.” 

“THAT IS IRRELEVANT TO ME.” Omega said. 

“It is if we want to return to our own dimension, so that you can kill our own Eggman. Otherwise we’re stuck here.” Rouge put her hands on her hips.

Omega paused, before throwing his mirror image to the ground. He crossed his arms. 

Shadow walked forward until he stood above the trembling robot. He then extended his hand to him.

Claws identical to Omega’s own twitched in hesitation, before curling into a fist. The mirror image sat up on his own accord, scooting back slightly against the grass. 

“What is your name?” Shadow asked. “Mine is Shadow.” 

“. . . YOU MAY CALL ME E-123.” 

“Well, that makes things easy!” Rouge said. “Now cheer up. You’re going to take us to your Robotnik. He’ll be able to construct a way home for us since his other version is the one who sent us here. Then we’ll be out of your business, capiche?” 

E-123 stood. Only now was the damage from Omega’s missiles apparent- he was missing his left foot, walking only on the stump, and his left arm, while not shattered, was caught mid-transformation, frozen without an appendage. 

“IF YOU ARE SERIOUS ABOUT YOUR INTENTIONS,” E-123 said, “STAY HERE.”

“Stay- huh?”

E-123 collapsed to the ground. Shadow ran forward to catch him. His optics were dark. His joints sagged loose against Shadow’s frame, making his chest tighten without even thinking.  

“. . . MAY I DESTROY HIM NOW?” Omega asked. 

“I don’t understand.” Shadow lowered E-123 to the ground and ensured he was laid flat. 

“Processor damage?” Rouge flew to his head and began tapping at the yellow plating. 

“I DO NOT LIKE THIS PLAN.” Omega said.

“We know!” Shadow and Rouge said in unison, then looked at each other. 

“We don’t have any other options.” Rouge said. “Eggman got us into this mess, maybe this Robotnik will get us out of it.” 

“NEGATIVE. WE HAVE MANY OTHER OPTIONS. SCOUTING THE SURROUNDINGS, FOR INSTANCE. FINDING THE ALTERNATE VERSION OF SHADOW THE HEDGEHOG. COLLECTING THE CHAOS EMERALDS TO INITIATE THE CHAOS CONTROL BACK TO OUR DIMENSION UNDER OUR OWN POWER.” Omega replied. “IF WE ARE TRULY ON ANOTHER DIMENSIONAL PLANE.” 

“What do you mean ‘if’?”

“THIS COULD BE A TRAP.” 

“Why do you think that?” Shadow asked.

Omega pointed to E-123’s lifeless frame. 

Before Shadow could say anymore, Omega’s gaze once more snapped to the horizon. Shadow turned and looked to see. . . another E-123?

Omega drew his weapons. Shadow and Rouge tensed. 

But instead of barreling into them, this E-123 stopped short of where they were standing, slowly approaching them with hands raised. 

“APOLOGIES FOR THE INTERRUPTION. THIS REPAIRED FORM IS MUCH BETTER SUITED TO ESCORT YOU.” This E-123 said. 

Omega pointed his missiles at the old E-123 frame and fired repeatedly, throwing a cloud of dust into the air that took almost a minute to settle again. 

“THANK YOU.” E-123 said. “NOW I WILL NOT HAVE TO DESTROY IT MYSELF, TO PREVENT MY TECHNOLOGY FROM FALLING INTO THE ULTIMATE LIFEFORM’S HANDS.” 

Omega crossed his arms.

“FOLLOW ME. I WILL TAKE YOU TO A SATELLITE BASE.” E-123 turned and ignited his rocket boosters. 

“I won’t be able to keep pace.” Shadow said. “Something you did to me during the fight drained my energy.” 

“AS INTENDED.” E-123’s optics flashed. Shadow knew that flash. A moment of targeting programming, quickly pushed aside. “IF YOU REQUIRE AID-”

“I WILL ESCORT MY TEAMMATE.” Omega stomped forward, pushed the mirror image away, and grabbed Shadow’s wrist. 

