#anyway i miss Hiro

[cyellolemon]

HIROREI but cute and happy for once because i need to forget how doomed they are :3

[tenta-tickles]

3 and 7 of those tk questions for Hiro and/or veronIKA, please!!!

Thank you for asking for them anon <3

3. do they react differently to different people tickling them?

Hiro - Absolutely! He's more likely to make snarky remarks n such if he's good friends with the ler! He also might struggle less if its for cheer up tickles

VeronIKA - Would probably ask most people (especially those she's not super close with) to stop almost immediately but won't do that as much with her friends. Will call you names and tell you to shut up while you're wrecking her if you're a friend.

7. do they squirm a lot?

Hiro - Nope! He curls up more than he moves around but obviously, he still squirms a bit, almost all of it is instinctual though.

VeronIKA - Yes, she's a fighter and will make it a pain in the ass to pin her if she knows she's already screwed anyway.

Thank you again anon!!

[of-fairys-and-tails]

😳

[inkykeiji]

omg clari tokyo revengers?! what are your honest thoughts? I really like it, I also enjoy the manga. mitsuya is soooo cute, I love him and the fact he takes care of his little sisters!! his personality is perfect, like hes so head strong on what he believes is right and hes so loyal ahhhh

yEAH HAHA i finally gave in and let go of my stubbornness because teddy (@duckiez) convinced me to give it a try!!! i am absolutely, entirely, obsessively head over heels in love with the haitani brothers oH MY GOD anon i can’t even express how giddy n wild they make me i !!!!!!!!!! love them so much!!! my other faves are: mitsuya, kazutora, shinichiro, waka, and shion purely because he’s downright pathetic <3

tokyo revengers spoilers below!

AH okay so i have a few episodes left in the anime until i’m totally caught up bUT i finished the manga last night (i cheated tho n started at like chapter 120 because i was too ravenous for more haitani bros waaaah) and that ending was just........The Worst in my opinion tbh!!! i was really, really disappointed with the way it ended and in my heart and my personal canon it ended with the bonten arc thank u and goodnight c: like so many others, i feel like this ending was rushed, unearned, but the thing i am most upset about is how it erases everyones traumas, tragedies, and hardships, because it makes the entire thing feel so soulless and meaningless. i would’ve preferred the message to have been ‘you can’t save everyone’ with mikey representing that.

but again, these are just my personal thoughts n opinions! it’s completely and totally 100% okay if you liked the ending; there’s no right or wrong answer here, just our personal thoughts! <33 other than the ending, though, i enjoyed it!

i’m going to reread the manga from the very start of course but i just couldn’t fucking wait LMAO i was so starved for more haitanis and i have soooo many things i wanna write with them already and i just needed to consume all of the official material before i could continue writing so!!!!

mITSUYA IS LIKE ?????? REALLY DADDY TO ME HAHAHAHA eee (*/ω＼*) he also looks good in literally every timeline i can’t get over it he is soooo pretty <333

[luvnami]

its hiro missing hours

hanamaki takahiro loves your pussy. it's gotten to the point where you're five orgasms in, and he's still begging you to cum for him.

"please, pretty girl? just one more."

"that's- ah! what you said just now!" your voice comes out in a broken whine as hanamaki pushes the vibrating dildo against your g spot. "h-hiro, i can't- no more!"

your thighs tremble around his head. the soft, pink tufts of his hair tickle your sticky skin as he kisses your clit.

"yes you can, you've cum more than eight times before. this is nothing. just for me? please?" he pouts, though you can't see it.

your half-lidded eyes roll back into your head as hanamaki thrusts the dildo in and out of your sloppy cunt. your poor, abused clit throbs. yet, each nudge against your favourite spot makes your womb melt. you barely even fathom your next high creeping over the edge as you rut your hips into hanamaki's face.

"guh- mmph! hiro, m'close! feels so good!" you babble, back arching off the bed.

his lips suck on your clit, tongue lapping on the underside of it as you cum for the sixth time on his mouth. hanamaki humps the bed desperately and his weeping cock squirts all over the sheets. a gush of fluid dampens his face, but he moans through it, his brain going blank as your pleasure doubles as his.

"f-fuck," he gasps. "fuck. you're so good to me. thank you, thank you, baby."

he kisses your inner thigh, pulling out the dildo as you try to catch your breath.

"we're stopping at three next time," you huff, but make grabby hands towards your boyfriend anyways.

his ears would've perked up if he were a dog. hanamaki eagerly dives into your embrace, snuggling against your face and peppers your hot cheeks with kisses.

"four?" he offers.

you pause. "we'll see."

[mishacakes]

TMNT OCxcanon comp round 3: NEXT GENERATION

I missed “dressing up” cause of life and whatnot but I’M BACK, BABEY. and also have drawn leo and tomi dressed up a lot already so.

anyways, you know em, you love em, it’s SOF AND HIRO!!!!

Sofonisba and Hiroshige Hamato, twin turtle-mutant-bakeneko-chimeras (affectionately nicknamed “torties” for short), the daughter and son of Leo and Tomiko. Born from a “genesis pod” as a gift and joint collaboration from Uncle Donnie and Draxum to the proud parents, these two are a result of science and alchemy. They both take after their parents with their own little twists. Sof is loud, talkative, and feral, Hiro is calm, analytical, and perceptive. They’re a weird mix of human, reptile, mammal, mutant, yokai, etc, and they’re both very very loved.

@tmnt-ocxcanon-comp

[mintmatcha]

Makki is crying on the couch and you aren't sure how to respond.

Hands folded over his heart and phone clutched between them, Takahiro squeezes his eyes close as tight as possible and lets the tears just flow. His whole body heaves with silent sobs, ribs expanding and constricting arrhythmicly as anguish contorts him, flushing the skin of his cheeks a dark, splotchy red. Misery overwhelms him from head to toes and he just lets it happen, crying midday and midapartment.

You open your mouth to speak, but only a squeak of a sound comes out.

"Hiro?" You manage to say on your second try.

"Hey!" He scrambles to sit up straight, wiping the wet from his cheeks with his thumb. His voice is snotlined and jagged, even as he tries to sound chipper. "Hey! What's up, baby?"

You slink closer, hands knotted behind your back. "You okay?"

"Me? Pst, yeah. Totally." Makki shrugs and smiles, the wet of his eyes still threatening to roll over. "Just chilling."

You tilt your head and he understands the motion; Hiro pats his lap and you close the gap between you to slide into it, legs over his and hands finding his cheeks. They are still warm and wet with tears, gritty with their salt. His cheeks puffy out as he forces a smile for you.

"Do you want to talk about it?" you try. He shrugs again, face scrunched up in a playful pout, then lets the facade crumble. Shoulders fall as he nods and he lets his bottom lip quiver.

"Just missing my mom." His eyes are red against his strawberry blonde hair.

"Oh, Hiro..."

You aren't really sure what else to say. It's not like there's anything you could say to make it better.

You never knew his mother and you never will- something that Makki has lamented to you before. He insists that she would have loved you, maybe even more than he loves you. She would have loved the apartment, loved the ring Makki bought you, loved the list of babies' names that you two may or may not ever use.

"I got an ad for perfume." Makki says after a long while. There's a lift to his voice, as if he finds whatever he's saying to be silly. "Mom used to wear this awful perfume towards the end. Smelt like a fucking cheap hand soap."

He laughs midsentence, tripping over his words. "And she wore so much of it that when she hugged me, it'd just cling to my clothes for hours. My sisters and I hated it. Oh my god, we tried to come up with excuses not to hug her but she always fucking got us anyway."

When he laughs this time, it's more of a shaking exhale, caught somewhere in between misery, melancholy and amusement.

"I really want one more stupid, stinky hug from her," Makki whispers. "Just one more."

