#but it’s dylan so hes still cute either way <3

[meadowbrookprophecy]

what we think our ravenclaw boy oc, leo, looks like:

what he probably actually looks like:

read our slytherin boys fanfic (featuring this cutie patootie!) here!!

[hjcoolartnerd]

Just a little push part 2

Dylan, Steve and Robin enjoyed the evening by sharing stories about tough customers that Steve and Robin have encounter, they even said how they each countered Dylan’s dad and step mom and how she couldn’t even say what she wanted to see and had to oblige to what Dylan’s dad wanted to see. “Typical that ass hole was the same with my mom. That’s why she left him for the Russian guy, and… well because of little Danny’s death….” He said sigh as he got up “I need a beer” Steve looked at Dylan raising his eyebrow “since when do you drink Dyl?” Steve asked as Dylan shrugged “since Billy began taking me out for car rides, he wanted me to loosen up a bit.” He said walking towards the kitchen while Steve had a jealous filled face as he watched his best friend walking to the kitchen. “Steve, you are jealous? “ Robin teased Steve as he glared her. “What do you think…” he replied “come on, Steve. Dylan and Billy are just good friends.” Robin said as Steve scoffed. “I mean how many friends does Billy have?” Steve said as Robin looked at him “Non so it’s weird why Billy keeps Dylan as a friends.” He added as Robin shrugged “Maybe Dylan knows how to reach Billy and that’s why they are close. But are you jealous because Dylan is replacing your friendship with him, or because he is super close to your crush.” She asked he grew flustered and looked away, just as Dylan walked back with beer. “This is just what I needed” he sat down next to Steve before smiling at them “Want to watch a movie or something?” He asked them "Uh sure what do you got" Robin ask as Dylan pointed to a corner where there was a small box "There are a few movies there, i don't know which one you guys want to see, as for me any movie is fine." He said as he took a sip from his beer as his gaze went towards the window a view into Carol's room. "you don't have any good movies here Dyl" Steve said as Dylan shrugs "I'm barely here Stevie, I don't go out to rent movies... it's my sister and Bruce's job honestly." He said before Steve suddenly remember Dylan's 3 friends "How are Marcus and Julia? I haven't seen them in town lately" He asked as Dylan continued looking next door "Oh I don't know Julia went to California for I don't know what, though she sent letters about meeting a cute guy who looks just Like Billy... I told her that's probably Billy's twin brother but she doesn't believe me-" He was cut off by Robin "Wait Hargrove has a twin?" She asked "Yes Buckley. Billy has a twin, Tyler is his name, though he and Billy don't talk much... Billy hates him... any way. Marcus i heard from Dustin, that he went for a summer camp experience, or something like that, that he is going to be a C.I.T" Dylan said as he took another sip of his beer "It's weird, most of my friends are either out of town, with their partner or just working" He sighed. Steve placed a hand on Dylan's shoulder, even if Steve was Jealous that Dylan spent more time with Billy, Dylan was still his friend.

Eventually it got late and both Steve and Robin had to leave, Dylan went to see them leave. Steve and Dylan awkwardly shaking hands since their friendship wasn't the same, and then Dylan hugged Robin. He then watched the two of them get in Steve's car and drive off. Dylan smiled as he watched them leave, 'It feels nice reconnecting with Steve, even if we aren't as close as we used to.' He thought as he was about to close the door, just as he was doing that a voice called out "Walker Wait!" Dylan turned back to see a stumbling Tommy Hagan who could barely stay on his feet "Walker my man! my bro! could i crash in your place" He said his voice sounding slurred as he spoke "What? why. don't you sleep with your girlfriend?" He asked the drunk man who was leaning on the walls of the front door "Man.... Carol is being difficult right now. I can't deal with her when she's like that and when I'm almost wasted.... Walker please let me stay the night here! I can't drive home.... i can't get another citation .... I sware Officer Hopper has it out for me." He pleaded, it was strange, seeing this side of Tommy, when the version he remembered was the bully who was constantly in his face and made derogatory comments about Dylan's sexual preference. If Dylan was someone else, he would have definitely left Tommy outside and to fend off himself but Dylan wasn't like that even if he still harbored a bit of anger towards Tommy, he can't let him drive. Especially when he is pleading for a place to stay, if that was Billy he would have been barking Dylan to get him home considering Dylan always takes Billy's keys when they go to parties "Okay fine Hagan come on it." Dylan finally said as he noticed the small thank you smile that formed on the corner of Tommy's lips. Dylan helped him inside and led Tommy to the couch he wanted to know why he got so drunk and why was Carol acting difficult right now. He took a deep breath "What happened Hagan?" He asked as the drunk tommy shrugged "I don't know man. We were having a fine evening and We were about to have some fun in her room but all of a sudden she became irritable...." He trailed off "And angry and confrontational" He said as he tried to hold his head up. "You must have done something if she got confrontational and angry at you Hagan. I mean Look at my sister, she gets pissed if i dont have the chicken out to unfreeze." He said shrugging as Tommy smiled in his drunken state "Well I don't know... I think i mentioned you... I don't remember what i told her Walker..." He sighed "I just didn't wanted to deal with her bad mood so i came here... You don't mind right?" He asked looking at Dylan "No i don't... I can check if I have clothes that can fit you so you can sleep more comfortable." Dylan said getting to his feet "Thanks Walker you are the best." Tommy said with a weak smile as Dylan walked toward his room. He knew Tommy wasn't too muscular they both shared the same body type. So he could lend any of his clothes to him. He found a pair of workout shorts and a plain white shirt, he then walked back toward Tommy "Here you go Hagan. you could shower or just change into them. the bathroom is right down the hall" Dylan said as Tommy got up and stumbled a bit "Can you Help me Walker?" He asked, Dylan hesitated before he helped Tommy toward the bathroom. They walked down the hall towards the small bathroom "You are a good person Walker. You weren't a fighter, I guess i took advantage of that and.... bullied you" He said as Dylan helped him "I don't know why... Maybe i admired your care free attitude or the fact that even if the whole town had been against you, you stay true to your self... I admired that." He smiled and moved his face to admire Dylan's "You were very.... nice and cute... and I really liked it when you gave me the time of day, I don't know why Walker but.... I always looked at your lips when you started chewing me out. Maybe it was.... because i wanted them" This confession was making Dylan flustered and all nervous

"H-Hagan don't say stuff like that, You have a girl frie-" He was cut off by Tommy pressing his lips with Dylan's. Even in his drunken state Tommy was a bit more stronger than Dylan as Dylan's mind raced. Not long after Tommy broke the kiss and changed in the bathroom. Dylan went to the living room to prepare the couch for Tommy to sleep in... But one of his hands were touching his lips.

Eventually Tommy walked out of the Bathroom and stumbled towards the living room and collapsed on the bed, his back facing upwards. In a fast motion Tommy had fallen asleep. Dylan just watched as how his chest heaved slowly with each breath. He was peaceful while he slept, and Dylan couldn't staring, his mind still wondering to the kiss. Why did i bothered him so much, Why did he thought about it? Was it because Tommy had a girl friend? or because Tommy used to bully him? Dylan eventually went to his bed his thoughts drifting to the kiss and Tommy's confession, it was surreal. Dylan didn't liked Tommy like that but still his mind kept drifting to it, until he fell asleep.

A/N: Continued the Just a Little Push Fan fiction, Starting off with the Dylmmy part of the fan fiction, a drunk Tommy confessing what he felt and why he bullied Dylan.

[timelesstaylorsversion]

“  my world is just falling apart.  it’s like everything is just crumbling around me.  i don’t know what to do.  i just want it to stop. ” // for @clubglee 🩵 ft. literally the minnesota twins baseball team? finished under the cut bc i can't shut up xoxo gossip girl <3

in many ways, like many twins, brenda and brandon were opposites. brenda, impulsive, never wanting to slow or settle down, the eventual fun aunt to her calm, cool, collected brother's kids. because brandon was just that. their parents' golden child, wise beyond his years, just a genuine good person, someone who could be the best friend you ever have. they balanced each other out. but now, her main priority was to make sure brandon didn't fling himself off the hollywood sign. she had been watching girls throw themselves at him since they were twelve, but his eyes never quite sparked up with anyone else like they did with leyla. the love of his life. an engagement ring tucked away for safe keeping and there it would stay. maybe forever because she no longer knew who he was. or who any of them were. the panic in her twin's voice on the other line, getting off a near eleven hour flight straight to his side, seeing the blood stains on his clothes that he wouldn't change out of, hearing that he beat his future father in law to a pulp (her and dylan were disappointed they missed it), everything was just.... a mess. and all she could do was watch him spiral. then leyla woke up and that sparkle in his eyes returned. yet, it didn't last. amnesia. whether it was temporary or permanent, they just didn't know. but one thing everyone could agree on: do not stress her out. do not overwhelm her. time, she just needs time.

the raven haired woman sighed as she sat down next to him on the couch. god, casa walsh had seen so much crap over the years. she brought her knees up to her chest, peering over to the male with his head in his hands. exhausted. "hey, hey, brand— she already fell in love with you once, who says you can't get her to again? we just need to have a little faith and besides, she still pretty much hates all men besides you, dylan, and david and the last two are spoken for, so i mean," brenda shrugged her shoulders, in attempt to lighten the mood. she definitely wasn't going to mention how leyla thought a med student was cute and how he tried to ask her out, hell no. he wasn't even that cute either, (he was, but she has to be on team brandon.) she could've swore maybe there was a faint smile on his features, just for a moment. "i know you're trying to make me feel better, but we don't know that she will. i just need to give her space, bren. i have to love her enough to do that and i do, even if it's the last thing i want," his head falling onto her shoulder with the last word. something they had been doing since they were kids, when the world got hard. some things never changed. even if they lived about five thousand miles apart now. "then give her space, just don't completely shut her out, okay? she's still her. and you still have that midwestern charm she loved so much," god, minnesota is so fucking cold. is there hot chocolate? yes, i need mini marshmallows in mine. why can't you people just eat cinnamon rolls like normal people? why do we have to dip it in chili? wait, i want to see the largest mall in america. i loved it in jingle all the way. "and personally i want to see her face when you tell her you beat the shit out of her dad, like bam, bitch went down!" brenda exclaimed, quoting the infamous scream, punching the air in reenactment. "my brother, a scrapper, who knew? god, i can't believe i missed that, can you do it again?" there's a grin on her face. she's pretty sure she speaks for everyone when she says rami kaplan needed to get his shit rocked more often. the younger twin receives an eye roll and push in response, a sign of the mood lightening. " hey, you're the one who moved five thousand miles away, so i'm pretty sure that's your own fault, bren," it's her turn to smack his arm. one thing about them? they will hit each other anytime, anywhere. couldn't you just tell they loved each other? "yes, yes, we all know how much you missed me. but lucky you! you're stuck with me for the near future. i stocked up on ice cream, and as always, don't touch my butter pecan, thank you," the woman announced as she got up to get her aforementioned ice cream. brenda walsh: sister of the year? well, obviously.

[kitkatscabinet]

I'd love to request for The Quarry please ! <3

Could you do a Dylan x reader, with Dylan borrowing reader's books to know what they're reading, super fluffy please <3

I hope you enjoy!

Word count: 843

Genre: fluff

The first time Dylan had seen you was with your nose stuck in a book, weaving and dodging through excited kids with a practised ease. At first, he was just curious to see what could possibly be so interesting that you couldn’t wait until you were still, and so he started up a conversation. One that had somehow ended in you promising to lend him the book tomorrow, and sure enough the next afternoon you were walking up to him with a grin book in hand. Dylan was frankly astonished that a) you’d read it that fast and b) that you’d actually sought him out to deliver. New book in hand Dylan didn’t really have the heart to tell you he wasn’t actually much of a reader, so that night in a fit of boredom he cracked it open and was surprised to find he enjoyed it. A few days later he was sheepishly handing it back to you as you excitedly started up a conversation wondering if he had enjoyed it.

It was lunch and yours and Dylan’s breaks had aligned and sure enough he found you sat by yourself engrossed in the latest book. His face unconsciously breaking into a soft smile at how cute you were, Dylan had found himself noticing more and more about you as the weeks progressed. The way your lips were almost constantly quirked in a small smile, how your eyes lit up and facial expressions changed as you read through various scenes. What he had come to like most however, was how animated you had become with him, eagerly handing off book after book and awaiting his assessment. Making his way over to you, he was surprised when you put your book down, smiling up at him and pulling him into a conversation.

“Dylan!” you said, beaming up at him. As the man distinctly realised this was a mistake, oh my god you were so cute, how the fuck was he going to survive this interaction. Heart pounding and hoping his face wasn’t bright red he sat down across from you. Clearing his throat, he attempted nonchalance

“Ah, don’t you wanna keep reading” he made a motioning gesture towards the downed book with his hand.

“Why would I do that, talking to you is way more fun” you said like a puppy, completely unaware of the effect you were having on your fellow counsellor. Bringing a hand up to cover the lower half of his face Dylan turned away, having stayed silent for a little too long he was unaware of your slowly dimming grin. “Unless you don’t want to talk…” you trailed off a little disheartened and Dylan whipped his head back to you in alarm.

“What, no, no, I want to talk, I love talking with you” he stammered out, voice slightly shriller than he would have liked. But you didn’t seem to mind if the blinding smile on your face was any indication. “So, uh, why do you read so much anyway?” he asked

“Well, I guess it started when I was a kid. My mum started reading Trixie Belden to me and I picked it up from there. I never used to have trouble making friends but then I had to move schools and a lot of the kids weren’t very nice to me… but Trixie was always there for me… and I guess it just evolved from there, I never really learned how to make friends again and I enjoyed learning and taking in the new worlds books provided. I mean I’m better at making friends now but the books always stayed…” you trailed off, shrugging like it was no big deal. Meanwhile Dylan was secretly plotting to eliminate everyone that had ever been mean to you. “But its ok now, cause I have you. We’re friends, right?” you asked earnestly and Dylan felt like he’d been punched in the chest as he rushed to assure that yes you were friends.

Things changed slightly after that, you still offered him books and even if they weren’t his thing he would read them, for you. But now you would seek him out more, opening up and talking about whatever random topic either of you brought up.

The first time Dylan kissed you was right after you’d handed off what must’ve been the 20th something book. You’d stated that you’d read this one specifically for him and hoped he would like it and after more than a month of falling for you he couldn’t stop himself. At your lack of movement and wide eyes he quickly pulled back, only to have you immediately pull him back in. If Dylan had to describe that moment years later there wouldn’t be any words in any books to even come close to capturing what he felt in that moment. He had told you that only to have you guffaw loudly and shove him in embarrassment, throwing your next book at him and running off, leaving him to grin like an idiot at your retreating form.

[ravenadottir]

Based on looks alone, how would you rank the season 4 love interests as someone who has never play it?

oh i actually love this!!

'cause i don't even know, for instance, which girls besides angie and najuma are li's, so if you allow me, i'll just rate everybody lol

i think i'm just gonna do it alphabetically to make it easier.

angie. hot, cute, great tattoos. she reminds me of the hot girls i wished were li's on the 'choices' app. also i like her pose but she gets a boot for the hair. it's not great, i don't care for it. 9/10

bruno. this might be the biggest meh for me... hate the hair, HATE IT. what happened?? what went wrong? why did they make his face match the size of his neck? the face is not as generic looking, but it's not great either. the outfits are... gutted. oh my god, they're bad! solid 5/10.

cora. SUPER CUTE. i love the buzz cut, the hair color, her face is just absolutely adorable, cute style. she's hopefully an li?? 'cause if she wasn't y'all were robbed. a boot for the star on the hair (i don't really like buzz shapes on hair). 9/10.

dylan. rotted. gutted. beast. down the drain. most generic looking bitch in this entire cast, BUT IN A BAD WAY. weird ass legs for an athlete, awful face, looks like the type who says "you're just a lesbian because you hadn't had good dick". MANSPLAINING KING. HATE THAT FACE specifically, what a waste of torso design. and i HATE that smirk. gross. solid -3/10. i can't stress this enough, I HATE HIS DESIGN SO MUCH. all of it.

hazeem. HOT!!!!! so fucking handsome, hello??? and i know he's not an li and that was a d-i-s-s-e-r-v-i-c-e. mustache could've been trimmed on the sides but i still think he's hella attractive. i don't mind body hair, and his looks actually good. a boot for the mustache but he was gonna be a 11/10, so 10/10.

james. cute, handsome, good body, but he doesn't make my panties twist you know? i think it's because he looks kinda boring. granted i've never seen any scenes featuring him, so i might be wrong, but he just looks like he would recite poetry and talk about books on the first date. i hate that, it's so tedious. but i love guys with long hair, no matter what texture it is and the bun does it for me. 9/10. hate the glasses and the shorts though.

juliet. NO. she reminds me of the mexican actresses that played villains on telenovelas when i was growing up. BIG SORAYA ENERGY, holy shit. love the eyes, but everything else... it's a no from me dog. hate the diaper she's wearing as a bikini bottom. don't like her, she's not cute. 3/10 and i'm being generous. she looks like she would say she's 40 and people would be like "you don't look 40" but lowkey she's supposed to be 40, you know?

kelly. quirky, cute, looks like would be fun to hang out, probably really flirty. the lip bite is the most they've ever done for a character on any of these ads and it looks good. 10/10.

kobi. great body, good face, but those trunks were a disservice. he looks like the type who would mansplain though, there's definitely an energy there. personally i don't think the "i'm a confident and dynamic guy" is attractive at all. some girls get wet by listening to them, i'm yawning, and he gives me that energy. 8/10.

lexi. i don't see what you guys are talking about. she looks fine but she's not out of this world. the body is ten times hotter with someone else's face. she looks like the lip injections went a bit too far. wouldn't give more than a 6/10.