E-123 boosted off towards the horizon again. Rouge took off to follow. Omega bundled Shadow in his arms, not even bothering to adjust for a more comfortable hold, before taking off as well. Shadow could hear Omega’s thrusters struggling to keep speed, crackling as they reached full power and could not be pushed any farther. Rouge, too, was sweating to keep up.

Thankfully, it was no long until an enormous metal door rose from the rolling hills of grass. Upon E-123’s approach, the doors opened automatically. Rouge, though, stopped just outside. Omega settled to a stop and set Shadow down beside her. 

“ENTER.” E-123 called from the entrance. 

“Status?” Rouge quietly asked them both. 

“ALL CAPABILITIES ONLINE.” Omega replied. 

“I’m still weakened. No chaos control or bolts, only a little power left for my skates.” Shadow replied. 

“Okay. I’m still a little nauseous but I’m doing better, and a little vomit won’t stop me anyway.” Rouge shrugged. “We got this?”

“AFFIRMATIVE.” 

They walked through the massive doors. The interior was spartan; gray paneling, only interrupted with a single red stripe along the walls. Where the grand entrance tapered off into a smaller hallway, the red stripe encircled a stylized letter “R”. Any trace of Eggman’s usual logos was absent. 

A door on the left side of the hallway led to a room devoid of anything besides a massive screen and a projector. E-123 gestured them in, then grabbed the door handle. After a moment, he let go of the handle again, leaving the door open. 

He didn’t want them to feel trapped, Shadow realized. 

This was a very different person from Omega, Shadow realized as well. 

E-123 walked over to where the projector was mounted onto the ceiling, and after a few moments of silent communication, the projector flickered on. 

Ivo Robotnik appeared. 

Omega drew his weapons. 

“UNIT! LOWER YOUR WEAPONS AT ONCE!” E-123 shouted. 

“I AM NOT A ‘UNIT’!” Omega aimed one arm at E-123, and the other at the screen. “I! AM! OMEGA!” 

“Oh my.” The Ivo Robotnik on the screen uttered to himself.

Omega was straining not to fire, his miniguns spinning in on themselves. 

“Omega, stand down!” Shadow ran in between his aim and E-123. He was not foolish enough to run between where he’d aimed at Robotnik. 

“Remember, this isn’t our guy!” Rouge said.

Omega shuddered against his own frame, lowering his weapon inch by inch. 

“Don’t be worried.” Ivo Robotnik said. “I’m not, after all! I’m behind the screen. If it helps you feel better, you can continue aiming at me.” 

Omega immediately lowered his weapons and glowered at the screen.

“Or not. That’s better.” Robotnik said. “Now, I haven’t had time to read the full report, but aren’t you a familiar bunch?” 

“See, someone who finally recognizes me.” Rouge smiled. 

“Well, most of you, that is.” Robotnik continued. “The bat seems to be a mystery, but I have a few leads.”

Rouge huffed.

“But you,” Robotnik pointed to Shadow. “E-123’s scans show that you are a 100% DNA match with the Ultimate Lifeform. But the fact that you’re here right now, talking to me and not destroying anything, suggests otherwise.” 

“It does.” Shadow replied. 

“FATHER, DID YOU READ THE PART ABOUT ALTERNATE REALITIES AS FACILITATED BY THE MULTIDIMENSIONAL NATURE OF THE CHAOS EMERALDS?” 

Omega flinched at the word father, his plating clinking against itself. 

“Only a brief skim. Enough to understand what you’re suggesting.” Robotnik replied. “This would account for your prototype being here as well. My, I haven’t seen those parts in-”

“I AM NOT A PROTOTYPE! I AM THE ULTIMATE ROBOT!” Omega shrieked. “I WILL NOT BE BELITTLED BY YOU! I WILL SHOW YOU THE POWER OF MY WRATH!” 

“Apologies, my boy. I didn’t mean it that way.” 

Before he could fire, Robotnik’s words held him in place like a cage. 

