#but 6 year olds are right it is cute to wear bright colors and cool patterns

[femslashspuffy]

I always get lots of compliments in this particular dress I wear and my mom said "it's because it's rare to see someone so confidant in a dress that looks like that" because it's cute and vintage and yellow and I think that people need to get more comfortable with wearing things with colors they like and styles that appeal to them, even if it's not in the fashion. Every time I get compliments like that I see the women thinking that they want to wear this and you can! You can, buy that dress that is unlike anything in your wardrobe and own it! It will make you and everyone around you much happier

[asimpforarmin]

What Dog the AoT Characters Would Have 💛

Character(s): Armin Arlert, Sasha Braus, Jean Kirstein, Connie Springer, Bertholdt Hoover, & Annie Leonhardt

Genre: Light-hearted, modern!au

Warnings: Mentions of animal neglect/abuse, some dog breeds commonly perceived as scary, cursing

A/n: I usually include Mikasa in my headcanons, but I just forgot until last minute that she existed ;-; so, sorry for not including her. If someone requests it, I’ll add her to the list.

💛 Armin

His parents got him a beagle puppy for one of his birthdays and he got so attached to it. He was so grateful that he had a dog and absolutely treasures him.

Named him Buddy because he’s his little sidekick and is always fun to play with and snuggle up to.

Buddy almost never shuts up though. A bird flies past the window? He starts barking. A truck goes by? Goes bonkers. He sees himself in the mirror? Shooketh.

Whenever Buddy starts going crazy, Armin picks him up, takes him away from whatever’s bothering him and scratches behind his ears. That makes Buddy practically melt into Armin’s arms and it’s so adorable. 💕

Buddy is very protective over Armin, or as protective as a dog his size could be. He always barks at the doorbell and is very wary of strangers.

If you walk into Armin’s house and Buddy has never seen you before, Armin will be sitting in a chair holding a dog who’s glaring into your soul.

You and Armin will try to have a normal conversation while Buddy is snarling and growling at you with Armin just patting his head and making an expression that says he deals with this all the time.

After a couple visits, Buddy is still tense around you but unwinds once you start playing with him.

Whenever Armin’s studying or working, Buddy will jump up into his lap and snuggle with him.

Sometimes when Armin falls asleep at his desk, he’ll have his arms on the table and Buddy in his lap.

When he’s in the car, Buddy tries to bite cars through the window. He just growls and bangs the glass with his teeth before Armin stops him from chipping a tooth.

Just how Buddy is protective of Armin, Armin’s protective of Buddy.

If someone talks shit about his dog, he’ll get sad about it. Buddy doesn’t deserve to be treated like that, he never hurt anyone.

Buddy can’t be taken to the park because he just agitates other dogs. He never gets along with them and never lets his guard down.

Buddy’s also one of those dogs who gets really dramatic. One time he was laying on the couch with his ball and it rolled off so he just started howling.

It’s also really hard to trim his nails without him growling, even though he’d never bite anyone.

Once Buddy has calmed down around someone, he’s fun to just hang around.

Armin likes to sit on the couch reading with Buddy on his lap or beside him. He’s great to study with or have around.

💛 Sasha

Adopts a 5-year-old blue greyhound from her local shelter.

She’d been volunteering there for a while when the greyhound came in and just couldn’t resist.

With greyhounds being bred to hunt and Sasha coming from a family who has a hunting background, it seemed like a match made in heaven.

She bought her and gave her a bright pink collar with a little dog bone tag with her name etched in it.

Since greyhounds’ necks are so long, she gives her a big knitted scarf to wear in the winter to keep her all nice and cozy.

Was torn between naming her Snickerdoodle or Candy because they’re both cute names and are both foods, but ended up naming her Pumpkin because she couldn’t decide and Pumpkin’s a really cute name as well.

Sasha loves playing fetch with her and it’s so fun because Pumpkin can run really fast, really far.

Pumpkin almost never barks unless she’s having fun or there’s someone at the door.

Sasha’s bed is lofted by a couple feet for storage and Pumpkin has no problem getting on and off her bed.

The first time Pumpkin saw Sasha’s bed, she didn’t know what to do so just sat there looking up at Sasha. It took a couple minutes for her to realize Sasha patting the bed meant she could jump onto it.

Sasha allows her dog on any of the furniture so there’s short hairs all over the couch no matter what.

Pumpkin’s really kind and gentle around kids so Sasha can basically take her anywhere. She’s super well behaved but sometimes scares people because she jumps in excitement.

Sasha also shares her food with her dog all the time. Always packs extra whenever she goes somewhere so she can give some to Pumpkin.

If you moved in with Sasha, Pumpkin would take to you right away.

She would literally be so sweet and always make you happy all the time. 😭💕

Plays tug of war and fetch a lot with you.

If you’re working/eating at a desk, she’ll lean her head on your leg until you pet her or give her food, or both.

Overall, Pumpkin is so sweet and adorable. She will always cheer you up when you need it and always has enough energy to play.

💛 Jean

Adopted a pitbull who is now 6, but was brought into a fighting ring when he was 4.

He knew it would be a challenge to help an abused dog but wanted to give him a good home.

When he first saw him, he was covered in scars and missing part of his ear.

He named him Kane. He’s a beautiful deep reddish-brown color with a white belly.

From the first moment they met, there was a connection. Kane warmed up to Jean quite quickly for a dog who’s been through so much.

Jean took him home and slowly introduced him to lifestyle changes, like going for walks or taking baths.

He introduces him to other dogs too. Kane showed a little hostility in the beginning, but once he realized they weren’t threats he was fine being around them.

Jean pays top dollar for him. Any issue he has, he takes him to the vet and gets it fixed up. He also gets the best food for him because that’s what he deserves.

Kane loves going for car rides. Sometimes Jean will get in the car with him, no destination in mind, and just drive.

Jean rolls the window down and Kane pokes his head outside. His mouth opens and because of the wind going into it, he showers the window behind him in slobber.

Kane absolutely loves swimming. He’s quite good at it, but Jean still takes a lot of safety precautions, such as a life jacket or shallow water because pitbulls are known to be somewhat bad swimmers.

Every summer, Jean takes out a kiddie pool and lets Kane splash around in it.

He also really likes to turn on the hose or sprinkler and aim it at Kane. He jumps up to bite the water and they both have a great time.

It can be a problem though because when Jean’s trying to fill the pool up, Kane keeps batting the hose with his paw or trying to eat the water and Jean has to get him to relax.

Other than his little quirks, Kane’s a relatively chill dog. He’s alright with being dressed up in costumes or having to wear a cone.

Every halloween, Jean gets both of them a matching costume and they sit on the porch to give kids candy.

Jean also lets the kids pet Kane because over time, he gets very welcoming of people and other dogs he doesn’t know.

Long story short, Kane’s not the dog you want to protect your house, if someone broke in, he’d just start wagging his tail and not be able to tell what’s going on.

💛 Connie

Saw how cool Jean’s dog is and also wanted a badass and cool breed.

He ended up adopting a doberman pinscher.

Like Jean’s dog, she looks strong and intimidating.

Unlike Jean’s dog, she acts the complete opposite of how she looks.

She’s often quite jittery or seems scared. Whenever someone even remotely raises their voice, her ears go down and she lowers her head.

You and Connie often have to give her tons of pets and appreciation after shouting, whether it’s good or bad shouting.

She’s also a total cuddlebug. She loves to be on Connie’s lap 24/7 and sleeps right next to him, watching over him.

Because of her timid personality, Connie named her Lily. It’s a sweet and innocent sounding name. Even though he sought her out to be a “cool” dog, she’s super sweet and didn’t want to name her something that conflicted with who she really was.

One thing about Lily is she loves running. Connie likes to skateboard alongside her as she pulls him along. It’s not much effort for her because Connie’s lightweight and uses his feet a lot. Plus, the area they live is pretty flat, so they often do.

Lily has a hard time understanding what is and isn’t a toy. One time she nearly chewed off one of the sofa legs. Next time Connie sat on it, it snapped and then he figured out Lily was behind it.

After that, he trained her to know everything he puts in her basket is a toy, but everything else isn’t. Then, she used the basket as a toy.

She goes through toys lightning quick.

Every time you or Connie give her a new stuffed animal, it takes approximately .2 seconds for it to be torn to shreds.

Connie loves to take her to PetSmart and let her pick out toys in-store.

If she chooses a toy that means Connie won’t need to guess what she likes and what she doesn’t.

One time she chose one of those scented rope toys, but once Connie took the packaging off, she started acting weirdly.

Once he gave it to her, she started barking at it and whacking it with her paw.

Connie was super confused so he threw it and she chased after it like normal, but once she got close to it she started acting scared of it and barking.

It’s been like that ever since now so they just don’t play with that toy.

Lily doesn’t bark that often. She usually only barks from excitement or when she meets someone new.

She also doesn’t have the zoomies that much so she’s a really relaxed dog to hang with.

💛 Bertholdt

Bertholdt saw his neighbors packing their stuff in a van one day and leaving but saw they left their samoyed leashed up outside.

He wanted to hold out hope that they were just going out somewhere for a bit so waited the rest of the night but found the dog still chained up the next morning in the rain.

He was never close to his neighbors and didn’t want any confrontation so he went up and knocked on the door, checking if anyone was home.

No surprise, they weren’t so he cautiously made his way over to the dog.

It was so happy to see someone and started licking his hand right away.

He unchained the dog and led it into his house where he gave it a nice warm bath and some food.

While bathing her, he took off her collar, with the neighbor’s number and address engraved in it along with her name, Mavis.

While Mavis was eating he called the number he found on her tag. He explained that the dog looked like it was left there on purpose so he took it in until they got home. They just said they didn’t want her anymore and hung up, which broke Bertholdt’s heart.

So he took her to the vet, got some pet things because he hasn’t owned a pet previously and she became a big part of his life.

She clings to him everywhere and won’t ever leave his side. Almost never barks and is super good on a leash.

Bertholdt takes her to the dog park a lot, Mavis is very social and has made a lot of friends there.

Mavis has quite the habit of rolling around in the mud or dirt though so Bertholdt has to give her a bath quite often.

Bertholdt absolutely cannot contain the dog hair. There is so much of it and it’s everywhere, went through like 3 lint rollers in the first week.

He spoils her rotten. Whenever he goes shopping he gets her new treats and toys because he swore to do right by her when her old owners didn’t.

If you were brought into the equation, Mavis would love you unconditionally. She’ll be there to give you high-fives and cuddle with you.

She is the softest thing on the planet so the cuddles are amazing. If you and Bertholdt sleep together, she’ll plop herself right in between the both of you so she could get attention until you fall asleep.

Whenever she needs something but isn’t up, she licks your face until you give her what she wants.

Even though she can get quite hot in the summer, she always wants to cuddle and loves to do it, whether it’s with you or Bertholdt.

💛 Annie (normally I don’t write for her but I couldn’t get this scenario out of my head)

Hitch gave her a chihuahua for her birthday even though she never remotely hinted at wanting a dog.

She didn’t want to return it though and oddly liked it, even though she never asked for him.

Just calls him “Dog” for a bit since she doesn’t know what to name him.

He’s a tan deer head dog so Annie gives him the name “Biscuit” after a couple weeks.

It’s super generic but she doesn’t think he needs any fancy name and he looks like a biscuit so 🤷🏻‍♀️

She has one of the backpacks with a compartment to fit a dog.

She likes to put Biscuit in there and take him out when she goes out.

When Annie takes him out, Biscuit is usually pretty chill, aside from giving a couple glares to random people.

Sometimes he even falls asleep in her backpack.

Whenever someone pisses Annie off, Biscuit senses it. Annie isn’t usually one to get into a full-blow fight and be loud, so Biscuit is her volume. Whenever she starts going off, he starts growling and barking.

And when she does get loud, both of them are yelling and screaming so that often deters the other person.

When she first got Biscuit, Annie didn’t really pay that much attention to him. She’d be on the couch and whenever he came up to her with a ball or toy, she’d throw it.

Then as she started to get used to him, she started to like him more.

Nowadays, she sometimes chases him around the house with a smile on her face and it’s so adorable, especially because she doesn’t smile all too often.

Biscuit is relatively calm, even for a chihuahua. He can often be seen on the couch on his back with his tongue out laying in the sun.

Speaking of being on the couch, originally Annie wanted to keep him off all furniture but soon realized he simply wouldn’t stay off and she didn’t want to bother to train him not to.

Now, they share almost everything. She sleeps with him next to her, they relax on the couch together, and sometimes she even brings him up on one of the kitchen chairs and they share food together.

Biscuit hates her alarm clock with a passion. If Annie doesn’t wake up from the alarm, she wakes up from the high pitched barks of her dog wanting her to turn it off.

Once the two are close, they are bonded for life and can be seen everywhere together.

[ohplagg]

Normal Girl

Also read at AO3

Summary: Nora is living her best life by being the normal middle school student that she always longed to be with her new friends and her two parents that love her so much.

WARNING: This story makes mention of abuse, suicide and suicidal thoughts. Individuals suffering from anxiety, depression and/or suicidal thoughts may not have a safe experience reading this. Viewer discretion is advised.

Thank you @noragamibigbang for organizing this.

See my partner’s ( @maybemacdc ) wonderful artwork that goes along with this!

Get up.

I hear the faint sound of an alarm clock, its signals the start of my day. I know I need to get up but the warmth of my bed and the peace in my bedroom cuddles me in a soundless lullaby.

Get up now.

The cold morning air hits my skin as I reach my arm out of my covers to turn off the alarm making me a bit more aware of myself than before but not enough. I decide to curl up in my bed once more, savoring the cozy air that my blankets trapped during the night.

You’re going to be late.

As I finish rubbing off the sleep from my eyes and brushing off the black hair strand stuck in my mouth I peak my head out of the covers. While staring into the celling, waiting for the moment I have enough courage to leave my warm bed, I hear two calm knocks on my doorframe like there were right on cue.

“Good morning love, come help me with breakfast when you’re ready~” I hear my mom call out as she walks away from the doorframe.

I sit up on my bed and I admire the sunrays peak through my window. Little particles of dust dancing in the stationary air as they bathe in the sunlight.

I walk over to my closet and change into my freshly clean school uniform. It’s your typical sailor middle school uniform with the red bow tie, white shirt with a blue collar and a matching blue skit to go with it. I make sure I wash it every night so it dries overnight. I briefly enjoy the softness of the fabric as I straighten the skirt with my hands, getting rid of any wrinkles that were created when I put it on.

Now that I’m dressed, I head over to the mirror. I stare back at my reflection, my messy from sleep black hair begging to be brushed.

My hair has always been pretty boring. It has no color and no texture, not to mention that its so short that I can’t do any fun hair styles with it. Not that I have tried any. Maybe I can try something today?

As I think that, I open a box of ribbons I’ve been collecting for years but never worn. I first try on a big red bow, I then try a blue one, and then a bright pink ribbon but they all make me look stupid. This is stupid.

You’re stupid.

I finish trying on my last ribbon which is a white thin ribbon. This one I put it across my head like a hair band. It looks okay I guess but what would people say? I bet they wouldn’t stop pointing it out and making fun of me.

“That looks cute! Are you wearing that?” I get startled by my dad’s voice. I turn around to see him frozen in his tracks as he was walking pass my bedroom door.

“I’m not sure…?” I tried to say no but something about his loving and warming smile told me that I wanted to hear his reply to my hesitation.

“You should” he simply said and then left.

Dad would never lie to me and if he thinks that I look cute with it then I guess the ribbon isn’t that stupid.

Maybe I should wear it.

I think I will.

--

After deciding to leave the ribbon on and finish getting reading for school, I head downstairs and help my mom by setting the table while she prepares breakfast. I see my dad sitting on the TV-couch with his laptop and a bunch of work documents scattered all over the coffee table. We all are busy with our morning tasks while the morning local news is playing on the background.

First it was politics news but I’m too young to care and stress about that yet so I don’t really pay attention to it. Then it’s the bad story news which this time was something about how the police just arrested an abusive father who hurt his kids physically and mentally.

What a way to start the morning. Did the news anchors really need to say such graphic and gruesome details?

As always a feel-good story gets told right after, this time is about some rescued stray-kitty-siblings that were adopted by this high school girl or something, I honestly didn’t pay enough attention to it, I couldn’t stop thinking about the prior story.

I try to picture it but I can’t imagine my dad turning violent on me and doing me harm, how could any dad do that to his kids? The idea of not only not having my mom but also getting physically harmed by my dad made me feel nauseous.

“Darling. Stop playing with your food, you’re going to be late.” My mom snaps me out of my dark train of thought.

That’s right, my parents are both here and they will never hurt me no matter what. They love me and will protect me. I don’t have to worry about any of that. But I actually do worry because I’m about to be late if I don’t hurry up and eat. And with that I devour my food as fast as I can without getting a stomach ache.

--

“Ittekimasu!” I yell at my mom as I close the front door feeling the cool but not cold spring air hit my skin.

“Itterasshai!” I hear my mom faintly yell back to me.

I head down the streets on my way to school. As I walk I take in my surroundings; I hear some birds singing, some cars driving by, some other kids heading to school and some old lady gossip. I pay extra close attention to the gossip. Ever since I started walking to school on my own I realized that I didn’t know much about the world outside of my notebooks so this is the only way I keep up with the world beside the morning news my dad puts every other day.

Today’s gossip isn’t the usual though. The ladies are also talking about that horrible gruesome story the local morning news covered, I hear them talk among themselves how they actually knew the wife before she committed suicide.

“I don’t think she did” one of them comments while looking over her shoulder as if she was about to say her most guarded secret, “and with the most recent news I’m pretty sure he killed her.” She finishes while nodding her head as a matter of fact.

Gasps roar among the ladies and I find myself gawking at the possibility as well.

“He wouldn’t do that” one interrupts the buzzing gossiping that had been unleashed. “The husband was really in love. She was his whole world. I wouldn’t be surprise if he went crazy with grief because of her death.” She tries to defend the man from the accusation of killing his own wife.

The ladies continue their gossiping but by now I’m too far to hear it anymore. My thoughts remain stuck in that conversation while I make my way to school. A husband so overwhelmed with grief that he took it out on his own flesh and blood that he raised since they were babies.

Imagine being the kids, they were around my age if I recall correctly. Just thinking about how I could be living that nightmare makes me feel sick to my stomach. Not only were they dealing with the loss of their mother, but also the loss of their father. The pain and the fear they must have felt while seeing their dad turn into that monster as the days went by. The uncertainty of being chosen as the punching bag that day. The hopelessness and loneliness they must have felt.

Thinking about it almost feels too real. I feel my palms become sweaty and my heartbeat drowning any noise from the outside world. I urge myself to take in deep breaths and to remember that that is not my life. That my dad is not like that.

Thank the gods that my dad is not like that.

--

I arrive to school and I see Nana and her group waving at me, waiting for me at the front gate. They tell me to call them my friends but I’m not used to having those yet. You see, I’ve always focused on school and academics first and I never gave the idea of having friends even a consideration so this is all really new to me.

Nana is my favorite of the 3, she’s the one I can easily talk to. Turns out she and I are pretty similar in the sense that we both like to be right and get in fights because of it. Of course, she gets into physical ones while I only do intellectual ones…. for the most part. Look, it wasn’t my fault that one time with Yukine.

Sure, I did throw in the first punch but he started it when he said I copied from him. Well, he really didn’t said it, but he insinuated it and if you ask me that’s more than enough reason to get punched. Besides I would never copy him. I don’t need his second-best-in-school answers because I have my own first-best-in-school answers, so ha!

According to him he caught me “starring” at him “several” times which is not true. Why would I stare? Maybe he was in my field of vision but that doesn’t even make sense because just the sight of him is annoying, it always has been. Ever since we were 6 with his “I’m going to one-up you” attitude he always had with me. Ugh, so annoying!

And there’s nothing about him worth looking at either. There’s nothing eye-catching about physique like his unusual golden locks. And why on earth would I stare at someone who is so focused in whatever test question he’s answering that you can’t help but admire his soft expression as he solves the math problem? It doesn’t make sense.

It kind of does.

Whatever.

But all that is in the past now and if I’m being honest I’m really happy I fought with Yukine. Because of that fight I met Nana and her fraternal twin brother Shiigun and I’m also closer to Yukine now than before. My life has definitely become a lot more fun than before.

Thanks to Yukine’s better social skills I get better along with everyone in school including teachers and staff. I really like that about him. I think that’s the main reason why he is so nice to me too. I really admire him for it.

Yukine and I are still rivals though, don’t get me wrong. We are still argue and fight but now we know each other a little bit better so we know that we don’t have to be better than the other at everything. Even though I will always better than him in academics even he says otherwise. I’ll let him have his spotlight with social stuff.

--

The lunch bell rings and I immediately take out my study notebook and start studying for history, the exams are next week and I need to be the best. I would prefer to do homework right now but there isn’t enough time to properly do it so a quick overview of history will do for now. I can always do homework in the comfort of my home where no one can bother or distract me.

“-chan you need to give it a rest. It’s not good for you.” Nana interrupts my study time as she rests her hand over my notes to take my attention.

“Both you and Yukine are overkills, I swear you guys are the biggest nerds in the whole school- no, the whole world!” Shiihgun has a talent to sting me where it hurts. I know he doesn’t mean it in a mean way but I’ve always been insecure about how I’m perceived by others and he doesn’t help one bit.

I try to laugh it off as I’ve seen Yukine do it before since I’m guessing that’s what I’m supposed to do. I hope my laugh seems genuine and not painful or forced. Please, don’t let my discomfort show.

Yukine turns my way as we’re laughing off Shiigun’s mean joke. I guess acting isn’t my thing because as soon as our eye meet he casually makes his way to my desk, leans in (invading my personal space if you ask me) and in a whispers tells me that he thinks it’s pretty cool of us to be the biggest nerds of the whole world. If the coolest kid in school says so then I guess we are pretty cool.

I realize that I’m too distracted to focus back on studying and Nana has a point I need the break, so I guess I’ll take her advice and rest during lunch time. As I start putting my notebooks away I realize that I forgot to pack my bento box. I guess I was too distracted when I left home this morning.

“Eeh?! You forgot your bento?” I wanted to pretend that I didn’t forget my bento, that I wasn’t looking for it and that I wasn’t hungry but apparently once again my acting skills failed me because now Nana saw right through me.

“I didn’t forget it. I’m trying to eat less.” I poorly try to act casually. Maybe I should stop acting.

“Here. Have one.” Yukine offers me one of his onigiri. “I always bring enough to share.” He reassures me as he notice my hesitation.

I reach my hand out to take the onigiri, as I do I start smelling a scent. A scent with the smell of… toothpaste? That’s weird.

I take a bite of the onigiri and I’m reminded of that winter afternoon where Yukine sneaked freshly made onigiri from his home to share with me. I remember how we ate them under a bridge while I did paper boats out of leaves and trash that I found under the bridge. I remember that I was feeling upset for some reason, what was the reason? Something to do with my dad? But…. I wasn’t even friends with Yukine in winter.

This doesn’t make sense.

I shake off the confusion and decide to focus on the argument Nana is having with Yukine about who would win in a physical fight. I would bet this onigiri that Nana would beat Yukine.

--

After a long day in school where I couldn’t study as much as I would have wanted I thought I would have gone straight home to study everything that I couldn’t during the day but instead I’m walking in the direction of the river bank on my way to play badminton with Nana, her brother and Yukine. As I was getting ready to head home Nana stopped me and asked me to come with them.

I wasn’t sure at first if I should go but Yukine told me that if second best in school was taking some time to have fun then the best could also do the same.

On our way to the river bank I try to make some casual conversation with Yukine so I ask him what made them invite me to come along with them.

“We always wanted to invite you- well, I always insisted on inviting you. But you always seems busy.” Yukine explains.

“I was also busy today.” I challenged his logic.

“But not busy enough to say no.” he retorted with a cheeky attitude. After I gave him a look with an eyebrow raised he continued “But also last week this homeless creepy dude approached us asking if he could be our fourth player so we want to avoid him getting any ideas.”

“Was the dude in his twenties, had black hair, bright blue eyes, and wore a smelly sweaty dark track suit?” the image of the dude suddenly popped in my head with such a clarity that I had to ask.

Yukine looked at me with an extremely puzzled look. “No… Where did you get that from? Is there someone like that where you live?”

Now that I think about it, the man I just describe isn’t anyone that I know or seen. I wonder where did I get that mental image in my head. I must have seen him on TV.

“I don’t know..”

--

As we’re approaching the river bank we make a quick stop for snacks. The store where we stopped by is owned by a very lovely and young married couple. Yukine tells us that he sometimes works here on weekends helping move the heavy stuff and because of that he gets free snacks whenever he comes by.

“Yuki! You came!” A young lady with bright pink hair yells out in excitement as she rushes to bear-hug Yukine. I’m guessing that’s one of the owners.

“Yuki! Great timing! Can you help out this Saturday? The roof needs to be repaired.” A scary looking man asks while he gets the young lady off Yukine.

It seems that Nana and Shiigun also know this odd couple because it takes them no time to start chatting amongst themselves. Because of that I start doing what I usually do and entertain myself with whatever catches my eye.

I first focus on the discount signs they have scattered in different parts of the background, I then notice how they have some fresh fruit as well but what really catches my eye is the magazine and newspaper shelf they have, one usually doesn’t see those anymore and even less in a small store such as this one.

I start reading the magazine covers and I eventually drift to the headlines. As soon as I do I feel my heart drop.

It’s that news again.

To be fair, it’s to be expected. It was in the morning news after all. But that doesn’t make it any better. While I read that particular newspaper I notice that there’s more details about that story than what I had already heard in the street gossip and in the morning news. Now I’m learning that the man actually killed the daughter who was my age and the older brother manage to run away and he was the one that call the authorities.

