#but mine are jeans so we improved on the look and made it festive

[highbrasshighkass]

happy scrungle his jorts single saturday to those who celebrate have this super normal cal that @aleydraws drew in a program they "have definitely used before and was for sure cooperating"

[jerkbitchidjitassbutt]

It Was You (Part Three)

A/N: Jensen and Y/n are childhood best friends. When his agent informs him that his image could use some improvement for a role, will she help him? Or will her feelings get in the way?

Surprise! I know it’s late (at least by my standards), but ta-da! Part Three a day early!

Read Part One here, and part two here.

A holiday (Christmas centric) Jensen x Female!Reader Best Friends to Lovers series for @spnchristmasbingo​​. This chapter and others will fill the square of ‘fake dating’, and this one specifically fills ‘Christmas Pajamas’. Un-beta’d, so all mistakes are mine. Header created by me with images from Google. Chapter word count: 2790

Series Warnings: angst-ish at times (if you squint), but mostly all the fluff.

I consider this an AU, as Jensen is single in this fic. This is completely a work of fiction, and I wouldn’t want his reality to be any different, this is purely for entertainment.

You pushed the image of his wink from your mind as you finished up breakfast while Jensen called Stacy and set up a meeting for the three of you. She sounded particularly excited that he had taken her advice, and more so that you were on board. You spent the rest of the morning goofing off with each other as you normally would, singing along to the radio while you cleaned up from your meal and resting a bit before your meeting. When you decided to hop in the shower, Jensen retreated to his own apartment to freshen up.

You dressed for the cold weather once again, opting for a pair of dark wash jeans and boots with thick socks underneath. You layered yourself with a sweater and your peacoat, opting for a scarf and gloves to shield yourself from the cold, but left your hair down to cover your ears as best it could.

Jensen returned to your apartment about an hour after he’d left before escorting you to his SUV in the garage to shlep you across town to Stacy’s office, where she met you with a warm smile. You’d met her plenty of times before, as Jensen considered her a friend after working with her for so many years.

“Y/n, it’s so great to see you again. You look beautiful.” She gushed, causing heat to rise to your cheeks. “And may I just say, you’re making my job a lot easier today.” She added with a breathy laugh.

She welcomed you and Jensen to take a seat opposite from her at her desk before diving right into the semantics. It was pretty simple – you and Jensen were to start posting even more on social media, even suggesting that you share some old pictures of the two of you from your childhood to reinforce your story. She was okay with Jensen’s suggestion of not announcing a relationship explicitly and said the gossip would be enough to keep up the facade of the two of you being together. Her next idea, though, made you shift a bit in your chair.

“I would love it if we could get some paparazzi shots of the two of you with some PDA at some point. Nothing explicit, of course. Maybe just some hand holding or something, you know, to get the fires going.” She proposed flippantly as she shuffled some papers on her desk.

After you shared a look with Jensen, he shrugged and simply replied, “We’ll see what we can do.”

“Alright, then. Jensen, I’m going to ask you this as this is your decision, but do you feel we need to sign a non-disclosure agreement with Y/n? Normally, I would insist, but seeing as you two are such good friends, I’m not going to.”

Jensen waved his hands, “Not necessary. I trust Y/n with my life, so there’s really no need. She’d never do anything that would warrant one.”

You reassured her as well, “I wouldn’t do anything to hurt his career, no matter what. We trust each other to handle this appropriately.”

Stacy seemed satisfied as she nodded and stood to straighten her black blazer, “Well, I think that covers my end of everything. I do think this’ll help. Granted, Jensen is an agent’s dream when it comes to image, really. He’s scandal-free and always has been, but the bachelor title can be weary in the eyes of a casting director at times, particularly for the role of a young father. I’ll keep pushing forward with communications with the producer and I’ll call you when I hear something.”

She reached over her desk as you and Jensen stood from your chairs and shook both of your hands before showing you out and wishing you a good day. As you left her office, Jensen placed his hand on the small of your back. It wasn’t anything he hadn’t done before numerous times, but when he left it there as you walked down the sidewalk to the parking area, you couldn’t help but wonder how much of it was just for show now.

....................

