#anyways yeah these are my ladies uwu

[nguyenfinity]

Juuuuust one more OC thing I have not yet put here

[fastfists]

Cause, I have to add...I do love me strong female characters BUT I also like when they have personalities and arn't just 'one of the guys but with boobs'/'not like other girls' type. Like, the reason all the Sonic girls are awesome? Yes, they all can fight BUT they all have distinct personalities — we got Amy who sweet, kind, and a hopeless romantic than we have someone like Rouge who is flirty, confident, and sassy. And that is just two of them, all them are distinct and badass. And other examples outside Sonic characters? Sailor Moon is a badass too; Sally the Ragdoll is a badass; Jessica Rabbit is a badass— why? Because they all are allowed to be characters that happen to be women and they're not shamed for that. And yes, not all of them are 'fighters' but Sally was willing to risk her self to help save Santa, Jessica was putting her career and self in harms way for her husband, and Sailor Moon whole thing is about protecting the world through love; most might not be fighters in the traditional sense but they can fight when needed. In conclusion, please stop making 'badass women' the 'not like other girls' trope. No one likes it, let them be bad asses by being good characters and strong ladies without having to basically shaming other women.

[chaoticspacefam]

🖊 (for anyone you’d like to talk about)!

Thank you so much for the ask, Mima! <3 Kinda in the mood to gush about a less main character today so have some random stuff about Paa! -Kissai's half-sister, she was the product of their father re-marrying after Kissai's mother died in the war. He fell for & married a Dathomirian Zabrak. Unfortunately (I hc that the reason we don't "see" hybrids in game, for a less stupid reason than "the devs couldn't be bothered so they made it not possible" /lh, is not necessarily because they don't exist but rather because (particularly when the mother is the non-Pureblood of the couple) they're prone to a LOT of complications during pregnancy and/or birth) her birth killed her mom so she was raised by her dad and older half-brother. -She ended up with a few (relatively minor) complications as a pre-teen/early teen which led to her father and Kissai seeking out Vastas (D'leah's father & the current Emperor at the time) on Korriban and asking if the Empress consort might be able to help her. Tangentially this is how Kissai ends up becoming D'leah's Wai Tarar bodyguard, as a sort of "paying the royals back for saving my sister's life and also I Have A Big Crush On The Heiress And Maybe Then She'll Notice Me" XD -Paa gets better pretty quickly with Saa'thri's more experienced healing techniques and the Empress consort ends up forming something of a (mentor/apprentice, to be clear for the weirdos I know are lurking around here smh) soft spot for Paa so she ends up apprenticed to her. And therefore ends up hanging around D'leah a lot and becoming friends with her.

-Poor Paa then ends up being the person stuck in the middle of all the UST between D'leah and her brother and she was The Most Exasperated about it even if she'd outright deny helping Vowrawn play cupid if asked. 😂

-She looks like a Pureblood outwardly but does have some cool Zabrak anatomy. She has the two hearts for example (as she likes to call it, "doesn't matter if I get stabbed in the heart, I have a spare" XD), and her browstalks and jaw spurs are very much "static", they can't flex or move/rattle like a regular Pureblood's can because her Sith jaw spur/browstalk genes and Zabrak horn genes got a little scrambled so she ended up with spurs made entirely of bone instead of "bone supported by cartilage but still fairly mobile". This makes non-verbal communication with the other Purebloods very tricky since she can just about raise the browstalks like regular eyebrows but that's about as much as she can make them "move", and the ones on her jaw can't move at all.

-Eventually she and her family find a way to work around it. When D'leah loses the spurs/browstalk on the left side of her face to a concussion grenade injury, Paa helps Kissai to help D'leah adjust to a "new" non-verbal communication technique as it was a big change for D'leah to suddenly NOT be able to use all her spurs the way she was used to. (and thinking about it this prob solidified their friendship bc hey, Paa got it, she understood why D'leah was frustrated ;-; )

-Learnt everything there is to know about Force healing and a great many other ancient Sith techniques from D'leah's mother. She is fully and entirely capable of tearing someone in two with the Force if she wanted to. She just prefers not to and would rather use her talents to heal. Make no mistake tho if things get desperate she can and will wreck your shit to protect her family.

-Paa and D'leah are/were pretty good friends since they both trained with Saa'thri, often together as it gave them someone to "practise" with and this led to them becoming quite close despite the fact that Paa's a hybrid and that would otherwise be a "no no" to D'leah (yes, D'leah is a hypocrite, this is in character for her do not @ me /hj 😜). Paa is probably one of the few "commoners" who can sass D'leah and get away with it because they're just that good of friends, even before Paa became her sister-in-law.

-I've mostly used Paa in the Zephyrverse AU RPs, but I love her so much that actually I do really want to try and shoehorn her into Subterfugeverse as well, I just...do not know how to yet 😔🤘 so that may or may not happen at all in the future, we'll see. Extremely Tired Healer Lady Wishes Her Stupid Family Would Stop Picking Fights That Result In Their Actual And/Or Near-Deaths, please and thank

[fandom-fae]

Misa amane with a god complex?

so i know that i’m like two weeks late at replying to this but honestly that’s because at first i was confused about like what u mean and what promoted this and then i forgot ajdkxhkdjf

but basically!!!! yes!!!

im gonna rant rn but like. this is just one of my favorite concepts/aus in general. bc like one of the things that made light so super interesting to watch in my opinion is precisely his god complex and honestly i just really would love to see misa be unhinged in exactly that way. like obv i’d still want that au version to be HER through and through just with that aspect added yk? like maybe in a way that rem falling for misa wouldn’t just be convenient for her but it’d also be fuel to the fire for her to either get a bigger god complex or maybe for that to be the main reason she gets one!!! and like maybe in an au like that, misa would hunger for power similarly or maybe even more than light did!!

because the thing w my interpretation of her is that when she has her mind set on a goal she’d do anything to achieve it yk? just like how she wanted to meet kira and bc of that became the second kira yk? i feel like if she WANTED power instead of just wanting to be with light, she could’ve been so fucking dangerous. Like especially if she didn’t kill rem but used her more as a like lasting pawn yk? though this is kinda getting into ooc territory lol

anyway yeah this also inspired me to doodle this:

so yeah. god complex!misa for the win!!!! :D

[seraphdesire]

Regarding Donna Beneviento and her characterisation in the fandom, I think it's important to note that she really isn't the shy awkward adorable blushing mess that everyone depicts her as being.

This got long but I did a mildly extensive read on her character under the break! :)

Here are the notes I took a screencap of, written by Mother Miranda, which talks about the suitability of Donna being a vessel for Eva:

There's the evidence you need that she is severely mentally ill, so babying her just feels... wrong anyway, all things considered.

Note - "and has divided her Cadou among her dolls in order to control them from a distance." While I'm on my 3rd replay of re8 I still don't fully get how the Cadou works, but what I think is essentially happening is Donna is literally splitting off parts of herself and putting them in her dolls.

The main one being Angie, of course.

I always used to consider Angie a separate character entirely but she's linked deeply to Donna on a very personal level. Considering what she's like and what all the other dolls are like - loud, funny, sarcastic, rude, etc - and how Donna is literally the one directly controlling Angie (that's the only way she moves lol, because Donna is carrying her places. Which is also why, when you kill Angie, the illusion melts away to reveal that you've actually killed Donna), I think it's safe to say that's what her actual personality is like.

Also, her only spoken line of dialogue? Please listen to it. For those who are hard of hearing, like me, she says: "don't leave... I can't let you."

Bearing in mind the way she speaks? Her tone? She sounds confident imo. Determined. And perhaps even a little angry at Ethan for thinking he can escape her.

Just a last addition as well, can I say that her abilities as one of the Four Lourds is genuinely evil? Everyone else has physical intimidation - Alcina has her height and her claws and mutation, Heisenberg has his ability to control magnetic fields and metal, and Moreau can mutate into that huge fish-with-legs thing that vomits something akin to acid? Oh yeah and he can swallow you whole too.

Donna, on the other hand, doesn't have physical intimidation like that. She only has the threat of psychological damage (which makes sense considering she's severely mentally unwell). When Ethan goes through her gardens and has to solve the puzzles in the house, she makes him hallucinate about his wife whom he thinks is dead, and about his baby who is somewhere in this unknown country with a bunch of mutants who only have bad intentions.

It's even worse in the Shadows of Rose DLC imo. As Rose, Donna makes her hallucinate the bullies from back home, being called a freak and a weirdo, made to relive the worst moments of her life. And the puzzles too? Hell. Having to actually recreate the scenes of her bullying with wooden fucking dolls. I remember feeling really sorry for Rose while playing through that part.

And yet Donna is still "the uwu baby" because what? I don't know. People love to declaw female villains just because they're attractive (looking at Lady Dimitrescu here). They love to reduce the characters down to their looks and not consider their actual lore or background or the role they play in the franchise (looking at Leon especially...)

Which, ya know, of course people are allowed their headcanons for characters and Donna doesn't get enough screentime to really have her personality even thought of, let alone to be made canon. But I think it's fair to say that Angie and Donna are basically one and the same because they're literally the same Cadou.

This is a quick reminder that you are, of course, allowed to disagree with me. Everyone has their own opinions and that's fine. If you would like to politely debate about this in my comments or in my DMs, or even in my asks, then you're more than welcome to! Please remember debating and arguing are two different things though.

If it really irks you that bad then please scroll, it's not hard. If you don't want to do that then feel free to block me - the button is free of charge after all and should be used more to cultivate your feed to your liking.

[pruneunfair]

Characters I hate the most in remarried empress

5:Heinrey

A lot of people dislike him now for being a cruel bastard to the point of torturing foreign nobles just so he can favor his wife. While that is messed up I'll take that over his constant "UwU my queen~" persona that he displays 90% of the time because at least the former is the remnants of his inital personality. It goes from kind of funny to straight up cringey, I do not see what Navier likes so much about his puppy guise, he's so low because to be fair, he was introduced as a scumbag (kind of), he just spends so much time simping that it's basically tossed to the side

4:Lebetti

I know a lot of fans say Lebetti is young and can learn better, she's 17 sure but it took her entire family being executed just so she'd be inclined to care about Ian. She's basically a mini me of Lotteshu and when's she not doing that, she's another blind Navier worshipper who is used for as a stand in for the reader, I don't know how fans didn't realize their stand in is a slave owner but I digress. The only reason she's at number 4 is that while I do find messed up she gets to raise Rashtas child and likely feed a biased view of her to Ian, if she really wanted to be evil, she would've let Ian become a slave for his mother's crimes so I guess there's that.