najuma. SEE, NOW WE'RE TALKING. thicccc, gorgeous face, gorgeous body, gorgeous hair, amazing style. those eyes???? MA'AM, SPARE THAT HAND IN MARRIAGE. truthfully the hottest person in the entire cast and i haven't seen the others yet. 12/10.

oliver. YEP, HE DOES IT FOR ME. beautiful face, good body, hate the tattoos, he gets a boot for that, but he seems like the type of guy who talks to you all night and falls asleep on your lap after sharing stories and laughing about nothing. i love the vibe. he also strikes me as the type who can get a little shy. 11/10.

thabi. gorgeous face, cute style, cute hair, cute glasses, lovely energy. i personally think she's the type to like... laugh timidly about things and that's what i like. i just like how bashful and adorable she looks. she really does it for me too. 10/10.

tiffany. um... i don't know... something's off about them. i think it's the head? or the head-to-the-body position? something is definitely off. i do think she's cute though, and the body is a 10/10 for me. she gets a boot for the wonky design but she's gorgeous! 10/10.

tom. very meh. face is generic looking, and he has no lashes??? it's like they said "let's give him a strong jaw to make him look masculine" and it just looks... wrong. hate that hair, it's not the best let's be honest. the body just doesn't go with the face... the design is not designing, there's a disconnection for sure. i don't like it. also, not that it's bad, but he looks like he has a mommy kink, which added 2 points for him lol 5/10.

valentina. see now that's a bombshell! holy shit. great pose, hot. hair on point, face? amazing. love this one but she gets a boot for the tattoo. also, she does look like a dom/top and that energy makes anyone look ten times hotter, and she's already there. 10/10.

will. my-whole-damn-type! oh my god, long hair on guys is a different level. the tattoos though, are such a BOOT. i hate all of them. this is definitely the only character we can all agree it would be a downgrade if he got another tattoo. hair, face, body, it all does it for me. will is gorgeous and it's not even a discussion, but he gets two boots for the tattoos. 10/10. he was supposed to be a 12.

youcef. hate the hair shape, hair color... go back to party city where you belong. hate the outfits, hate the lips, hate the jaw. oh my god, what did they do to this boy?? body? 10/10, but what the fuck is this face??? why does he look so... weird?? he looks in pain when smiling, i- 3/10 and i'm being super generous. you know i am.

and can i talk about something else for a second? WHO THE FUCK DECIDED ON THEIR OUTFITS???

they're horrible! with the exception of will's night outfit, thabi's and najuma's, i don't think there was anybody else's i was into. the clothes are NOT IT.

valentina's dress was a trip to the gyno. girl... you move one inch i can measure your uterus. i also hate angie's... that fabric? so shiny, and in a very bad way. and i hate the sleeves. juliet's... the diaper? the blue dress?? i don't even... i don't... i-

moving on.

cora's blue something is fine but it's not gagworthy. i prefer the neon pieces and i hate neon. she just pulls it off really well and the cut is super cute. i love it.

now...

CAN WE JUST BURN EVERY OUTFIT BRUNO HAS EVER WORN IN THIS SEASON. GIRL, NO. THOSE SHIRTS ARE SO UGLY! just 'cause you're a comedian... dude, tell me the jokes, don't wear them.

youcef's too. what the fuck was that suit??? why are you wearing a bow tie on a vacation? what is... i don't... i- and again, go back to party city where you belong. you look like you borrowed sam winchester's white wig from the last episode of supernatural and gave it a cut yourself. get kobi here, ASAP, it's an emergency.

don't get me started on tom's. it's so corny to wear something that's not... occasion appropriate. that makes the entire outfit misplaced and why the fuck do you have a handkerchief in your pocket? jacket and sneakers, how very ellen degeneres of you. HATE HIS OUTFIT.

dylan can rot in hell. he's the most basic looking motherfucker and i bet he thinks he's the last vibrator on the shelf. BET. white shirt and jeans? GROUNDBREAKING.

kobi's is fine, not much going on but i kinda prefer that over whatever was going on with the others'.

james' i like because it's pink and pink on dark complexion is UNDERRATED. personally i think it took TOO LONG for a dude to wear it. *thinks of rahim and bobby in blush pink*

i just don't think i missed out on much by not playing this season.

the islanders... appearance alone, because i haven't played any episodes, those are my opinions. i remember being so TORN when i first started season 2. gary, rahim, noah and bobby WERE DOING IT FOR ME, you know?

when lucas and henrik came along, same! the only people that didn't cause any stir with me were rocco, jakub, felix and elijah, but the others?? HOLY SHIT. i had to play on different accounts, i just had to.

this art style is not it. what was wrong with s2's?

also, it does look like multiple artists, from different backgrounds, worked on this season's characters and it absolutely shows. some of them look 2d, some 3d. some of them have some bounce to their hair, some look like they're wearing a helmet (*clears throat* YOUCEF AND TOM).

god, they didn't make one effort did they? anyway. those are my scores based off appearance alone.

[vole-mon-amour]

The Quarry was great. The ending felt abrupt and rushed, but overall, it was nice. Spoilers ahead.

I’m sad we couldn’t save Silas without ending everyone else, but then again, it seems like the Hag has no remorse over Silas killing those kids, so kinda earned? I mean, who in their right mind would cage their son and show to other people for money? 

Laura and Max <3 She’s a determined badass that went through hell for her boyfriend, he’s a genuine kid that loves her. Het couples that I like are rare, but those are it. I’m sad there wasn’t much of Max (but the crop top! :D Genius.)

Dylan is cute. I liked how he wants to major in quantum physics (?), yet he tried to stay open minded once Laura showed up and told them about the story. I wonder how different he would’ve been with Ryan in his usual life

Nick is cute, too, but kissing Emma back like that was... huh?

Ryan is very, VERY flat. I liked him at first and how he tried to stay reasonable, but then it kinda got old. “Mister H this, Mister H that. Those trail cams are probably nothing, everything is fine.” C’mon, Ryan, think! It was very weird how the game pushed Ryan on Laura (she has a boyfriend whom she loves? huh?) after flirting with Dylan for so long. I genuinely thought it was a joke until I saw people complaining about it and going further toward the end. It felt so fake when Dylan and Kaitlyn were discussing it, “I guess we know know his type.” Hello?? You two were kissing? You crushed hard on Ryan & smiled like a happy kid after the kiss, but suddenly you were ok with that? Idk, it was a VERY weird turn. Then forcing Dylan & Kaitlyn together? HUH?! Not to mention Ryan and Kaitlyn, god damn it. F o r c e d. And what’s with censoring Ryan and Dylan’s kiss? I guess the developers want us to be grateful it was available in the first place (ngl, i was afraid it wouldn’t be possible and they’re just queerbaiting us), but still. Either way, they all fell apart & why would you introduce this in the first place?

Emma is a bitch, no doubt about it. Not only because of that kiss (Hey Abi, you should totally go for Nick! Also watch me devouring his face), but when she and Abi were in the basement, she was like, “Go find something to do, some light, do something!” Huh? If you need that, go do that yourself. Abi was determined to stay in the basement until morning without doing anything. Also the vlogging in the middle of... everything. God damn it. Emma is basically gaslight & manipulate type of person. Ew.

Jacob is a big dumb puppy. Annoying in the opposite to Emma’s way. Who breaks the car on purpose to stop the entire group from leaving?!

The Hacketts are assholes & they all deserved to die. Constance and her husband first. Kayle (? C. granddaughter) seemed to have good intentions & if Silas was killed earlier, she would’ve probably deserved to have a better life. Still, who fucking brings kids to a summer camp when all your family is werewolves that can and WILL hurt the children at the first chance? The idea of it itself makes me roll my eyes.

Overall, the werewolves could’ve looked cooler, but that muzzle, and sharp teeth, and long tongue, and red/yellow eyes deserve to exist as one of the versions of werewolves, I think. Reminded me of werewolves in Harry Potter in the first place. Ne recognition of their loved ones or what they’ve done whatsoever.

[pixie-mask]

[1](Hackearney) Pokémon AU pt2  [3]

Slight yet to be made edit: I’m going to go back to the first post and exchange out Laura’s Blissey for either Braviary or Pidgeot

Also was going to make this for the counselors and the Hackett family but I’m just going to do it for the counselors. Unfortunately a lot of their Pokémon don’t have as much rhyme or reasoning

Hacketteers

Max Brinly

Max is sadly running a theme of “cute” Pokémon, I wasn’t really sure to do with him, so I aimed for Pokémon that also made me think of him in a way. I am debating if I want to add a canine related Pokémon to his party.

Munna; With Max doing things in game like hiding him failing to get into Landis and fear of how Laura would react. Munna is known to eat nightmares and I thought that was perfect for him.

Delibird;I love this goofy Pokémon and I wanted to give Max one that refelcted his more silly and kind nature. He feels like someone who would have a Pokémon that is known for carrying around food and the occasional random object.

Raichu; I wanted to give Max an electric Pokémon and then there’s also the fact that Raichu known to get aggressive when holding too much electricity in its body, which I related to Max holding too much in and how he has outbursts in certain selections with Laura

Jacob Custos

Much like in the the game he and Kaitlyn grew up together, with them having taken a lot of their Pokémon adventures together, both of them obtaining their Mega Rings together

Granbull; A big tough looking Pokémon that’s actually timid and scared is just a part of Jacob with the stereotypical frat boy appearance who carries more insecurities than associated with the role

Phanpy; The idea of of Jacob having and playing with an infant Pokémon that can easily knock his ass over is too cute. If he ends up hurt he hides that fact from Phanpy.

Heracross (mega evolution); Caught Heracross while in Kalos on an exchange school program with Kaitlyn. He and Kaitlyn entered a competition and where rewarded with a Mega Ring and he received a Heracronite stone

Passimian; One of the other Pokémon with a strong connection to Jacob and Kaitlyn’s friendship. While on a joint vacation with their families. They made a deal to capture Pokémon the other wanted. She caught Passimian and subsequently traded it to him.

Kaitlyn Ka

The more mature of them as always Kaitlyn is still Jacob’s childhood friend and was his only friend for a while. She actually pulled him along into the exchange school program for Kalos. She did it to be nice, but their time their is one of her favorite memories.

Leavanny; A somewhat motherly nature in this Pokémon. I paired it with Kaitlyn based on her comments about Nick and Abi being cute together and the fact that this Pokémon creates clothing for small Pokémon that it finds.

Absol (mega evolution); Absol has been with Kaitlyn most of her life having been with the Pokémon since its egg. Absol’s natural nature to warn of oncoming disasters pairs with Kaitlyn’s concern for safety. Absol can sense when more catastrophic choices are about to be made by Jacob others. Absol is normally out of its Pokeball

Drizzile; Skipped over Sobble and ended up catching Drizzile in the wild on her journeys. 

Oranguru; One of the other Pokémon with a strong connection to Kaitlyn and Jacob’s friendship. While on a joint vacation with their families. They made a deal to capture Pokémon the other wanted. He caught Oranguru and subsequently traded it to her.

Dylan Lenivy

Didn’t give Dylan as many good choices for Pokémon as I wish I could have. Struggled with him a bit actually. Due to this he also didn’t receive any actual changes for this verse.

Ditto; Completely inspired by the whole “Dylan-Dylan” conversation

Delcatty; In lieu of “actual” cats I decided to give Dylan a Delcatty which also is an extremely chill Pokémon 

Porygon2; Purely related to the area of Dylan’s area of actual interest. There may be a better non-Legendary Pokémon choice, but this was the best I could do.

Ryan Erzahler

In this AU Ryan has been a two time champion, he has since shied away from that field though he still gets recognized and talked about once and a while.

Whismur; a recent addition to Ryan’s team. He came upon the injured Pokémon one day and decided to nurse it back to health. He was originally going to let the Pokémon be on its way, but Whismur became attached and Ryan didn’t have it in him to send the Pokémon away.

Kecleon (shiny); Not much to say really, Ryan captured this Pokémon on his second run towards being a champion.  

Lucario; Ryan’s starter that has been with him through thick and then. Many times when Ryan wanders off to do his own thing he lets Lucario out to just hang out with him.

Silvally; I thought Ryan needed a legendary and this was the best option I could think of. I just enjoyed that data that Silvally’s power is awakened by the trust it has in its trainer.

Abigail Blyg

A bit more open into this AU and making herself slowly known as an artist. She ends up on the contest scene a lot drawing and painting portraits for contestants and winners.

Smeargle; A typical choice I know but I couldn’t shake the thought of the art Pokémon being separate from Abi. Stereotypical, but I couldn’t help it.

Togekiss; A Pokémon known for avoiding strife, bringing gifts of kindness and seeking to settle itself in peaceful areas. It was a Togetic for the longest time. When she obtained a shiny stone Abi went a long back and forth on wheatear to use it or not. Togetic made the decision for her.

Wigglytuff; Recieved Wigglytuff when she traded a Mr. Mime with a family member. Wigglytuff is very protective of Abi making it troublesome when it’s out of its Pokeball. Wigglytuff has a bit of an attitude problem and getting it back in its ball can be difficult.

Nick Furcillo

I don’t even know. I have no idea what to do with Nick so I based his Pokémon on the two things I remember.

Roserade; Inspirited by his werewolf transformation. Roserade can attract prey (not referring to Abi as prey) and then attacks with poisonous thorn whips. Seriously I don’t think ill of Nick so don’t take this as me viewing him as secretly abusive or anything.

Swinub; Based on the boar incident. Again I don’t remember much for Nick and honestly I need to go back and re-learn everyone.

Emma Mountebank

Emma is still a vlogger in this AU and her Pokémon are featured in her videos. Much like Abi she’s on the rise as a popular sites at event. Emma frequenting contests and other events.

Hatterene (shiny); Despite her underlying issues Emma’s relatively chill nature makes Hatterene able to be chill with her in return. Despite what its natural nature Hatterene will comfort Emma in its own, albeit slightly rough manner. She’s also rather hostile towards Jacob, said hostility increases depending on how Emma is reacting. Emma has Hatterene frequently to always out, her particular Pokeball is also worn on Emma’s person.

Milotic; inspired by Emma not wanting to see anyone be unhappy. Milotic is able to calm  hostile emotions.

Ariados; I like the sleek image of Ariados which goes along with the look of the former Pokémon, but I gave her this Pokémon because of Jacob. That’s why I chose the Pokémon but she had it prior to meeting Jacob.

And that’s it for the counselors. I wish some of my choices were better, but I’m happy with quite a few of them. Nick is the most frustrating. 

Also I don’t know how this AU will go, but if the camp is present, it has many of the same activities, but has a few additions such as; berry mixing lessons, small Pokémon tournaments and Pokémon centered hikes for watching, campers are also allowed to catch Pokémon they see while at camp.

[cenestpasaudrey]

Review: Teen Wolf

I started watching Teen Wolf two Saturdays ago (May 29th?? I think) because I was bored out of my mind and I wanted something entertaining and light that I could listen to while I work on my work files. I was actually thinking of just playing The Vampire Diaries in the background since I've already watched it a couple of times but it was gone on Netflix. Then I checked out the recommended list of similar stuff and then I found Teen Wolf; so I was like, hey, why not.

Luckily (but not surprisingly), I liked it. Also, I found out that I finished the series during its actual 10th year anniversary which is dope. If I was watching it during its actual run, I think I would have been a little obsessed with it.

Few episodes in, I swear I really was like "Stiles is such a great friend! I want him as my friend." a couple of times. He's one of my favorites and I liked watching him so much that during the time when Void Stiles happen, I could totally feel how dark the episodes were. He's like one of the sources of comedy in the entire series and I felt that that was taken away too. Regretfully, he was missing during most of season 6 and to be honest if I was watching this during the actual run, it would've affected me. Deeply. The episodes that made me cry was when they were trying to remember his character because he was erased (6x8 & 6x9).

My second favorite character was Malia Tate. She's just so candid and frank. She has no filter which made her actions and suggestions either funny or ridiculously rude and yet, she didn't care. She had her own agendas and issues to deal with but her loyalty to the pack was always there. I loved her highlighter scenes and you could tell that she really was like Stiles in a way. When Dylan O' Brien was not present, she brought a lot of the comedic essence in the show.

My third favorite was Danny Mahealani because he was just so loyal to Jackson and at the same time, was a funny and kind character to others. He's a nonjudgmental character to the point that he knew his friends had supernatural powers and he didn't do anything about it. He just went by as if everything was normal and treat them exactly the same. Too bad he had to leave after season 3.

I think one of the things that separate Teen Wolf from the other supernatural series/show/movies that I've watched is that they've dealt with money problems. Like sure, Scott McCall was really powerful because he was the "True Alpha" but he had real life problems as well which couldn't be solved with him being a werewolf. Despite all the adventures that both him and Stiles had surpassed, there were still some issues that they can't get away from like hospital bills, rent and other stuff money-wise.

I agree that the ending is quite open-ended and there are still stories to tell about the characters. (Step-brother for Scott, maybe? Haha.) But I probably have a different reason why I want another season/movie/whatever. I wanted an extension because I wanted to see to it that that SOB Tamora Monroe got what she deserved. Haha. I hate her! Possibly because she was a guidance counselor who disguises herself as a concerned person but is really a big hypocrite trash that every word she let out is total BS. Like, she hated the sheriff for covering up the real identities of the people saving their small city but Gerard Argent hiding some things from her was fine. Girrrrl.🤨

Lastly, for the ships, I started to ship Malia with Scott when he was able to make her transform into a human after being a coyote/werecoyote for 8 years. I was like this is totally a meet cute. I mean, with all due respect from Stalia (I like them too but I really was going for Stydia because I think they were totally endgame), I thought that they could be together and that would be awesome and they did! I was like... "Finally! A show that pulled through!!! A good slow burn romantic relationship with no one dying on their wedding day, no one had to sacrifice his/her life to save a family member and no one had to be a gossip monger website administrator irl."😤

Okay, gun to the head, I ship Scalia but I ship Shelley Hennig and Tyler Posey more--not in an obsessive way, of course. Just in a "if-they-would-be-together-that-would-be-nice" way.