You know it's not the same, but you wrap your arms around him anyway and squeeze, scrambling to hold as much of him as you can.

[bomber-grl]

KQJSKSJSKBJABRO I'M NERVOUS

You could do one of Hiro Hamada with an s/o with mommy or daddy issues pleeease??? O⁠_⁠o

Hiro x Reader w mommy/daddy issues

Pairing(s): Hiro Hamada x Gn!Reader

Honestly your issues with your parent(s) never really mattered but Hiro knew something was up

It was with little things like when you’d see a mother/father happily with her/his children

Or something as simple as when they’d be mentioned

He never brought it up because ..

1. It wasn’t really his place

2 . He wouldn’t want to talk about his parents either as it wasn’t exactly a happy topic

So he understood that much

But then push comes to shove when you show up to his house in the middle of the night and he’s forced to bring you in while (painfully) lying to Cass

Acting as if he doesn’t actively lie to her

It’s not exactly a good look since you’re dating but that thought was soon overshadowed when he saw the state you were in

Regardless, he let you stay over and you two began just chilling while binging whatever snacks he had

Then he asked if you’d wanna talk about it

Took some time, but then you surrendered

Thus began the rant about your parent(s) and what they’ve done and put you through and even what they haven’t done when raising you

I mean Hiro was shocked to say the least

Cass was the closest person to a parental figure to him so thinking of her doing any of the things you just said

Well it’s shocking

He’s tempted to just say you can have his aunt (or share to console you)

But he knows it’s best to just listen without giving input

Then you apologize for it and honestly how did he not see it?

You’d either have to beg your parent(s) to come to any events or you had to beg them to even go since they were so strict

It was such a hassle for you and if the previous incidents didn’t make it clear, your rant definitely did

Anyway

After that night hiro really made it so that you’d feel apart of the family

(Maybe he told Cass about it with permission from you)

Everything he does is basically to make sure you can have a new parental figure worth the title

And although you do notice you make sure to go along

Partially because you want to go along with Hiro

But maybe it won’t hurt to indulge in the unconditional love you never got to recieve

It’s time to get it elsewhere (aka from Cass)

And honestly? She loves you

So much

Not only have you been a good friend to Hiro but the way Hiro talks about you really makes her happy

Even if you can’t rely on that parent then atleast you can rely on Cass

She’s not the step mom, she’s the mom that stepped up /j

Anyway this sorta turned into a Cass supremacy post because she’s so supportive that she deserves credit for it alright?

(Saying this cuz if my nephew got my other nephew jailed then I’d be pretty pissed 💀 miss girls a saint)

[twig-tea]

Perfect Propose: A few final thoughts

There is a melancholy to this series because it’s about a romance but it’s also about breaking out of external and internal barriers holding you back from happiness. 

Hiro’s work situation was such an incredible representation of what it feels like to work in a workplace that is out to exploit every second of your time and never thank you for it. I really loved that the show is clear about how people enable their own exploitation in these environments, and how often people don’t leave because they need the idea that their life will be better when they finally do quit, and they’re afraid it isn’t true so they’d rather stay with the devil they know [it's me, I'm people].

I loved Kai finding his way to Hiro when he was at his lowest, and going from a guy who was afraid to ask for anything or make any kind of mark on Hiro’s life, to putting up a wind chime decoration and building a hydroponic vegetable system and asking Hiro to come home to him every night.

Kai’s arc wasn’t as strong or as detailed as Hiro’s, but it was important to the story. Kai has always recognized Hiro's kindness in asking for something from Kai rather than offering something to Kai--Kai has always felt useless but Hiro gave him purpose, as a kid and again as an adult. But Kai needed to learn to want things for himself, something Hiro noticed and encouraged him to do. And when Hiro misses their festival date and realized he’d let Kai down, he offers to make it up to him in two ways (committing to the tomato growing, which was a short-term but tangible commitment to Kai, and agreeing to share a bed), which helped bring them closer together and helped Kai get bolder, sending Hiro those images of the food he was missing to help him continue to want to be home.

Kai got to see Hiro more vulnerable, and feel more wanted, and then got the apology from the old restaurant owner’s son. But when he heard that his presence had held the restaurant owner back from moving in with his son, he took it the wrong way, and defaulted back to thinking he’s a burden who puts the people he loves at risk just by virtue of being there. [There was a kernel of truth in there about how Kai, in making Hiro’s life a little better, also was enabling him to stay longer in that awful job, but he couldn’t see how he was also giving Hiro a reason to quit it.]  

And at the end, when the typical Japanese Run For Your Love failed (which I really enjoyed), the words that got through to Kai were heartbreaking. Hiro doesn’t tell Kai he’s a good presence in his life; he’s already done that and he knows it wouldn’t get through anyway, because he knows Kai. Instead, he reminds Kai that Hiro’s life was already empty and meaningless, so Kai couldn’t possibly make it any worse. He made himself and a relationship with him feel safe. I have been sitting with this all day and it still makes me devastated every time I think about it for more than 30 seconds. Kai made home a place Hiro wanted to be enough that he could actually come home, and Hiro made home safe enough that Kai felt like he could stay there without being afraid he’d ruin it. 

Would I have wanted more of these two together? Absolutely, I could watch Hiro and Kai together for triple this runtime easy. But for me, this show used its time incredibly well and ends in the perfect place. I have enough with what we got to see exactly how they got from where we leave them to how we see them in the show opening credits.

Enough to know they’re going to be ok.

[lunawings]

While I was in Japan during March 2024, I was able to visit the Pretty Rhythm Rainbow Live 10th Anniversary Exhibit. This is my favorite anime of all time, so it was an incredible honor.

Unfortunately, you could not take pictures in many areas and I always try my best to be respectful and follow the rules. So, I will describe it.

The walls of the first room were covered in several tapestries depicting each individual episode of the anime, so you could reminisce about everything that happened as you slowly walked through the room. In the middle of the room, there were several exhibits perfectly recreating every single paper, notebook, sketch...

Hokkaido itinerary? Wakana and Bell's test scores? Momo's Happy Rain costume sketches? Naru and Bell's manager applications? The score to pride? Any piece of paper you can think of that appeared in PRRL, it was all HERE! Recreated with meticulous accuracy...

The next room was the photo room where you could take pictures in Prism Stone or in front of Rinne's feathers.

Something else they had here which was really neat, was all of these mini photo ops of various scenes from the anime that you could put your plushies or figures into! As I rarely have someone with me to take photos of myself at events like this, and I rarely post them even when I do, NGL I loved it. I wish I had brought something! I did have a PAF Naru on my bag I could have used, but it would have taken time to unpin her so unfortunetly I did not.

The next room contained an exhibit of various merch from throughout the years.

Unfortunately, there wasn't really much merch to look at in the classic section. Just the guitars, some stones, and the Smart Pod Shot. But I definitely think there was more than that back in the day! There has to have been because I own at least one thing that was not in here (a pool bag) haha!

They also had a REAL prism guitar on display, which apparently they are actually going to sell at some point!?

The last part of the exhibit before going to the gift shop, was a hallway with messages from all the voice actresses and the director. This was also a zone where photos were banned, but I remember in the director's he acknowledged Rainbow Live as being the only Pretty Rhythm season to achieve a 10th anniversary celebration and ended his commentary with "Glorious Pretty Rhythm" hahaha. Next was the gift shop...

Which was honestly super disappointing... I was prepared to spend a lot of money here, but in the end, I barely bought anything. Everything, EVERYTHING good was blind and the stuff that wasn't was just so expensive.

Like, they had this set of Hiro cards with his magazine covers and debut poster and I really wanted them but when I actually saw them it was like... 2,000 yen? FOR THREE CARDS!? Those tiny little cards you can see up there below the keychains?