The next week was spent in relative normality. You and Jensen spent time together, as you always did, but now being sure to post more frequently to social media. Jared popped over early in the week before his flight back home to Texas so you could fill him in, since if anyone needed to be “in” on the charade, it was him. He’d be the first one calling Jensen if he’d heard any rumors, so he was thankful to be included and happy that it was you and not someone else. Jared understood, for the most part, and empathized with how difficult management could be at times.

“You guys can definitely sell that chemistry you’ve always had, so I think it will work.” Jared shrugged, but you didn’t miss the implication of your shared chemistry with Jensen, causing you to take a long sip of your water as he continued. “I’m not sure how they would’ve suckered some rando into faking it with this guy.” He teased, making Jensen huff in amusement and shove him lightly.

Giggling from your seat in Jensen’s apartment, you delighted in witnessing their brotherly bickering.

Jared stood from the chair at Jensen’s island to bid his farewells, “Well, y’all let me know if I can help in any way. My flight leaves at 5, so I’ve got to run, but I’ll see you guys next week.”

Yours and Jensen’s flight back together to Austin wasn’t until a few days before Christmas and Jared wanted to get home a bit earlier. The two of you would see Jared at his Christmas party before making your way to Dallas, where your families still lived. Jared and Jensen shared a quick hug before Jared scooped you up in his arms, pulling you tightly into his chest, “Now you let me know if I need to kick his ass for anything, you hear me?” he whispered in your ear.

Another laugh escaped you as you poked his side before he gave you a quick peck on the cheek and made for the door, waving as he exited. 

“Alrighty.” Jensen exclaimed, clasping his hands together after he saw Jared off, “I’ve got some plans for us tonight.”

You settled in front of him, gazing up at him with a questioning squint, “Do you now? Do I get to be privy to that information?”

“You sure do. C’mon, let’s go.”

He whisked you out of the door quickly after helping you into your coat. You walked with your arm linked in his, the gesture completely natural at this point in your lives, down the bustling streets of downtown Vancouver as you window shopped and grabbed some coffee at the café before he pulled you to your next stop, the artisanal bakery that made your favorite treats. He grabbed all the necessary ingredients to make hot chocolate and pushed you from counter to counter instructing you to grab whatever your heart desired.

“Tonight, we are cooking an amazing dinner of spaghetti – and yes, before you even ask, I’m making my grandmother’s sauce – and then, we’re getting in our most festive pj’s and having another Christmas movie marathon as we shove our faces full of cookies. Sound like a deal?”

You nudged him with your hip as the basket swung from your arm, “Ackles, you’re a man after my own heart, aren’t you?”

Grabbing a bag of chocolate covered truffles from behind you, he threw them into your basket with a grin, “I’m just trying to woo you, Y/n. Should I be so lucky.”

If only he knew.

After spending way too much on chocolate, decadent candies and other treats, you went back to your apartment to grab your Christmas pajamas that were given to you as a gift last year from Jensen’s parents. They had made the whole family dress up in matching sets for their annual Christmas eve dinner with both of your families, and it made for the most relaxed evening as you all gathered around their outdoor fire-pit for dinner instead of the formal table setting you’d experienced in so many years past as it was a tradition for both sides, with Jensen’s and your parents alternating hosting each year. The pajamas were red and had snowflakes all over them and you decided to grab your polar bear bootie slippers from your closet to bring also. You changed quickly and pulled an oversized shawl around your shoulders before creeping back down the hallway, praying that one of your neighbors didn’t peak out to see a grown woman rushing down the hall in snowflake jammies.

Letting yourself back into Jensen’s apartment, you heard a loud chuckled as soon as you shut the door. He had emerged from the short hallway that led to his bedroom wearing his pair of the same print, but he was barefoot.

“Great minds, huh?” he quipped with a wide smile, still laughing as he ventured into the kitchen.