Anyway that's it. Photos ctto.

Rating: 4/5🌟

[kissinginkitchens]

You Bring Me Home—Chapter Ten: When it Rains

a/n: hi besties!! This one is... tough I’m ngl to y’all. It is the second to the last chapter which is so wild to think about, but alas all good things must come to an end. Hopefully you don’t hate me too much by the end of it but feel free to vent in my inbox :))) much love, Mel <3

Pairing: Hawai’i!Harry x Original Character (Halani <3)

Warnings: swearing, some suggestive humor, ANGST (!!)

Word Count: 7.4 k

catch up on parts one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, and nine

“Is that my shirt?”

“No,”

Alani squints at the cartoon bee printed on Harry’s white t-shirt and crosses her arms in disbelief. 

“Yes it is! I’ve been looking for it everywhere,”

“Don’t worry, you can have it back soon,” he admits, crawling back into his bed with an apologetic kiss to her pouting lips. “Doesn’t smell like you anymore,”

“Thief,”

Harry scoffs and props himself up on an elbow. “Don’t act like my Spice World jumper isn’t hanging at the foot of your bed right now,”

“You left it there,” Alani defends. “I was merely being kind and looking after said hoodie because it was abandoned by its owner,”

“Oh yeah and you’ve fought real hard to reunite us,”

“Can we get back to the main issue at hand? Which is that I’m kinda pissed off that you look better in that shirt than I do.”

Harry chuckles to himself and presses an affectionate kiss to her temple. “You’re too kind.”

Alani rests her cheek against his chest and listens to the rain pattering harshly against the window, admiring the flashes of lightning that illuminate the dimly lit room. Harry had convinced her to stay the night, worried about her driving home alone in the storm, and he was met with very little resistance. Secretly, he thanks the rain gods for allowing him another night to hold her close. 

********

“H, you gotta tell her,” Jeff had warned the previous night. “I already pushed the flight back a week—”

“I know,” Harry huffed. “I just need a little more time.”

Jeff sighed, rubbing his tired eyes with the heels of his hands. “You have until this weekend when we go away with the girls. One week in Maui, and then it’s back home. I’m sorry.”

********

Harry’s stomach turns remembering the conversation, but he decides to push all the nagging thoughts to the back of his mind and focus on the present. 

“You all packed?” he asks, trailing his fingers up and down her arm. 

Alani drapes her leg over his hip and nods. “Been packed since last week.”

She had been ecstatic the day after Mila and Chad’s wedding when Harry invited her to tag along on the couple’s trip with Jeff, Tom, and their significant others. His eagerness to include her in his friend group was not only reassuring, but exciting. It felt like their lives were coming together, even more so after she had introduced him to her parents. They, of course, had adored him and quickly given their seal of approval. While Alani knew that it was ultimately her choice, it still felt good to have support from the most important people in her life, and she hoped to win his friends over just as easily. Harry, on the other hand, had no doubts that she would fit right into his chosen family. Her name had been cautiously dropped during a weekly FaceTime call with his mother and sister, and he was overjoyed when they enthusiastically grilled him for details. 

What Harry was less sure of, however, was how Alani would react upon hearing that his vacation was up and that he would be headed back to L.A. in a week’s time. It was still early in their relationship and an indeterminate break seemed less than ideal. He had tried to convince both Jeff and the label that he could finish the album in Hawaii, but the same couldn’t be said for Jeff Bhasker, Mitch, Tom, and his new bassist, Adam, who all had families waiting for them back on the mainland. It was too risky personally and financially, so Harry reluctantly negotiated one last week to persuade Alani that a long-distance relationship wouldn’t be a death sentence. 

“What d’you wanna watch?” he asks, sitting up against the headboard to turn on the T.V. 

Alani sighs and settles deeper into his side. “When Harry Met Sally,”

“But it’s not Christmas or New Year’s,”

“So?”

“So,” Harry explains. “We have to wait ‘til the holidays, wouldn’t be right otherwise,”

Alani scoffs and peers up at him with a judgemental look. “So I guess Serendipity is also out of the question?”

“We’ll have all Christmas to get through that list, darlin’,”

Her stomach flips at his suggestion of their future holiday plans. Privately, she had wondered about such things, as well, including what gifts she might get him or where they would spend the holidays. Though still months away, it suddenly felt within reach. 

“Fine,” Alani softens. “The Notebook,”

“And let you drool over what’s-his-face?” Harry pokes. “No fuckin’ way,”

Alani pinches his side and sits up. “Would you stop being insecure about that? I’ve already told you I was just kidding that time,”

“Yeah well, it still stings,”

“Why don’t you tell me your celebrity crush? You know, so I can be totally fine about it because it doesn’t mean anything,”

Harry shrugs, the corners of his lips turning into a playful smirk. “Don’t have one,”

“Liar,”

“M’serious,”

“Why, because you’ve already dated them?”

“Hey,” Harry pouts. “That was a bit snippy,”

Alani’s muscles tighten. She hadn’t realized that his dating history was a sore spot, but she takes a deep breath and plants a sweet kiss to his jaw as an offering of peace. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean it like that,”

“S’alright. Truce?”

“Deal,”

“Jennifer Aniston,”

“Huh?”

“My celebrity crush,” Harry explains shyly. “When I was younger,”

Alani giggles lightly. “I see. Good taste, she’s hot,”

“Don’t tell me you’re gonna leave me for her too,”

“I just might,”

“Can’t say that I blame you,”

“Look I know this is a cute little bit we do,” Alani sits up, her gaze dead-set on Harry’s to communicate the seriousness behind her words. “But I just want you to know that I feel so lucky to be with you. I’m not going anywhere any time soon,”

Harry swallows harshly. It was everything he’d ever wanted to hear and it kills him that he can’t return the sentiment with full honesty. A little less than a week is all he has to prove that even though he physically has to go, his heart will remain wherever Alani is. “Me either,”

Another round of thunder booms outside and the lights fizzle out, leaving the room completely dark save for the intermittent flashes of lightning that gently illuminate the room. 

“So much for watching a movie, huh?” Alani sighs. 

“I think I know some other ways we can keep ourselves entertained.”

********

Harry sets a steaming cup of tea down onto the table in front of Alani and she looks up from her tube of nail polish curiously. Harry flashes a dimpled grin in her direction and whistles a familiar tune, one that she had heard in the studio when he was busy doing his Bob Dylan impression. 

“What’re you singing?”

“Hm?”

“The song,” she clarifies. “You were singing it the other day, what is it?”

Harry serves her plate of hash browns and shrugs. “Dunno, just a little tune ‘ve been workin’ on,”

“It’s nice,”

“Thanks, sweets,” he offers, setting her food down and pressing a kiss to the top of her head. 

“Hey Alani,” Jeff interrupts, stepping into the kitchen with his cellphone pressed to his shoulder.

“Glenne wants to know if you’re okay with her setting up a spa thing for you guys,”

"Yeah, definitely,” Alani perks up. 

“Cool, thanks.”

“Look at you,” Harry teases, taking a bite of his toast coated in strawberry jam. “Minglin’ with the girls,”

“They’re not even here yet,” 

He scans over her appearance and his brows furrow, hit with the sudden realization that she’s dressed in formal attire. 

“What’s with the fancy outfit”

“I have a meeting, remember?”

“With?”

Alani blows on her freshly painted nails and holds up her other hand for Harry to do the same. 

“My senior advisor. We’re going over my research project,”

Harry’s brows raise. “Smarty-pants,”

Alani had scheduled her meeting with Dr. Hudson months ago and had, truthfully, forgotten all about it until she had received a courtesy email the day prior. She had been working on her proposal in the spare minutes she had away from Harry, which were few and far between, but she knew the initial meeting would be much more casual. Alani checks the time on her phone and stands quickly when she realizes that she is supposed to meet Dr. Hudson in  less than thirty-minutes. 

“Gotta go,” she offers, shoveling potatoes into her mouth and grabbing her bag. 

Harry ceases blowing on her nails and kisses the back of her hand before sticking out his lips for a kiss of his own. “Good luck, darlin’. Meet me at the studio after?”

“Sure thing, sunshine. See you later.”

********

“How did the Joni Mitchell piece go? You never told me,” Dr. Hudson questions, taking a sip of her coffee. 

Alani offers a shy smile and toys with the hem of her skirt. “A flop,”

“Just one more closer to the winner,”

“Yeah,” Alani sighs, stirring her smoothie. “Maybe it’s time to move on from that,”

The professor shoots her a disapproving look and sets her drink down. “Alani—”

“I just think maybe there’s more realistic—”

“You are not giving up,” Dr. Hudson reassures her. “You’ve come too far and you’re a terrific writer. One of the best I’ve ever had the pleasure of teaching. These things take time,”

Alani nods gently, her lips pursed in a tight smile. “Thank you, that really means a lot,”

“What are you working on right now?”

Absolutely nothing, Alani thinks, but then she remembers the half-written article about Harry sitting in her files. 

“A short piece about… a local musician,”

Dr. Hudson’s brows raise, intrigued, and she nods. “That sounds interesting. Definitely more personal,”

You have no idea. “Thanks. I mean, it’s not really anything—”

“I’d love to read it when you’re finished,” the professor continues. “What’s the scope?”

Alani thinks, trying not to give too much incriminating detail about her subject or their relationship. 

“Well,” she starts, hesitant. “He’s writing new music and working on his first album. I guess I kind of want to follow his journey and redefinition of success in the music industry,”

Dr. Hudson hums. “I love it. Send me a draft.”

Alani swallows and takes a minute to consider the offer. Surely there couldn’t be anything wrong about sharing her work privately with her advisor. She had been so excited about the potential of the article when it was first started, but it had since been neglected like so many of her other rejected pieces. Starting again seemed exciting, and she knew that Harry would be pleased to play such an important role in making her dreams come true. That had, after all, been the initial terms of their agreement. 

“Okay,” Alani accepts. “I will.”

********

Harry draws out the last note and Mitch lets the chord ring between them for a moment. 

“I think that’s the one,”

“Yeah, I liked that progression better,”

“Hope you got that, Bhasker,” Mitch calls to Jeff in the sound booth, who gives a thumbs up in response. 

Harry continues humming, his head still bobbing to the tune, when he hears the studio door creak unpleasantly. His eyes shoot up to find Alani wincing and timidly stepping into the room. 

“Sorry, didn’t mean to interrupt,”

He softens and beckons her over. “Never an interruption, sweets,”

Alani slots herself between his legs and wraps her arms around his neck, giving a gentle peck to the tip of his nose before pressing their lips together.

“How’s the weather?”

“Just got a lot sunnier,”

“Meeting go well?”

She nods and twists a lock of his chestnut hair between her fingers. “Yeah, actually,”

“Then we should celebrate!” Harry perks up, peppering a kiss to her cheek. “Dinner, wine, movie, the whole shebang,”

Alani frowns, thinking back to the article she promised Dr. Hudson. “Hmmm, raincheck?”

Her boyfriend deflates. “You’re ditching me?”

“Just for one night,” she explains, pulling him closer. “I wanna finish up some school stuff before our trip. Otherwise I won’t be able to give you my full attention,”

Harry pouts, but he nods understandingly. “‘Kay,”

“I’m sorry, sunshine. I’ll miss you tons,”

“Ditto, sweets,”

Alani presses her forehead against his and her fingertips wander through the growing curls at the nape of his neck. “Please don’t be upset,”

Harry smiles warmly and smoothes his hands up and down her back. “Never, m’love. Could never be upset with you,”

“Promise?”

“Promise,” he nods, planting a sweet kiss to her lips. “Hey, I wanna play you somethin’,” 

Alani grins and pulls back a bit to read his expression. “Let’s hear it,”

Harry grabs the guitar next to him and slings it over his shoulder before adjusting the capo. The song starts sweet and gentle, his voice light to match the tune. 

And oh we started 

Two hearts in one home 

It’s hard when we argue 

We’re both stubborn I know, but oh

Sweet creature, sweet creature

Wherever I go, you bring me home 

Sweet creature, sweet creature

When I run out of road, you bring me home 

Alani watches in awe as he pours so much emotion behind every word, his vocals effortlessly powerful and rich. She claps when the song finishes and leans in for a kiss. 

“I love it,”

“S’not finished yet,” Harry shrugs, still fiddling with the strings. “Just the chorus right now,”

“Will you teach it to me?”

His brows raise in surprise. “You play?”

“No,” Alani admits. “But I have a feeling you’re a good teacher,”

“Well, let’s see what you got,”

Alani turns and Harry props the guitar in her lap, his arms wrapping around her as he guides her into the right position. His left hand demonstrates the beginning chord and she replaces his fingers on the fretboard to try for herself. She strums and the beginning note resonates in near-perfect pitch. 

“Hey,” Harry beams. “You’re a regular Hendrix,”

He continues positioning her fingers over the right spaces and letting her strum, humming the lyrics softly into the shell of her ear. 

“We don’t argue that much,” Alani defends playfully. 

Harry chuckles and kisses her temple. “Maybe not, but we’re really good at makin’ up.”

“Easy, Styles.”

********

Harry: Hungry?

Alani peels her eyes away from the computer screen and reads the message lighting up her phone. 

Alani: Not really

Harry: …

Harry: oh 

She laughs and pads over to the window. Sure enough, Harry holds up two bags and flashes a cheesy grin down below. 

“Need a study break?”

“I’ll meet you at the door.”

Harry makes himself comfortable in the middle of her bed and unpacks the bags. 

“I’ve got a California and a spicy tuna for my favorite girl,” he announces. “With a side of eel sauce,”

“And the world's best boyfriend goes to Mr. Harry Styles,” Alani grins, taking a seat next to him. 

He smirks and pulls out his own order of miso soup and sushi. “How’s the homework comin’ along?”

“Not too shabby,”

“Glad to hear it,”

“Hey, what time do I meet you at the airport tomorrow?” she asks, dipping her roll in the sauce. 

Harry freezes and turns to her with confusion written all over his face. “I’m sorry, did my girlfriend just insinuate that we’re not leaving for the airport together?”

“I really need to finish this,” Alani explains. “It’s almost there,” 

“Two nights?” he complains. 

Alani nudges him with her shoulder and shakes her head. “We’re gonna be spending an entire week together, non-stop. You’re gonna get sick of me,”

“Never,” Harry rebuts. “Not possible,”

“Just one more night,” Alani bargains. “Then I’m all yours, no interruptions.”

He nods and takes a sip of his soup. “Alright, deal.”

You have to tell her, Jeff’s voice rings in his mind. 

********

The airline stewardess ushers Harry and Alani to their seats while Scott and Miles settle down a few rows behind. She didn’t know exactly what to expect from first-class, but suddenly the perks of having a famous boyfriend increased tenfold by the sight of their luxurious accommodations.

“Wait, what are you doing?” Alani asks while Harry hovers over his chair. 

“Sitting, or I was about to,”

“And you’re not even gonna offer rock-paper-scissors for the window seat?”

Harry shakes his head with an amused chuckle. “No because I already know that you’re gonna get up to pee every five minutes,”

“Not true,”

“It is too true and it’s exactly why we can’t cuddle while we fall asleep,”

“Or maybe the reason is because I’m claustrophobic and I just don’t wanna hurt your feelings,”

Harry frowns. “Really?”

“No,” Alani admits, taking the aisle seat. “I just said that so you’d give me the window,”

“Get up, we’re switching,”

“Thank you, sunshine! You’re the best,”

Harry slumps into his new chair and crosses his arms. “Forty-five minutes and we’re already fighting like an old married couple,”

“Oh really?” Alani smirks. “Is that what old married couples argue about? Who gets the window seat?”

“And leaving the toilet seat up, going antique shopping—” 

“—What old married couples have you been hanging out with—?”

“—Picking up the kids from school,”

Alani presses a kiss to his shoulder and rests her head in the crook of his neck. Her eyelids are still heavy from staying up the night before, but her article was completely finished and sent off to Dr. Hudson just like she’d promised. Now, she could enjoy her vacation free of any worry or obligation, completely focused on the perfect boy still rambling next to her. 

“But, obviously I mean that doesn’t count, right?” Harry asks, craning his neck and smiling softly when he sees that his girlfriend has already dozed off. He kisses the top of her head gently and lets his own eyes flutter close with a deep, contented breath. 

********

“And then I’ll have to repaint it, but I haven’t decided on a color yet,” Glenne explains to Alani as they stroll through the airport. 

Alani hums. “It was your grandmother’s?” 

“Well, it was somebody’s grandmother’s. We picked it up at this little antique shop in Santa Monica.”

Jeff escorts Glenne into the shuttle car while Harry and Alani share a knowing look and stifle their laughter. They shuffle into the back seats as Tom and his wife, Jenny, claim the middle row. 

“So you’re a journalist?” Jenny asks, turning in her seat eagerly to face Alani. 

“Not quite,” she explains with a polite smile. “Still a student, but hopefully someday,”

Jenny nods and twirls the ring around her finger. “Sounds exciting. Maybe you can hitch a ride on tour with this one and do some writing there.”

“Yeah,” Alani smiles, settling further into Harry’s side. “Maybe.”