????????????

Am I missing something!?

In the end I bought two Wakana boards and two clear files. And the one blind thing I couldn't resist was the Prism Stone badges... which turned out to be Otoha x2 and one Ann. Gah.

I also might have bought a Wakana plush doll, but she was sold out. Out of all the Rainbow Live girls she was the only one sold out both here and at Tokyo Station Prism Stone.

And here were the bonuses I got. Including, yes, the AiPri card. So for people who saw me posting it over on @pretty-idol-hell, this was where it came from.

I also got a very special letter, which I am saving to translate at a later date...

Outside the event was an up and running Pretty Rhythm machine, or so I thought. Wow, no line! I said to myself as I happily bounced up to it only to find the coin slot taped over and a sign reading it could not be used. Darn. (I know there's no prism stones left in the wild, but come on, there's no free play mode...? Well, I guess even if there was they wouldn't want people loitering around the exhibition.)

Anyway, as you read I did have a few complaints, but it still makes my heart happy that this event existed at all. I loved all the time and effort that went into making all the recreations of things!

[rocksandrobots]

PotP Ch 56 - Blizzards, Blackbirds, and Bargains: Part 2

Well, technically not from Corona directly. The dagger that laid out on the table before them bore the symbol of the Brotherhood, the crest of Umbra. Which was close enough. 

Another dimension was another dimension after all. 

“Watcha looking at?” Aunt Cass peered over the teens shoulders to see what had caused such fuss and fascination. 

“Uh… nothing.” Hiro squeaked. 

“Varian found a neat dagger in the snow.” Tadashi answered, cool as can be. “Someone must have dropped it. We're trying to figure out who it belongs to.” 

“Well, your best bet is to turn it over to the lost and found at the police station.” Aunt Cass advised, as she walked over to the TV controls laying behind the counter. “You can give it to Chief Cruz once the storm is over.” 

She flipped on the TV to see the weather. 

“As you can see here, there's another cold front coming in tonight.” The weather girl said, pointing towards a green-screened map. “While the snow has eased up some, we're expecting more flurries later on in the day and even possibly some sleet tonight.” 

“Therefore we advised people to still stay indoors and if you have to go out, try to get your errands done before 3 PM. The trolley will run from 10 to 2 in the afternoon for those of you who do need to travel.

Over to you Duff.” 

The scene changed to the news anchor at his desk. 

“Thank you Sheryl. Breaking news this morning. Apparently a series of burglaries happened last night while the city was distracted with the snow storm. Several banks, jewelry stores, and museums are reporting losses, with no evidence as to who the perpetrator might be.” 

The scene changed again, and Chief Cruz, all bundled up in scarf and earmuffs, stood in front of the police station. 

“We think it's an inside job. There's no signs of forced entry and all of the security cameras were tampered with. In addition, given the sheer volume of items missing and the distance between the various locations that were hit, would seem to suggest that multiple robberies happened near simultaneously; indicating an organized crime ring.” 

While the Chief went on explaining proper safety procedures, the rest of the gang shared knowing looks.

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

It was difficult to see through the swiftly falling snow as the heroes flew, skated, and teleported across the city. Even Baymax’s sensors seemed to be on the fritz. 

Despite this, the gang had found various treasures haphazardly strewn about town. Tapestries, toy chessmen, fur cloaks, small chests, other weapons, books, scrolls, a lone deerskin boot, and even a parchment map that was torn to shreds; all of it tossed about by the wind and all of it foreign to this world. 

Varian’s goggles fogged up as he stepped out of the portal onto a rooftop. He wiped them clear with his sleeve and bent down to pick up another artifact. 

This one was a ragdoll, worn, faded, and tattered, as if it hadn't been played with in years. In fact a lot of the stuff they had found was in a damaged state; as if all this stuff had been abandoned and thrown into this world like garbage. The dagger he had first found being the most intact due to the material it was made of. 

Varian frowned. The doll’s coal black eyes stared back at him dully. They were also made of obsidian; same as the dagger, same as the stone chess pieces, and same as the arm bangle they had found earlier. Varian didn't know much about his father’s home country, but he did know that stone carving was a time honored tradition there. 

He himself had never learned the craft, but his dad’s skills had been well regarded. He would, on rare occasions, carve small gifts out of stone. A toy here, a piece of jewelry there; quartz wedding rings were popular in the village and one of Varian’s favorite toys growing up was a carved knight on horseback. 

“Oooh! I found a dress!” Honey Lemon’s voice broke out over the intercom, snapping him out his thoughts. “Well part of a dress anyways. One of the sleeves is missing.” 

“Wooop! Yes! I found an axe!” Fred hooted with joy. 

“You're not keeping the axe, Fred.” Wasabi dismissed. 

“But-” 

“Put it down.” Gogo demanded. 

“As cool as all this medieval stuff is…” Tadashi chimed in, ignoring the argument over the axe, “has anybody figured out where it's all coming from yet?” 

“I may have found something.” Hiro said as he flew past on Baymax. “Meet me in the park.”

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

“Well I guess we found that ‘cold front’ the weatherman said to look out for.” 

Wasabi was the first to speak, if nothing else than to ease the overwhelming sense of dread that had overcome the group. 

Before them, at the top of king’s hill in the park, was the largest portal they had ever seen. 

It stood as tall and as wide as a two story building. 

There were no frames nor turbines, like with previous set ups, but there was a swirling vortex of energy that whirled around the gateway. And this gateway led straight to a raging snow storm. 

Wind, sleet, and snow blasted out of the inter-dimensional window and into the freezing San Fansokyo air. 

Hiro gulped. “S-so how do we stop it?” 

“Over here!” Gogo called out. “I think I found the controls.” 

They met her at the foot of the hill where stood a metal podium with controls built into the top and a generator beside it. Varian kicked over some snow to find the buried wires traveling back towards the top of the hill, and presumably whatever electronics kept the portal in place. 

“Hey look!” Fred yelled as he opened up a nearby sack. “Do you suppose they're using these to power the portal?” 

He held up a diamond, looking through it like a spyglass. 

“No, but I do think we’ve just found all of the stolen loot that went missing last night.” Hiro said, opening up another bag to find a pearl necklace. 

“So you're telling me that whoever opened up the portal to the fairytale dimension, decided to go on a robbery spree?” Tadashi asked, incredulously. “Wouldn't they have they're own riches in that Umbra kingdom?” 

“Looked more like junk to me.” Gogo commented; pulling out a single ripped leather glove from her back pocket and holding it up to remind everyone the real value of the other worldly treasures they had found. 

“Maybe they're a part of the fae and are like exchanging trash for shiny stuff cause they think it's an even trade or something?” Fred guessed.

“The fae wouldn't use electricity, Fred.” Varian stated matter of factly as he examined the controls. That's when his eyes landed on the blue folder. 

“That's Callahan’s notebook.” Hiro said when he noticed what Varian was holding. “But I thought you lost it.” 

“So did I.” Varian muttered as he flipped through the notes. 

“But both Callahan and Momosake are still in jail.” Honey Lemon timidly pointed out. “Who else would have known about it?” 

They all got their answer when another, smaller portal opened up right next to them, and out stepped Sirque with a bag slung over her shoulder and a stolen crown perched precariously on top of her head. 

Super villain and heroes stared at each other for a moment, stunned. Until Sirque rolled her eyes, dropped the bag of loot, and raised her hands. 

“Alright, fine. You caught me.” 

“Shut the portal down now!” Varian demanded.

Sirque took a step back, surprised by the ferocity in his voice. 

“Okay… okay. It'll take a moment to power everything down ...” 

She turned off the smaller portal behind her and walked over to the control panel. 

“You have to shut everything off in sequence or it'll risk an implosion.” She finished explaining. 

“That's the least of our problems.” Varian muttered. 