3:Kaufman

Jesus christ this man is a walking, talking manifestation of second ML syndrome. He's essentially a plot device for no other purpose other than propping up Navier as so beautiful that multiple royal guys want her and so shit can go down , And of course the obvious slipping love potions in others for no other reason then "the plot calls for it", he doesn't even face the consequences. He's fucking creepy as well since he's STILL in love with Navier even after she's married and pregnant GET OVER IT MAN! In the end he just gets with Charlotte (Kosairs ex fiancé) so writting wise: his whole "nice guy" problems can be solved

2:Alan

I really just have a personal vendetta against the whole Rimwell family. The moment I lost all hope in remarried empress is when I was expected to sympathize with a rapist. The narrative wants readers to believe Alan was wronged even though he was the one to participate in keeping Ian away from Rashta until she got rich, even though it was HIM who decided to abandon Rashta after she wanted to run away with him. Yeah he's a good father so what? Wow! A dad actually raising his kid how amazing, it's almost like that's called the bare minimum. The moment he tried to say that Ian deserved to be treated like a prince because he was Rashtas son is when the comments finally saw him for what he was, he makes up for all this by getting executed in the end

1:Laura

Your probably wondering out of all these scumbags, why is a random side character on top? Well, the characters below at some point had personality traits that made then complex characters in the past or they did something to make up a little for it making them a tiny bit more tolerable. Laura however has never once shown any signs of any other personality other than "Your majesty! Your so wonderful and the best! That slave needs to know its place around you!" At least all Naviers other ladies in waiting have some sort of gimmick to them or in rare cases they have other stories going on with just them. Laura's gimmick is that she is willing to hit a slave for Navier even if said slave made a genuine mistake and isn't used to palace intrigue. Her face pisses me off everytime I look at it and everytime she speaks it's never anything besides love for the leads and hatred for anyone against Navier. she needs to get off her glazing and go back to bullying Cinderella with her evil stepsister design she's got.

Anyway let me know if there's any other manhwa/comic to rant about because I'm sure everyone's probably tired of me bitching about remarried empress

[the-great-ladyg]

So, I watched the James Somerton second apology video so you don't have to, this are my highlights, feel free to add more if I missed something important:

He monetized the video to donate to HBG's team and Wikipedia, apparently, he said also he has reached some of the people who he plagiarized but still, if he did he would have explicitly said "I'm donating to them"

Did he really said "well, I'm a white cis gay man, I don't have the same experiences as others in the community" as an excuse on plagiarizing others' works? And the "I thought I might be able to won over some people" sounds like some white savior shit

He still throws Nick under the bus, it really shows that James doesn't regret any other times he did that and it sounds like he hired Nick as a shield for criticism and not to have a more diverse work team

He apologizes to Jessie Gender and many others, but doesn't explicitly addresses why he might have offended them on first place (except for the police incident), yeah, he says he was reactionary, but he has been on many occassions. I'm not expecting a full detailed explanation, but at least he could have said "for the Nebula drama" or something like that

James says that at one point, due to covid economic consequences, he and Nick became poor and that led him to plagiarize more since they had to upload more videos, and look, I suck at organizing my time, I tend to do everything with little time before the date, and I wrote most of my thesis on the last minute with one or two days of investigating and I still didn't plagiarize, I could cite all of my sources the correct way, if my early 20s procrastinating ass could wrote a 70 page thesis on my own without plagiarizing, he could write a script with a second person without stealing but he prefered to do it anyway

Also the alegedly head injury, I'm not going to say that's a lie, but knowing how this guy uses any card on his favor, this might be something he pulled from his ass to justify himself

I don't know why but some of this Telos drama explanatiom sounds again like he didn't even know how to do all of this, and I get what is to start a project having little to no idea on how to start or continue, but he tried to do so much with so little without asking for any help when he clearly needed some help other than Nick, and also sounds like another excuse to justify plagiarizing

"Misinformation made its way into our past videos", no, my friend, it doesn't make its way when you investigate or check a site other than the first one you see, James loves to say he likes to investigate but still says things like this. "It wasn't malicious", (seriously, the audacity of this bitch), oh yeah, there's nothing malicious coming from the mysogynist biphobic and transphobic dude who misgenders trans people and erases a woman's bisexuality, specially when this lady told you she wasn't a straight woman as you said and this was a known fact for a few years

The ADHD thing feels like some ableist shit, like "don't blame me, I have ADHD uwu", James has offended many groups and communities through his youtube career and in his apology video he still finds the way to insult another group that suffers from many harmful stereotypes

As I said on a post addressing his first apology video, James can't create a space for everyone if he's transphobic, mysogynist, acephobe and racist, and he pretends he's convinced he was creating an "inclusive space"

Just as many people have said before, he didn't address anything of the things he's been accused of except plagiarism, he only says "I'm sorry to everyone who I have offended", no dude, you don't address mysogyny, racism or transphobia this way, James is a piece of shit and a coward.

And this idiot has put on public display some of his videos, specially the ones that show his racism (yeah, the Killing Stalking and Painter of the Night videos), I'm not clicking on them but I'm pretty sure he didn't cut his racist mysogynist rants, because they might not be plagiarized (if James is to be trusted) but they show the worst parts of him when he's trying to be original, and putting this shit videos on public shows he regrets nothing on being a piece of shit.

[valkyrieandstrangeridingaragorn]

Episode 2 of What If Season 2 poked the Peggy hornet’s nest and did exactly what I thought it would. 

So, for context, in this reality Yondu actually handed Peter Quill over to Ego when he was supposed to, and within just 6 months Ego was able to corrupt his son into a conqueror, so they invade Earth together. Peggy is director of SHIELD at the time, and she and Howard work together to assemble a proto-Avengers team to stop them. The team consists of Hank Pym, Bill Foster, T’Chaka, Thor, Wendy Lawson (who I think is from Captain Marvel), and… wait for it… the Winter Motherfucking Soldier. 

Yes, for real.

And because I know you’re thinking it, the excuse given is that he is in the hands of the Russians during this time, so Peggy and Howard couldn’t possibly have known about it UwU. Anyway, when they see him there’s a super drawn-out moment where they both think they recognize him (and it’s while he still has the mask on, so while this probably wasn’t intentional I actually read that as yet another middle finger to Steve, as Peggy could apparently recognize Bucky even under his disguise while Steve couldn’t). And then, Howard says, I shit you not: “I'd heard the rumors, but even if they’re true, the man we knew is long-gone, Peg, and we have bigger fish to fry.” And then later in the episode, with no segway from that to this, there’s a scene where they’re all together and the Winter Soldier has his mask off, and actually speaks. 

So, at least in this universe, Howard and Peggy are 100% aware that Bucky Barnes is in fact the Winter Soldier. Later on in the episode Howard attempts to get through to him, but only when it becomes a necessity to save the world (because he is about to kill Peter Quill while Hank is trying to convince him to turn on Ego), but it’s still pretty damning. And then at the end of the episode, rather than trying to rehabilitate him, they just let him go. Like, it’s not the same situation as Steve where he was out cold and unable to do anything, they could have taken Bucky in and tried to break his programming, but they didn’t. It’s left ambiguous what will happen to him after that, so it’s not like they sent him back to Hydra, but Hydra is still out there in this universe, so my hopes aren’t high.

TLDR; this episode attempts to handwave away the very strong possibility that the Howard and Peggy of the Prime Timeline knew what was happening to Bucky, but in doing so unintentionally made them look so much worse.

I don't... I can't even... WTF did I just read? (not you of course, I mean, what is wrong with Marvel?) 🤦‍♀️

So they use Bucky while brainwashed and/or still with Hydra's BS in his mind, and they don't even care to help him out after? They see a victim and they use him and then turn away from him, not caring about his well-being? And, I assume, Howard and Lady Brexit are still framed as good guys? And how are they any better than Hydra in that story?! The absolute nerve...

Once I read the spoilers a few days ago and saw they were going to have her as Director of SHIELD, I just knew they were going to absolve her of everything and never have her answer for any of her actions. And of course the only one who says he had "heard rumours" was Howard, not her. She's an angelic glorious being incapable of doing anything wrong. What in the absolute narrative protection is this...

Howard and Miss Brexit couldn't possibly know about Bucky... yeah, right. Except for the fact that they knew what Zola had done, because Steve told them, and they still willingly worked alongside him, even gave him a nickname. Oh Arnie, my beloved, wasn't it fun when you tortured Steve's best friend? Let's have some beer. I don't see how Miss "I shoot innocents when I'm jealous" Brexit could have recognized Bucky considering she didn't give a damn about him after Steve risked his own life against her wishes to save him, but apparently in this she can tell who he is even with a mask on? Damn girl, did you inject the serum in him yourself?

And I'm sorry but what is this... “I'd heard the rumors, but even if they’re true, the man we knew is long gone.” Excuse me? Oh, good enough to use but not good enough to save? How is the everloving hell is that even a line?! Oh my god, Marvel, just say you hate Bucky and go. I don't get it, what, he's the guy who ruins their beloved Steggy nonsense and they can't help themselves, they have to drag him through the mud for daring to be more important to Steve than Miss Brexit here? (And I say that as a non-shipper but holy crap, this is nuts.)

Not even in another timeline are these two somewhat redeemable. And Bucky is fucked up no matter what. Typical.

So the Infinity Saga had Stark as their golden boy and now it's Agent Brexit's time to shine... Will the Hero Cinematic Universe ever provide any heroes of narrative protection or are they going to choose the bad ones only? Oh, you're a soldier kidnapped, tortured and brainwashed? Go ahead and make amends, you monster. Oh, you willingly worked for the TVA and tortured and killed because you wanted to? Poor you, let us frame you as good and pat you on the back, you sweet thing.

Wow, I got mad in this one. Sorry. I have the Bucky feels right now 😜😂

[bleedingcoffee42]

Shit I've rambled on Discord when asked a simple question( Who do you think would be good at talking dirty in bed?) one I did not answer but instead wrote these.

BoB boys in the sheets, under the cut.

Nixon I think is the smooth one. Be the guy who is upfront about trying something he learned on a trip to Tibet, in a stairwell at Yale, in the barn at boarding school, or from that dumb slut behind the gay bar on Rt. 35 South of that sketchy Circle Motor Lodge. He'll describe whatever kinky shit he wants to try like one of those ads for Scotch were it's about Oakey infusion from century old barrels, the grains harvested by virgins and strength of alcohol like the stalwart heroes of old Scotland who created so many colloquialism about scrotums; when men were men and Vat69 wasn't bottle shelf liquor. You'll get played like he plays his Mozart, fingers dancing over the keys and body loose, rhythm flowing through his entire being. Also big into praise kink. The guy who can talk you into doing things and make you enjoy it even if you never want to do again

Speirs is both ends of the spectrum from "My fair lady 😘" to "When you speak to an officer, you say Sir!".   Never know what you'll get and he can flip the switch at a moment's notice.    Adrenaline Rush Sparky is 'bend you over the desk and say whatever the hell he wants' and then there is 'uwu you are my greatest treasure' Ron who will babble like you're the goddess he  worships and do so the entire damned night.     He balances hot and authoritative with weird stories about lovers in the tempest of hell.  Never know what you'll get.   Competitive though, so he tries to outdo himself.   Good luck getting on top of him.    And the bitch has stamina.

Lipton!!!!    Boss in bed, but delivers.   Gets away with everything he says, because he knows what buttons to push.   Likes to hear 'Yes, sir' too much, but you gotta scream something or you'll never see the light of day.    Nobody believes he's like this except Speirs, who considers Carwood Lipton to be a closely guarded secret.  Will say shit under his breath that makes you do a double take and then walk off leaving you wanting.  Oh it was you First Sergeant.

I think Winters would come out with some unhinged shit to say.  The kind of thing that makes you stop mid-fuck and tap out because it’s just a mood killer and dries everything up like the Sahara.   Possibly farming metaphors.   More probably the kind of moody things that make DeEtta want to choke him. He can pull it off though, but it is influenced by his work stress situation at the time. Make him take a bath and relax first, it will go better. From the field and pissed about upper management he rides frustration instead of fornication. Nixon likes to argue and twist one off so he doesn't mind plowing those fields or cultipacking those furrows.