The idea of traveling the world with Harry and being a part of the excitement of touring the album was something she had considered briefly, but hadn’t allowed herself to fully indulge until this moment. It was already thrilling to see him polish the songs he had begun during his trip, but she could only imagine how much more special it would be to see him perform them for the rest of the world. A twinge of jealousy sparks at the thought of having to share any part of him with the public, but Alani knows that his gifts are much too special to keep all for herself. Harry was golden and he deserved to shine in all of his radiant glory. That was exactly what she had penned in her article, and she said it not because he was her boyfriend and there were clear personal investments, but because she knew it was true even before he had shown any romantic interest in her. 

“What’s tour like?” Alani pipes up as Harry watches the landscape out his window. 

He considers it for a moment and clears his throat. “Fun, mostly. Can be tiring,”

“Lots of partying and adoring fans?”

“No,” he chuckles to himself. “Not so much the partying. Enthusiastic fans, sure,”

Alani narrows her eyes. “No partying?”

“Nope,” Harry reiterates. “Don’t really like to do all that stuff when I’m working. Also just didn’t wanna…”

He trails off and Alani waits a beat to see if he’ll continue. “Didn’t wanna?”

“Fuck it up,” he finishes. “You know, like, be the one who ruined a good thing for a little bit of fun.”

She lets his words settle in, rubbing a reassuring circle on the back of his hand. “Makes sense. Sounds really responsible of you to do that.”

Harry presses a soft kiss to her temple and resumes his study of the scenery. They chat amongst their friends for the remainder of the drive and Alani immediately presses Glenne and Jenny for information about her boyfriend in his younger years. They indulge her inquiries and ask their own questions, deciding privately after a few minutes that her and Harry are a good fit. 

When the group arrives at the resort, Glenne takes charge and instructs them all to meet at the lobby for lunch in twenty minutes. They collect their keys and head up to their respective rooms, which are all located on the very top floor. 

“What a view,” Alani muses as she takes in the sight from their private balcony. 

Harry admires the wonder on her face and nods, his eyes not leaving her side profile. “You’re tellin’ me,”

“Let’s never go home,” she poses, arms snaking around his torso. “Let’s stay here forever, just me and you,”

His throat tightens as he thinks back to the inevitable conversation waiting for them. Harry didn’t know why it was so hard to think about leaving because he had every intention of keeping touch and making their relationship work at all costs. But there was a part of him, a very tiny recess in the back of his mind, that feared the possibility of Alani not feeling the same. 

“Yeah,” he agrees with a gentle kiss to the tip of her nose. “Whatever you want, sweets,”

Alani senses a shift in his demeanor, but she can’t read it. “You okay?”

“Never better,” Harry swallows, mustering up a small smile. “But I am hungry,”

She isn’t entirely convinced that there isn’t something bothering him, but she decides not to push it and tightens her grip around his waist, instead. 

“Race you to the lobby.”

“You’re on.”

********

“You’ve never seen Finding Nemo?”

“Was I s’posed to?”

“My god,” Alani marvels. “You know, I’m starting to believe those rumors that you were grown in a lab,”

Harry’s brow raises and he blinks. “That I was what?”

The restaurant that Glenne and Jeff chose features an aquarium tunnel at the entrance, much to both Harry and Alani’s excitement. Fish, large and small, swim around them and the pair take turns pointing out their favorite colorful species. The Hull’s snap photos for their four year-old daughter, but Jenny also secretly captures one of Harry and Alani with their hands clasped under the mesmerizing blue lighting as a keepsake for her friend. 

“Add Finding Nemo to our movie list,” Alani says, admiring a clownfish that swims close to the glass. 

“S’it  gonna make me cry?”

“Probably,”

“Goddamnit,” 

Alani giggles softly and turns her head away from the glass to silently observe Harry under the lighting of the rippling water. The combination of his serene features and the sound of Billie Holiday’s I’ll Be Seeing You over the sound system creates a perfect image in her mind, one that makes her afraid to blink, lest it be gone forever. Harry glances over at her through the corner of his eye and his lips curl. 

“Checkin’ me out?”

“Always,”

“Like whatcha see?”

“Love it.”

His heart nearly stops at her words, but before he has a chance to process their implication, the hostess calls on their group. 

“And I’ll have the piña colada,” Harry orders once they're seated. 

“Oh my god, H,” Glenne laughs from across the table. “That reminds me, remember your birthday last year when James got trashed and hoarded the karaoke machine for, like, two hours?”

“Ruined that song forever,” Jeff quips, reliving the memory of the Late-Late host drunkenly serenading the entire party with the same song on repeat. 

Harry cringes, pinching the bridge of his nose. “I try not to,”

Alani watches as they reminisce on the event, adding their own details and pieces to the puzzle. It’s amusing to watch, but a small part of her also has to fight the pang of exclusion settling into the pit of her stomach. She feels guilty for being affected by it knowing, logically, that it isn’t intentional or malicious in any way. Still, Alani is painfully reminded of the vast differences between their worlds. Harry had gotten to know practically every part of her life, including her family, but there was still so much that she didn’t know about his. It was something she worked hard not to dwell on, given the novelty of their relationship, but she also worried that fear and insecurity would prevent her from investing what little of her heart Harry hadn’t claimed yet. 

“Who was it that started dancing on a table and almost broke a chandelier?” Tom asks, wracking his brain. 

“I think it was Ken—” Jeff hesitates, clearing his throat. “Actually, I don’t remember,”

Harry shifts in his seat beside Alani and reads over the menu, quickly changing the subject. “What’re you gonna get?”

“I don’t know,” Alani admits. “Everything looks so good,”

“Oh look,” Jenny pipes up across from Harry. “They’ve got your fav, the mango sorbet. I wonder if it’s as good as the one in Italy,”

Harry beams and reads over the item. “Oh yeah, that was amazin’,” 

Alani files the detail to the back of her mind. She hadn’t known mango was his favorite flavor of anything, and while it was a trivial detail, she realized that there were so still many little details about him that she wanted to know. Harry had made such an effort to remember everything about her, like her go-to sushi order and the fact that she always saved the kiwis for last in her fruit salad, so it made her feel a touch guilty that she hadn’t made the same effort. 

“Wanna share the coconut shrimp?” Alani asks with a gentle nudge to his shoulder. 

“Oh, uh—”

“He’s allergic,” Glenne says offhandedly, not cold or condescending, but more in the same way that an older sister would. 

“Oh my god,” Alani’s eyes widen. “I’m so sorry,”

Harry laughs lightly and shrugs. “S’okay, I’d let you poison me,”

“I didn’t mean to be rude,” Glenne apologizes, reaching her hand out to Alani. “I thought you knew.”

Alani accepts the hand and waves away her concern. “No, don’t worry about it. I didn’t know, actually.”

“We can stop talking about my defects now,” Harry teases. “‘M not dyin’,”

He leans in closer to Alani and presses a kiss to her temple. “But if I was, it’d be an honor to have my last meal with you.”

She responds with a soft smile before returning her attention back to the menu. His sentiments, however sweet, unfortunately did very little to soothe the embarrassment of her mini faux pas. It was irrational, Alani knew this, but it made her wonder what else she didn’t know and what bigger secrets he was potentially keeping. Whose name had Jeff meant to say earlier to identify the mystery dancer at Harry’s party, and why had it created an awkward shift in the air? She decides not to let the spiraling questions spoil her fun and takes a generous sip of her cocktail to avoid them for the time being. 

********

Harry sets the room key on the nightstand next to their king sized bed and lets himself sink down into the soft mattress. The group had spent the entire day sightseeing, from botanical gardens to scenic beaches, but he was really itching for some quality time alone with Alani. Lately, their time together had been cut frustratingly short by work, school, and life in general. Even when they were seated right next to each other with arms linked or fingers interlocked, she felt far away and he didn’t know why. He hoped that this trip would allow them time to reconnect and solidify their relationship before he had to return to California. 

“Mini bar,” Alani comments, kicking her shoes off and wandering over to the small refrigerator in their suite. “Who’s paying again?”

“The label,”

“Thank you Columbia Records,”

She swipes a few bottles of tequila before climbing into the bed next to Harry. 

“Wanna play a game?”

Harry props himself up on his elbow and nods. “What kinda game?”

“Never have I ever,” Alani explains. “But instead of putting your finger down, you take a shot,”

“Sounds dangerous,”

“It’ll be fun. You can go first if you want,”

He hums and nods in agreement before sitting up to face her. “‘Kay. Never have I ever...named my car after a musician,”

“Cheap shot,” Alani narrows her eyes, taking a sip from the bottle of Jose Cuervo. 

“Your turn,”

She fiddles with the bottle cap, a question already in mind, though she isn’t sure if she should ask it. 

“Never have I ever… dated a model,”

Harry’s brow furrows, but he opens his own bottle slowly and takes a sip. “So it’s that kind of never have I ever,”

“Just trying to keep it interesting,” Alani shrugs innocently. 

“Right. Never have I ever slept with a guy named David,”

Her eyes widen, but she laughs half-heartedly and takes a sip. “Jeez, okay. Never have I ever—”

“Wait, so you two actually…” Harry interrupts, trailing off at the end. 

“I mean,” Alani starts, her eyes wandering to the ceiling. “Yeah, a long time ago,”

“How long ago?”

“Okay, maybe this was a mistake—”

Harry shakes his head. “No, I’m sorry. I’ll play nice,”

“Alright,” Alani accepts. She knows that she should probably steer the game back onto safer territory, but the wound has been re-opened and she can’t resist the urge to keep picking at it. “Never have I ever slept with a fan,”

Harry takes a slow sip. “Never have I ever cheated on my partner,”

The bottle stays put in Alani’s hand. “Never had I ever gone on a vacation with my partner before this trip,”

The tequila washes over his tongue bitterly like the faint memories that it symbolizes. “Never have I ever dated someone just for the publicity,”

The bottle in Alani’s hand doesn’t move, much to Harry’s relief, but her mind is not as tranquil. 

“Never have I ever told someone I loved them when I didn’t,” she says slowly.  

Harry takes another shot and it burns all the way down. “Why are we doin’ this?”

“I don’t know, but I don’t wanna play anymore,”

“Alani,” he starts, springing to his feet when she leaves the bed. “Hey, look at me, please,”

She blinks back the tears that threaten to spill over her lower lashes before turning to him. “I’m sorry, that was a stupid game,”

“S’just all out of context,” Harry offers, reaching for her hands. “Wasn’t the right way to have all of those conversations,”

Alani takes a deep breath and nods. “Yeah, you’re right,”

“What’s really botherin’ you, hm sweets?” He coos, bringing her cold knuckles to his warm lips. “Tell me, please?”

She releases a shaky breath and tries to sift through the fog in her brain for the right answer.

 “I don’t know, really, I just,” Alani hesitates. “Am I a bad girlfriend?”

“No,” Harry says quickly, his hands lifting to cup her face. “God no, you’re the best,”

“Then why didn’t I know that your favorite ice cream flavor was mango? And why didn’t I know that you were allergic to coconut, and why—”

“Hang on, is that what this is all about?” he questions. “Cause I’ll go eat an entire coconut right now,”

Alani laughs lightly and pinches her eyes shut. “No, it’s not about that. I just feel like you’re the most amazing person I’ve ever met and you make me feel so fucking special and, God, I just wanna be good enough for you because—”

Harry holds his breath and watches as her eyes gloss over. 

“Because I love you,” she finishes, voice small. “More than I ever thought possible,”

His own eyes sting, but he doesn’t fight the tears that fall as he presses his lips to hers firmly. 

“I love you, too,” Harry murmurs. “I love you so fuckin’ much it drives me crazy,”

Alani chuckles softly. “Ditto,”

“I’ve been wanting to say it for ages, can’t believe you beat me to it.”

“Guess you’re not the only one full of surprises.”

********

The early morning sunlight creeps gently into Harry and Alani’s room, casting a soft, golden glow onto the bare skin that peeks through the white duvet. Harry stirs first, a strand of Alani’s hair tickling his nose and making him smile. He prys his heavy eyelids open and winces at the dull aching of his head aggravated by the light. Alani hears his muffled groan and sighs, willing the sun to go back down and let her sleep a few more hours. 

“Mornin’ sweets,” he rasps with a warm kiss to her bare shoulder. 

She peels her own tired eyes open and flashes a sleepy grin. “Good morning, sunshine,”

“How’d you sleep?”

“Super. You?”

Harry props himself up on his elbow and rests his chin in his palm as he admires the traces of sleep still on her face.

“Just swell.”

Alani chuckles lightly and reaches a hand up to comb through his unruly bedhead. His skin is warm to the touch, and the light from the window casts a heavenly glow around his visage. She pokes her finger into his dimple, which elicits a soft laugh and makes his smile grow wider. They stay intertwined under the sheets as the sun fully rises and soak up their own details to keep as souvenirs from this moment. Alani takes in the scent of vanilla and the juxtaposition of Harry’s inked bicep against the plain, white sheets. He stores away the image of her sleepy, mocha eyes and the pink, manicured fingernails that trail up and down his arm. Neither of them are sure exactly how long they remain in this moment, for all they know it could be hours or days. But whatever the duration, it doesn’t seem to be enough. I need more time, Harry had told Jeff, but there was no more left to give. He had to tell her, and it was now or never. 

“Hey,” he begins carefully. “I need to tell you something,”

Alani sits up to be eye level with him and nods. “Anything,”

Harry waits a beat, tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear and pressing his lips to her bare shoulder before letting the confession spill out. 

“I have to go back to L.A.,”

 “I kinda figured,”

He draws in a deep sigh of relief. “You did?”

“Yeah,” Alani shrugs. “Hilo isn’t exactly Hollywood,”

“I asked for more time, but the label—”

“No, I get it. So… when? Next month?”

“Friday,”

Alani’s brows furrow. “This Friday?”

“Yeah,” Harry admits with a gulp. 

“The last day of our trip?”

“Yes,”

Her heart drops into her stomach and she feels sick. It all made sense now why Harry’s mood had shifted when she jokingly asked him not to leave, and why he had been so insistent on spending as much time together as possible this week. Their game of never have I ever turned instantly defensive when asked about his dating history. Never had I ever gone on vacation with my partner before this trip. Never have I ever told someone I loved them when I didn’t. He had whisked her away on a farewell trip and God knows who else had been in her place before, or worse, who would be in it next. Harry was saying good-bye. 

“Wait,” Alani says finally, mind still racing too fast to process. “How long have you known?”

“Alani—”

“How long?”

Harry swallows. “Couple of weeks,”

“You knew for weeks and you didn’t tell me?” she questions incredulously.

“I tried—”

“You know that I hate surprises, you know how I feel about plans—”

“I’m sorry,” Harry insists, sitting up straighter. “I wanted to tell you so many times, but it just never felt right,”

Alani rolls her eyes. “So what, you were just gonna leave a fucking sticky note on my pillow and hope for the best?”

“Don’t say that—”

“Is that why you brought me here?” she asks, voice hoarse. “Is that why you gave me this necklace? A souvenir of our little summer fling so you could leave with a clear conscience?”

Harry’s jaw tightens. “How could you even think that?”

“Because maybe it’s true. Why else would you wait until the very last minute to tell me about this?”

“Maybe we should take a minute,” he suggests, the whites of his eyes now bloodshot. “Before we say something we’ll regret,”

“I think I already did.” Alani admits. Never have I ever told someone I loved them when I didn’t. 

Harry’s head pounds and he feels like he’s drowning, treading water in every direction only to be dragged further into the current. He quickly pulls on his clothes from the night before and tries to steady his breathing. 

“M’gonna go wait in the hall,” he offers. “Give you some space to think and then we’ll talk, yeah?”

Alani doesn’t respond or even meet his pleading eyes. She simply tightens the duvet around her body and turns her head to the window, letting a single, bitter tear roll down her cheek. The door closes softly and she is immediately filled with regret and guilt. Had she truly meant all of the things she said? Or was it fear and the instinct to flee taking over her mouth? Alani wanted to believe that she was wrong and that Harry hadn’t intentionally kept her in the dark, but from where she stood, the sun had long disappeared behind the clouds and all that was left was the storm. 

Harry trudges down the hallway and the walls spin, closing in on him slowly. If he had just told Alani sooner, everything would be different. He had avoided doing so for this exact reason and out of fear that their relationship wouldn’t be worth the risk in her mind. It was selfish—he was selfish—to try to make the decision for her, and now the woman he loved was getting ready to walk away because he had broken her trust. What else was there to do? His back meets the wall and he sinks to the floor. 

“Hey H,” Jeff clears his throat from above. “We should talk,”

“She knows. Didn’t go well,”

“So she did approve the article?” 

Harry lifts his head and his brows furrow. “What?”

There’s a harsh knock at the door and Alani jumps. In Harry’s absence, she had managed to cool off and sift through her frantic thoughts. She had been wrong to think that he used her, all it took was a quick stroll down memory lane to prove otherwise. He had never given her any true reason not to trust him, so there had to be some other reason why he hadn’t told her about his plans to leave so soon. Alani pads over to the door and unlocks it gently. 

“Harry, I’m sor—”

“Wanna talk about surprises?” he seethes. “What the fuck is this?”

She squints at the phone screen that he holds up to her face and the title of her unpublished article stares back at her. 

“I don’t know—”

“Well it has your goddamn name on it,” Harry shoots back. 

Alani steps aside and lets him into the room before she closes the door behind her. “I can explain—”

“Did you write it or not?”

“Yes, but—”

He shuts the phone off and slams it face down onto the night stand. “How fucking dare you call me a liar and then pull this shit behind my back,”

“I didn’t lie,” Alani defends, voice weak. “I had no idea it was going to be published, please just listen—”

“A class project,” he interrupts with his back still turned. “That’s what you said,”

“It was never meant to be released,”

“How do I know that? How do I know you’re not just trying to cover your ass?”

“Please,” Alani begs as her vision begins to blur. “I was wrong, I shouldn’t have said all those things,”

Harry runs a hand through his hair and casts his eyes to the ceiling in an attempt to quell the emotion that pools behind his eyes. 