“HE DOES NOT REQUIRE YOUR APOLOGY.” E-123 said. 

“Be kind, E-123.” Robotnik scoffed. “Don’t you remember acting the same way when I offered you your first upgrade?” 

“PERHAPS.” E-123 replied.

Omega tore his gaze away from Robotnik and stomped to the door of the room. 

“Omega?” Rouge flew after him.

“INFORM ME WHEN YOU HAVE RETRIEVED THE INFORMATION YOU WISH TO RETRIEVE.” Omega said. 

Rouge let him go, and his footsteps faded into the hallway outside. 

“Strange, he doesn’t seem to like me that much, does he?” Robotnik said. 

“That’s for him to disclose.” Shadow hissed. “Now, tell me about this version of myself. What is he doing to this world?”

“I suppose the most pertinent place to start would be this: did you succeed in activating the Eclipse cannon in your version of events?” 

Any breath in Shadow’s lungs evaporated. He shook his head.

“Ah, that seems to be a no. Good.” Robotnik smiled. “The Ultimate Lifeform activated a weapon that my grandfather built aboard a space station known as the ARK. With it, he razed half of this planet. The only reason it was half was due to my intervention.” 

Shadow’s knees gave out. 

“I’m grateful this horrifies you. I never thought I’d see the day.” Robotnik stroked his mustache. 

“Hey. Hey. Get up.” Rouge whispered as she knelt down beside him. “It wasn’t you.”

“Shut up.” Shadow hissed. He looked up to Robotnik. “Then what?” 

“Well, I was able to destroy the weapon, but now the Ultimate Lifeform has committed to destroying the rest of the population himself.”

“And where do you come into this?” Rouge asked.

“I felt obligated to stop my grandfather’s creation.” Robotnik paused. “You do know you are my grandfather’s creation, correct?” 

“Yes.” Shadow replied, his throat dry. 

“I see. I wonder where you differ, then?” 

“Lots of things.” Rouge said plainly. “That’s not important right now. What’s important is us getting back to where we came from. We’d love to get out of your way but we need your help. The other you invented some crazy tech that transported us here, so you’ve got to reinvent it to get us back.” 

“Do you have blueprints? A photograph? A materials list?”

“No, but you certainly picked up on our energy signature when we came here.”

“AFFIRMATIVE. WE WERE CONCERNED THAT THE ULTIMATE LIFEFORM HAD DISCOVERED A NEW WAY TO WIELD CHAOS ENERGY.” E-123 said.

“Well, my dear, I’d love to, but unfortunately I lack the time. I have other, more pressing concerns.” Robotnik flicked his eyes to Shadow. “But I’ll try to squeeze it in.” 

Shadow stood. “I’ll stop him.”

“What?!” Rouge smacked his shoulder.

“I’ll stop him.” Shadow repeated. “I’ll help you fight him. Or if you will not accept my help, then at least allow me to provide you with data.”

“While he’d love to,” Rouge said loudly and hugged his shoulders, “we’re really in a rush to get back.” 

“No!” Shadow shoved her off. “If this is something I started-”

“It wasn’t you!”

“Something any version of me started,” Shadow corrected, “then I will stop it.” 

Rouge pinched the bridge of her nose and sighed. 

“Thank you!” Robotnik clapped his hands together. “My my, this’ll be an exciting opportunity. E-123, could you perform a full intake on him? See if you can dig out our old blood analysis machine-”

“THAT IS LOCATED IN BASE 1A.”

“-and take some samples? Then do some kinetic testing-”

“THAT IS ALSO LOCATED IN BASE 1A.”

“And then finally a pattern analysis on his movements?”

“FATHER.”

“What?”

“YOU ARE CURRENTLY LOCATED IN BASE 1A.” 

“So?” Robotnik stroked his chin. “It’ll allow me to directly work with him as well, and will lessen the chances of the Ultimate Lifeform finding out about him.” 

“I WILL NOT PERMIT YOU TO BE IN THE SAME VICINITY AS-” E-123 trailed off as he looked at Shadow.