Welsh would say the same stuff but get away with it.  NO farming metaphors, but every sarcastic thing he said in Carentan.   Especially ‘Flash’ ‘Thundaaaaaah’.  He laughs while he says it though, laughs around whatever he’s doing with his mouth that will earn him a visit to the confessional. (At least according to Kitty)

Guarnere would definitely say some nasty nasty stuff but be doing something so beyond what you ever imagined letting some guy do to you anyway, and it's beyond fine.   The reason for wet dreams for at least the next twenty years.  

Toye.    Yeah.    See him as the quiet type until he gets in the foxhole and gets fired up.      Something something 'dug coal together when we were 19'.  A boxer, he knows where to land every hit and has you against the ropes the entire time.   Sings off key while he’s cleaning up after but you do not feel like the sticky floor of some dive bar more like a private performance from Sinatra.  Even if it is off key.

[somewhereandeverywhere]

so i don't really post about manwhas i read because they're not really what you'd expect me to be reading but i wanna go off about the latest chapter of Under the Oak Tree

spoilers underneath

yada yada different time different world different customs all that shit but gawd DAMN am i so proud of maxi standing up for herself. finally talking back to riftan. maybe it's because im gay and not into the whole "hot muscular man can manhandle me and make every decision for me" thing but maxi has been sheltered all her life and abused and traumatized. what riftan is doing is the same thing she's been subjected to for years

it's obvious he loves her, but he doesn't know much about her. she's sassy and gets angry and has banter with ruth all the time. she can drink like there's no tomorrow. she's genuinely interested in magic and growing her mana. she wants to help around the castle. she wants to help anatol. she's caring and gentle and wants to have fun

maxi said it best when she thinks riftan is treating her like a doll, just to stay in her room to receive affection on his time. i think so too. i got so angry at him during the festival with agnes and he pulled her away from her dancing just because he was horny. like let the woman have fun??? she doesn't get out much because you don't let her you fucking oaf

honestly he's not made much effort in actually getting to know her. yeah she's really reserved but riftan came in with pre-conceived notions that she's just a dainty and delicate and weak woman. and maxi's terrified that if she breaks those notions he'll hate her. but fuck's sake he spent YEARS with agnes, he should know that women can be strong and loud and independent

like when she wanted to learn magic he was so against it but only gave in with a "do whatever you want". and now that she wants to keep helping the knights with their injuries, he shouts and belittles her and doesn't apologize

is he mad that she's around other men???? is he that fucking insecure???????? or is he mad that she's trying to be a more capable lady of the castle and she's not a small uwu weak bean??????? dude's just a walking red flag at the moment and it's beyond maddening

i want to see maxi stand on her own two feet. she doesn't have to lose her stutter, but i want to see her speak her mind and be herself. she deserves that after all she's been through

i sincerely hope next chapter she puts riftan in his place. i hope he realizes how much of a dick he's been. it won't be an overnight fix but i someday want to see him see maxi's growth and how strong she's become on her own

anyway yeah that's my two cents

[maykitz]

please recommend some asmr channels 🙏

ok i'm going to assume you're familiar with the big names like goodnight moon (big favourite), latte, tingting and ppomo. if not...get the hell on youtube.

i almost exclusively listen to female voiced roleplays so that's going to be really obvious here.

one of my favourite channels i've ever found is moonlight cottage asmr. her voice is beautiful, intelligent and a little bit more mature and the french accent just hits. her historical videos are compelling, you can tell they're passion projects and she is quite an actress.

another definite recommend is ALB in whisperland. she has a gentle voice, her soft speaking is so good, and she has a lot of videos where she delicately does things with her beautiful hands, which i like a lot.

some more in no particular order:

-aen ani asmr. i feel like she's so underrated. she mainly does fantasy roleplays in costumes and the channel is still a bit small so you have a good chance of getting a reply or your request being included in a video. it's not like, insanely polished and high production value but i like it.

-asmr mood. speaks russian but many are subtitled in english. oftentimes has fanservice and is one of the few asmrtists (on my list, maybe even in general) who usually presumes the viewer as male. i don't care about it but it means there's no makeup videos (which i find boring). and as i've said before, when the russian language k and t sounds come out in asmr i... no, i shan't say.

-amy kay asmr. pretty much exclusively roleplays and usually has interesting concepts (ie not the 5 millionth makeup and cranial nerve exam). confident and charismatic and is a bit more peppy in the way she speaks rather than the, like, pure bedtime voices.

-eunzel asmr. korean with english subs + english spoken videos. roleplays, also weird and odd triggers. i've rewatched both of her "doctor asking you insanely personal questions" videos many times.

-bluewhisper. first asmr video i ever watched was her (sadly quickly deleted) "rescuing harambe" video which got screenshotted and i think gave her a lot of negative attention because her sense of humour is playing it completely straight and people are obsessed with being smarter than the person being ironic. she does simple roleplays, vlogs, flips through the new burpee seed catalog once a year for her garden and opens pokemon cards.

-seafoam kitten asmr. if you remember the "adorable organ harvester uwu asmr" screenshot going around, that's her. she does weird, cringe-humour roleplays. she also has a slightly risque one where you get indoctrinated into being a "love pet" puppy which i think would do numbers on here.

-myaling asmr. english with korean accent. mostly long roleplays, very sweet voice and puts great effort into having a lot of props, background detail etc. often has cinematic intros which i love. her "aesthetic school outfit styling" has probably my favourite intro scene i've ever seen in asmr.

-callie blossom asmr. she's strikingly beautiful and has a "girl who's secretly obsessed with you" series that is very popular with lesbians for good reason.

-maya winky asmr. silly, fast paced humour asmr. i feel bad not saying more but like just look at her channel lol

-mid mod meridian asmr. american accent. older lady who does 50s, 60s and 70s themed roleplays. not to be like aww sweet grandma but. yeah.

-ella asmr. korean with english subs. a lot of scifi themed videos with special effects, surgery on you and mechanical equipment sounds.

-whispering willow asmr. nice, simple, basic roleplays, usually in the 20-30 min range. i like when videos aren't too long because i usually clock out after 5 minutes anyway.

-african xhosa asmr. criminally underrated. she speaks and has a few videos teaching phrases in xhosa, a south african language with clicks that i've never even heard before. also talks about history and culture often.

-90sfairyasmr. relatively new channel with not too many videos, she mostly flips through y2k/1990s teen magazines so far.

-asmr emiko ffujio. no talking, but has cool slimes and fake cooking.

-gentle whispering asmr. a very big channel, russian accented. i like her voice and soft speaking a lot but her topics tend to bore me a bit. it's generally beauty focused.

-triniti j asmr. american accent. i havent watched a lot of hers because they're usually beauty focused, but for example in the "best friend picks out your smell goods" she gets really close to the mic and chews gum which creates a speaking sound i like a lot. idk how to describe it lol

-pelagea asmr. doesn't upload on youtube anymore but a lot of backlog. mostly more or less fanservicey videos that get a bit unintentionally silly and too much sometimes. i mainly recommend her "100 ways to kiss" video with the lesbian bait thumbnail that got her 13 million views.

now feel free to recommend ME some i don't know yet.

[papirouge]

I only listen or follow more socialist minded pro life women these days. No men at all. Even if they might say or post something that aligns with my views, I don’t trust them at all.

Men who claim to be Christian tend to just hate women, and use pro life activism to angry fight for the right to kill women and let men off easy with impregnating them. The babies they swear to protect? Nothing. Once they’re born, and if the mother does get the death penalty, those babies will be neglected since these men also hate any social program for being liberal. I’ve never seen an account on any social media operated by this type of man who doesnt hate both women who have sex and those women who stay single. Have sex? You’re a whore who deserves all the worst treatment. Stay celibate and single? You’re a pathetic lonely cat lady that is neglecting your “womanly duties” I think also these types of men are just gay too, they love the company of men and despise women in public. But can’t handle that fact and feel ashamed so they justify their anger in the Bible by projecting onto women for being “sinful creations” sorry for this rant, I just really stay away from men who call themselves conservative christian in this movement. They’re dangerous to women’s safety and wellbeing

Yeah I'm extremely distrustful of male pro lifers. I find pretty suspect how they never tried to make space for themselves and always try to insert themselves into pro life female space. Pro life men definitely have ground to organize to make group defending fathers' rights in defending their unborn child right to live (when the mom wants to abort), which would be a wholesome version of men rights activism (instead of picking fights with women)

You entire post is absolutely pristine anyway so there's much to say or comment anyway lol Almost every Christian I interacted with turned out to be some weirdo. It's indeed very weird to see them being allegedly so protective of babies and the unborn, only to turn around and behave like grade A pricks with everyone around them. It's almost like they wanted those babies to live and grow to keep having people around they can victimize.

So they'll hide behind the "oh but babies are innocent uwu" but if they're Christian, they should understand that no one is innocent anyway and that we're all worthy of death and eternal punishment. The Bible calls us to be nice & show Grace to EVERYONE and not only people we dem worthy of kindness. Jesus hanged around and redeemed the very same people those so called "Christian pro life" call worthless and unredeemable. They lack any Christlike quality.

[mannatea]

part 13

My favorite part about this is that nothing about this looks special or unique from the angles we see it at. I feel like they could have gone harder with this concept. Also, if dragons were part of the regular world for a long time before 1,000 years ago, you'd think some of their architecture would still exist in various states around the continent?

Shhhh, shhhhhh, there there... the worldbuilding doesn't have to be good. It just has to be passable...

uwu

Honestly, Ninian never gets enough credit for the bullshit she put up with. She escapes only to get accidentally taken back to the exact place she should not be. This poor girl. She needs 12,001 hugs.

The terminology in this game makes my head spin. Is Ephidel (as a morph) capable of sarcasm? Because that would be funny if he's just making fun of Lyn here. She's not a princess (she's just the granddaughter of a marquess). If you want to get super technical, she's not even really a "lady" since that's just a courtesy title that Madelyn would have held even if her father passed away (and would not be passed to her children at any point).

Thinking really hard about it, we don't even know if women can rule in Lycia; we never actually see it (unless I'm misremembering something?). Even Lyn never officially rules Caelin as marchioness, and all of the other rulers of Lycia are men (again, unless I'm misremembering).

But I guess that leaves us with either "Lyn can rule Caelin as a marchioness" or "Lyn is forced to abdicate no matter what, because she is a woman." The latter is frankly depressing as hell (considering the other survivors of her tribe wouldn't follow her because she was a (young) woman) but it would certainly push her toward the plains even faster.

That said, if we're meant to believe she's LITERALLY the last surviving member of Caelin's royal bloodline* then it would make sense to allow her to inherit the title of marchioness and use the courtesy title "Lady" in the meantime. The fact that Eliwood and Hector can both marry commoners means Lyn's half-blood status shouldn't be a barrier to that (though it's not hard to imagine the racism in Lycia might be). Still, without Lyn, Caelin loses its independent status. I feel like there's a lot to explore there? Like yeah, she could technically stay, rule Caelin, and produce heirs that would keep the bloodline going, but would that be more acceptable to those who live in Caelin than Lyn turning over rule to Ostia? The game acts like everyone in Caelin loves her, and maybe a lot of the commoners do, but surely the situation is a lot more complex than that, especially considering her own feelings on the matter.