The two of you made dinner together and ate at his island, talking about all of your family’s traditions for this time of year and gushing about how much you were looking forward to being home for the holiday. You’d head straight to Jared and Gen’s home in Austin from the airport and spend the night there so that you could attend their holiday party and drive to Dallas the next day. You were so excited to see your family, and Jensen’s. They were sort of a package deal, becoming one large family over the years. You adored his parents, and always had. His home was your escape and yours was his, and each set of parents treated the two of you as one of their own. You’d spent many nights having dinner with the Ackles’ and he had a standing invitation at your table, courtesy of both of your parents and your sister. She was fiercely protective of both of you, taking to Jensen as if he was her little brother since he was born. In fact, the shared family tradition of Christmas Eve dinner began because she was afraid that you would miss Jensen too much if you went a few days without seeing him. She threw an enormous fit one evening when you started to cry, and she had it in her mind that it was because you weren’t with your best friend. You were only three, and at the time your sister was six years old, and so the tradition came to last. You would gather together, eat, and open gifts with everyone piled into a small space to exchange. This year, they had elected to do a secret Santa and you were lucky enough to draw Jensen’s mom.

You each finished up your meals and cleaned up the kitchen before plopping down on his large, u-shaped sectional that faced his entertainment center that house a huge TV and showcased his DVDs, record player and collection of albums and 45’s. You were fortunate to live in the same apartment complex as he did, though Jensen’s paychecks were obviously a bit larger than yours. He had refused to allow you to be in a separate building from him when you moved from Texas to Vancouver, so he found one that was secure enough for someone with a bit of fame but wasn’t too overpriced that you couldn’t afford it on your salary. He even offered to pay a portion of your rent to ensure he wouldn’t be too far away, but thankfully this building had worked out for both of you. It had a doorman and was as secure as it could be, so you took the one-bedroom apartment on the same floor as Jensen’s two bedroom. His was larger, but you had a better view in your opinion.

He had set up all of your bounty from the bakery on the coffee table and made a bowl of popcorn, your steaming mugs of hot chocolate nestled between all of the goods.

“C’mere.” He gestured, encouraging you to curl into his side.

He pulled his cell from underneath his leg and snapped a few photos of the two of you smiling for the camera. Then, he grabbed a handful of popcorn and held it to his mouth, taking another picture with it spilling from every corner and cascading toward his lap as you laughed at his funny expression. His eyes were wide as he made a ridiculous face, but it was always one of your favorite sides of him. He had many, to be sure, but that man could make your sides hurt with laughter at any point in time when he was simply carefree and looking to be a jokester. It was one of the many things you loved about him – his ability to make you laugh like no one else could, but he was also the sweetest man you’d ever met. You settled back into your spot underneath his arm, taking the bowl from his hands as he tossed his phone on the cushion next to him and picked up a few stray pieces of popcorn, tossing one at you. You threw it back, but he caught it and pitched it into his mouth with a victorious grin. You rolled your eyes playfully before munching on some yourself. He laid his arm around your shoulders and pulled you close, pressed his lips to your hairline and kissing you on the side of your head.

“You should’ve taken that picture… that would’ve gone over well.” You half joked.

He raised an eyebrow in your direction with an inquisitive glint, “You think? Should we do it?”

Shrugging, you nodded indifferently. Again, it wasn’t anything out of the ordinary that you were doing, but it would make people talk, so he grabbed his phone once more and repeated the kiss. This time, you smiled but didn’t look directly at the camera, letting your eyes flutter closed until he pulled his mouth away. When you looked up at him through your lashes, you heard another click.

Showing you his screen, he thumbed through the few he’d taken, the last two made you suck in a sharp breath. He left his eyes and mouth slightly open and had a huge smile as his lips attached to the crown of your head, the crinkles around his eyes accentuated slightly and he was looking off into the distance. The last one he took made your heart swell. It looked like two people in love, staring into each other’s eyes. You were both smiling but giving each other such looks of adoration that even you would buy it, and you were in on the rouse.

It was easy to be with him. Your relationship was not give and take, but mutual exchange and the type of comfort you can only have after knowing someone for so many years. He knew you in a way no one else ever would, and you had been through every up and down together. When he’d left for L.A. to pursue acting, it hurt all that much more because it felt like that would all be lost. You were grateful that even after those few years, everything fell back into place as soon as you were near each other again. Success and fame hadn’t changed him, at least the him that you got to know. He was still the same man you’d always known and had matured with, the boyish charm he’d always had and the distinguished charisma that he’d grown into combining into who he was today.

He elected to post the first few photos, captioning them #matchingjammies and #nopopcornforyou @y/i/h, looking for your approval and causing you to chuckle against him before he put his phone down once again. “We’ll save the others.” he mentioned casually.