“I know this must be hard, my boy.” Robotnik’s tone grew soft. “I can ease your combat protocols when you return. I am sure of my decision; I am certain he will not harm me.” 

“UNDERSTOOD.” 

“But Omega is a different story.” Rouge interjected. 

“Hmm?” Robotnik raised an eyebrow.

“Look, for reasons I’m not going to elaborate on- he hates your guts. Our version of you isn’t too dissimilar from your Ultimate Lifeform.” Rouge explained. “Put two and two together.”

Robotnik furrowed his brow for a moment, before his face went pale. “Oh! I’m sorry.”

“FATHER, DO NOT BE APOLOGETIC- IT IS NOT YOU WHO HAS INFLICTED ANYTHING UPON THE INFERIOR UNIT.” 

“Omega’s not an ‘inferior unit’, so keep your mouth shut, you hear?” Rouge put her hands on her hips. 

“I DO NOT POSSESS A MOUTH TO SHUT.” 

“Don’t care. Shut it.” 

“Let me go talk with him.” Shadow said.

Shadow walked out of the room to find Omega sitting just outside the door frame. He’d likely heard every word from inside. Omega looked at him. He looked at Omega.

“I’m going to help him.” Shadow said. “Whether or not you choose to come with is up to you.”

“I WILL JOIN.”

“Robotnik will be there.”

“AFFIRMATIVE. I WILL BE THERE TO KILL HIM WHEN HE INEVITABLY BACKSTABS YOU.” 

“Will you be able to handle seeing him in the meantime?” Shadow asked quietly. 

“AFFIRMATIVE!” Omega stood. 

Shadow re-entered the projection room, and to his surprise, Omega followed.

Robotnik’s reaction on screen was immediate. “Omega. Even though it was not I who hurt you-”

“SILENCE!” Omega shouted. “YOU WILL NOT SPEAK TO ME, AND I WILL NOT SPEAK TO YOU. I AM ONLY COOPERATING AT SHADOW’S BEHEST. I WILL BE WATCHING YOU- IF I DETECT THE SLIGHTEST IMPLICATION THAT YOU WILL BETRAY US, I WILL RIP YOUR SKULL FROM YOUR SPINE.”  

A pause- E-123’s frame creaked before he responded, “THEN I WILL DESTROY YOU IN TURN.” 

“YOU ARE WELCOME TO TRY.” 

“I wouldn’t recommend it.” Rouge flew over and leaned against Omega’s shoulder. 

“That’s enough.” Shadow said. 

“I agree, that’s enough.” Robotnik echoed. “Very well, Omega, I accept your terms.” 

Instead of responding, Omega paused, as if he’d expected to have to rebuttal. 

“Let’s go.” Shadow said.

“Take them via the tram, my boy, and I’ll see you soon.” Robotnik said before disappearing from the screen. 

E-123 led them from the room and to an elevator across the hall. Omega boarded first, stuffing himself into the back of the elevator, followed by Shadow and Rouge beneath him, then by E-123. The ride was short, and when the door opened they spilled out onto a platform cut from the bedrock. Water dripped from the ceiling and pinged against the metal platform. On the far edge of the platform, a pair of rails snaked their way into a dark tunnel. 

“Hmph. Never thought about a rail line.” Rouge commented. 

“LOGGING.” Omega replied. 

“That means you’ll have to leave a base intact long enough for us to inspect for this supposed rail line.” Rouge giggled. 

“CEASE MAKING VEILED THREATS.” E-123 hissed as his optics flickered, likely to hail whatever automatic system controlled the tram. 

“I WILL VERBALIZE HOWEVER I PLEASE.” Omega replied. 

“We’re just taking notes for our own fight against our guy back home. Don’t read too much into it.” Rouge said. 

After one last glance at the pair, E-123’s gaze rotated to Shadow, and did not leave even as the tram arrived at the platform. As the doors opened, Rouge entered first. Omega followed. Shadow gestured for E-123 to enter, but he did not move.