(And like, it's so easy to say that, well, Lyn wanted to lead her own people, so why wouldn't she want that power here? And we might say, well she doesn't exist in FE6 so she had to go anyway (and there's definitely some merit to that!) but also, there's a huge difference between Lyn leading a group of less than ten people to ensure traditions and her culture don't die out...and ruling an entire canton in a country whose rules and traditions she does not understand.)

*I still think this is cringe, but at least it keeps the drama to a minimum. There's not really room in this game to explore much more about Lyn and her situation, anyway.

Again, if Lundgren had kept his fool mouth shut, he would have easily inherited the title of marquess. What a dumbass.

ALSO TO BE CLEAR I think the game endings are a cool concept but in no way are they so deeply important and necessary that we as fans can't go against the grain of them in fanfiction or even discussions. Like, I'm a canon enjoyer as much as anyone, but I have literally zero issues completely ignoring FE7's character/paired endings and/or ignoring FE6's existence and/or anything I want, really. (I mean, I usually adhere to the canonical endings to some degree, but I don't always follow the stated timelines for such things, either.) Like if I'm getting paid to write a novelization then I'll give that much of a shit. Until then, I'm just going to have fun with things.

All of this to say LOL at Lyn "......" about being called a princess.

--

SAME!!! DIE!! But also like, I guess Ephidel isn't wrong. At least she didn't suffer. 😭 I'm sorry, Leila, the game won't let me save you.

Darin is lost in the world-ruling sauce. Like damn, okay.

Elbert is persistent and I think part of the tragedy of his death is rooted in the fact that he would always make these decisions because of who he is as a person—if that makes sense. It's actually crazy how much is at stake here, and how, knowing this, Elbert tries his best to stop it, putting his own life on the line multiple times.

The thing is, too, that if Elbert hadn't interfered here, the ritual might have been completed earlier. Half the battle is just delaying things long enough, here; we more or less see that that's what wins the day, at least in this chapter. (This buys time for Eliwood and his pals to defeat Darin, buys time for Nils to show up and crash the party, etc.)

The role Elbert plays is more or less instrumental in the world being saved, and no one will ever know the full extent of that.

This Cameron guy is just kind of...here? I wish we had some kind of a story/explanation for why he gives so much of a shit, other than perhaps being Darin's right-hand man. We already met Laus's knight-commander...so who exactly is Cameron? Captain of the Royal Guard?

Either way, it's funny that he's got a halberd here, since Sain will ask to beat Darin's ass (and in HHM Kent will ask to take point in this fight for the same reason).

It's disappointing that, at least in Eliwood's Story, there's no conversation between Sain and Darin. Alas.

Legault time! Honestly, his design is so sick. Someday I'll pay more attention to him as a character...

Poison Lance??? Poison??? 0 Damage??? 18 hit??? Fuck off.

[spikedsoul]

maid's worst nightmare - ch 8

only one day after the previous chapter? oh yeah! i uh couldn't resist getting this one written it was scratching at my brain all day uwu

previous chapters

By the time Wendy got you into her room and in dry clothes, your fingers and toes were hurting . Aching like they could just fall off any moment, and if you were totally honest you sort of thought the pain would go away faster if they did. Your ears and nose didn’t escape the pain, either, but for whatever reason it was much more bearable than in your extremities.

“B-b-b-bath?” you begged yet again as the girl busied herself wrapping you in blankets.

“I told you no,” she snapped, “If we warm you up too quickly your body will go into shock! Just be patient!”

She shoved you onto a couch that sat in the middle of her large room; still trembling fairly violently, you toppled onto it unceremoniously. Immediately, you curled into the fetal position in a subconscious attempt to help warm yourself up more quickly. Wendy paced in front of you, touching her bow and necklace in anxious gestures that you totally weren’t paying attention to. Even if you weren’t allowed a hot bath yet, surely some additional body heat would be allowed! Damn it, if it wasn’t so hard to speak, you’d ask for Dryden.

“Fuck, dad’s gonna kill me,” Wendy muttered. She stopped pacing to glance at you. You cracked an eye open to look at her, catching both the concern and the anxiety in her eyes. “I’m sorry, lady… dad kinda gave me the job of telling you stuff like that, but in my defense I didn’t know where you were and like I said earlier we can’t exactly predict flash storms like that…”

It was all you could do to nod at her; you hadn’t made it easy to find you, after all, and you knew all too well about flash weather. You used to live in an area where flash floods were a major concern year round, and although you’d never even heard of a flash blizzard, the concept was the same.

It just sucked that you were a vulnerable human, whereas Wendy seemed totally unaffected by the cold.

Suddenly, something started banging heavily against Wendy’s closed door, making the both of you jump in surprise. “WENDY!” Bowser roared outside.

You flinched as she scrambled to get the door open for her father. No sooner had she reached for the handle than he barged into her room anyway with an angry snarl. She shrunk a little and slapped a very unconvincing smile onto her snout, once again playing with the necklace.

“D-dad, um-” she started, but he passed right by her as he made a beeline straight for you.

You struggled to try and get free of some of the blankets before he got to you. It was futile, though, since you were wrapped fairly tightly and it only took him a few steps before he was standing right in front of you. Briefly, you were afraid that he’d yell at you for… what, not knowing about the weird weather? Getting hypothermia in mere minutes? You weren’t sure, but the fear was there.

But Bowser didn’t say anything to you. Not at first, anyway. He just gently pressed one of his large fingers against your cheeks, your nose, and finally one of your ears; you couldn’t quite swallow the soft whimper at the relief of how warm his hand was. It allowed your teeth to stop chattering for a moment, but as soon as he pulled his hand away again it started right back up. Next, he managed to free one of your shivering arms, goosebumps still firmly in place, and carefully wrapped his hand around yours. Again, you whimpered - the warmth was both relieving and also made your fingers hurt worse.

“Fuck,” he hissed. He stuffed your arm back into the blanket and then scooped you into his arms. The change in temperature was pretty immediate, considering the koopa king could breathe fire, and you involuntarily pressed against him, face buried against his surprisingly malleable pec.

Oh wait. Oh no. No, no no! Sure, you had literally just been wishing for body heat, but not his! He was the whole reason you were on the verge of getting sick! If he’d never brought you here in the first place, you wouldn’t be suffering rapid onset hypothermia!

Yet here you were desperately soaking up his warmth despite yourself.

“Dad…?” Wendy mumbled as he made for the door.

“Talk later, kid,” he growled right back. He stopped in the doorway, though, and glanced down at his daughter with a quiet, almost frustrated sigh. “...You did good trying to help. But we’ll discuss what happened tomorrow.”

She nodded quietly and heaved a sigh. “Okay…” she relented, and once again Bowser was moving. You faintly heard Wendy call after you, “See you later, Maidie…”

Bowser shifted you slightly in his arms as he strode through the hallways; his hold went from ‘just trying to move a body to another place’ to something suspiciously comforting, those big arms holding you in a protective manner. You felt it in his chest when a quiet rumble escaped him - if you didn’t know better, you would’ve thought it was a noise akin to worry. But any further thought went quiet as you focused on warming up during the long walk back to his room.

As if there wasn’t enough pain to endure, you began to realize that your skin, separate from your extremities, felt like it was burning. Burning and itching at the same time. You supposed that you’d figure out what was going on as soon as you were warm enough to move again. Although, you did stiffly shift your arms inside the blanket to run your fingertips over the back of your other hand; your skin was rough instead of smooth, little bumps forming mostly near your knuckles and thumb and fading closer toward your palm and wrist. At the very least your chest no longer ached from almost dying earlier.

“Still awake, handmaid?” Bowser grunted as he shouldered his door open. You hummed quietly in response, although honestly sleep did sound rather good. Maybe when you woke up again, you’d be nice and warm and also not sick. He jostled you gently, earning an annoyed grunt from you. “Good. Don’t fall asleep.”

Why not? Why couldn’t you fall asleep? It would make things go so much quicker and you’d stop hurting!

Turning your face to pout up at him (but keeping your cheek against his chest) you were surprised to see him glancing down at you with a rather serious expression. You quickly looked away, not at all sure when you’d be able to hold his gaze.

“Why?” you asked quietly as he settled you on your side on the edge of the couch. Part of you missed the warmth as he pulled away, but the other part of you was immensely relieved.

“Because you might not wake up,” he stated, grabbing the remote for the TV. “You humans are just like my koopas - fragile, and prone to having your brains stop functioning if your core temperature drops too low.” He moved toward you again and you shifted to try and take the remote; he snorted as your hand peeked out from under the blanket.

Your heart dropped through your ribcage as he started climbing onto the sofa behind you. Fuck, no - you desperately hoped this was not about to go where it looked like it was.

It went exactly there, of course. Your face flushed a little as he got into a comfortable ‘big spoon’ position behind you, one arm going under your head to act as a pillow as the other draped over you to hold you close to him. Hell, even his tail draped over your legs to offer that much more warmth to you. If your body wasn’t busy still trying to protect your heart from cold, you just knew your face would be bright red - but as it was your cheeks and nose stung anyway.

Don’t fight it. Fighting would make it worse. Fighting would potentially get you mocked or teased or something, and you didn’t want that on top of struggling to warm up.

A sharp shiver shot straight through you when his hot breath washed over the side of your head and neck. He seemed too busy flipping through potential movies to notice or care, even as he lightly rested his muzzle right behind your ear.

This was eons too close for your liking, but you needed the warmth. Besides, he’d reminded you several times already that day that you weren’t anything special… although, if you weren’t, then it was a little confusing why he was personally taking on this responsibility. Maybe so he could gloat to Peach that he took care of you so he deserved whatever he was demanding, and you’d have no choice but to confirm that.

“Stay awake through a movie, then after that I can let you sleep,” he murmured softly in your ear.

You nodded slightly in understanding as you suppressed another jolting shiver. “W-wait,” you said, watching him press play on a horror movie, “a s-scary movie?” At least you could get a few words out now but goddamn, didn’t he say you’d be allowed to sleep after this?

You didn’t need to look at him to know he was smirking at you.

“Gotta make sure you stay awake during it,” he hummed, lips brushing the shell of your ear in a teasing manner. He did not need to be that close, damn it! “Don’t worry, little lady, big ol’ Bowser won’t let nothin' spooky get ya.”

“B-but I’m n-n-not special-l, ri-right?” you muttered before you could stop yourself.

Bowser snickered quietly, hugging you closer and practically wrapping his tail around your legs. “Well, when Peach asks, you can’t deny I took great care of you.” Fuck, he had you there. “Besides, as long as I get a reaction out of you, I’m gonna keep teasin’ you, at least until I get bored. But don’t expect that to happen soon… currently you’re the most exciting thing around here.”

Great. You should’ve expected that. Well, honestly, you did to a certain extent, but this was way off what you had thought he’d do. Too bad you literally needed his body heat to get over your mild hypothermia or else you would’ve immediately put distance between the two of you; for now, you’d just have to suffer, and tomorrow you’d see what going off on him might do. Hopefully it wouldn't change his mind about not killing you but even if it did then you figured it would be worth it.

“If ya get too scared, just tell me, Katy, or whatever the hell Wendy called you.” He let the full weight of his muzzle rest against you then, a clear indication he was done talking.

You just grunted in quiet response. Hopefully The Descent wouldn’t be scary enough to get to you.