Props to the journalist that wrote this thought because it feels so real that it feels like I’m actually that girl that got killed. Good thing that my father is a sane person, that my mother is alive and well and that I don’t actually have a brother.

“-chan, they are talking to you.” For the third time today I get startle back into reality. I turn around to see Nana who grabbed my shoulder to get my attention.

“What?” I asked confused turning to look at the pink hair lady who I guess was the one that talked to me.

“Say hi to Yato-chan for me!” She excitedly and with confidence said as she waved us goodbye.

Yato-chan?

“Bye Kofuku! Bye Daikoku! Thanks for the football!” Yukine yells back as we leave the store owners flirting to each other.

I try to question Kofuku’s comment but between everyone else already walking away, the already said goodbyes and my confusion I couldn’t say anything. Why did she talk to me like she knew me? Why did no one else think that was weird? And who is Yato-chan?

--

We arrive at the river bank and Shiigun and Yukine start playing with the football apparently Daikoku gave Yukine while Nana and I set up the badminton net. Nana instructs me where to stand with the other side of the net and then teaches me how to anchor the net on the grass.

“Come on, guys. We’re ready.” Nana calls out as she goes to the bags she and Shiigun carried out here to take out the rackets and the bird so we could start playing a match. As she calls out I finish anchoring the net to the grass. I would be lying if I said I wasn’t having fun being out here with my friends, just hanging out. I might even say that this is more fun that history homework.

Might.

I approach Nana and Yukine who were already tossing a coin to choose who got what side of the net. Shiigun had gone to retrieve the ball that had been accidentally kicked far.

“Look out!” I hear Shiigun panic at the top of his lungs followed by a hit to my head that knocked me down so hard and fast that I didn’t get a chance to do anything other than fall like a wood plank. My vision went black, my consciousness faded as I heard Nana and Yukine faintly scream my name.

--

Get up.

I hear a high pitched ring in my ear, the throbbing headache bringing me back to my senses. I know I need to get up but a piercing pain in my back freezes all my movements. The hard cold floor isn’t doing any favors either.

Get up now.

The cold wind hits my skin as I reach my arm up to feel my head.  I feel a warm liquid gushing through somewhere in my skull but I can’t really feel exactly where. I wish I could become more aware of myself than before but between the sharp pain in my back and the dizziness this headache is giving me I decide that I should probably go back to sleep and not think about the pain.

You’re going to die.

A jolt of electricity rushes through my spine. My eyes shoot open as if I were to die if I kept them close for a second longer. My body is screaming in pain as I try to sit upright.

Between the grunts and cries of pain that scape my mouth my eyes start noticing things that… I’m pretty sure they weren’t there before.

There’s a man standing over me. He looks like he’s in his late teens even though he feels older. As he’s wiping his sweat and what it looks like blood from his jaw with the back of his left hand I notice that his hair resembles a lot to an almond.

He doesn’t look injured where he’s wiping the blood so… whose blood is it?

I glance at his right hand and I see him holding a long black staff-looking thing. The staff is thin and black with a spiral form on one of its ends. It looks very rigid even though it feels like it can be bend and molded if it so desired. I notice that the same end that looks alive was dripping with blood.

My blood?

I turn back to this man’s face and I realize that he’s been looking directly at me this all time. His eyes move to focus on the different parts where I feel the most pain as if he were looking at something worth admiring. He then turns his eyes and looks directly at mine. His expression turns into what an angry but disappointed father would look like. As he did that I felt disgusted at myself. Is he upset that I got injured? But he did this to me!

That’s right. Father did this. I started recalling everything that happened before I lost conciseness. Memories come flooding back increasing the pain that I feel from the headache. After I had arrived with Hiyori to where Father and Yato were fighting- Father was so angry. He was so… ready to kill Yato. It felt terrifying but also familiar. It felt like those times where Father punished me for Yato’s behavior but somehow this time it was worse.

I don’t know what came over me when I rushed in and pushed Yato out of the way. Maybe I just wanted to return the favor of all those times he took the bullet for me or maybe I didn’t want to see him get hurt again at the hands of Father. Maybe I just didn’t want to deal with Hiyori after the fight, maybe I just wanted someone to get the life that they wish to have.

But now look at me. I don’t even know if Yato is even alive, I left Hiyori’s side and now I’m even wishing the end of this endless torture. Everything I do, everything I am is a waste.

Pathetic.

Hiyori said I’m allowed to make mistakes, that I’m human. I’m not and I never was. The bare thought of making a mistake and being looked down upon eats me up inside until my outer shell breaks leaving me no other place else to hide.

I wish I could let myself believe that excuse, I wish I could believe in myself, believe that it’s okay to not be perfect, that its okay to fail, that its okay to not be okay. But the fact that I fail at even accepting the reality that I can’t be perfect goes to show how big of a failure I truly am.

I wish I could blame him for making me think this way but this is all on me and that would have never changed.

I did try to change, that’s why I’m here right now dying at the hands of the one I once called father. I did try to be the person Hiyori wanted me to be. Be myself. I really liked her because of that. That’s why I here instead of her.

Ironic isn’t it? The person I hate the most, the person I fear the most, is the very person I never want to let down. Maybe that’s why I’m always so scared whenever he's near. Scared to be asked, scared of a conversation, scared of not doing what’s expected of me, scared of not being enough, scared of my own shadow, scared of myself.

Maybe I don’t hate him, maybe I just hate me.

I feel whatever this life I’ve had vanishing from existence, not even leaving a dead corpse behind. It’s pretty unfair right? I got two shots at life. Two opportunities. Most don’t even get one. But not me, I got two chances at live and in both I was unwanted, despised and casted aside. Maybe third time’s the charm? If there’s even a third time.

If.

“If only” right? Those are the famous words. If only there was a third chance at life. If only I needed just the first one. If only I didn’t die so young. If only Sakura didn’t showed up. If only she didn’t succumb to god’s greatest secret. If only I had instead.

If only the gods treated me better, if only I didn’t become a nora. If only someone wanted me. If only Yato didn’t rebel. If only I was a better sister to Yato. If only Yato didn’t replace me with Yukine. If only I was less judgmental of Yukine. If only Yukine and I had met while we were both still alive. If only I had friends. If only I went to school. If only I had met my parents. If only father didn’t take me in. If only father accomplished his revenge sooner.

If only I was allowed to live like a normal girl. If only I was born.

.

.

.

But I wasn’t.

[earthboundscenarios]

♥ High school ♥

sc plot : 4 new students, attractive point of views

wc : 1694

add-on : basically you in my life without the kids from earthbound

Play song while reading for best experience!

Enjoy!

I sighed as I clutched my backpack. Another boring day

Is life always gonna be this boring?

I hopped off the school bus and made my way towards the giant public school with the crowd

" Where do you want me to set this Ms. Mills? " I looked over to my calculus teacher and she pointed towards her front desk. I nodded and got up. Earning a few snickers from the girls in the back.

" Put some pants on, girl. "

Maria said sarcastically.

I laughed.

I was wearing my favorite oversized black sweater on top of my shorts which aren't buttshorts. I hated the girls in the back.

Fucking assholes.

I heard some new students were coming today. I looked over to my best friend Neila , the desk beside mine. She just gave me a shrug and went back to work. I sighed and made my way to the front of the room, feeling some eyes on me, I dropped the work on Ms. Mills' s desk and returned to my desk at the corner of the room, leaning against the wall facing the whole class from the side.

I heard a scoff beside me so I turned. One of my friends named

RJ

had the desk in front of me, and held up his assignment in my face. 95%. I pushed it away and he looked at me with a smug grin. " What'd you get? " He asked with a mix of curiosity and assholism in his voice. I rolled my eyes, smiled, and pulled out my sketchbook. I opened it and looked at my anime sketches trying to ignore RJ laughing before turning back to the side of the room and return talking to his other friend Riley.

After a few minutes , I leant over my desk and tapped on RJ's shoulder. He turned halfway and replied with a half piercing glare in the corner of his eyes. I gasped exaggeratedly which made him turn all the way around facing me with a ' Really? How lame ' look. This time it was my turn to shove something in his face.

My sketchbook.

He grabbed it without actually looking at what was on the page and was about to get up and throw it out into the trash but as he was getting up

" Please RJ, please please please I'm serious just this onceeeee. " I said startling him and after a minute he sighed and mumbled something under his breath and sat back down bringing the sketchbook up near his face so he can actually examine it.

" What the fuck is this? " He looked up at me with the most pissed off look ever.

I grinned devilishly at him and pointed to the page that was being revealed. " You, getting bombed and shot by some mini guns in your favorite game warzone. Like it? " I asked raising my brows like a idiot trying to be funny.

He sighed, face palmed, set my sketchbook back on my desk and turned around pretending I didn't even exist.

Wow thanks, I mouthed and laughed to myself. Neila looked at me with a thumbs up and mouthed, "draw me and garmadon". Which made me nod historically thinking about the movie of her fictional 174 year old husbando from Ninjago.

Suddenly the door was met with a knock which caused some of us to be at ease and started instantly whisper-chatting as this gave us a chance to, while the teacher would go to the door and open it, expecting it to be a kid or a teacher I sighed and relaxed in my chair a little more putting one of my airpods in my ear again and hit play, starting to play my favorite playlist. The teacher did certainly open the door and I was correct.

Or was I

The teacher turned back to us,

" Alright everyone, these are going to be our new students. "

Everyone's attention glided back to the teacher and the door that was slightly opened.

4 kids walked in after a moment or two. 3 boys and 1 girl. They looked completely different then what I had pictured. The 3 guys looked very different compared to each other aswell. One was dressed very nice, another very casual, and one... genie styled...? The girl dressed very pretty though. Definitely got all the boys attention too. Some people snickered. Guessing it was the girls.

Assholes.

" Please introduce yourselves to the class " Ms. Mills nodded to the group of kids. The kid in the blue and red baseball cap looked really excited to, while the girl looked quite shy, so did the kid in the nerdish glasses, but the guy in the white robe looked very chill.

" Heyo! I'm Ness. A pleasure to be here! "

Ness said tilting his cap sideways like, as if he's greeting someone, which looked really cute.

I did hear some girls kya in the back. But I ignored them.

Ness was 5"8. He had black and short messy hair above it was a red and blue cap with a pin, he also wore a red and white high school sports like jacket, assuming that it was the schools jacket he went to before he came here, and underneath it was a blue and yellow shirt. A nice and tidy pair of jeans, white socks tucked in and his sport like jacket was matching with his sport like red and white shoes. He looked very casual but manly.

All this time I was thinking, he was scanning the room while some people asked some questions. But what I didn't notice is that he eventually laid his eyes on me. I felt my face heat up in a few seconds. He grinned at me widely.

He looks Fun.

Once Ness looked back to the class and finished answering some other random questions, he stepped aside and the next one stepped up,

The girl was up next.

" H-Hi! My name is Paula! I hope that we can all get along! " Paula exclaimed with a small curtsy holding the tips of each end of her skirt like dress. Some boys laughed and stared at her recent antics. Their was a audible whistle in the background which caused Paula to squirm a bit with her hands and shuffle her feet around. But people just laughed it off. Jeez, the pressure here.

Paula was 5"4. She had blueberry blue eyes, vibrant blonde hair, bangs that went to her eyebrows, her hair was wavy and tied in a long ponytail with a small red bow. She also had makeup on, not too much, just a bright red lipstick and mascara. She also wore a white turtle neck and over top was a strapped pink dress but the length was like a skirt. It also had a tiny teddy bear icon on it at the bottom. She wore knee high white socks and red low heels.

She nodded her head and then she quickly looked away and hid behind Ness, he obviously laughed, causing her to hide her eyes behind her bangs and a small but noticeable blushed crept on her face which was very cute. She looks adorable.

She peeked over his shoulder and watched as the next one stepped up.

The nerdish boy.

He stepped up very awkwardly which was hilariously cute.

" Uh, Hi. I'm Jeff... I u-uh.. like guns? " This caused the whole room to go quiet which turned to loud laughter erupting from everyone's mouths. I looked over to Neila , she looked like she felt bad for the poor guy. Then to Rj, who was laughing with the rest of them. I felt bad for Jeff

Jeff was 5"7. He wore his hair nice and neatly placed, he had a slightly visible mustache, his eyes covered by his glasses. He wore a long white collar top and over it a green woolen tank top sweater, a nice red bow aswell but placed in the middle of where the collar parts. He had navy blue jeans around his waist that held up tight with a plain black belt and brown classic shoes. He also had pink and blue socks you assumed his mother forced him to wear. He also had a brown backpack around his shoulders. In back which looked like a satellite.

Cool

He looked very shy but it was cute

Now it was the genies turn

He looked very chill, he lightly placed a hand on Jeff's right shoulder as if he was there to support him and they both nodded. Jeff shuffled behind the genie man and the genie man stepped up.

Hands was placed in his pockets he looked up to the classroom with a unreadable expression. The classroom was very quiet at times like these. Then he had a polite smile plastered on his face. " G'day to you all, The Name is Poo. "

was all Poo said with a nod and kept his mouth shut as if he didn't care. Some snickered at his name. Although his smile was still set on his face he didn't really care for it,

he was trying to be as polite as possible.

Poo was 6"1. He had jet black colored eyes, a slightly visible mustache like Jeff, and a tied mini black beard at the bottom of his chin. His hair was shaved off though it was a buzz cut and he had some hair in the front popping out and a tied ponytail in the back. He also had a single hoop on his left ear. He wore a sleeveless like, white body suit, type of robe and a black belt around it. He wore blue big but thin wristbands and white socks with black genie like shoes.

I smiled in enthusiasm which he had noticed and nodded to me before stepping back to join the others. He looks sexy.

I shook my head at those thoughts. Maybe I can go talk to them later I thought and smiled to myself before looking back to my sketchbook.

[flourgirl]

Hooked On A Feeling

Pairing: Peter Parker x telepath!Reader

Summary: When another competitor at the quiz bowl championships confronts you about using your telepathic powers to cheat your way to victory, you immediately recognize him as Spiderman.

Word Count: 1.6k

Warnings: Fluffy flirting and one sorta-curse word.

A/N: This was originally going to be the first part of a series, but my friend and I thought this ended on a good note after I wasn’t feeling it. Enjoy! :-)

“If you would open up your heart Drop your weapons, drop your guard Just a little trust is all it takes” -Give a Little, Maggie Rogers

You had twenty minutes until the final round of the competition and excused yourself from your team’s mini celebration to go get a drink from the vending machine in the hallway.

“Hey, wait,” you heard a voice call out to you. You turned to see a guy from the team that you had just beat walking towards you. “I know what you’re up to.”

You had to admit, he was really cute, even if he didn’t know which woodwind plays the glissando at the beginning of ‘Rhapsody in Blue’. But this was nothing like your daydreams of how he’d introduce himself. You didn’t have to read his mind to tell that he was pissed off.

“And what is it that I’m up to? Thinking about what drink to buy?” you said, playing dumb, even though you knew exactly why he was walking towards you.

“You’re a telepath,” he whispered, leaning against the vending machine. It only took you a few seconds to realize who the boy standing next to you actually was and how he knew about your secret.

“Okay, you got me,” you laughed, twisting open the bottle of lemonade that he definitely did not see you pay for. “And you’re Spiderman. But I have to admit, you’re not at all what I expected.”

“And, uh… what did you expect?” Peter was flustered. Sure, you could read his mind and find out who he was, but had you actually been thinking about who was behind the mask this entire time?

“You look taller in the photos,” you shrugged, despite the fact that he could still easily look straight over your head without a problem. It was just fun to tease him.

He felt his cheeks turning pinker by the second. “Well, you don’t look like a cheater, so I guess we’re even.”

“I’m not cheating, Peter,” you replied nonchalantly, taking another sip of your drink.

He hadn’t even told you his name, but he liked the way it sounded coming from you. Peter’s eyes looked down at your lips, quickly darting back up before you could notice, but based on his thoughts, you had a few good guesses about what had just distracted him.

“Don’t lie to me. I could tell that you were reading my mind, and every time I went to hit the buzzer, you were always one step ahead of me,” Peter reasoned, becoming increasingly frustrated knowing that you could read every thought that was going on in his head right now. “I… I have spidey-senses.”

Your eyebrow cocked up, and you smiled at the silly phrase he had just used.

“Spidey-senses?” you questioned, making his eyes widen over the sudden realization that it sounded like a five-year-old had coined the nickname he had given to his powers. It was all getting to be a bit too much for him.

“Look, could you please stop for a minute? I feel like I can’t breathe with you inside my head, alright?” he snapped, startling you a little bit.

You had never met someone who knew about your powers, and so you never had to deal with the consequences of invading their privacy. To be honest, it never even crossed your mind just how upsetting it must be to have someone know exactly what you’re thinking all the time.

Neither of you said anything or even looked at each other until he had finally calmed back down, feeling that your unwanted presence was no longer poking and prodding around his brain.

“So, uh, do you go to that school,” he started, “I can’t remember what it’s called, but Wanda was telling me about it and how she almost got sent there when she was little, and—”

“I don’t go to Xavier’s,” you cut him off, and he suddenly realized just how much he was rambling to a complete stranger. “Nobody even knows that I’m a telepath. Well, except you.”

“Sorry about that,” he said, looking around the room. “But could you please just quit it with the cheating? Even though you guys already beat us, I think the next team that you play should be given a fair fight.”

You were a little disappointed that he already didn’t trust you, but you couldn’t blame him. You had been reading his mind, just not to do what he thought you were doing.

“I promise I’m not cheating,” you restated, looking into his brown eyes that you were just now noticing had little flecks of green in them.

“Well, can you tell me what you were doing, then?” he asked. He really wanted to give you the benefit of the doubt, especially since you had already stopped using your powers once you realized just how much it bothered him.

You could feel your heartbeat getting faster, and so could Peter. Were you going to let him think that you were a liar or tell him the embarrassing reason as to why you were reading his mind? You decided that the latter was the better choice.

“I think you’re cute,” you blurted out, suddenly aware of how hot your face felt. “And I was, well… I was reading your mind to see if you felt the same way about me.”

That wasn’t what Peter was expecting you to say at all, and he immediately felt really bad for even thinking that you were using your powers to somehow rig the competition.

“Oh.” His voice got quieter. “And what did you find out?”

You stepped closer to him, now knowing that Peter Parker smelled like clean laundry fresh out of the dryer, and you liked that a lot.

“That you think I’m pretty, and you really like how the color of my sweater looks against my skin.” Even without your powers, you could tell that he was nervous.

“I don’t know what you’re thinking, so you’re going to have to tell me,” you admitted, closing the space between you. “Or, you can just show me.”

Peter wasn’t the kind of guy to go around kissing girls he had just met, or even flirting with them for that matter, but he found himself drawn to you for some reason that he couldn’t quite place. And before he knew it, he was leaning down to kiss you.

You didn’t know how long it had been before his hand left your waist and you were getting down from your tiptoes, coming out of your daze.

“Was that okay?” Peter asked, waiting for you to say something to break the silence.

“Huh,” you sighed, bringing your fingertips to touch where his lips had just been. “So that’s what that feels like.”

It took Peter a few seconds to realize what you meant. It was your first kiss.

“Y/N!” you heard your team captain call. You looked to see her peeking out of the auditorium doors, gesturing for you to hurry up. “Come on, you’ve got like, one minute before we start!”

“Sorry, Parker. I’ve gotta go,” you said, pushing a lock of his hair back into place. “But who knows, maybe you can help me celebrate my team winning tonight.”

He watched in awe as you ran back into the auditorium, your shiny hair swishing behind you. Y/N, Peter thought to himself. He could get used to saying that.

“What the hell, Y/N?” your best friend, Beatrice, whispered as you took your seat next to her. “We’ve been talking about your perfect first kiss ever since we were 12, and now Sam tells me she saw you kissing some random guy in the hallway?”

“He’s not random,” you told her, smoothing your hair down from where Peter’s hands had messed it up. “I know him. Well, I sort of know him.”

“I have no idea what that means,” she complained, rolling her eyes. You knew you’d have a lot of explaining to do on the walk back to the hotel.

You shushed her, the host announcing that the questions were about to begin. You saw Peter slip back into the room, and watched as he sat down with what you could only guess were his classmates in the second row.

Most of them were wearing bright yellow blazers, but one guy had on a sweatshirt that had ‘Midtown School of Science and Technology’ printed around an atom across the front of it.

It wasn’t long before the match was over and your team was gathered in a circle to have yet another celebratory chant. You managed to slip away from the huddle to walk over to Peter.

“That was amazing! You’re amazing,” he told you, effortlessly picking you up and twirling you around. He’s a lot stronger than he looks, you thought to yourself.

He set you down gently on the floor, his brown eyes practically glowing with excitement. It felt like the two of you had known each other for much longer than you actually had.

“Thanks,” you muttered, staring down at your shoes. You had just remembered that tomorrow morning, you’d be leaving New York City to get on a plane back to your hometown in the middle of nowhere. Peter’s smile faded at the sudden shift of your mood.

“Go on a date with me tonight,” he said, making you look back up at him in surprise. You noticed that he had the lightest smattering of freckles across his nose.

“Wow,” you started, not really knowing how to react. “Who would’ve thought that today I’d be winning the national quiz bowl championships AND getting offered a free tour of New York City from the Spiderman?”

“Come on, don’t tease me. Just say yes,” he insisted, pouting. “I promise I’ll make it worth your time.”

“Fine, I’ll go out with you,” you happily agreed, making his puppy dog eyes disappear. “Meet me at the front of the Marriott on Albany Street at 6.”

“Ok, cool, awesome. Uh, I’ll see you at six,” he said, grinning from ear to ear as you walked back towards your group.

You glanced back to see him silently celebrating to himself, and you decided to let yourself use your powers just this once to tell him, “I saw that.”

Peter immediately stopped his little victory dance to look at you smiling at him from across the room, and he gave you an awkward wave before leaving to catch up with his classmates.

You smiled brightly as a local news reporter snapped a group picture of your team, knowing that you had just scored a date with the cutest guy on the planet.

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

Taglist: @hommyy-tommy @itsgonnabeohtay @alltimekyn @allycat449-blog @greatpizzascissorstaco @dummiesshort @parkerpeterparker2004 @letssee2468 @yourbiggestspiderfan

P.S.: Please shoot me an ask or a reply if you’d like to be added to (or removed from) the taglist!

[thekidultlife]

THE RETURN OF SUPERMAN | Lee Jihoon

Author’s Note: In the last part of TROS Jeonghan, I had mistakenly labeled Yuna as Lee Jihoon’s daughter. Please forgive me! I already edited it to lessen confusion haha. Yuna will be coming out in the next story as another member’s child, as edited. Please watch out for it, and I hope you come to love Lee Jihoon’s family in this AU, too!

NEW SERIES ALERT! While reading this fic, you will have a clue as to what series is coming next on this blog. Please watch out for it and if you see the clue, you can comment it down! :D

HYERI YOU’D BETTER READ THIS ONE!

Genre: ABSOLUTE FLUFF with traces of good ol’ angst but this is definitely a happy story so go ahead and read it!

Word count: 5,896

Lee Jihoon always had a plan. It wasn’t always written on paper or formulated to the dot (you were the one responsible for that end), but it was always there. He felt a lot better if he had things under his control. And so when he decided to enter the Return of Superman show with his friends, he wasn’t going unprepared.

Because, as he stared across at the table (mind you, sudden shivers were coming up his spine as he looked at the young toddler who looked oh so innocent—for now)…

…One could never go unprepared with Lee Yeseung. 

 “I mapped it out carefully, love,” he told you over breakfast. “I mapped out every single activity I am going to do with him. He’s not an easy kid, but—“

“—Who isn’t easy?” you innocently asked, eyeing your son fondly. He had his father’s eyes and the gentleness of your facial features. His pale-white skin was also his father’s, but the color of his eyes, black with a hint of brown in them, were yours. “Yeseung is a good boy, aren’t you?”

Yeseung smiled sweetly at you and giggled his cute, toddler giggle. 

 “You know, this child doesn’t come from my side of the family,” Jihoon taunted you as he ate. “My Yeseung is too much like you. Like mother, like son.” Jihoon was laughing to himself, pleased at making you feel pissed off early in the morning. It was a ritual he was having a hard time to break, even after five years of marriage. But when Jihoon turned his eyes to you, he stopped mid-laughter.

“What?” he said, raising both hands. “It’s true!” He pointed at his son. “Look at him! He’s hyper!”

“You are uncharacteristically talkative today,” you replied to him, your eyes narrowing. “What are you up to?”

Yeseung stared up from his bowl at his father. He was holding the bowl to his face with his hands, doing his best to quietly finish his breakfast as you had sternly told him to do. He had understood your husband’s words, and now he dropped the bowl, cereal flying all over the place as he bawled.

You stabbed your fork at a hotdog and glared daggers at your husband. “Lee Jihoon!”

Jihoon turned back to his meal. “I love you both, and I’m…” he sighed, getting up on second thought and disappearing behind to the kitchen for a minute. “I’m going to get the dishcloth.”

“I wasn’t hyper this time,” Yeseung sobbed, rubbing his eyes and putting cereal on his face. “He called me hyper again. I wasn’t hyper this time.” He wailed louder. “Why does he always call me hyper?”

You sighed and scooped the child in your arms, forgetting your breakfast. You were hoping for a quiet morning, but Jihoon just had to upset your baby again. “No, appa was just joking.”

“Yeseung-ah!” Jihoon deftly scooped up Yeseung from your arms and began smothering him with kisses. “Appa was just joking! Like we always do!”

Yeseung looked up at his appa, with tearful eyes. “I’m not hyper, right? I’m a good boy, right?”

“Exactly. A very good boy who will help appa clean up the table!” 

 “What activity planning were you talking about?”