It wasn’t long before you’d picked your way through as many treats as you could, both satisfied that your sweet tooth had been satiated. About halfway through your second movie, you were resting your eyes once again coiled against him, comforted that everything smelled like Jensen.

It wasn’t until the credits rolled of The Grinch that he noticed you were sleeping. Your head was nestled against his chest, with your knees pulled to you tightly and the blanket tucked beneath your chin.

This time, Jensen scooped you up and carried you to his bedroom, holding you close to his chest and ignoring his spare bed down the hall. He pulled back the covers and tucked you beneath them before removing his button up pajama shirt and climbing in himself, leaving him in his pajama pants and a fitted white t-shirt.

He could have woken you up but, frankly, he didn’t want to. Something told him that he couldn’t bear to have you go home to your apartment, not just yet. He wanted another night of sleeping next to you, of holding you close and feeling you beside him. The thought caused him to wonder, even in his sleepy mind, if he could continue to pretend any longer.

To be continued...

…………………………………………………………………………………………

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Jensen Only

@mrsambroserollinsacklesmgk​

[algerbecher]

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[maxiekat]

In a world full of rom-coms, when was the last time you cried over an onscreen breakup that actually stuck? No grand gestures to save the day, just pure, raw, lust and heartbreak. If you want to get so deep in your feels you forget if you’re actually heartbroken or just bleary-eyed over someone else’s love story, then you may need to subscribe to the church of Drake Doremus.

The director is known for his mostly improvised, chill-inducing romantic dramas (Like Crazy, Newness, Equals) and his latest is a tender-to-the-touch look at a modern love triangle in Endings, Beginnings, which premieres Sunday at Toronto Film Festival. Much like his previous work, Endings, Beginnings is clever and cutting, but also soft and quiet. Shailene Woodley is at the heart of the film playing Daphne, a thirty-something artist (her specialty is hand-painted tea pots, which she sells on Etsy) who recently and abruptly quit her job and ended her long-term relationship with her boyfriend (Matthew Gray Gubler, in his third Doremus film).

Looking for a hard reset on life, Daphne moves into the pool house of her much more together older half-sister. She also stops drinking, focuses on looking for a new job, and cuts men out of her life. Until, of course, she meets two men at a New Year’s Party. One’s brooding, asking her for a light of a cigarette in the most drunken and charming of ways. He’s wearing a shearling jacket, worn-in with adventures. The other’s in LA’s version of a suit — he’s put together, and looks at her with the steady intentness. Daphne should be avoiding both, but she quickly becomes enamored with bad boy Frank (Sebastian Stan), a nomad who drinks absinthe, and good boy Jack (Jamie Dornan), an academic who has a dog and dreams of moving to Europe. What starts as innocent text-flirting evolves into two full-blown relationships. Oh, and the guys are best friends.

When Stan first read for the film, he read for both Frank and Jack’s role, but what really attracted him to the heady rom-dram was Dormeus himself, of whom he’s been a huge fan. “I met him and I said, ‘I gotta tell you, I don’t know which one of these people you are seeing me as, but I really relate to both of them. I love both,’” he says over the phone to Refinery29. Stan’s in London where he’s filming the spy-thriller 355, a movie he says is “stylistically and tonally very different,” than Endings, Beginnings, but with “a couple of similarities here and there.”

“And we just got very deep. We got into relationships and being in our 30s and the world we are in right now, and all our experiences.” The vulnerability seen on-screen between Woodley, Stan, and Dornan is something special, and almost entirely improvised, based on just 30 pages of notes. Endings, Beginnings is a far cry from the big budget Marvel movies you’re used to seeing Stan in (he plays Captain America’s pal Bucky Barnes in seven Marvel movies and one upcoming spin-off series.) I was reading your Instagram post earlier gushing about working on this film with Drake. When did you become a fan of his, and why did you two think Frank was the role for you?