Shadow entered to find only two seats aboard- and Rouge sprawled out over both of them. Omega had braced himself against one of the sidebars in the rest of the cabin, and E-123 joined him across the way. Shadow approached Omega and gestured upwards. Omega knelt down and Shadow slid onto his shoulder, grasping his shoulder handle to steady himself.

E-123 averted his gaze. Moments later, the tram doors closed. 

---

Next chapter, and all future chapters, are posted to AO3.

[rayhalloffame]

The people have spoken! Part two of this. I’m also going to make this a series so there will be another part, my brain is thinking about this version of Art so much, it’s so serious >:/

…

Despite his confidence and the fact that he really did cover your tab all night, you only grant him a quick peck when he walks you to your uber. You take his phone and put your number in. Right then and there you set your contact picture to a flirty photo of yourself taken at a high angle that leaves just enough to the imagination. You tell him you’ll reply in the morning if you really like him. Art texts you to tell him when you’ve made it home safe. He’s unsurprised when you don’t answer.

He is surprised when he wakes up at nearly 8am to his phone buzzing. He silences it but a minute later it goes off again so he picks it up without looking. “What?” he groans into the receiver. His head is turned on his pillow so that he can rest the phone against his cheek.

“You promise you’re not a murderer?” comes a small, crackled voice from the other line.

Art pauses, picks up the phone to be greeted with your pretty face. It snaps him right out of his slumber. “G’morning, birthday girl,” he murmurs. He hears your deep breathing through the phone but you don’t respond. “I promise I’m not a murderer.”

“I need a bagel and a cherry coke,” you whine. You say nothing else. Art takes the hint.

“What kind of bagel, sweetheart?” He’s already swinging his legs over the side of his bed, waiting for your reply.

“Bacon, egg, and cheese. And it has to be a fountain soda, with crushed ice to the top.” Your voice sounds so pitiful. Art tells you to text your address and he’ll bring you whatever you want. You send it as soon as you hang up the phone.

When he makes it to the door of your apartment he doesn’t know what to do. Art is simply mystified by you, doesn’t understand how a pretty little thing has him by the throat when she’s the hardest chase he’s had since going pro. He knocks on your door anyway.

He can hear your groan through the wood, and is chuckling by the time you swing the door open. You don’t even look at him, really, just shield your eyes from the outside light and retreat back into your dark apartment. Art follows you in and locks the door behind him. He toes his shoes off before entering further.

You’ve already dropped yourself on your couch by the time he’s passed the foyer. There’s a garbage pail by the arm of the chair, a bottle of Advil and a water on the coffee table. “Rough night?” Art jokes.

You don’t even have the energy to glare at him, just make grabby hands for your treats. He meets you at the couch, putting the bag and drink on the coffee table. Unable to help himself, he crouches at your head and brushes sticky hair back from your face. He expects you to stop him but you nuzzle into his palm when it passes over your cheek. “You’re not as scary as you pretend to be, are you?” He sounds curious, like he’s perplexed by you but wants to figure you out.

You peek an eye open at him and shake your head. “Only sometimes. Like when men are cocky. Have to knock them down a peg.” Art laughs through his nose, tells you he’s learned his lesson. He opens the bag with your bagel and hand feeds you a bite. You moan. Art puts the bagel down and stands. He’s going to be tenting his pants if you make more of those noises with his hands so close to your mouth.

You sit up enough to take a sip of your soda, a sigh of relief leaving your throat. “How much do I owe you? From last night and today?” You look up at Art from where you’re half-laying, reaching absently for your phone to Zelle him. Somehow, even with your skin flushed and your mascara streaked, he still wants to eat you up.

Art clears his throat. “Nothing,” he says, “I’m happy to treat you for your birthday.” You sit up fully and shake your head at him. You tell him you got a little too cocky yourself last night, that you feel bad and you owe him. Art smiles at you, a genuine one. “Go on a date with me,” he says.