Jihoon smirked at you and peppered his son with kisses. “I’m nervous, Y/N,” he said quietly, as he looked straight into your eyes, his face going serious. “That’s why I was being talkative. I rarely do this with others, except you.”

You felt your whole face flush. “What activity planning were you talking about?” you repeated your question again.

Jihoon smiled nervously. “It’s for the Return of Superman show.”

INTERVIEW WITH LEE JIHOON, 30: 

JIHOON: Hello everyone, my name is Lee Jihoon. I am known by many as SEVENTEEN’s Woozi. This—(he hoists little Yeseung up his lap)—is my three-year-old, Lee Yeseung. Say hi to the camera, Yeseung-ah!

YESEUNG: (Smiles at the camera shyly and then burrows into his father’s jacket.)

WOOZI: (Smiles at his son’s shyness.) Sorry, he’s still a bit camera-shy. But we’re really looking forward to enjoying ourselves on this show! And—(Laughs self-consciously and hugs his little boy close to him.)—I hope I learn more as a dad!

Q: This was asked to the other members as well: How does it feel to have a child of your own?

JIHOON: (Laughs nervously and pats Yeseung, who was squirming on his lap.) Actually, it’s nerve-wracking. 

(Silence.) 

JIHOON: (Looks down at his son.) You always have to brace yourself with little Yeseung here.

Boy, were we to find out.

NARRATOR: *We are now here at the Lee residence! (Cameras pan around the lavish but minimalistic penthouse of the Lee family.) And it is a beautiful morning, with no clouds in the sky to signal any rainfall. What will this day bring for Lee-appa and little Yeseung?*

6:50 A.M.

A flutter of what seemed like paper floated into Jihoon’s face. Startled, he opened his eyes and struggled to get up quickly out of bed. 

Another piece of paper—no, poorly-made paper plane—floated into his face. 

He closed his eyes. Took deep breaths. Tried to shake the feeling of sleepiness and called, as calmly as he could, “Yeseung-ah, where did you get all these papers?”

A giggle and a high-pitched squeal of delight was all the answer he could get. 

“LEE YESEUNG!!!”

Lee Jihoon jumped out of bed the moment his eyes caught the paper. Groggily, and feeling a little bit off because it was still early, he reached out and snatched a paper plane zooming in toward him. When his eyes had adjusted enough, he looked at the paper. Oh, cool. His baby boy was making paper planes. What an artist! He smiled sleepily, and was about to say a word of praise to his little artist when he looked at the paper again. 

Panic and stress, too early to be felt in the morning, seized his heart. He was suddenly wide awake. 

Aishh, this kid!!!

Lee Yeseung, his son, was making paper planes out of his music sheets.

HIS LIFE’S WORK. HIS MUSIC SHEETS.

His mind going insane, he bounded across the room with uncharacteristic quickness (it was still early in the morning, mind you), and flung the door open. He was already beginning to panic internally. He was sure he had locked his office at the den when he went into bed at 3 a.m. He was very sure. He wouldn’t have forgotten. But he followed the paper trail—Breathe, bruh, breathe, he kept telling himself, not stopping to look at which song sheet got ripped by his little troll—and with utter disbelief, stared at his wide-open office door.

He distinctly remembered what folks kept telling him about this penthouse. “The doors, cupboards and the built-in closets are definitely (emphasis on DEFINITELY) childproof. You won’t have a problem, even if you get quintuplets running around and playing horse.” 

Now, Lee Jihoon knew better. For his kid, even if he just has ONE Lee Yeseung, all the childproofing in the world would not be able to work. 

 “Yeseung-ah,” he gently chided, as he stared helplessly at the door and the little boy on the floor, surrounded by headsets, pens, papers, song sheets, and other stuff that he had religiously put into what he had considered “safe zones”. Now, he would be much more cautious when dealing with his boy. “What did you do?”

“Paper planes!” the kid squealed in delight, throwing another newly-made paper plane into the air. Jihoon forced himself to look away from the plane circling above them; he forced himself not to see that that was his FIRST finished lyric sheet for “Adore U”. This kid knew how to pull triggers to make his dad crazy, that’s for sure. Jihoon was doing his best not to freak out. He loved his little baby more than the song sheets. He kept telling himself that HE LOVED HIS KID MORE THAN THOSE SONG SHEETS THAT HE’D STAYED UP NIGHTS FOR. YEP. NOT FREAKING OUT. 

“That…that was a piece with sentimental value…” the cameras caught Jihoon’s internally-freaking-out-I-don’t-know-how-to-handle-this-mess face, picking up the sheets that he could still salvage. The cameras also panned at the safety latches that were expertly unlatched (some were even unlatched with what looked to be like bite marks and SCISSORS), and the outlet caps that were—you guessed it—uncapped. Nothing closed remained closed. It was a good thing, though, that Jihoon’s treasure chest of other composing mementos was one with a padlock. Nothing beats a good, old padlock, he thought to himself with a sigh of relief. Not even childproof crap compared to it.

NARRATOR: *Oh, no! It looks like little Yeseung has made quite a mess! And with his dad’s most precious music sheets!*

“You won’t have a problem,” they said. “Childproof,” they said. Wow. Even with quintuplets, huh? 

It took only one Lee Yeseung, Jihoon thought to himself, to unlatch three “safety” latches on his office door. Just one, bright, hyper, adorably troll-like little boy with an adorable giggle that was making his heart melt right now, wearing nothing but a T-shirt and his nappie, and holding a ripped-up song sheet entitled—OH NO. 

“LEE YESEUNG!!!”

INTERVIEW WITH LEE JIHOON, 30: 

JIHOON: (Holds his head in his hands for a few seconds before sighing deeply). He tore up my latest work. My little boy tore up my latest work. This is so…(groans and laughs at the same time) Seriously, I don’t know what to expect of my kid anymore. He just keeps doing whatever, and…it’s…(Laughs softly now.) I don’t know how my wife manages to keep him at bay. They’re together basically fifteen hours everyday, right after work, and she always manages to teach him how to do this and that without freaking out. Now I’M freaking out. That song sheet he’d ripped up had taken me hours to write, and I’ve only finished it right before I went to bed today. I don’t know if I’d still be able to salvage it. (Looks at the camera shyly and smirks.) But this is okay for the most part. Kids sometimes do this. (Laughs sheepishly at his excuse for Yeseung’s paper plane incident.) He’s probably doing payback because I called him a “hyper kid” yesterday.

Q: Will you still be able to write that song down because he ripped up that one? We know that you also have deadlines to meet. 

JIHOON: (Nods confidently.) It’s a good thing that I always put files on backup. I never write without saving data, because accidents like this could happen. But still I have to tell Yeseung (Bites back a smile) not to mess with my work again. Even though my heart just bursts when I discipline him, I really have to do it so he learns that it’s not okay to rip up sheets and make paper planes out of them. (Nods again, as if still not quite believing what happened.) Paper planes. Wow. I didn’t teach him that, but he sure knows how to make one. 

NARRATOR: *We are now entering the Lee playroom, where Jihoon-appa is going to talk to little Yeseung! What will happen here? Let’s find out!*

7:00 A.M.

A very repentant little Yeseung was escorted inside the playroom. His eyes, very much like his dad's, were now looking pleadingly at his father, who was having a very hard time keeping a stern face with his son. Because he felt like bailing out on this “scolding session”, as he liked to dub it, Jihoon avoided his son’s eyes, and the cute pleas that followed as he set two little chairs facing each other. 

“Appa,” Yeseung called out to him, his baby voice quivering along with his lip as he spoke. “I’m really, really sorry for making a mess. Appa. Appa.” 

“I know you’re sorry,” Jihoon answered, leaning down to pick Yeseung up and to set him on one chair. Then he tried to look inconspicuous and stern as he sat down on the other one, trying not to mind the cameras and the cameramen who were watching the scene with smiles on their faces. “But we still have to talk about what happened. Now, Lee Yeseung, what did you do? Why is Appa upset?”

There was silence for a while. Jihoon wondered for a few seconds if his kid even knew what was wrong about what he did. 

Then, just as he was about to give up, Yeseung, whose eyes were by this time zooming in on his train set, was scratching his head. “Um…because I made a mess?” He whispered, his lisp making the question comical. He looked at his dad questioningly. 

Jihoon, looking at Yeseung, found the expression so similar to yours whenever you would look up to him to ask a question. The similarity of the expression struck him that he couldn’t help but become benevolent towards this cute little tyke. “Exactly. What kind of mess?”

“I knew it.” Suddenly, Yeseung sniffled. His bottom lip was trembling, and Jihoon was panicking again. He was NOT allowed to cry. He had ripped up his dad’s song sheets, a vital part of his dad’s source of income! Jihoon was aghast as the little boy sobbed uncontrollably. “Did I make too many paper airplanes, Appa?” He began crying uncontrollably now. “I…I thought you would like them. Th-that w-w-was wh-why I…I made them.” Yeseung hiccupped between words, his tears streaming down his red cheeks, his eyes squeezed shut. 

This kid is MISSING THE POINT! Who cares if he makes a thousand of those? I wouldn’t care. I’d love it even. But the material he used to make them…Jihoon took a deep breath. “Don’t cry, Lee Yeseung,” Jihoon warned, an edge to his voice, like he had heard you do whenever you would scold Yeseung. “You messed up Appa’s office. What did Eomma and Appa tell you about messing up Appa’s office?”

“You…” Yeseung looked at him with eyes that mirrored hurt. “You…” Hiccup. “Don’t…” Hiccup. “Like…” Hiccup. “My…” Hiccup. “PAPER PLANES!!!” 

“No! I like them!” 

At that point. Yeseung bawled like the baby he was. “I’m…” Hiccup. “Sorry!!!” He cried again. 

“It’s true. I like them!”

You were supposed to be scolding him, Lee Jihoon, Jihoon could hear you chiding, NOT giving in the minute he cries like this. 

Of course, Jihoon knew that. But he just sat there, speechless for a few seconds before coming down on his knees and consoling his baby. He really couldn’t be upset with this one for long, hard as he might try! “Hey, I liked your paper planes,” he whispered gently, rubbing his boy’s back and scooping him up into his arms, walking to and from one side of the room to the other. “You did great! I liked them.” 

Yeseung looked up from Jihoon’s now-wet shirt where he had burrowed his face in to study his appa’s face. “Really? You…” Hiccup. “Really…” Hiccup. “Liked it…FOR REAL?” 

Jihoon nodded, relieved to see that Yeseung had stopped sobbing his hurt little heart out. “I did. But what I didn’t like about them was that you made them out of my music sheets. What did Eomma and I tell you about that?”

“I…” he sniffled. “I wasn’t supposed to tear it up like I did.” 

“But you did. Now, are you going to do that again?” 

Yeseung, bless his heart, wiped his tears and shook his head.  His eyes, now hopefully alight again, were looking at his father. “Not ever again.”

“You promise?” Jihoon looked at his little boy with a twinkle in his eye.

“I promise,” Yeseung solemnly replied. 

“That’s my boy!” Jihoon kissed him on the cheek. “How about I get the ‘I Love You’ kiss to be sure that we’re friends again?”

Yeseung’s face lit up just like that. Using his hands wetted by tears, he held his father’s face on both and kissed Jihoon on the nose to start. He began to chant this unique family ritual in his irresistibly endearing, sing-song voice. “Appa, appa, I love you!” Left cheek kiss. “I love you!” Right cheek kiss. “I love you!” Nose kiss. 

Jihoon laughed and did the same. “Yeseung, Yeseung, I love you!” Left cheek kiss. “I love you!” Right cheek kiss. “I love you!” Nose kiss.

“There!” Yeseung looked at him cheekily and patted his face, as if consoling him, as if his dad were the one who did something wrong. “We’re friends again now!” Then he burrowed his face into his dad’s shirt and said something that sounded like, “I wuv youuuu”.

Jihoon just stayed like that, as if time became suspended for him. Never had he felt these unexplainable emotions inside him right now. And, as was characteristic of him, he couldn’t say a word. This feeling, with his baby boy tucked into him so snugly, was too precious for words.

Soft laughs could be heard from the cameramen, breaking his awed reverie. He smiled shyly at one camera, and exited the room, still carrying his early-morning troublemaker.

And so father and son became reconciled after the paper plane incident, happily playing around with each other and laughing, the way they always do whenever they are together. 

INTERVIEW WITH LEE JIHOON, 30: 

JIHOON: (Smiles shyly.) I’m really happy that I got to be a part of this show. Being part of an idol group is amazing, and the companionship and the effort each of us put to make SEVENTEEN survive the challenges and achieve milestones cannot be compared to anything…but it’s true that we sometimes miss out on family life. The tours, the training, the endless engagements and other things that work requires us to do, are often at the expense of our time with our personal and family lives. I’m really thankful for shows like this, where the line between career and personal lives could be blurred for a few enjoyable days to show people that we, too, have families, and we want to spend time with them as much as we could. (Shows a picture of Yeseung.) This was taken during Yeseung’s second birthday party. He had just gotten his front teeth then, and you could see that there (points at Yeseung’s grinning mouth in the picture.)…he’s cute, isn’t he? (Laughs shyly again.) But the reason why I was showing this is because I would like to tell you that this was one of the times when I wasn’t able to make it for an important family event. It’s a good thing that my wife understands enough, loving enough, and patient enough to go on and do things even when I am not there. She has never resented me for having less time with them as I’d like. (Smiles briefly.) But here I am, and I promise myself that I will enjoy these moments with my baby.

9:00 A.M.

NARRATOR: *Little artist Yeseung is going to daycare today. Will he enjoy his day with friends today? Let’s find out!*

“THAT’S NOT A STAR!!!” 

Yeseung’s eyes started to water with tears as he looked at Eunha, his girl crush since forever, glaring at him with her tiny arms crossed around her chest. 

The daycare toddlers had been told by their teacher to draw shapes with different kinds of crayons and pencils, all neatly laid out on the tables. The kids, sitting patiently on their chairs and putting their creative minds to work, were seated three by three on each table. But the cameras were zoomed in on Lee Yeseung and Jeon Eunha’s table. They were supposed to have another classmate on their table, but a friend of theirs wasn’t able to come to daycare today. Cameramen smiled as they panned swiftly to Lee Yeseung, whose lower lip had started to tremble, a sure sign that he was about to cry. Again. 

Beautiful Jeon Eunha, Jeon Wonwoo’s bright little baby girl, dressed in a white dress and baby blue cardigan, would not stop telling Yeseung that he had made an unusual drawing of a star. Therefore, it could not be a star. 

A cameraman zoomed in on the artwork in question, and he had to agree. The huge yellow-and-orange blob in the middle of Lee Yeseung’s paper did not look like a star at first glance.

But how could we say that to such a cute little boy who looked even cuter in his navy trousers, cream-colored sweater and round-rimmed glasses? How?

“B-but it is a star,” he sobbed as he pointed at his artwork with a yellow crayon. “See? It--it even looks like it’s burning bright!”

“It’s not a star, Lee Yeseung,” Eunha insisted, her beautiful chin arched up imperiously. “Stars do not look like that!”

Yeseung cried. “Don’t fight with each other, Yeseung and Eunha,” Yoon Jae Eun wisely shouted from the other table where she was also drawing shapes with the Choi twins. “Don’t cry anymore, Lee Yeseung!”

Eunha saw that she had made Yeseung cry, and she stopped crossing her arms and sat down next to him. Embarrassed because he could not stop crying, she awkwardly patted his shoulder. 

“Don’t cry,” she softly consoled, “don’t cry.”

“No I don’t wanna cry,” Choi Seungjae sang from the other table. Soft laughter emanated from the cameremen’s different perches. Seriously, Choi Seungjae? 

NARRATOR: *Aww, the argument between Lee Yeseung and Jeon Eunha is now ending with a warm gesture from Eunha! How cute these two are!*

“I’m sorry for making you cry,” Eunha whispered, her braids swishing as she leaned close to Yeseung. Her pretty, almond-shaped eyes, which shone fiercely a few moments ago, now looked kind. And Yeseung, seeing that his friend was being nice to him again, gave Eunha a wobbly smile. 

“I can show you how to make a better star. May I?”

Yeseung nods, his eyes filled with unashamed wonder again at Eunha. 

Watching from a floor-to-ceiling window facing the tables, Jihoon and Wonwoo stood watching their kids. 

Lee Jihoon groaned and put his hand to his face. “Wow.” 

Wonwoo looked over at Jihoon and grinned. “I told you: let’s match them up.” 

“Stop that! They’re so young!” But Jihoon laughed and pressed a hand to the windowpane, his watchful eyes never leaving his son, who was now coloring with Eunha. “You’re right, though. My Yeseung likes Eunha very much.” 

Wonwoo nodded wisely, very much like his daughter. “I guess he liked her from the very moment he met Eunha.”

INTERVIEW WITH LEE JIHOON, 30:

JIHOON: (Rubs his chin thoughtfully.) When Yeseung was about two years old, my wife and I noticed that he was having a hard time trying to speak. I thought we were just both paranoid parents since he was our first baby, but when we relayed our concerns to our family doctor, he immediately referred us to a speech-language pathologist, who confirmed our fears. This pathologist told us that Yeseung had the beginning stages of a “speech sound disorder”. Yeseung checks the box on the symptoms that this disorder is known widely for: not using consonants when babbling, using mainly vowels or resorting to gestures to communicate even at age 2...we were really--how do I put  this--distraught, that our little boy could have that kind of speech impediment. But the doctor told us not to worry, and said that because we found out about Yeseung’s speech disorder earlier, we could treat it with a higher chance of success. 

(Short pause as Jihoon takes a drink.)

JIHOON: We took him to a lot of individual therapy sessions for the first few months, but there were no changes. We took less hours from work as much as we could to spend more time with him. Yeseung was a bright kid. He knew that there was something wrong and I could see that he wanted to help us make him better, but he could only do so much. 

(Looks lost in thought for a while.)

JIHOON: I remember thinking during that time, “My baby boy is about to attend daycare and then preschool--if we don’t have success in therapeutic treatment, he may have a hard time at school.” (Looks at his hands.) I remember nights when I would carry him in my arms at night, rock him to sleep, and then go to my wife, who would be crying silently. I would hold her close, too. Where words sound empty, gestures fill. (Smiles sadly.) It was a very hard time for her because the both of us had demanding jobs, and there are particularly hard days at work, which adds to the pressure of making sure that our child gets the love, care and attention that he needs. Sometimes, as a parent, you feel so inadequate because even though you love your child with all of your being, it’s...it’s not enough. And you have to learn to accept that you aren’t enough, and that you have to learn harder to wait. I learned that as we helped Yeseung overcome his speech sound disorder.

JIHOON: (Pauses for a while, then suddenly smiles.) Things took a turn for the better when Wonwoo and his family visited on a Monday. My wife was at work and I was the one with Yeseung then, because it was my day off. Wonwoo brought Eunha to Yeseung, and I could still remember Yeseung’s face (Gestures wildly with his hands, eyes smiling.), all bright and cheerful and all smiles--he only had his four front teeth, then! I remember that they played together a lot, and Wonwoo and I talked all afternoon about...dad stuff. (Laughs lightly.) Who knew, right? Who knew that we’d get to this point. We got married at about the same time, we had kids that are separated only by months--it was an amazing conversation that I still recall fondly. 

(The cameraman nods agreement at Jihoon’s comments about how fast time flies. Jihoon gives him a high-five.)

JIHOON: But what amazed me was when we ended the day and I was carrying Yeseung, as we waved goodbye to our visitors, Yeseung shouted out, “Jeon Eunha, bye-bye!” (Looks at the camera, smiling incredulously.) If anyone could have seen my face when he said those three words. He said it clearly, without any sign of the impediment he was being treated with. I tried to make him say it again, but he looked up at me and I knew that I had to wait a little longer for him to speak clearly on his own. I didn’t have to wait longer. During dinner later that night, my wife and I were surprised. He suddenly said, “Jeon Eunha. I like Jeon Eunha.”

(Wonderment from the background of the interview. Jihoon nods, smiling and then shakes his head in disbelief.)

JIHOON: (Looks at the camera again, smirking his FAMOUS SMIRK.) To everyone who is watching, yes, it’s true. Yeseung’s first clear sentence wasn’t about his parents. (Shakes his head again.) It was about how he liked Jeon Eunha.

12:00 P.M.

“LEE YESEUNG!!!” 

Jihoon’s piercing cry of alarm could be heard all around the whole daycare center. Cameras panned at him quickly, standing, distraught and in shock, as he watched his toddler tumble down the supposedly safe slide at the playroom, head first. 

As fast as his feet could carry him, Jihoon was beside his son at once. He cradled Yeseung’s head on his lap and he checked for bumps. His heart raced inside so fast he felt like he was about to faint. He recorded today in his mind: Lee Yeseung’s first slide accident. He wanted no more accidents in the future. 

“Why did you slide down like that?” he chided worriedly. He kissed Yeseung’s head over and over again and hugged his boy close to him. “You’re not allowed to slide that way again, are we clear?” When he did not get a response from the little tyke, he repeated, more firmly, “Are we clear, Lee Yeseung?”

“Hehehe.”

The gurgling giggles that only four-year-old toddlers can produce vibrated in Lee Jihoon’s chest. Surprised, he looked down at Yeseung in his arms. 

Lee Yeseung wasn’t crying. 

Lee Yeseung was laughing. 

As in bursting to the seams with laughter. 

“Lee Yeseung, I didn’t hear you reply to me. Are we clear?” Jihoon intentionally made his voice sound sterner than usual. “Are. We. Clear? Or do I have to make you face the wall like your Eomma does?” 

The little lip trembled again. Jihoon thought Yeseung was about to have another crying session, but something different happened. 

The trembling lip was a moment’s hesitation, in a toddler’s language. 

Yeseung reached up, cupped his father’s face in his small hands, and kissed him on the cheek. 

“Lee Ye--”

--another kiss on the cheek. Followed by a giggle. 

“You look funny when you’re mad, Appa,” Yeseung giggled again. “Funny, funny, funny!”

“Lee Yeseung,” Lee Jihoon groaned. Again, he received a kiss on the cheek. 

“Don’t be mad at Yeseung anymore!”

“LEE YESEEEUNNGGGG!!!”

With that, Lee Yeseung bounded away, towards the direction where Choi Seungjae’s voice came from. His playmates were calling again. 

And Lee Jihoon--while charmed and red-faced by his son’s “kiss-on-the-cheek diplomacy”--still watched worriedly. He had felt a huge bump that he knew would soon grow into a humongous one later. He knew that you would be furious the moment you see that bump on Yeseung’s forehead. 

Sighing and completely resigned to his fate as a worried dad and soon-to-be-interrogated husband, he watched as Yeseung played tag with his hyper friends.

Oops. He had to remove that word from his vocabulary. He mentally slapped his head. Yeseung doesn’t like being called hyper. Yeseung won’t like it if Jihoon described his friends as hyper, too, he knew. 

“I love my son,” he repeated over and over. “I love my son. I love my wife. This will be a great day.” 

And of course it will be!

8:00 P.M.

NARRATOR: *We are back at the Lee Residence! Looks like little Lee Yeseung is telling his mom about his day while they are playing with his Legos. Let’s look at what they are doing!* 

It was a rule in your house that Lee Yeseung will only be allowed to play with his iPad for a certain amount of hours, and with parental supervision. Nights were reserved for non-gadget games and quality time as a family. 

Which is why, after dinner, cameras slowly zoomed in on Yeseung’s bedroom, where you, Jihoon and Yeseung were all sprawled on the padded floor, helping the little one play with his Lego blocks. You, of course, had your face blurred on the cameras for privacy purposes. On his small bed, tidily decorated and loud with Toy Story designs (Woody was Yeseung’s favorite cartoon character), were Yeseung’s pajamas and socks, folded neatly and waiting to be worn by their owner when bedtime approached. 

You helped Lee Yeseung build a ship with his Lego blocks, and Lee Jihoon sat on one side, pen and paper in hand. He had been trying to salvage what he could still remember about his latest work, which had been torn apart and made into paper planes, now hanging on the ceiling above. Yeseung had insisted, and you had overruled Jihoon’s protestations. Jihoon had given in and helped you and Yeseung hang the paper planes onto the ceiling with different colored strings. 

“Eunha and I had a fight,” Yeseung dutifully reported to you as he skilfully attached a Lego to complete the hull of the ship.

“Aww. Now that’s a story I haven’t heard about.” you said consolingly at your son before turning to Jihoon, whispering fiercely, “Was this before or after our baby got a bump on his head?”

Jihoon stopped writing. “Ouch. That hurts. I was watching him all the time when he slid the wrong way, love!”

You made faces at Jihoon and turned back to Yeseung. The ship was almost completed. “Why did you have a fight?”

“She told me that my star did not look like a star.” Yeseung’s face twisted again when he mentioned what happened, but he did not cry. “But it was a star, Eommai! I even made it burn brightly.”

You were taken by surprise at the reason for the fight and decided to be gentle. “Well...we learned about what stars look like, right? Remember? You and Eomma made stars together?”

Yeseung nodded and looked up at you with sad eyes. “I remember.”

“So…” you purse your lips. “What did your star look like?” 

Yeseung immediately got up and skipped to his small drawing table, where he picked up a piece of paper. “Here, Eomma! And I promise you, it’s really a star!”

You looked at the blob of yellow on the paper and could not speak for a moment. Ah. Maybe they were learning about shapes earlier, and to everyone in the classroom, this did not look like a star shape. But you knew how Yeseung was thinking. You glanced at your son appreciatively, smiling at him.

“It is a star,” you confirmed, and Yeseung beamed at you. 

By nine o’clock, after tucking Yeseung in to sleep, cameras were still trained on you and Jihoon, sitting next to your toddler’s bed. 

Jihoon cleared his throat. “So...is it really a star?”

