#but I found another listing way cheaper

[vulpiximisa]

I either underestimated Yamato’s popularity or nobody is pulling him and selling him because there’s no way I’m paying 2000yen for him. I expect it from Riku, but not this guy

[awniie]

AT LEAST LOOK AT ME WHEN YOU LIE

ᣞ ⊹ ݁ summary: your boyfriend suguru finds the best way to punish you !!

꒰ content: mean!sugu, fem!reader, pussyslapping, praise/degradiation, cum denial, feel like this whole thing is kinda a niche kink

ㅤㅤㅤ⭑ notes: my ‘mean suguru’ drabble was based on this so if some stuff sounds familiar it’s cus i took this n drabble-fied it; also this is for the anon who asked for it <33 ALSO @d0nk3y-k0ng my new-found geto fixation is your fault <33

“Suguru, can you help me?…this thing is too heavy!” you called out, voice straining as you struggled to bring the giant cardboard box through the door. It was way too heavy for you, and of course the delivery people had quickly set it outside the door, escaping the potential work of having to bring it inside. Your boyfriend quickly rushed to your aid, grabbing the opposite side of the box. “I got it baby, where did you wanna put it again?” Suguru asked, setting the box against the wall and looking at you.

“I wanted to put it in the living room. That way it’ll be the most accessible.” You told him. You two hand just moved into your new place and decorating was the sole thing on your mind. You spent hours on pinterest, trying to find the perfect aesthetic for your new home. You valued your home,so much so that you started repeating all those cringey aphorisms whenever you were questioned about your new-found obsession.

“Home is where the heart is, sugu.” You told him. He scoffed and rolled his eyes. “Okay, but what does that anything to do with spending $100 on a house plant?” You let out a sheepish laugh. “Well…I can take care of the plant. Which takes heart…?” You murmured. It was an inane suggestion, which was appropriate for the circumstance of spending $100 on a plant. “Sounds a bunch of bullshit to me.” Your boyfriend told you. He was necessarily happy with all the money being spent on what seemed like superficial things, he seemed to be happy with the results of your decorating.

It took about 30 minutes to situate this new mirror, but for good reasons. It was big, like really big. Leaning, it was taller than you and almost as tall as your 6’3 boyfriend. It was wide as well, providing a perfect view of anyone who looked into it. It was a gorgeous peice of furniture. The frame was a creamy white, with ornate molding. There were carefully crafted swirls and curves on it, with tiny clay embellishment. It had looked like something out of a fairytale, like a mirror that could reveal the deepest desires of whoever dared look inside. It was perfect for your new house, the only thing that wasn’t so perfect was the extravagant price. Your jaw almost dropped when you saw the cost. No way in hell would Suguru let you buy it, no matter how much you beg or how many tears you spill.

So you searched for alternatives. Any sort of duplicate or listing on another site would be scouted out and search throughly before you succumb your wallet to $2,500. You must’ve been god-kissed that day, as the only cheaper listing was $1,700. Still, it wasn’t something you felt 100% sure about buying, but what other options were there? Suguru would be proud of you for finding a cheaper offering and thinking about a budget. So, you went ahead and bought it, feeling pretty proud of yourself for doing so. Did you tell Suguru about the purchase? no way. You’d only tell him if he asked, and you prayed with all your heart that he wouldn’t.

“Sooo…do you like it?” you asked him hopefully. Maybe he would say yes and then move on to something else, and not ask that dreadful question. Maybe, when you told him about the bargain you made, he’d be proud of you for your efforts. “Mhmmm, t’s real pretty.” He put his hand on his chin, as if thinking. “How much did we pay for this again?” Suguru asks, stepping back and giving it an appraisal.

Shit. It was silent for a good 10 seconds. You could feel the way your words dried up on your tongue and died, as if they were too scared to come up. He raised an eyebrow and asks again, looking at you through the reflection of the mirror. “How much did we pay for this thing?” Stil not answer. He came up behind you, snaking one arm around your waist, while his open hand went to your chin. “Baby, you gon’ answer me?” His ghostly purple eyes searing yours through that cursed mirror.

…

“I-I just forgot to tell you-…!” you whined, legs buckling as you felt another sharp stinging sensation land on puffy clit.

“Oh, you did?” Suguru asked facetiously. You nod and cry as you feel another slap land on your clit. He then grabs your face with his hands, holding your cheeks between his slick-coated fingers. “At least look at me when you lie, baby.” He said as he guided your face in the mirror.

This was humiliating. He had you spread out on the floor, pussy glistening and your back pressed up against his chest. He had took upon himself to punish you, which subsequently turned into something lewd and twisted. Hence the being sprawled out, leggings and panties long discarded and receiving countless slaps on your cunt. It was painfully obvious that he was hard, feeling his length that was being squashed up against your ass. Your hair was messy and out of place, your skin sticky while drool and tears coated your chin. The worst part? He was doing this right infront of the new mirror and he wouldn’t even let you look away, so you were forced to fully embrace your current state.

“Please sugu. I didn’t mean too…just lemme cum please? You begged, your voice shaky and full of hiccups.

“Noo, only good girls get to cum .” He cooed, his finger playing with your little bundle of nerves. You’d been at this for about an hour now. He’d start to finger your cunt, and then he’d hit it as punishment. The closest you’ve been to finishing was the half-broken orgasm you’d stolen from his fingering, which in return you got another slap.

“Could’ve been done a long time ago. You’re making this so difficult for me baby.” He whispered in your ear, as if this hurt him more than it did you. “So now, are you gonna tell me the truth, or are you gonna keep lying to me? Cus’ trust me, I won’t hesitate to hit this pussy again” He threatened, the hand on your sticky clit moving even more slowly as an incentive.

You meant to shake your head, but when he swiftly plunged his fingers into your weeping cunt, the sloppy sounds of your slick, must’ve drowned out whatever of your senses was left. “y-yes…!”

You saw the gleam of that dangerous smile in the mirrors reflection. “I knew you would. Such a smart girl, yeah?”

Then your boyfriend laughed, a soft and smooth laugh that should not have gone down to your lower stomach with molten delicious heat. Could you blame yourself though? His fingers were pumping in-and-out of you with tantalizing proficiency, making your insides do somersaults. The way that syrupy-sweet praises dripped off his tongue alongside bitter jeers. Your brain was too far fucked out for so many conflicting emotions. “Go on now..say what you needa say to me.”

“m’ sorry for spending your money sugu! I shouldn’t have bought it, should’ve a-asked!” You confessed, buckling you hips in tandem with his fingers. “Ah ah…no moving.” He reprimanded, taking those fingers out and slapping your hole again. Your body jolted at the sudden sting and then slumped back against his chest.

“Look at you, all teary eyed and wet-pussied. You like this shit, don’t yeah?” He catchesized, with that stupid-stupid smirk on his face. “I bet you’re not sorry at all.”

“No-yes-no m’ sorry..! M’ really really sorry! ” You could barely understand what he was saying. Your pleasure was the only thing that mattered right now, all other senses finger-fucking out of you a long time ago. Geto loved you like this though. Fucked dumb and too far down the abyss of your own pleasure to think properly, all inhibitions lost. It was the easiest way to get an answer out of you.

“I think you bought this mirror just for yourself. Just so you could watch yourself get fucked? He guessed, dragging his hands across your quivering thighs. You hated how soft his voice sounded, especially when accusing you. whimpered as he did, wishing he’d just hurry and put you out of your misery. “N-no”

he frowned, stopping his hand in its tracks. He brought his lips close to shell of you ear, sending shivers down your spine and more wetness to your cunt. “Look at me, and don’t lie.”

You looked at him, straight through the mirror. “I promise, i didn't sugu. I just wanted our home to look nice!” you confessed, sniffling and squeezing your thighs together to create some sort of friction for your achey pussy.

Suguru felt his heart melt a little. You were so pitiful with your shaky mewls and whines . He couldn't help but feel a little bad for being so mean to his precious girl. He shouldn't punish you too hard, obviously you didn't know much better. “Aww..look at that face. How could I be so mean?” He told you, trailing that finger up on down your slit. He smiled at how you hips yet again bucked at his wandering digits. “So needy. Poor baby, drooling n’ crying just like this pussy. Guess I should give you what you want, yeah?”

“Mh! Yes sugu, please lemme cum now! I’m so sorry, won’t do this ever again.” You begged. At this point you were full on crying, all other senses overrides by your need to cum. His thick fingertip teased your sopping entrance, re-coating the fingers in cum.

He simply laughed, diving those fingers back into your pulsing heat. “Oh, I know baby. I know. Now watch me as I give this pussy just what she needs.”

[gatorbites-imagines]

Kinktober day 16

Jason Todd + leather or Latex

I had like, no ideas what to do with this prompt ngl, so I just kinda went with whatever came to me when writing.

Crime lord Red Hood has always had a special place in my heart

Kinktober 2023 masterlist.

Working for The Red Hood wasn’t too bad, especially compared to the other rogues you’d had to work for in the past. With Hood you didn’t have to fear suddenly being shot because Two-face suddenly felt like it, or being eaten by whatever plants Ivy had conjured up, or answering whatever riddles the Riddler came up with that day.

Best part was probably the uniform though. All rogues put their people in specific clothes. For the joker it was clown masks and all that junk, Riddler wanted you in stuff with question mark print, penguin wanted you well dressed in suit and tie, the list went on. For Hood just wearing red seemed to be enough. Most seemed to just resort to wearing a red hoodie under their jacket, and that was enough.

Interestingly enough, working for Hood also came with some benefits, like being allowed to keep stuff from different conflicts as long as it didn’t cause issues for Hood. That was where you found your first leather, some rich guy from Metropolis tried to set up in Gotham and was quickly dealt with. If Gotham hated anyone more than each other, it was outsiders trying to barge in and make a name for themselves.

The guy had been wearing a sturdy but not too flashy leather jacket, so after checking the pockets and for bullet holes and seeing it in one piece, you tucked it over your arm and brought it home. You had to cut the tags out and changed the inner fabric to something cheaper, and most importantly, into something red, but the quality was no lie.

You realized you might have had a thing for Leather one night when you had needed to go out for some small run for Hood, and you’d been too tired and lazy to put on a shirt. You ended up going out in a pair of low waisted denim pants, some well worn boots, and your jacket. No one batted an eye, at all, seeing a shirtless guy was far from the weirdest shit in Gotham, but the feel of leather on your skin seemed to have lit something inside you.

After that you might have subconsciously started looking for the stuff whenever you went on raids or into fights for Hood and his territory. Who cared if you stole some hotshot from star cities leather west and hat, or that guy from Texas whose black leather boots you stole right off his feet. You didn’t touch the pants though, even though you really really wanted too, you just didn’t trust them not to be contaminated by all kinds of junk.

You honestly thought you hid it pretty well, your draw to leather that is. Everyone had their thing, and you always wearing your jacket and boots was just something you did. If you went home to get dressed all the way down to just your jacket and boots though to jerk off was another thing entirely.

But it seemed your draw to the last targets pants hadn’t gone fully unnoticed by your boss. Imagine your surprise when he shoved a package into your arms one night and told you to only check it when you got home, the modulator of his helmet making him seem way more serious than he probably was.

You wouldn’t say you were outright friends with Hood, no one could really be friends with their boss in the criminal world, but you cracked jokes with the guy and even got him to laugh on the regular. You patched him up when he needed it, and he dragged you to Leslie’s clinic when you got knocked around a bit too hard, which happened more than you liked to admit.

When you got home you had almost assumed that the package would hold weapons or maybe even drugs, even though Hood didn’t personally deal the stuff. But instead, you found what you immediately noticed was leather, a card placed on top of the neatly folded leather. The letter was in Hoods writing, and you felt your face heat up a tad at the words on the page.

“Next time just let me buy it for you instead of stealing it off bodies” it said, and when you unfolded the leather, you felt your insides flutter. It was pants, they seemed even better quality than the ones you had been eying the night before. But it wasn’t just pants, there was a newer jacket, it was brown and heavy and was very well worn, and when you held it out in front of you, you could see it was one of Hoods own jackets.

You could feel blood running downwards, leaving you fumbling with your clothes as you got undressed, feeling almost desperate to pull the pants up your legs and hips. They were tight, but not too tight, and there was no question about the quality. Your original jacket fell to the ground with a heavy thud, your fingers quickly grabbing the heavy well-loved leather of the brown jacket and pulling it on, a shaky breath leaving you as the smell that was so clearly Hood filled your senses.