[dorkycreature-89]

y'know what. fuck it. dorky in asmr communities i'm obsessed with

so, let's start with eggsmr. yes, doesn't look like it but SHUSH. egg's persona is a fuckin kraken so fuck you. you get sea bunny. anyways, like with all sea bunnies, she may have a cute and UwU appearance but she is a cold blooded yandere. overly possessive, violent, y'know, the fun stuff. she's also literally poisonous, eating poisonous animals and absorbing their poison. so, one bite from her and you're dead

also, she's a cannibal-

naga knight. naga knight. naga knight- yeah, i wanted an excuse to draw a naga. and make her a knight. fantasy scratches my brain -w-. anyways, this gal is a fierce fighter, a loyal friend, and a bit of a hopeless romantic. and can you blame her? have you SEEN the guys from shining armor's vids? (⁠｡⁠♡⁠‿⁠♡⁠｡⁠)

i'm gonna be honest, i completely forgot about riikami. I FORGOOOOOOOOOT༼⁠;⁠´⁠༎ຶ⁠ ⁠۝ ⁠༎ຶ⁠༽

kami, i'm so sorryyyyyyyyyy. ehhhhh. this gal is a nobal. a quiet and proper lady that always has a smile on her face. uh yeah. that's it. i don't have that much for her

[dearz310]

Ten things I notice about you | Jaehyun

SYNOPSIS: Jaehyun as a bakery owner and you are the familiar guest.

PAIRING: Jaehyun x Fem!reader

GENRE: Fluff | Just fluff | Stranger to lover

WORD COUNT: 9k+ words

AUTHOR'S NOTE: This senarios took me like months to finish. Jaehyun is really sweet in this story uwu. Anyway, fall is coming~ my favourite season is here <3 I hope you enjoy it and please share your thoughts with me. I'm not an English native speaker. If you found mistakes then let me know, I'd love to take note. Happy reading~

_Tuesday_

"If you have to choose to eat only one kind of breakfast, what would it be?"

You are lying down on the sofa, hands holding your newest favourite book. You stop in the middle, lower your book down and think for a few secs before answering your best friend, Jungwoo.

"I guess I will choose combo pain au chocolat and coffee. But it must be the pain au chocolat from the bakery down street, 2 blocks from our building you know."

"Yeah, I know, very well indeed. You only choose its pastry since it opened." Jungwoo says, “continues to focus on how to clean up his wardrobe mess.

Jungwoo is your best friend. Your family and his are neighbors and you were born before him only 29 days. You have had each other since you both were just newborn, and now young adults. Sometimes people are concerned about why you and he are not a couple. But it is normal. In fact, he is the most active person when it comes to finding you your own prince charming. 

"They have an almost perfect pain au chocolat using dark chocolate with 80% cocoa. Normally bakers only use like 50%-60% to make sure it is not too bitter but it's not my style. Besides, they are near, and they open early in the morning." You exhale. "How I wish to have one for tomorrow morning, hey, tomorrow is Wednesday, could you please..."

"Get you one while I am running past there tomorrow?" Jungwoo turns his head toward you. "With a cup of coffee from Ten's coffee shop. Okay will do."

"That's my best friend lady and gentlemen. Love ya." You wink and that makes Jungwoo goosebump.

"Why don't you join me tomorrow? Then we can have breakfast at Ten's coffee shop?"

"I must go to the airport early the next morning to bid farewell to my nephew Seojin. He will go back to UK for at least 2 more years. You will miss your favourite breakfast at Ten's if you wait for me so just eat your first, I can have mine when I get back."

"Got cha." Jungwoo nods. "Could you please help me down there? I seriously have no idea why I have this much clothes."

"Coming."

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

_Wednesday_ 6 am

One of Jungwoo’s habits is running in the early morning. It makes him feel fresh and relaxed. Sometimes you join him, even though it's not your favourite thing to do. He will run for at least half an hour, then go back home, take a shower and get ready to grab his morning coffee and breakfast at Ten's coffee shop at 7 am.

Ten is also his and your close friend. You guys met in a coffee exhibition 2 years ago and you were instantly in love with Ten's special coffee recipe then. How small is the world, just a few months later, a new coffee shop appeared down street and turn out the owner is him.

Today Jungwoo visits the Jung bakery first. He remembers to get you your favourite dark pain au chocolat. The Jung bakery only bakes a few ones, twice a week on Wednesday and Sunday, and doesn't even put a name tag for it. That's why only loyal customers know. If it's not because you asked before whether they have any dark chocolate pastries with high amount of cocoa, then you might never know it exists.

The bell rang when Jungwoo opened the door. He goes straight to get your pain au chocolat, also a milk bread for him, and make a payment as usual. However today, welcome him is the new cashier, not the same person he always sees.

"Oh hi." Jungwoo is a bit of a surprise. "I'd like to pay for these."

"Sure, please wait me a bit." The cashier smiles and quickly scans the price, as well as prepare a box to put Jungwoo's bread on. The dimples keep showing on his handsome face. "You must have been here many times."

"Yeah, I did. But I haven't seen you around before?"

"I’m just here to help cause today the cashier is on sick leave. It's Jaehyun, nice to meet you! And here is your bread, enjoy." Jaehyun says and hands the paper bag at the same time.

"Thank you. I'm Jungwoo, great to meet you either. Me and my friend are also the loyal guests at Ten's coffee shop right next to you. I guess we will see you around more often from now on."

"Next time please come here with your friend too, I'd love to meet you both. Free extra cookies are on me." Jaehyun smiles.

"Deal."

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

"Hey, how it's going?" Jungwoo asks. He welcomes you at his apartment with the box that contains your favourite pain au chocolat. He even puts the strain into the coffee cup for you. "Class today?"

"I just tired." You exhale, too exhausted after coming back from the airport. "Already missed Seojin. And yes, I have class this afternoon, biology class of Professor Kim. Urgg, can today be worse?" You pout.

"Come on, eat your breakfast and you will feel charged. I know this can light up your day."

"Uhmm, 100 points." You already finished half the pain au chocolat. "I don't know why they only bake this twice a week on Wednesday and Sunday. Even though this is a good idea, because I specially need more energy those days. But still, if they have it for the whole week, you might see this is the only breakfast I have."

"You are so obsessed with it." Jungwoo laughs. "Eat slowly. Oh, and your coffee has extra shot. Ten said you need that every time you have biology class."

"Aww, he is so sweet. He even remembers that. What did I do in the past life to have friends like you guys?"

"Then you should treat me well if you still want to meet me in your next life. I almost forgot to tell you. Today I met a new cashier at Jung Bakery, and he is very nice. He said next time, he will give us free cookies."

"Really? Cool! Thanks for the breakfast, Jungwoo." You grab your coffee. "I have to go to the library now, still have one more English homework need to be done. Enjoy your day off." 

"See ya."

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

_Thursday_

The morning class is over and you're on your way to meet Jungwoo for lunch. As soon as you turn left at the end of the A building, your eyes catch Jungwoo. It is not hard to recognize him with his height and bright face. But he isn't standing there alone. There is a girl, seem like she is giving him a gift or something. You slightly smile, Jungwoo is really famous with girls and he knows that well. However, the next thing you notice is that the girl quickly left with the gift still in her hands...

You wait for a few mins before getting out and wave your hand so he can see you. He smiles and immediately helps you carry your bag.

"Such a gentleman. I can see why girls go crazy about you."

"Well, I am always full of charm." He smirks.

"I saw you with a girl a moment ago."

"Yeah, she is my Literature classmate. She said she likes me, but I said I already liked someone else."

"If this is a scene in a movie then the person you're talking about must be me. But this is reality, so spill it friend, I'm listening."

Jungwoo laughs hard. "Yeah, it's not you. It's Ahreum. You know Ahreum from my History class, right?"

Your mouth forms into an O. "Of course, I remembered her. She is so nice. I actually met her on University Day, and she helped me find the Admin office. I also met her several times when I prepared for the radio show. She is on the sound check team if I’m not mistake?"

"Yes, that's her."

"Nice Jungwoo. I think you guys match very well." You wink and smile at him. "You might already know but she is still single, bro."

"I know." He laughs. "That is the first thing I have to make sure before taking another step."

You both sit down at the cafeteria near your university. It is neither too big nor small, and guests here always try not to speak too loudly. It makes the place has a chill and comfortable vibe that you both enjoy so much.

As you are scanning the menu, Jungwoo is whispering. "Y/N, we just sat down for a few mins, but the cashier is already noticed you."

You don't even take a glance at his way. "Nah, maybe I have something on my face, or I sit at his direction by chance. I want this, number 3 "The Rainbow", 1 sourdough slice only, and an apple juice no sugar."

"Got it. And I mean that sis. Remember the guy in your Public Health class last semester? He tried to be my friend just to get your attention. And that one from my soccer club too. He asked for your phone when he saw you coming to cheer for me."

He stops to call the waitress and order food for both of you. "But you rejected them all." He continues when the waitress left. "Y/N, it has been 4 years since your breakup. Don't you interest in anyone at this University?"

"Nope." You look straight at him, then you see his eyebrows scrunch a bit. It makes you tilt your head with a bit of hesitation in your voice. "So far? Look, I do notice boys around me, okay. But they are just not my type."

"I still remember your ideal type. The friend in my soccer club, what's about him? From my point of view, he is quite close to your type, isn't it?"

"Nah, he asks for my phone number the first time he sees me. That makes an introverted soul like me feel uncomfortable."

"Alright alright, eat your lunch first." He gestures you to eat your sandwich before it cold. "Let's see, no smoking is a must, a handsome man, in YOUR standard, he must be nice, gentle and funny."

"True." You nod. "But ideal type isn't that important, as long as he has good personality and we match well. Like someone who can watch Disney movies with me?" You shrug.

"You used to force me re-watch the whole High School Musical with you." He pouts.

"It is because you think Troy and Gabriella tried to steal the spot of Sharpay and Ryan on the first audition, but they were not."

"Yeah, now I know."

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

_Friday_

Jaehyun is busy in the kitchen testing the ingredients for his new recipe. After graduating, he used to work as a chef but then chose to open his own bakery. He loves baking. He loves the smell of freshly baked. Even though he is busy from the morning till the end of day, he still loves what he does. Now after hiring staff to help, he finally has time to research and work on the new flavour.

He surely has his pick, Valrhona 70%, Vanilla Madagascar Bourbon. Here he is, testing the glaze for his blood orange cake. He wants the new cake to be ready this Sunday.

"Jaehyun, I already cleaned up everything. I will go back home now. You should get home soon too." The cashier calls him from the kitchen entrance.

"Oh I forgot about the time." He then takes a glance at his watch, it's 9 p.m. "Thank you for reminding me. I'll finish this and close the bakery. You worked hard today, see you tomorrow."

The cashier nods his head and closes the kitchen door. After pouring all the blood orange glaze into a clean jar and put it into the refrigerator, Jaehyun also quickly cleans up the place to head home.

As he is walking on the street, he notices there are a couple of kids playing in the playground. He also loves these places so much when he was small. Jaehyun takes a deep breath. He will have a busy weekend. He is planning to have some time off for himself soon if this new cake receives good feedback.