You looked at Jihoon quickly and laughed softly. Then you reached for Yeseung’s iPad on the bedside table where you were leaning. 

“See for yourself.”

You opened the iPad and showed Jihoon a recent video that Yeseung had just watched. It was about the solar system and the stars. 

No stars shown on the video looked five-pointed. All stars shown were balls of fire, burning brightly. 

“Eunha was right when she showed Yeseung how to draw the star shape that we use in art,” you said softly, closing the iPad, “but Yeseung was thinking differently. He was picturing a real star. He knew what they really looked like and he wanted to draw it well.” 

“Hence the blob.” Jihoon was holding Yeseung’s artwork. “He’s a genius.

You laughed again. “Yes. Hence the blob of burning yellow.”

You both laughed, and watched Yeseung’s deep breaths. Then you turned off the lamp. “Let’s go. He’s asleep.”

“Remind me to get padlocks for my office.”

You laughed again.

Cameras panned away from Yeseung’s room as you and Jihoon retreated to your bedroom. But, faintly, just before the scene was completed, Jihoon was heard speaking in low tones.

“Remember those thirty nights we spent together, love?”

“Shhhh! Lee Jihoon!”

Mercifully, the scene had already been completed. Lee Jihoon’s teasing laugh and your noises of protest went unrecorded and your bedroom door closed.

So there ended another night at the Lee residence. 

3:04 A.M.

Or so we thought. 

The soft patter of footsteps and a little figure in pajamas could be heard quietly sneaking into a forbidden part of the house. 

Click. 

“Let’s make boats for Eomma,” a voice sang in the dark. 

An automatic light came on in the forbidden room, followed by the sound of paper being ripped. Rip, rip, rip. And singing! But you and Jihoon did not hear all the commotion happening. The cameras, though, recorded the sneaky action.

You better hope that ripping sound is not coming out of your books…

…because Lee Yeseung is about to make you a lot of boats.

EPISODES | Ep. 1 | Ep. 2 | after-party |  Ep. 3 | only us | Ep. 4 | afterglow

- Admin Leanne

[hushnow-hun]

light up my world

For shinkamiweek2020. Day 1: soulmates.

Ao3: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25240696

---

In all the years he’s lived, Shinsou’s life stays pretty much the same. Same apartment, same appearance, same circle of friends (if he counts the people Midoriya has him tag along with when he drags Shinsou with him to night-outs).

It’s not a big deal. He’s made a routine and he’s sticking to it. There’s comfort, he finds, in going through the same motions, in knowing how the day ends when he gets out of bed first thing in the morning. It’s cool.

Alright, so maybe he wants a little more. Maybe he lies awake at night sometimes, with nothing but the dull, whitish light creeping in from his window for company, and thinks about just how empty his apartment really is. Thinks that it wouldn’t be so bad having someone with him, someone to come home to at the end of the day.

A soulmate. He’s talking about a soulmate. His soulmate.

God.

It’s not like he doesn’t believe in it. He totally does— he’s seen it happen a dozen times now. Two people touch (even if it’s just the barest graze of hand against skin), and then that pause of awe and shock, that caught breath, that quiet gasp. They say it’s like your whole world just lights up, the colors seeping into everything like paint onto canvas.

It sounds so wonderful, but Shinsou’s not sure if it’s for him.

It’s like— how can he explain it? He doesn’t think he’s ready for it. Doesn’t think he’ll ever be, if truth be told. Having a soulmate is one thing but being with them is another, and Shinsou doesn’t want to fuck it up. He doesn’t want to face disappointment, or worse, fear. He doesn’t want to be the reason why his supposed other half wouldn’t want to be with him.

So it’s fine. He keeps to himself, tries to keep the touching to a minimum. He throws himself into his routine and tries to make the best of things. Same old, same old.

-

For the most part, it’s still dark out, but that doesn’t bother him. Shinsou knows this trail like the back of his hands. Usually, the only people he’d encounter on his morning run are other joggers, plus that one old man a few blocks down who always waters his plants first thing.

This time though there’s a boy in the park. He’s out there in the field all by himself playing, of all things, baseball. Why someone would think it’s a good idea to play baseball by themselves before the sun’s even come up is beyond Shinsou, but he’s not here to judge.

He tries to keep his staring inconspicuous as he jogs steadily past the boy, and watches quietly as he sent the ball sailing into the net. There isn’t much force behind it, but it’s not like he’s playing a real game anyway.

Shaking his head, Shinsou focuses once more on the path before him, on the familiar rhythm of feet pounding against dirt. The air is cool against his skin, and Shinsou breathes it in deeply, the scent of trees and local flora soothing him down to the bone.

He had felt particularly restless when he woke up this morning for no reason at all. Eventually, he grew tired of turning and shifting in his sheets and decided to start the day a little earlier than usual. It was a good call. Just being out here by himself has already washed out the pent-up ener—

Something blunt hits him right in the back of his head and Shinsou, caught off guard, stumbles over a tree root and hits the ground with an emphatic, “Fuck!”

He stays sprawled there, feeling the dull, barely-there ache in his head and a stinging on his right palm. For a second, he tries to think whether or not he was being mugged, when a baseball rolls innocuously into view.

Sighing his heaviest sigh today (and it’s not even 6:00 yet) he turns to see Baseball Guy stumbling out of the shrubs, looking panicked. When he sees Shinsou on the ground, his face falls even more.

“I— shit, I’m so sorry. Are you okay?” He reaches out with a hand, but Shinsou waves him off, moving into a sitting position.

“I’m fine,” he mumbles, keeping his eyes on the ground. After checking that his earphones were fine, he pockets them and looks up at Baseball Guy, who had not calmed down in the slightest.

“Are you sure? I really am so sorry! I didn’t think I’d hit it that hard. And I don’t know how it just veered off course like that!”

Shinsou was about to say something biting about his clearly abysmal aiming when he actually got a good look at Baseball Guy. He’s hunched over Shinsou, his light-colored hair hanging over brows pulled into a worried frown, pulling at his lip with his teeth. His hand, still hanging hesitantly between them, twitches like he wants to help Shinsou up, or maybe to touch the spot where the ball hit his head.

He’s, dare he say, kinda cute.

Slowly, Shinsou reaches behind him to feel his head. There’s still that dull ache, but that’s all it is. Nonetheless, Shinsou makes a big show of wincing.

“Well,” he says lowly, moving his hand down to rub the back of his neck. “That was a solid hit. Good to know you can play.” His lips quirk when the guy drops fully down to his level, looking even more frantic.

“Oh god, you— you don’t have a concussion, do you?”

Baseball Guy just looks so worried. Shinsou has to bite the inside of his cheek to keep the smile off his face. If he works it up a little, he could get this guy to buy him coffee, he muses. And then froze, because his brain was suddenly bombarding him with, Date? Like a date? Coffee for a date?

(It’s really not. Nope nope nope nope. No.)

(No!)

Suddenly thrown off-balance by his own train of thought, Shinsou just nods absently at whatever Baseball Guy was saying. It wasn’t until the boy leaned closer and held his hands out towards Shinsou’s head expectantly that he realized what was being asked.

“Er,” he says, but when he saw the guy hesitate, Shinsou curses himself and tilts his head down obligingly, determined to get this over with. Baseball Guy was wearing a plain black t-shirt, not too fit nor too loose, and Shinsou tries not to think about how close he was to his chest. The guy sifts his fingers into Shinsou’s hair with surprising gentleness, prodding at the spot where the dull ache is. Damn my traitor brain, Shinsou thinks as he wills a blush to disappear. Forget the coffee not-date because he is gonna book it out of here once Baseball Guy is done.

But he’s been still and quiet for a while now.

“Shit,” Shinsou mumbles. ”Don’t tell me it’s bleeding.” He looks up and sucks in a sharp breath.

Because there are colors. Everywhere, the black and white and washed-out gray fading away slowly.

And his soulmate. He looks exactly how Shinsou feels, his jaw slack with awe and disbelief as he stares at the sun peeking out over the roofs, the day’s colors starting to spread across the sky.

His soulmate’s hair looks a lot like the sun, but… brighter somehow, even in the pale morning light. Bright and vibrant and alive, like his eyes, like the flush in his cheeks.

“Shit,” Shinsou breathes out, his chest tight. It feels too much even though it’s not. He can’t imagine ever getting enough of this.

The boy’s gaze snaps back to him, like he’s suddenly remembered he was there, and Shinsou just stares back with wide eyes, feeling caught. He can’t put a name to the emotions flitting so rapidly across his soulmate’s face, even if his life depends on it.

“I…” The guy trailed off. The smallest hum of electricity skids across his bare arm, crackling—his quirk, Shinsou realizes. His soulmate runs a hand over it almost absentmindedly and doesn’t stop looking at Shinsou, his lips parted a fraction. Shinsou swallows, and his bright eyes follow the movement.

His jolts suddenly, startling both of them. “Oh god, I just hit you. I just hit my soulmate with a baseball to the head.”

Before Shinsou could react, his soulmate takes his head in his hands and tilts it down, raising himself up on his knees to take a better look at it. He was already rambling. “I— no, I think you’re good? You’re not bleeding or anything. I don’t even feel any swelling. Gah, this is just so embarrassing,” he added the last bit under his breath.

He let go of his head only to grab Shinsou by the shoulders, looking him dead in the eye. “Does it still hurt? Sorry, I’m not really good at this kind of stuff. Do you want to get it checked out or something?”

Shinsou stared wide-eyed at his soulmate, who was looking back at him with such an earnest and worried—and nervous—expression. He couldn’t help it. He laughed, something light settling into his chest and filling him with sudden exhiliration.

When the guy’s eyebrows shot up, Shinsou rushed to clarify, grabbing the hand still placed on his shoulder. He gave it a small squeeze. “I feel fine. It doesn’t even hurt that much,” he admitted.

But this only made his soulmate frown more. “But you looked in pain earlier.”

“That’s… I… was just teasing you?”

The guy blinks and huffs out a startled laugh, throwing his head back. Shinsou eased back on his sitting position and just gazed at him, at the way the early morning light played on his features, drawing Shinsou in even more. My soulmate, he thinks, half giddily and half still in disbelief. The feeling in his chest hasn’t gone away.

The guy releases a breath and stares back at him. “My name’s Denki. Kaminari Denki, but feel free to call me Denki,” he says, a crooked grin in place.

Shinsou could feel his own lips tug into a smile. “Shinsou Hitoshi, but feel free to call me Hitoshi.”

“Hitoshi,” Denki whispers, sounding out the name. He grins.

Denki stands up and brushes himself off, offering a hand and pulling Shinsou to his feet. He lets go after a second too long. “You know, this didn’t go how I thought it would,” he admits, rubbing the back of his neck.

“No?” Shinsou says, amused.

Denki shakes his head softly. “Nah.” He spots something on top of Shinsou’s head and, as he makes to reach towards him again, he hesitates. “You have a…” He gestures to his own hair.

Shinsou tilts his head down just a bit (he’s taller by a few inches) and Denki plucks a leaf from it. “How’d that get there?” Shinsou mumbles, still looking at Denki.

As he tosses the leaf away with a flick of the wrist, Denki says, in his best casual tone, “I feel like I should make it up to you. You know, for the terrible first impression.”

“What about the almost head injury?” Shinsou raises a brow.

Denki scoffs. “Thought you said you were fine.” He punches him in the shoulder jokingly. When Shinsou raises the same brow again, he flushed and ducked his head away, mumbling something under his breath.

“So I was thinking,” he began, rubbing his neck. “My place is nearby. You could come over and I could patch that up.” He nods at Shinsou’s hand. He’d almost forgotten the scrape he’d gotten earlier when he fell. “Plus, I could cook us both breakfast. I’ll make the Kaminari Denki special! What do you say?”

Shinsou hums and pretends to think on it just to watch Denki squirm. “I don’t know,” he drawled. “Is there a chaperone?”

Denki’s eyes goes wide. “No! I mean, my roommate should be there, yeah, but that’s not what I meant! I just— I thought I could maybe make you breakfast as an apology, or something,” he stammers.

“Or something?” Shinsou repeats, his smile broadening.

Denki hides his face in his hands. “Oh my god.”

Shinsou laughs. “Relax, Denki. I’m kidding,” he says, enjoying the blush spreading to the tips of the bright-haired boy’s ears. “Yeah,” he adds softly. “Yes, I’ll go.”

Denki’s answering grin is bright and fills him head to toe with warmth. “Great!”

The sun has risen higher in the span of time they spent standing there in the middle of a dirt trail. Shinsou could see so much more colors now and it only feels a tad bit disorienting. Mostly he’s still drunk on happiness and exhilaration, and he laps up the way the light shines on all the new colors. But even more so, he can’t keep his eyes away from Denki too long, who was now pulling him along and asking what he wanted for breakfast and talking about his disaster-riddled, self-taught journey on learning to cook.

The sunlight looks better on him than on anything else.

[et-lesailes]

missing linc // chapter one

pairing: ceo!steve x reader

word count: 2670

series summary:  you are a college student working at a daycare full time during your summer break, and you have grown especially fond of one of the toddlers in your class, lincoln rogers. you are certainly not expecting to develop such a huge crush on his dad steve when you meet him for the first time, but you can’t help but be attracted to the businessman– despite the fact that he’s married. however, as intelligent and mature as steve comes across, he has a few secrets behind his marriage- one in particular he may never be able to make up for.

series themes: romance, drama, age gap, infidelity, smut in later chapters

chapter summary: reader meets steve rogers for the first time.

taglist: @viarogers , @evanstush , @chibi-crazy , @chalamet-evans , @world-of-losers , @songforhema, @sebabestianstan101 , @tanyam93 , @bval-1, @wonderwinchester , @little-miss-exo, @poerebel , @pining-and-tired , @gogomez-509 , @patzammit, @a-distantdreamer, @malthestorytellerblog, @rainbowkisses31, @jbug491writinghelp, @quaiderade, @melannie77, @gigistorm, @lille-kattunge, @teller258316, @rohaintahquil, @deidrashouseofpain, @firstangeldragonranch, @peach-acid, @allsortsofinterests, @xoxabs88xox, @honeyloverogers, @capsiclesdoll, @qrndevans, @mcueveryday, @drkstrangeson

note: tbh this is inspired from my real life job at a daycare except the only difference is that nothing has happened yet from my crush on a hot dad but heY who knows what the future holds!!! 

** please send an ask if you would like to be added to the taglist! also shoutout to @thewritingdoll for the graphic!

You exhaled loudly as you finally got a moment to relax, one of the program support staff of the daycare currently covering for you so you could go to the bathroom. 

You absolutely loved working with kids and were striving to be in the field of developmental psychology one day-- but for now, while you were still working on your bachelor’s degree, working at a daycare where you could at least observe and work with kids and their development would have to do. You loved every second of it, but it was certainly exhausting taking care of eighteen toddlers. Thankfully, you had the help of other toddler teachers; there was no way you could have done it yourself.

You had only just recently switched to working full days; now that it was summer vacation, you could work from 9 to 6 as a closer rather than only going for a few hours here and there before or after your classes. It was your third day of working full time, and while it was a lot, you were still happy with the job. 

You felt especially attached to one of your toddlers. Lincoln Rogers, or more commonly referred to as Linc, was a bright, happy, and cheeky boy, and although he had his naughty moments, he just had so much personality you could not help but be in love. He seemed to be especially fond of you too, constantly following you around, liking to cling to you, and even crying when you left for your lunch break.

He had blonde hair, shining blue eyes, and was quite big for being only eighteen months old; he practically looked like a two-year-old already, what with his head full of hair and his adorable clothes. He often wore cute little polos and colored shorts or cool, dark “jeans”, only of course, made more comfortable than actual denim in order to better suit a child. 

You had only ever seen his mother, Tiana, drop him off and pick him up, and based on her appearance, it seemed like the boy had inherited a majority of his looks from his father. She had chestnut brown hair and matching eyes, and was on the more petite side compared to her son who was probably in the 95th percentile for his height. She seemed nice enough, always polite with you and thanking you for taking care of him, but you could see that she always seemed so tired, so stressed. Was it work? Personal problems? Did it have to do with why Dad was never picking up? For obvious reasons, you could not ask these things, but being so attached to Linc, you wish you knew just to satisfy your intrusive curiosity. 

It had been about a week into your new schedule when you would finally meet Dad, and the day of, before you even knew anything about it, the staff was absolutely buzzing. When your co-teacher, Stephanie, walked into the room that morning wearing a slightly low cut shirt, you glanced at her chest before looking to her, eyebrow raised in amusement. “What?” she asked defensively, giggling. “Yesterday at pick up, Linc’s mom said that Dad is dropping off this morning. I know you haven’t met this man yet, but trust me, he is gorgeous.” You were immediately intrigued. Not because of his apparent good looks (okay, maybe slightly because of his apparent good looks), but because you would finally be able to place a face to the father figure in Linc’s life, the little boy who you practically saw as your own baby. In as non-creepy of a way as possible. “What’s he like?” you asked curiously, simultaneously keeping your eye on the few children in the room that had been dropped off early. “He’s only a literal God,” another teacher scoffed as she walked in, having overheard your question. “We are talking about Steve, right?”

“Brittany, you’re not even a toddler teacher,” you said to her with an amused laugh, arching an eyebrow. “What are you doing in this room and why are you on a first name basis with his dad?” 

“Leanna is with the preschoolers, I don’t need to be there too!” she defended herself playfully before fanning herself in an exaggerated lustful gesture. “Before you worked here, I would help out in the toddler room sometimes. I only knew Tiana then, but she asked if I could babysit this one time. When I went over, I met Steve- they were both getting ready to go on a date or something. And Y/N, let me tell you,” she paused, letting out a whistle, “this man is beautiful. Linc’s a little replica of him- the blond hair, blue eyes, and he’s so tall. Probably slightly over six feet.” You listened in awe, cocking your head. “How come he never usually drops him off or picks him up?”

“He’s a CEO,” Stephanie answered, sighing dreamily. “So as you can imagine, he’s pretty busy. Meetings, calls, traveling all the time-- I guess he happens to be in town now. And you can bet he’s going to walk in here in a suit and tie, one that probably costs more than all my past paychecks put together.” 

You looked down at your own outfit, consisting of a tee from the college you attended and leggings. Because it was a daycare job, it was not really necessary to dress up considering you had babies spitting up on you or smearing dirt on you when they went in for hugs. Still, you found yourself suddenly feeling a little self-conscious, even though you knew that was ridiculous. “He travels a lot?” you asked, trying to distract yourself from your simple wardrobe. “So I guess Linc doesn’t get to see him too often, then?” Such a thought seemed sad. 

“Oh, no. That man loves his son way too much. Even if he’s all the way in London or Tokyo, he flies back for the weekend just to be able to see his family. Even though Linc doesn’t see him as much as Mom, you should see the bond they have.” Brittany sighed, shaking her head adoringly. “God, it’s so hot when a man knows how to be a father.” 

“I need him to be my daddy,” Stephanie commented, and you laughed loudly, playfully nudging her. “There are innocent children in here, would you chill?” She laughed too, going over to scoop one of the girls up, bouncing her and making her laugh. “It’s okay, they don’t understand yet!” 

You were about to ask Brittany what Steve’s relationship with Tiana was like, just out of curiosity, but then another parent came in the classroom. Turning to greet him and his son, you couldn’t help but feel impatient and excited, wanting to finally be able to meet Linc’s dad.

It was nearly 10:15 AM and still no sign of Linc; all the kids were generally dropped off by 9:30, considering that most parents had to go straight to work after, and you wondered if he would be coming at all today seeing that he was normally there before you even came in for your shift.

You were standing by the baby slide outside, supervising the kids playing on it when the door to the playground opened. As you looked up to see who it was, your breath was practically taken away. 

He was just as Brittany described. Tall, blond, piercing eyes-- you could not see them up close just yet, but they already looked pretty. He was carrying Linc in one arm and you could see the shocking resemblance between the two, their facial features practically identical let alone the hair and eyes. Linc was generally a pretty happy child, but he looked even more ecstatic now, practically glowing as he bounced around in his father’s hold. You were incredibly confused at how such a scene could be so painstakingly adorable and so sinfully sexy at the same time. Brittany was right, a man who could be a father was hot, and his looks definitely helped too. Stephanie had also been correct; he was adorned in a very expensive looking suit, matched with a blue tie that complemented his pacific hues. 

“Hi, Steve!” Stephanie greeted, and you watched her come over to him with a wide smile on her face. “Hey there, Linc! Look at you, you happy little man! Are you happy that Daddy’s back in town?” You chuckled as you watched; she was not being over-the-top simply for Steve, she was always this happy and playful around the children and you respected her for not letting this bizarrely gorgeous man disrupt that. “Hey there, Miss Stephanie.” Steve greeted in return, and you bit your lip from hearing his deep voice, wondering if this man had any flaws. “Sorry we’re late. I took the morning off today to spend some quality time with the little man. I should have let you guys know,” he apologized, eyes now scanning for the other teacher, then blinked as he saw you. “Oh, hi there. Are you new?” he asked with a charming smile, and you forced yourself to get it together.

“Yes, hi!” You walked over, though still making sure the children were in your periphery. “I’m Miss Y/N, I’ve actually been working part time here for a while but I just recently switched to full time.” You explained, then smiled as you reached out to playfully poke Linc’s cheek. “And I absolutely love this little guy! He’s such a sweetheart.”

Linc immediately giggled upon seeing you, suddenly reaching his arms out towards you. Steve blinked before chuckling intrigued, cocking his head. “Wow. I rarely see him do that with anyone. You already ready to leave Daddy for Miss Y/N, huh, tiger?” he asked him playfully, mocking offense. He handed him to you, handsome smile still gracing his lips. “He must really like you. Though I’m not surprised, he always likes the pretty girls.” 

He said it so casually, your shocked brain could not even fully process that it was a flirtation-- he was already looking back towards Stephanie as if his comment was a perfectly natural thing to say in conversation with someone he had just met. “I’ll come pick him up too, I’ll probably be here around 5:30.” Looking back at you and him, he smiled and leaned down, kissing his son’s head. He was so close you could smell his cologne, even his minty breath. “I love you,” he spoke in a deep rumble, and your heart practically sighed. “Be good, kiddo. Don’t drive these ladies too crazy.” He straightened up again before winking at you, then turned around to head back inside. 

You were standing there still in shock, but when you heard a whimper slowly sound from Linc’s throat upon seeing his father was gone, you snapped back to reality. “Shhh,” you comforted him, running your fingers through his blonde locks. “He said he’s coming to pick you up tonight! You’ll see him before you know it, okay?” The little boy sniffled and buried his face in your neck, hugging you tightly. 

“Um, so, is he like that with everyone?” you asked Stephanie in reference to Steve, turning to her still a little bit in disbelief over what had just happened. She even looked shocked herself, scoffing amused. “Uh, no? I’ve never seen him flirt like that. Ugh, you’re so lucky.” You blinked and cocked your head. “Doesn’t he have a wife, though…? I mean, he and Tiana are married, right?” Stephanie nodded but made a slight face as if to indicate it was a bit more complicated than that. “I don’t know anything for sure, obviously, but something definitely seems off about that relationship. The only time I’ve seen them together was for Linc’s enrollment meeting, and… they didn’t really seem like they were vibing, you know? It wasn’t like they were arguing or upset with each other, it just seemed like they barely even knew or wanted to know each other. It was so weird, I had never seen a couple like that before.” She shook her head, continuing as she leaned over to pull a rock out of a kid's hand before he could eat it, “I mean, how could you not want to know that man? He’s practically an angel.” 

You frowned thoughtfully. “Brittany said they had been getting ready to go on a date though, that one time she babysat. Maybe it had just been an off day for them when you saw them?” She shrugged her shoulders, though still looked uncertain. “I don’t know. After what I saw, it’s hard to imagine them even eating dinner in the same house. But who knows.” Stepping forward, she stroked Linc’s hair too, playfully poking at his hip to tickle him slightly. “What I do know, though, is that they definitely make cute babies!” 

You smiled and nodded in agreement, deciding to drop the subject. It wasn’t any of your business anyways, the gossip simply kept you and your coworkers entertained through the hours of singing children's songs and chasing around hyperactive toddlers all day. Still, you could not help but think of that damn smile and wink for the rest of the day, even blushing like a little schoolgirl upon remembering Steve calling you pretty. As a twenty year old, you were more used to being called cute if anything at all, and so the compliment coming from a grown man (and a very attractive one at that) meant all the more. 

[saradianne14]

To My Precious Triangle:

I saw a member in the a3 discord server I’m in post this about Juza, so I decided it would be fun to answer these as well! Also thought it would show you all why I love Misumi so much haha.    

1) First things first: who is your comfort character, and where are they from?:

Misumi Ikaruga from a3!

2) How did you meet your comfort character?:

He was introduced in chapter 2 of the first act in A3! He was hiding in one of the rooms in Mankai and the manager thought he was a ghost that haunted that room. It was a funny introduction lol. 

3) What drew you to your comfort character, and why do you love them?:

I was first drawn in by his carefree and upbeat personality! We didn’t get much of his backstory in the second chapter, but I already really liked his character. I guess you can say that I was drawn by his love of triangles as well because I’ve never met a character like him. I didn’t understand his love for triangles in the beginning, but I thought it was pretty cool and cute to be honest. I didn’t judge! Aside from his love for triangles, he has such a pure heart. He is super sweet and you can see how much he cares for his friends! For him, triangles are something that are so precious to him and he doesn’t hesitate to give them away to his friends if he thinks it will make them feel better/happy. Despite his backstory of always being an outcast to his family and losing his grandpa, he continues to smile and always tries to bring a smile to those around him. Although his love of triangles may seem weird to other people, he stays true to himself, it seems like he doesn’t care or feel ashamed about his quirks, I really admire that. 