It smelled like leather, gun oil, the cigarettes he smoked when he was annoyed or on edge, and something undeniably Hood, and it had you tenting your new pants. Or tenting as well as one could in leather, which meant it was more a visible bulge running down the inside of your thigh. It had felt so good on your skin that you had found yourself grinding against your hand on your couch like some inexperienced fool. Your back had arched off the couch as you stained the inside of your pants, the leather growing slick against you as you groaned.

It was only later when cleaning the leather that you noticed the writing in the waistband, near the back so it would sit near the bottom of your spine. “Red Hood” it said, like some kind of statement of ownership, and you had shivered and exhaled shakily, rubbing a hand over your face to dispel the thoughts it awoke in your body.

Next time you saw Hood you had worn the pants, but the jacket was left at home. The worn jacket didn’t go well with the newer shinier leather of the pants, so it was your normal jacket and boots, which had some of your friends joke a bit about you being some kind of leather daddy because of your interest in the stuff. You had let the jokes run off your back, joking along every now and then.

You hadn’t even noticed Hood being there until he had appeared behind you, his gloved hand grabbing your ass and giving it a squeeze. Youd almost snapped around and decked him, assuming it was someone else, that was until you heard his modulated voice. “You’re wearing my gift. You like it?” he purred obviously enough that you could hear it even through the voice changer.

You could feel your skin growing clammy as you gave a small nod, not even daring to look at hood as he pressed his crotch against your back, his erection obvious even through all your shared layers. “Good, you look so hot in it” he rumbled, giving your thighs an extra squeeze before he stepped back and wandered off, leaving you unsteady on your feet as you tried to force the obvious hard shape in your pants away, for once cursing how tight they were.

It continued on this way for a while, Hood leaving you presents, and you would wear them around his headquarters. It was never expensive or high quality enough for anyone to target you, but Hood seemed to enjoy it very much. It felt almost like having a sugar daddy or some kind, but he had never demanded much sugar, only grabbing your ass at times, or rubbing his hands up and down your torso that time you’d worn a leather shirt under your jacket.

He was a tease, and you could hear the shit eating grin through his helmet as you ground against his thick thigh one day. You felt so wound up from his lingering touches that you had found yourself in his office one day, or what you guys called his office anyways. Maybe you wanted a fight of some kind, you weren’t sure, but one thing led to another, and you pinned up against the wall, his thigh between your own.

And now you were grinding against his thigh like some kind of pervert, your fingers digging into the worn leather of his jacket as you gasped into his shoulder. You didn’t even notice as he pulled off his gloves or spat on his fingers, it was only when one of his hands was shoved down the back of your leather pants and between your cheeks that you realised. A groan left you as he rubbed the pad of his finger against your pucker, his voice cocky as he asked if this was what you wanted.

You tried to glare at him, but it only seemed to fuel him more as Hood pushed his finger inside, letting you adjust before he started moving to the best of his ability, your tight pants not leaving much room to move his wrist. The stimulation was driving you crazy, the tight leather of your pants doing nothing to lessen the experience as you ground forwards into his thigh, before you pushed back onto his hand.

Running your hands down his torso and up his shirt, you could keep the moan from leaving you as you felt something too smooth and slick to be leather. It was Latex, he was wearing a latex shirt under everything else, maybe it was even a full body thing as it continued as you thumbed at the waistband of his pants.

Your exploring just seemed to fuel him more as Hood added not just a second but a third finger at the same time, letting you just barely adjust to the stretch before he started moving his hand once more, causing you to grind harder against his thigh.

It was impossible to fight back the orgasm that rocked through you, thoroughly slicking up the crotch area of your leather pants as there was no fabric to soak it up, letting it splatter against your thighs and lower body. You could feel yourself twitch a bit as Hood removed his fingers, instead grabbing onto your hips and lifting you up, making your legs wrap around his waist.

You couldn’t find it in yourself to ask what he was up too as he walked backwards, plopping down on his chair with you in his lap, sighing softly as he started rubbing his hands up your torso, flicking your chest through the leather shirt you had chosen to wear. “You alright baby?” he asked, voice warm and caring, leaving you feeling all types of mushy.

You just scoffed and leaned forwards, resting against his broad shoulders and coiling your arms around him. Hood rubbed your back for a while before rolling his chair close to his desk, the taping of keys letting you know he was working on one thing or the other. In the end you found yourself with both your hands up his shirt, rubbing at his latex covered torso as you rocked lazily against his thigh, no hurry in your movements as you knew you had all night, and it would happen soon if the twitching bulge between Hoods thighs meant anything.

[drunk-on-dk]

[Teaser] Over the Country Club | Yoon Jeonghan (M)

pairing: best friend!Jeonghan x afab!reader genre/tags: fluff, angst, smut (minors do not interact), friends to lovers, a bit of unrequited love, a slice of life au, college au, post-grad au rating: 18+ (minors do NOT interact) w/c: ~3k TEASER (estimated ~15-20k for full fic, currently this may be my longest fic yet and it feels so good to really be writing again) warnings: mentions of alcohol (underage is not condoned), future smut

Summary: Jeonghan and you have known each other for as long as you can both remember. From the years spent working at the country club, to your university days, there has always been this aching feeling that neither of you can quite understand. Someone falls first, but the other falls harder.

A/N: Please let me know your thoughts on this teaser! I've been working hard to get back into writing in the new year and wanted to get comfortable with diving more into the plot. Things may change when the full fic is posted, but not much of what's in the teaser! I hope you enjoy it, and of course please message me if you'd like to be on the tag list for this fic!

I. 4th of July, the Summer Before the First Year of University

Just like every other high school student in your town, Jeonghan and you found part-time jobs at the oh-so-prestigious country club located in the next town over. One could argue it was practically a full-time job since most part-timers worked upwards of 40 hours a week due to how busy the club got during the summers. 

Not that you would complain about the hours; to be fair, you had to save up a substantial amount of money for the upcoming transition to college. The realization hit soon after graduating high school, you only had enough pocket change to fund some expenses,  which was not nearly enough to get you comfortably through the upcoming semesters. You had worked at the club most summers, but this year you took all the hours they offered. 

Plus, you’d be crazy to admit that summers working at the Lakewood Country Club weren’t some sort of fun. Plenty of your peers worked there, including Jeonghan, your longest lasting friendship due to the proximity of living next door to one another and growing up attached at the hip. 

Jeonghan worked as a caddie on the golf course. He’s gentlemanly in appearance, has just enough knowledge about what type of club to use at each hole, and has a never-ending spunk that entertains whatever group of golfers he’s assisting for the day. Jeonghan made decent tips working as a caddie, earning a couple of hundred dollars from some of his return golfers who specifically requested his assistance for an 18-hole outing. One could assume that most members of the country club were very well-off, or at least living comfortably. 

Luckily, you were stationed at the halfway house most days this summer. It’s located in the heart of the golf course, and the club consistently blasted cool air conditioning in the exposed, open bar area that was meant for golfers to stop by. Jeonghan, as scheming as ever, would ensure that his golfers stopped by for a quick refreshment at some point, knowing that he’d get to spend some time with you and help you earn some extra cash in tips from his already rowdy crew. 

You’d mix up some Manhattans or Old-Fashioned’s for the golfers, knowing the usual orders for each club member as if they had been engrained on the back of your hand (in hindsight, a freshly graduated high schooler should not have been pouring alcoholic beverages, but the country club didn’t care - your labor was cheaper than hiring a professional tender and you learned just the basics just fine). Nonetheless, your cocktails were a treat for the golfers who had been drinking beers for most of the course, most of them lukewarm or gone by the time they made it to the halfway house. 

Today is the Fourth of July, marking the mid-way point of your last summer before college. You had made your fair share of tips this summer working at the halfway house, especially due to Jeonghan’s consistent sourcing of clientele at your bar. It was a particularly hot day, one of the hottest of the summer and plenty of customers had stopped by, leaving hefty tips, feeling generous either from the heat or the holiday. 

Jeonghan approached the bar area with a heavy sigh, parking his cart hastily, but still had his typical mischievous smile etched onto his features as a crowd of familiar golfers followed behind him. Your nose scrunched in feigned disgust, a teasing smile mirroring his upon noticing just how tired and sweaty the group was from the relentless summer heat. 

Part of you thought he looked angelic from the way his sun-kissed skin gleamed, but you’d never admit that, nor would you dare to speak those thoughts out loud, not even to your closest friends who weren’t Jeonghan. However, the other part of you remembered he was just your silly best friend who smelled slightly like fresh-cut grass, sunscreen, and a hint of whatever remained of his tropical cologne. 

“The usuals?” You beamed, flashing your best customer service smile at the group, already reaching for the bottle of top-shelf whiskey displayed behind you. You received hoots and hollers along the lines of “Yes, please” from the group. Jeonghan slips behind the bar as you expertly begin to prepare drinks for the parched golfers. Normally, this was frowned upon, but Jeonghan had most of the country club supervisors wrapped around his finger. 

Jeonghan’s quick to sort through the fridge right off to your side, squatting and contemplating his options, but you have to smack his hand away from the cooler once you notice his deft fingers are reaching for a plastic shooter of whiskey.

“Y/N,” Jeonghan practically cries out, whining similar to a little boy being scolded, but he’s just your immature best friend who has a knack for trouble and stealing. You can’t always let him get away with everything. 

“You kleptomaniac, don’t you dare,” you joke, routinely preparing the drinks, laughing at the puppy dog eyes that are flashed in your direction and then back to the cold fridge. You bend down next to him, whispering quietly so that no one but Jeonghan can hear. “Wait until later, today’s manager has been keeping inventory of the alcohol as if they personally own it all. I can sneak some after my shift when I cash out.” 

Jeonghan’s pout morphs into a smirk, a devious glint in his eyes as he holds out his pinky finger. You comply, wrapping your pinky with his to silently promise that you’ll follow through later. 

“Meet at hole 12? Right at the hill behind the trees? It’s still the best spot for fireworks.” Jeonghan speaks as if it’s a secret mission - as if it’s not the same spot you’ve met to watch fireworks for the last few years working at the country club. 

“Oh, I thought we’d check out the views at hole 17 this year,” you roll your eyes mockingly, Jeonghan knows you’re messing with him, but it’s your smile that betrays your teasing, “Duh, Jeonghan. I’ll catch you there later.” 

“You know hole 17 is where Mingyu and Arin lost their virginity to each other last year,” Jeonghan pokes, settling on bottled water from the fridge and standing back up, towering over your own figure. You feel your cheeks flush, a bit flustered he’d drop that information so casually, and sure as hell hoping he didn’t think that you were suggesting anything. 

You didn’t see Jeonghan in that way, he didn’t see you in that way. Plain and simple. You two were only best friends and that’s how it would always be. 

“That’s gross, Jeonghan,” you scowl, willing away the blush that is still burning your face as you finish garnishing the drinks. “Don’t air out people’s secrets like that. That’s personal. Plus, why would I know that?” 

Jeonghan chuckles, shrugging as he helps you carry the drinks over to the golfers who have made themselves comfortable among the shaded seating outside the bar area, an outdoor fan helping cool them down. They all clamor in delight as Jeonghan and you emerge from behind the bar with the chilled drinks, quick to "cheers" each other before savoring the first sip of their beverages. 

There are smacks and sighs of delight from the group, your pride growing as they approve of the drinks, and gather up some cash for a tip. Jeonghan nudges you, urging you to accept the bills from Mr. Choi, a polite older man who continues to take care of Jeonghan and you each summer. He’s never been creepy, and he tips very well. You still feel slightly guilty each time you accept cash from him. 

“Thank you, Mr. Choi,” you speak graciously, accepting the tip, quickly shoving it into your pocket without checking the amount, and earning an approving thumbs up from the man as he takes another sip of his cocktail. 

“Save it wisely, Y/N,” Mr. Choi chimes, humming in thought, and eyes flickering between where you and Jeonghan stand. “Jeonghan tells me you’re both attending the same university in a few months. Heard you’ve both received a pretty good scholarship, even one from the club?” 

“That is correct, sir,” you nod excitedly. Not only had you both received an academic scholarship from your university, but all your years working at the club have paid off in a way you wouldn’t have imagined, earning a scholarship from the Lakewood Country Club members' foundation. “I am grateful to have received such an award. Don’t worry, I’ll make good use of it. I know Jeonghan will too. You’d never guess, but he’s a straight A student,” you tease, hiding your mouth only for Mr. Choi to see as if Jeonghan can’t hear you, and elbowing your friend in the rib cage, earning a pained groan from him. 