“I was aware of [Drake] for awhile. Like everyone else, I loved Like, Crazy, and then I also like his recent movie with Nicholas Hoult, Equals. I was also just really interested in doing a movie and improvising  —   because the entire movie is practically improvised. I never worked in that medium before. I got a call saying, Hey do you want to meet with Drake and talk about this movie [and] read the draft?, which was basically like 30 pages. There were two guy [parts] at the time. I met him and I said, ‘I gotta tell you, I don’t know which one of these people you are seeing me as, but I really relate to both of them. I love both.’ And we just got very deep. We got into relationships and being in our 30s and the world we are in right now, and all our experiences. Again, I didn’t really know that is where we were gonna go, but he was very honest with me and I was honest with him. We parted ways, and the next thing I knew he called me to have a session with somebody at the time that he was thinking of for the role as Daphne, and I went in and had a 3-hour improv session with him, then he called me and told me that he wants me to do the Frank role and I was fine with that.”

Only 30 pages. Everything else is improv? All the film’s dialogue?

“Yes, that is all literally on the day, in the moment, happening real-time. Basically, the script that he had was just the outline: Daphne comes out a recent relationship and moves in with her best friends. They’re having a New Years Party, and she runs into Frank who asks her for a cigarette. It was all outlines, but in terms of the dialogue and how we would get there, that was all improvised. That was an interesting experience because I had never worked that way and no take is ever the same. I walked away from that experience feeling very vulnerable. You’re not hiding behind any lines.”

The improvisation really added to the film. I left it feeling more emotional than I expected.

“We’ve all had relationships, and we know how tricky they are. They’re complex and there’s many layers. I don’t know — I have always loved romantic comedies. I grew up on When Harry Met Sally and all that, but I sometimes feel that relationships aren’t entirely depicted as messy and as raw and as painful as they are. That’s why I loved working with him because I feel like he gets to the core of situations. I’m happy to hear you related to it because that is what he wants. He wants you to go, 'I’ve had that conversation...been in that situation.’”

There’s been a resurgence in romantic comedies, but not so much romantic dramas like this. Do you think there’s a reason why?

“I love romantic comedies and there is a space for them, but [rom coms] are hopeful. Sometimes when I go to the movies, I don’t want to necessarily see what my life is. I want to be like, Hey! It’s nice to think that maybe that could be that way. If you want to be inspired, or laugh a little bit — there’s that element of it. And sometimes you want to see a movie that makes you feel less alone in your experience. A lot of European films are much closer to this, and I think Drake loves a lot of European films and is influenced by them and the personal quality. Structurally in romantic comedies, you have bigger things happening, right? Whereas [in this movie], there are big things happening, but there’s a much more subtle transition through everything.”

Frank is the “player” of the film, while Jack is the “good guy,” for lack of a better phrase. You’ve said before that you didn’t really know why you were often cast as the “bad boy.”  Do you still not know why?

“I don’t know! [Groans] I don’t know. The truth is, the reason I was saying [I could play] Jack was that I talk a lot in my life. I philosophize a lot. I try to read things. Then I think about it, and then I wanna talk about it. I relate to that [aspect of Jack]. And actually, there was a lot to Frank and Daphne that we shot that was funny. They had a lot of their own back and forth, but what ended up being in the movie —  I think Drake never forgot the vision that he had for Frank — [was him] being much darker than we shot. I am happy it ended up that way because there needed to be a contrast.

But I don’t know! I am glad they think I can do this. I am one of the most over-thinking, neurotic people I know. So I don’t know how it happens, but it keeps happening.”

I thought a big part of Frank also was his big shearling jacket. Since most of the movie was improvised, did you have anything to do with his outfits?

“Oh yeah, I kept that jacket, first of all. It’s a great jacket. What’s great about Drake is that he was like, ‘Hey, listen, people wear the same stuff all the time. If something works, let’s just it.’ I was like yeah, the guy probably kind of flies by the seat of his pants anyways so he just has a few things. I think I wore some of my own jeans. The boots I wore were mine. Drake definitely wanted us to wear our own stuff so we could feel comfortable in it.”

This was originally called No, No, No, Yes and ended as Endings, Beginnings. How did the title change shape the movie?

“It was always a working title. I saw that it was paired up with her experience — every no and every yes was paired to one of the relationships that she was going through. Endings, Beginnings is a little more specific. I know for awhile he was even contemplating a title that was even just made up of emojis which I thought would have been really fun.”

Oh yeah. I loved the texting aspect in this movie.