I can go on and on, but I should probably stop right now lol.   

4) Do you selfship with your comfort character/do any other kind of selfinsert with them?:

Yes I do lol. Like I know A3! is not in any way an otome game, but it my head I ship us together. As much as I like the Misukazu ship, I’m sorry Kazunari but I’m going to have to fight you for him lol. 

5) Share some headcanons you have for your comfort character!:

- His photo gallery on his phone is filled with pictures of things and places that are triangle shaped. I also think he has photoshoots with Sankaku-kun, either with himself included or of just Sankaku-kun himself haha.  

- I have a feeling that Misumi doesn’t really use social media much, like using instablam etc. It doesn’t seem like he would be the type to be glued to his phone, like me and everyone else. 

- I also feel like he’d be the type of person to surprise you every now and then with things he knows you like. Like say, buying you your favorite drink, chips or candy etc. 

6) Has your comfort character helped you to learn anything, or realise something about yourself?:

Hmm I believe Misumi has just reminded me to accept and love myself, and be happy with being who I am. Yes I watch anime, yes I play otome games, yes I simp for anime boys, and yes I self ship myself with Misumi (I know they aren’t real), so what? People that I know and my family know that, and yeah they call me weird, but I don’t let that get to me anymore. If the things I like and my hobbies make me happy, I shouldn’t stop just because someone tells me it’s “weird” or that “I’m too old”.    

7) What do you and your comfort character have in common?:

Now that I think about it, I don’t know if we even have many things in common lol. He is extroverted and more carefree than I am. I’m an such an introvert. I guess I can say that we both are the friendly type. We both are independent. We both care very much for the people that are important to us and will try to help in any way. Just like how he always tries to cheer people up when they seem down, that is something that I do as well. Oh wait, does this count: we both wear triangle shaped earrings lol?

8) In what ways are you and your comfort character different?:

Misumi is very outgoing. Compared to me I am such a shy person. He seems like the person to start conversations with strangers, I’m way too shy for that. I’m socially awkward too. All I can do is like people’s post/follow people and hopefully they get the hint that I want to be moots LOL. I’m not as athletic as he is. He can do parkour, climb walls/roofs, and do flips, as for me I lack physical strength so I don’t know how to do those things. Compared to him, I am super out of shape (which I am because I haven’t exercised in like years, oops). I’m short compared to him. Oh yeah, I can’t talk to animals like he does lol.     

9) What's your favourite thing(s) about your comfort character?:

My favorite things? EVERYTHING! I love everything about him. He is such a cheerful person that he can always puts a smile on my face, whether its just by reading the dialogue or hearing the voice actor talk. (By the way, I love his voce actor, love the way he brings Misumi to life! Oh and don’t get me started on his voice range, it’s crazy!) But yeah, Misumi is just super sweet and bubbly. He’s really one of a kind. 

10) What do you associate with your comfort character? songs, colors, foods, places - anything!:

- Hmm well I mean anything that is shaped as a triangle. Thanks to him, now I’m starting to notice triangular objects around me and pointing them out lol. 

- The color Yellow and Orange because he has such a bright personality and is like a ray of sunshine when he’s on screen. Plus that’s also the color of his eyes. 

- The song “Triangle” by Otonomiya Saku from the anime Actors Song Connection. I remember I heard the song and was like hmm I think Misumi would definitely like this song because the title of it is “triangle” haha. 

11) Share your favourite picture(s) of your comfort character!:

https://yaycupcake.com/a3/index.php?title=File:2019-04-06_Guy_Blog.png#/media/File:2019-04-06_Guy_Blog.png

https://yaycupcake.com/a3/index.php?title=File:2020-10-07_Hisoka_Blog.png#/media/File:2020-10-07_Hisoka_Blog.png

https://yaycupcake.com/a3/index.php?title=File:(Twilight_is_the_Color_of_Time)_Misumi_Comedy_SSR%2B_Transparent.png#/media/File:(Twilight_is_the_Color_of_Time)_Misumi_Comedy_SSR%2B_Transparent.png

https://yaycupcake.com/a3/index.php?title=File:(Mid-Autumn_Black_Rabbit)_Misumi_Action_SSR%2B_Transparent.png#/media/File:(Mid-Autumn_Black_Rabbit)_Misumi_Action_SSR%2B_Transparent.png (This one is my phone background lol)

https://yaycupcake.com/a3/index.php?title=File:(Guiding_Angel)_Misumi_Comedy_R%2B_Transparent.png#/media/File:(Guiding_Angel)_Misumi_Comedy_R%2B_Transparent.png

https://yaycupcake.com/a3/index.php?title=File:(The_March_Of_Deads)_Misumi_Serious_SSR%2B_Transparent.png#/media/File:(The_March_Of_Deads)_Misumi_Serious_SSR%2B_Transparent.png

https://yaycupcake.com/a3/index.php?title=File:(Sibyl%27s_Blind_Spots)_Misumi_Action_SSR%2B_Transparent.png#/media/File:(Sibyl%27s_Blind_Spots)_Misumi_Action_SSR%2B_Transparent.png

https://yaycupcake.com/a3/index.php?title=File:(Prodigy_Top_Dancer)_Misumi_Comedy_SSR%2B_Transparent.png#/media/File:(Prodigy_Top_Dancer)_Misumi_Comedy_SSR%2B_Transparent.png

https://yaycupcake.com/a3/index.php?title=File:(MANKAI_Glitter)_Misumi_Action_SSR%2B_Transparent.png#/media/File:(MANKAI_Glitter)_Misumi_Action_SSR%2B_Transparent.png

https://yaycupcake.com/a3/index.php?title=File:(Boys_of_Summer)_Misumi_Serious_SSR%2B_Transparent.png#/media/File:(Boys_of_Summer)_Misumi_Serious_SSR%2B_Transparent.png

https://yaycupcake.com/a3/index.php?title=File:(Exhilarating_Back_Shot)_Misumi_Serious_SR%2B_Transparent.png#/media/File:(Exhilarating_Back_Shot)_Misumi_Serious_SR%2B_Transparent.png

OKAY I’LL STOP NOW

12) Share your favourite quote(s) from your comfort character!:

“I did it Gramps. I was able to find my three treasures. They’re triangles, acting, and my friends. Together, they’re what make my perfect, perfect triangle” 

“I’m giving you my triangle, so don’t cry”

“I'll give you a triangle, will you let me hug you tight?“

“And now it’s time for the triangle song! ~Tri-an-gle!~Tri-an-gle~!

(There’s more, I just don’t know if I remember them word for word, so I don’t want to write them wrong)

13) Describe your comfort character in three words:

My Precious Triangle

14) What do you think your comfort character would smell like?

Uhhhh I have no idea. I never thought of it. But I’m sure it is like a subtle warm summery type of smell? I don’t know haha.     

15) What's the most precious memory you have involving your comfort character?:

My most precious memory? Hmm I guess I would have to go with seeing Misumi animated for the first time in the A3! anime. I loved seeing him in the game and hearing his voice of course, but it was just so awesome to finally see him actually talking AND moving lol. Like I was finally able to see his parkour skills and his quirkiness with my own eyes instead of just picturing it in my head. 

16) Imagine it's your comfort character's birthday. what would you give them as a gift?:

What wouldn’t I give him?? Haha. I feel like I’d go all out for his birthday. Cause that’s just how I am. I believe Misumi would love anything you’d give him to be honest, even if it’s something small. I would buy him a bunch of triangle objects. So I’d have options of buying him like shirts or hoodies that have triangles on them, accessories he could wear like a necklace or bracelet, plushies/pillows, and/or just triangle objects that he would be able to put in his room. I feel like I would take him out to have a picnic at the park and I would also cook his favorite food, which is of course onigiri! And bring other triangle shaped foods. After that I’d go with him to go hunting for triangles, even though I’d do that even if it wasn’t his birthday, but I think he would like it. I definitely would throw him a party and have all of his friends and brother there cause I’m sure he’d be happy to spend his day with his loved ones!           

17) Imagine you and your comfort character going to the beach together. what would you do?:

I can definitely see us building sandcastles, swimming, looking for seashells (and triangles), playing beach soccer or volleyball (okay, maybe soccer because I know how to play, I’m not so good at volleyball), eat onigiris of course lmao, take a walk along the beach at night and/or have a bonfire, oh and light fireworks at the end cause I know he likes that!  

18) Imagine living together with your comfort character. where would you live? what would your daily lives be like?:

I feel like any place would be good for Misumi, as long as the roof is a triangle shape lol. In one of his backstage stories he talked about how one day he wants to build a house with a nice big beautiful triangle roof, triangles painted on the wall, triangle windows, triangle doors, and just fill up the whole house with triangles. So yeah I feel like our place, either a house or an apartment, would be decorated with a lot of triangles. And you know, I’d be totally okay with that... as long as everything is organized that is lol. I also think we’d own a cat. As for what would our daily lives be like? He’s always energetic, cheerful and radiates positivity to those around him. So I feel like there would never be a dull moment living with him.      

19) If you're having a bad day, what would your comfort character say, or how would they help?:

He would give me one of his triangles and give me a big hug, maybe some head pats. I know he would try his best to make me feel better no matter what.   

20) Your comfort character is trying to prepare your favorite meal for you. do they succeed? does it taste good?:

Hmm I feel like he would succeed. It says in the story that he knows how to make onigiri, so he may know how to cook right??. I know for a fact that he would try his best to learn how to make my favorite food. He may either find a recipe and cook it himself, or he’d ask Omi for some help!  

21) Imagine you and your comfort character dancing together. what do you dance to? how good are you at it?:

Misumi is athletic. This boy is good at a lot of things. And he apparently knows how to dance too! (Have you seen his dancing in the play +3 Ghosts). I feel like there would be lots of turns/twirling your partner!. I don’t know if I see Misumi dancing to slow music, so I think we’d dance to more upbeat music. I feel like our dancing would be all over the place and just doing whatever to be honest haha, but we wouldn’t care because we’d be having fun. Like in my head, if I were to invite Misumi to a quincañera, I think he’d have a great time dancing. Ohh imagine him dancing to “Payaso de Rodeo” by Caballo Dorado, I think he would have so much fun with that lmao.  

22) Imagine an au featuring you and your comfort character. who are you? what happens?:

My AU is just for Misumi to actually be a real person and to be my friend lol.  

23) Imagine cuddling with your comfort character. what does it feel like?:

I feel like cuddling with him would feel so comfortable. I think he’d feel fluffy and soft. I also have a feeling that Sankaku-kun would be there cuddling with us too lmao.    

24) Finally, what's one thing you want to say to your comfort character?:

I love you! Never forget that I’m proud of you and that I’ll always be here cheering for you when you’re up on that stage. Keep being you and never change my precious triangle! (:

[aonrivers]

Pregnancy, Birth, Postpartum, and Baby Time! (TMI warning) - Part 02

In Part 01 I went over the truths about being pregnant. Now that the nine (really ten) months are over... Labor and Postpartum begins.

Labor and Postpartum Truths: 1) Not being able to eat sucks once you're admitted into the hospital. You seriously only get ice water like they say online. So make your last meal one that can hold you out until after birth. 2) Contractions feel like really bad period cramps. I'm sure there's some women who feel them worse, but that's all I got on the topic. I was numb for them most of the time. 3) To induce labor, at least for me, they shoved this "shoelace" thing up my you-know-what. As I said before, I was swollen down there, so any time my cervix was checked I was in a lot of pain, and this thing was no different. 4) Hospital rooms are not quiet. Between hearing everyone outside at the nursing station to the beeping in your room, you also have constant visits from nurses when all you wanna do is rest because you're basically waiting for labor to begin. 5) Water breaking isn't a "oh hey I think I peed myself". No. It's like a queef then GUSH and it doesn't stop until you and your bed are soaked. 6) Catheters are handy when you are bed rest and drinking gallons of water. Also, you get one when you get the epidural. Which they don't really tell you until the epidural is offered. 7) Take the epidural if you don't want to experience a natural and painful birth. I felt no pain leading up to labor. I did however feel a shit ton of pain when the pain relief ran out. They tell you it's because labor is all in your back - this excuse is bullshit. I was in so much pain when that shit wore off that my husband said my labor pain face didn't match this one. Once they take the tube out of your back, the pain fades away. But my back still hurts in that spot even as I type this. The pain in the spine also lingers after giving birth. Almost like you need your back seriously cracked. 8) The epidural needle doesn't really hurt if your pain tolerance is high for stuff like this. It's a pinch. What you do feel that is considered almost like a quick throbbing pain is when the fluid is injected. It's like a small punch to your back. 9) Projectile vomit will most likely occur. All the gallons of water you consumed waiting for labor will come projecting out of you before you go into active labor. Be glad your head doesn't start spinning. I up chucked three times and had to have myself redressed and my bedding changed out. 10) Some labor beds have built in handles to assist with labor. See if yours does. They helped a lot. 11) I tore two tiny spots inside my VJ giving birth. They stick a numbing agent where they see you'll be tearing, so that's cool and all - you'll feel it when you start being mobile again. BTW, some women tear bigger. Luckily my baby was only 7lbs. 12) You may not know your labor doctor. I met mine briefly the day before at my doctor's office, but never before that. Don't feel shy about being exposed in front of them though, they do this for a living. 13) Speaking of being shy. I am a prude with my body. I don't want people checking out my ass or having my nipples poking through my shirt on a cold day but all of this goes out the window when you're in the hospital to give birth and here's why. One: this is the doctor and nurse's job. They see boobs, ass, and vagina every day. And two: you're giving birth - who TF cares what you look like. 14) Pushing a baby out is not like pushing pee out. It's like taking the biggest shit of your life. You push with your asshole. Literally. And it causes hemorrhoids and for your ass to hurt WEEKS after giving birth. (Do yourself a favor and get some fiber enriched foods because pooping is not easy it pain free.) 15) Those home videos of the women giving birth don't exist anymore. It's pretty much illegal. I guess people were blackmailing the mother. Idk. That's what my nurse said. But they give you a big ass mirror to watch the birth of your baby so that's really cool. 16) Hospitals offer photographs of your newborn (unless you gave birth in 2020). It's usually expensive and I would've done it too if they offered. My husband got amazing shots of our daughter which I cropped out to make that oval baby picture our parents in the 80s got. 17) Taking pictures of your baby in the nursery is a big no no. I wish I could've seen my baby under the UV lamp with her glasses on to fix her jaundice, but I was bedridden with the pre-eclampsia. Hubby saw her though. He says she was just chilling while all the other babies were crying their heads off. FYI, the reason you can't take pictures is because of the other babies in there. They're not yours. You don't have the right to photograph them even if your baby is mixed in and she's the only one you want the picture of. 18) I wasn't told this until it came time... But they push your belly and I mean in your belly button and hard. They check if your uterus is shrinking and returning in place. (Breastfeeding helps it go faster.) This pushing hurts like a mofo. Seriously. And they don't care if you're in pain from, oh idk - THE EPIDURAL WEARING OFF! They are required to check. 19) My friend told me this which I think is important to know... When you're doped up on pain meds before birth or if you're having a really hard time during the labor process (time  you entered hospital to when the baby pops out), have someone with you. Have that person listen to the words coming out of the doctor and nurse's mouths. My friend didn't and took meds they gave her and was devastated when her baby came out gray and on the edge of death. She didn't know what they gave her or what they said about the meds. If she did, she would've known this would be the outcome of her child's birth (baby lived btw. He just graduated high school last year!) 20) Labor and Delivery nurses are freaking awesome. Postpartum nurses not so much... 21) The hospital food really isn't that bad. At least, it wasn't where I stayed. I had choices for breakfast, lunch, and dinner too! 22) Nurses can't technically tell you no to taking the baby to the nursery. Yes you need bonding time with your baby, but you also need rest. 23) The chair that pulls out into a bed for your partner is uncomfortable af. They have cots. Ask for one. 24) I couldn't have visitors. Make sure you don't either. It's nice. You don't gotta worry about appearance or staying awake for your guest. Birth is about you and your baby (and partner) and the time you have with them. Your guest can wait till you get home. 25) Back to the heartburn and hairy babies talk. This isn't really a myth. My baby came out with a full head of hair, hair on her ears, and fuzz all over her shoulders and back. At a month old it's going away, but that head of hair is real. And so was that heartburn!! 26) Bleeding after birth is like having your period back, but it goes on and on. It changes colors and has a gross smell to it. And wearing a pad again SUCKS! I do have to say though... That mesh underwear they give you is freaking awesome. I want some for my daily wear. 27) For a week or two, I felt like I was punched in the cooch. Walking hurt, getting up hurt, even bathing hurt (no baths until you heal btw, so I showered). Even now, a month later, I still feel pain down there when sitting a certain way (like Indian style). But what do I expect? A freaking baby was pushed out of me!! 28) After the six week heal time is up, don't expect sex to go back to normal. It still hurts for me but this time because of the bruising and stitches. 29) When it's time for sex, lube up. Breastfeeding and hormones still rampant don't assist in easy glide ins (if you know what I mean). 30) When the milk comes in, your boobs get bigger, harder, and start to ache. Feed feed feed or feed and pump. It's the only way to fix it. And don't be surprised when you wake up and your bed is stained with milk puddles because you're still sleeping naked to easily feed your little one at night. My side of the bed is disgusting, but ce la vie! It comes with the territory (like lack of sleep). 31) Also, sleeping on your side with milk filled boobs is not easy. It hurts. Go back to sleeping on your back because belly sleeping isn't comfortable either. 32) Everything you buy or received for your baby screams suffocation with it's warning labels. Don't let it get you paranoid like it did for me. Learn your babies habits and go with your instincts. They also sell baby breathing monitors that alert you if the baby stops breathing. 33) Outfits are cute and irresistible, but try to resist buying those newborn clothes. My baby grew out of them all within three weeks and wore only half of the clothes we had. Also, buy larger clothes - season conscious - that way you're ready when the baby starts growing out of their clothes. We had hardly any 3 month PJs, now her closet is over packed... 34) The baby may not sleep in their crib or bassinet right away. My girl would rather be on me or my husband than a cold bed. Seriously. They want your baby sleeping with nothing but a fitted mattress that's cold and a swaddle or wearable blanket. My baby hates swaddles and kicked too much with the wearable blanket. She sleeps with me for easy feeding and comfort - for me and her. I don't sleep much but slowly I've been getting my Z's and during the day I put her in the bassinet on her belly because I can watch her and she's amazing with that head support already. When she doesn't feed every 2-3 hours, she'll be spending more time on her own in her bed. So don't be discouraged if it's not working for you. It will happen. Just takes time. 35) Sound machine was a waste of a gift. Our phones have sound effects we can tune into. Google Home and Alexa even offer it. My baby doesn't like it, she'd rather listen to us or the TV. Also she doesn't like the dark until she's actually sleeping. She loves bright lights. They tell you the opposite online. 36) If your boobs are small, don't bother getting the shirts where you pull your boob through a window because it won't work. The shirts with the clip that drops to expose the breast are the best. Amazon has great prices and quality shirts on this. My one from Kohl's broke after wearing four times. 37) I really don't think those smiles are gas like they claim it to be. Sure some are. But when your kid smiles without passing gas, they're smiling because they're happy/content. 38) You'll probably end up missing your belly bump the first few weeks like I did. I kept thinking she was still in there. I mean, it's nine months carrying a creature in you. You get used to it. And lastly... 35) You get what you wished for. Any time I talked about having babies, I said keywords on what I wanted: a beautiful, healthy, happy, and smart baby. And I got just that. === So there it is. My journey, my tips, and my nitty gritty of it all of just pregnancy, labor, and postpartum alone!! There is so much more to being a mother; and that will continue in my part 03,04,05,etc to come. IDK how many there will be, only time will tell.

I will continue to update Part 01 and Part 02 when I remember more things.

As Part 03 is conjuring, I would like to say congrats if you're pregnant or gave birth already; and good luck if you're trying.

[starryviolentine]

Color Me Blue (That’s Me Without You): A Pre-Apocalypse Story

Part 1 (here)     Part 2 (here)     Part 3 (here) Part 4 (here)     Part 5 (here)     Part 6 (here) Part 7 (here)     Part 8 (here)     Part 9 (here)

Part 10/10: Special Delivery

Another school week has come and gone, and the students of Ericson Academy have finally reached the weekly checkpoint that everyone looks forward to the most—the weekend. After five straight days of lessons, homework and responsibilities, the one day per week when there’s no schedule, nowhere to be, and nothing but unstructured fun and relaxation is here at last. The sun is shining, the air is crisp, and, according to the weather forecast, later in the day it should be warm enough to play outside without a jacket. What a beautiful Saturday morning indeed. 

Sundays are different. There are mandatory chores in the morning and extracurriculars scheduled all throughout the afternoon. Students aren’t allowed to use the gym or the outdoor fields unless they have sports practice, nor can they set foot inside the creative arts building unless they have an art or music lesson.

But that’s a worry for tomorrow.

Today is still Saturday. For Therissa, this means snoozing until noon, then lazing around in bed with only her phone and CD player to keep her company until she feels like getting up. As for Brody and Violet, the two younger girls have been out and about all morning and are now on their way back to their bedroom to drag their teenage roommate out to lunch. After some complaining and a bit of colorful language on Therissa’s end, the three of them head down to the dining hall to grab a bite to eat, and then, when they’re done, return to their room to hang out. 

Separately, usually. Therissa likes to do her own thing, and most of the time it’s just Brody and Violet doing stuff together. Once in a blue moon, though—if all the stars and the planets align just right and Therissa is in a good mood—Brody can convince her to join them. And today, much to the twin-tailed tween’s delight, is one of those days.

Tonight, they’re going to have a campout. Or, rather, a camp “in” due to the lack of a tent, a campfire, s’mores, and the whole outdoors element that are all fundamental to a typical night of camping. Nonetheless, Brody and Violet move their mattresses to the middle of the bedroom floor and pitch a little blanket fort above them using their chairs and desks. Therissa plops herself right in the center of the mattresses and stretches out comfortably while her roomies circle the room like busy bees, collecting all of the pillows and blankets to use for extra cushioning.  

“Let’s play a game!” Brody suggests as she flops belly-first onto a mountain of blankets. “Truth or dare.” She frowns when Violet and Therissa let out a collective groan. “Come on, it’ll be fun. This is our first campout together, so we should get to know each other better.”

“You do realize we’ve all been sleeping in the same room for, like, a year, right?” Therissa points out.

“Oh, hush, you know what I mean.”

“So, basically, you want to ask me a bunch of questions and make me talk about myself,” Therissa says, catching on to Brody’s ulterior motive right away. Propping her head up with her elbow, she turns to Violet and screws up her face into one of exaggerated distaste, causing the blonde to slap her hands over her mouth to prevent herself from laughing out loud. Violet crouches down and crawls into their fort, taking a seat next to Therissa, who winks at her. 

“It’s for all of us,” Brody insists. “You get to ask me and Vi stuff, too.”

“Can’t we just, like, play cards or something?” Violet doesn’t particularly feel like talking about herself today, either. Truth or dare is one of those risky games with the potential to get uncomfortably personal. A feeling deep in her gut is telling her that playing something like that with Therissa around might not make for the most enjoyable of times. The teen seems like the type who would ask weird questions and come up with mortifying dares. 

“I second that,” says Therissa, holding up a hand with her index finger extended. “But no baby games like Go Fish or Old Maid. You guys know how to play poker?”

“Isn’t that the one where you have to… you know... take off your clothes?”

The eldest girl snorts, nearly choking, and cackles loudly. “No, V, that’s strip poker.” 

A disappointed pout appears on Brody’s face as she allows herself a moment to mourn the loss of the truth or dare game that never was. With Therissa and Violet being so similar, she comes to the realization that she very well might have to get used to being outnumbered again. It was the same way at home with her two older brothers. Now that she and her siblings are all a bit older, wiser, and have learned to compromise every now and then, it’s not so bad, but Brody remembers that when she was really little, Dawson and Hunter hardly ever wanted to do what she wanted to do. It was always two against one, and never in her favor.  

Brody doesn’t dwell on it for long, though. The most important thing is that she’s getting to spend time with Violet and Therissa. Together. At the same time! And card games can be fun, too. Brody’s never played poker in her life, but she’d love to learn. Therissa leaves their fort just to grab a slightly worn deck of cards from her desk drawer, but then Brody and Violet scoot in close, listening intently as the teen starts to explain the rules.  

Therissa only gets as far as explaining the object of the game when there’s a knock at the door. Brody excitedly hops up to see who it is. “I’ll get it!”  

It’s Marlon, this week’s mail boy, wearing khaki shorts, white knee-high socks, and a deep red polo shirt embroidered with the Ericson emblem. The matching red newsie cap atop his head is just as prominent as the scowl on his face. Each week, a different student is selected to help sort student mail and then deliver it to the correct dorm rooms. Unlike Brody, who sports the uniform with pride every time her turn to be mail girl comes along, the blonde boy is clearly one of the many kids at the school who finds the whole thing kind of humiliating. 

Reaching into the large, brown satchel hanging from his shoulder, Marlon pulls out a padded envelope and practically shoves it into Brody’s hands. “Special delivery. See ya!”

“Thanks,” says Brody, but her classmate has already taken off running down the hall. Shutting the door, Brody comes back to the center of the room and takes a closer look at the small, lumpy package. “Oh, Therissa, it’s for you!” She glances at the name and address in the upper left corner and grins. “It’s from Mel!” 

“Oh, that.” Therissa already knows what’s inside the package without having to look, and she’s already starting to feel embarrassed at the thought of what’s about to go down. Keeping a straight face, she does her best to play it cool. “Wanna open it for me?”