Mr. Choi nods in approval, a smile creeping onto his face as he chuckles at the dynamic between you two. “Glad to know my money is going towards two bright futures.” Jeonghan is pushing your bony elbow away, annoyed at your enthusiasm and teasing, further amusing Mr. Choi. “Jeonghan, make sure you don’t lose sight of Y/N during University, all sorts of partners will be chasing her. She’s intelligent and beautiful. Don’t want her forgetting about you now, do you?”

Jeonghan would groan if it wasn’t for the fact that it was Mr. Choi speaking to him. He has to restrain himself from shoving you away as well, knowing that Mr. Choi has inflated your ego a bit too much with his praise. Nonetheless, Jeonghan plays into it. “Nope, she’s stuck with me, so don’t even worry about it.”

You almost laugh out loud, reminding yourself to remain professional on the course as you fire back. “As if, Jeonghan couldn’t get rid of me even if he wanted to.” 

“Valid point,” Jeonghan grumbles, teasingly pushing you back towards the bar as if reminding you of your duties, sick of hearing the constant praise that only you’re receiving, even though there have been no additional visitors since Jeonghan’s entourage of golfers arrived. He’s quick to enthusiastically round up the crew, realizing daylight will quickly dwindle by the last hole if they don’t start back up soon. “Welp, we better let Y/N continue to work. Ready for hole 10?” 

The men are quick to gather, knocking back the remainder of their drinks, and returning to their carts as Jeonghan helps you clean up the finished glasses, your shoulders bumping into each other as you two push your way back into the bar. Mr. Choi sends a knowing look Jeonghan’s way, neither of you catching it as he wishes you a nice Fourth of July. 

“Thank you, Mr. Choi!” You wave to the man, bidding the rest of the golfing crew a nice holiday as well before turning to Jeonghan who’s finished carrying over the rest of the empty glasses. “Catch you later, Hannie?”

“Of course,” Jeonghan’s eyes lit up yet again upon hearing his childhood nickname, and is reminded of the nearing shenanigans later this afternoon. Maybe he’ll steal some snacks from the members gifting table for tonight. “I’ll see you then stay cool, Y/N!”

“You as well! Make sure to reapply your sunscreen,” you shout back, watching as Jeonghan hops in the cart with Mr. Choi and rolls his eyes at your nagging. Mr. Choi gets one final laugh before Jeonghan drives off, the entourage of golfers following closely behind. 

You’re finishing cleaning up the bar, pulling the cash from your pocket earlier and gasping upon realizing just how much Mr. Choi had tipped you. A five-hundred dollar tip. It was surely the most you’ve ever made in one round of drinks, absolutely unwarranted, and it made you feel a bit teary-eyed. You knew you couldn’t dare to return it, as Mr. Choi would definitely be offended, but you felt extremely lucky to have such nice members visit you at the halfway house, you’d have to thank him eventually. 

The rest of the day went quickly, and, much to your delight, you had made enough tips to support a chunk of your tuition and expenses for the year. Also, your manager had swapped shifts with another supervisor mid-day, who was not as hawklike. 

Leading up to the completion of your shift, you had snuck a pair of alcoholic shooters into your uniform skirt. Even in your attempt to be rebellious, you couldn’t just steal the shooters, using some of your tip money to cover the cost of the alcohol and you felt less criminal. You knew Jeonghan would tease you relentlessly about this if he was here, each shooter was no more than $3 each, but you had a knack for doing the “right thing,” or else you feared karma would get you in the long run. 

Upon reaching the end of your shift, you stopped back at the employee locker room to safely store your tips in your purse. The day had been hot, but it was cooling down now that night was approaching. 

Ultimately, you opt to throw on a sweatshirt, one that Jeonghan had purchased when you two had toured your university, which was the same one that he’d worn so many times that it’s the most comfortable piece of clothing you own. One that he couldn’t deny you of when you begged to keep it, secretly thinking that you looked cute in it even though you were practically swimming in the fabric. Disgusted that he’d even thought that, he dismissed you quickly and said you could keep it. 

The sun was setting minute by minute, meaning that Jeonghan’s shift would be finishing very soon, and you packed away the remainder of your items in your employee locker, double-checking that your skirt still had the tiny plastic alcohol bottles hidden away. 

After confirming you had said shots, you headed out to hole 12 with a spring in your step. It was a meeting spot you and Jeonghan had found your summer after freshman year of high school. There was a hill behind a bunch of trees that overlooked the valley where the main portion of the country club was located. No one was allowed on the course during after-hours, but this spot was so dark and secluded that you two hadn’t been caught yet. It was also the prime viewing spot for the club’s fireworks show, and it was your little secret. 

You were first to make it to the spot, plopping down on the hill and huffing in relief. Your legs ached a little from standing all day. The grass beneath you was dewy from the cool nighttime air, the humid heat from the day settling on the greenery, and it was almost enough to make you feel itchy. However, you don’t mind it, not when you have the fireworks show to look forward to. You would never mind the damp grass, especially not when you had a favorite summer tradition to share with your favorite person, your best friend. 

Jeonghan’s shift ended a bit later than yours, but he didn’t arrive at the spot much later than you. He meant to grab a bag of popcorn or something, but he didn’t want to leave you hanging for too long. 

Jeonghan tried to sneak up on you, but you’re too smart, too knowing of his antics. So when you turn around knowingly, with two opened Whiskey shooters in hand, he chuckles almost maniacally at your annoyed expression that doesn’t fully translate into your impish eyes. You two were one and the same. 

“What are you waiting for, Hannie? These shots aren’t getting any colder. Not when they’ve been in my skirt for the past hour.”

“Eugh, now you’re the one oversharing,” Jeonghan groans in disapproval, sitting down next to you on the grass, and gratefully accepting the shot regardless of your TMI comment. Your knees knock each other as you turn to face him, but a friendly touch isn’t foreign to either of you. “You’re the gross one, Y/N.” 

“Oh, shut up,” you giggle, holding the shot out in front of him and teasingly shaking the plastic bottle. You sing song, “The night’s not getting any younger either.”  

Nodding in acknowledgment, Jeonghan smirks and shares a few words, “Cheers to our last summer before we’re miserable college students. Cheers to fewer hours spent in the heat at this country club. Cheers to our everlasting friendship.” 

With his final words, you’re both knocking back your shots, groaning in unison as the spicy drink burns and settles in your stomach, instantly warming your body at the sensation. Your face scrunches up at the taste and Jeonghan can’t help but laugh uncontrollably.

“Stop it,” you whine, your voice a bit hoarse from the alcohol but smiling nonetheless. “You aren’t any better than me. Anyways, that's enough for me tonight.”

“True,” Jeonghan contemplates, but he’s quick to poke you. “But I didn’t struggle as bad as you did.” 

“Touché,” you hum, nudging Jeonghan’s shoulder excitedly as a warning firework darts into the sky, indicating the show will be beginning shortly. “It’s starting!” 

“Alright, alright,” Jeonghan is groaning at your bony elbow yet again digging into him, but he’s delighted by your excitement regardless, shoving you back as you begin to readjust for the show. “Calm down, it’s nothing crazy.” 

“No, Jeonghan,” you grin, turning your head to fully make eye contact with his wide eyes, joy flickering in your own as you peer at your best friend. “It’s nothing crazy, but it’s absolutely so special because once again we get to enjoy it here together.” 

Your emphasis on the word together almost makes him shiver, a foreign feeling rushing through him as you continue to gaze at him with those wild eyes of yours, gulping as he hesitantly nods, even though he wholeheartedly agrees it is special, but he’s not exactly sure why. “Very true,” and as if on cue, the fireworks show begins, relief flooding through him as you redirect your gaze and squeal in excitement. 

Jeonghan doesn’t understand why, but his heart pounds in his chest throughout the entire show. He thinks maybe it’s the alcohol (you and he rarely have dared to sneak alcohol before), maybe it’s the overstimulation of the fireworks, maybe it’s the thrill of knowing the golf course guards could spot you any year and escort you away, or maybe it’s the way your knee keeps brushing his thigh reminding him of just how close you two are. How much you are together here alone, just like every other summer. 

It’s a feeling he decides to ignore for the rest of the fireworks, letting himself lay back on the damp grass with you and listening as you enthusiastically point out your favorite fireworks, bickering with you when he thinks a different type of firework is prettier. 

It’s a feeling he continues to ignore as the finale comes and goes, chest fluttering at the way your eyes sparkle with golden reflections of the fireworks in the sky, and once again quickly redirecting his gaze to anything but you. 

It’s a feeling he tries his damnedest to ignore as you both continue to lay in the grass post-fireworks. Neither one of you making the first move to go home. Maybe you thought this would be the final moment of normalcy between you and Jeonghan before starting university, knowing that all friendships are bound to change with such a new chapter. Maybe he thought he’d figure out whatever it was he was feeling if he just stayed here with you a moment longer. 

It’s a feeling he struggles to ignore as you both fall into deep conversation. The one shot of alcohol makes you both loose-lipped as you reminisce on embarrassing high school stories. Reminiscing on your shitty boyfriend who broke up with you before the summer. Reminiscing on your years of friendship. 

It’s a feeling he no longer can ignore when you roll over, lips pouting and eyes teary as you start to feel emotional about your recent breakup. Something in him feels like it shatters when you ask, “Have you ever been in love before, Hannie?” 

[broadwaybalogna]

Zuko and Katara are shopping at a market. While Katara is haggling for deals and Zuko's carrying all the bags, a lost child approaches them asking for help finding their mother. Momtara and Dadko activate!

Awww this is so cute

I love these prompts so much please continue sending them!

FEATURINGGG: hella soft Zuko

Grocery shopping was bonding time for Katara and Zuko. At least, that’s what Katara told Zuko. It felt a lot more like an excuse for Zuko to hold her grocery bags while she bargained with business men/women. So unless standing within five feet of each other while shopping was what Katara meant by “bonding,” Zuko didn’t buy it.

“Just last week this was a whole dollar cheaper!” Katara reasoned with one of the people at the many stands in the market.

“Inflation dear, it gets the best of us.”

“That’s not what-! Ugh, never mind. Do you price match?”

The man in front of Katara squinted his eyes and looked the woman up and down. “Yeah. But who else is selling angelberries right now?”

“I passed her as I was walking up here, just a few minutes back. At that point, I thought 4.50 for a dozen angelberries was beyond what they were worth. But I stand corrected,” Katara said, staring at the man.

Zuko knew that they had not, in fact, passed another stand that was selling angelberries, and Katara was purely gambling on the fact that this salesman didn’t memorize the other stands in the area.

He stared her down before giving up. “Fine, 4.50 for a dozen angelberries,” the man scowled.

“Thank you very much,” Katara flashed him her signature smile and grabbed the ripest berries she could find.

“Nice going, ‘Kat,” Zuko said after they were out of earshot from the salesman.

“Ugh, thanks. He was such an asshole, though. Some people.”

They continued walking around until Katara spotted another stand with something that was on his shopping list. Before she could make her way over to it, though, a small child went up to the two of them and began sputtering something nonsensical.

“Hey, hey,” Katara rushed to speak, “take a few deep breathes with me. In and out.”

Katara knelt down to the young child and began breathing with her. When she was finally calm, she opened her mouth a few times to try and figure out what to say, then her eyes started to water again.

“I-I- I can’t find my momma!” Tears began to spill from the young child who couldn’t be more than four years old.

Katara took both the child’s hands and held them in her own. Zuko knelt down beside the girl and began to rub her back.

“Hey, I’m sure she’s looking for you too. It’s going to be alright,” he finally spoke, “what’s your name?”

The girl took a few more deep breaths then spoke again.

“Izuma.”

“That’s a lovely name,” Zuko smiled, “I’m Zuko, and this is Katara.”

The girl nodded a few times.

“Do you know what your momma’s name is?” Katara asked.

“Uhhh, momma?”

Katara and Zuko both let out a sigh.

“Here, Zuko and I will split up so we can try to find your mom. How does that sound?”

The girl nodded faster.

“Alright, Izuma, you can come with me and we’ll go to the end of the market. Zuko, can you go in the way of the entrance? Let’s meet back here in twenty minutes.” Zuko gave a sharp nod and began to walk away and toward the entrance, stopping every few yards to look around for anyone who might be looking for their lost child.

By the time he was maybe a tenth of a mile back to the entrance, he spotted a woman rushing around and searching for something.

“Izuma!” She called, tears rolling down her face as she searched every crevice of the area.

Finally, he found her. He walked up to the woman whose face was scrunched and slightly disoriented.

“Ma’am, are you Izuma’s mother?”

“Yes! Have you seen her? Is she okay? Is she here?”

“My girlfriend and I found her, they’re looking for you towards the end of the market.”