“There is an element of texting in the time period we are in, and there is this new language to it. They got it in the sense that both Jack and Frank have their very specific ways of texting. Jack probably uses punctuation, and Frank does not. [Laughs]”

You’ve worked with a few of the Big Little Lies women now. Do you have plans to work with the others like Zoe Kravitz, Reese Witherspoon, or Laura Dern?

“That has not hit me — that’s kinda funny. I don’t think I have ever met Reese Witherspoon and I’ve met Laura Dern. If the opportunity presents itself then great. I certainly wouldn’t have had a problem if there had been a role in the second season. I would have done it in a second. I loved the first season.”

I have one more that I have to ask about — obviously Gossip Girl is getting rebooted, and Chace [Crawford] said it made him feel “old,” but he’d be down. Have you thought about it at all?

“[Laughs] I don’t even… it’s so weird. Somehow a lot of people talk to me about Gossip Girl, and I always thought I was just a guest star. It was a very special show. It certainly defined those years, and we all got our start there in a way. It would be hilarious and weird and crazy. He’s right — we are old! I don’t know what business they’d have with me, but, Jesus. If there was some funny little witty thing and they called and we’re like, ‘We’re doing this thing and we have everybody….’ I’m not gonna be the asshole that says no. Maybe I’ll be in the background scooping some ice cream.”

[kristaloohoo]

Birthday Surprise

:// Hello all! Here is my first post here. I know it’s not great. I’m working on improving my writing. My A03 account is kristaminamino and I would love if you looked at my other works there :D This was a late birthday fic for the Choi Brothers. Hope you enjoy <3

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             I had never been good at surprises. I could barely keep my mouth shut around my sister when my parents were planning a surprise birthday party at the age of twelve. Again I almost spilled the beans when my friend was getting engaged while we were both finishing college. And now, here I sat in the bedroom I shared with Saeyoung, busily scribbling certain details in a notebook. Laying on the bed I mumbled to myself as I sketched out an image of a cake, marking certain details in the decorations and flavor. I was so into my notes that I jumped when I heard Saeyoung’s voice at the doorway. “My love! Join me as I attend a tour of the Naro Space Center!” I slowly sat up, the notebook clutched tightly to my chest in fear that he would see the crudely draw cake design. “When? Right now?” “Well not right now…” He paused to glance at his watch, giving his wrist a little shake to adjust the position, before happily cheering, “In thirty minutes! We gotta move!” I froze on the bedsheet, trying to rack my brain for a believable excuse.          