The first rain drop appears. Lucky for him, he remembers to bring the umbrella. However, he doesn't want to come home. This season rain comes and goes quickly. Besides, he hasn't eaten dinner. He decides he will have a noodle cup at GS25. This kind of weather is perfect to have noodles. His home is not too far, he can come back home anytime he wants.

He gets a cup of noodles, a boiled egg and one hot dog. Although he is not a big fan of instant food or junk food, he gladly to have it sometime. As he is waiting for his turn to pay, the door opens again and there was you quickly running in. Outside it is heavily rain now.

There are two things that make he notices about you, a strange person. Firstly, the way you close the door. Normally people will let it auto close, but you turn around and make sure it closes. And the second thing is, when you get into the line to wait for payment, he sees you pick exactly the same things with him, the same noodle flavour, a boiled egg and hot dog.

"How do you want to pay?" The cashier voice makes Jaehyun turns his head straight.

"By cash please."

He chooses one random table beside the window to drop his bag. Only a few mins later, you appear on the second floor. A sudden thunderclap while you're trying to get your noodle out of the machine makes you startle a bit. Luckily you didn't drop your whole hot noodle cup. 

"Are you ok?"

You hear someone asking and as a natural reflex, you raise your head toward the sound. Very nice voice, you thought. This guy is tall, handsome, he looks young, maybe around the same age as you, and you can see the cute dimples when he smiles.

"Yeah, yeah I'm good. I was just startled because of the sudden loud sound. Thanks for asking."

"Where is your table? Let me help you bring it to your place."

No, I'm fine, no need to do that. You really want to refuse but somehow, you're not doing that. Instead, you point to your table and say: "Then could you please help? I sit there." 

Your table accidentally the one right in front of Jaehyun's table. He really wants to ask if he can sit with you so that he will have a chance to talk with you more. But at the same time, he thinks it might make you feel uncomfortable. He is a stranger anyway. So, after putting down your stuff and wishing you enjoy your meal, he just returns to his table. 

Today is a super busy day. You have a late lesson and ton of tasks need to be done for next week course. No one is home since your parents are enjoying their married ceremony trip. You slowly enjoy your noodle cup, perfect for this kind of weather. Sometimes you stop to look outside. You like rainy days, you like watching it like this. The smell of the air in the rain and after the rain makes you feel fresh. Drop your chopstick down, you get your phone to message Jungwoo and ask him to bring you an umbrella.

From the corner of your eyes, you notice the handsome guy is cleaning his table. Seems like he just finished eating and is about to leave. He then slowly approaches you with an umbrella in his hand.

"Hi, sorry it's me again. It is raining outside, and I notice you don't have an umbrella. My house is near here so I can quickly run. Do you need this?" He smiles shyly while offering his umbrella. His dimples pop up again and you notice his ears are pink too.

You smile widely, shake your head to let him know that you don't need it. "Oh, thank you! That is so nice of you. My friend will be here soon to catch me so no worry. Besides, even when your house is near, I don't want you to get wet."

"Ok." Jaehyun nods, right when he is about to say more, you hear Jungwoo calling your name.

"Y/N ah!"

You wave your hand and smile widely when you see him.

"Jungwoo?"

Jungwoo was surprised when he saw you talking to a strange guy from far away, but then turns out this strange guy knows him.

"Oh, you are the cashier I met earlier at the Jung bakery, Jaehyun, right?"

"Right, it's me. It great to see you again Jungwoo."

"You guys met each other before?" You question both.

"Yes, we did." Jungwoo nods. "He is the cashier I met at the Jung bakery; I told you remember? Jaehyun, this is Y/N, she is my best friend."

"Nice to meet you Y/N, I'm Jaehyun." He reaches out to shake your hand.

"Nice to know you, Jaehyun. So, you are the one who promised to give Jungwoo free cookies next time he comes to Jung bakery."

"Ha ha yes that's me." He scratches the back of his head. His ears turn red again.

"We will make sure to go back next time. It is already 9, I should get Y/N home, or her parents will worry. I bring extra umbrella for you." Jungwoo gestures you to stand up and you quickly follow him after cleaning your table.

You give Jungwoo the hot dog you bought earlier. "I bought it for you."

"Nice, thank you. Jaehyun, we will go now. See you later!"

"Take care." Jaehyun waves his goodbye. He is still looking at your way after you leave. The world is so small, he is surprised at the way he knows you and your friend. He feels relief because you don't have to go out in the rain alone. There are three more things he notices about you. He thinks about you and Jungwoo, you both must have a special bond. He takes note that you have a pretty smile, and you seem bubbly. He can't wait to see you again at his bakery to find out what do you like.

_______________________________

"How do you know him?" Jungwoo asks when both of you are on the way back to your apartment. "I mean Jaehyun."

"I actually don't know him. We accidentally met at GS25. He is offering me his umbrella and then you came." You shrug. "But he seems kind. Surprisingly you met him before."

Jungwoo nods his head. "From what I see, he seems nice. And if I'm not mistaken, he is your ideal type, sis." You can sense the mischievous in the way Jungwoo sounds.

"CLOSE. Close, okay." You raise your eyebrows at your best friend. "I won't deny that he looks attractive. But we barely talked, I know nothing about him."

"Do you want to pass by Jung bakery this weekend? On Sunday morning? My mom asks me to buy a new sourdough, and you can have a pain au chocolat for yourself."

"Deal. Do not just talking about my love life. What about you and Ahreum, anything new?"

Jungwoo turns to look at you with a big grin on his face. "I asked if she wants to watch a movie with me this weekend and she said yes."

"Ya bro, congratulations. Be good to her or else you will hear a whole lesson from me."

"Roger that."

__________________________

_Saturday_

You're sitting in Ten's coffee shop, nonstop typing to work on your assignment. Your professor wants you to finish research about blood pressure before the next subject. Ten was not only reserved a place near the window for you, but he also prepared double shot latte for you.

The weather is nice, the sky is blue and not too hot thanks to a huge rain last night. Sometime during your work, you take a look outside, wishing you were out there, inhaling a deep breath of fresh air. Taking a sip of coffee, you suddenly remember how caffein affects blood pressure. You promise to cut down on caffeine right after this busy week is done, even when you have no health problem.

Time flies so fast. You don't even realize it is lunch time. Not until your stomach growls and Ten approaches you.

"You want some lunch here?" He asks.

"Thank you but not today. Mom asked me to have lunch at home, today my grandmother will visit us. Have a nice day Ten."

"Nice day Y/N. Send my hello to your grandmother for me."

"I will. See you later!"

While packaging your stuff and ready to leave, you see a familiar person passing by. It is Jaehyun. He must go back to the bakery, you thought. After a few minutes thinking, you decide you will visit the bakery today. I can buy cookies for grandmother; I can treat myself with a small box of mini choux... You try to think about reasons why you want to go there, but deep inside, you know you just want to meet him again. It doesn't harm to get to know him better.

Jung bakery is just a few meters from Ten's coffee shop. The door is painted in white, it kind of different from most bakeries you know, which is coloured in brown. You push the door to step in. The doorbell is ringing and the first person you see is Jaehyun, who is busy organizing a new rack of freshly baked pastries.

"Welcome..." Jaehyun stops for a few seconds when he sees it is you. "Oh Y/N, hi."

"Hi Jaehyun." You smile. "How are you doing today?"

"Good, I guess, we had a busy Saturday morning. But I met a very lovely old couple. The grandfather is so careful toward his wife. They remind me of my grandparents."

"That's so lovely."

"Do you especially want anything today? Free cookies are on me."

"Oh no, no, I mean, Jungwoo isn't here today. We will come back tomorrow morning and you can give it to him then. I think I will have some soft cookies. And a box of mini choux." You grin.

"But I want to give you free cookies." Jaehyun smiles back. His ears are slowly turning red again. "You like cookies and choux here?"

"Cookies are for my grandmother, she is going to visit us today, and she likes soft vanilla cookies. Well, she shouldn't eat much but one is fine. Choux isn't my number 1 choice, but I haven't eaten it for a while. Oh, I won't take that craquelin, mini chocolate choux please." You point at the chocolate one. You should get them by yourself, but Jaehyun insists on doing that for you.

"Anything else?"

"That's enough, thanks Jaehyun."

"Then what do you like?"

"Me? Err a bit complicated?" You shrug. "But I love chocolate for sure, dark chocolate, around 80% cocoa and above. I really like the pain au chocolat here, the special version using dark chocolate. The baker here should get praise for making it."

Jaehyun laughs. His ears are now totally red after hearing your compliment. You haven't figured out he is that baker. He just nods his head constantly to let you know he is listening to everything you are saying.

"I guess you don't like things that is too sweet?"

"Yes, you're right, I prefer sweet and sour. What about you Jaehyun? What do you like?"

"I like dark chocolate too. I think we have the same taste. My pick here along with Pain Au Chocolat is Salted Chocolate Brownie Cookie."

You can feel your phone ringing inside the pocket. You excuse Jaehyun to answer the phone call from your mom. She said your grandparents are home now and asked if you could go back soon.

"Sorry Jaehyun, I gotta go now. It's nice talking with you today."

"Your cookies." Jaehyun nods and hands you your paper bag. "I guess I will see you tomorrow?"

"Of course, Jungwoo and I will be here tomorrow morning. See you then!"

"Have a nice day Y/N."

He looks at your small figure. Still the same way of closing the door. Today he knows one more thing about you: You love dark chocolate.

_________________________

Your grandparents greeted you with a warm hug. They still choose to live together in their small house in the suburbs instead of moving to Seoul. Grandmother said that she loves the air there, while grandfather has his friend group who always love to play chess with him every afternoon. The house has a small garden with a lot of roses. Grandfather said it is grandmother's favourite flower.

"I miss you so much, baby girl."

"Grandmother, I'm an adult now, only you keep calling me baby girl." You pout.

"In my eyes, you will always be a baby girl who loves watching me take care of roses and running toward your grandfather's way every time he says let's take a picture." Your grandmother smoothing your hair.

"I bought your favourite vanilla soft cookies." You open the paper bag and there is something to surprise you. Not only two cookies and a box of choux you bought earlier, but you also find one more cookie that noted "Salt Chocolate Brownie Cookie" and a small piece of dark chocolate.

Jaehyun's favourite things. You're not aware that you're smiling like an idiot until your father calls you and asks you to help him in the kitchen.

"I'm coming dad."

_____________________________

_Sunday_

You woke up early, rode a bike around Han River and took a shower before texting Jungwoo. After half an hour preparing, with two pumps of your first pick perfume, and finally stepping into your favourite light purple sneakers, you are now ready to go out.

Jungwoo is patiently waiting for you downstair. When he sees you are coming, he smiles. You definitely care about your appearance today. Normally it only takes you 10 mins to get ready. He is not sure what or who affects your decision, but he has a name on his head.

"Morning." He welcomes you. "Look like someone is in a very good state."

"ME." You point at yourself. "I had a good sleep last night; I woke up early this morning and I even had some time to ride a bike. It has been a while since I have had this much spare time. Now I get why people keep advising you to live a healthy life."

"Look who is talking, a future doctor. Besides, I think you still care about your health, it’s just you are too busy lately."

"Maybe you're right. Hey, my grandparents visited yesterday. Grandmother made a whole box of kimchi dumplings for you. I will give it to you later."

"She is like my grandmother too. Are your grandparents well?"

"Sure, they are. They look so happy every time I meet them. How I wish I could be like that when I am older."