“I don't know. ‘Imploding giant portal’ does sound like a pretty big problem to me.” Wasabi countered. 

“Listen. The rocks could come through at any moment. That's a far bigger worry right now.” 

“Rocks?” Sirque asked. 

“Do you have any idea where that portal leads to?” Varian responded. 

“The frozen tundra.”  She pointed back towards the gateway like it was obvious. 

“Yes… the frozen tundra of a completely different dimension.” 

Sirque blinked at him, unsure how to respond to such a statement, but then decided it didn't matter. 

She rolled her eyes again and shrugged. “If you say so.” And then began the power down sequence. 

She didn't get the chance to finish. 

Halfway through the ground began to rumble under their feet. But before anyone could yell “Earthquake!”, black stalagmites burst from below. They barreled straight towards the group, towering as tall as a grown man, before abruptly stopping a few feet past where they all stood. 

It was all over and done within a matter of seconds. The gang of superheroes barely had time to roll out of the way from the onslaught. 

“Ohmygod, ohmygod, ohmygod, ohmygod.”  Honey Lemon kept repeating over and over again as she clung to the base of one of the rocks in shock. 

“What was that!?” Sirque yelled. 

“The rocks.” Varian answered, lifting Hiro off his feet. 

“Is everyone okay?” Gogo shouted. 

“I’ve been better.” Wasabi grunted. 

Everyone rushed to his side. One of the black spikes had pierced his armor, breaking the shoulder guard and grazing his shoulder. 

“It sliced right through my shield like a knife through butter.” He hissed, as Baymax applied antiseptic to his wound. 

“Fortunately it doesn't look too deep.” Tadashi said, examining Baymax's handiwork. 

“Only a minor cut.” The robot confirmed. “It should heal within a few days.” 

“I wish the same could be said about the portal.” Fred replied. 

The others turned to look at him. He was standing near the now busted up control panel, holding a severed cord. 

Sirque’s eyes widened with horror. “Oh that is not good.” 

“Please don't say why.” Hiro whispered. 

Sirque ignored his pleas. “The generator was used to kick start the portal, but the electromagnets use kinetic motion to maintain energy. Without the controls, I can't tell the portal to power down.” 

“No…. No…” Varian practically laughed in disbelief. “Do NOT tell me you don't have a way to shut the portal down.” 

“Well there is a backup… but…” 

He grabbed her by the shoulders. “No buts, where is it?” 

Pinned in his grasp, she timidly pointed back towards the portal. 

“There’s another set of controls on the other end, to stabilize the connection.” 

Gogo spoke up first. “So you’re telling us, someone has to go in there, turn everything off, and then get back through the collapsing portal before they're trapped in another dimension for all time?” 

“Why do you keep saying it's another dimension?” 

“Because it is!” Varian shouted, finally letting go of her. “Or do you think those are natural to this world!?” 

He pointed back towards the rocks. 

Sirque frowned. 

“You don't… you don't know that. They could be.. they be an unstudied phenomenon-”

“ I've studied them. I've spent my life studying them. Their chemical makeup doesn't match anything on this Earth. Their physical priorities defy basic physics. They've managed to go against all known scientific research.” 

“Trust us.” Tadashi stepped in. “It's alien, and so is he, and that portal you just built leads to another world.” 

“You must be joking.” But she didn't sound confident, not in the slightest. 

“Joking or not, we need to get those controls rebuilt and that portal turned off asap.” 

“We don't have time.” Varian hissed. 

“Nobody's going through that portal.” 

Varian pressed his lips tightly together as if considering a further argument, but then huffed and marched over to the control panel instead. 

“We need a soldering tool.” He said. 

“I have a toolbox.” Sirque offered, and ran to her stash to get it. 

Those not versed in portal tech, stood to the side and watched. 

Honey Lemon had finally calmed down but still looked shell shocked, while the rest of the gang shuffled nervously, unsure what to do. 

“Screwdriver!” Varian called out, while Sirque connected the power cables. 

Gogo handed him the tool out of the toolbox. 

“So… those are what destroyed your village?” She asked. 

“Yeah, and they'll destroy San Fansokyo if we don't get this portal closed.” 

He finished screwing back in the brackets on the casing, and putting the screwdriver in his mouth, took two ends of a severed wire in his hand and spliced them together.

“Gat me a mut, mill ma?” He hummed, and Gogo went hunting for a ceramic nut for the wires. 

“How much time do we have?” Tadashi asked, peering over the other side of the panel. 

Varian spit out the screwdriver into his hand as Gogo handed him some nuts and terminal ends. 

“No idea. It could be a couple of hours or just a few minutes.” 

“What's our backup plan if we run out of time?”

Varian stopped and stared hard at him. 

“There is no backup. Nothing can stop the rocks. Nothing. So don't even try it.” 

Tadashi frowned, but for once didn't argue.

Hiro kept a pensive eye on the portal as he listened in on his brothers’ conversation. 

“Baymax?” He quietly asked his robot companion, hopefully out of earshot of the others. “Can you detect where the other control panel is?” 

Baymax scanned the portal entrance way. 

“They're is an energy signal coming about half a mile from the portal’s entrance.” 

“How fast can you get to it?” 

“Given wind resistance, I estimate roughly three minutes.” 

“So three minutes to get back through the portal before it collapses, plus whatever time it would take to turn it off. How much time would it take for the portal to close completely?” 

Baymax gave the best imitation of a shrug that he could. “I'm afraid I do not have enough information to make that calculation.” 

Hiro mulled over the options in his mind as he walked over towards the reconstruction. 

“Hey Sirque, if someone went through the portal-”

“No one is going through the portal.” Tadashi interrupted. 

Hiro ignored him, “How hard would it be to turn the other set of controls off?” 

“Not hard. It's just a simple powering down sequence.” She answered off handily as she flipped through her notes. “First the electromagnets have to be told to slow down, and then the signal has to be shut off, then finally you can cut the power. Do it out of order though and the portal could implode.” 

Hiro nodded. “The magnets have to stay stabilized till the power is fully off, got it. So all together, you think what, about six minutes to power it all down?” 

Sirque gave it some thought. “Yeah, that sounds about right. Given the portal's size, it's not instantaneous like with my portable tech.” 

“I know what you're thinking, and no.” Tadashi said. 

“You said we needed a backup.” Hiro argued back. “Baymax and I could fly in there and out again the quickest.” 

“Well fortunately we won't need to risk it because Varian is going to fix the panel here. Ain’t that right, V?” 

In answer the control panel sparked and caught on fire. As Varian frantically scrambled away, Baymax calmly put out the small flame with his built in extinguisher. 

“It's o-okay.” Varian tried to keep the rising panic out of his voice as he examined the damage. “It's just a little surface scaring. Nothing major. I can still fix this.” 

No sooner were the words out of his mouth than did the ground start to rumble again. Varian gulped down his fear and turned to look at the portal. 

More rocks were heading their way, but this time they were further off. 

They could see the black spikes puncturing the snow off in the distance, but it wouldn't take long for the dangerous formations to reach them. Certainly not before Varian had a chance to rewire the controls. 

A scream from Honey Lemon broke Varian out of his racing thoughts. 

“Hiro NO!!!” 

Too late. 

Varian barely had time to register the wind rushing past him as Baymax blasted off towards the portal.

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

Hiro ignored everyone's cries as he rushed through the portal. 

He wasn't sure what he had expected when entering another world, but honestly it didn't look any different from the images of Alaska you'd see on National Geographic. He could understand why Sirque would have assumed that she had created another spacial portal like all the others. The only thing indicating it's alien nature was the large black pointy rocks spiking up through the snow, and they had only just appeared five minutes ago. 