“Oh, thank the spirits. Please take me to them!”

Zuko nodded and led her deeper into the market. Finally, when they could hear Izuma calling for her mother, she ran to the sound, leaving Zuko behind.

“Izuma! Oh, thank the spirits you’re alright!”

“Momma! I was so scared!”

“It’s alright, I’ve got you now.” Izuma’s mother said as she picked Izuma up and held her. “Thank you so much- both of you,” she said as she turned to face Katara and Zuko, “I owe you my life.”

“Oh, no!” Katara reassured, “Please, it was the right thing to do. Just knowing you’re both reunited is reward enough.”

“Thank you so much.”

“Of course,” Zuko spoke.

“Izuma, what do we say?”

“Thank you!” She yelled.

Katara and Zuko smiled. When Izuma and her mother finally left, Katara turned to face Zuko.

“We are never having children.”

“Couldn’t agree more.”

[eemoo1o-animoo]

10 Grelle-based paraphernalia that I found on eBay, in no particular order but my subjective deeming of relevance or importance

Possibly part one of a series? Perhaps?

If so, then I probably won’t contain it to only eBay, and I’m going off of what comes up for someone who’s based in the UK, so maybe there’s more or less stuff available if you’re in other countries due to shipping limitations, etc.? But eBay at the moment is my main source, and I’m only doing this — work that anyone can do, nothing exceptionally thorough or insightful — because I’m just a little bored, and I know Grelle is the most valued in the fandom and TSOGTR hasn’t been writing itself for the past year and a quarter, so why would it start now?

This is written at 3AM-6AM on 29/8/2024, so if this is found long after this date then there’s a chance my sources have already been bought out or deleted for whatever reason.

1.

Grell Sutcliff Funko Pop 18 Kuroshitsuji Black Butler POP! Vinyl Anime Figure

At the time of writing this, there are no bids for this and so the price remains at £21.99 (item and shipping). The current bid is due to end on ≈1/9/2024. Wait for the last second to bid one pence higher than the asking price and you’re golden.

I actually have one of these, but it was gifted to me, and so I don’t know how much mine was sold for, but seeing as the four Black Butler Funko Pops have been vaulted and are sold for way higher in other places online, I think this is a pretty good deal.

(Fun fact, the person who gifted her to me as well as tracked down other cheap listings for the other three called her Greta. Consistently. So. Greta. Greta Sutcliff.)

As we can see from the item’s pictures, the figure has been taken out of its box, at the very least just to be show-cased or inspected, but it does appear to come with the box. Here is a listing on Amazon (9.99 GBP, excluding shipping) for 10 Funko Pop display sleeves that should match the item’s measurements.

The current conversions for this item’s price (18.99 GBP) are as follow:

25.06 USD

36.91 AUD

33.77 CAD

22.52 Euro

2,103.26 INR

855,31 Turkish Lira

39.92 NZD

3,623.33 Yen

Obviously I’m not including every conversion in here, only the most obvious/prevalent. If your country’s currency isn’t here, then my apologies, and feel free to bring it to my attention (with currency named) so that I may add it to any future episodes to this possible series, or to edit this post back with the conversions of that time.

2.

Black Butler PVC Keychain Grell

The description of this listing says that this is officially licensed and from one reverse image search to find a bunch of listings across several websites for it, I’m inclined to believe that this is actually an official piece of merch and not a fan-made item that is being resold as I had originally thought it to be. (Wow, I’m such a knowledgable Black Butler fan. I know, I know.)

There’s not much to say on this other than the fact that it’s cute and I think a few pence has been shaved off from the original selling price, though I’m not too sure. I imagine it would have easily gone for 8.99 GBP, but again I’m not too sure; it’s 3AM after all and this isn’t a serious project for me.

The current conversions go as followed:

11.87 USD

17.47 AUD

15.99 CAD

10.66 Euro

996.15 INR

405,49 Turkish Lira

18.90 NZD

1,715.62 Yen

3.

Grelle Black Butler manga plushie Anime Soft Toy

It’s not the best price, I admit. If you’re looking for something cheaper then maybe go for the 5" plush, and there’s another listing on AnimeWare, but once tax and shipping get evolved it ends up being more or less the same price, anyway.

I think this is under the same line as Plushlois comes from, and to that I say: if someone buys her, will that come back? Will Grelle’s face be remade by @fancymeatcomputers, as @nullbutler’s Plushlois once had?

Anyway, she’s super cute. Her hair is a bit too saturated, but that’s not much to lament over, and she’s pricey, but is still far less expensive than any available Plushlois listing I could find (£52!! Usually!!).

Here are the current conversions:

39.61 USD

58.30 AUD

53.35 CAD

35.58 Euro

3,323.16 INR

1,351.58 Turkish Lira

63.01 NZD

5,727.47 Yen

4.

Black Butler Kuroshitsuji Grell Undertaker Anime two sided Pillow Case Cover 250

I’d originally listed another pillow for listing number four, which goes for the same price, but decided not to as Grelle is more prominent on this one.

Not much to say about this other than as far as I can tell it’s just the pillowcase and not a case and a pillow, but if you want to add a lil extra something to your Grelle shrine or limit your chances of finding a normie partner by having this as the centrepiece to your 20-something pillow statement on your romantic four-post bed.

Here are the current conversions:

7.91 USD

11.64 AUD

10.65 CAD

7.10 Euro

663.67 INR

269.94 Turkish Lira

12.58 NZD

1,143.54 Yen

5.

Black butler Grell Sutcliffe figure Kuroshitsuji SEGA PVC Scale Anime s01

Another shambolic price, I know. But out of all the non-Funko Pop Grelle figures listed, this is definitely the cheapest.

Out of all of the non-Funko Pop Black Butler figures, it’s far from it. I think the cheapest figures went to Ciel and Sebastian, but with a massive gap between the cheapest Ciel figure versus the cheapest Sebastian figure (there’s a lot of listings for this particular figure, all with free shipping and of similar prices). There’s also a listing that sells Sebastian and Grelle together with free postage, which would value each figure as far less than what this one figure is being sold for.

The current conversions (of 130.22 GBP) go as follows:

172.00 USD

252.73 AUD

231.50 CAD

154.48 Euro

14,430.37 INR

5,874.98 Turkish Lira

273.31 NZD

24,865.90 Yen

6.

Black Butler Grell Sutcliff Cosplay Costume Red Death Men Full Set Outfits New

I’m not much of cosplayer or a cosplay fan, but from the few full cosplays I found that range from £40-50, this seems like a good price.

There’s also a good few listings for Grelle-style shoes? The cheapest of which would be here. And both the shoes and the clothing come in men’s sizes, so it’s a match if you ask me.

The current conversions of the cosplay’s price are:

23.76 USD

34.92 AUD

31.98 CAD

21.34 Euro

1,993.77 INR

811.52 Turkish Lira

37.76 NZD

3,435.09 Yen

7.

Kuroshitsuji Black Butler Madam Red Angelina Dalles Anime Figurine - Play Arts

Look. I know this isn’t a Grelle figure, but I assume that most if not all Grelle fans are also Madame Red fans. And you have to admit that this is a damn good price for a figure of this type. In fact, I’d say this figure is the second cheapest, right behind the aforementioned Ciel figure.

Also the seller has the username “welsh lady”. Surely it’d basically be treason if I didn’t promote it.

The conversions of the item price (6.99 GBP) go as follows:

9.23 USD

13.57 AUD

12.43 CAD

8.29 Euro

774.85 INR

315.29 Turkish Lira

14.68 NZD

1,336.09 Yen

8.

USED Dolk Black Butler Book of Circus Grell Sutcliff Cast Doll 700mm Japan RARE

This is a fucking awful price. It hurts just to imagine buying this. However, it seems like a rare or custom-made doll, in a fancy box, and it was the only listing I could find of it, meaning it’s not a re-sell.

There’s not much to say — as you can see I ranked it pretty low on the relevancy scale, but I don’t know: maybe someone’s into this sort of thing, especially if it comes to Grelle.

The item prices are converted as follows:

2,805.52 USD

4,123.16 AUD

3,776.66 CAD

2,519.24 Euro

235,385.31 INR

95,779.75 Turkish Lira

4,458.47 NZD

405,826.75 Yen

9.

1 x playing card Black Butler Anime Sebastian Michaelis - Jack of Hearts ZT 85

For one playing card, to me this price seems ghastly. There’s also a Sebastian variant for the exact same price, but that’s all I can find in this style. The other listings for Black Butler playing cards aren’t in this style, coming wholly in colour with patterned frames. As far as I can see, on eBay there are only two listings for this type of playing card, and I’ve already linked them both to this post.

The current conversions of the item price (2.49 GBP) are:

3.29 USD

4.83 AUD

4.43 CAD

2.95 Euro

276.04 INR

112,34 Turkish Lira

5.23 NZD

476.23 Yen

10.

Black Butler Ceramic Mug Grell, Sebastian

There’s a more expensive mug with just Grelle on it that I’d contemplated listing here instead. (And, hey! From Germany, too. The TSOGTR imagery just won’t quit.) But this one is cheaper.

Besides, enough scrubbing with some iron wool will get rid of that ugly demon mug (no pun intended) in no time, surely!

The current conversions go as follows:

19.62 USD

28.84 AUD

26.41 CAD

17.62 Euro

1,646.22 INR

669,76 Turkish Lira

31.17 NZD

2,841.32 Yen

[toracainz]

High Rollers

Masterlist

Summary: Steven Grant, financial savant, gets played

Warnings: Inaccurate depictions of DID (only knowledge from the show/comic and some light research). Alcohol. Comic Book version of the character,

Word count: 1.6k

A/N: Thanks goes out to @missdictatorme for requesting this little fic!

Defending New York from bad guys, supervillains, thugs, vampires, and whoever else chooses the night as the backdrop for their crimes isn’t cheap. Not even a little. And with the way Marc fights, it’s not going to get any cheaper any time soon.

That’s where I come in.

My name is Steven Grant. Though I’m not one to brag, I’m the one that makes sure our little crime-fighting gig stay open for business. We’ve had some setbacks, but I always manage to turn things around and make a quick buck. It helps to have friends in high places after all.

That’s how I found myself at another charity gala, after explaining (again) to the boys why attending these “boring rich folk circle jerks”, as Jake so colorfully commented, was important. They knew why I had to attend, but that didn’t mean they couldn’t moan and complain as I got dressed for it. Sharp suit, tame, clean-cut hair, and deep pockets. Deep pockets that were definitely dipped into when you began to battle me for one of the items at the auction.

☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽

This particular gala was benefitting several charities, plenty of people to rub elbows with, plenty of connections for Steven to get in contact with. He arrived, not-so fashionably late, and began doing the usual song and dance, making small talk and talking business. Some aquaintences of his introduced him to other well-to-do types, more names to add to the contact list if he needs them.

The hourdourves were passable, the scotch was the only saving grace.

After a bit of mingling, the people were funneled into the auction hall for the real reason everyone was there. There were some items that other rich people had donated for auction to be sold with the proceeds benefitting the different charities.

“Alright, Steven. Don’t get too carried away.” Marc chimed in for the first time since Steven had left The Mission.

Steven raised his glass to his lips, attempting to conceal his side of the conversation. “Don’t think you’re quite qualified to give advice on the handling of our money. Gotta keep up appearances don’t we, don’t want to snub the wrong people by being stingy.” Taking a sip of his scotch, Steven takes his seat, setting the glass on the small table next to the bid-paddle. As everyone began to settle in, Steven’s eyes landed on you. He hadn’t met you yet even after all the schmoozing from earlier. Had you slipped in at the last minute? Judging by your outfit and your appearance, he thought art like that couldn’t be rushed.

Almost as if you could feel his gaze on you, you turned, your eyes falling on him. Steven flashed you a rather charming smirk, slightly raising his scotch glass as a sort of wordless greeting. When you smiled back to him, Steven knew he had to find you after the auction.

The auctioneer stepped to the podium and gave the usual introduction and forced jokes before beginning. Item after item, plenty of high rollers were throwing their money around snatching up whatever eccentric items someone else had donated. Events like this weren’t really for the charities so much as it was a time for those in high society to do a bit of dick swinging. Steven played along, bidding occasionally to show he was interested, even purchasing a couple things. The next item up was slotted to benefit the city animal shelters and other humane societies. The profits would be split among a few facilities. Steven thought it was a great cause and one of the facilities was in the neighborhood of The Midnight Mission, so he figured Marc couldn’t argue since it would be in service of “our people”.