“So why did you?”

“I was scared,”

“Of?”

Alani takes a deep breath. “Of losing you for good. Of falling in l—”

“Don’t,” he interrupts. “Don’t finish that sentence,”

“I don’t know how,” she tries again. “And I don’t know who released it, but I swear—”

“You really expect me to trust a word you say after you accused me of lying about this whole thing, about us?”

Harry’s  gaze lowers back to hers and the bright, green eyes that she has come to love are replaced with a blood-shot, stormy sea that makes her stomach drop. The words get caught in her throat. 

“I fucked up,” he continues. “I know that I should’ve told you. But I’m having a hard time believing that this wasn’t planned, that this random website would just accidentally publish your work without your consent,”

Alani can’t explain it either, she truly had no idea how her writing had ended up in the wrong hands. There was only one other person she had entrusted it with, but surely Dr. Hudson hadn’t betrayed her, had she? Alani didn’t know who to believe anymore. 

“Harry, I’m so sorry,” she tries. “I didn’t mean what I said, and I know I can’t take it back, but you have to at least believe that I never wanted to hurt you,”

Harry is silent for a moment, and Alani decides that it’s her turn to tell the truth. There was nothing left to lose. 

“At first, I did want to publish it,” she explains. “But I changed my mind and I scrapped the whole thing. In the end, the only person I intended to show it to was you,”

“So how did it get onto the internet for the whole fucking world to see?” he presses. 

Alani sighs. “My advisor wanted to know what I was working on, so I sent it to her, but she never had my permission to publish it. Now I realize how stupid it sounds, but it’s the truth,”

“If you had come to me, I would have given you permission,”

“I’m so sorry,”

Harry’s shoulders tense. Every fiber of his being  wants to believe her, but how could he? She had told him herself that things would be messy and warned him that he didn’t know what he was asking by pursuing a relationship with her. Maybe it really was all his fault for not seeing the signs, but that still didn’t change the fact that he couldn’t trust her anymore. And based on her reaction to the news of his departure, it seemed as though Alani didn’t trust him either. 

“Even if you’re telling the truth,” Harry begins, slow and deliberate. “You still thought, after everything, that I would abandon you. And if that’s the kind of person you think I am, if that’s the person you wrote about—”

“Harry—”

“Then I hope you got all the material you wanted.”

“Please, don’t go.” Alani cries but it’s too late. The door slams and her heart falls. 

After a beat, she races to the door and into the hallway but there’s no sign of Harry. As quickly as he had appeared into her life, he had vanished. Gone without a trace.

[krakenbait]

kraken bait 3.5: this is why we can’t have nice things

me on july 11: yes! the expansion draft is in 10 days, my last kraken bait list is finished, everything is good!

me on july 15: gravy to the devils? ok, ok i dig it! messes up my kraken bait list, but oh well.

me on july 17: why are the gms are having a panic sale and fucking everything up

me on july 18: *looks at the protection lists* well fuck.

welcome back for the actual last kraken bait list! the last several days involved a lot of chaos and now a good chunk of my previous list is defunct. lovely. 

you guys know the drill by now. it’s a mock expansion draft with some actual predictions and a few funny theories, i had help from my buddy corwin (@chaos-hockey) and a few other folks. i’ll try to keep this short today, so there will be minimal commentary for anything that hasn’t changed from the last list.

*sigh* let’s get on with it. list under the cut.

Anaheim Ducks: Haydn Fleury

going by casey’s reaction, anaheim fucked up their protection list and leaving fleury exposed was a surprise and a mistake. guess it makes sense that the next expansion team also has a fleury (even if marc-andre and haydn aren’t related)

Arizona Coyotes: Christian Fischer

same as last time. next!

Boston Bruins: Jeremy Lauzon

see above. next!

Buffalo Sabres: William Borgen

i went with rasmus asplund last time around, but he got protected by the sabres. guess they want to keep all three rasmi (rasmusses?). so let’s go with... this dude, who is a defenseman one of the writers from The Athletic picked.

Calgary Flames: Mark Giordano

the flames picked tanev over giordano, but i had a feeling that might be the case. giordano will be a good veteran presence in seattle, etc. next!

Carolina Hurricanes: Nino Niederreiter

brady skjei, my pick last time around, got protected. kinga is probably happy, but i had to take a different route. i had a few other ideas (jake bean, petr mrazek), but corwin liked nino to seattle, so here we are! here’s hoping i spelled his name right.

Chicago: Nikita Zadorov

i had adam gaudette here last time around, and while he’s still available, i just think zadorov is a more interesting option to take from chicago. i might have said dylan strome if he wasn’t protected (sabs’ dreams are crushed)

Colorado Avalanche: JT Compher

as i mentioned in my intro, ryan graves, my previous pick, got traded to the devils (woohoo!)- savy joe sakic didn’t want to give him up for nothing. it was between compher and joonas donskoi to take gravy’s place, but i went with JT since he’s a little younger and his contract is a little less. donskoi is the better performer though, so honestly it could go either way.

Columbus Blue Jackets: Dean Kukan

boone jenner was protected, so there goes corwin’s idea. sticking with the same pick from last time. next!

Dallas Stars: Jamie Oleksiak

jason dickinson got traded to the canucks instead of being kraken bait, so that pick was toast. i didn’t really know who else could go here, but corwin liked the idea of oleksiak, so that settled it.

Detroit Red Wings: Vladislav Namestnikov

i’m sticking with it. next!

Edmonton Oilers: Tyson Barrie

this pick is maybe a little more likely now than it was last time since barrie wasn’t protected, but the odds aren’t necessarily great. i still enjoy my wishful thinking. next!

Florida Panthers: Chris Driedger

i think this is my slam dunk pick now, considering it seems like driedger’s already been talking to seattle. next!

Los Angeles Kings: Olli Maata

viktor arvidsson got protected (corwin was wrong), so it was back to the drawing board for the kings. i wanted to pick andreas athanasiou here, but i needed another player who wasn’t a 2021 free agent and i wanted the same forwards/defensemen ratio as last round, so i went with maata instead.

Minnesota Wild: Kaapo Kakhonen

matt dumba got protected, so my wild pick was toast. i also had to make up for a lost goalie spot (more on that soon), so i went with the young goalie out of minnesota.

Montreal Canadiens: Philip Danault

the habs protected jake allen after carey price waived his no move clause, so i was tempted to pick price to fill that goalie spot, but i don’t think it’s gonna happen on account of price’s hefty contract. instead, i went with ufa but good performer danault. i heard his name a lot watching the cup finals, so it works, right?

Nashville Predators: Calle Jarnkrok

calle jarn-kraken. it’s happenin’

New Jersey Devils: Andreas Johnsson

i will talk about my resentment and anxiety that nate bastian was exposed another time. in the meantime, i am trying to hypnotize ron francis from across the country into taking mango.

New York Islanders: Jordan Eberle

keeping it the same. next!

New York Rangers: Colin Blackwell

i honestly can’t believe the rangers protected kevin rooney. so i’ll go with my second choice for the pick from the rags, which is definitely seeming likely right now.

Ottawa Senators: Chris Tierney

didn’t change. next!

Philadelphia Flyers: James van Riemsdyk

corwin got their wish and nolan patrick got traded. this pick stayed the same regardless. next!

Pittsburgh Penguins: Zach Aston-Reese

i briefly considered changing it up here, probably for brandon “sees ghosts” tanev, but why complicate things? next!

San Jose Sharks: Ryan Donato

keeping it simple. next!

St Louis Blues: Vince Dunn

i’m running out of snappy ways to say “i didn’t change the pick.” next!

Tampa Bay Lightning: Blake Coleman

no more likely than it was last time, still enjoying my wishful thinking. next!

Toronto Maple Leafs: Travis Dermott

another static pick. next!

Vancouver Canuck: Zack MacEwen

i didn’t have to change this pick, i just felt like it. he has a cute dog, so i think macewen makes decent kraken bait.

Washington Capitals: Vitek Vanecek

second verse, same as the first. next!

Winnipeg Jets: Mason Appleton

kept the apple pie in a mason jar on skates around. won’t say “next!” because that’s it.

and there we go, a somewhat coherent response to all the recent chaos. in summary, it’s 3 goalies, 16 forwards, and 11 defensemen, which is the same ratio as the previous list, and a cap hit of 72.3M, which is actually less than before (it was 76.4M last time).

this is decidedly the last kraken bait list, but i may have some more commentary on the expansion draft on wednesday and an analysis of who, if anyone, i got right. in the meantime, hope you enjoyed!

credits, or thank you to everyone who helped me on the last list and therefore this one: @dantonheinens @summerteukka @doubleminor @jakejuentzel @bigmouthnatebastian @18minutemajor @powerblais @heddy

[the-fiction-witch]

Unicorn P1

REAL LIFE COUPLE: TBS X READER X GZI RATING: SEXY

I smirked as I laid back on the bed gasping for breath my hand in my head as I calmed down best I could staring up at the white ceiling trying to avoid gus sat in his little bed watching us as he usually did, and d Salvador on the windowsill, at least he wasn't watching he didn't give a shit what was going on. "Tommy?" She asks beside me as she too stared up at the ceiling fixing her red lace nightie "Yeah?" I asked her still a little tried out "Do you ever get bored?" ".... What do you mean bored?" "Like, of sex? Together?" "What- what are you getting at here honey?" "Do you ever get bored of us having sex?" "No. I'm thrilled. I'm quite content darling. Why do you ask?" "Just thinking" "I like sex with you, do you... Not like having sex with me?" "I like it" "So... Why are you asking if I'm bored of it?" "I don't know, maybe we could... Spice things up" she encouraged "As in... Handcuffs? Spanking? Sexy lingerie? What angle are we working at here?" "Eh, that's all kinda boring still," she says "Honey. Will you please just... Speak your mind, even if it bad I just wanna know what you're actually thinking about" "I think I want to go unicorn hunting," she says laying her head on my chest "Hu?" I asked a little confused but smiled playing with her curly hair anyways "you can buy it on Amazon?" "Not an actual unicorn Tommy, that's just what it's called" "What what's called?" "Tommy... You remember when we went on holiday in the snow" "I remember it well" "And there was that nice warm hot tub in the snow" she smirked pressing kisses up my chest "And you decided to go in the snow completely naked?" I remind her "Wasn't that fun? And exciting? and sexy?" "It was, I did like hot tub sex" "And do you remember when we were in La and I kept kinda flirting with Chris" "Ummm I remember" I sighed still a little jealous I have to admit. "And you remember when we were in Germany for your show and I kept saying how cute Anya was?" ".... How long have you been thinking about this without telling me?" I asked sitting up "A year or two?" "So... Pretty much as long as we've been dating?' "Kinda, yeah" "Why do you have a weird fascination with making me jealous?" "Your fun when you're jealous" "So potentially you wanna bring someone else into... The sexy time?" "Yeah" she nods "Okay, not Chris. Or your housemate" "Why?" She whines "Because Chris is in La so it wouldn't be fair... And he's more attractive than I am. And not your housemate, he's already seen my dick and it's weird enough" I sighed laying back down "That's fair, and if we rule out everyone more attractive than you Tommy were never gonna find anyone" she laughed laying her head on my stomach "Hey!" "Love ya" she giggled "Love you too" I smiled giving her a kiss.

"Sophie?' she suggested as we sat in my car "Ehh. Not that into Sophie" I shrug "We could call Dylan?" "No. I'm not adding fuel to that Goddam fire of someone finds out about it" I sighed "and... I'd rather it not be a guy, not the first time we do it because it's going to be complicated so maybe a girl first" "yeah, I see your point. What about Jessie?" ".... Okay that's the best suggestion I've heard all week" "I don't think she would think?" "No?" "She's not as crazy as I am" "You said it honey not me," "Love ya" "Love you too, you can't keep saying that to get out of things you know" "It works" she shrugs "I know" I sighed ".. ooh what about that uhhh ohh what's her name, blonde hair, massive sunglasses, really likes gus?' "Chloe?"

"yes that one, I like her"

"I like her, don't wanna have sex with her," she says as we parked up

"Fair enough hun. Right, you're going to get your tattoo touched up, I am going for groceries?"

"Yep, and have a wander in the sex shop see if you can find anything fun" she says sorting her handbag

"I'm not going in a sex shop on my own, someone spots me it'll be on Twitter, or Instagram. The update time is only fifteen minutes remember"

"Twelve they got faster"

"Damn it. they're getting quick, we wanna look at sexy stuff we will do it on the computer okay?"

"Fine, see you in a bit"

"see you in a bit" I smiled giving her a kiss before she climbed out the car and went off to get her tattoo touched up, I drove down the street a bit to the supermarket to do some shopping. I kept thinking about it, I didn't know how to feel in all honesty I mean I'm not gonna turn down a threesome I'm not an idiot. But I don't know, I feel like I'm opening a door that I might not be able to close, still it's only a bit of fun. I could always put my foot down about things it it got out of hand, whether or not she'd listen to me is a completely different matter. I wondered around a good long while making sure I got everything and as I headed out my phone rang

'Gzi <3'

so I answered, "Aww Hi honey you all done?" I asked her

"Yep, all done at the coffee shop around the corner I'll order for you"

"Aww Thanks You know what I like"

"I do" she smirked

"What? what's that... smarty little tone for?"

"I uhhhh May have found someone" she whispered

"Yeah? who?"

"You'll find out" she smirked before hanging up

I was nervous, but egar to find out so I loaded the car and walked around to the little coffee shop where I spotted her sat at a table with three cups of coffee, so I headed over "Hey honey" I smiled giving her head a kiss as I sat down

"Hey Tommy" she smiled

"So?"

"so?"

"who have you found?"

"Someone... I think you'll like. and I like."

"Okay," I said a little nervous sipping my coffee Ohh I needed that, I need more coffee.

"This Must be Thomas then" A voice asked I looked up and saw a girl, with a plait of Y/H/c in a little purple dress with black fishnets, and what looked honestly like motorbike boots

"Uhhh yeah, Hi" I said getting up offering my hand she smiled taking it and giving my cheek a kiss before she sat on the other chair

"This is y/n, we met in the tattoo shop she was getting work done too" she smiled holding my hand clearly very excited,  I sat for a while sipping my coffee watching the girls talk, about clothes, about tattoo's, and all sorts of other things, I was listening mostly I could see why she got so excited about this girl, but someone she just let in a tattoo shop?

"So, what did you think? about what I was telling you?" she asked y/n

Y/n sipped her coffee, crossed her legs and turned to me looking me up and down a little "I'd be down if you are"

"Wait you... told her?"

"Yeah," "Honey, maybe it's not a good idea to go around telling people about this?"

"relax, your secret's safe with me. this wouldn't be my first unicorn hunt" y/n smiled "Look I gotta run but you guys can think it over, you have my number anyway darling" she smiled giving her a kiss and then my cheek a kiss before getting her backpack and heading off out the shop, we finished our coffee in silence and headed back to the car

"Are you mad at me?"

"I'm not... mad at you. How many people did you tell?"

"Just y/n, we were waiting in the shop and we got talking she's really nice I got her number because I wanted to chat with her honestly she seems really cool and fun, either way I made a new freind"

"Okay well I'm glad you like her, and honestly.... I like her too she seems cool definitely someone I wanna get a drink with maybe hang out in the garden and stuff but... I don't know if she's the one?"

"She's Bisexual"

"She is? Hu.

"And she's been a unicorn before so she knows how it works,"

"True"

"And she has great tits"

"she did look like she good tits" I said as I drove "... so how does it work then?"

"Like tinder, or like a friend with benefits does Tommy, we're horny so we call her up she comes over and we have sex?"

"wait, we have sex? as in me and y/n? You and y/n? me and you? or is this-"

"It's a freeforall"

"Okay, Can you have sex with her on your own when I'm... away for example?"

"Yes,"

"Can I have sex with her if your away?"

"Yes."

"do we have to tell the other we did?"

"If you want I don't care, if she becomes our proper unicorn she'll just be there like an open relationship but just between the three of us"

"I am.... Okay with this. But I wanna meet with her again have her over again before we"

"Before we all fuck each other?"

"yes."

[hopevalley]

Season 8, Episode 1: Open Season

Work was busier than expected on Monday, but the deep dive into the first episode of S8 begins now!

Scene 1: Narration, Elizabeth and Nathan, Lucas

The awkwardness between Elizabeth and Nathan was...palpable at first lol.The best part about the non-narrated part of the scene is twofold: Nathan interacting with Jack is a well-needed and very nice touch, and of course it’s always nice to see that Nathan is patient concerning Elizabeth’s situation and reassures her that she can let him know when she’s ready to go to dinner with him.

My problem with the whole thing is that...if she hasn’t spoken up about wanting that dinner date yet, and she’s not saying yes she’d like to get dinner with you now, it’s like...any sane person would assume at this point in the story that Elizabeth isn’t interested in Nathan. Worse, Nathan isn’t the kind of man who wouldn’t take a hint. I’m pretty sure this is why the opening scene felt just a little bit off. I think they ought to have let Elizabeth be a little more enthusiastic about the idea while still failing to commit to it. 

To be fair to the writers, I can’t imagine it was easy for them to figure out how to open this season after such a long time gap. They let a whole winter elapse between last season and this one. How do you explain literally no major development with the love triangle in that amount of time? Especially after the way the last season ended?

Random consideration: the camera focuses on Elizabeth’s face a lot and makes her wedding ring clearly visible.

Boom, the flashback with Lucas. I think having him leave out of jealousy was a better idea than having his mother fall ill (we’ve certainly seen that enough at this point), and maybe we should also consider the fact that while Lucas was gone, Nathan didn’t really jump on the opportunity to woo Elizabeth himself.