Yet despite having not been there moments before, the rocks already trailed off far into the distant horizon in a winding, erratic line as far as the eye could see. Like a giant black serpent snaking its way through the snow. 

The enormity of it filled his stomach with lead. These things were fast, and right now they were heading straight towards San Fansokyo. And given the evidence of what he'd seen here, they wouldn't stop at just the city. 

“I have found the controls.” Baymax interrupted his thoughts as they landed near another metal podium. The rocks had thankfully just missed it by a few feet. Hiro wasted no time in jumping off and dashing towards the panel. 

The power down procedure was simple enough. The control layout wasn't much different from Varian’s portal at school. Probably because both were based off of Callaghan’s work on the Silent Sparrow project. 

He flipped the final switch and heard the telltale sign of sparking electromagnets slowly winding down in the distance. 

“Quick, Baymax!” 

He jumped onto the robot’s back in mid-flight and they took off at full blast towards the portal. 

They were racing side by side with the rocks now. Which somehow managed to just keep pace ahead of them by a few yards. 

Hiro forced himself to tear his eyes away from unnatural phenomena and focus on their destination instead. 

The energy glow around the doorway was dimming and Hiro could just make out the shapes of his friends in the distance. 

They were beginning to run towards them, no doubt calling out to him. 

He gauged the distance. A little more than a football field to go… Five hundred feet… Four hundred… Three hundred… Two…

“Come on… come on…” He hissed, willing them to go faster… or for the rocks to go slower… or for the power to stay on longer… 

They were only ten feet away when the energy connecting the magnets arched, sputtered, and then died away. 

“NOOOO!!!” 

His friends, the portal, and the gleaming towers of San Fansokyo faded away into a swirl of white snow right as he and Baymax flew past what should have been the gateway. 

Baymax skidded to a halt and hovered there as Hiro looked on in horror at the nothingness before them. 

Nothing but the snow and the back rocks; which continued on regardless.

[my-rose-tinted-glasses]

My memory is terrible so I wanted to do a breakdown of my stuff every once in a while. Might be monthly, might be whenever I feel like it. Also there are too many shows on and something is always finishing or starting so a month is a lot.

BL - Currently Watching

1000 Years Old [2/12] - It's silly, and entertaining and makes me laugh. The friend group is delightful and I'm having a good time watching them. Was excited for a minute when Yo suggested a haircut for Pun because I cannot handle that wig. 🤞

Anti Reset [5/10] - This is one of the most frustrating shows I've watched in a while. The show doesn't seem to settle on what is actually trying to say about the AI of it all, and when it says something I'm not crazy about it. Why is it so frustrating? Because they are so fucking endearing when they're together on screen. I wanna love this show so much.

Cherry Magic Th [11/12]– I love them so much. I'm fascinated by the choices that the show is making. As a big fan of the manga and the jbl I came into this with reservations and this show is just blowing my mind. This was the best episode 11 of all time and Tay/New are delivering. My heart is so full with this.

Cherry Magic Anime [7/12]– Another helicopter ride! Yay. The date song was hilarious. We're now getting to the point where they are dating and Adachi is feeling guilty for lying so I'm curious how the show will adapt the next phase of the relationship.

Dead Friend Forever [10/12]– Glad to see we are all on board with Tan's murderous impulses. It's been so much fun having more people join in on the fun. As for me, I NEED White to stay alive. That's really all I want. Getting curious about how Perth factors in to all of this.

My Strawberry Film[2/8] - I feel it coming. I see sadness in my future. But I'm bracing because I'm loving the look of this show. And pining boys are my favourite type of boys. I'm ready.

Ossan's Love Returns [8/9] - The videos messages destroyed me but then that ending made me annoyed. I don't know what to expect in terms of Kurosawa but I hope he's not actually dying and there's a really good reason for all this. Medical mal practice might be the thing. Although as @twig-tea pointed out to me, since it was said in show it might not actually happen. I want happy for the ending anyway.

Perfect Propose [5/6] . Why must I only have them for 6 episodes??? I need more. Kai is everything to me, and that back hug followed by that smile melted by cold heart. Hiro's boss needs something heavy to fall on him from a great height. And please Hiro,sweetie, I need you to eat better and sleep.

Although I Love You, and You? [7/10]- Sakae is letting me down. And by that I mean, the show is letting me down. Sakae needs to put his foot down with Mizuki and go back to being a fool in love with Soga.

To Be Continued [1/8] - It's not amazing. but I'm a sucker for second chance romance and there are two couples so there's a 50% chance I will like this. We'll see. Also, they need to start hiring younger actors for the high school flashbacks. This goes for A Secretly Love too. Having 27 year olds and up playing ten years younger just won't do. It's terrible.

Unknown [2/12] - I'm intrigued. Not completely sold yet but I'm liking it so far. Also nothing would keep me away from watching Sam Lin again.

Also watched the first episode of A Secretly Love and caught up with City of Stars but it's on the 'I need to shut of my brain' schedule so I'm not necessarily watching to weekly.

BL - Finished

Cooking Crush - I will miss all of them. I loved it so much. The whole cut/uncut version thing was annoying and the editing was weird at times but overall this was wonderful. Communication done right. Relationships and character growth was stellar and both couples won my heart. Aungpao really surprised me, considering he was surrounded my pros on all sides. Dynamite was a joy to watch. And OffGun delivering with all the kissing. Everyone should watch this.

The Sign - I mean, what they did to this show is absolutely insane. Not airing the finale like the rest of the show. Having to pay extra for happy ending is ridiculous (although I kinda predicted this and @lurkingshan is my witness. I said as a joke and it turns out reality is a joke.) Then waiting 2 whole weeks for whatever that was. Just the most unsatisfying experience. Go read this from Shan because I agree with everything said there. Also @bengiyo final thoughts here really echo how I felt about this show overall.

Happy Ending - 20 minutes split in 3. Why? No idea. Was it a happy ending? I think so. Was it cute? Sure. Was it great to watch Seong Hyuk again? You betcha. But I didn't love it. I need Choco Milk Shake S2, like, TODAY.

Playboyy - It ended.

Rose Watches OJBL - I feel bad about this. I didn't watch any of the ones I planned to. This might seem like whatever but I've been trying to catch up with awards season films, because since uni, me and a couple of friends always do it and finish it by watching the oscars together and so ojbl was were I dropped the ball. Gonna restart soon though.

Not BL - Watched this month

Night Has Come Death's Game Shop for Killers

That's it for right now. As usual my ask box is open for gif requests and any other questions. All my gifs are under #rosygifs.

Have a good week💜

[ninjagirlstar5]

FNAF MENTION‼️THE FUCK IS A BITE OF 87‼️‼️

I haven't read everything on the Hiro post yet but MAN i really really like the world building with all the different "creatures"/states of being, specially how the ghosts can turn into demons via tainting of their solds during the time they linger on earth, so so cool, tho it does make me wonder if there's some kind of force, be it human or otherworldly, that haunts the ghosts so that they don't turn it like that, i think those are the exorcistis you mentioned? But if you did go in-depth about them in the post i must have missed it ^^' either ways i would love to read a full world lore post of sorts that just goes in depth about all the different character types (Ghosts, angels, guardians, demons and whatever the grandfather and father actually were)

I'm also curious on how the world of this universe is? Like is it set in modern time? Past, future or is it a lot more fantasy-esc? Either ways, consider me a fan of sorts

WAS THAT THE BITE OF '87?!!! (reference)(joking)

Take your time reading it, it's quite long, I'll admit. ^^; And yes, the exorcists are the forces that keep ghosts from suffering from the Taint, and helping them move on. I thought I elaborated a little more on Exorcists/gave them their own paragraph but I only gave them, like, a sentence upon rereading the post, whoops. In my defense, I was working all day on that post so it's no surprise that I missed a few things.