“Wait. What?” Confusion is a written all over your face. Art rocks back on his heels, suddenly bashful, but repeats his request. “When?” you ask. You’ve abandoned your phone to sip more of your carbonated beverage.

“Tonight,” Art says. “I have training this afternoon, but I should be done by 7, the latest.”

You hum in acknowledgement, picking apart your bagel and popping small pieces into your mouth. “You’re not worried someone might see us? Fans, paparazzi?” You pick up your cup and shake around the ice inside. “You know, your name is carried on the wind. There’s not much that’s private about you.”

“Yeah?” Art asks.

“Mhmm,” you hum, accompanied by slow nods of your head.

Art can’t stop looking at your lips. “I don’t know how true that is,” he continues, “let me take you out. There’s a lot to know about me. My life isn’t as public as you imagine.”

You tilt your head, considering. Art’s eyes follow the stretch of your neck into your large white tee, which is almost see through. He returns his gaze to yours and finds you watching him. You flash him a knowing smile, then nod your head. “Sure,” you say, “let’s go on a date.”

[hyunpic]

april 2023 with hyunjin

[edwinisms]

I know how it sounds at first, but I really gotta feel bad for the boys that sacrificed edwin; I mean even the term “sacrificed edwin” paints them in a more sinister light than they really deserve– considering that wasn’t really, actually their intention.

they were bullies, they were homophobic (and/or were self loathing gay boys themselves taking it out on edwin, or were equally likely peer pressured into acting a certain way), they planned something stupid and mean to do to an innocent, anxious boy with the goal of scaring the shit out of him, all because he was effeminate and an easy target. but they didn’t know or expect any of the ritual stuff to be real. they were all laughing and joking during the ritual because it was just that to them– a joke. a cruel joke, but a joke.

teenagers can be mean and stupid and they usually regret it as adults and grow out of it / grow from it. they were stifled the chance to grow out of it, at least while alive. none of those boys deserved to be instakilled and sent to hell; they’re really not that much less deserving than edwin himself. they were all just kids, after all.

[deus-ex-mona]

tmw you give someone concise instructions but they ✨just do not get it✨

[cloneboywonder]

im so CWCcoded

[insanechayne]

~ ~ ~

[gacorley]

There’s some common threads I see in the anti-voting posts going around, and I feel like I need to discuss some of them. Let’s start with the biggest one:

Voting to punish evil. I see lots of variations of this. Biden is supporting Israel, therefore we can’t vote for him. Is there any viable candidate who would stop the genocide? I don’t think the anti voting crowd actually cares. They are appealing to moral feelings rather than political strategy, because strategically, you have to realize that voting is not going to change foreign policy, and that change has to be pushed by other means. It’ll probably be something in the long haul.

Democrats should run someone else. First of all, this is a shit strategy. You don’t primary your president in the second term unless your party is falling apart. This may come from people from countries where replacing the head of government is easier, but the POTUS is the de facto party head. Also, going to the lack of thought to the goal — do you know someone willing to primary Biden and able to win who would do the things you want?

Biden hasn’t done anything anyway. This is just a way to bat away pro arguments. There’s plenty of lists of progress on lots of things. Student loans, insulin price caps, regulations, anti-trust.

Putting the entire Palestinian genocide on Biden. I’m not saying there’s not culpability there, but understand that the entire US government is in support of Israel, on both sides. It was a miracle we got a handful of Senators to call for investigations. We should cut off aid, absolutely. Who’s running to do that? And keep in mind that Israel chose to engage. US officials would have liked a more limited response, not out of care for Palestinians, but because they know from experience that it will come back to bite Israel in the form of newly radicalized Hamas recruits.

Liberals just have no hope for change. This is a new one. Just some idea that people are stuck in a rut and that’s the reason the two party system exists. The two party system is a mathematical consequence of the way we vote. There is reason to hope for change. The change, though, whatever means you choose, will take decades. Keep working at it. The hope is not that this election will fundamentally change things. The hope is that many small political actions over the years will push things forward.