        I opened my mouth to speak, and popped it back shut. “Sae…I’m not sure if I can…” His face fell immediately, slowly walking over to me. To remove any suspicion I closed the notebook and set it on the floor on my side. He kneeled on the bed as he stared at me, but he murmured, “You okay?” I nodded quickly, and soon an idea popped into my head. My hand immediately covered my stomach, giving a small rub. “I haven’t been feeling too well since last night. I’m not feeling too hot…” His brow furrowed and his hand instinctively reached to my forehead, testing the temperature of my skin. After a moment he spoke softly, “You don’t have a fever…” I chewed on the inside of my cheek before I whispered, “I’m not sure…  I’ve just been feeling run down since yesterday…do you think I can sit this one out?” His expression fell as he watched me, but slowly a smile replaced the sadness on his face. “I suppose…but I hate to leave you here while you aren’t feeling well.” I shook my head and gave my own smile. “No, you’re fine. I’ll rest here and you can take Saeran with you.” His eyes lit up at the mention of his brother and his smile became larger. “Right you are!” He leaned in and kissed my forehead, but whispered, “Get some rest yeah? Hopefully, you feel better when we get back.” I gave a slight nod as he planted another kiss to my forehead before stepping out and shutting the door. As I picked up the notebook I heard a yell from Saeran’s room. “No! Idiot leave me!” “Saeran love me! Go with me please!?” I giggled as I rolled the front of the notebook back, continuing to sketch things out.            Once the front door shut and the noise from Saeyoung’s car echoed away, I slid out the bedroom to complete my preparations. I first began with straightening the living room and kitchen area. Vanderwood had been absent the past few days and with that left a small clutter of potato chip bags, empty cans, and takeout trays to scatter the area. I quickly cleaned it all and settled into the kitchen to begin the cake. This cake wasn’t just for Saeyoung, it was for Saeran. Of course, they shared the same birthday, and I couldn’t leave one out of the celebrations. Carefully I mixed the cake and poured it into three separate molds. Saeyoung was my everything, but Saeran…Saeran was different. We weren’t romantically involved, but we bonded over so many things. Before he was apprehensive of me moving into the bunker, and in the beginning, our conversations were few and far between. Now after a year of being together, we had bonded over so many things. Saeran had come to rely on me for my, as he worded it, famous ice cream recipe. And in return, he offered a shoulder whenever Saeyoung was gone and nightmares plagued my mind. It was a mutual acceptance, one bound on silence and sweets, and I was completely content with the situation. I knew Saeran trusted and cared about me, even if he didn’t use any words. I placed all three molds in the oven and set the timer, closing the door cautiously. Now I found time to prepare the main dish. Of course, Saeyoung’s favorite food was his sacred Honey Buddha Chips, but even I draw the line at serving it for the main course. I quickly opened a bag and poured them into a ziplock bag. That fact didn’t stop me from attempting a recipe for him. I quickly found my rolling pin and smashed the chips in the bag, turning them into a crumbly mess. I poured them into a separate bowl and moved them into line with my other ingredients. My idea was to crust chicken breast in the chip mix, creating a nice crust to bread them with. As I went behind myself and cleaned up, I heard a few beeps from the door. I froze suddenly, staring at the front door. They couldn’t be back so soon could they? Shit, how do I explain this? I bit my lip but soon the image of Vanderwood stepped in, carrying a bag in one hand. As he shut the door he turned to see my doe-eyed face, and he stopped. His eyes glanced around the kitchen but he muttered dully, “I’m not cleaning this up.” I shrugged and meekly said, “I don’t expect you to.” He gave a nod and walked to the spare bedroom, and I quickly continued to prep my foods. He walked back into the kitchen, and I glanced up from my procedure to see him dressed casually. He wore dark jeans, slack against his legs with a long sleeve purple button up. He crossed his arms to see me studying him, but he muttered, “What are you planning?” I looked up at his face to see his intrigued gaze, and before I could say anything his phone rang. I stared as he pulled it out, glancing at the screen before putting it to his ear. “Yes?”

I could hear a quiet mumble on the other end, and his eyes caught mine. “Check on Marlee for you?” I immediately dropped the pair of tongs and waved my hands, cutting across my throat. He made a face and mumbled, “She’s not feeling well? I suppose I can check on her.” I took a deep breath, covering my chest in relief. I continued cooking as Vanderwood hung up his phone, but he glanced at me and muttered, “So you’re planning something.” “Just a quick birthday party.” I gave a small smile as I continued to stir the egg mix. From the corner of my eye, I could see him eyeing my set up before sighing and pushing his sleeves up. “Okay, where can I step in?” I glanced around before pulling the chicken breasts from their packaging. “Just maybe keep an eye on the cake?” He nodded and stepped into the kitchen space as I made a process as breading the chicken. We were quiet for a moment as I worked in silence, but he spoke quickly, “I do care about Luciel you know…” I turned my head with a smile. “I know.” He crossed his arms as I continued with the chicken, but I spoke lowly, “I understand your line of work asks you to hide your emotions, but Saeyoung is special to you.” He gave a slight nod but soon a timer beeped from my phone. “Cake,” I ordered, and he opened the oven to pull the pans out.

        Saeyoung had texted me to let me know they were on their way back home, and Vanderwood and I busily finished our preparations. I busily iced the cake while he set up streamers and balloons. Soon I set up the pans to fry the chicken as he moved the cake to the side. He even helped me decorate the cake, complete with bright blues and greens. In the last stretch, he prepared a salad while I made a mixed veggie bowl. I took a breath as I set everything out on the counter, and I eyed our accomplishments. “Okay…seems good,” I whispered, mentally counting everything in front of me. I jumped however as Vanderwood snapped a conical hat onto my head, and I turned to see him already situated with one. I smiled at him, but he threatened, “You tell Luciel I helped and I will end you.” “Understood ma’am.” I saluted quickly and he rolled his eyes, understanding immediately that I had taken on Saeyoung’s mannerisms. Soon we both heard a loud engine pull up into the garage and I ran behind the counter. My fingers tapped impatiently on the surface as my ears strained to hear the doors shut, as well as the twins arguing about a topic. I glanced at Vanderwood and he nodded as we both ducked out of sight. I held a breath as I heard the door beep and then mumbled speaking outside the door. Once it cracked open my gaze turned to Vanderwood who nodded. We both jumped up from our hiding spots, crying, “Happy Birthday!!” I grinned as I noticed a stunned Saeran and a very excited Saeyoung. My cheeks started to ache with how hard I was smiling, but as Saeran slowly walked in Saeyoung ran up to me and took me into his arms. “Oh, Marlee? I thought you weren’t feeling well?” I squealed as he held me, but as he brought me back down I spoke quickly, “All a ploy my dear.” He grinned and took my face in his hands, kissing me gently.