“Sure,” replies Brody, returning to her previous spot in the fort and shaking the envelope ever so slightly. Violet moves closer, just as curious, watching as her friend tears open one end of the package. Before Brody can reach inside, the envelope’s contents start rolling and something colorful falls out onto the mattress below. The girl blinks, speechless, and stares down at the two tiny glass bottles in awe. “It’s… nail polish. But they’re—”

“They’re yours.”

Brody takes in a sharp breath and her hands go to cover her mouth. “What?”

Therissa reaches out and takes the nail polish, holding each color in front of her face to get a look at them before they go to their new owner. There’s a shockingly hot pink and a bright sky blue, and the thought of wearing either of these colors on her own fingernails sort of makes the teenager want to puke, but they’re disgustingly, disturbingly perfect. “Yeah, I mean, if I ever wake up one day wanting to look like a bubblegum fairy princess, I’ll let you know, but until then”—Therissa removes her roommate’s hands from her face and drops the bottles into her palms—“I think you should hold onto them.”

“Oh, these colors are so cute! Are they really for me?” Brody can’t believe what’s happening. She pinches herself to make sure she’s not dreaming. Ouch. She’s not. Breaking into the biggest smile, Brody hugs the bottles to her chest.    

“It’s just, I know how much you wanted to be there when me and Violet did ours, so…” Therissa’s face is getting too warm for her to finish her sentence, so she cuts herself off. “Anyway, if I’m gonna do your nails, I had to make sure we had the right colors. You’re way too… you for any of mine. No offense.”

Squealing, Brody launches herself at the teen and hugs her tighter than ever before. “Thank you, thank you, thank you!”

Violet snickers. “Can you imagine Brody with, like, black nails?”

“And black eyeliner and maybe a little mascara?” Therissa pictures their auburn-haired roomie wearing her makeup and shakes her head, starting to laugh as well. “Oh my god, she’d be like an emo Elmo.” With one final pat onto the younger girl’s back, Therissa pulls away gently. She looks at Brody, grinning in amusement. “What do you think? Wanna try it out? I could give you a couple piercings to match.” 

Brody gasps, face contorting into one of absolute horror as she imagines Therissa coming at her ears with a needle. She fervently shakes her head and shudders. “No!”

Therissa and Violet turn to look at each other, but as soon as they make eye contact, they both explode into hysterics. It isn’t long before Brody realizes that the teen was just kidding around, and she soon finds herself giggling, too. Whether it’s joy, sadness, excitement or even fear, Brody tends to absorb the emotions of those around her. They penetrate her down to the bone and she feels them as though they’re her own. Brody can tell what sort of mood Therissa’s in before the teenager even opens her mouth. If Violet has a bad dream and wakes up sad or scared, Brody cries right along with her. When her friends are happy, so is she.

Brody’s always been a little bit like that. 

Occasionally her mind wanders. Sometimes Brody thinks about what her life would be like if her parents never sent her to Ericson’s. Would she still be as frightened and anxious as she was before meeting Dr. Larson? Would she have found a best friend whom she loves as much as she loves Violet? Like everything else in the world, life at a boarding school has its ups and downs. Some days are tougher than others, and being away from her family is rough sometimes, but Brody is forever grateful that she ended up here.

Here, as in Ericson Academy, of course. But also here, as in right here in her bedroom, sitting in between her best friend, Violet and her newest friend, Therissa, in the cozy comfort of their blanket fort. 

And here, on this particular Saturday afternoon, Brody knows one thing for certain—she wouldn’t want to be anywhere else.

[lovelyparkers]

the lifeguard (1)

part one!

summary: you're a summer lifeguard at coney island's beach and peter convinces his friends to go. y'all are 18 in this and just graduated! 2.9k words

warnings: none really, just swearing, fluff and spice woo part two is gonna be spicier oops

peter knew from the moment you told him you were working on coney island's beach this summer that he would be there as much as possible. he had liked you all throughout high school. literally all four years and never did anything about it. but now high school was over and he knew you would slip right past him. plus seeing you on the beach in a tight red bathing suit? how could he say no to that. and of course, red was really his favorite color, and seeing it on you...that would be heaven.

you had discussed summer plans with peter and you told him of your new job. you told him how you would drive there every morning at 8 am and be there till 6 pm. 7 days of the week. but hey it payed well and you loved the beach. lots of kids from school frequented the beach too, so it's be nice to see your friends—and maybe part of you hoped you'd see peter.

peter had mentioned he had a night job in queens and besides that no other plans. you liked the boy. there was something about him that was just so endearing and when you talked or even looked at him you got butterflies. and don't even get me started on how you felt thinking about him.

you were all set the next day to go down to the beach for your first day in the job, feeling ecstatic. you had bought several different styles of red bathing suits, lots of sunscreen and a cute pair of sunglasses. you went through intense training about a month ago and were all ready to go. you'd spent other summers life guarding at your neighborhood pool, but wanted to go down to the beach for something different before heading off to college. and hey maybe you'll get to see a super cute boy aka peter there sometime, you dropped him hints.

the night of the last day of school, peter met up with ned, mj, and betty for celebratory pizza when he brought up the idea.

"so how 'bout we go down to the beach tomorrow? coney island," he asked while chewing.

michelle laughed, "why? because you know y/n is working there?"

"what? no! i didn't know she was working on eighth street."

"no one said she was working on eighth street peter," betty snapped.

"well i—"

michelle smirked, "just admit it, you like y/n."

michelle was one of your close friends and knew you somewhat liked peter so this was fun for her. but she was so happy he liked you back. you constantly complained about needing a boyfriend.

peter threw his hands up in defeat, "okay! okay! i like her!"

"i knew it!" ned screamed causing people in the pizza shop to look over at them awkwardly. "sorry."

peter's face flushed, "so, the beach?" everyone nodded. it was the beach for god sakes. hell yeah. and coney island was what they were all used to.

"i'm guessing we are going to eighth street right?" michelle teased.

"uh huh, and you're driving because you're the only one with a car!"

michelle groaned obnoxiously, "fine! but y'all are giving me gas money."

"we have to leave early so we don't get caught up in traffic," betty added.

"there's always traffic," ned replied.

"still there might be less."

"i don't think so it's summer—"

"guys stop! it's settled. eighth street, we'll leave at 8:30, mj is driving," peter spat.

everyone finally agreed and finished the last of the pizza. michelle got up to leave and said, "everyone meet at ned's i'll be there at exactly 8:30. if you're late we leave with out you, see ya losers."

the next morning at exactly 8:30 am, michelle pulled up outside ned's apartment in her dingy vintage car. ned was dressed to the nines in beach attire, as was betty. meanwhile peter was simply wearing flip flops, swim trunks and a white muscle tee, along with a blue beach towel draped around his shoulders. he had his grey backpack filled with snacks, sunscreen, his wallet, and other random shit. his black sunglasses shielded his eyes, as did his long brown curls that he had been growing out. it was almost 90° as well, so needless to say this was a much needed beach day. the boys packed some beach chairs and an umbrella into michelle's trunk then everyone hopped in the car, betty in the passenger seat, ned and peter in the back.

the drive wasn't too bad, it took 45 minutes with the traffic like said. and luckily they were able to find a parking spot in about five minutes of arriving which was rare. everyone got out and grabbed their things, running to the beach.

"guys! we should set up close to the lifeguard stand, you know in case of emergency," peter yelled over the noisy wind and boardwalk.

"you mean a y/n emergency?" michelle laughed causing peter to turn red. michelle decided to lead the rest of the way onto the beach and down the mat to find an open spot. michelle plopped her chair down like ten feet to the right of your lifeguard stand. the boys and betty were still trudging through the sand.

"hey y/n!" michelle called up to you.

"mj! hey! what are you doing here? i thought you hated the beach!"

"i do! i'm just a chauffeur. but hey i wanted to see you too!"

"oh cool!" you shouted back, taking long looks at the water since your coworker wasn't here yet. "who are you with?"

as you asked that, the staggering three came into your view and they all waved to you. peter was at the back of the group acting relatively shy. "i'll make sure you guys don't drown!" you shouted again, making them laugh. you got back to looking out in the water through your sunglasses, the cool shade of an umbrella over your head allowing you to somewhat relax from the intense heat. meanwhile, peter was taking glances at you every few seconds as the crew set up their beach spot. michelle immediately sat down in her chair, pulling out a book. ned and betty set up the other chairs and laid down a sheet in front of them to put their coolers and bags on, throwing a shoe on each corner. peter set up the umbrella since he was obviously the strongest one to stick in through the sand. he easily pushed it into the sand and pulled the cover up, making a nice circle of shade around the four of them. you couldn't deny that you snuck a look or two at peter's clenching back muscles as he jammed the umbrella into the ground.

"mj, wanna go touch the water with us?" ned asked innocently.

"no."

"okay then..."

peter, ned and betty went down to the water to feel it. it was brisk, but it felt nice under the 90 degree sun. tons of people were already in the water cooling off. you watched peter run a hand through his long locks and let it blow in the wind, making it a mess. but a cute one per say. you stood up on the stand, pushing your sunglasses up on your head to get a better look. he was splashing and kicking the water at his friends, laughing his head off. betty was screaming like the water was going to kill her while ned just joined it. peter's muscle tee left little to the imagination, allowing you to see his brawny muscles that he always hid in school. his pecs were also quite prominent through the front of his shirt as well, it was a bit see through, being white and all. and gosh you just couldn't imagine what he would look like when he-

you stopped your train of thought when peter looked directly up at you on the lifeguard stand. he smiled, mid laugh, teeth showing. you couldn't see his eyes under the sunglasses but they were bright and admirable. you grinned back at him, waving yet again, mouthing a 'hey.' peter waved too, with both hands up in the air, mouthing a 'hey' back. he turned back to his friends and let out a breath he didn't know he was holding. god, you looked so good. your hair was blowing in the wind and you had a red bikini top and bottoms tied around your body. your lifeguard whistle was on a lanyard around your neck, hanging just in between your boobs. (ur hot asf and u cant convince me otherwise) the sight of you almost caused him to combust, how could you look that good. and he could just almost imagine what you would look like without-

"peter?"

"huh?" he asked quickly.

"you zoned out," ned said.

he scoffed, "oh yeah, i just- yeah, i'm good."

"is it y/n," ned winked.

peter shook his head up and down. he didn't even care that anyone knew. he just really, really liked you. and seeing you on the beach in that attire, didn't help his problem.

he rushed back to sit down in his beach chair, resting his slightly sweaty forehead in his hands to try to relax himself. he got way too worked up way too fast.

"you saw y/n i guess?"

peter looked up to see michelle laughing at him.

"why don't you just talk to her you weirdo."

"i don't know i- she's just- y/n is...i can't."

"yeah you can dumbass. just say hi."

"what are we talking about?" betty asked as her and ned sat down with the two. "he won't talk to y/n," michelle answered.

ned perked up, "peter! why don't you just pretend to drown, then she will save you and give you mouth to mouth! she said she would make sure you didn't drown."

"i'm pretty sure that's illegal," michelle said.

"yeah i-i can't do that."

"then just go talk to her," betty said agreeing with mj.

peter hopped out of his chair and started toward the lifeguard stand before stopping on his tracks at the sight of you greeting your apparent coworker. your coworker was a guy, probably around 20 years old and obviously good looking. he had messy blond hair paired with abs. nothing like peter's though. peter suddenly felt a pang of jealousy as you laughed at something he said. he watched the guy put a hand on your back, as he settled down. peter returned to his chair and slumped down, cheeks red from both the sun and jealousy. once peter sat down you scanned your eyes around looking for him and eventually landing on the boy in his chair.

your coworker was busy watching everyone in the water but you hopped down from the stand to keep an eye on some little kids...and maybe peter. just as your feet hit the sand, a gust of wind blew by, pulling peter's beach umbrella out of the ground and almost smacking you down, had you not caught it. peter had jumped up to try to grab and it and he ran after the umbrella only to be met by you holding it out to him. "here you go pete," you said smiling.

"thanks," he whispered, grabbing the umbrella from your hands.

"you gonna swim?" you asked him.

"oh," he looked at the water then back at you, trying not to get distracted by how good your boobs looked in that top, "yeah. we're gonna swim like, soon."

"cool."

"yeah," he said twirling the umbrella stick in between his hands.

"it's great to see you peter, you look great."

he blushed, looking down then back up, "you do too. look good i mean. you look great y/n...red suits you."

"thanks," you giggled. you had to stop yourself from reaching out and feeling his muscles. there was a moment of silence between you two until you realized you had to work. "i'm gonna uh, you know, get back to work. i'll find you on my break, be careful out there."

"i will," peter replied softly, watching you climb up the stand, ass almost in his face. you looked back down at him smiling. he shyly waved and returned to push the umbrella back into the ground.

"what took you so long? i could barely see my book!"

"i was talking to y/n. she said she's gonna find me on her break," he happily stated. peter had a little bounce in his step now, feeling more energised and confident. "c'mon guys! let's go swimming!"

"i'll pass," michelle shouted.

ned and betty obliged and got ready to head into the water. peter put his sunglasses in his back pack, not caring to lose yet another pair in the ocean. then he pulled off his shirt, revealing his once hidden abs to the world. his swim trunks sat on his hips, exposing his v-like slightly. you were lucky to have caught a glimpse of this show, sucking in a sharp breath when peter pulled off his shirt. shit. he was hot. of course he was.

he ran down the sand and straight into the water, diving under a wave when it got deep enough. you watched him intently, back muscles flexing when he dove. as he came up out of the water, he whipped his curls out of his face, facing you. you had no idea if it was on purpose or not but god did it make you shiver. this was gonna be a long day.

you watched him gracefully swim in the water and body surf waves so effortlessly. it made being a lifeguard less boring in all honesty. but gosh were you besotted with him. and when he walked out of the water to go back to his chair, it was like he was walking in slow motion, the way hot people do in movies. and it was gorgeous to watch. water was dripping all the way down his body. droplets would fall from his now even darker, wet curls onto his face and down his neck, then onto his broad chest and toned abs, finally reaching the waist band of his swim trunks. right to his v-line. you almost audibly gasped right there.

as peter walked by the stand he looked up at you, again running a hand through his wet curls to push it out of his face. he grinned at you, knowing you were watching him. and you stared right back. he was showing off wasn't he? two can play this game. you pushed your sunglasses back up on your head and made direct eye contact with him, causing peter to stumble in the sand. you laughed and put your glasses back down. he was so cute and hot at the same time. how?

when your break came around, you decide to head into the water and cool off. your coworker took over, watching you climb down the stand, as did peter. you slowly strutted toward the water, walking in slowly before it got deeper and dunking your head under the cool water. peter eyed you from the beach, hunching over with his elbows on his thighs. his sunglasses blocked the lustful gaze from anyone else's view luckily. when you came up out of the water he watched it drip all over your body and glisten on your face. he couldn't take his eyes off you.

you looked over to peter, since you did promise you'd find him during your break. you saw he was staring at you and just smirked. you pointed at him on the beach. he sat up in shock and poked his finger on his chest as to say, 'wait, me?' you then curled your finger toward your body in a come here motion, obvious to peter. he stood up and went straight to you in the water, swimming out past the waves to you. as he got to your side you noticed how flushed his face was, you couldn't tell if it was from sunburn or something else. it was the latter.

"hey," you started.

"hey y/n."

"so what goes on?"

"nothing really..just...swimming."

"well i'm glad you're here. it made me really happy."

"me too. i'm happy to see you too." the two of you were just floating in the water, up and down waves with each other.

"you know i didn't think you'd actually come."

"what do you mean?"

"well obviously i wanted you to come while i'm working. i was dropping hints in school, if you couldn't tell."

peter chuckled, "no, no. i picked up on them. you're ah, you're really cool."

"so are you." you smiled at each other now, just enjoying the company and the semi peacefulness. until your coworker blew his whistle and pointed at you.

"that's me, i gotta go. see you later peter!" you swam off towards shore, peter watching you all the way to the stand. he smiled to himself, giddy over the fact that you wanted him to come here. and he just wanted to spend every second with you. you were truly the kindest and most beautiful person ever, that he couldn't get enough of.

now all he had to do was ask you on a date.

[purplesurveys]

987

survey by shamegmeg

Have you ever cut your own hair? I’ve trimmed my own bangs but that’s it. I feel like doing anything to my hair altogether on my own is too big a move and would have bigger consequences if I fuck it up (which I definitely will end up doing).

What do you eat most frequently? Meat - chicken, beef, and pork. It’s in nearly every dish we eat, if not all of them.

Are you a fan of video games? I will always find the topic interesting and I played a fair share of video games growing up, but I’m not an ultra fan of any of the most popular games right now. I do like staying updated with my favorite series like Grand Theft Auto, The Sims, Mario Kart, etc. but it’s rare that I get my hands on the console itself to play. 

What's your favorite color combination? I don’t really think of any specific two colors, but I’m generally a fan of combinations of muted or pastel colors. Anything that doesn’t hurt my eyes too much.

Did you share a locker at school? We didn’t do that; we each had our own.

What's one sport you could never play? Basketball. Never understood the rules and I just never had the stamina for it. I’m also pretty competitive so I feel like I’d be pissed off and take it personally whenever somebody blocks me hahaha.

Blue or black ink? Black. I have nothing against blue though - I just like keeping pens with black ink around more.

Have you ever sang karaoke? Just once or twice. I’m not extroverted enough for it, not even when drunk. I just really hate the sound of my own singing voice, so it doesn’t help if I’m suddenly singing into a microphone.

What was the last concert you attended? Answer’s gonna be unchanged for the meantime, man...Paramore. No complaints naming them every time I’m asked this, though. Let’s hope they’ll also be the next concert I attend, as they like coming back to Manila anyway :))

Have you held anyone's hand in the past week? No.

What's your favorite perfume/body spray/cologne? I’ve used Beyoncé’s Heat Rush since high school. I’ve never gotten tired of the scent and pretty much everyone knows me by that perfume now.

How long does it take you to get ready in the morning? Before Covid, it depended on how late I’d get out of bed. If I had the energy to get up earlier, I’d devote 20-30 minutes to getting ready; but if it was a harder morning to face, I’d just take a quick 3-minute shower and wear the first things I see in my closet. These days since I just work from home, all I need to do is shower which takes no more than a few minutes.

What is the oldest age you think should wear makeup? I think anyone of any gender of any age (except babies and younger kids) of any background from any walk of life should be allowed to wear makeup...

How old were you when you went on your first date? I was 16.

What's your nationality(ies)? Filipino.

Are you an open book? I can be for the most part since there’s no harm in sharing, but there are a few things that I’m extremely protective and secretive about.

Do you think you're a good secret keeper? Yeah. I used to share secrets with Gab but that’s because she tends to forget easily, but otherwise I have no problem taking secrets with me to my grave.

Name one fashion trend you could never follow. I have never been into wedges. Too chunky-looking.

Do you prefer long hair or short hair? On me? Short. It’s easier to maintain and take care of.

When do you plan to go to sleep tonight? Depends on how tired I am by the end of the day. I did make a cup of coffee today though so the caffeine might also choose to hang out into the evening.

Has anyone besides your family seen you naked? Yes.

If so, who? Gabie.

What exotic animal would you love to have as a pet? That’s a pass for me. I don’t know their temperament and what they need on a normal day, so I’m really not well-equipped to keep an exotic animal as a pet and I don’t want to end up accidentally killing them or something.

Do you want kids when you're older? At this point in my life I can go with or without them.

Did your parents sign you up for anything you hated as a child? I’m definitely grateful for it now, but when I was going through ballet classes as a five year old I absolutely hated it and had no idea what I was doing there. I wish I could tell my five year old self to appreciate it more because now I think it’s pretty cute that my parents wanted me to take up ballet and enrolled me in classes.

Where's your cell phone? It’s just right beside me. It’s always right beside me, haha.

Which came first, the chicken or the egg? I’ve always been a firm supporter of the egg lol because it had to be an earlier version of the chicken that laid the egg that would ultimately hatch the chicken as we know them today. Idk though, I hate questions like this hahahaha

What are your feelings about Octomom? I don’t know anything more than the fact that she had octuplets, which is awesome and badass in itself.

Do you know of Smosh? I used to LOVE Smosh, like holy shit. I probably talked about them in my earliest surveys a decade ago; simply put I was hooked. Watched every new episode and every new Lunchtime with Smosh/Ian Is Bored video from around maybe 2010-2013 until they started adding more crew members and until their videos started to stray from the content that made them blow up in the first place. I still remember when it was Smosh and Pewdiepie vying for the highest subscriber count on YouTube, haha. Was also sad when Anthony left. Suffice it to say I’ll always hold a fondness for Smosh - Anthony and Ian were my first favorite YouTubers along with Pewdiepie.

Do you drink enough water daily? Some days I do, some days I don’t.

Is your diet healthy? When I do eat my dishes are always a good balance of meat and veggies, but I feel like me skipping most of my meals overshadows that fact and makes my overall diet not-so-healthy.

What's your favorite fruit? The only one I’ve had and not feel like gagging whenever I consume it is avocado. To an extent, tomato too.

What was your favorite Halloween costume? Going as my former best friend, Sofie.

Have you purchased any cool objects from a foreign country? I bought a few trinkets from Japan when I was there, but they were all for my loved ones and I don’t exactly remember what I bought anymore.

Are you on a laptop or a desktop computer right now? Laptop. 

Where do you plan to post this survey? Tumblr, as I’ve always done in the last near-decade or so.

Do you remember anyone's number by heart? My mom’s, sister’s, and Gabie’s.

Are you a morning person or a late night owl? I’m more of a morning person lately because of work and because of the need to be chirpy by 9 AM. Being awake these days makes me sad now, so I avoid staying up late as much as I can; which means my days of being a night owl are over.

Name something you will never try in your lifetime. Coprophagia.

What do you think is your biggest flaw? I’m super competitive, which makes me the suckiest person to have friendly games with. I avoid them altogether so that I don’t end up killing the vibe of whatever crowd I’m with. I’ll own this lol.

First physical trait you notice in the sex you're attracted to? Wouldn’t say I’m automatically attracted to any sex. With everyone though, I tend to notice body language first which kiiinda counts as a physical trait.

How about personality wise? Whether they look approachable/easy to talk to or not.

Are you sick often? Almost never.

Would you rather have strep throat or an ear infection? Uh I’d rather not be sick at all hahaha.

When did you last shower? This morning, before work. We have online meetings every Monday morning, and I wanted to look fresh and clean for it.

Do you have neat handwriting? I’d say so. I get a lot of compliments about my penmanship and my friends usually call on me when they need someone with consistent and clean handwriting, so I guess must be holding my pens right.

Are you a messy or organized person? I’d say my workspaces are always organized but my personal space (car, backpack, etc) is messy.

At what age do you hope to get married? By the end of my 20s or early 30s.

Is being thin really all that great? Idk, I feel like the experience differs per person. I don’t have complaints about it for the most part, but it can get annoying when there are certain tops I’d like to wear but will never be able to pull off and thus have to leave on the rack just because my chest is flat or my overall figure is rather tiny.

Which of the seven deadly sins do you think you're most guilty of? Pride.

How much time have you spent on the computer today? 9 hours and counting. WFH is basically being on the computer all day, so that’s a big reason why I’ve racked up so many hours.

What size shoe are you? 6–7.5.

How was the weather today? The sun was out but fortunately it wasn’t all that hot for me to feel uncomfortable. I hate that it was bright all day, though. My disposition is more likely to improve if it’s cloudy and a little gloomy, haha.

Do you live above, below, or on the Equator? Above.

Do you know how to use Photoshop? I tried to play and experiment with it as a teen, but it just never made sense to me. I hate touching any kind of Adobe program.

Admit it, you're thinking about someone right now. Eh, false. I’m thinking of how much longer this survey will still be.

Where is he/she?

Where was your first job? My first internship was also at a PR agency, if that counts.

Favorite year in high school? Junior year.

East or West? As in parts of the world? East all the way, of course.

Where did your first kiss take place? On my bed.

What color do you wear most often? Probably maroon because of how many UP shirts I have.

Who was the last person you talked on the phone to? That would be my dad.

Have you ever done your own laundry? Kinda. I’ve had to wash my blanket a few times because Cooper peed on them.

Have you ever been to a night club? Yes.

Are you allergic to anything? Nope.

What's the best place you have ever eaten? Mendokoro Ramenba by a freaking mile.

Do you own a hair straightener? No. My mom does; if I ever need a straightener I just borrow hers.

Are you barefoot right now? Yep, always am when I’m at home except for the rare times I put socks on.

Are you subscribed to any magazine? No. Even when magazine subscriptions were popular I was never subscribed to any; I didn’t see the point when I could just get the new issue every month at the mall myself lol.

Puppies or kittens? Puppies.

If you had a billion dollars, where would your first investment be made? First I would probably read up on investment so that I don’t end up making decisions I’ll regret. My first agenda is to help my parents settle whatever payments they’re making at the moment, so that they don’t have to worry about any of that crap anymore.

Who is the best artist you've seen live? PARAMORE. I mean they’re artists, as in plural, but still.

Any major plans coming up this week? Keep myself alive.

Did you know they never told you Arnold's last name in Hey, Arnold? Never realized that but I don’t really care too much, considering I was never into the show.

Would you rather watch a romantic comedy or watch a thrilling horror movie? Romantic comedy, as long as it’s one I’ve already seen and enjoyed, like Love Actually or The Proposal. Most other romcoms are too cheesy and suck.

How is your hair styled right now? It’s in a ponytail that’s been unchanged all day, so it’s a bit messy at this point.

Favorite person that you've talked to today? Angela.

Do you need AC right now? I’m good. It’s a little chilly tonight, so yay.

Do more people call you by a nickname or your first name? My first name is already my nickname - most people just call me Robyn. At home, though, I’m usually called a shortened version of my name.

Name something you're proud of. I confided in Angela today that I’m finally starting to think of seeing a therapist. Which I think is such a big realization to have and a big choice to have made. So yay me. Let’s hope I actually push through with it, and let’s hope I’m able to land a job soon so I can finally fucking afford to see one.

