#beware of needles i guess tho

[star-labs-intern]

N° 8 for Harrisco! I can't help but picture Harry patching Cisco's hands up cus he hurt 'em after fighting a random meta and Harry's worried even tho both of them are kinda used to it but he still worries anyways. But also whatever else you might have in mind is good! I love your works and thanks for writing for us! Xx

A/N: This one was truly a blast to write. So much so that I got over a thousand words ... So much for drabbles! But anyway thank you for the sweet words about my writing <3 hope you enjoy!

~1200 words

.

Cisco lay in the med bay, the most agitated anyone had ever seen Cisco. He had been out in the field with Barry fighting a meta calling himself Porcupine - he could shoot needles out of his hands, they were mostly small, pointy, black needles but he could throw larger ones if he focused hard enough.

There were several needles in Cisco's hands and Caitlin was having a tough time removing them.

"Stop fidgeting."

"Cait, I’m trying my best not to move, but there are actual NEEDLES you are pulling out of me right now. That cactoid mother-" Cisco was shouty and in pain.

"We can all see them, don't have to yell at Snow," Harry muttered from the corner. His arms were crossed tight over his chest and his mouth was a hard line.

"You wanna feel these?" Cisco whined waving his free hand, which still had three needles protruding, at Harry.

"I have. Or. Jesse has." Harry said "He was a meta on our earth, too-"

"Hope he had a better name." Cisco interrupted

"I had to pick them out of Jesse's arm one night after she was in the wrong place at the wrong time in college." Harry let it sink in for a beat. "and she didn't whine as much as you,"

"I'm sorry???"

"You're being a baby, Ramon," Harry shrugged

"Cait is manhandling me!!"

"Oh my god Cisco, you are so close to being referred to another doctor," Cait's eyes flashed frosty for a moment.

"Want me to take over Dr. Snow?"

The room was quiet as they all processed Harry's offer.

And then they were alone and Harry was sitting down on the side of the bed to work on Cisco's hands instead of Cait, leaning over like a doctor.

"They really sting you're gonna have to go slow," Cisco started

Harry shushed him, pulling one of Cisco's affected hands to him. "Don't look at your hand, just close your eyes and we'll have a conversation while I take care of this for you."

Cisco narrowed his eyes but Harry's hands felt nice. Cait's were cold and sterile but Harry's were warm and they felt a little weathered from years of working.

Reluctantly, Cisco closed his eyes.

"When this happened to Jesse I was so worried. I didn't want to let her sleep out of the house anymore." Harry chuckled a little at the memory. Cisco could feel Harry's hands working and little pinches here and there but nothing super painful so far. "She slept home for three nights and then she sat me down and broke things to me gently."

Cisco was interested in the story but he felt a stab of pain in his hand and sucked in air at the corners of his mouth.

"Hurts?" Harry asked but the pain was gone again

"Just for a second. I'm fine now." Cisco said. "Just warn me before you start taking the needles out again."

Harry was quiet for a beat. "Sure."

"So what did Jesse say to convince you to let her leave the house?" Cisco asked, remembering the stopping point in the story.

There were a few more small pinches but Cisco was so interested in the story he started to not notice. "Ah Jesse. She said "Dad, sometimes bad things are gonna happen to me. I'm okay. I'm here and I appreciate you being here to help me out when the bad stuff does come. But you've gotta be okay with me going out there into the world. Bad stuff might happen but lots of good stuff might happen too." She's smart, my Jesse Quick." Then there was another sharper pinch of pain like the first one.

"Ouch!" Cisco jumped a little but Harry soothed his arm.

"You okay?" Harry asked.

"Yeah just surprised me, that one. You gonna take a needle out now or what?" Cisco asked

"Open your eyes."

The hand Harry was working on was completed clean except for the points where the needles had broken the skin. Three black Porcupine needles were on a tray at the side of the bed.

"Don't be mad. Just one more in your other hand." Harry suggested, biting his cheek.

Cisco was speechless for a second. "You sneaky thing." All told, he was honestly impressed.

"I am stubborn but I am not a moron. This clearly worked. I am gonna let you take the last needle out and then I will think about whether or not I am mad at you." Cisco finally decided. "think of this as friendship purgatory."