Steven raised his bid-paddle to kick things off since hardly anyone else was jumping in. A couple other people placed their bids, all of whom Steven outbid. It became clear to the room who was gunning for the item. Before the auctioneer could give the final call…another paddle was raised…your paddle. Steven was a little surprised, partly because he thought he had the bid in the bag and the other part was how strategic your bid was. This could get interesting.

One after another you and Steven were practically battling for the bid, exchanging glances and smirks, the two of you knowing this game you were both playing, or at least the “game” you might play later. For some rich folks, this kind of tension might be considered flirting or even foreplay, and with the way the corners of your lips curled after each bid, Steven was looking forward to the after-party.

Eventually, once the price had risen quite a bit outside the budget that Steven had set for the night, you finally conceded. Though Steven wasn’t sure you would give up, but as the auctioneer made the final call, naming Steven as the victor, it was clear. He looked around, giving a small wave and nod to the people as they gave a soft applause. The claps died down as his gaze fell on you again.

Steven’s brows raised, a silent question, “Give up?”

You chuckled softly, though you were too far away for him to hear you, shrugging slightly. A silent answer, “Guess so.”

Taking another sip of his scotch, Steven let out his own breathy chuckle.

“Havin’ a good time there, Grant?” Steven could hear the smirk in Jake’s voice.

“So much for not getting carried away.” Marc always had a way of making Steven roll his eyes.

“All part of playing the game, gentlemen. All part of the game.” Steven took another sip, finishing his glass and motioning to a waiter for another as the auction continued. Steven decided that he’d done enough damage tonight, doing the mental math of their collective finances.

☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽

The after-party was nothing but the first part of the event, but with more boasting and more drinks. This was a little more casual now that everyone had loosened up by lightening the load their money had weighing on them. Steven took to what he was good at — more talking, more networking — all the while looking for you in the crowd while feigning interest in what his conversation partner had to say.

It was longer than he would have liked before he caught a glimpse of you and when he saw you talking to someone he already knew, one of the charity gala hosts, Steven took the opportunity to politely excuse himself and make his way over to a potentially much more enjoyable conversation.

As he approached he caught the eye of the older woman.

“Mr. Grant! I was wondering when I’d get to see you! You made quite the stir at the auction, you know.” Her smile was huge and her energy radiating, either from her natural demeanor or one too many cocktails.

“That so? Don’t think I could have done it without our friend here…you are?” Steven deftly maneuvered the conversation into an introduction to which the gala hostess quickly obliged, telling Steven your name, one that Steven won’t soon be forgetting.

You nodded with a playful smirk as you offered Steve your hand, which he took and gently pressed your knuckles to his lips.

“The pleasure’s all mine, Mr. Grant.”

“Please, call me Steven. No sense in formalities. I’d say we know each other quite well after our encounter earlier.” Wanting to be a gentleman, and not press his luck too soon, Steven let go of your hand, but he’d be damned if he took his eyes off you, which you seemed inclined to do the same to him.

“Aren’t you two just hitting it off! I should have known you two would mesh, especially after that generous donation to their animal shelter.”

“Their animal shelter”? Steven wasn’t sure he heard her right.

“Beg pardon?” Steven looked at her, a bit stunned.

“Oh HO! They played you good, Grant. Gotta give ‘em props for sure.” Jake didn’t waste time expressing his amusement. Marc on the other hand…Steven could mostly hear grumbling.

“Yes, the animal shelter your bid went to…our lovely friend here is the chair and executive director for that animal shelter and a number of others in the surrounding neighborhoods.” She placed her hand on your shoulder, doing a little pose as if presenting some item from the auction. You couldn’t help but chuckle. Try as you might, it was difficult to hide your smirk. The jig was up, it would appear that your secret was out. You half expected Steven to either blow up for being played or make some snide passive aggressive comment…either way his money would be going to your organization. But you were rather pleasantly surprised when he laughed as well.

“Well played, well done. Takes a lot to pull one over on me and you did it in no time flat. Perhaps, now that I know who you really are, we could take this discussion elsewhere and maybe you could tell me a bit about your organization that I’ll be benefitting. I’d like to get to know the people I’m working with on a more…personal basis.” He winks before offering his arm to you, the gala hostess giddily bowing out to allow you two to find your own way through this event. The corner of your lips quirking up as you take his arm.

“Sounds delightful…lead the way…Steven.” Pressing your body a little closer to his, he begins to lead you over to the more private rooms. He had already reserved one should he need to more openly discuss finances with Marc and Jake, if he needed to make a call, or just have a moment to himself…after all mingling can be exhausting especially with the wrong people, but there was no mistaking it…you were absolutely the right people.

☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽☽

Hope you enjoyed!!! Please reblog to help share the fic with others!!!

taglist: @roseqzpd @rosecentaur1916​ @ahookedheroespureheart@sleepyamaya @parkeepingparker @lockleysgrl @marc-spectorr @vermillionsails @harrys-titties @n0ripeaches @missdictatorme @bitchyglitterfox @spacecowboyhotch @randomchick546 @teacupcollector @local-mr-frog @stevenknightmarc @ahookedheroespureheart @mccn-bcys @juneknight @moonz33 @autismsupermusicalassassin @spicydonut25

[hellfirenacht]

Reader ==> Get A Job

START HERE <<-- FIRST CHAPTER HERE

Fic Summary: Through no powers of your own, you end up in Hawkins 1985, in a tv show that you once saw on Netflix. Slow burn, Eddie Munson x Reader will be canon, choose your own adventure to a degree

Recommended Previous Chapter: Reader ==> Move into Benny's

Chapter Summary: You explore Hawkins and find a place to work.

Tags: no warnings needed. Eddie Munson x Reader, references to Flight of Icarus events, no use of y/n

Reader ==> Get A Job

Things were cheaper in 1986, and you had been lucky that the bills you had used to pay for some new clothes and some food had fooled the bored and tired cashiers, but it wasn’t gonna last forever and you needed a way to make money. 

With all the walking you had been doing over the week of living at Benny’s, you were sure that within a month you’d have legs of steel. You really should invest in a bike at some point to make this go by faster, but for now it was you and your beat up sneakers that you had thrown on when you had thrown yourself out that window. 

Early mornings were spent at the library, using their resources to try and find listings. Without the internet, it was a lot harder to find job listings or really any information. The first priority for yourself was to just learn how to survive without the internet or anything from 2023. Not having a valid ID was the trickiest part to navigate, your current one expired in 2030 and anyone with half a brain here would instantly throw you in jail. You assumed as much anyway. 

An afternoon of looking through the papers didn’t do much for you, and the librarian wasn’t the most helpful. You needed to find a way to get a fake ID soon, or you were absolutely boned. 

You found yourself walking more through the day, mapping out the town in your mind because you didn’t have a phone to tell you where things were. You had a handful of time appropriate ones that you spent on a cheap meal at a local fast food joint. 

There were a few places that you found to be familiar. If you turned left at this street and then a right and then another left you’d be at Hawkin’s Public school, and if you went straight instead you’d end up in Mike’s neighborhood and the pool. 

You turned right, expanding your map and unlocking more areas of the town. For saying that it’s a small town, it sure didn’t feel like that on foot. The further you walked in this direction, the less shops were appearing and you found yourself in what you assumed was the edge of town. A large cornfield stretched out as far as you could see, and you were half tempted to grab an ear for the road before remembering you had no way to cook it right now anyway. 

The middle of Hawkins, Indiana felt like Anywhere, USA. Here by the cornfield you were now very aware just how mid-western you were. The only buildings around seemed to be factories or abandoned steel mills, and with the sun setting, they cast long shadows along the near abandoned streets. 

It was going to be dark soon, and you didn’t have the best confidence that you could make your way back to Benny’s in the dark but there wasn’t much you could do at this point. Besides, it’s not like anyone was waiting up for you, or that you had anywhere to go tomorrow. You didn’t exactly want to be out that late, but being back at Benny’s actually felt worse. You didn’t know if you wanted to spend another night alone like that. 

There were a lot of run down and boarded up buildings, and you were about to just turn around when you noticed that one building did have a sign on, flickering weakly in the fading light. THE HIDEOUT. The i in the sign was fighting for its life to stay on. 

Fuck it, it’s not like you had anywhere to be tonight. What’s the worst that could happen walking into a shady dive bar at the edge of town with no one knowing where you are and what you’re doing. 

The Hideout was a very small building, with bricked windows and no natural light. Inside there was only one person at the bar, and a small older woman behind it. This was definitely not a place that you’d come to socialize, but then again if it was it probably wouldn’t be called ‘the Hideout.’

There was a small alarm bell going off in your mind, but there had been alarm bells going off since you showed up. 

The woman behind the bar gave you a cursory nod as you hopped onto the stool. You knew you were over 21 maybe? But you doubted that you’d be able to order an actual drink with your ID. You didn’t even know why you bothered keeping it around, it’s not like it was doing you any good anyway. 

You ordered a soda, handing over two crumpled one’s and looked around. The place looked like it was under some sort of permanent construction. A patch of carpet in the corner looked like it was being ripped up, revealing some old wood flooring and there was what looked like a stage pushed against the wall, haphazardly made out of two by fours. It looked like it would fall apart with one wrong move.

“A bunch of kids play up there sometimes when I let ‘em.” the barkeep said, messing with some bottles behind the bar and handing a beer to the man a few seats down from you. Her voice was loud, and it made you jump in surprise that such a small woman could project so hard in such a quiet space. 

“Play music?” you asked, turning back to the woman. 

“If that’s what they wanna call it.” she shrugged, which made you snort. It felt nice to talk to a real person and not an imaginary one. 

“Bunch of damn noise is what it is.” said the other man, taking out a newspaper and flipping through it. . 

“This place doesn’t seem like the open mic type.” you said. 

“It’s not, but I’m too nice sometimes.” She looked you up and down. “You’re dressed weird.” 

“Yeah, I guess I am.” you agreed, still unsure how to style yourself in this time and town. Her jab came out as more of an observation than an outright criticism. 80’s adjacent style had been in when you left your own time period, so you probably looked off center of what was expected. 

That was the last of the small talk for a while as she left the bar and stepped outside, leaving the place completely unattended. Your drinking buddy wasn’t paying you any mind and you probably came across as someone who wasn’t about to rob the place. You took a sip of your soda, which tasted stale but you get what you pay for in a quiet dive bar like this. 

The woman came back just in time for the man to get need another beer and set his newspaper aside, looking more irritated than before and muttering something about horses under his breath. 

You took the opportunity to turn to him “Mind if I take a read?” you asked, pointing to the paper and he pushed it towards you without a word and a muttered ‘thanks’ from you. 

The whole morning had already been filled with looking over papers and listings for jobs but you might as well check again to see if there was anything you might have missed. 

...After checking the funny pages and the entertainment section. You deserved some entertainment, right? 

A after a nice half hour of reading the comics and glancing over the astrology section- (‘You are valuing security and comfort in your life. Be patient and it will come’)- you turned back to the job listings, reading the same handful of words over and over again that you’d seen this morning and sighed. 

“Lookin’ for a job?” you jumped hearing the woman speak again, her voice was so loud. 

“Oh, yeah. I’m trying. I don’t exactly have, uh...” Papers? An identity? Any legal way to work here? “I’m new in town so I don’t have my shit together yet.” 

The woman set her bussing tub next to you and looked you over. “Can you bus tables?” she asked, and you responded by placing your empty glass into the tub, which earned a nod from her. “Any hour restrictions?” You shook your head. “What’s your name?” You told her. 

“I only pay cash.” she said. “And the hours aren’t great but it’s something.”

“I’ll take it.” you said instantly, heart pounding. Any job was better than no job, and if she was willing to not ask any questions, and pay you under the table you weren’t going to turn your nose up at it. “When can I start?” 

As you and the barkeep (who finally introduced herself as Bev) hashed out the details, you felt at least a little bit of weight lift off your shoulders. You’d be working about four nights a week, and she’d pay out on Wednesdays weekly. 

“Since you don’t have a phone, let’s just call it Saturday through Tuesday for now.” she said. “Might schedule on Wednesdays if you’re good. That’s when I do fifty cent beer nights and you can make tips well enough.” 

Good enough. You’d be there, come hell or high water and shoved a napkin with her name and phone number in your backpack. 

“I’ll have Junior train you when he gets here.” Bev said, looking at her watch. “He’ll be here soon. He’s about your age.”

As thankful as you were that you were starting right away, you partially wished that you didn’t have to start after walking around in the Indiana heat and summer all day. You felt gross and like you really needed a shower and you made a mental note to try and sneak into Mike’s house tomorrow to try and shower. You made your way to the bathroom and attempted to clean yourself up a bit for your first night of work. 