"Not just you sis, they are basically everyone's dream." He smiles.

"I will visit Ten first, do you want a drink?"

"One ice americano please. Then I'll go to the bakery first, see you there."

________________________

Jaehyun should have stayed in the kitchen today but he couldn't keep himself away from the main room. He uses every spare time to tiptoes and sneakily takes a peek at the main room, that makes other bakers who work with him and even the cashier looks at him in curios. They used to sell new cake before, but they had never seen their boss act like this. Only Jaehyun knows the main reason why he keeps going back and forth.

The door opens and Jungwoo steps in. As usual, he goes straight to get your Pain Au Chocolat first then looks around. Jaehyun was standing behind the door when Jungwoo came. He assumes that you come with Jungwoo, it takes him less than one minute to leave his apron and oven glove behind to go out.

"Good morning Jungwoo!"

"Hi Jaehyun. How are you today?"

"I'm doing good." Jaehyun answers but instead of fixing his eyes on Jungwoo, he glances around trying to find your presence. Jungwoo seems to sense this as well. He slightly smirks before giving the new friend an assurance statement.

"Y/N is buying drinks, she will be here soon."

"I see..." Jaehyun nods his head. "Did you choose what you like? Today we have a new cake, Blood Orange Bundt Cake, maybe you would like to have a try?"

He notices Jungwoo only gets one Pain Au Chocolat, and it makes him quite confused. Isn’t he supposed to get two for you and for himself?

"Sorry to ask but I see you only grabbed one Pain Au Chocolat? We still have many."

"Oh, actually this is not my favourite, sorry to the baker but I'd prefer something sweeter, or soft cakes, so I'd love to try the new Bundt cake. I only bought this for Y/N, she is so obsessed with it."

"Hi guys, hi Jaehyun~" Your bubbly voice echoes in the air. You look pretty today; and Jaehyun can smell the sea salt and sage when you step inside. The sense is very fresh. Must be her perfume.

"Good morning Y/N."

"How are you guys doing?"

"I'm picking today's sweet treats follow Jaehyun's suggestion." Jungwoo smiles and slightly waves the tray in front of your eyes. "Your number one pick is already here, no worry sis."

"I am not worrying about that." You glare at him before turning to Jaehyun. "What are you suggesting for him?"

"I told him we have a new cake today, Blood Orange Bundt Cake. I have a small piece for tasting here, wait for me a bit." Jaehyun quickly excuses himself to the kitchen.

You find things seem a bit strange. As you remember, Jaehyun is a cashier, but the old cashier is here. Besides, if the bakery wants the customer to have a taste before buying, they should put it here so that everyone knows. You are confused but before asking your best friend, he says another thing that catches your attention.

"I think he cares about you." Jungwoo nudges your shoulder. "He was obviously looking for you while you weren't here. He didn't even refuse that." He smirks.

"So what? We told him we would be here today, there would be nothing strange if he was looking for me. Maybe he was just curious."

That's when the kitchen door opens and Jaehyun comes back with two slices of the new cake. He asks both of you to sit down.

"Our new cake guys. Enjoy eating." He gives you both clean forks.

"Thanks, Jaehyun, it smells good." You smile. "And delicious." You nod your head after tasting one piece. "Sweet and sour at the same time. I love it."

The smile spreads across Jaehyun's lip. Jungwoo also nods his head in approve. "She's right, this one is a boom, Jaehyun. You said it is new, right? Soon, it will be one of the top sellers. I am already a fan of it."

"Thanks guy." Jaehyun shyly scratches the back of his neck. “Fruity pastries aren’t my strength. It’s great to hear such compliments from you two.”

"Oh, I almost forget." You put the fork down and grab the Matcha latte cup on the table, hand it to Jaehyun. "I bought this for you. I want to thank you for your cookies yesterday. I don't know what you like and whether you drink caffein or not, so I bought Matcha latte, hope it's ok."

Jaehyun eyes soften. "You don't have to do that. Thanks Y/N! Matcha latte is good. And for your information, I can drink caffein, I prefer coffee to tea...I mean if you want to know." His ears are turning red again.

You giggle. "Yes, I'd love to know that. Can we stay here for a while? I'd like to enjoy my Pain Au Chocolat before it gets cold."

"Do you want me to heat it up for you? Jaehyun suggests.

"That'd be great but am I bothering the baker?"

"No worries, you're not bothering me at all."

"You are the baker here?" Jungwoo looks at him confusedly.

"Yup I am. Actually, I am the owner here." Jaehyun sheepily smiles. "My full name is Jung Jaehyun, and that's how I named the bakery, Jung bakery."

"I thought you were a cashier, and I couldn't help but wonder why you don't have to work, sorry." Jungwoo says.

"Me either, hehe sorry Jaehyun."

"It's ok." Jaehyun laughs. "I should have told you earlier. Here, let me heat up the Pain Au Chocolat for you. And do you want another slice of this Bundt cake or something else Jungwoo?"

"A big slice of Blook Orange Bundt is perfect, thanks chef!"

Jaehyun takes your bread with him and disappears to the kitchen. You and Jungwoo share a look before you both laugh out loud.

"Uhmmm, so he cares about you, and he bakes your favourite bread."

"You love teasing me, don't you?" You wince.

"Sis, I am serious. Jaehyun seems like a good guy, at least I think you guy can be a very good friend."

"Ok ok, stop it. He will get back here soon."

Jaehyun soon is back with two plates. He carefully puts them down on the table and then accuses to back to work since customer is coming more and more. You cut the bread, the scrunchy sound is perfect, and its smell is definitely a blessing to your soul. You love the bakery; you love good coffee, and you love a peaceful morning spent with your close friends.

Before leaving, you and Jungwoo decide to buy some more sweet treats, and of course can't forget the sourdough bread for Jungwoo's mom. Jaehyun insists he wants to pack all by himself. The cashier couldn't help but let his boss do his job.

Jungwoo goes back home quick, just to give his mom the freshly baked bread. He also helps you leave your pack inside a refrigerator. Today you and him have an important thing that needs to be done, which is helping Jungwoo buy a gift for Ahreum. He has a movie date with Ahreum today evening and your friend wants to give her a small gift. You found it really lovely.

You get back home at 2pm after having lunch. Jungwoo is having his first date and you feel so happy for him. At the same time, you can't help but think when you will be able to find yourself a lover.

You open the refrigerator and see the paper bag from Jung bakery. Jung Jaehyun really knows how to make small surprises. Besides what you bought earlier, you find another extra cookie, and a note says that "Dark chocolate fill with Salted Caramel. I'm testing this new recipe and I want you to be the first one who taste it ^.^"

The smile spread across your lips when you read his note. Cute. But Jaehyun is not only knows how to make small surprise, but he also knows how to give you a big one. Another note falls out of the bag when you try to take out the lime roll cake.

"Y/N, do you want to go out and watch a movie with me tonight? This is my phone number, text me if you have some spare time and if you feel comfortable enough."

- Jaehyun -

Your mouth forms a slight O and you keep reading his message again and again. You walk back and forth in the living room for at least half an hour. Do you have free time tonight? Yes, you already finished all the tasks and tonight is a Sunday night. Do you feel happy? Yes, in fact. Do you want to go out with him? Yes.

Jaehyun is a definition of what you all ever imagine about a prince charming. The only thing that is preventing you is your scaredy-cat soul.

You get the phone from your pocket and unhesitant text Jaehyun. Well, go big or go home. Why do you have to reject him just because you feel insecure that things might not work?

The guests are still coming but Jaehyun is not that busy. His bakery always closes sooner every Sunday as the way he treats himself, and his co-worker, so that they have full energy for the whole new week. He puts the glove down right when he feels his phone vibrating inside the apron's pocket.

"YES!" His voice echoes inside the kitchen and makes everyone turn around and look at him.

"You must receive some good news." One of the bakers asks him.

"I was wondering the same thing. He looked anxious the whole day." Another baker adds.

"Nothing guys." Jaehyun says nothing but his ears are red. His eyes are sparkling. His hand keeps scratching the back of his neck. And he couldn't stop smiling like an idiot. Everyone can clearly see that he is very happy.

Jaehyun takes a glance at his watch. It is almost 4 p.m. The bakery is about to close. He quickly cleans things in the kitchen so that he can return home right when the bakery closes and prepare to hang out with you tonight.

4.03 pm

Jaehyun turns the sign to CLOSE. The cashier just left a few secs ago. Jaehyun looks at the kitchen and main room once again before getting his backpack and locks the bakery's door carefully.

He passes by the flower shop on his way home. He chooses a small bouquet of pink tulips. It catches his eye right when he steps into the shop, he thinks it is perfect for you, with those pink soft petals and green leaves. If he must choose one color to describe you, it'd be pink. Lovely, bright and full of charm.

After paying, he quickly returns home to take a shower. He is going to have the first date with you tonight, at 5.30 pm. First date.

His voice can be heard inside the bathroom. Jaehyun has a warm voice, but he rarely sings. Normally he is too focused on baking to sing. But the happy feeling makes him want to sing today.

Jaehyun chooses a loose white T-shirt, along with a pair of jeans and a leather belt. Casual. He already decided which perfume he is going to use tonight. He then looks at his reflection in the mirror and takes a deep breath. Nervous but excited, especially when the time to his date is near.

5.20 pm

Jaehyun is already standing on the first floor of your apartment and patiently waiting for you. He holds the tulip bouquet in his hand and walks back and forth slowly. You can see him from far away. How can he look so good even with just a simple loose white T-shirt? Your heart skips so many beats as you come closer to him.

His eyes meet yours and he welcomes you with the most beautiful smile you think you have ever seen.

"Hi Jaehyun." You shyly say in a tiny voice.

"Hi Y/N, I bought this for you."

"I love it, thanks. I really like flowers, and the pink color."

A big smile appears on Jaehyun's face. So, you like pink. He got the color right; he is having a good start.

"You look beautiful today, shall we get going?"

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

You are now sitting on Jaehyun's car with the bouquet on your thigh. He turns on the radio and the familiar melody fills the place.

"I see the light." You slightly nod your head, approve of his song's choice.

"Do you like Disney?" Jaehyun takes a glance at you from his driver seat, sheepishly asks.

"I do. I am a huge fan of Disney." You giggle and that makes Jaehyun feel relief. One more thing to take note of you.

"Where are we going?"

"I know a very cozy restaurant with delicious food. Is there anything you can't eat?"

"No, I am not allergic to anything. You?"

"Me either. My favourite food is spicy pork. What about you?"

"I like many things, but my mom's sweet and sour pork rib is the best."

Things are flowing well. You and he can't stop with small talk on the way to the restaurant. Jaehyun is a gentleman, and he is so down-to-earth person. He knows how to make you feel comfortable. He shows his good manners. He is super funny, much funnier than you thought. And he shares similar tastes with you on so many things. He makes you feel like you have known him for a long time, not just a week.

"What movie do you want to watch?" You ask him when you both stand in front of those movie posters inside a cinema theatre.

"Lady first, what movie do you want to choose?" He gestures to you to pick.

"Should we say it at the same time? I already had my pick."

"Funny, ok I'm on it."

"Ready! 1, 2, 3. Elementals."

You both say it at the same time and laugh.

"You choose it because I played I see the light on the car or because of your love with Disney movie?" Jaehyun asks.