Exorcists are able to use the tools at their disposal, usually of religious value but some are able to use tools of magical value with the help of a Guardian or using their own soul to power the tool but at risk of themselves. They come in to help the ghosts come to terms with their death, appeasing their souls, and even helping them with their goals/final wish...if it's morally sound, anyways. If the ghost refuses to see reason or is corrupted with too much Taint, exorcists may have to use force through the tools at their disposal to force them to the AfterLife. Exorcists know they must save their souls before the Taint becomes worse, as once a ghost turns into a demon, that soul is lost forever.

But to answer your question on what type of world this is, it's set in the modern time where supernatural events happen a lot, kinda like an urban fantasy? I don't know what it's specifically called, but if I have to use an example, it's like Gravity Falls where weird and creepy supernatural shit happens all the time but no one believes it even though the very environment they live in can be dangerous. (It should be noted that I have not watched Gravity Falls, it's just the first example that popped into my head.) The town and city that most of the plot takes place in is especially a hotspot for supernatural events. But due to the development of science and such, skepticism of the supernatural and just trying to logic away strange happenings have become a huge norm in society. It doesn't help that there are people that uses exorcisms as an excuse to scam people, so the exorcist community they've built for centuries tends to have a bad rep these days that a lot of them have to take other jobs just to pay their bills. An OC that is an exorcist has to deal with this constantly to the point that she takes literally any job that comes her way for money. She's got bills to pay and rent due for her store/house, her charges are perfectly fair, please hire her, please, please please please please- (half-joking)

There is an otherworldly system called the Reapers, who are Lost Souls that are chosen to help ghosts move on into the AfterLife. It's sort of like a job for them, as many Lost Souls are people that didn't go out of their way to be good but aren't bad people either, just your average person. Some willingly take this job so that they can work towards going to Heaven while others simply do it to pass the time until it's time for them to go into Reincarnation. Those that don't simply just hang out and relax in the safe places in Purgatory. However, Reapers aren't always assigned to take care of ghosts. More often than not, they go down to the mortal realm to take the souls of the deceased, people who haven't become ghosts, and help transport them to the AfterLife from the river of death. Depending on what the soul's destined location is, a Reaper's job can range from relatively safe (the path to Heaven) to dangerous (the path to Hell). This is mostly cause Demons tend to escape Hell or even form outside of it due to any accumulated sin tainting the environment, and will go after the Reapers for the souls they are protecting and transferring. Even souls that are destined for Hell need to be protected as, again, Demons grow stronger through consumption of souls and any that are left behind will only turn them into a bigger problem later. Naturally, Demons are more common near Hell while they're very rare to spot near Heaven. Purgatory is pretty much smack dab in the middle, so it's a toss of a coin if you'll see a Demon on their way to the mortal realm or not. But yeah, Reapers will occasionally help a Ghost move on before they suffer from the Taint and will even work with an exorcist if they cross paths on the same jobs.

(Reincarnation is also a very natural part of life and death in this world, where every soul - with the exception of many souls in Hell, unless some were allowed to work on redemption as a Guardian and genuinely at that - will be reborn as a new person in the mortal realm. Most Lost Souls will reincarnate after some time they've spent there, while those in Heaven can choose how long they want to stay due to how peaceful and serene it is. Most souls in Heaven will go on to reincarnate with family or friends, whether it's those they made back in the mortal realm or people they met in Heaven. Everyone reincarnates, eventually, even those in Hell, whether they accomplish redemption as a Guardian or a Cleansing of their soul. Unless they're in the deepest levels of Hell. That level is reserved for the worst of the worst, and no one plans to let them out. Ever.)

Honestly, I should make an entire Google Doc on the world and it's lore. It'd be easier to keep track of rather than rambling off-the-cuff in a Tumblr post and then having to scroll down all the time to find the specific one I want. Especially since I need to think about the different character types a bit more and what I want to change.

[trashexplorer]

BLCD Review: Tsunaida Koi no Kanaekata

Title: Tsunaida Koi no Kanaekata (繋いだ恋の叶え方)

Release Date: 2021/08/25

Shop: CD + Manga

Author/Artist: Yoshio Akira

Cast:

Shingaki Tarusuke x Eguchi Takuya

Nakajima Yoshiki

Oi Marie

Synopsis: The bane of my existence. Adaptation of the second installment of the same name.

Review Proper

When I was dying of an ear infection back in December, I had the most vivid dream of Morpheus from The Sandman sitting at the foot of my bed telling me that my life was one of his tools that he needed back. In exchange for my life, Morpheus promised me he would go back in time to stop me from making a mistake that I wished I hadn't done.

I chose working on this fucking thing.

Don't get me wrong, Tsunaida had the best plot out of the series and all of Yoshio Akira's works. I'd even go as far as saying it's one of the best releases of its time—it was nominated for Best Series in the 2021 chilchil awards for a reason (it was robbed, I tell you). It's just my life has gone downhill since I picked this up. HAHAHAHAHA Not to mention, older Chesk was bad and cringe. I'm sorry for arguing with you over this series, Kimmy. It wasn't worth it.

This series is still ongoing, only god knows why. I got so sick of it to the point that I started hating Yoshio Akira and forgetting all about the plot, so I didn't expect myself to cry during the climax HAHAHAHAHAHA FUCK WHY WAS THIS STILL SO GOOD???? I'M ANNOYED I still hate it tho

I forgot just how painful this was. I'm at this point in my life where if that would happen to me, I would just LEAVE.

Anyway, onto the topic of the BLCD...

I didn't think it was going to be possible, but Shingaki really changed his Hara-san tone!!! Thank god! This is it! This was exactly the tone I envisioned his Hara-san would be in! I'm not sure if it's 'cause everyone from the producers (except the director) and the sound team was changed, but Tsunaida and Kanawanu are worlds apart. I usually dislike inconsistencies in series with multiple installments, but I'll let this slide. Let's all just pretend that Kanawanu doesn't exist.😌

Egu also went a pitch higher in this. It's still far from what I wanted for Kaoru, but he was able to make the role his own. I'm not sure if it's because of the change in the mixing, but Egu finally sounds like he was recording with everyone here. I said in my review for Kanawanu that he wasn't syncing with his own brother, Kakeru, and it turns out that Egu actually was voicing Kakeru too lmao. How can you not sync with yourself, man? But that just means that the mixing for Kanawanu was that bad. I haven't listened to Tabete mo Oishikuarimasen yet, but I feel like Egu and Shingaki should've been nominated for Tsunaida. I mean, Shingaki is a queen as Yashiro and his nomination is deserved, but let's all put those older series to rest now. 😂

I also missed Nakajiki as Keiji-san!!! He promised to bring Hiro along next time, so if I'm not hearing Saitou Souma in Musunda, I will riot! No, I didn't check the cast list.

The BLCD is pretty accurate to the manga, save for that extra bathroom sex in Track 2. It's quite long, but there isn't any complex dialogue, so I suggest just closing your eyes and absorbing the bathroom bambo. 😌 I actually wished it was longer toward the ending chapter because I felt that it was rushed in the manga, but alas. I've read Renta's license, and it's accurate as well. In conclusion, get this if you like the series. 100% recommend!

[dracrownian]

Just rewatched Bride of Halloween for like the third time this year. I was doing fine (mostly) until I got to the end credits and there's a short clip of Rei injured and alone in his apartment drinking and missing his friends, and I just.

I need him and Akai to be friends at the end of everything (in canon, I mean, so friends is all I can hope for), because I need him to not be alone.

(Obviously he'll sort of have Shinichi, but Shinichi is a teenager. And Kazami is around but they don't really read to me as friends. And Azusa is there but she doesn't even know Rei; she only knows Amuro, who isn't even real.)