I wonder if we’ll get an explanation for that or not. What makes Lucas so sure that after 4+ months, Elizabeth hasn’t started courting Nathan? Maybe he kept in touch with someone in town? Or he just knows Elizabeth well enough to know she wouldn’t feel quite ready to commit in that time frame anyway?

I did really like Lucas’s opening scene with Elizabeth. Honestly, he was quite likable, here: admitting he was wrong, admitting his shortcomings, apologizing. All good things. “I’m ashamed I let my jealousy get the best of me... The worst of me.” That’s such a good line.

It didn’t feel equal in enthusiasm to the Nathan scene, but I’ll have more thoughts on that later. I do believe it was on purpose.

--

Scene 2: Clara and Jesse’s Fight, The Café

I like the concept of some marital discord for Clara and Jesse. Marriage is easier said than done and like any serious relationship, it’s a lot of consistent maintenance. It starts out pretty well, with Jesse sleeping in the other bedroom. At this point I fully expected to find out Clara kicks in her sleep or she snores a lot or something that’s funny to hear about but really difficult to actually deal with in real life. Color me disappointed later, but I’ll get to it.

--

Scene 3: The Mercantile, Ned, Florence, Carson

This just set up things with Faith’s situation so there’s not much to say, but as always I do love Florence. I hope she gets some good scenes this season. And I love Ned so I hope the same for him.

Henry coming in to mail a letter was interesting, though. I’m not sure it’ll mean anything in particular later, but...it’s possible.  Then again, maybe he’s just here to set our expectations regarding Faith’s return (of course it’s a long trip from Chicago) or Carson’s worry (a bit unreasonable unless he expected to hear from her at a specific stop).

--

Scene 4: Nathan, Dylan

Dylan is such an incredible scumbag. The spurs were a nice touch. He says things almost fondly (“She’s growing up... My little girl.”) and then wants nothing to actually do with Allie. 

The guy’s actually a pretty good actor. The way he segues into being glad for Allie’s sake that Nathan wasn’t the one killed. If the next words out of his mouth weren’t a demand for go-away money you’d almost feel those words were genuine!

--

Scene 5: Lee and Rosemary’s Return + Faith’s Return + Dylan Part Two

Lots of energy in this scene, both good and bad. I always appreciate what Lee and Rosemary bring to the show. I genuinely just don’t care that much about Faith. I’m ready to ship her with Cowboy Brett Brewer. He gets a name, which makes me wonder if he’s gonna show up again. :3

Lol at Carson’s jelly face:

I MEAN...

Not a fan of Faith’s outfit...but to be fair we’ve never really seen Faith outside of uniform. That just doesn’t strike me as something she would wear to travel in...?

Dylan approaching Jack and Jack speaking to him was so hilarious to me. “A puppy!” It’s extra funny after he looked afraid of Rosemary. Nathan intervening was undoubtedly for the best, but I can’t imagine why he would have approached Elizabeth or Jack. He doesn’t know who they are, or their connection to Nathan. Maybe too convenient. Might have been better to have him approach someone else entirely--like Opal.

--

Scene 6: Nathan and Allie

It’s great Nathan’s officializing the adoption but he had literal years to do this and only chooses now, when there’s a threat? Legally Dylan doesn’t have a leg to stand on even in that day and age (he did the abandoning in the first place + Nathan is a lawman)... It kind of ruined the cute moment for me, and I think it will come back in a bad way later.

I don’t mind Nathan’s inability to confide in Elizabeth in this situation. At this point, she doesn’t need to know, and the situation is just weird enough that he probably doesn’t think he needs to dump his own problems on her.

--

Scene 7: Carson and Faith

I’m the jerk who just chanted “BREAK UP BREAK UP BREAK UP” during this scene in my head. I just...don’t care about Faith and Carson.

--

Scene 8: Bill and The Gals

I hate that they keep retconning Bill’s ability to cook well with every passing season. In season 2 and 3 he was more than satisfactory. In S4 he made dinner for Dottie and it was really nice. Now he’s godawful and doesn’t taste his own shit before letting other people try it? Come on.

This is the kind of stuff the writing team needs to cut out of the story. It’s not funny. 

Worse, outspoken Fiona lying to Bill? I just don’t see it. At least Molly told him the truth...but I still am just SO tired of seeing this shit. It makes me think new writers only watched the last couple of seasons instead of all of them.

Also, if Bill is literally running the cafe most of the time, if he was bad at cooking, then...the place would have shut down ages ago. What they should lean into if they wanna do a cooking joke is that Bill isn’t good at creating recipes from scratch. Maybe he doesn’t have a strong sense of taste (my husband has this issue so it’s the first thing that comes to mind) so he’s likely to over-do things like spice or sugar or salt on accident. There’s also a lot of room for jokes about his “taste” in things that can come of it (women, clothes, et cetera).

--

Scene 9: Lee’s Pants

Good scene, 10/10, wouldn’t change a thing. I hope this pants thing becomes a running gag. This is the good kind of humor I want in my life. And I like that Jesse wants to emulate Lee. It’s wholesome. 

--

Scene 10: Rosemary and Clara

The ribbon as a tissue was funny, but it was just SLIGHTLY too over the top for me.

--

Scene 11: Faith and Carson Again...............

“Were you jealous of that cowboy?” I think he should be. The cowboy is better. I don’t give a damn about these characters. And I genuinely hate that the strumming is Carson’s Thing Now. At the very least we should get some Carson and Bill doing a duet together which would be cool.

It just felt like it was shilling Paul and had nothing to do with the characters.

--

Scene 12: Mmm Money

This is arguably the most interesting scene in the episode. Lucas nodded at Nathan. Nathan went to Lucas for money. Lucas didn’t need to get the scoop to find out why Nathan needed it to loan it to him. Elizabeth is officially the least interesting part of the love triangle.

They treat her like she’s such a prize to be won, but I’m starting to worry that she’s become the new Lorigail on the show.

Anyway this scene had some gay vibes and I liked them.

--

Scene 13: Rosemary and Elizabeth Catch Up

YES. GOOD SCENE. It starts off fun and it gets serious, and the transition feels really natural. “Did he have reason to be [jealous]?” I’m genuinely glad this is in the episode. It needed to be. I hope Rosemary continues to ask the hard questions.

Elizabeth needs to face either dating one of them, or dating neither of them so that everybody can get on with their lives. If you’re not that enthusiastic about either of them I’d say...maybe don’t date either of them idk.

--

Scene 14: Nathan and Bill Talk

"If he sees you with me, then...” The problem with this scene is uh...twofold, let’s say.

Issue 1: ThEN HE WILL WHAT, NATHAN? WHAT HAS HE EVER DONE BEFORE THAT WAS SO BAD if he’s not a hard criminal? Maybe an example would be useful here...?

Issue 2: The old Bill Avery would have heard “if he SEES YOU with ME” and mentally been like, “all right so it’s only bad if he SEES ME” and spied on Nathan.

Nathan wanting Bill to stay behind in case Dylan doubles back isn’t a terrible idea, but it almost comes across more like...the writers just want Nathan alone.

--

Scene 15: Oil

I like the discussion and that Hickam gets to do something. I feel like Henry is low-key advising against shooting the well, and that Lucas and Hickam will end up doing it and causing an issue. It’s just setting up for the future and it’s nice to see those kinds of scenes in the series again!

--

Scene 16: Jesse and Lee

I’d like this scene more if I felt it gave us ANY insight into the problem Jesse and Clara are having. It mostly comes across like Jesse gets home and does nothing at all until bedtime and Clara is lonely. Could have been a better scene. It’s mostly just repetitive right now.

--

Scene 17: Nathan Cancels the Date

“Tomorrow’s Saturday.” Nathan’s like uhhhhh. This actually works really well to do what it’s supposed to do. By that I mean, he seems “off” so Elizabeth realizes he’s a bit stressed and leaving town = mountie business = dangerous.

I kind of wish Rosemary and Elizabeth would talk more about this, but maybe that’s coming in an episode soon...?

--

Scene 18: The Barbershop

Just a cute nice scene that shows a good friendship between Fiona, Clara, and Faith. I like this stuff. Keep it coming, Hallmark!

--

(Skipping Scene 19 because it’s just Nathan riding around...)

--

Scene 20: Lee and Rosemary Scheme

I really enjoyed this little bit where they decide to buy something for Clara and Jesse and we don’t get to see what it is. Super wholesome and very fun!

--

Scene 21: Nathan gets Ambushed

This scene was absolutely wild. Probably one of the best scenes like this that they’ve ever done. Dylan taking Nathan’s hat, “Take care of my little girl” after he takes the money and Nathan’s gun. It was super good.

Also, not too fake that Nathan was on the ground that long. If you got roped off of your horse you’d have the wind knocked out of you super hard lmao.

--

Scene 22: Bill & The Girls

Clara and Fiona are so cute. Bill playing the “Dad” figure to them both is really nice and it’s good for him. “I’m a lawman. I get to sneak.” What a Bill response. 

--

(Skipping Scene 23 since it’s just Nathan finding his horse.)

--

Scene 24: Lucas visits with Elizabeth

Lucas and Elizabeth are flirting via a nursery rhyme. I...don’t like that LOL. But Lucas’s “Helen Bouchard taught me to read and after that I was on my own.” She really sounds unloving. This was a pretty decent scene, though.

Also, Grand Isle Louisiana had a major hurricane in 1909 and 1915.

They also seem to have been hit by more mild hurricanes in 1916 and 1917, but the 1915 one was a Cat4, so...the most notable.

--

Scene 25: Rosemary and Lee in the Dress Shop

This tries to solve the issue of Clara and Jesse’s marital problems, but it doesn’t actually do that. “Let Jesse read when he gets home.” “I’ll talk to Jesse.” Meh.

--

Scene 26: Barbershop

“Why do this when you’re so good with women’s hair?” I fully expected Fiona to say, “That’s where all the hot gossip is, of course.” I do like  her gumption, though!

--

Scene 27: Nathan Finds Dylan

“I had to let you ambush me, so I had grounds to put you away.” COLD BUT EFFECTIVE. I appreciate this.

Imagine getting to be this smug. I wish it were me.

Anyway, long-term thoughts on this are mostly that...there is just no reasonable way Dylan’s story is over yet. It’s too juicy of a storyline to let go this easily. Allie is going to find out what Nathan did and she’s going to struggle to come to terms with it, especially after her grandfather really did try to turn his life around. Why couldn’t it be the same for her father? Why couldn’t she get lucky like that?

I hope it feels satisfying, whatever they choose to do. Otherwise this was just wrapped up too neatly/too quickly.

--

Scene 28: Nathan Returns

Very good scene. Nathan’s in a good mood and he does my favorite trope of all time when one person in the relationship has a child: “Why don’t we all go?” You already all know each other, so why not? It’s wholesome and good, and it shows he doesn’t care how he gets to spend time with Elizabeth, as long as he does.

Also, it takes a lot of the pressure off of her for the duration of the date and at its conclusion. This was a cute and good scene, one of the better they’ve had, I think.

--

Scene 29: Jesse and Lee Talk

This was a nice attempt at a talk, but it really comes off like Jesse has stopped loving Clara for no reason. That his romantic interest in her is what is causing the failure in their relationship.

The problem is: WE HAVE NO IDEA WHAT IS CAUSING IT. NOBODY EVER SAID. 

I agree that love isn’t “just” a feeling or “just” an emotion. It’s ALSO a choice. Marriage is a commitment you choose to continue every day. That is all good.

“Choose love. Then you feel it.” is probably some of the worst dialogue they’ve put in the show, though. Yuck. It left a bad taste in my mouth. It feels like it’s shaming people who legitimately fall out of love or who are in bad relationships. “If only you chose to work harder.”

I don’t think that was their intention at all, but it really soured the scene. I would have MUCH rather have had Lee get Jesse to talk about what’s wrong and then offer him pointers on how he could do better. Maybe he’s stressed out and losing himself in books, or he wishes Clara would sit and read with him because that’s something he always wanted. Or maybe Clara would be down for reading time if he read to her while she did her sewing.

There’s so much they could have done here to really send this home, but it didn’t work very well. At the very least Lee could have said, instead of ‘choose love’: CHOOSE COMMUNICATION. Make sure she knows you still feel that way about her.

The biggest thing is like, Lee could also be very encouraging in saying like, the honeymoon phase doesn’t last forever but just because things settle down doesn’t mean the love is less.

THERE IS SO MUCH GOOD STUFF THEY COULD HAVE WRITTEN FOR THIS but they chose “Choose love. Then you feel it.” WTF. That’s awful advice.

--

Scene 30: Jesse and Clara

Him bringing her flowers was a nice touch, and her getting him the book was also nice. The tandem bike was SO unexpected to me and I loved it. It’s just goofy enough that it works. The best part is that they know it’s not going to fix anything, but it’s still a fun and nice thing to do, and that’s wonderful for Rosemary and Lee. They both like to make the people they care about happy.

--

Scene 31: Mama Bouchard

MILF ALERT.

Elizabeth is just so shook at all of this she doesn’t say a damn thing for so long it made my palms feel sweaty.

“Someone ought to take an interest in your writing, don’t you think?” I rewatched the episode to understand the tone, and it’s a little hoity-toity/uppity, but she actually doesn’t sound condescending. It’s good for an editor to meet the author, after all, and meet to talk about their writing/book. This has always been custom, even in the early 1900s. Authors didn’t usually get their work published by an editor they’d never met (though of course, you will find some exceptions). 

From the little we saw, Helen seems fine. The preview for the next episode tells us she’s UH, AN EDITOR DOING HER JOB, so I’m not looking forward to the editor being the bad guy, but I guess I’ll have to deal with that when it arrives. (To be clear, Elizabeth has never proved to the audience that she’s a Good Writer, let alone a Great Writer. She’s also not experienced which means her work probably NEEDS SOME WORK.)

Anyway, Elizabeth is immediately rude as HELL. Nobody can make an excuse for this. Helen isn’t THAT big of a deal. There are other publishers. Your father is filthy rich. If she changes her mind about your book you can pub to someone via your father if you have to. Like...Helen wouldn’t have taken you on if she didn’t see any potential in you. 

Even if it was a big deal, Elizabeth has NEVER been a flake. EVER. 

This is a classic case of a writer forcing the character to go out of character in order to bend to what the plot dictates. 

If I were Nathan, I’d drop Elizabeth like a brick.

How to fix this scene? I’ll honestly have to think about that for a while. This was the first hint of truly bad writing this season. The bit with Lee and “choose love” was careless writing, but this scene with Nathan is just Bad.

The thing is, I KNOW WHAT THEY ARE DOING. I know they put this in there so that it looks like she’ll choose Lucas because she never even goes out with Nathan, and then BOOM. I know it’s meant to be this big thing about how she’s scared to feel anything for Nathan because Lucas is the safer option and also a good man (so why would she fall for the more frightening option?).

But this was not the right way to do this type of scene. I hope to God in the next episode someone says something about it. Allie could tell her it was rude and it hurt Nathan’s feelings/you shouldn’t have said yes if you didn’t want to. It’d be fully in character for her. Rosemary could also say something similar. If they do, I might be able to forgive this...but if it’s not called attention to by the other characters, then it’s a massive failure as a scene to me.

--

Did I miss anything? Do you want my thoughts on something in particular? Shoot me a message HERE and I’ll do my best to answer! 

[starrynite7114]

Trust

A/N: I was able to fulfill a request during my study break! This was fun to write and pretty short, but I hope you all enjoy it! I’m working on Snapshots and Misconstrued, Snapshots may be out first, but regardless, I’m working on a few things! 

Requests are still open, if you want to make a request, feel free to do so!

“So you don’t trust me” and “fuck you” with EZ or Angel 🥺. I love your writing ❤️ also you don’t have to do both prompts if they don’t mix! - Anon

Masterlist

Tagged: @iambabyharry : @justahopelessssromantic : @briannab1234 : @marvelmaree : @carlaangel86 : @everyhowlmarksthedead​  : @trulysuccubus​ : @claytoncardenasbabymama​ : @ifoundmyhappythought​ : @chibsytelford​ : @whyisgmora​ : @jadert15​ : @gemini0410​ : @woahitslucyylu​ : @enamoured-x​ : @encounterthepast

Relationships were complex. Whether it was family, friends or a significant other, there were many layers to it.

With significant others, jealousy was a part of relationships. A layer that could be seen as a way to show your significant other that you care or it could drive a wedge in your relationship. 

Angel was hardly a jealous man, okay, that was a lie. He didn’t even like it when another man he wasn’t familiar with breathed the same air as you, but he trusted you with all of his heart. He just didn’t trust these fuckers around you. But it wasn’t his fault. You were charming, beautiful, people were just drawn to you.

Lucky for Angel, Santo Padre was a small town and people never tried to cross that boundary with Angel. They were respectful, but they would never make a move on you or even flirt with you. Angel was well known to threaten anyone who even looked your way. You were the only person that brought this out of him. His past girlfriends, he didn’t even bat an eye when they would flirt with other guys. For him, those girls were just women he went through and now he had you and it was a whole different feeling. But this showed him how much he loves you, how true his feelings were for you.

It may also have to do with the fact that he felt you were out of his league. He was human, insecurities come, but you were the one thing he knew that he scored out of pure luck. 

Here he was now, watching as your ex-boyfriend, some prim and proper douchebag you met in college. He was currently in Santo Padre on business with Galindo. He was going to help build this new development in Santo Padre. To say he was annoyed was an understatement. This ex-boyfriend of yours, Dante or whatever the fuck his name was, decided to visit you at your grandmother’s bakery, that you’ve been helping with since you came back. 

Angel was going to pick you up to bring you back to the clubhouse since they wanted to do a BBQ and of course, you were such a big part of the club at this point, it would be weird if you weren’t there.