"Deal." Harry scoffed a laugh and set to work on Cisco's other hand.

Cisco was being a touch more tense now that he was watching. Harry was bent over his hand with careful precision. There were little pinches when Harry tugged the skin taut to make sure he wouldn’t snag loose skin or make Cisco bleed when he eventually pulled out the needle. His glasses slid down his nose a bit, and Harry used his first knuckle to slide them back up to his brow.

Cisco sucked in air at the corners of his mouth again when Harry readied himself to pull the needle out.

Harry gave Cisco a sidelong glance. “Should I make you look away? Are you going to move?”

“Rude!” Cisco accused.

“you - you-” Harry imitated the noise Cisco had made, sucking air loudly “And I hadn’t even touched the needle yet!?”

“It stings!” Cisco argued.

“They didn’t sting when you had your eyes closed!” Harry argued.

Cisco reddened, cornered with facts. He turned his head away. He felt Harry’s strong hands pulling at his skin, some small pinches, and one final stab of pain, making Cisco wince.

“Well?” Cisco asked, head still turned away.

“You can look.” Harry confirmed as he started to sanitize Cisco’s wounds.

“Ah, that tingles.” Cisco winced again at the antiseptic and Harry grinned, rolling his eyes.

“You can weather fights with metas and yet antiseptic has you complaining. You never cease to amaze me.” Harry muttered.

Cisco smirked. “Harry, thank you for taking the needles out. I appreciate it.”

Harry, finished with the antiseptic, pressed some small bandages to Cisco’s palms, where the needles had broken the skin. “Anything for you, Ramon,”

Then, Harry, reflexively, as if it was a knee jerk reaction to Cisco’s compliment, turned Cisco’s palm over delicately, careful not to disturb his injuries, and he pressed closed lips to the back of Cisco’s hand. Harry froze as he realized he was kissing Cisco, albeit his hand.

Harry let Cisco’s hand go and it hung there comically in the air for a moment before Cisco brought it to cradle against his chest. Harry cleared his throat. Cisco was awfully quiet for someone who had been whining so much prior to Harry taking over.

“Harry-” Cisco started, and Harry tried to steel himself to get yelled at. He tried to steel himself for the admonishments he was sure were coming.

Instead, Cisco took Harry’s hand, his own hands weak from pain and tender with bandages, and tugged it gently toward his mouth. Cisco pressed his own lips to the backs of Harry’s knuckles and Harry had to break the eye contact and look away.

“Thank you.” Cisco murmured, against Harry’s knuckles, and finally let his hand go.

Harry stared at his hand, on the bed at Cisco’s side. He looked up at Cisco. “Anytime.”

[neo-shitty]

toffee!

ah yeah i suppose ur right. yeah i think quarentine has had that sort of effect on a lot of people :( sorry to hear abt ur strict parents, hopefully ur friend will be able to come back soon. small outings (even with family) are still good tho, make sure ur taking care of urself toff.

youre totally right! ah yes thats good advice (/gen) ill try and use that when im in a slump ty. any music suggestions?

lol sames. even some of the stuff abt seungmin, innie etc is a little uncomfortable, like theyre grown ass men for sure, but at the same time, theyre still young, still just over being a teenager in the grand scheme of things. (on that note, i do struggle with worrying that im infantalising them, obviously theyre adults but at the same time, theyre still young. i do treat all fictional characters as my children, but i guess its different when its real people. idk. what do you think?) yeah some stans rlly need to take a chill pill, some are rlly walking the wire between 'ah theyre attractive/that look rlly suits them' and making fucking smut fics abt minors, like... they do not see a problem with that?? yeah tbh i feel like unless theyre 18 they shouldnt be put into the spotlight, weve seen what it does to peoples mental health, but modern day kpop industry is a lot like old hollywood with a lot of popular child actors -_- hopefully the big companies will learn but i agree, its unlikely

suuuuure toff haha. ill go searching for them, but idk if ill be able to find the fluff needle in the angst haystack (jkjk) yeah, fair i groan and complain but you do write angst etc rlly well, so if its what ur comfortable with, then pls continue, it is one of your strong suits, well as you write fluff aside