You could handle bussing tables and serving beer. If there was one thing here you could handle, it was that. 

When you exited the bathroom, Bev motioned you behind the bar and handed you an apron and the bus tub. There were a few extra people around now that it was later and you assumed that these blue collar workers were now off for the night in the surrounding factories. 

Somewhere in the back, you heard a door close and footsteps approach. 

“You’re late, Junior.” Bev said, as you turned towards the door to see your new coworker. 

“I told you, Bev, It’s Eddie.” 

Oh fuck. 

Reader ==> Meet Eddie Munson

He has a pimple on his chin. Was what your brain supplied as your first thought about seeing Eddie Munson in front of you. And he’s not wearing his club shirt.

He didn’t even have a jacket on, which shouldn’t surprise you with it being summer and yet it did. Seeing Eddie in anything other than what you had seen on screen was like a shock to your system. 

Your grip on the bus tub was causing your knuckles to turn white as you listened to Eddie tell Bev for what seemed like the hundredth time to not call him Junior. 

“Right right, old habits die hard.” Bev said dismissively. “Anyway this is your new co-worker and you’re gonna train her.” 

It’s like he didn’t even notice that you were there until Bev pointed it out. Large doe brown eyes looked over at you, and your heart was pounding in your throat for a second. You weren’t ready, you weren’t. Your plan had been to learn to survive here and then try to find a way to deal with canon events.

Eddie’s eyes darted between you and Bev, looking surprised “I didn’t think you were hiring.” he said. 

“I’m not, I have you two.” Bev said, ignoring Eddie’s real question which you were sure was something along the lines of What the hell, Bev? You tried not to take it personally. “Anyway, I need to step outside. I’m sure you can show her the ropes.”

Bev then turned and stalked out back, cigarette in hand. 

“Uhh... hi.” you said as Eddie turned back to you. You offered up your name and he offered up his. “I take it Bev doesn’t hire often?”

Your fingers were starting to hurt with how hard they were digging into the plastic edges of the tub. He was here, Eddie was right here, and you didn’t know what to do. What could you do? Start yelling about how he was going to die if he ever did a drug deal with a cheerleader? 

“No, she rarely accepts help around here.” Eddie said, now turned towards you. 

A decision had to be made, and you took every memory you had of Stranger Things Vol. 4 and shoved it in a crumpled heap in the back of your mind. You wouldn’t acknowledge it, you couldn't. There would be a time and place to process this and if you did that right now, you were sure to freak out. Again. 

“Guess I’m lucky.” you tried to keep your voice calm, and gave a small cough to cover any wavering. 

Eddie reached out and pulled the tub from your vice grip and you rubbed your fingers, thankful you didn’t drop it. 

“Lucky? We’ll see how you feel about that after working a few shifts.” he shook his head. “Not many people would consider a part time job in an old dive bar lucky.”

“I have limited options right now.” you explained, following Eddie as he led you around the dining area, the two of you picking up random glasses. “A shady dive bar that doesn’t ask questions and pays under the table is kind of perfect for me right now.” 

Did that sound suspicious? Maybe, but it was already out there. To your surprise, Eddie nodded. 

“This shithole isn’t much, but it’s one of the few good places around here.” He explained. “It’s the only place in town that has a stage at least.”

Right, of course. You should have put two and two together when Bev mentioned a band playing on occasion. Eddie’s band. 

It was actually unnerving how you kept running into characters people you recognized. You had literally run into Steve Harrington and now Eddie Munson while actively trying to avoid them. Someone out there must be fucking with you. 

“The stage looks like it’s this close to being more floor.” You said, glancing over at the slight riser against the wall. 

Eddie snorted. “Yeah, but it holds up surprisingly well. It hasn’t given out on me yet.” 

“So, I take it your band is the one Bev was talking about?” You asked, feigning ignorance. 

“Corroded Coffin.” he said, reminding you of the name of the band. “We mostly do covers or metal and rock songs but we have a few original songs.” Then, as an afterthought he added “We play on Tuesdays usually. If you were curious.” 

You smiled at the can of beer you were crushing and tossing in the bin. There wasn’t anything subtle about the hint he wanted you to come. With how empty the Hideout was, you decided it was less personal and more about him being interested in anyone hearing them play. 

“I’ll bring earplugs to my shift then.” you said, glancing at him with a smile that you hoped let him know you were joking. 

Thankfully, Eddie laughed at that and led you back to the bar. “Good luck, Bev’s single amp has only two settings, ‘loud’ and ‘louder.’”

“You two better be talking about work and not just socializing.” Bev said as she walked back in. 

“Just telling her all about how the Hideout has a long standing history of being a patron of the arts.” Eddie said, giving her a wide smile. 

“No, you can’t play on Wednesdays.” Bev said, “Now go get Sam another drink.”

Eddie didn’t seem phased and took the next few minutes to show you the back of the bar and the different beer and handful of mixers. 

“I wouldn’t touch any of the sodas, they fell off a truck in ‘82 and I think they expired in ‘79.” He joked. 

“Would have been helpful to know about an hour ago.” you replied. 

“Don’t worry, you probably won’t get sick off of rum and croak here.” Every time Eddie looked at you, your heart jumped up into your throat.

Self, you gotta chill. Yes, he’s a cute guy doomed by the narrative but that’s no reason to be weird about this. There’s a thousand other reasons to be weird about it. Just pretend he’s not... him... and that he’s just your co-worker. Not real. Not real. Not real.

‘Not real’ was starting to become your survival mantra.

Eddie didn’t offer up too much information about himself and you held back as well. With Bev watching you both like a hawk, there wasn’t a lot of time for small talk except when she went for a smoke break. When it was Eddie’s turn for a smoke break, you declined stepping outside with him, not ready to be alone with him. 

Then again, could you confidently say that you’ll be ready for anything now? 

As it approached ten, Bev decided to let you go. “No need for you tonight, and Eddie’s given you the rundown. Be back Saturday at 7.” she instructed. 

You jotted down the address of the bar and thanked her again, and you looked over at Eddie and gave him as genuine a smile as you could. “Nice meeting you... Eddie.” 

Eddie waved you off as he popped open a beer for another patron. 

Reader ==> Go Home

You can’t. Home hasn’t even been built yet and you have no idea where it is. 

Reader ==> Go Back To Benny’s

You don’t really want to, but you were exhausted and really wanted to go to sleep. 

When you stepped outside it was a lot cooler out now that the sun was down and you tried to reorient yourself as to where you were. If you could make it back to town you could probably make your way back to the diner. 

There were a few cars in the gravel lot but one stood out; a van. 

You should leave it alone. 

Reader ==> Check Out Eddie’s Van

You should leave it alone but curiosity got the best of you. You casually made your way over to the van and checked over your shoulder to make sure Eddie wasn’t about to kick down the doors and demand you step away from the vehicle. 

When he didn’t you peered in the driver side window. It was dark so you couldn’t get a good look at the inside but you saw a few tapes and fast food wrappers scattered along the front seats. The center console was closed, and the interior of the van looked worn but relatively stain free as far as you could tell. 

Slipping around to the side of the van, you peaked in the back windows. The back didn’t have any seats, and seemed pretty empty aside from a backpack, some scattered papers, and more trash. 

It was just a van owned by a young adult man. You could have seen this van anywhere and not thought twice about it. 

Reader ==> Go Back To Benny’s  

It took you a long time to make it back in the dark, but you finally slipped in the back door of the diner, checking around the building once for safety, before finally collapsing on your futon as passing out, digesting the events of the day, 

----

Tumblr User ==> Leave A Prompt

RULES

-I’m not writing in a liner way

- Current timeline I’m wanting to write is between August-December 1985. We will get to ‘86 later

-You can suggest reader do anything, there is no guarantee that I will pick your prompt!

-Prompts must be submitted through ask, as “READER => Do something” If you know, you know.

-Reader is a weirdo, a freak, and is not shy or popular. Reader probably has really bad ADHD.

-If I need to add more rules I will, if I change rules that’s allowed because it’s my fic

[mcondance]

a quick talk on obtaining physical media

you can get your physical media off of amazon. you can type in “xyz dvd” “xyz cd” “xyz vinyl” in google too and it’ll show you results for ebay and other stores like walmart and target probably. i don’t really do this cause i’m a vintageantiqueoriginal fucker.

edit: ebay is a great place to find dvds, cds, and vinyl that aren’t originals but have been opened so they’re cheaper still!

if you’re an antique, vintage, original fucker like me, ebay is the way to go. i got my slc punk original 1999 (first edition, MINT CONDITION) dvd off ebay and i also got my soundgarden 1996 down on the upside digipak cd off ebay too (yes i’m flexing 😁).

discogs is another great way to get original vinyl and cds. i got my ORIGINAL 1996 SOUNDGARDEN DOWN ON THE UPSIDE VINYL off discogs. but only people who know the worth of what they’re selling use discogs, so prices are higher on there. ebay is always my first step. (i was flexing again 😋).

tip: to make sure you’re getting the original pressing or version, zoom in on the back of the vinyl sleeve, cd or dvd, look at the bottom where all the copyright information and stuff is, and it’ll have what year it was printed labeled on it. if the pictures included with the listing don’t have the dates, ask for pictures of the back or move on.

also, people using words like “original” “vintage” “first pressing” on ebay definitely know the value of what they’re selling. i’m personally too lazy to sift through new copies and old copies, but if you wanna try your hand, simply type in “xyz dvd.” look for listings with no decorative words or words that younger people would use. you wanna find someone’s granddaddy selling his old cds, dvds, and vinyl. it’ll be cheaper than other listings because they just want it out of their house or have no use for it anymore.

antique, resale, and vintage shops also have dvds, cds, and vinyl. it’s more hit or miss cause you have to hope they have what media you’re looking for but you can also find things that you weren’t looking for but are nice to have. i just came from a resale store and i found the temptations on dvd which wasn’t on my list but it’s fucking nice to have 😋😋

as for how to indulge in this media, you can get that one white cd player that everyone has off of amazon. i’m currently looking for an older cd player as well as a dvd / vhs tv for when i start collecting vhs. again, ebay is the way to go.

collecting physical media is fun and also very important with the threat of media erasure looming heavier and heavier over us everyday. please collect all of your favorite movies, shows, and albums, before it’s too late.

[specialagentlokitty]

Mr Evershed x student!reader - the closest to family

Hej me again. I have another request. Can you write a Evershed x Student Reader with prompt List 2024 number 27? Thank you again! Have a nice day. ☺️ - @marieamardill 💜

27: “I need a parent or guardian to sign this.” “I’m neither.” “You’re close enough, sign it.”

Looking at the letter in your hands, you looked back up at your teacher.

“Seriously?”

“I’m sorry, but we need written consent by somebody to say you can come on the trip.”

You held up the letter.

“Who the hell am I gonna get to sign it? Let me just consult the spirits of my dead parents and see if they’ll let me go on a trip.”

“(Y/N), I legally can’t let you come without the consent form, I’m sorry.” She sighed.

“Didn’t want to go on the shit trip anyway..”

You shoved the letter into your bag and you stormed out of the classroom furious.

Walking down the hallways, you barged past a few students, and you made your way to the office and threw the door open as you walked in.

“(Y/N), as energetic as ever I see. Have you had your lunch?” Mr Evershed asked.

“Not hungry.”

He looked up from his computer and he sighed softly.

“What’s wrong?”

You shrugged a little and you buried your nose into the fabric of your jumper.

“There’s a trip I want to go on..”

“Well, why don’t you? I think it would be a nice break for you anyway, there’s no reason for you not to be able to go.”

You looked at him.

“Really?”

“Well, yes, of course. You should go.”

You nodded, digging through your bag to pull the letter out and you handed it over to him.

“I need a parent or guardian to sign this.”

Reaching over, Mr Evershed took the letter giving you a sightly confused look.

“I’m neither.”

You shrugged slightly, grinning a little at him.

“You’re close enough, sign it.”

Mr Evershed looked at you, and he chuckled a little bit, grabbing a pen, signing the paper.

He held it out and when you went to take it he pulled it back making you huff a little bit.

“This doesn’t mean you get a free pass at of everything, do you understand?”

You quickly nodded your head and he handed it over to you this time.

You grinned a little and put it back in your bag.

“So, I’m really the closest thing to a guardian?”

“Well yeah, you convinced the school board and social to let me stay here, even though they don’t know I’m living on my own. You still look after me, that’s basically a guardian right?”

“Yes, thought I would still appreciate it if you found a responsible adult you could live with, a family friend or something of the sort.”