But with Angel seeing this before him, he was irritated, no, he was pissed. 

He knew David, a prick that pursued you relentlessly. 

He also knew how nice you were. You didn’t mean to be inviting, but people gravitate towards you. 

Angel could tell you weren’t exactly comfortable, but he hated how friendly you could be. This guy did not need to be here. 

You looked outside and saw Angel, sitting on his motorcycle, smoking. Your man looked so good, but you could tell he wasn’t exactly happy that Dylan was in your grandmother’s bakery after hours. He came in a little late and he had very full intention of staying and speaking to you. He was always a nice guy, but you could tell he could be a bit pushy if he truly wanted something. 

Currently, he was trying to entice you to attend this BBQ his mother was throwing for Memorial Day weekend at Texas. He didn’t want to be bombarded with relationship questions and wanted to take you along to keep his mother at bay. His mother had adored you, which apparently was a feat, but you knew this wouldn’t go over well with Angel. Personally, you didn’t want to go either.

Your phone vibrated, breaking Dylan from one of his babbling. You gave him a smile and picked up your phone, it was from Angel.

                                                Hubby <3

Get rid of Doug before I do.

Looking up, you found Angel still sitting, that smirk on his face. 

Dylan, his name is Dylan. Calm down papi. He’s just asking me to go to his mother’s BBQ next month. He’s harmless, he’s with someone else now.

Placing your phone down, you focused on Dylan once more.

“I know you don’t like your mother’s matchmaking ways, but why not just bring Kristin?” You advised. 

“Cause my mother hates Kristin, she’s my high school sweetheart, fucking hated her.” Dylan shook his head. “Kristin is a great girl, but she always compares them to you.”

“Well, I am quite memorable.” You laughed, shrugging. 

“Humble you are.” Dylan shook his head. “I always wondered why we didn’t work out.”

“We weren’t happy at the end of our relationship Dylan, I was here and you were in Temecula. Believe me, things worked out for the best.”

“You can’t possibly want to stay here for the rest of your life. It’s dead space here.” Dylan never understood why you decided to stay in Santo Padre. For your biker boyfriend? He met Angel, and he didn’t understand how you could tolerate being here. 

“I don’t expect you to understand. I feel at home here.” 

And it was true, you did feel at home here, well mostly, you felt at home cause you were with Angel. 

You two met in middle school, but you ended up moving away to Las Vegas with your parents. You tried to keep in touch through MySpace then texting every once in a while. After graduating college, you came back to Santo Padre to help your grandmother out after a nasty fall. It was nine years ago that you came back and you had texted Angel after you settled down. You had a crush on Angel when you were younger, but it faded when you two parted. Almost instantly when you two saw one another again, the attraction was immediate. But you didn’t want to start a relationship with Angel, knowing you most likely would leave Santo Padre.

But the city always somehow pulled people. 

It was insane. 

You never wanted to stay in a small town, but you found comfort on just knowing everyone and if you were being honest, you couldn’t leave Angel. He was always a part of your life, but being in his presence, seeing how he grew up and the charm he had, you couldn’t walk away. You tried, but he always pulled you back to him and you two weren’t even together. When he finally asked you out on a date, it was cute, and you two were just at the beach, watching the waves, sitting in peaceful silence. He broke it by asking that and you still remembered how you blushed and how you immediately said yes. He chuckled and the rest was history. 

Now, things were different. 

It was peaceful here to some degree. You liked the pace of life and your family was here.

“I think you’re settling.”

“I think it’s time for you to leave.”

You and Dylan both looked towards the door and Angel had just walked through. Dylan gulped. He didn’t scare easily, but Angel could be imposing. 

“You’ve overstayed your welcome Donnie.” Angel tilted his head towards the door. 

“Nice seeing you Y/N.” He made his way towards the door, bowing his head when he passed by Angel. He wasn’t an idiot, he knew Angel could kill him if he wanted to. He didn’t want to push his buttons. 

Angel locked the door after him, turning to you and shaking his head. 

“You really need to entertain that mother fucker?” Angel questioned. “He fucking asks you to go to Texas with him and you just what? Entertain the idea.”

“Fuck you, Angel.” You spat out. 

“Oh, there’s time for that later querida,” he smirked, but it wasn’t his playful smirk, it was his smug smirk that he always had on when he was irritated and ready to press your fucking buttons. “Settling huh?”

“Angel, you know that’s not how I feel.” You frowned. “Why are you going to let Dylan get to you?”

“Because, he shouldn’t even be fucking here. Why does he come here every fucking week? Do you like going down memory lane with him? Do you like knowing that if you get tired of me you have that chump waiting for you?” Angel knew he was being irrational, but Dylan was visiting far too frequently. It was like you were enticing him to come and see you. “Do you talk to him regularly?”

“Unfuckingbelievable. So you don’t trust me?” You scoffed. “I’m not the one always surrounded by women, willingly throwing themselves at them. Also, how the fuck do I know that you don’t fuck other women while you’re on a run?”

Angel scoffed, looking at you in disbelief. “You fucking serious? You think I fuck other women?”

“No, no I don’t.” And you didn’t. You love Angel and knew he was loyal to you. He was never a cheater, never seemed that way. If he was in a relationship, he was all in and was solely focused on you. “Angel, why are you being unreasonable, if I trust you, why wouldn’t you trust me? Why would I cheat on you?”

Angel sighed. He fucked up. He didn’t actually think you would cheat. But seeing Dylan was a reminder that if you wanted, you could leave him and be with someone else. That once upon a time, you had a life without him and Dylan was that reminder. He fucking hated it. If he didn’t acknowledge his name, he wasn’t important, but he was. Looking at you and just how visibly upset you were, Angel grimaced. He made his way over to you and wrapped his arms around you.

“I’m sorry baby.” He apologized, placing a kiss on the top of your head. “I love you, I just, insecurities are a bitch.”

“I know, but Dylan is hardly someone you should be insecure about. There was a reason why we broke up. We never meshed well. Maybe in college we did, but priorities changed. He never understood why I had to come here and be with my grandmother.” You pulled away from Angel. “I never loved Dylan, especially not the way I love you. Please keep that in mind. You’re my world Angel, I couldn’t leave you, unless you do cheat on me then I’ll cut your dick off too.”

Angel laughed then, kissing you on your lips. “You’re fucking crazy.”

“You like crazy though.”

“As long as it’s you, I fucking do.”

[tywrites]

exhilarating | kaitlyn ka

request: my friend, i am suffering from massive kaitlyn brainrot it is an issue- so may i request a little piece about maybe secretly dating kaitlyn? like it’s not because of any angsty reason (my poor soul can’t handle angst-) they just thought it would be funny to see when the other counselors would eventually figure it out? some shenanigans mayhaps? thank you <3

a/n: KAITLYN MY LOVE- i need more fics for her desperately :’) also secret dating is one of my favourite tropes hehe - this is quite short but i love her <3 hope u enjoy!!

pairing: kaitlyn ka x gen!reader

word count: 696

warnings: swearing? that’s it lmao

You groaned in pain, holding your head in your hands. Sitting at the table were Dylan, Kaitlyn, and Ryan, the four of you having a quick breakfast before having to begin your counsellors duties. Kaitlyn looked to you in concern.

"Hey, you feeling okay?" She asked, worried.

"Just a headache, my head's throbbing," you reply, leaning your arms onto the table and dropping your head onto them.

"Maybe you should see the nurse?" Ryan spoke up.

"He's right. C'mere, I'll take you." Kaitlyn took hold of your arm, bringing you up with her as she stood. "We'll see you guys later." The two of you left towards the nurse's office, Kaitlyn walking with great speed and determination.

Once you'd gotten there, Kaitlyn immediately sat you down and began to rummage through the drawers. "I know there's some ibuprofen in here somewhere. Y'know, you should really drink more water, probably why the headache's so bad. I mean, when was the last time you-"

She was cut off by you wrapping your arms around her stomach, hugging her from behind. A small gasp left her and her hands flew to yours, rubbing them down your arms. You laughed, nuzzling into her neck.

"You- you're so annoying, oh my god-"

"I had you going though, didn't I?" You grinned, placing a gentle kiss to her neck. She shuddered, your breath hitting her skin. "I just wanted to get you alone..."

"There are so many other ways to do that, dumbass. I was actually worried about you," she rolled her eyes but she couldn't be mad at you, not really.

Keeping your relationship a secret from the others wasn't the long term plan. It just... happened? It started out as a kinda prank, just to see how long it would take them all to notice. Before you knew it, a month and a half went by. Yeah, your fellow counsellors weren't very observant. The only people who'd come close to noticing was actually the campers. What is it about kids and noticing stuff even adults can't see right in front of them?

Either way, it had kinda become fun; sneaking around with her, hooking up in secret. The idea of getting caught was exhilarating, only adding to your amusement. And there had been many incidences of nearly getting caught.

One where you'd both been kissing by the lake when Jacob made a surprise visit (you'd leapt into the lake before you could properly think about it, coming out once he'd left; Kaitlyn found it hilarious). Another where you'd been in the cabins when everyone was at lunch when Abi came around to look for the two of you. The picture of Kaitlyn under the bed still made you laugh to this day.

Kaitlyn spun around in your arms, facing you fully before flicking your forehead. Ouch.

"Now we're even," she smirked before attaching her lips to yours. You walked forwards until her back was leaning against the desk, her arms looping around your neck. She gasped when you bit her lip, giving you an opening to deepen the kiss. The small pants she let out were so cute. One of your hands sneakily edged under her sweatshirt, massaging the soft skin there, a small gasp escaping her.

You were both so entranced that you didn't notice the rhythmic knock at the door. You pulled her closer to you, just in time for the door to open. You both sprung apart but it was way too late.

Dylan stood there in shock, mouth wide open staring at the two of you.

You gulped, fiddling with your fingers a bit, before sheepishly smiling at him.

"Uh, hey dude..."

"What the hell."

Kaitlyn sighed and raised her arms in defence. "Okay, okay fine. You caught us. Honestly, it took you long enough,"

Dylan blinked slowly. "Took me long eno- what? How long has this been going on?" He said incredulously.

"Since like the beginning of summer?"

"HUH?"

"Yeah, you guys aren't very observant," you laughed, taking a hold of Kaitlyn's hand. "Look, how about you go tell the others about this amazing discovery. We were kinda in the middle of something..."

[khaotungsfirst]

ali‘s embarrassing celebrity crushes throughout the years

thank you to @fengqing for wanting me to expose myself, i hope y’all don’t judge me too much 🥴i had to go through my archive to remember most of these cause as fast as these crushes hit me sometimes, some of them went away just as quickly.

tagging: @schnaf @manhasetardis @morifinwes @xiaodaozhang​ @huigusu​ @yibocrisis​

ok here we go, putting it under a read more cause this got long

MEN (since 2006)

tom kaulitz nothing more attractive to 10 year-old me than this 15 year-old with dreadlocks and pants that hit the floor askdjhgkjfdg

joseph gordon-levitt i..... can’t even explain this?? lmao.. i mean inception was and is my favourite movie but not because of him so like??

niall horan niall girls unite!! i was a niall girl until i got into larry and then that was all i cared about for a long time ksadjgkdf but i still love him!

dan howell he was funny and british, that’s it

dylan o’brien listen every teen wolf fan was mainly there for him, don’t even lie about it

seb stan holy shit i was crushing on him so hard after the winter soldier came out. he was the epitome of perfection to me! this was a big one for me but it went downhill once he started growing out his hair afgkjdfgjkd retrospectively i’m not sure if i was only thirsting after him because everyone else on my dash was doing it (also does anyone remember political animals??)

dane dehaan oh god..... listen, it’s all the fault of the amazing spiderman 2! also his look is so versatile like in some photos he looks really nice and in others..... 😬yikes lmao skdjgfdk idk man

loïc nottet this was a short-lived crush but he absolutely killed it at the 2015 esc and tumblr went wild over him so... 🤷🏻‍♀️

marc bartra so we’re getting into football players now and just look at him! he joined my favourite team (bvb) and i immediately loved him cause he made such an effort to integrate himself. after the team bus was attacked and he got injured my love for him only increased. he just seems so sweet and nice aaahh

niklas stark idek how i came to know abt him cause he plays for hertha which i don’t care abt aksjgjghjf but he has such a beautiful smile i think that’s what got me

andré silva i just thought he looked neat (still does but he doesn’t blow me away anymore)

héctor bellerín 2016 bellerín?? oof!! don’t look him up on google tho, he’s had a lot of... questionable hair and fashion choices throughout the years 🥴the way we all dragged him for it was really funny tho. i still love him he’s a great guy always supporting good causes

arón piper listen earrings and curly hair maketh the man

matthías tryggvi haraldsson once again a crush resulting from esc. he was my icon before i turned into a mdzs blog. i don’t even think he’s super attractive, i just love the contrast between hatari matti and normal matti

harry styles i’ve given in to the harry supremacy propaganda. he really is my favourite 1d member these days, musically-wise and looks-wise

bill kaulitz we’ve come full circle!! nowadays bill is my favourite kaulitz twin. it’s funny cause they literally have the same face so it all just comes down to how they present themselves and bill is just my preference

MEN (recently/currently)

wang yibo i don’t even have words!!! his look, his personality, his talent just!!! I LOVE EVERYTHING ABOUT HIM!! (as we all do) (also big genvy causer)

lesbian yibo this gets a separate bullet point cause i had this realisation like two weeks after falling for regular yibo but oh boi am i gay for her

xiao zhan he’s just.. so pretty and lovely. i thought about putting wwx into the fictional characters category cause i think xz looks the prettiest as wwx but xz as a person just seems so nice and down to earth that i had to put him here

bright (vachirawit chivaaree) a baby!!! his smile is so pretty and overall he gives off very ~soft~ vibes. also how does he look so good when crossdressing??

boun (noppanut guntachai) once again the jewellery got me. boys with earrings really will be my downfall one day... (this is not to say that he isn’t pretty without them, his face is also very much up there on reasons why i stan him)

tul (pakorn thanasrivanitchai) get you a man who is as comfortable in his masculinity and sexuality as tul

felix lee will i ever get over the dissonance between his looks and his voice?? probably not. also he’s just a fucking cutie

hyunjin felix might be my bias (oh god i’m starting to speak in kpop lingo) but i’m also kinda simping for him, what can i say?

WOMEN (sadly not as many but you know, heteronormativity)

scarlett johansson literally everyone on this planet thinks she’s hot and they’re right (yeah she’s kinda problematic but i can still appreciate her looks)

halsey remember when halsey used to kiss her fans at her concerts?? completely unrelated to that, i really wanted to go to one of her concerts..... 🙃 also i once dyed my hair blue bc of her

kiko mizuhara she was fancast as blue from the raven cycle so many times and i was so on board with it cause in my head she fit the character perfectly but maybe that’s just because i thought she was really really beautiful and wanted to see more of her 🤷🏻‍♀️

rihanna i mean... c’mon

michelle phan oh man this goes way back.. she was one of the first youtubers i watched in like 2010 before i even played with makeup myself. she just always gave off such calming vibes and she seems so nice. also look at her 😍

zendaya oof zendaya is a big one for me. she’s just so fucking beautiful just... how?? what??? i- AAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHH

lena i started actively following her on ig after she released her last album in 2019 (which is great btw) and... damn girl do i want to be you or date you??

xuan lu oh god she’s so adorable but then also so hot but then also so etheral but then also so cute but then also so beautiful but then also s-

FICTIONAL CHARACTERS

stefan salvatore (tvd) gotta love how even at 14 i already knew not to make the toxic choice 😊

legolas (lotr) if you didn’t have a legolas phase you’re lying

draco malfoy (hp) if villain bad then why sexy?

anakin skywalker (star wars) if villain bad then why sexy? 2

noora amalie sætre (skam) she’s just really pretty, ok? the red lipstick didn’t help either...

chris p (skam) if villain bad then why sexy? 3 (ok he’s not a villain but he’s an asshole)

tokio (money heist) hhnnnnnnnggggggg girl with a gun make brain go brrr

wen qing (the untamed) funny how in the show i’m simping for wq but irl i prefer xuan lu... someone explain that to me. but anyways, she’s pretty, she’s fierce, and she looks fucking hot in red

[horansqueen]

You & Me : chapter 47

A Niall Horan fanfiction ; rated MA

Sequel to AM CONVERSATIONS

CHAPTER 1 || CHAPTER 2 || CHAPTER 3 || CHAPTER 4 || CHAPTER 5 || CHAPTER 6 || CHAPTER 7 || CHAPTER 8 || CHAPTER 9 || CHAPTER 10 || CHAPTER 11 || CHAPTER 12 || CHAPTER 13 || CHAPTER 14 || CHAPTER 15 || CHAPTER 16 || CHAPTER 17 || CHAPTER 18 || CHAPTER 19 || CHAPTER 20 || CHAPTER 21 || CHAPTER 22 || CHAPTER 23 || CHAPTER 24 || CHAPTER 25 || CHAPTER 26 || CHAPTER 27 || CHAPTER 28 || CHAPTER 29 || CHAPTER 30 || CHAPTER 31 || CHAPTER 32 || CHAPTER 33 || CHAPTER 34 || CHAPTER 35 || CHAPTER 36 || CHAPTER 37 || CHAPTER 38 || CHAPTER 39 || CHAPTER 40 || CHAPTER 41 || CHAPTER 42 || CHAPTER 43 || CHAPTER 44 || CHAPTER 45 || CHAPTER 46

NOTES:

-one chapter is her pov, the next is his -4k -im sorry, i never proofread, i hate it. -there WILL be smut. but not only smut. -this is a romance, comedy, smut story. -for the summary, check my MASTERLIST.