Funnily enough, I haven’t seen a whole lot of third party promotion, just lots of this rhetoric aiming to punish. When voting, ask yourself:

Is this problem I have with this candidate something that the other candidate would be better on?

Are there other political actions I can take that will help?

What things can change with a different President or Congress, and what needs to be pursued by other means?

Withholding your vote as a punishment isn’t really going to help. Biden doesn’t know who you are or why you are not voting for him, and there is no one with a chance of winning that will do everything you want. But you have other means. Protest, organize, donate, build up alternatives, advocate for a different system.

Vote to give yourself space and get a little bit. Do other things to keep things moving.

[lizziesangel]

thinking of rafe cameron who picks up reader when she’s drunk

CONTENT WARNING: mention of alcohol / reader is drunk, rafe has a soft spot for reader

you stumble out of the party, your head spinning from too many drinks and your phone clutched tightly in your hand. you weren’t even sure why you went in the first place—probably to drown out the endless fighting back at john b’s. it seemed like all the pogues did these days was argue, and you couldn’t stand to be around it any longer. but now, as the night’s chaos began to settle, you were left with the uncomfortable truth: you were too drunk to get home.

the pogues were all back at john b’s, still at each other’s throats. you didn’t want to wake any of them, knowing they’d just make a fuss and probably lecture you about your choices. so, against your better judgment, you scrolled through your contacts until you saw his name.

rafe cameron.

you hesitated for a moment. he hated the pogues, and they hated him back with equal fervor. but there was something unspoken between the two of you—a softness he showed only to you.

maybe it was the way he’d find excuses to talk to you at parties, or how his eyes would linger on you when he thought no one was looking. whatever it was, you knew he wouldn’t leave you stranded.

you pressed call, holding your breath as it rang.

“why are you calling me?” his voice was sharp, almost annoyed, but you could hear the confusion underneath.

“i…” you swallowed hard, trying to steady your voice. “i’m drunk, and i need a ride.”

“please?”

there was silence on the other end of the line, long enough that you started to think he might hang up. but then he sighed.

“where are you?”

you rattled off the address, feeling a pang of relief when he muttered something under his breath and said, “stay put. i’m on my way.”

fifteen minutes later, a familiar black truck pulled up to the curb. rafe got out, his expression a mix of irritation and concern as he approached you. “you look like a mess,” he said, but his tone was softer than his words.

“thanks, rafe. always so kind,” you mumbled, stumbling slightly as you tried to stand. he caught you by the arm, steadying you with ease.

“c’mon on, let’s get you in the car.” he guided you to the passenger seat, his hand lingering at your back as you climbed in.

the ride was quiet at first, the hum of the engine the only sound. you glanced at him out of the corner of your eye. his jaw was clenched, his hands gripping the steering wheel a little too tightly.

“are you mad?” you wondered aloud, breaking the silence.

“i’m not mad,” he replied, though the edge in his voice said otherwise. “i just don’t get why you’d call me, of all people. don’t you have your little pogue friends for this kind of thing?”

“they’re busy fighting,” you admitted, slumping back in your seat. “i didn’t want to deal with it.”

rafe glanced at you, his expression softening. “yeah, well, they don’t deserve you anyway.”

the words caught you off guard, your heart skipping a beat. “rafe…”

“don’t,” he said quickly, shaking his head. “just… let me get you home.”

when he pulled up outside john b’s, he put the car in park but didn’t move to let you out. instead, he turned to you, his blue eyes searching your face.

“look, if you ever need… i don’t know, someone who’s not them, just call me, okay? even if it’s stupid like this.”

you blinked at him, his uncharacteristic vulnerability leaving you speechless. “okay,” you finally whispered.

he nodded, satisfied, and got out of the truck to help you to the door. before he left, he lingered for a moment, his hand brushing against yours.

“take care of yourself, alright?”

and just like that, he was gone, leaving you standing on the porch with a warmth in your chest that had nothing to do with the alcohol.