You shook your head.

“Nah, plus it’s just for another year anyway, until I can leave and get a job.”

“No college?”

“Nah, I don’t have time for that. Plus if I get a job I can buy things.”

Mr Evershed rose an eyebrow at you.

“Do you need money to buy things?”

“I have money, I can buy some things?”

“What are you living off exactly?”

Digging through your pocket, you pulled out your phone and took the back of your phone case out, putting a £20 note on the desk.

“This.”

“A week?”

“Every two weeks, but it work you know? If I don’t buy all that much, and get the cheaper stuff.”

“This isn’t enough (Y/N).”

“It’s fine sir, really, I got it all figured out.”

Mr Evershed sighed heavily, and you put your money back in your phone case and put your phone away.

Reaching under his desk, Mr Evershed pulled out a plastic bag and stood up, placing it at your feet and sat down down, going on his computer again.

You looked at the bag and opened it, looking inside to see some food, mostly canned or dry foods you could store for a long time.

“What’s this?” You asked.

“I know you feel embarrassed about going to food banks for help, so I did some shopping, this is stuff that’ll last longer, every month I’ll get you a couple of bags.”

“Why?”

“Because you need to eat, and it’ll take some stress of your shoulders.”

You smiled a little and looked at the headteacher.

“Thanks sir..”

He smiled back at you.

“If you need any more, or want something different just let me know. But you can’t tell anybody (Y/N), because if you do I’ll have to stop, and they’ll most likely put you in care.”

“I won’t, I promise. You’re the best! I’ll come get it after school!”

With that you grinned brightly and jumped up, running out of the office making him laugh slightly and shake his head.

He knew you weren’t a bad kid, you were just trying you best and you were doing great, you just need an extra helping hand here and there

[lol-jackles]

https://variety.com/2024/tv/news/amazon-alex-cross-series-aldis-hodge-renewed-season-2-series-premiere-1235987125/

If “Cross” proves to be popular, it would be the latest successful Amazon series based on a long-running novel character. The company found themselves with a massive hit on their hands courtesy of “Reacher” starring Alan Ritchson, based on the Jack Reacher novels written by Lee Child. Likewise, Amazon’s longest-running series to date was the cop drama “Bosch,” based on the Harry Bosch novels written by Michael Connelly. Titus Welliver starred as Bosch and now leads the spinoff series “Bosch: Legacy” at Amazon Freevee. A second spinoff starring Maggie Q as cold case detective Renée Ballard is also in the works at Prime Video. Prime Video also airs “The Terminal List” starring Chris Pratt, which is based on a series of novels by Jack Carr, with a prequel series on the way, while the John Krasinski-led Jack Ryan series concluded in 2023 after four seasons.

This is old news, but after hearing about Jensen's show Countdown, and reading the blurb about all the action/cop series currently or previously airing on Amazon, it seems that's the genre route they seem to be taking... but if that's the case, is there even room for another one? Especially one who's titular character is not based on a previously known entity?

Not to mention, that Amazon was impressed enough with Cross to renew an unaired series for a second season. It makes me curious to see if Amazon seems just as impressed with Countdown.

Link. Another SPN one-time guest star does good and leading his own show.  Aldis Hodge is also the executive/producer. The character of Alex Cross has been around since 1997 when Morgan Freeman first played him.  Then Tyler Perry took over the role in 2012.

Every studio is cutting cost and number of projects, even Netflix.  The Countdown not based on established IP with built-in audience is less of a sure thing, but at least it's going to be cheaper. So cost wise, there is enough room for The Countdown.  Helped that Jensen is not as high tier as Adis Hodge and John Krasinski and Chris Pratt, and therefore Jensen is much less expensive. Plus Jensen is not an executive/producer so Amazon studios doesn't have to cut him a second check.  I had quite a few very angry Anon demanding that I revise/recant my claim that Jensen is not one of the producers of The Countdown because that means in their eyes Jared is still "winning" because he was an executive/producer of Walker.

Side note, Alex Cross and Reacher are produced by Paramount/Skydance and licensed to Amazon for distribution.

[ach-sss-no]

Things I do if i'm stuck on a WIP

I keep seeing memes about people fighting with their WIPs so maybe you could use some handy weapons?

Some of these are passed around pretty often, but they're in here again because I personally found them useful, as opposed to the common advice I see passed around that has never helped me whatsoever, also, you never know when it's someone's first time seeing something or when it might be worded in a way that makes it more understandable.

Some of these are more useful when you have some options for how to proceed with your story but can't decide on one, and won't be as helpful if you can see no way to proceed.

These are intended primarily for writing and many don't really have other applications I can think of, but some of these strategies should also work for any creative thing you're trying to do that is not progressing in the way you want it to.

Disclaimer: Sometimes none of these work. Good luck!

CRIPES, I'm Stuck

Complain

Tell someone (or pretend to tell someone) who does not know the inner workings of your story all about your story problem in as much detail as you can articulate. The more detail the better, including what events led up to this point and what you want to achieve going forward. Go all the way back to what the main premise is, even. When I do this I often end up figuring out the problem while I am describing it and never even send the message, which is why this can be an imaginary conversation if input from another human is not desired and/or available for whatever reason. You can also tell your problems to your cat, dog, tarantula, or Pokémon team! BONUS: Those things are all cheaper than a therapist!

Randomize

If you have multiple ideas for how to go forward and are paralyzed because you can see no greater or lesser value in any of them, great news! The machine can be trusted! (Disclaimer: The machine cannot be trusted) Go to random.org and use the list randomizer to scramble your potential plot options. Pick the one on top. If you realize you're unhappy with it, examine why. Whatever reason why you've decided you don't like that option after all will help guide you towards what you should be doing instead.

Got any kind of two option yes/no, pass/fail, success/disaster question? Flip a coin! This can be done digitally if you don't have coins lying around (I usually don't myself).

There is also the tried and true method of dice-rolling, which can also be done via app if you don't have dice of the desired type or you've lost yours.

Really stuck? Showrunner's challenge.

Iterate

This is both the least efficient one and the thing I do the most often. Writing a scene? Not sure how it should go? Just write different versions of it until something sticks.

Every time you feel unhappy with the scene, back up to the point that led to whatever you're not jiving with, cut it, and start over from there. I recommend saving all of your different versions so you can reconsider or do some horrific Frankenstein cut-and-paste later.

Like I said: horrendously inefficient. it doesn't have to be pretty... it just has to exist.

Play

Go do something else totally unrelated to writing. Just go do something else you enjoy. Just take a break. Your brain may actually fix your story problem when you ignore it and let it run in the background, and if it doesn't, you get a break. No downside! Chances are, you've heard that before. I'm telling you again because I so often fall prey to the 'but my break will be more satisfying if I fix the problem first' well, it's not getting fixed and I am not equipped to fix it right now or it would be fixed already, so it's break time now.

Work on another project that seems more fun to you at the moment. Battering your head against your current WIP because you think you "should" work on it instead of whatever shinier idea is in your head is probably not helping you progress on that project. Working on something else as a treat may jog your brain to unstuck you from your main idea, and if not, it will lead to a new creative product existing, and even if it never gets finished, you've tricked yourself into thinking art is fun again. No downside!

There's nothing wrong with adding [placeholderlmao] and going on to a part of the story you like better. In fact, knowing what happens later may help you fix the problem point (assuming you don't already know because you either don't work from an outline, or your story has diverged so wildly from the outline that it's not helpful anymore)

Edit

Depending on the length of your project and whether you have already declared parts of it off-limits this may not apply; but if you don't want to go forward right now, it may be a good time to go back and edit what you already have written. Sometimes when I do this I will see a stray idea I mentioned earlier that I can follow up on now, and that gives me a new path forward. I'll also sometimes discover that, while my current story problem is manifesting at my sticking point, the cause of it happened much earlier and needs to be addressed farther back in the story (and once that's done I'm not stuck anymore!) Just like pulling crabgrass out by the roots.

Did you have an outline that has stopped tracking with your story? Maybe you should go look at that outline and revise it to the new version, or at least remind yourself of what you thought was important to put in it. If nothing else, doing this should help you think differently about your story.

Steal

That's right! There are millions on billions of stories out there. Just like infinitely variable humans are built upon skeletons that look very similar, your story is uniquely yours, but its underlying structure probably follows a pattern that other stories with similar goals have used since human communication began. So go look up a story you enjoy that includes a similar scene to the one you're struggling with, and look at what it did to fix the problem you're having. Chances are, there's a way to map that onto your story while keeping your version unique, or at least you can get some helpful hints. Do expand beyond the medium you're working in. There's a lot that novels/movies/games/etc do differently, but basic story beats and interactions between characters are pretty consistent things across anything that's telling a story. If I'm looking for a model for a scene, I always look for something with a similar plot, theme or character dynamic that I thought was done well.

Alternately, do you know of a story that tried to do what you're doing and failed spectacularly? Go look closely at that and see why it's not working. Then ask yourself how those problems could have been avoided. The solution you arrive at may apply to your story as well, or at least lead in the right direction. Alternately-alternately: Do it wrong on purpose for the fun of it and fix it later (or don't fix it later)

Just have no ideas? Hang out with stories with the vibes you want until something clicks. When I was doing this fancomic, I watched The Emperor's New Groove a lot.

Well, there you go. If you think I missed something- which I absolutely did, because the creative process is very individual and there are some highly successful things I never, ever do and can't speak on because I am restricting myself to things I have personally done and found helpful-

-please add it on to this post, and make it longer and longer until no one is ever stuck on a WIP ever again (✿◡‿◡) because they are all too busy reading this infinitely long post to start any projects!

[agbpaints]

I wanted to Post about another interesting design I found while combing thru lists of Ghost Bear/Dominion mechs that doesn't seem to get a lot of love. The Arcas.

Originally built by Clan Ghost Bear at the start of the 3060's, the Arcas was intended to mark in a new age for the Clan in the Inner Sphere. As a second line battlemech, the Arcas is a more sculpted and less utilitarian design than a lot of the invasion era omnis befitting it's lack of configurability. And boy am I glad they did that because they decided to make the thing look like a big angry viking in furs and lamellar. A portent of things to come what with Ghost Bear's eventual melding with the culturally similar Rasalhague.

Despite being a second liner, the Arcas uses a supremely expensive clan XL power plant, though it puts this to good use paired with its jump jets to propel it up to a pretty spookily fast 5/8/5 movement profile. Offensively, it packs a pair of Clan-spec ER large lasers for long range engagements, two medium pulse lasers for medium range, and a trio of streak-4 SRM packs for close in work. With 15 double heat sinks it can run and fire its energy weapons while staying neutral, while the Streaks' missile locks mean you'll only seriously spike the heat up close when you're putting a lot of warheads on foreheads. This relatively light armament for a clan heavy (or as I, a primarily IS pilot say, an extremely, enthusiastically acceptable bonanza of high quality dakka) comes as a cost for protection- the Arcas has 13.5 tons of standard armor, making it nearly as durable as the 10 ton-heavier madcat and twice as well armored as the similarly weighted and engined Hellbringer.

All this combined makes for a very good heavy cav mech- a good Arcas pilot can start a beat down at range and continue to ramp up the pressure as she closes headlong at the opponent, safely protected by her speed and armor. It does pay hellishly for this, Clan XLs are worth slightly less than sending a 4k copy of the Bee Movie to every great house capitol by way of HPG network. 14.77 million C-bills makes this thing an almost perfect 10 on the urbanmech price index, and for 2484 BV I could bring a pretty darn solid pair of medium mechs to a fight. But it's also a heavy mech that moves like a medium and wasn't designed by someone whose brain was 93% nasally-imbibed glue, so if I can buy/borrow/steal one I'll take it.

The Arcas comes in 2 non-standard flavors, both have some merit so we'll go thru them quickly

The Arcas 2 is an energy boat sniper build that trades the large lasers and missiles for a pair of ERPPCs and a few extra heat sinks. It can handle the heat off the headchoppers fine and only really needs to start making descisions when it brings those MPLs into play. Effective, but a PPC's mech is generally to find a place to sit and stand there making shots so that massive engine is wasted. Next.

The Arcas 3 goes back to being interesting. It yet again strips the ER larges and two of the missile systems, this time in favor of a heavy large laser, a targeting computer to handle the accuracy problems, and 7 improved jump jets. While the damage on this variant is lower than that of the Standard or Model 2 5/8/7 is an absolutely disgusting movement profile, the heat management allows for jumping alphas where you're worried about building *any* heat as opposed to hitting move/GS penalties, and the improved accuracy on the pulse lasers will make this thing an absolute pain to fight. It's also almost 200 BV cheaper than the Standard, leaving you move room in a list for other bullshit.