ah okay good! ill continue to send you essays then

THE ALBUM YES. so ive been looking forward to it for literally months, this is actually my first skz album release as a stay (since the last on was 9 months ago) i was sitting there hitting refresh on my spotify the second 6pm kst came around. (speaking of which, how did you do the release? i couldnt decide whether to watch or listen first but i ended up on listening cos there would be more material) okay: so cheese was super cool, very skz ya know? tho i almost wish theyd made domino the title track, tho obv it was a more experimental track and would have been a bit controversial (much like whistle for bp) i looooved domino and thunderous was absolutely impeccable. all the songs were amazing but standouts were- secrets, secrets which lowkey made me tear up idk why, red lights which almost killed me (it did not have to go that hard, but it did) and OT8 WOLFGANG omgggg i wasnt sure if hyunjin was going to be included in it but i was hoping and, ya know people had said hed be in there, but the further i got in, the less i was sure and then BAM hyunjin started what had been jisung's part and i just sat there grinning for about 5 minutes. surfin was absolutely adorable and gone away almost made me cry AGAIN. star lost was so touching, almost a nod to hyunjins little star? silent cry was relatable beyond anything. SSICK was funny? for some reason I was laughing while it was playing, idk the combination of added cheering and minhos aggressiveness and the totall seriousness they sung it. but i rlly enjoyed it. sorry i love you showcased their vocals like nothing else. the view is THE BOP of 2021, absolutely going to be stuck in my head for the next decade, that hook is genius. what did you think?

also did you watch their grow up performance? with all the stays and ALL THE TEARS? ;n; i feel like this is the end of an era of skz and tbh im kinda happy but also sad. super excited for their promotions but super bummed they wont get to tour. ah well

<3 w.a. 🐺

answer under the cut bc i gave an equally long answer to this already long ask HAJSH

oh yeah, abt quarantine having an effect. my friend and i talked about this earlier actually. i didn't realize the world was moving so fast until the pandemic happened. being in quarantine gave me time to think and i got to know myself more. it's just the sole good thing i got out of the isolation lmao. and abt my strict parents, ironically i got to go out today so i got to hang out with a few of my bestfriends. i had fun but my legs are a bit sore from walking. but they're a different set of friends. i'll get to hang out with the others when my getaway driver comes home in december.

hmm music recommendations for writing? depends on the plot you're writing. care to share what story you're working on and i'll try to rake my brain for a song that might match the vibe. i listen to classical / lo-fi if i don't have song inspo for a fic because lyrics sometimes distract me.

i don't think that's infantilizing tho. for me, it has something to do with my environment and the way i was raised. maybe it's the same the other way around? like this certain age (for the ones above 18 but below 20) is thirst-able for them. idk really. it's just not for me ?n? what i do NOT condone is writing smut for minors??? like get checked : D // i agree with everything with the idols being 18+ before they debut simply because it's for the best for their well-being like. how can young idols decide that this shit is the thing they want to do for life? or at least until their contracts last. idk :// it's unfortunate that it's unlikely to happen.

WELL. i have a list so you won't have to go search for them! in class (minho), in the rain (seungmin), gladius maximus (chan) and you've read five star already. and i just realized that most, if not all, of my upcoming fics are fluffs and i'm fond of all of them :D i used to focus a lot on angst because fluff disgusted the living shit out of me. i think things changed when i wrote champagne problems and hurt myself so bad i wanted to drop angst entirely. i didn't, of course, but i allowed myself to be self-indulgent now.

for the release of the album, i was on twt and watched the vid at 12 views (if i remember correctly, i watched back door at 14 so HASJH) i’m gonna talk by track so it wont be too confusing? bc i wrote this in paragraph format and it just ???? beware im very picky with tracks even if they’re my ults. so no offense if we have opposing opinions and i’m not fond of reading lyrics so these are all music wise.