(And, in my delusions, Hiro isn't dead, but that's beside the point. Canonically, he's dead. I guess.)

Anyway. Rei and Akai friendship. Please.

(The sort of friends where they bicker constantly, but like. Without the murderous intent. And they still have each others' backs when necessary.)

[nashusglasses]

it's always a surprise when the tide comes in

note: this is a writing exercise for exposition. I hate hate HATEEEEE writing it!! it makes my skin crawl i just want everything to happen at once!!!! -_- anywho. this story is the background story of this drabble

i love the idea of gojo in an office setting bc he’s already so silly like that would be a 10 times silly buff. Also the thought of him and yuuji having deep conversations about pop culture scratches a very good itch in my heart :3

note 2: this is literally yuuji n gojo in this au im going to HURL !!!

PAIRING. gojo/reader SETTING. work husband au (or, "you keep being suggestive in front of all our coworkers to the point where everyone knows we're not dating but we COULD be and it's silly so I'll go along with it!!!! ...wait why are you asking me out on an actual date?" au) WARNINGS. twilight references. shitting as a threat. hime n gojo hating each other bc they both love oc =3= SUMMARY. He’s a liar, but only for good reason. WORD COUNT. 2.5k

Someone is going to die today.

You’d been so diligent in choosing your hiding spot in the break room fridge. Your one yogurt cup—the one with the strawberry bits swirled in the vanilla—sitting behind the giant bottle of mustard at the bottom of the fridge door shelf. Gone. You try in vain to scour for your snack, but there’s nothing else save for labeled Tupperware and three quarters of a cake from Mei Mei’s birthday celebration yesterday.

The list of culprits shouldn’t be that long, anyway. 

First: Nanami. He wouldn’t. Your boss is built on black coffee and the occasional vegan bao from the restaurant across the street. You’ve never seen him eat anything else.

Utahime, the freak owner of the mustard bottle because she eats it with her pretzels, is lactose-intolerant. There’s no way she’s risking an explosive gut when she’s always busy at reception. 

Nobara’s too new to the office to try inciting violence against her seniors. You’d probably let her off the hook, regardless—she’s too hardworking to stay mad at.

You’d brood more over The Case of Your Missing Yogurt, but Satoru’s loud talking at the lunch table cuts right through your ruminations.

“—like I know it’s personal preference, but I think it’s so lazy,” he grumbles. “My uncle: Hiro. His son? Hiro, junior. God. Corny people piss me off.”

“Right.” Yuuji, the other new junior associate, hangs off Satoru’s every word. “It’s kind of like Bella from Twilight.”

Satoru slaps the table with passion. Yuuji hastily clings to his cup of coffee from spilling over. “Exactly, Yuuji. Exactly! You named your kid not only after the dad but also your ex who wasn’t even your ex?! The combination didn’t even sound good.”

“Edward Jacob,” Yuuji recalls.

“Disgusting.” Satoru shivers. “I don’t—Jesus. Don’t let me think about that. It’s so vile.” 

You close the fridge door, trek a sad path to the chair next to Satoru. Yuuji gives you a quick smile. You decide to scheme your murder plan later, because now you just want to pinch Yuuji’s cheeks off—your juniors are so cute! “Hello,” he greets politely.

Satoru sneaks an arm around your shoulders, resting it on the back of the chair. “What’s up with you?”

Is your sadness that obvious? God, you were waiting for that yogurt all morning.

“I’ll tell you later,” you say, because you might start languishing if you think one more second about your lost snack. “Hi, Yuuji. What were you guys saying about naming babies?”

Satoru huffs. “I hate parents who name their kids stupid names.”

(Yuuji takes a sip of coffee.)

“You wouldn’t do that with our kids, right?” Satoru asks you next.

(Yuuji, promptly, chokes on his coffee.)

“Absolutely not,” you answer, just as nonchalant.

“Hek.” Yuuji dissolves into five seconds of hard coughing. “You—you two are married?”

“Nope,” you both chirp at the same time.

The poor boy just stares, coffee blushing on his shirt. “Ah,” he says. “I see.”

Satoru shrugs. “Don’t get me wrong. I’d have babies with her. But she makes my coffee wrong every time I ask for it. I don’t think I could share my bank account with someone like that.”

Yuuji looks at you for a response. You reach over to pat his hand. “Don’t listen to him. You just keep working hard. And don’t tell Nanami that we gossip too much.”

“Right. I guess—well.” Yuuji stammers. “Does..? Am I? Is this… a secret?”

He sticks a hesitant finger up, pointing it at you, then at Satoru. Satoru wiggles a finger right back.

“Whatever Utahime tells you is wrong,” Satoru says, and Yuuji stares at him like he’s waiting for an explanation, but all Satoru does is wave him off. “Lunch is done.”

“Oh. Right.” Yuuji stands up, bows quickly, then remembers his mug. He runs to the sink to drop it off, then says, “I’ll–I’ll be careful around Utahime!”

He doesn’t wait for a response; he scampers out the room like he’s got a secret to share. 

Satoru’s always been lax with new hires—you wouldn’t be surprised if he’d explained his entire life story to Yuuji in the last hour. But his ongoing charade of touting you as his much-more-than-coworker co-worker is the oldest secret of Office Drama there is.

Utahime, your best and first co-worker friend who worked in the same room with you as clerks. Satoru, whose first day was the last day of your probation period, booted her out of the office because she got the full-time reception position she applied for. He proved himself a competent coworker. Steadfast in work ethic, a little too up the ass about gelling his hair properly in the morning. Had to look good to do good, he claimed. 

Utahime’s been out for his ass ever since, complaining that he was using his good looks to steal you away from her. Satoru took the bait right away. Made it his mission everyday to make Utahime green with explosive jealousy for having taken her rightful spot as your Worker Bestie for the Resties.

It started with the little gestures. A gentle hand on your lower back when you passed by reception (Utahime, who zeroed in on the touch from her desk, scoffing loudly). Complimenting your outfit choice of the day (“I think she’s beautiful everyday!”). Making you laugh with his stupid Arnold Schwarzenegger impressions (she hated this the most; she said he sounded like an ugly troll). 

“That’s the love of my life you cad!” Utahime bellowed, once, when Satoru trailed after you from the elevator one morning. Nanami said she had to stop playing sad Drake songs every morning when you passed by her desk because the melancholy brought the office morale down.

“You know I take good care of her,” Satoru called back. “And nobody says cad anymore, harlot!”

(They insulted each other for two more minutes using outdated expletives. After Nanami came to intervene, you gave him five bucks for his vegan bao to calm him down.)

You don’t really know when Satoru’s attempts to establish workplace dominance turned into straight-up flirting, though. Utahime didn’t need to be around anymore for him to butter you up. He’d leave little sticky notes he left on your monitor to remind you about deadlines, the next fire drill, drawing those little hearts at the ends of his sentences. The hand on your back turning into an arm draped on your shoulder. 

You told Utahime about it when Satoru took a sick day. She was livid. Then, immediately, she started tearing up.

“So I’m demoted from Bestie for the Resties and he’s trying to get into your pants?!” She moaned, sliding dramatically down her chair in the lunch room. “I’m going to pass away right now.”

“It’s not like he’s being serious,” you contended. 

Utahime gave you a hard look. “Please don’t tell me you actually believe that.”

You looked at her blankly. Wholly unfazed, because you really did believe Satoru had no other motive. He was just your stupid coworker–who sat across from you and did nice things and said nice stuff and you were pretty sure the older lady from accounting had a crush on him, anyway. 

“It’s nothing,” you decided, and Utahime shook her head, scoffing.

“Look. That garbage can’s been going after you since day one. You may not see it, but I have eyes, my pumpy-wumpkin bugaboo.” She tapped your nose. “You owe me twenty when you see I’m right.”