[alphagodith]

EEEEE I FINALLY HAVE MATCHING WIZGATO OTEDAMAS EEEEEE

(fun acquisition tale and bonus pic below)

okay so i started my wizardmon collection a year or two ago, and at the time there were no open listings for this rare stackable tsum-tsum loaf plushie/digi-digi otedama beanbag thing ANYWHERE. so i thought i was out of luck. i got the regular plushie of him but i was really bummed i missed out on this one cuz it's sooo cute.

then, just the other day, my friend @peach-artblog asked me if i had a certain golden gacha mini-figurine in my collection (i didn't but now i do), and that prompted me to go back to ebay again. and guess who finally had a listing! so i SLAMMED that buy button as hard and fast and recklessly as i possibly could.

but then i thought, surely there is a matching gatomon one of these, and it would be cruel to separate the two of them, so i went looking for her and ordered her too. but then i kept looking for other wizard things that might have popped up since the last time i searched, and i found a cheaper gatomon on another site, but i had to wait for the one i'd already ordered to let me cancel it, since it apparently had to be approved by the seller since it had been a few hours. (this is important because it resulted in wiz and gato being ordered several days apart)

then a few days after THAT, i discovered that a certain phone charm i had seen plenty of times before and thought was fan-made was actually official! so i HAD to have it for my collection too, of course, and when i went to order it (from a third website), it reminded me of a funky thing with my address that sometimes causes it to get input wrong. so i went back to the other things i had ordered to make sure that hadn't happened, and guess what? it HAD. specifically with the gatomon otedama. so i emailed that seller right away, and they got back to me within MINUTES. apparently they were JUST about to ship it out (a bit later than i had expected too), so it sure was a good thing i got that fixed when i did! and i ONLY caught it because i had been looking at this OTHER purchase. (so very narrowly avoided further delays on gatomon)

so i'm carefully watching the tracking for the wizardmon otedama because i've been wanting it for years, this is the only listing ANYWHERE within that timespan, and our local shipping center has been fumbling things lately so i'm VERY worried about it arriving safely. and then the worst happens. i get a notification that the package has been 'forwarded' due to incorrect handling/labeling. basically the post office screwed up and sent it to the wrong place and it's being sent back. i feel sick. i have my husband call the post office and the first lady he gets is very rude and unhelpful, then he tries again (bless his heart) a few hours later and THIS lady explains that the vague ass forwarding message just means that it's been slightly delayed but it IS still on its way to us, and not to some random wrong address or back to the seller. so we cross our fingers and wait. (so long story short, wizardmon otedama got delayed)

and today, on the expected delivery date for gatomon and and the last day for wizardmon to arrive without me freaking out super hard, the two of them miraculously arrived safely, and together, despite being ordered on different days from different sellers!

and if that ain't magic i dunno what is.

[okayigetitifuckedup]

My Beauty/Skincare/Fragrance favorites, in no particular order:

I guess this is kind of a list of my holy grail products? Do people still say that or am I showing my age? Whatever.

I see a lot of people talk about this stuff, but hardly anyone ever mentions some of my absolute favorites so I wanted to give them what little love I can from Tumblr, haha.

There is going to be a large amount of price difference between these products because price is not the end all, be all of quality. Some lower-priced brands produce products that wow me, specifically in skincare, though I have my high-end vices as well, as you will see. I won't say don't splurge, I would say be particular about what you splurge on. That's the trick. Figure out what you want from the product, then look at what each price point promises. As a general rule, more high-end, or luxury brands have been leaning into a more natural look, so I tend to find myself gravitating to cheaper mascaras, or eyeliners because I like my eye makeup to be a bit heavier. At the same time, most highlighters I use are very expensive, because it is hard to find a cheap highlighter that looks as natural as I prefer.

I will also say that for the skincare portion, I have sensitive, or reactive skin, in combination with minor oiliness in the T-zone, and across my jawline, with very minor dryness on the cheeks. I have tried two-dollar cleansers, and fifty-dollar cleansers, and the lesson I have learned is trial and error is your friend. Don't be afraid to try new products, as the only way to truly know how a product affects your skin is to try it. I recommend looking out for samples, and trial sizes. They are your friend! Anyway, My personal favorites are below the cut.

Cleanser:

La Roche-Posay: Toleriane Purifying Foaming Facial Wash

This cleanser is life-changing for me. One pump of product is enough for my entire face and neck, so the bottle lasts ages, the product is extremely gentle, something that is harder to find when you have sensitive and oily skin. In my experience, I usually have to choose between feeling clean, and not irritating my skin. This is the first one I've found that does both, for me.

Toner:

THAYERS: ROSE PETAL FACIAL MIST

I don't know if this does anything, but it's pretty cheap, feels nice, smells good, and I like it. It has witch hazel in it, so, maybe? But also, it can't hurt, and life is short, you deserve to spray yourself with nice things just because you like it.

All-Over Body Exfoliator:

Frank Body: Express-O Coffee Scrub

This isn't the only product from this brand on the list. I love Frank Body, and honestly, all of their scrubs are top-notch. This one is my favorite, only because I think it's a lot easier to work with, and less mess to clean up when I'm done, but with all the same great benefits of their other products. I would say it's beginner-friendly, I guess, haha. Honorable mention for their illuminator, which does not make my list, but is a fantastic, natural, buildable highlight.

Moisturizer:

Kiehls: Ultra Facial Oil-Free Refillable Moisturizer

This one was a close race, between this one and the Bobbi Brown hydrating moisturizer, but what threw me over the line is that I only ever heard anyone talk about this brand for their other moisturizer, one that I sampled, and found entirely too heavy for my skin, but would do well for someone with a more dry skin type. I wanted to let people with my skin type know that this brand has thought of us as well, and this product is just as good, for our skin! And it's like thirty dollars less than the Bobbi Brown one!

Lip Balm:

Frank Body: Lip Balm

This is another hard one. I have been a lip balm addict since I was a child, and the question then became, do I pick the one I use most often, (The Softlips one I mention below) or the one that is actually my favorite. I chose the better product. RIP to the cherry version that blew this one out of the water. I prefer a petroleum-free lip balm, but mostly due to texture preferences, not for any added benefits. Also, if you aren't a lip balm addict, or looking for something that REALLY softens your lips, you don't NEED this, you can get a much cheaper one, this is the best, but please don't let someone tell you not to buy Vaseline lip balms, they work fine and are cheap as hell. 'Rosy lips' in the mini jar is my preference for that one. Softlips in the pearl tint is also a great brand that no one talks about. It was my mother's favorite, and it became my regular lip balm as I got older. It works, it's cheap, it's pretty, and it's at every dollar store, or Walmart checkout I've ever been in.

Mascara:

Thrive Cosmetics: Liquid Lash™ Extensions Mascara

This one went viral for a little bit, I think, but then fizzled out and everyone went back to better than sex, which is a damn shame because not only is this stuff fantastic, (thickening, lengthening, volumizing, and long-lasting!) but the brand gives to charity for every purchase! Why not buy it!? I've been meaning to look at some of their other products, but haven't had a chance yet. I will say, remove it in the shower. It's easier. Steam helps.

Body Moisturizer:

L' Occitane: Shea Butter Ultra Rich Body Cream

This stuff is high-end and knows it. A little goes a long way, so use sparingly. They have other body moisturizers, including an almond-scented one, but I like this one better, it's gentle, and deeply moisturizing without irritating my reactive skin, and I find that the scent blends with whatever perfume I use nicely.

Daytime Fragrance:

L' Occitane: Néroli & Orchidée Eau De Toilette

I know, I know! We just went over this brand, but I swear, this perfume is so light, floral, and pretty. It isn't overpowering but does make an impact. It's a secret weapon for a first impression, honestly.

Fragrance Notes of orange, mandarin, neroli, lily of the valley, fig milk, and peach, with a base or orchid, iris, and musk.

Nighttime fragrance: BLACK OPIUM EAU DE PARFUM

No one talks about this perfume anymore, and they should. It is approachably sexy, and intriguing. This is a perfect date night perfume and my personal favorite that is currently on the market.

Fragrance notes of: Coffee, pink pepper, orange blossom, jasmine, vanilla, patchouli, and cedar.

Now, a moment of silence for three products I can no longer recommend, but would have made the list if they hadn't been discontinued:

Physicians Formula: Va Va Voom Mascara

If this was still on the market it would be the only mascara I use. It's sultry, it's sexy, it's thick, it's.. it's EVERYTHING I want in a mascara. This stuff is worth its weight in gold to me.

Pacifica: Alight oil-free Foundation

Hands down the best foundation I've ever used. Oil-free, but non-drying, natural finish, has medium-light coverage, is buildable, and feels like nothing on the skin. I've paid more than 50 dollars for foundation before, so believe me when I tell you it brings me no joy to tell you that not only was the best of them like 8 dollars, but it's also gone now. You can still find some shades online at second-hand resellers, but my shade is gone forever. Heartbreaking.

Wet N' Wild: Megacushion Foundation

I know- divisive, especially with oily skin, but this was more of a touchup product than a regular foundation. It would work to help any areas where my foundation begins to sweat off. It's light and compact, and because of how easy it is to apply, I could carry it in my purse. I know there are other cushion foundations, so maybe this trick could work with them as well, but I have yet to try them, so I cannot in good conscience recommend them.

Please please please, like and reblog in you enjoyed, or if you'd like to see more of my useless knowledge on this crap. Also if you have any questions about any of it, I'd be happy to help! My ask box and messages are always open, and I'm happy to make use of my years of wasting money, haha.

[stationerybear]

A Thank You to the Hobonichi Weeks

A few months ago I started using a Hobonichi Weeks as my everyday planner that I bring with me to create to-do lists and and keep track of events and appointments, something I desperately need to stay organized. I intended to use the Weeks to see if it would be a feasible catch-all notebook to put all of my planning, journaling, and tracking in next year. However, I don't think the Weeks is the right fit for me, but it did help me discover that an all-in-one book is not what I need.

I wanted to use the notes pages in a Weeks (Mega) next year for daily entries and gratitude logs, the same way that I use daily pages in my A6 Hon this year. In my experimentation with transcribing daily entries onto the notes pages, I discovered that I kind of hate writing daily entries in the Weeks lol. And I don't think I would be able to fit all of my trackers and goals from my rings planner into the Weeks note pages along with daily entries. I think it would become too cluttered and disorganized. Plus, I don't like the formatting/layout of those spreads in the Weeks pages, as picky as that sounds.

Trying to use the Weeks in this way has made me realize that I've already basically found "planner peace" with my current system. The layout of the A6 Hon's pages lends itself to how I like to write my journal entries and daily gratitude. I may not be writing every day, but it is the most consistent I have ever been with a journal. I still love the book and writing in it when I have the motivation to fill a page. I also love using my rings journal as a creative/decorative outlet the way I have used bullet journals in the past, while also still remaining functional. The system that I currently have works for me, and it works well. I recently became so preoccupied with wanting to condense everything for some reason that I lost sight of the joy my current notebooks and planning process brings me. So for 2025, I plan to continue using my rings planner as I currently do, and I hope to soon order another A6 Hon (the Crescent Moon Delivery version since it is my favorite design of the 2025 lineup and as an homage to the similar design of the Weeks I have been using).

As for the Weeks, I have greatly enjoyed using it as my everyday planner. However, I can't find it in my heart (or wallet) to justify buying two books from Hobonichi for 2025. Hobonichi products are certainly a luxury in my opinion, and while I can allow myself the luxury of the Hon, I don't really feel the need to splurge on the Weeks in addition. On the bright side, I believe I have found a more affordable alternative to the Weeks through Kinbor. I found a few YouTube videos reviewing the books and comparing them as adequate Hobonichi dupes, and I was very compelled by this cheaper alternative. I've already ordered the Cat Cafe Weeks-sized planner and look forward to receiving it in the mail soon :3

It should he arriving near the end of this month/beginning of November. I'd like to test the paper in the notes section before using it for next year since many reviews I watch compared the paper to Tomoe River Paper used in Hobonichi books (I don't know if there is any confirmation if it is indeed TRP or not, but it seems very similar in quality and feel at least). I believe the paper is also a brighter white color than the cream colored paper used in the Hobonichi Weeks, which I think I will personally like more.

All this is to say that while the Weeks may not have been what I wanted as an all-in-one book, I still enjoyed the time I've spent with it the last few months. I'm glad that I'll have it to finish out the year, and I'd like to thank this book for helping learn more about myself, my wants, and my needs. 💜