cheese - oh god i hated cheese at first listen but it grew on me easily. i was singing the yeahyeahyeahyeah bit all day today :D

thunderous - i cant say that it’s my favorite title track. it felt really dry sometimes, both mv and music wise. but at the same time, it’s not that bad. the choreography carried the song tho o.O it’s so fucking cool. but like go live, another track has my heart and it’s

domino - AND YES I AGREE THAT THEY SHOULDVE MADE DOMINO TITLE TRACK UGHHHHH WHAT A WASTED FUCKING OPPORTUNITY. WORDS CANNOT EXPRESS HOW FOND I AM OF THIS SONG. it stands close to the level i love easy.

ssick - was a skip on first listen too because i found the chorus underwhelming but it grew on me? not that much but i can bear listening to it.

the view - it’s something the gen public like, hence its something i dislike. im not fond of songs that are structured like this? it’s not a bad song, just not the type of song i like. but i agree that the hook is very not catchy but it would get stuck in ur head.

sorry, i love you - it’s not as sad as i expected but i actually like it??? i can’t wait to write a fic out of it (1) HAJSHAJ it’s like a 3/5 for me. it’s angsty but chill?

silent cry - i’m pissed at this song bc it hits but sometimes it doesn’t?@?#!? but it’s starting to grow on me but definitely not my fave track.

secret secret - glad i found a secret secret enthusiast because my irls thought it was a skip?$?#@$? it gives me ikon vibes and i’m a huge fan of ikon’s discog so this was a win for me T_T +

STAR LOST - gives me bigbang song vibes and now im very sad :(( in case u didnt know, i’m a hUGE yg fan and 2ne1/bigbang introduced me to kpop so when i heard this track that gave me yg feels i just <3___<3 and it’s one of my favorite tracks anw moving on,

red lights - I WANT TO SKIP THE FIRST TEN SECONDS OF RED LIGHTS EVERY TIME IT PLAYS LIKE IT MAKES ME FEEL AWKWARD KDSJFSK but fine. i’m adding this to props and mayhem’s playlist LMAO it’s more aggressive than sexc tho. more enemies to lovers o. O

surfin’ - this coming right after red lights just wasn’t the best decision arrangement wise because how did we go from ooh sexc to aigh pARTAY. felix saying sheesh T___T it’s such a fun song i want to go to the beach ;n; do you like beaches?

gone away - i have yet to read the lyrics because i’m using this as inspo for a jeongin fic jskjash it’s not the type of ballad i like but it’s so fucking sad to listen to :’ ) the pitch change caught me off guard? still does. it’ll grow on me prolly.

wolfgang - I YELLED WHEN I HEARD HYUNJIN IN WOLFGANG. i didn’t like this song until recently. it gives me the confidence boost i need to pick myself off self-esteem crashes.

and no i haven't watched that performance and i prolly wont because i’ll cry. i’m excited for the promotions too. do you think they’ll still have a repackage?? i cant fucking believe that i just finished waiting for 12am kst for skz teasers and now i have to look forward to 12am for nct 127??@?#? NOT A SINGLE DAY OF REST FOR THIS STAYZEN

[chronically-fangirls]

Tarkus and Brain Salad Surgery!

Yay thanks!!

Tarkus:#general opinion: ARMADILLO TIME!! okay, so this album. I guess that as many others, it’s the first ELP album I have listened to as a whole. Definitely is a masterpiece, tho sometimes (pls don’t hurt me) I kind of miss out parts of Tarkus bc it’s so long!! (But hey I still love it) Also, about Greg’s voice here: I’ll mark it on specific songs, but I love it how his voice can change from being so smooth and calm and soothing to tough and powerful, almost ‘shouts’ at certain points. This is one of my fave things about this album. +a dumb bonus anacdote: I went to Rome with my family last summer and my dad took us to the zoo (which was actually awesome, despite the facts zoos aren’t my favourite place) and there was there an Armadillo cage and I was like OMFG ITS A FUCKING ARMADILLO AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA WHERE’S KEITH!!@!!/#/@^@^ Keiiiitth!!!!! Come to see them!!!/#@#//!^@^#

(I think my phone messed up the songs order so forgive me if it’s wrong)