READ AM CONVERSATIONS AGAIN ON WATTPAD HERE

- notes: last filler chapter. the next 3 chapters are all planned. this is the end omg im so sad! i love you guys so much for sticking to this story! thank you so so much! the others chapters will be separated in two so i can write each POVs :)

if you want to be on the list of blogs i notify when this is updated, just message me :)

requests! : this is, i believe, the last request i’ll add to this story. thank you times a million to all of you who sent some! I received over 200 requests just for YOU&ME! you guys are incredible and i hope youll want to participate to my next story as much as you did for this one! 

TAKE A LOOK AT THE CHARACTERS HERE

Chapter 47 : His chapter

NIALL

October 2018

Tour was finally over and we were back home. We had decided to get back to California for a while, if only to spend some time with friends and relax. I knew Olivia wanted to be around Louis and I just enjoyed being in LA for obvious reasons. Things had never been better between us but at least once a day, I could feel the ring I bought burning in my pocket or whispering to me from my underwear drawer. It always felt like the right time to get on one knee and ask her and at the same time, it also never felt like it was the perfect moment. I knew it was ridiculous because I was pretty sure she wanted to spend her life with me, but I was scared of being rejected, I was scared of what a 'no' would do to us and to our relationship. So many times, I had looked in her eyes and almost dropped down on one knee to ask her to be my wife, but I never did. I liked to believe I hadn't asked her yet because I knew she deserved something bigger than just me giving her a ring in a hotel room while we're waiting for our ride to the airport, but it was definitely not the biggest problem. I was just fucking scared and every time the words were about to come out of my mouth, I'd swallow them. I had no idea who I was trying to fool : Olivia was never the type to enjoy attention or extravagant things. She was reserved and private, pretty much like me, and I knew my proposal didn't have to be anything wild. It could be simple, and cheesy, and as long as I could find the right words, it would be perfect.

I heard the key in the lock and it took me out of my thoughts, pushing away my inner confusion. I waited until the door opened and she appeared, making my lips curl. She made a quick head movement but everything seemed to go on slow motion, like in a movie, and i watched her hair fly behind her shoulder. I was in it so deep I almost groaned and grimaced at how cheesy I was.

"Hey babe, what are you doing?"

I breathed in deeply, realizing I had completely stopped, and sent her a smile, licking my lips.

"Waiting for you like the loser I am." I half-joked before chuckling. "You were with Louis? How's he?"

She smiled at me and took a step closer, tilting her head. "First off, you're not a loser. You're cute. You're sweet. You're super endearing." she just said, staring at me fondly. Her expression changed and she glanced down, sucking on her bottom lip before putting her purse next to the couch. "I was not with... I didn't spend the night with Louis."

I frowned, waiting for her to continue and when her eyes met mine, I knew it was bad.

"I went to dinner with Dylan."

My lips parted and my heart jumped in my chest. I was never the jealous type and I was not about to start now, right? Then why did something seemed to stir in my stomach? Why was there a lump in my throat that had seemed to appear suddenly?

"No way, tell me you're kiddin'."

"Niall, please-"

"No, don't act like this is normal and that I'm stupid to be angry." i cut her, shaking my head. "I can't believe you spent all this time alone with Dylan."

She sighed again and sat on the couch, rubbing her hands on her eyes. I walked closer and dived my hands in my pockets, trying to remain calm but the truth was, I was hurt and I was not sure what all of this meant. All I knew was that I felt betrayed and I could barely believe we'd have to go through something like this again. This time, the roles seemed to be reversed but I didn't want this to break us.

"Obviously, you knew it was wrong since you purposely omitted to tell me." I continued, pressing my lips together to be sure I wouldn't let out a mean remark. "Why did you do that to me, Liv?"

It took her a few seconds but she finally got up very slowly, right in front of me. Her body was close, so close I could feel the warmth of it on my skin, but I just stared in her eyes, feeling my heart soften at the way she was looking at me.

"I don't love him, you know it." she expressed in a soft tone. "I don't love anyone but you. He's still my friend, and also my co-worker. I probably shouldn't have gone with him, especially not without telling you, but... I don't know, Niall."

I stared at her for what felt like an hour as I tried to calm the beatings of my heart and finally passed one of my hands in my hair and sat down on the couch. She turned around to face me but remained up as I shook my head.

"I'm not going to tell you who you can and can't be friends with, and I do trust you." I let out carefully. "But Olivia, how would you feel if i came back here one night and told you I spent the evening with Heidi?"

I could feel her body tense near mine but I didn't look up at her. I waited and eventually, she sat next to me and reached for my hand on my thigh, squeezing my fingers with both her hands.

"I'd feel betrayed, and sad, and... and hurt." she admitted. "I'm sorry Niall, it was wrong of me."

I brought my other hand and placed it over hers, squeezing her hand and brushing my thumb on the top of it.

"If it can reassure you though, Dylan is seeing someone." she added, making me look up in her eyes. "A pretty blonde. Actress too. Not your type, obviously, but I think they really fit."

"Not my type?" I repeated in an amused tone, raising my eyebrows. "Says who?"

"Your dating history." she explained with a chuckle. "She's a small cute blonde and you like tall and sexy brunettes."

I pressed my lips together again and shook my head. "Naa, that's not true anymore." I just shrugged, making her frown. "I just like one sexy brunette."

She laughed and tilted her head. "You're crazy, I'm not sex-"

I cut her by pressing my palm against her mouth and raising my eyebrows, moving slightly closer. My eyes roamed on her again as something jumped in my stomach. I wanted to ask her to marry me at this exact moment. I wanted to tell her she was everything I needed in this life and that my heart was aching for her to become my wife. Instead, I breathed in and finally swallowed.

"Don't argue with me. You're sexy." I whispered before moving my hand away very slowly. "And I love you."

She licked her lips and the left corner of her lips raised up. "Your love is blinding you." she whispered, moving closer to brush her lips against mine. "But I appreciate it. I love you too."

She kissed me so gently that if I had closed my eyes, it would have felt unreal, and when she pulled away, I saw her facial expression change.

"I'm sorry, Niall. That won't ever happen again." she apologized gently in a soft tone.

"I know." I whispered before suddenly realizing something. "Hey, does that mean he broke up with Heidi?"

Her lips curled and she shrugged. "Yea, that's what he told me tonight. I feel a bit sorry for her, she's been through a lot in the past few weeks."

I stared at her for a few seconds, surprised by her words but at the same time a bit impressed. The fact that she could be empathetic even to people who were mean to her was something I appreciated. Of course, we hadn't been too kind to Heidi either and Liv was not wrong, she had been through a lot, even if it was not all on us and that she had put us through a lot too. Still, I felt my lips curl and she tilted her head before sighing as she turned her upper body my way.

"It's horrible what we all did to each other, don't you think?"

My traits softened and I nodded. "It is." I admitted in a low tone. "Let's just use this so we never do that again."

Her lips curled a bit and she licked them slowly as I wrapped my arms around her waist, pulling her closer to me. Her arms slithered around my neck and I sent her an amused smile.

"It won't ever happen again." she confessed, tilting her chin up. "I plan to spend the rest of my life with you, and only you."

Her words made me chuckle and I raised my eyebrows, still looking at her, "Oh what a coincidence, I plan the same with you."

I brought one of my hands to her cheek before pressing my forehead against hers. She breathed in deeply and closed her eyes. It made me smile and gently, I rubbed my nose against hers, making her chuckle low.

"Shower?" I proposed in a low tone.

"Mm no, a bath. Together."

I laughed a bit but we ended up in the bathroom together as she filled the tub with warm water. I let my eyes roam on her as she got undressed, leaving her clothes on the cold tiles, and when her eyes met mine, she raised her eyebrows. The left corner of my lips raised up into a cheeky smile and she just shook her head but I took a step closer, placing my hands on her waist and making her smile too.

"Fifteen minutes without thinking about sex. Please." she asked, tilting her head and making me laugh.

"But you're just standing naked in front of me I mean..."

"Niall James Horan, you're not sixteen anymore, you can be around a naked girl without feeling the need to shag her, i'm sure!"

"Around any other girl, yea, but when it's you..." I let out, half-joking and making her roll her eyes.

"Come on, get naked too." she let out as she started working on my pants. I helped her take them off and before she could do it, I grabbed the bottom of my shirt and pulled it over my head, letting fall on the pile of her clothing on the floor. "Alright, seeing you in your usual white boxers does something to me." she admitted, bringing her hand to my cock over my boxers and biting her bottom lip.

"Look who's all horny now." I laughed as she got on her tiptoes to kiss my lips, letting go of me and smiling against my mouth. "Come on, get in the tub."

After a few minutes, I was sitting in the tub, legs spread, and she was sitting between them, her back leaned against my chest. I didn't remember us ever doing that before but I enjoyed it a lot more that I thought I would. We started talking and laughing together and it was exactly like when we were younger and we'd spend all night talking together. Well, almost : the younger versions of us were definitely not naked.

"I can't believe we're dating again." she let out after a while as her thumb brushed gently on my arm. "If someone had told me that a few months ago, I wouldn't have believed it. Who would have thought?"

"Me." I replied before she moved slightly to look at me. "I mean, I wrote 'you and me' about that. I knew we were meant to be, and I've always known I wanted to spend my life with you."

I knew this discussion could go wrong but I had to be honest about all of this.

"I could have refused, you know. I could have been over you by then." she argued calmly. "I thought I was. But then you appeared with that stupid gorgeous mug of yours, that fucking insane smile and those ridiculously incredible eyes..." She shook her head. "I had no chance to win that fight."

I let out a loud laugh and she tilted her head to reach my chin with her lips, leaving a small kiss on my skin.

"When I found out you were getting married... I started doubting everything." I admitted, looking down at my hand moving slowly to bring warm water on her skin after seeing her shiver. "I thought maybe it was too late. But I couldn't seem to give up."

We remained silent for a while until she grabbed my hand and squeezed my fingers tight. "I'm glad you didn't."

"Me too." I whispered. "And I feel so lucky that you gave me an other chance."

Once again, she turned around slightly but this time, I moved my chin down to kiss her lips.

"We don't even have an anniversary date." she pointed out, raising her eyebrows at me.

"Of course we do! It's April 16th of this year."

I felt my heart jump at my words and held my breath. April 16th was the day I bought that promise ring for her in Paris. It was when I decided that I wanted to marry her and that I would ask her to be my wife. Since that day, I had almost asked her so many times I couldn't count anymore. I hadn't dropped on one knee yet but I knew that I would at some point, and April 16th was the day I realized that. Some days I would bring the ring with me in my pocket, some other days it would stay in one of the drawers in our room, but it was always in the back of my mind. I obviously couldn't tell her that and when she turned around an other time to frown at me, I suddenly remembered something she had said.

"Y-Yea, I mean you don't remember?" I stammered. "There was an article about that earring you gave me and you said that you didn't care that people knew we were together."

We had also mentioned not being official the day after, I remembered that too. but I decided not to mention it. I was pretty sure she had mentioned that we were together but I was also aware it was probably just a bad choice of words. She was right, we didn't have an anniversary date, but I hoped that it would become that date if only because it was a big day for me and I hoped it would become a big day for her, too.

"I don't remember, but I trust you." she just shrugged before her lips curled. "Alright, April 16th, then."

I felt my heart jump in my chest and I kissed her gently but firmly again, making her chuckle against my mouth. I could have spent the whole night with her body pressed on me as we chilled in hot water but after a while, we got out, dried ourselves and got back to our room to put on pajamas.

"I'll make us some tea." she proposed as we walked back to the living room and she finally disappeared in the kitchen.

I sat on the couch and started looking for the remote on the coffee table. I was about to give up when something caught my eyes and I grabbed her notebook. It was similar to mine but of a different color and I knew she wrote ideas for her tv show or her future book in it. I was about to ignore it when I realized it was open and I could have sworn I had seen my surname. Without thinking, I grabbed it and a smile appeared quickly on my face when I saw 'Olivia Horan' scribbled everywhere on a page, surrounded by hearts and stars. It seemed like she had tried to create a signature with her future name and it made me think about the ring in my drawer. If I was scared she wouldn't accept, that notebook was a good clue that her answer would probably be positive. I put it away when I heard noise and leaned against the couch as I watched her walk slowly up to me to make sure she wouldn't spill our hot beverages and I thanked her as I grabbed a mug. She sat next to me and our eyes met before our lips curled. I couldn't believe how happy I was.

"I love you, Niall. I'm... I'm glad we're dating now." she admitted before taking a sip.

"Me too, petal. I'm happy you accepted to be my girlfriend again."

                                                     ---

December 2018

When Liv told me she was spending the day with Julia, I was a bit surprised, but the truth was, I enjoyed the fact that these two got along so well. She said she wouldn't be home late but I knew how she could get and when Louis proposed that we grabbed a bite (and a few pints, of course)  together, I jumped on the occasion.

I knew Louis had become Olivia's best friend and even if we used to be very close, I was fine with that. Somehow, they had been through a lot together, and I knew it was partially my fault : they probably wouldn't be that close if I hadn't broken up with Liv. Of course, they'd still be friends, since they were before we broke up, but I knew their pain brought them closer and it was obvious that nothing could tear them apart now.

I was also slowly but surely getting over the fact that Louis and her had sex a few times. I was not sure how often but I was sure I didn't want to know and anyway, i couldn't blame her or him. It had happened and I had to live with that fact. Besides, I knew there was nothing between them anymore.

I smiled when I saw Louis walk in the restaurant and got up to hug him before we both sat back down. We ordered beer and when we got them, we clinked our glasses together and drank half of it. It was weird to think I was with Olivia's best friend and she was actually hanging out with mine, but the fact that we appreciated each other's entourage was perfect.

"So, Neil, how are things for you?" he asked, playing with his beer and turning it around in his hands. "Where's my queen tonight?"

I chuckled and rolled my eyes, amused. "Your queen is with Julia, but she's not supposed to come back home too late. She'll text me. Where's El?"

"Gone for a few days."

"Ah. That's why you called me." I pointed out before laughing when I saw his face. "It's ok Tommo, I get it."

"I'm thinking you're ding quite well these days." he pointed out, ignoring my last comment. "When are you gonna pop the question?"

I almost choked on my beer and wiped my mouth on my shoulder before swallowing hard and making Louis laugh.

"We've just been taking bets on that." he continued, shrugging a shoulder.

"We?" I raised my eyebrows.

"Liam and I. Trying to bring Harry in it but he says it's none of our business."

"I've always thought Harry was the smartest of my bandmates." I joked, making Louis laugh again.

"Oh yea, you definitely thought that when he was balls deep in your best friend's fanny right?"

"Shut up, Tommo!" I frowned as he laughed again. "He probably shagged her less times than you did."

Louis took an other big sip of his drink. "Touché." he shrugged again before chuckling. "Not sure what it says about the relationship they had, though."

I raised my nose up in a grimace and drank what was left of my beer. I didn't really want to have this discussion and I decided to change the subject.

"Well, I don't know which bet you took, but I hope you lose." I admitted as I looked through my pocket, taking out the ring and placing it right in the middle of the table.

Louis' eyes got bigger and he moved closer, bending down to look it it without daring to touch it. I stopped the waitress to order us two other beers and a few shots and when I turned back to my friend. he was still staring at the ring like he didn't know what it was. I snatched it quickly, taking him out of his thoughts, and put it in my little finger to stare at it.

"I've thought about asking her so many times." I confessed, my eyes still on the ring. "But it never feels like the right time."

"I know you're a romantic man, Niall but... will there ever be a right time?" Louis said gently, making me sigh. "Aren't you just a bit scared that she'll say no and leave?"

I groaned and closed my eyes before raising my nose up in a grimace again. "Maybe."

He was right, I knew it, but at the same time, i wanted to make it special for her. I wanted it to be something that she'd remember forever, something she couldn't forget even if she tried. I wanted to express my feelings to her and tell her everything she wanted and needed to hear, just to make her happy. I had tried to write down the right words but everything seemed cliché and cheesy.

"Do it. She's your soulmate. I can't make up a scenario in my head where she'd actually say 'no'." he continued. "I think deep down, you know I'm right."

I looked up and sighed again, putting the ring back in my pocket.

"I don't know anymore, I just don't want to take her for granted, you know?" I shrugged. "I've done that before and it messed up everything. Never again."

"That doesn't mean you can't be confident and believe in the love she has for you."

I frowned a bit as I stared at him. "Are you trying to win your bet against Liam by making me ask Olivia to marry me?"

"No." Louis chuckled, leaning against his chair. "I just think you've been hesitant for too long. When exactly did you buy this ring?"

"Mm, well, about, 8 months ago?"

Just saying it out loud sounded ridiculous. Had I been waiting that long? It was almost pathetic. How scared of rejection could a guy be? Seriously. I had never reacted like that in anything I did before, and I was always the confident type, but asking Olivia to marry me was something that made me so nervous I could feel my hands sweat and I passed one of them in my hair.

"8 months? Are you fucking insane? How did you manage to keep that secret?"

"I don't even know." I mumbled in a low tone, staring at my glass, not daring to check Louis' amused expression.

"Niall, we're talking about Olivia. The girl you've known all your life, the girl who's been in love with you since the very first day she found out what love was. Put your big boy pants on and pop the fucking question before that fucking ring starts to get rusty!"

"It's made of gold...."

He rolled his eyes and kicked me under the table, making me groan again as I moved my leg away. Damn, that kid could kick.

"Don't be a fookin' idiot, mate, and just ask her."

I finally looked up in his eyes and he raised his eyebrows at me. He was right but at the same time, I didn't know when I should do it. I wanted to do something special, or at least slightly romantic, but all I could think about were ugly clichés from movies. Nothing original came to mind and it was driving me insane.

"Alright. Soon." I gave in. "I'll do it soon."