Are you a hopeless romantic? I never knew what this meant and I don’t feel like learning tonight.

How do you feel about couples who say 'I love you' too soon? No judgment. I don’t comment on how other couples navigate their relationship; it’s their thing.

What's the most recent favor you've done for somebody? Can’t remember.

Are you at home right now? Yep.

What did you last spend money on? Gas.

Does any accent annoy you? Stereotypical ones, like how Filipino-American stand-up comedians always try to cash in on Filipino quirks and make fun of thick Filipino accents, which makes all Filipinos look like we can’t speak English ‘properly,’ whatever properly means. Full-blooded Filipinos are so sick of that shit. We get it, the cellpown is ober der -___-

How about turn you on? None actively turn me on.

Are you wearing any jewelry? No.

Do you get along better with your mom or your dad? Dad. Easier to talk to and we share more interests.

Are you craving anything right now? Sushi.

What's worse: Crocs or Uggs? I’d go with Uggs, because Crocs actually look cute on kids so at least it suits one market lol

Do you knock before you open doors? Yep, always. I learned the habit because my mom never knocks and I quickly realized I don’t want to be that kind of person.

Do you know what a sock on the doorknob means? I think so.

Chocolate or vanilla? Chocolate.

What's your zodiac sign? Taurus.

Does Fred from Youtube annoy you? I don’t think he ever did.

[tealvz]

Make Like a Bubble (And Fade Away)

(AO3) Summary: Despite everything, Remy finally makes a friend. He tries not to let this one slip his grasp too. Warning(s): Near drowning, vomiting, bullying(??) Pairing(s): Remile (platonic or romantic it’s up to you lol) Character(s): Remy, Emile, Deceit (Ethan in this) Word Count: 7188 A/N: sooo uhh here’s the story i said i was writing like 3 months ago sdhfsjkdfjkdsfh sorry it took so long, i got kind of self conscious about it… but now enough time has elapsed so that i dont really care that much anymore lmfao also… just a reminder… i dont really write that much so dont bully me too hard ple ase dssdhfjkdsh hope you enjoy tho! :)

A yawn escaped Remy’s mouth, and he held a hand over it in a feeble attempt to disguise it.

Today it seemed like the lights in the coffee shop were especially bright (he supposed it was due to the gloomy weather outside), so he’d opted to wear his glasses inside as well. Business was slow, since the hellish rush that were the hours after school let out had already passed. Remy found peace in the quietness of the shop, his only other companions being an old lady with tea chatting quietly with her husband and a college student clack clack clacking away at her keyboard in the corner next to the fern.

The bell atop the door jingled as someone walked in. Remy shut off his phone and stood up from the stool he was crossing his legs on, placing the device under the countertop.

“What can I get for you, cutie?” Sure, this method of greeting had gotten him in many heated conversations with his manager over the years, so he dialed it back from using it on every single person that entered the store to cute old ladies and cute boys.

And boy was he cute. And boy did he stand out. Remy had never met a person with dyed pink hair before (although he did have a period in middle school where he seriously considered it), but the vibrant color was fading so that it gave way to his natural brown. He was wearing a cardigan, and, perhaps most pressingly, was soaking wet.

The boy took off one of his earbuds, digging around in a pocket of his cardigan with a tongue sticking out. He was creating puddles on the hard wax floor that Remy would have to clean up (read: leave it for the next guy to deal with). “I’ll just take a large black coffee!” He chirped, seemingly unfazed by the nickname. Remy quickly punched the order in.

“Can I get your name?” Remy asked once more.

“It’s Emile,” The stranger said. Remy typed in ‘Emil’ into the machine and allowed a white sticker to print out.

A faint purple glow surrounded one of the large cups stacked near the register. It grew in intensity as Remy levitated it towards his person, slapping the sticker onto it lazily as it spun away from him. He was counting the $2.57 he’d have to give back in change to Emile as a similar purple aura lifted the coffee pitcher behind him.

“Oh… Wow,” Emile mumbled, causing Remy to glance up. His light brown eyes were trained on the scene unfolding in front of him, coffee pitcher pouring into a white cup all by itself. Streaks of yellow light accompanied the purple aura occasionally.

The finished drink landed in his hand alongside a lid to cap it. He settled the coffee pitcher safely on the table as he handed the drink and change to Emile.

“What’s your size cap?” Emile asked, leaning in ever so slightly as he took the items. “My mom has powers too, but they don’t look nearly as pretty as yours!”

“Well, I don’t do cars,” Remy listed. “I think the biggest it’ll go is people,” He omitted the fact that the only person he’d done it on was himself.

“My mom’s can only go up to jars… Things like that. Hers don’t have any colors though,” Emile nodded, more to himself than to Remy he supposed. “Imagine you could levitate buildings and stuff? Li-Like freaking Superman?! How awe- I mean, I guess it wouldn’t be that cool now that I think about it...”

“Nah, I think it’d be pretty cool,” Remy absently tapped his finger to his chin. “Lifting up the Statue of Liberty and just dunking it into the sea for kicks. That sounds kinda rad. But I guess it’d suck if it were some kind of like… Maniac.”

Emile nodded again solemnly. “With great power comes great responsibility,” He said. “In the wise words of Uncle Ben.”

“Sounds like a nice guy,” Remy conceded.

“... It was a reference,” Emile laughed to himself quietly. “Anyways! Thank you, I don’t want to keep you away from your work for too long!”

Remy glanced around the near empty Starbucks. The elderly couple were getting up to leave. “No, it’s okay, you really aren’t. It usually doesn’t get too busy unless it’s like, 3 or 4 o’clock.”

A grin spread across Emile’s face. “Ah! Good thing I usually stay behind a little later then,” He laughed to himself again, looking down and one hand playing with the wires on his earbuds. “Will you be here again tomorrow?”

“All week, babe,” Remy responded.

“Cool! That’s cool,” Emile mentioned that he had a bus to catch soon, and he apologized for not sticking around longer. Remy in response told him not to worry about it, and truth be told he had never met anyone who apologized for not being able to hang out with him more. Most of his friendships had ultimately ended with the other party always slowly but surely trimming him out of their life.

So Remy sat back down on the stool as Emile left the shop, bell jingling to signal his departure. His phone sat forgotten underneath the table as he leaned into the palm of his hand. Remy watched the fluorescent lights of the Starbucks filter into his vision as his glasses slipped further down his nose, raindrops falling against the clear windows allowing him to close his eyes…

-

As Remy fell into the depths of the ocean, feeling his body catapult deep into an underwater cave, light entered his vision.

The dream ended as soon as it began, and Remy stirred at someone gently shaking him awake. He blinked sleepily from behind his glasses, and he used them to hold back his hair as he looked around in bewilderment. Various objects were hovering in the air surrounding him, a few couple cups, lids, spare change and a Sharpie. The purple glow surrounding them faded as Remy became more aware of his surroundings, and they all dropped to the floor.

“Wha’ time,” Remy mumbled, rubbing his right eye as he looked to the person who woke him up. The lights were way too bright, lines and starbursts nearly blinding him. He put his glasses back on.

“Almost 6,” His coworker responded. He had a disinterested expression on his face as he tied his green apron around his waist. “I’m guessing it wasn’t very busy?”

Remy felt hot all over. He abruptly stood up, the world spinning slightly before everything stabilized. “No, I don’t think so.”

He left before he could hear his coworker’s reply. As soon as he collected his bag from the back room, Remy realized he’d forgotten to bring an umbrella. While this elicited a strong swear from him (mentally), Remy decided not to dwell on it for too long and proceeded to exit the establishment only mildly annoyed with himself.

It wasn’t pouring, but it wasn’t drizzling either. Remy took a deep breath, holding his leather shoulder bag over his head as he lightly jogged towards the bus stop. He was not going to look like an absolute clown sprinting and slipping on a puddle. Or worse, just flat out passing out in the middle of the sidewalk. No ma’am. Not today.

As he rounded the corner however, a familiar stranger sitting on the bus stop’s bench made his jog slow.

This wasn’t a stop with a roof covering the bench, so the boy with pink hair was even more soaked than when he’d come into the shop for the first time. He was holding a mint colored umbrella with his knees, shielding not his head but the yellow notepad he was scribbling furiously on. Remy wondered how he could see with his glasses dripping water down the lenses like that.

“Hey,” Remy announced his arrival, pace slowing to a walk as he approached. Emile jumped at his voice, turning to look at him with wide eyes as his pen finally stopped writing. However, as soon as their gazes met the tension in his shoulders relaxed, and he gave Remy a sheepish smile.

“H-Hello again!” Emile said cheerfully, like he was desperately trying to hide the shaking of his voice. “Gosh, what abhorrent weather, huh?”

“True that,” Remy plopped down on the bench next to him and shifted his bag so it rested on his lap. Raindrops dripped down his dark hair. “Bus never came?”

Emile laughed to himself and rubbed the back of his neck. “Um, no it did. Several times probably. I think I got a little carried away…”

Remy glances down at his notepad, filled with lines and lines of tiny text all squished together as to conserve space. He seemed to be almost running out of pages. “You don’t say?”

“I-It was important, so!! I just wanted to take a little extra time-“

“An hour.”

Emile blinked in bewilderment at him. “Excuse me?”

“You left the shop an hour ago,” Remy elaborated.

Emile swiftly checked the time on his (waterproof) watch and groaned loudly. “Ah, dangit, mom’s gonna kill me! … Oh, wait, do you need this?”

Remy stared at him as he scooted closer to him on the bench, putting his notebook back into his bag (it was shaped like a cheeseburger, Remy realized. A really soggy cheeseburger). He lifted his umbrella from between his knees with one hand and held it up over the two of them.

Although, truthfully, it wasn’t working that well. The umbrella only covered Remy’s right side as the left was exposed to the relentless rain, but he still gave a soft thank you regardless.

After a moment’s silence (Remy checked his pocket for his phone, except it wasn’t there. He cursed his forgetful brain for the second time as he now had to settle for staring awkwardly at the cars passing in front of them), Remy opted to speak up.

“... What were you writing?” He asked.

Emile gave a noncommittal shrug, shifting the umbrella so that it was covering Remy more. Remy frowned at this, pushing Emile’s hand back to where it was hovering between the two of them.

“It’s kind of dumb-,” Emile cut himself off with a sneeze.

“Bless you,”

“Tha-”

“And nah, I’m sure it isn’t,” Remy reassured him. “Anything that makes a guy stay outside in the rain for an extra hour probably isn’t that dumb.”

It seemed as though this was enough for Emile’s expression to brighten, and he immediately sat straight up on the bench while unknowingly bumping Remy in the glasses with his umbrella. “Well!! If you must know,” Emile began. “I actually write just a teensy, weensy bit,”

He emphasized this with a pinch of his fingers before he leaned backwards on his free arm. “Basically, I thought of this idea where a girl named Elizabeth gains the ability to travel through different dimensions as a result of her ingesting some bad salmon! On her journey, she meets a cute girl who, plot twist, is actually a fish! And then, they’d both get married in a meadow on another dimension’s Mars, and she’d have salmon as a part of the catering on their wedding day which is where Fish-Girl, horrified, would be disgusted with Elizabeth due to the very notion of consuming salmon because of her ancestors, who-”

Emile took a deep breath of air, red coloring his cheeks as Remy tried to retain the information that had just been spilled out in front of him. Elizabeth was a constant, there was a fish in there somewhere, multiverse…

“Elizabeth doesn’t know she’s a salmon,” Remy asked.

“Well, actually, salmon isn’t a specific type of fish. It encompasses a wide variety of them (I read that once on Buzzfeed), and no, that revelation comes in the second act,” Emile pushed up his glasses. “It’s kind of a metaphor on how you may not know your partner as well as you do, and the value one should place on communication in a relationship.”

It seemed as though pure, unadulterated happiness was radiating off the boy next to him, and it took everything within Remy to keep his smirk at bay. Emile seemed content, despite him sniffing occasionally (because of the rain) and his fingers twitching (because of the cold) as he played with the sleeve of his cardigan.

“It’s okay if you didn’t follow that,” Emile laughed hollowly, tone suddenly turning self deprecating. “I know my words are ah, kinda a handful! To keep track of that is.”

“I don’t follow anything anyone says,” Remy blurted out. “Like, ever. So it’s cool.” Emile blinked, opening his mouth to respond before a bus suddenly pulled up in front of them as though it materialized out of the raindrops. It wasn’t Remy’s bus, but Emile stood up from the bench and tugged his school bag over his shoulders.

“Oh! Here, you can have this!” Emile exclaimed abruptly. He jerkily shoved the umbrella towards Remy, who only stared at him for a few moments in bewilderment.

“Uh, what?” Remy said dumbly.

“You can have it! I’ll just tell my mom I lost it,” Emile looked off to the side, rain cascading down his face in rivulets. Remy thought he looked like he desperately needed it more than he did. “I-It’s as thank you! For talking to me.”

Remy began, “I don’t really need it-” He was cut off by Emile all but throwing the umbrella towards him as the bus driver honked loudly.

“I’lltakeitbackfromyoutomorrowbye!” Emile sprinted up the steps of the bus and Remy was left fumbling to gain a grip on the mint colored accessory, it clattering to the ground as the bus pulled away.

Remy stretched out his cold, numb fingers towards the umbrella. Upon closer examination, there was a little tag that looked suspiciously like a yellow Post-It note stuck to the inside with clear tape, the words “Emile Picani! =)” scrawled across it in barely legible handwriting.

Ah… There was an extra ‘e’ at the end of ‘Emile’. He’d keep that in mind for next time.

-

Remy’s head slammed against the underside of the countertop when he woke, and he let out a hiss of pain as he dropped back to the floor again. His glasses, hovering in the air in front of him, promptly fell onto his face and proceeded to clatter to the floor. A couple other items followed suit, including but not limited to: An old Sharpie, some spare change, and Emile’s umbrella.

“Good morning,” A voice called curtly. Remy, not moving from his spot on the floor, turned towards the darkness under the countertop and let out a groan.

“Oh, don’t even right now, Ethan.”

Ethan shrugged, slipping off of (Remy’s) barstool easily. He stepped towards Remy, crouching down and picking up the umbrella. “Didn’t peg you for a teal kinda guy,” Ethan said, turning it over in his hands.

Remy snapped his attention to Emile’s umbrella, and hastily began trying to scramble to his knees. “P-Put that down, man” He huffed, gripping the edge of the countertop as the world spun around him. Ugh, he got up too quick. “That isn’t mine.”

A frown appeared on Ethan’s face. “You… Stole it…?”

“No I- I didn’t,” Remy wobbled over to Ethan, grateful for the fact the only customer in at the moment being the same college student from yesterday. With a quick hand that totally wasn’t shaking at all, he snatched the umbrella from his hands with a scowl.

His scowl, however, quickly softened into an expression of anxiousness. He bit his lip as he leaned against the counter. “Hey, you didn’t see a guy with pink hair come in here, by any chance?”

Ethan shrugged. “I just got here. They totally shouldn’t give me more hours for the afternoon when the only guy working here keeps passing ou-”

“Ah ah ah!” Remy jabbed the end of the umbrella at Ethan’s shoulder. He let out an offended hiss in response. “That’s enough outta you, sis.”

As though he hadn’t just assaulted his coworker, Remy continued, “He had pink hair and glasses,” Remy explained this by making circles in front of his eyes to imitate glasses, as though he wasn’t already wearing a pair. “And his school bag was, like, a burger or something. He-”

“By any chance was his name Emile?” Ethan interrupted. 

Blinking, Remy nodded. “Wow, that was easy.”

“Yeah, he totally blends in at school,” Ethan said bluntly. “Like, I barely ever notice him.”

“Really?”

“I was being sarcastic.”

“Whatever, just,” Remy, exasperated, shoved the umbrella towards him. “Give this to him, please? He was supposed to come in today but I think I missed him.”

Ethan eyed him warily before saying, “He wasn’t at school today, so I’m guessing he probably didn’t come in anyways,” Although he took the umbrella from Remy regardless.

A sudden pang of concern hit Remy as he recalled the boy’s creative episode in the rain the day prior. Maybe he should have thrown the umbrella back at him (Wait, no, it would’ve just hit the bus instead…).

“Does he skip a lot?” Remy asked, trying not to let the worry show from behind his glasses.

Ethan kept feeling at the handle of the umbrella, like rubbing it was going to unearth some ancient rune that he needed to discover. “Hm… I don’t think so. He cares a lot about his grades, definitely,” Ethan, smile suddenly appearing on his face, turned the umbrella once more. “Wow, this is bumpy.”

“... Alright I’m gonna go now,” Remy said, walking into the back room. “Make sure he gets it.” He added, only slightly threatening. “Like, seriously.”

“Yeah, yeah, definitely,” Ethan mumbled. His attention was diverted from the umbrella to a customer walking into the store, his voice fading into the background as Remy walked, “Hi, how may I help you…”

Remy shook his head, pushing open the door to the back room. Well, it wasn’t like Ethan was totally untrustworthy or anything.

-

The next day it was raining again (Because of course it was, it was Florida), but Remy was, surprisingly, not fast asleep when Ethan walked in for his shift.

The first thing he noticed was the mint umbrella in his hand, and Remy’s neutral expression very quickly turned into a frown.

“Hey-”

“He said I could keep it,” Ethan explained cryptically.

“He what-” Remy, who had been busy questioning Ethan’s moral integrity all day already, tried not to scream as his coworker briskly entered the back room to deposit his things. Because his mind was already going to the very imperative questions of Well, why didn’t he come in today? Didn’t he give me the umbrella? Am I being #clingy right now? 

“Also, he had to monitor for a teacher after school for parent teacher conference, so he couldn’t come today.” Ethan emerged from the back room, in the middle of tying his apron around his waist. “He told me to tell you that.”

“Are you two friends or something?”

Ethan moved to the register after tying his apron and pulled out his phone. “Eh… We just have Latin together.”

“Oh.”

“Yeah. He already has a bunch of them, so I’m sure he’s fine without me.”

For some reason that statement made a knot twist in Remy’s stomach, but he ignored it. Because jealousy was not a good look, and Remy would not be caught dead looking so desperate for friendship he saw in a dude he’d only known for one day.

So he made himself a coffee (so that he wouldn’t fall asleep waiting for the bus) and ended his shift. He glanced back at Ethan as he neared the front door, still toying with the umbrella handle under the counter while on his phone, and realized that he’d once again forgotten his umbrella at home.

-

Emile came back in for a black coffee. Remy spelled his name correctly.

They talked briefly, Remy questioning his decision on the umbrella, and Emile just gave that same nervous laugh. He was wearing a sweater today, with a cartoon cat on it shaped like a cookie.

“He seemed to like it a lot, so I thought I’d give it to him!” Emile heaved his backpack up so that it rested more comfortably on his shoulders, smiling so brightly at Remy he felt like he needed to put his glasses back on. “I didn’t know you two worked together!”

Remy smiled. “Small world.”

He couldn’t stay for long this time, because he was going to be hanging out with his friends, Remy learned. They were going to be studying for a test together at the library, which didn’t sound that fun to Remy, but Emile seemed rather ecstatic about the whole thing.

Before he left the shop, Emile paused at the front door and turned his head around. “Oh! I almost forgot to tell you! I was working on the story again yesterday: Elizabeth and Ella (her girlfriend) make up afterwards! But the story leaves off at a cliffhanger when a meteor strikes the wedding reception. Whether or not it was premeditated is still to be determined.”

Remy took a long sip of his coffee as Emile was talking. “Love that for them.”

Emile grinned, pushing up his glasses and waving as he exited the coffee shop. Remy decided to begin wiping down the counter while waiting for his shift to end.

-

“You haven’t seen Steven Universe?!”

Remy picked at the inside of his ear with a pinky finger. “I mean. I’ve probably seen like, half of an episode. Or something.”

“Ohmygosh, you have to watch it-” Emile abruptly cut himself off, realization dawning on his face. A wide grin spread across his blank expression, and he pulled the hem of his sweater down to gesture at it.

“Look! Remy, this is Steven Universe!” Emile animatedly went through the effort of pointing each colorful character out on his sweater, going as far as to explain their faults, character arcs, backstories…

“I like this one,” Remy said as Emile was taking a breath, and pointed at a girl in large comical glasses. “She looks pretty cool.”

“That’s Connie,” Emile continued, Despite him being in the middle of explaining… One of the colorful ones before Remy interjected. “She’s very inquisitive yet cautious, and I think one of the most interesting traits about her is her feelings of loneliness.”

Remy quirked an eyebrow at him, absently rubbing the countertop with a cloth. “She doesn’t look very lonely here,” He said, poking at the character on his shirt. She was grinning with her eyebrows set in a determined expression. Also she was carrying a huge sword.

“Well, due to her father’s job, there is a lot of instability in her life,” Emile elaborated, leaning forwards so that his elbows were on the counter and a hand was propping his chin up. “Simply put, her family moves around a lot, and thus she finds it difficult to hold onto friendships.”

“That’s… Kind of depressing,” Remy said, an odd knot of sympathy forming in his throat. “For a kids show.”

“Well, I guess, but it’s just so… So frickin cool how realistic that is,” He sighed dreamily, and he let his head rest on his forearm instead of his elbow. “Gosh, I love cartoons! Do you have a favorite show, um…”

Emile blinked at him owlishly, straightening up. “Wait, I don’t know your name.”

“Oh.” Was Remy’s only response to that.

“Gosh, that’s so rude of me!” Emile squeaked, the onset of embarrassment on his face so fast that Remy almost had whiplash witnessing it. “I-It must have slipped my mind! I’m so sorry!”

“Don’t worry about it,” Remy said with a smirk. “I was just worried you’d never forget it if I told you.”

“Don’t keep me in the dark any longer!” Emile gasped, leaning forwards suddenly. “What’s your name? Or I’ll just keep referring you to as ‘Starbucks Guy’ in my head.”

“Is that a threat?”

“It could be.”

After a drawn out pause as Remy sipped his iced coffee, he responded with a simple, “Remy.”

Emile stared at him for a moment, before a squeal escaped his mouth and he clamped his hands over his lips. “Li-Like from Ratatouille!! Remy and Emile, oh my god!!” He exclaimed loudly. A woman on the phone in the corner of the establishment sent him an odd look that Emile didn’t notice.

“Like… From France…?”

“Ratatouille!” Emile repeated. “Please tell me you’ve seen Ratatouille.”

Remy took a guilty sip from his coffee. “It’s probably a TV show?”

“It’s a Pixar movie,” Emile took out his phone and typed something into Google (He didn’t have a passcode it seemed) and showed him various pictures of a 3D cartoon mouse. In a chefs hat.

“Wow, she’s cute,” Remy deadpanned. “Glad that reminds you of me.”

“He’s great! It’s a great movie!” Emile smiled despite the sardonic slight. “You should watch it sometime! Oh, you have Netflix, right? It’s probably there.”

“Totally,” Remy lied.

“Awesome! Um…” With his gaze stuck on his phone, Emile trailed off, eyebrows furrowed in concentration. A look of horror then struck his face, and he immediately shoved his phone in his pocket. “Shoot! I was supposed to meet up with them like thirty minutes ago! Ah-”

Emile gave him an apologetic look. “Sorry I can’t stay for much longer, I’ll see you on Monday, though!”

“Why Mon-” Oh, yeah, the school week ended on Friday. “Yeah… Yeah I’ll see you then.”

Emile waved as he bolted out of the Starbucks, and Remy all but sagged onto the countertop, glasses sliding off the bridge of his nose as he glared at a speck of dust in his peripheral vision.

He probably should have asked for his number… Or was it too soon for that? Ah, whatever.

-

One nap, his boss yelling at him for it, and an hour later, Remy had officially clocked out. He didn’t have much else to do for the night, since he had finished his homework the day prior, so Remy settled for the grim reality of going home to watch a rerun of The Office before he inevitably fell asleep halfway through the episode.

On the way to his bus stop, there was a bridge he had to walk past. It laid across the polluted river, shitty paint job and all. Graffiti consistently covered the underside of it (somehow), and Remy never spared a second glance towards it.

Well, the reason why this insignificant, minute detail in his own insignificant, minute life was suddenly relevant was due to the head of pink hair on the bridge.

It was a group of about five people, including Emile. His bright, pastel colored sweater was tinted to a pretty shade of dark periwinkle due to the sunset over the bridge. He stuck out like a sore thumb amongst the group of individuals wearing mostly earthy, warm colors.

Remy catapulted himself behind a building, sticking his body up against it and digging out his phone. He was just going to check Instagram really quick. He definitely wasn’t eavesdropping, nope.

“... ile, isn’t that show like, for little kids?” A voice drifted from over the bridge. Remy adjusted his sunglasses. This was stupid. He should just keep walking. Pathetic how attached he grew to one person even after knowing them for a grand total of three days at most.

“Well,” Emile’s voice was loud. There was a cartoonish quality to it that Remy couldn’t place, maybe it was the way he said his e’s. It might’ve been an accent, but Remy could not place which one for the life of him. Despite this, his voice didn’t seem to carry as much authority as the speaker prior. “I just thought it was fun, I guess.”

A bubble of bitterness welled up in his throat at Emile’s tone, because it was softer than when he had spoken to him at the bus stop. Like he wasn’t using it to its full potential.

Whatever, Remy conceded he’d leave it alone. This was kind of bad, wasn’t it? To be eavesdropping like this. #Clingy! Blared in his mind as he walked slowly away from the scene, towards his bus stop.

“That’s weird, Emile,” Another speaker said. “Don’t you watch any, like, real shows?”

“... I don’t really watch that much TV.”

-

Remy awoke with a start, much like he always did. Though this time he was floating above the ground, drool pooling in a puddle on the countertop.