And that was all she had to say about it.

If anything, you figure it’s better for Yuuji to learn right from the source than be wrongfully convinced by Utahime that Satoru was a piece of shit homewrecker who lived to piss her off. Regardless of whatever lie is being fed to the junior staffers, there is one universal truth: you are the crowned jewel of this office floor, and that means everyone’s being lit on fire till you find the person who stole your fucking yogurt.

The second the door closes behind Yuuji, you glare daggers at Satoru. He still has his arm around you. 

“I might kill you,” you start.

“You say that everyday.” Satoru grins. “Don’t tell me the thought of having my babies scares you that much.”

Steam might actually blow out of your ears. “That’s not—stop trying to confuse me! My yogurt! It’s gone from the fridge!”

Satoru stares at you. Then his face morphs into a mix of shock and disbelief, and he screeches: “Are you saying I took it?!”

You sag in your seat, give him a look that tells him he should just confess before you find the closest sharp thing in this room. He just levels your stare with the same offended look, and you give in first because you don’t have time to argue anymore. Lunch really is over.

“Fine,” you sneer. “But if I find anything incriminating I will crucify you.”

Satoru fakes a shiver. “Ooh. Threaten me again. I can take it.”

He screams when you pinch the sensitive spot just below his armpit.

.

.

.

Right when the clock hits 4:59, Satoru hauls himself up from his seat. 

“Meet me outside. I’m getting my stuff then ripping ass in the bathroom,” Satoru tells you.

You snort. “Which one?”

“The one closest to the elevators.” In other words, right next to reception where Utahime is closing right now. Satoru is nothing if not calculating in his efforts to vex that poor woman. “See you.”

At this point in the day, the despair of losing your yogurt has simmered down to lazy indifference. You’ll just have to interrogate everyone tomorrow. Maybe print out a missing yogurt paper to stick on the fridge with no reward but your sincere gratitude and the promise to stick out for their missing lunch, should the same depravity befall them too. 

You turn your monitor off, make sure your desk is neat. Swiping off any crumbs from Satoru’s desk because he snuck in a sandwich today after forgetting to eat when he was talking to Yuuji.

And then you see it.

The silver shine of ripped plastic in the trash. 

At first, you’re skeptical. You’re too tired to spark another match of anger. But surely enough, when you hunch over to look, an empty can of yogurt sits innocent, perfect. All your strawberry vanilla goodness wiped clean.

You think of all the spectacular ways you could beat the shit out of Satoru, because he didn’t only lie; he thought you were stupid enough not to see the evidence right across from you. He could have at least thrown it into Mei Mei’s trash. Snuck it into Yuuji’s bag when he wasn’t looking. If there’s one thing you hate, it’s being underestimated.

So when you meet Satoru outside the elevators, the first thing you say is:

“You’re a giant fucking oaf and I want you to stay exactly one metre away from me till we get to our cars.”

He always parks his car next to yours.

“O-kay.” He puts his hands up in surrender, maintaining his distance. “Actually, that’s a good thing. My ass. It’s weeping. Ow.”

You quickly realize that this is the best course of action you could have taken, because you know the one thing Satoru hates, and it’s being ignored.

And you do it well.

“Your hair looks pretty today,” he says when you step out into the garage.

“I like the jeans you picked out,” he notes when you walk ahead without him.

“I’m going to crash my car into the first pole I see,” he whines the second you reach your car, and he traps you against the door with a hand pressed above the window. Distant enough to keep you comfortable, but you still feel more warmth than you’ve ever felt from him before. Like those slow burn romances where the lead slyly flirts with the pretty girl he’s been chasing for two seasons, except you’re one second away from kneeing his balls into painful oblivion. “Why are you being mean?”

You cross your arms. “Because you lied.”

“About?”

“You know what about!”

He clicks his tongue. Then his eyebrows lift in realization. “Ah.”

You wait for him to continue. Maybe you’d ask him to go down on his knees, get those nice linen pants dirty with grime and dust just to gloat about his passion for you and only you. You’ll partake in his drama for the sake of an inflated ego. But all he does is smile, and he’s got a handsome face, and for some reason, you’ve got nothing for rebuttal.

“So I have a confession to make,” he starts. 

You nod.

“I did eat your yogurt. Don’t say anything yet!” Satoru interrupts your open mouth. “I just. I didn’t think you’d be too upset.”

“Hm,” you concede. “Go on.”

“I’ll make it up to you.”

This is too easy. You feel like an ant trapped in a glass jar. You’re used to the bickering, the roundabout conversation because somehow, he always makes you laugh. Your conversations are never serious. 

But this. This feels serious.

“How?” You ask, gut heavy with dread, anticipation.

“I’ll take you out for lunch,” he suggests, and you wait a heartbeat for him to tack on a sike, I’m broke, but he almost looks nervous. Like he wants so badly for you to understand something he knows so well. 

“It–um. Like… tomorrow we go across the street and get those baos Nanami loves so much?”

You’re stalling. Satoru laughs. You think you’re starting to like the way he looms over you like this.

“Like on the weekend, I pick you up, and we both look pretty, and you say you’re paying but then I slap your hand away from your card, and I pay because I need to give you a good impression,” he rambles.

“You don’t need to give me a good impression.” You’re almost breathless. “You–you…”

Satoru tilts his head, and it’s annoyingly charming. “Me?”

“I thought–I thought we–this is just–it’s you and me?” You stumble. He watches you shift your feet. Takes his hand off your car, uncrosses your arms with a tug on your wrist. You think he’s about to hold your hand, but he pulls away at the last second.  

“It’s always been you and me,” he repeats. Then scratches the back of his head because you think he’s floundering, too. “Just not for everyone else this time.”

You think you might genuinely explode. All your synapses stretch to the absolute limit, you’re almost convinced you’ll bleed from your ears. “You’re being serious.”

He nods. There’s zero indication that he understands the gravity of the situation. But it’s quiet in this garage. You hear it then, the tapping his shoe makes when he’s impatient.

“When–when you told Yuuji about sharing bank accounts,” you continue.

“Okay I’m not in that deep,” Satoru defends. “Well. Who knows. Maybe I could be.”

You shove his shoulder. “You can’t just say that!”

“You’re so violent.” He rubs the spot you’ve tainted. As if you did any damage. He’s just doing it to fuck with you. “Do you hit all the guys you’re into?”

“Are you trying to make me say no?” That’s a lie. You know this. You’re just still in shock that you might actually owe Utahime twenty bucks. Satoru clicks his teeth.

“Look. You don’t have to answer me now. And I’ll buy you your yogurt back.” He digs in his bag, taking his car keys out. “Just… let me know, okay?”

He lingers in his spot. He’s not the main character in this romance scene, though. It’s you, the unforgiving lead who can’t decide what they want for themselves, and when the opportunity comes for a new start, they stand frozen in time. All those past mistakes a whirlwind behind you, threatening your security, and the glass breaks, and all of a sudden you’re in a garage, making a fool of yourself in front of the character who never deserved a bad ending. You wouldn’t do that to him.

“If I say yes,” you murmur. Satoru perks up instantly. “Can I choose where we go?”

“Depends. Do they have free ice cream for dessert?”

Of course that would be his only stipulation. You’re glad he’s easy to feed. “Probably.”

Satoru nods. He clicks his car unlocked. “If you say yes,” he repeats, rounding the back of his car to the driver’s seat, “I’ll go anywhere for you.”

He leaves you gawping. You watch him open his door, sit down. Adjusting the air conditioner high because you know he’s always blasting it. He doesn’t roll the window down to say bye, just pulls from his spot, and you mind your feet, mind the way he waves at you, but not as enthused as he usually is with it.

You stand there, thinking about your yogurt, and about Utahime’s face when you tell her you’ll say yes.