"Both. I prefer animation, comedy, romance, kinda like that. Not scary and horror movies. Besides, this one has good reviews, and you like Disney too so I think it's a good choice for both of us."

"Nice. I watched its trailer, it seems interesting. Let's go. I'll buy a ticket."

"Then let me buy popcorn and drink." You offer.

"Deal." Jaehyun nods after a few seconds. He then turns to face you and speaks. "But next time please let me pay for it. I am the one who asked you to go out with me."

"So, it's mean we will have the second date?" You say in a super tiny voice.

Jaehyun quirks his eyebrows. He lowers his head to look at you closer. "What did you say?"

Your eyes met his. He has such beautiful eyes. Why does he look so perfect? Your heart skips so many beats and you think if he gets even closer, he will be able to hear it.

"Huh, nothing. Let's get in line." You blink your eyes and turn around to get into the line. Jaehyun is smiling behind you at how adorable you act.

Your first date with him is coming to an end. You're waiting for Jaehyun in front of the theatre while he is getting his car. Jaehyun's jacket has a warm and sweet smell, something like vanilla. It feels like him, warm and sweet.

His car stops and there is Jaehyun, running out to open the car door for you to hop in. He mumbles "careful" while keeping his hand above your head.

"I turned on the heater, let me know if you still feel cold."

"It is warm now, thanks Jaehyun. Do you mind if I play some music?"

"No, not at all. How about you choose the music this time?" Jaehyun smiles and takes a glance at you. "I'd like to know your favourite song."

"Alright. It's not Disney though. But I promise it is good."

During the drive back home, Jaehyun shares with you his decision of opening his own bakery. It was not easy at all, but he is lucky that his parents are his biggest supporter. You talk about your dream of becoming a good doctor. That's why you chose this course but now you're a bit struggling.

"You shouldn't force yourself too much." Jaehyun says. "You're not simply studying, you're acquiring it, and because it is needed to help people, which you want to do, right? I always tried to think about that during my course, to make the lessons less boring." He grins.

"You used to feel boring during your classes?" You surprise. "I know chefs also have to learn both theory and practice. But isn't it should be more interesting when you have more chance to practice?"

"Yup, but not when you have to learn how to cut onion again and again."

You laugh at Jaehyun's story. You totally agree with him. Helping people is what you want to do, helping people makes you happy and that is your biggest motivation to do the best on this course.

As the car enters the parking lot, you start to feel sad and disappoint a bit. This is the best first date ever and Jaehyun is much more charming than you thought he could be. He opens the door for you and you both walk together back to your home.

The weather is very nice. You take a deep breath to enjoy the fresh air. There are moments when Jaehyun's hand slightly brushes your hand but you both do nothing. He then breaks the silence first.

"May I ask how long have you known Jungwoo? I know you too are best friend, seems like you both know each other for a very long time."

"I have known him my whole life." You grin. "Our parents are good friends too and they are neighbors. Then me and Jungwoo were born in the same year, amazing, isn't it." You turn to face him. "He is my childhood friend, my best friend, and sometimes like my big brother since I am an only child."

"It's amazing. Good to hear that you have a very good friend that always stays by your side." Jaehyun nods.

"I know. I think I am very lucky to have him as a friend. Do you have many close friends?"

"I do, I have some close friends, but not too many. Most of them are my classmates during high school. It was a good old time. We play games together, play basketball together. They visit my bakery quite often. I hope I can introduce them to you. They're all good guys I promise." Jaehyun puts his hand on the sky. His dimple is showing again, and he makes you laugh at his adorable dork side.

"Well then I'd like to meet them too."

You can see your apartment building now. It is time to bid goodbye.

"Do you have class tomorrow?" Jaehyun asks.

"Yeah, I do have one class in the early morning, and a team meeting in the afternoon. You will close the bakery tomorrow, right?

He nods. "Yes, do you want to visit the bakery tomorrow after you are done with the meeting? I was practicing the new recipe and it'd be great if you can help me with the taste." He scratches the back of his neck.

"I will. I'd love to do that Jaehyun." The smile spreads across your lip. "I will see you tomorrow then."

"I have a super fun day, thank you Y/N. Goodnight!"

"Me either. Wish you have a good dream." You wave your hand and slowly go toward your apartment. "Get safe, text me when you get back home."

Jaehyun nods and raises his hand waving at you too. He still stands there for a few more minutes until he no longer sees your figure. He walks back to his home, sometimes skipping on the street and the smile is non-stop appears on his handsome face. Today he has a chance to talk more with you, to know more about you. You have dimples, not very clearly but he can show it whenever you tighten your lips. He couldn't wait until he could see you again tomorrow.

_______________________

One missed call from Jungwoo and two new messages unread right when you finished showering. He seems very excited and can't wait to tell you about his first date with Ahreum.

"Bro, I just got back home half an hour ago. How was your first date?" Your voice echoes through the phone.

"I had an amazing day today. She is so sweet, and you know what, we will have the second date next week."

You can even hear the happiness in Jungwoo's voice. "I'm so happy for you Jungwoo. Let me guess, you are non-stop smiling on the bed right now. Are you sure you can sleep well tonight?"

"If I dream about her."

"Eww cheesy."

"But you, Y/N, I just realized it is almost 10. Where did you go, may I ask, my best friend?"

"I went to a cinema and watched Elementals."

"With?"

You roll your eyes before answering Jungwoo. "Jaehyun"

"Ok...What? You hang out with Jaehyun?"

"Calm down, you are going to wake up all the neighbors. I can even hear your voice from my apartment."

"Now that's too much sis. But seriously, you too watched a movie together? Is that a date?" His mischievous laugh could be hear clearly.

"Is that?"

"I'm asking you."

"Yes, it is, it is a date. You happy now? Jaehyun is so nice, Jungwoo. He is much more charming than I have ever thought, than we have ever thought. He is such a gentleman, and he takes good care of me today. I truly think this is my best first date."

"While I am seriously thinking that I should talk with him more. To see how he is able to win my best friend's heart in such a short time. But you sound happy Y/N."

"Do not scare him, what if he run away?"

Jungwoo laughs hard. "How can I? Besides, he won't do that. From what I saw earlier, he is so whipped for you. Finally, you are no longer single."

"Hey that's too fast, we haven't done anything yet. I have to dry my hair now. Sleep and I hope you dream about your princess tonight."

"Goodnight, Y/N."

"Goodnight."

_________________________

Monday is always a tough day. But today is different. The early morning class wasn't that hard. The meeting went well. Even the strict professor didn't give your class extra homework. And you are going to meet Jaehyun. Perfect.

The bakery's sign is close; but the room is bright as usual. Jaehyun is waiting for you on the waiting bench inside. You pop your head round the door and show him the bright smile.

"Good evening."

"Hi, you really came." Jaehyun instantly stands up.

"Of course I am. I had a great day today. Everything went well. How was your day Jaehyun?"

"Great, it's good seeing you happy like that. You know, I just visited the local market, look what I bought." Jaehyun shows you the package and you can immediately recognize it.

"Hot tteok?"

"Well, it is no longer hot but yeah. Do you like it?"

"Yes. When I was a little kid, my mom usually bought it for me when she went to the local market. Part of the childhood." You shrug.

"Do you want to visit my workplace?"

"Isn't this place?"

"I mean the kitchen." He laughs. "I barely stay in the main room. Come on, let me show you."

You follow him. The kitchen and the main room are just separated by a door and a small lobby. The kitchen, surprisingly, doesn't look like those kitchens you always see in the movie. It is much more interesting than that.

"You have a kitchen bar?"

"Surprise!" Jaehyun spreads his arms and turns around looking at you with a proud face. "This is where I spend most of time, so I don't want it just simply a kitchen. There is a storage room, and an office room over there for everyone to rest too."

"This is amazing. You are amazing Jaehyun."

You are busy scanning around, while Jaehyun's eyes are focusing on you. Your face fills with awe and he thinks that is really cute.

"Thank you! Oh my God I'm sorry, you must be hungry. I forgot that I should heat up the cake for you first."

"No need to rush, I'm good." You smile gently. "You must put a lot of effort into this. Your workspace is so cool."

"I don't think I can handle it all without the help from my family and my friends. I really appreciate their help. Happy to hear that you love it."

You sit down at one of the chairs in front of his kitchen bar. Looking at Jaehyun, who is heating up the cake, you finally understand why people say that hard-working men are attractive. You cannot stop yourself from smiling.

"You want to try something new?" He turns around. His dimple shows up and you feel your heart beating faster again.

"What new?"

"I will show you..." He nods his head at the ting sound of the microwave. "After we eat the tteok."

________________________

"Y/N, have you ever wondered why I only have freshly baked Pain Au Chocolat on Wednesday and Sunday?" Jaehyun asks. He takes something out of the refrigerator.

"I know nothing about baking." You grin. "But I used to tell Jungwoo that I was actually satisfied with the fact that Jung Bakery doesn't provide it daily. Wednesday is the toughest day and Sunday is the rest day of the week for me. I need extra happiness on those days."

Jaehyun laughs. In front of you now is dough, and two bakery rollers.

"Good things take time." He smiles. "My teacher said Making croissants is a project. It needs time to rest, to develop all the layers. It doesn't mean we can't make it daily, there are lots of recipes that allow you to do that. But I strongly agree with you that we need extra happiness on Wednesday and Sunday, that's also a reason why I have more sweet treats on the menu those days. And 10% off on Monday." He winks.

You both share a look before laughing. "So, I didn't say nonsense things. What is the new thing that you ask me to try?"

"Do you want to make a pain au chocolat yourself?"

"Like how?"

"Here, let me show you."

You come and stand beside him. Even though this is not the first time you stand too close next to him, you still can't stop yourself from, firstly, distracting, and secondly, nervous. The height gap, his perfume, his face, everything about him makes your heart flutter.

"You should roll the dough like this until..." Jaehyun keeps talking but you can only catch some of the words. Sometimes you think you are lucky that he isn't your professor's TA or kind of like that because you will definitely become a nonprofessional person if you work with him.

"Y/N?"

"Yeah? Oh, I'm so sorry, I was spaced out a bit. Can you please repeat the move?"

Instead of explaining again, Jaehyun steps behind you and wraps his arms around you. You feel like your heart stops beating for 1 second. He is so close that you can even feel his hot breath on your skin.

He holds your hand and rolls the dough with you. "There."

The process is quite interesting, but you are too distracted by Jaehyun. You turn your head to look at him, but his face is now so close to you.

"Y/N." He calls your name again. His voice is so warm. His eyes are so beautiful. He looks beautiful.

You lean in and kiss him, a light kiss on his plump lips. You both looking at each other. Jaehyun doesn't look so surprised at your action. The next thing he does surprises you more. He wraps his hand around your waist, pulls you closer and kisses you back.

"I really like you Y/N." Jaehyun breaks out into a huge smile. "From the first time I saw you, I already wished that I had a chance to meet you again. I want to see you more; I want to be with you_"

You hug him. "Me too." You chuckle. "Things I love the most today is meeting you.”

“How would you feel about going out on a date with me tomorrow?” He asks, his eyes soften.

"I'd love to. You always know how to give me surprise Jaehyun.”

“I did?”

“Yes. What are we going to do tomorrow?”

“I’m thinking of Disney movie marathon but let save it for the weekend. Since you said I know how to give you surprises, it is a secret now.” He laughs.

“As long as there is you.” You smile.