#Tarkus: I love mostly the fisrt and 2nd parts of it (Euroption&Stones of Years) er but yeah, also the other parts are great. Generally recommended. #Jeremy Bender: ohhh the nun songooo ! Alright, so I love it, and also loved the fact they mashed it up with the Sheriff on their live shows (Welcome Back My Friends… for example). I love it. #Bitches Crystal: okay!!! This song is insane!!! I learned it on bass, I wish I could perform it with someone!! :o my fave to play. Greg is just slaying this shit FuCKKK #The Only Way: this is the very first song of them I remember actually sitting and playing in loops over and over and over - it was a fucking year ago. However, church organs are fascinating for me, and together with Greg’s voice, and the lyrics, everything about this song is just beyond a masterpiece. (Another anacdote! I’ve learned the kind of ‘solo’ part of the bass, ended up with my fingers numb, both my wrists burning in the fire of hell and both shoulders and half of my back aching like a bitch because I just sat for ALMOST SIX HOURS on that, four and a half in row. I can barely remember something like that happens to me before. But anyway it was worth going with pins and needles in my thumb for a few days, now I can play it!) But anyway, one of my favourite songs, as a fan and as a musician. As well as Bitches Crystal, I wish I could perform it. #Infinite Space: I can just listen to it in loops over and over with no end. Something in the song… maybe bc it’s slightly repeatative? It just sooths me so much I can just close my eyes and let it feel me a whole. I wish this song was longer. A little like ‘We Have Heaven’ of Yes (if you don’t know it, stop reading or scrolling NOW!!!! and go give it a listen!!! It’s a fucking must!!!!!!!!). #A Time and a Place: the Hammond part is wonderful, also the drums are great. Hmm… that’s it.#Are You Ready Eddy?: This is my favourite blues XD Oh god, I love it. It was written about their manager, Eddy Offord (If I’m not mistaken; I think I spelled his last name wrong?) As some kind of a parody or something. +fun fact: can’t remember it now to details, but at the end of the track Carl Palmer says ‘they only got ‘am o’ cheese’ or something like that; I’ve read once that it was a lady at the near sandwich shop (or a grocery store ..?) Saying there’s only ham or cheese or.. okay, I can’t rmemeber anything, I can research for it if you’d like me to, I’ve read this quite long ago. Hopefully I haven’t forgotten anything.

Brain Salad Surgery! #general opinion: this album is a masterpiece. I don’t agree with two opinions tho: 1. That it’s their best album (I don’t know WHICH is best but I don’t think I’d put it as their best) and 2. That they produced nothing good afterwards. Just.. ||NOT||. Listen to Works. Listen to In the Hot Seat. BSS wasn’t their last good one. #Jerusalem: I love it!! I heard once a more ‘classical’ version of this song, and tbh ELP did it better. It was my ringtone for like 44292958 years. #Toccata: generally adapted from Ginastera’s concerto (forgot which one, maybe the 2nd? Or was it 2nd movement? I forgot. It’s actually one of the first ELP songs I remember listening to; becuase of the part of the siren-like synth (sirens are the worst thing exists for me) this song frightened me at first and I almost deleted it, but eventually I’ve left it on my phone :) I wish I was talented enough to learn how to play it on bass XD #Still… You Turn Me On: I consider writing an arrangment for this song and bring it to my music class so we can cover it. It’s such a special one. Just as Lucky Man, I love how different the studio version is from the live version; it amazes me how can the work of just one person be such a whole. Hope you understand what I mean. #Benny the Bouncer: I love playing it, and I. FUCKING. LOVE. THE. VOCAL PART. I love everything about it, like, his voice, the accent, the lyrics themselves… listening to this song is a great fun for me. (Poor Benny tbh) #Karn Evil 9: you know, generally I don’t have much to say about each and every part so I will sum it up to the whole thing. So, a 30 minutes song (or piece or whatever you’d like to call it). A bit hard to stay on track, but my general opinion is positive - listening to Karn Evil 9 usually makes me smile. I love 1st impression pt.2 very much. Also 2nd impression. The live version, though, on Welcome Back My Friends… is FANTASTIC. On some part, I would rather listening to the live version rather than to the recorded one. Sorry it took me so long to answer! Had to think a lot about it. (More on the way, BEWARE!)