The barstool clattered to the ground as Remy scrambled to get a grip on the countertop before he fell off of it. He heard snickering, and whipped his head around to glare at Ethan.

“Your shift’s over, princess,” Ethan said. He sprayed whipped cream into his mouth, setting it back down before his attention returned to his phone once again. Remy sighed, rubbing his still groggy head before clocking out for the day.

The sky was clear, though there were a gaggle of looming rainclouds near the horizon. Remy didn’t mind, however, since he found the sunset was freaking gorgeous today. Definitely Instagram-worthy.

So he decided to take a picture of it before heading to the bus stop. Who knew when he’d get another opportunity like this, especially since it was rainy season. Maybe the bridge would be a nice photo-op?

As he passed by the old, graffiti-littered bridge, Remy’s steps slowed.

It was Emile again. While Remy didn’t find it odd to witness highschool students being outside during the weekends, the odd thing about this was that Emile was completely alone.

He had an elbow on the railing of the bridge, propping up his chin in a way that he looked almost serene, gazing out over the polluted water. The oranges and angry yellows of the sun made his beige cardigan look more like a deep red-brown.

Remy’s hand lingered over his hand. This was probably the most perfect photo he could ever imagine for his Instagram, but of course he wasn’t going to take a picture of someone just standing there. That would be weird, right? Should he forget about this now? Go up to Emile and talk to him? The lack of an expression on his face didn’t suit him well, Remy noticed.

In his other hand, hanging by his side, was the yellow notebook Remy had witnessed him writing into many days ago.

As Remy continued debating whether or not he should go up to him, Emile had shifted his position. He was walking backwards from the railing, face set in a determined grimace. His grip tightened on the notebook so much that his fingers were smudging the ink and the pages were wrinkling in his grasp. He seemed to be psyching himself up for something, clenching and unclenching his fingers as he kept his gaze on the water in front of the bridge.

Then he swung his hand back, and flung the notebook into the river.

Similar to how people, quote on quote, had their lives flashing before their eyes upon their deathbed, Remy only saw his friends. Or lack thereof. The empty birthday parties, the pitying stares from other students, a teacher extending a hand to him as he laid asleep on the floor…

And it was probably then that he realized he hated being alone. The feeling clawed inside of him like a vice, and yet he could never seem to hold onto anyone before they faded away from his life. He didn’t want to feel that way again.

He felt his feet moving before his mind could wrap itself around the situation. It was like a primal instinct had taken over, and suddenly Remy was vaulting over the railing with a strength he never knew he possessed, extending a hand towards the yellow pages that were half submerged into the water.

And as he let the notebook float gently into the air, his familiar purple aura surrounding it, Remy felt his knees give way.

A mute scream bubbled from his throat as his grip slacked on the railing, body falling into the water despite his mind yelling at him to move, to regroup, to do something-

A rush of cold water hit him like a ton of bricks, and Remy felt dizzy as all the breath from his lungs left him despite himself. He felt the familiar haze of sleep cloud his mind, and he thought ruefully that he had never fallen asleep in a river before…

As his vision went darker and bubbles filled it, he saw the stream of light from the sunset, a soda can surrounded by purple float to the top of the river, and there was something pink coming towards him… He was fading, fading...

-

Emile Picani watched as the Starbucks barista, the one who always knew to get him a black coffee, vaulted over the railing of the bridge. He watched as his powers made his notepad levitate into the air, and watched as the barista’s legs seemed to freeze up, hold on the railing slacking all of a sudden. And he watched as he plummeted into the polluted river, notepad still floating with a pretty spark of purple surrounding it despite it all.

He was stunned! Flabbergasted, floored, er… He didn’t really know what to do. Emile was still standing and staring at where the man had disappeared under the water… And he wasn’t floating back to the surface… Oh no-

Things suddenly started shooting to the surface, a soda can, old shoes, a couple fish and a hair dryer. That was probably what spurred Emile to lurch himself over the railing as well to dive into the water.

It was murky and hard to see- And oh god why was everything brown?! Emile resisted the urge to gag as his heart raced, eyes squinting to make out anything in the water atop the bubbles escaping his nose. There were still things rising to the top of the water, a phone, a ring of keys, glasses…

Emile’s eyes focused on a hazy blob of darkness lying on the river floor, and he quickly shot his hands out to grab at it. By now he was very quickly running out of air, and it didn’t seem like Starbucks was going to wake up at any point either. So Emile gathered as much of the man’s jacket as he could in his hands, panic pooling within his stomach as he felt a large amount of air leave his nose through bubbles.

Okay, okay, it’s fine, this is fine, fine and dandy, Emile heard his voice scream inside of his head. He tried not to gasp at the darkness fluttering in and out of his vision, trying to kick his way back to the top of the river. But his movements were growing sluggish, and everything was suddenly covered in a haze that wasn’t there before. And Emile was sinking, sinking…

Floating…?

He felt a light feeling overwhelm him, and looked down to see his hands surrounded in a purple aura. Was Remy… Doing this?

Emile’s hands were in a death grip on Remy’s jacket, squeezing his eyes shut as his body was shooting to the top. Bubbles were escaping his mouth, but soon enough, his head broke the surface and he was gasping for air.

Sweet, sweet oxygen invaded his lungs and Emile allowed himself to cough up the water he had accidentally swallowed while resurfacing. His attention snapped to Remy, still submerged in the river and he quickly brought the other boy up to the surface while trying to kick to shore at the same time.

As the effects of Remy’s powers wore off, Emile had gradually reached the shore. He all but threw Starbucks onto the shore, and laid himself down next to the sleeping barista atop crushed soda cans and sharp plastic. His arms felt like they were on fire, and his heart wouldn’t stop beating like he was running from a known serial killer… Man, maybe he should start working out more.

Then, Emile’s attention refocused onto the matter at hand… Oh god, Remy probably swallowed a gallon of dirty  river water or something. Emile quickly scrambled to his side, looming over him as he surveyed the condition of the unconscious teenager. Would he have to perform CPR? Oh no, Emile wasn’t qualified to do that!! Maybe if he looked it up on Google he’d have a better understanding- Oh, but he’d lost his phone in the river…

As soon as the feeling of helplessness welled up inside of him, it popped like a bubble. Remy’s eyes cracked open, squinting against the harsh rays of the sunset. His fingers twitched as he tried to sit up.

“Wh-” Remy began, voice hoarse, but as soon as he started his face turned a sickly shade of green and he turned his head to vomit up river water. Emile kindly looked away from the scene, grimace present on his face. “Um,” Emile started, but a strange feeling overwhelmed him, made his eyes water and the back of his throat burn. He’d realized that most of what happened was mostly because of him, and his little stunt back on the bridge. If he hadn’t been so stupid, Remy wouldn’t have…

“I’m sorry,” Emile couldn’t stop the tears from flowing down his cheeks, and he was pointedly looking away from Remy as well. “I-I, oh gosh,” He mumbled wiping at them with the sleeves of his cardigan despite them also being soaking wet.

As Remy opened his mouth to respond, another torrent of river water escaped him and onto the shore. He held out a hand, motioning for Emile to wait a second and spoke after vomiting.

“Do-Don’t apologize,” Remy muttered, wiping his mouth sheepishly. “I think I dropped it anyways. Your notebook.”

All that statement did was make him cry even harder, and he curled in on himself, hugging his knees and burying his head in them. He tried saying that he didn’t care, it really didn’t matter to him, because the fact of the matter was that his actions nearly caused another human being to die. Not only that, it was Remy, someone who had been nothing but kind to him through the brief interactions they’d shared together.

Remy was patting him awkwardly on the back. “Sor-Sorry, yi-yikes, it’s kind of cold out, huh?” He said, laughing. 

Emile didn’t respond, and Remy opted to draw his hand away from Emile to sit cross legged on the shore line. He reached down to extract a soggy piece of paper from one of his leather boots.

“So… I kind of fall asleep sometimes,” Remy blurted out suddenly. Emile blinked at him, furrowing his eyebrows in questioning. “Like, it’s really random.”

“Huh,” Emile said. “That’s why you-”

“Yeah. Um,” Remy scratched the back of his head. “It gets really strong when I fall asleep. My powers, I mean. I’m usually not strong enough to lift people or anything.”

Emile thought back to when he was surrounded in a purple aura, the feeling of weightlessness as he floated to the top of the river despite him sinking just a moment before… “Ah.”

“Sorry if that’s weird,” Remy laughed bitterly. “But I just thought I should tell you ‘cause… You know.”

He didn’t know, but Emile suddenly wondered what Remy’s life must have been like living with a condition like that. He wondered if he had a hard time connecting with other people too, he wondered if he was lonely too.

“It-It’s not,” Emile remedied. “I mean, kinda but I don’t care… You’re great, I-I just don’t know why you… Did that.”

He wondered if it was the lighting or if Remy’s face had grown red. “I just… I know it means a lot to you,” He answered. “And don’t give me that crap and pretend it doesn’t matter. I know it does.”

Emile tried to pretend like that statement didn’t make a new wall of tears well up in his eyes. “Y-Yeah,” He whispered, hugging his knees closer to his chest. “It does.”

So they sat together on the shoreline, Emile trying to ignore the chill that came with a gust of wind. Looking up at the sky above, Emile wondered if there would ever come a day where he’d make a friend that he could show his writing to without the debilitating anxiety that came with being judged. Maybe a friend he could watch cartoons with without them asking to change the channel to something like a reality show instead. He wanted someone who would spend time with him that didn’t come at the expense of having to do a project together for AP English.

Then he looked over at the barista, staring blankly out at the water, dark hair plastered unflatteringly to his forehead while squinting. Was it too bright? Was that why he wore sunglasses indoors too? It seemed like Emile was learning something new about him every time they interacted.

A hopeful feeling ignited in his chest, and Emile wished that he could learn more about Remy with time.

-

“This is my number!”

Remy quirked an eyebrow as he took the post-it note. “Uh-”

“I lost my phone because of, you know,” Emile waved his hand vaguely, but Remy already knew the incident he was talking about. “So I had to get a new one.”

“... Thanks,” Remy said. He furiously engraved it into his skull to remember to text Emile, because he’d probably never forgive himself if he forgot. “I’ll text you after my shift’s over.”

“Yeah, yeah, of course!” Emile said flippantly. “I just wanted to say thanks for the other day… I was kind of- heh, kind of a wreck! Emotionally, haha.”

“Yeah, it’s cool,” Remy thumbed over the new cracks on his phone- He referred to them as battle scars in his mind though. “I’d nearly drown in a shit-filled river anytime for you, babe.”

Although he was kind of joking, Remy was delighted to see a nervous smile on Emile’s face. Much better than tears for sure. 

“Haha!! Um, I uh, hah,” Emile squeaked, putting a hand to his red face. “Gosh, it feels like Agrab- You probably don’t know what that is! Haha!! Anyways!”

He unceremoniously dumped a shoddily wrapped parcel onto the table. The wrapper was a repeating pattern of cartoon characters he didn’t recognize.

“It’s the Loud House! Okay, uh, happy Saint Patrick’s day, bye!”

With that, as soon as he came he was gone. Remy watched mutely as Emile bolted out of the shop, though not before nearly tackling an older gentleman making his way in and apologizing to him profusely as he colorfully swore at the retreating teenager. A genuine snicker left his mouth, and he looked down at the gift in his hands.

He’d open it after his shift ended, Remy decided. Using his powers, he levitated it so that it rested underneath the counter, hidden from view. Remy smiled at the older guy and adjusted his glasses.

“How may I help you?”

[shadedrose01]

Lullabies of Love

Ship: Parkner (Harley Keener/Peter Parker)

Summary: Harley says "I love you" to the two people who mean the most to him.

Tags: Febufluff, day 6!, I Love You, I love you more, Domestic Fluff, Domestic Bliss, parenting, Harley and Peter have a kid, His name is Jax - Freeform, Marriage, Husbands, Boys In Love, Short & Sweet, Sweet, Cute, Fluff, all of the fluff, SO MUCH FLUFF, Italian petnames, Established Relationship

Day six of Febufluff: "I love you" "I love you more"!

--

"-And the little white rabbit, with his heart full of love, hop, hop, hoped his way back home." Harley finishes, flipping the last page and closing the book just as the little boy laid in front of him starts squirming again, a bright smile on his face.

"Yay! Another one, papa, another one!"

"No, no more, Jaxy. Its bedtime."

"Pleeeeease?" Jax gives Harley the biggest puppy dog eyes hes ever seen, something that he had to have gotten from Peter, his bottom lip pouted out and his green eyes wide and shiny. Every instinct in Harleys is screaming at him to give in, to find another book and sit down with his little boy for a little while longer, but he knows that they cant. If Jax stays up any longer he'll get overtired and become cranky, and Harley needs to get some sleep as well.

"No, baby, Papa's gotta work in the morning." Harley responds regretfully, standing to put the book back onto the shelf of the bookcase, filled with multiple different colorful childrens books.

"Awh, okay." Jax slumps, eyes cast downwards in what Harley knows is one last attempt at a guilt trip, one last way to try to get him to stay. 'Stay strong, Harley, stay strong.'

He walks back to the bed and pulls up the sheets, Jax slipping down further and rolling onto his side to get more comfortable before Harley tucks him in, pressing in all around the four year old's small frame. He runs a hand through Jax's blond hair, and presses a long kiss to his forehead. "Goodnight, patatino. I love you."

"Love you too, papa." Even with his recent excitement, Jax already sounds tired, his eyes starting to droop.

Harley heart warms, his chest feeling mushy as he walks to the door, flicks off the light, staring softly at the second love of his life for a few moments before shutting the door quietly.

He sighs lightly, before turning around and immediately jumping three feet into the air. Peter is stood almost directly behind him, hair tousled and all over the place, face flushed from his patrol. "Jesus, Pete!" Harley whispers out harshly, a hand pressed to his chest right above his rapidly beating heart. "Give a guy a heart attack, now, why don't you?"

Peter just chuckles at him, the bastard, caramel eyes sparkling, saying "Sorry." even though he very clearly isn't. "You put him to bed?"

"Yeah, he just went down. When did you get home?" Harley asks over his shoulder as he passes, walking to the kitchen to get a glass of water, his throat dry and sore from reading.

He just finishes taking a sip when he feels two arms wrap around his waist, and a firm chest press against his back. "A few minutes ago. It was quieter tonight, so I figured I could come home early and spend some time with my boys." Peter murmurs, rocking them back and forth gently.

Harley places his free hand over Peter's left hand, feeling the cool band of metal on one of his fingers brush against his skin, and puffs out a content sigh, closing his eyes. "Well, bambino is out for the night, so you'll only have one of your boys." He opens his eyes a crack and gives Peter a teasing look over his shoulder. "Sorry to disappoint."

Peter just nuzzles his nose into Harleys cheek with a snort. "You are never a disappointment, Harley Parker-Keener."

Harley just hums in agreement, tilting his head all of the way to press his lips to his husband's, their movements slow, leisurely, in no apparent rush to go anywhere, just enjoying the careful, quiet moment that they both found themselves in while it lasts. Enjoying each other. Even after almost 10 years together, 5 of those married, Harley is still not tired of Peter's presence, of his embrace, his kisses, his warmth. He doesn't think he ever will be, it's like his soul intertwined with Peter's when they first met, making them inseparable. Peter is his other half, his soulmate that he never thought existed, never though he of all people would have, and he will never take it for granted. His husband, his son, his life, this life he never thought he would have, but couldn't be more thankful for.

They break apart after a few moments, but stay close, foreheads pressed together and eyes closed, breathing each others air as they sway back and forth, lost in their thoughts and in each other, just the same as they did when they were 16, when they were 18 and 22, and every second, minute, hour, day, and month inbetween.

"Bedroom or couch?" Peter murmurs, time passing like a summer nights breeze whistling through the trees, soft, warmth, soothing, and Harley understands what he means, understands like its engraved into his mind, it probably is after all these years. Lay on the couch, stay up a little longer and watch a movie or two, or bedroom, getting ready, lying in bed, basking in each others warmth and falling asleep wrapped tightly around one another, hearts beating as one.

Harley ponders on it for a second, before feeling the exhaustion weighing down his bones after a long, hard day of parenting, making up his mind. "Bedroom." He whispers back, just loud enough for Peter to hear.

His husband nods once as a response, holding him for a few more seconds before placing an arm underneath his legs and picking him up bridal style, starting towards their master bedroom. The steady, soothing motion of Peter's footsteps act as a sleeping aid, Harleys body feeling heavier and heavier by the second, his blinks getting longer and longer until he cant open them anymore, giving into the wave pulling at him.

He's just at the edge of sleep, fading in and out of consciousness when he feels  hands lifting him gently, Peter taking off his clothes and replacing them with sleep wear. Then a body is being pressed against his, heat flooding his side and a steady heart beat in his ears. He hears Peter whisper "I love you," in his ear, and it takes all of his energy to respond back with a slurred, groggy "Love you more."

The last thing Harley knows before giving into the lull of unconsciousness is a faint chuckle, a soft press of lips against his forehead, and a murmur of "I love you most."

[decafmarais]

waitress | daniel seavey

“Come in Bubba, lunch break is over.”

You took your three year old son, Harrison, by the hand and guided him through the employee parking lot. He struggled to keep up with you as you swiftly made your way to the back entrance; you felt bad for rushing him, but you couldn’t afford to waste any time. Time was literal money, in this case. You let him go in front of you as you opened the door, guiding him by pressing your hand on his shoulder. “To your left, Harrison,” You instructed. He took a second to remember which direction he was going and then quickly skipped down the left hallway.

You were a single mom working two day jobs and one night job in the summer. This one, working as a waitress at a local mexican restaurant, was one you prayed was temporary. You were working on getting your bachelors degree in business by online school, but your graduation seemed to be farther away every day.

There was a small room on on the right that your manager used when she wasn’t on active duty, but graciously let you use it as a playpen for the time being. After Harrison realized where he had returned too, he beamed and ran over to his blanket that was littered with coloring books and dinosaurs. You followed him and leaned his monkey backpack against the wall. You grabbed your uniform shirt and slipped it over the white t-shirt you were wearing while your son squatted down to pick up his t-rex from the floor. Before you turned to leave, he extended his little arm that clasped the figure inbetween his fingers. “Mommy!” He cried to get your attention.

You bent down and smiled at him, fixing his blonde hair so it didn’t fall into his eyes. He started babbling on about the dinosaur and turned to get another one. You took this as your que to stand up and innitiate it wasn’t playtime anymore. “Harrison, remember what Mommy told you to do, okay? Don’t leave this room.” You sternly looked into his eyes as he blankly stared up at yours. You sighed and hoped he retained some of what you just said. You blew him a kiss and scurried out the door before you missed your shift.

As you checked on your fifth table in the last thirty minutes, you took a moment to lean against the wall and breathe. You had never seen the restaurant this crowded before, and there was even more people waiting to get in. One of your coworkers, Amanda, suddenly swooped in by the register and went to swipe somebody’s card. She saw you out of the corner of her eye and breathed a sigh of relief. “There you are, I finally found you. Okay, so Braelyn needs you to attend a special table at the back,” She gestured to the closed doors at the back of the restaurant; the room was typically reserved for big groups of people. “She was trying to come tell you but couldn’t find you.”

You sighed and began putting the complimentary waters on your tray. You hated working those types of groups; big groups never tipped well and were a bad experience overall. “How big of a group?” You asked, preparing for the worst.

Amanda turned around. “Only 6.”

You furrowed your eyebrows at her. “6? In the closed off room?” You questioned.

“Yeah,” She confirmed. “I told you it was special.”

You shook your head a little bit and hoisted the tray so it was balancing on your shoulder. You made your way to the back, weaving through pushed out chairs and children running in and out of the isle. You swiftly got to the frosted glass doors and slid one open, not seeing anyone at first. You slipped inside and saw a group of boys sitting in the far right corner, as far away from the doors as possible. It was odd, but you didn’t have time to ask questions.

“Hey guys,” You greeted as you approached their table. You set your tray down on the empty table next to them and began dispersing the waters you had brought in. “How are you today?”

There was a collective murmur of “goods” and “thanks” as you handed out the last water. As you went to take out your booklet, you studied the men you were catering. Three sat on each side, all of them looking in their early twenties. Two had bleach blonde hair, three with dark brown, and one with curls emiting wildly. “What can I get you guys?”

You turned to the right side of the table, which seated one with bleach blonde hair first. He looked up at you with bright blue eyes and a partial smile. He‘s kind of cute, you noted, They’re all pretty good looking. He stared at you for a moment before quickly looking down at his menu, giving an exaggerated panicked face. “I wasn’t ready,” He laughed. You softly laughed as he motioned for the boy next to him to go.

After you received all their orders, you went to take up the menus. The brunette man sitting on the end of the left side collected all of them and went to hand them to you. As you were exchanging them, he partially leaned in. “Just a request, if possible, to keep this side of the restaurant as low key as you can,” He said in a low tone. “I don’t know how much they told you, but these guys need as much seclusion as they can get.”

You paused for a moment, trying to process what could possibly need “as much seclusion” as they did, but nodded anyway. “Of course,” You assured. The blonde one across from him scoffed, “Tyler you make it sound so serious.”

The whole table chuckled and gave their short remarks as Tyler shrugged. “I’m not taking any chances,” He told them, and then turned to you, “Thank you so much.”

When you went back to the kitchen and gave the cooks their orders, you leaned back against the counter with Amanda, recounting what just happened. You both people watched for a moment before she spoke up, “I haven’t heard anything about them. Just ask them when you bring their food,” She suggested. “From what you said they seem nice.” You nodded and went to attend your other tables.

It was about 10 minutes before you checked back at the kitchen and grabbed what was most of the boys’ food. You packed it onto your tray and once again made the journey back to the unfrequented room. As you got closer, you could see that the door was ajar a significant amount. One of them probably left to go to the bathroom, you assumed. Following suit, you tried to make yourself as unknown as possible and slipped into the room, closing the door with your foot.

You turned on your heels to face them and saw a child standing at the end of the table. The blonde, who know was sitting sideways in his chair so his whole body was facing the boy, was examining something in the little ones hand that looked to be a toy. You furrowed your eyebrows with concern and quickly shuffled over. You froze in your tracks and nearly dropped the food when you realized it was Harrison, your own son, standing at end of the man’s knees. As quickly yet smoothly as possible, you walked over to the table and set the tray down on the empty table aside it. Harrison saw you and beamed up at you, once again holding up that dinosaur he had earlier. “Mommy!” He squealed.

Everyone at the table shot their wide eyes at you, and you felt the blush rising to your cheeks. You bent down to Harrison’s level and put your hands on his arms, forcing him to look into your eyes. “Harrison James, you aren’t supposed to come out into the dining area, remember?” You scolded gently. You didn’t want to be harsh because he didn’t know that he did wrong. He probably saw you walk into the room and didn’t realize it was a part of the working restaurant. “Can you go back and wait for Mommy? We’re only a few hours away from going home,” You reminded him.

He slowly nodded and you stood up, guiding him gently out the door and making sure he went to the right spot. You stood in the doorway and took a deep breath, trying not to cry. This wasn’t the life you were promised; the one your ex had told you he would provide. This wasn’t the life Harrison deserved. He should be able to run around in his own home on week days, playing and watching movies when he pleased; not sitting on the floor next to a desk in some restaurant. He deserved to go to preschool and see friends and have big birthday parties. But as you had to homeschool him because of finances, you were really the only person he knew. He probably had the time of his life talking to the boys at the table, it was somebody new.

You turned on your heels after you collected yourself and walked back to the table. “I’m so sorry about that guys,” You said quietly. They all refused your apologizes, saying how sweet and cool he was. You began to call out food orders and hand them to the boys who claimed them. As you handed the last plate out to the curly headed boy, the blue eyed boy spoke up, “If you don’t mind me asking, how old are you?”

“20,” You answered.

He smiled a little bit and nodded. “You’re a good mom. I can tell.”

You didn’t know how to take the compliment. “I don’t necessarily feel like one,” You said, slightly laughing. You instantly bit your tongue after you said that; you shouldn’t be opening up to these people. They had no care for what you were saying. You were on the job, anyways. “Enjoy,” You spit out, rushing over to grab your tray.

“Wait-“ He called out, turning around in his seat. You took a deep breath and turned around. “I can assure you you’re doing a really good job. I don’t know you or your situation, but I can tell you’re a strong woman.” He eyed your ringless finger.

“Thank you,” You said shyly. You gave a small smile and slipped out of the room, firmly shutting the doors behind you.

You came back to check up on them near the end of their meal. “How was it all?” You said, more stable now. They all gave great feedback as you pulled out the check. “Really good to hear! I’m glad you guys liked it.” You set the check down at the end of the table and clasped your hands together. “Is there anything else I can get you guys before you go? Any waters or snacks for the road? I hear you have a long way to go.”

Tyler looked to everyone as they all shook their heads. “I think we’re good,” He concluded. You gave them all one last smile. “Thank you so much guys,” You said routinely; except this time it felt a little more than a curtesy. You took some of the empty plates and bowls from the table and headed back to the kitchen. When you came back to get the final dishes, the table had been cleared out and money was left on the table. You set your tray down and went over to count it. It covered everything and left you a more than plenty tip.

You smiled at the generosity and put the cash inside the checkbook, slipping it onto the pocket of your apron. Before you grabbed the last couple of plates, a disposable napkin caught your eye. It sat partially under an empty water cup and in the same spot that blonde sat in. It had a phone number written at the top and a note written in shaky handwriting.

I normally don’t do this, but you weren’t of the ordinary. Text me anytime :)

Daniel

You blushed and stared at the napkin before quickly pocketing it. Biting your lip and succumbing the urge to squeal like a little girl, you finished picking up the table. Nobody had made you feel that way before.

Maybe this job wasn’t that bad.