        The rest of the night was full of birthday festivities. Saeran seemed uninterested until I mentioned cake and ice cream, to which he perked up and suddenly seemed invested in the celebrations. After our meal and dessert, it was time for presents. I froze suddenly, gripping my legs tightly. With all the thought going into the dinner I completely forgot about gifts. As a line of obscenities ran through my head Saeyoung looked at me with a grin. I looked up and bashfully said, “I, uh…forgot…” His face fell immediately and I felt guilt flood my mind. But to my surprise, his face changed into a sweet smile. “Marlee, this dinner is our gift.” My head jerked towards him as he continued. “I can’t tell you how happy for my brother and me to celebrate a home-cooked meal on our birthday. And cake?” He happily wiggled in his chair as I glanced at Saeran, to see him peeking up at me from a forkful of cake. He pulled it from his mouth and nodded quickly, but we turned to see Vanderwood walk out of the spare bedroom with two bags. “Since Marlee’s gift was dinner and dessert, I brought gifts.” My eyebrow perked as I watched him sit a bag in front of each of the brothers. Both of the brothers stared at their gifts, then at each other, but both jumping to Vanderwood exclaiming, “Well come on! We don’t have all day!” I watched as Saeyoung ripped open a box, while Saeran carefully pulled tissue paper from a bag. Saeyoung was first as he pulled a box from a mess of tissue paper. I recognized the box immediately, but he cooed, “Oh Vandy you shouldn’t have…” His present was a new processor, ready for a desktop. Now just any processor; this was a rumored processor that was supposed to release in the Fall. Saeyoung cradled it gently, but I glanced over to Saeran as he pulled a potted plant from a bag. He stared at it for a moment before looking up at Vanderwood. “This is…this is a mimosa pudica…” Vanderwood spoke as he gave a bashful look to the side, but I turned back to Saeran. “Oh Sae, that’s the bashful plant right?” He gave a slight nod and I watched as his finger gingerly touched a stem. Suddenly the tiny leaves folded in, and my eyes widened to see him give a wide smile.

        I sat on the bed as Saeyoung assembled the processor to a motherboard, engrossed in his project. I wouldn’t say it out loud, but the second part of his present sat under the sheets in the form of baby pink lingerie. I shifted slightly as I watched his brow furrow, but I questioned, “Was this birthday good Sae?” He turned to look at me with a grin, but he spoke softly, “Are you kidding me? This has been the best birthday ever!” My lips creased into a soft smile as he turned back to his work, focusing on the computer open in front of him. After a few more minutes I grew impatient and sat up in the bed with the covers tossed back. “Saeyoung Choi!” He turned and his eyes widened at my lingerie, and his gaze slowly turned towards my face. I pouted but spoke, “Your second birthday present might expire if you don’t hurry up and get over here.” I stared at his frozen form for a moment before he gave his computer a second glance and then dropped the hardware, pulling his +shirt over his head as he climbed onto the bed. I giggled as he pushed me back into the mattress, and my arms wrapped around his neck. “I mean, you can work on your computer a little more,” I cooed, but he leaned in and kissed my collarbone, and replied, “No ma’am. This present has all of my attention…and I can’t wait to unwrap it.”

[blueboxesandtrafficcones]

Queen of Hearts - Chapter 8

Thirty-year-old Rose Tyler’s matchmaking business is doing very well indeed, bringing her clients such as celebrities, athletes, and the now-happily-married son of the mayor.  All of which brings her to her newest client - one whose royal rank is a far cry above her own title as Queen of Hearts.

Ian, King of Gallifrey, calls off his wedding four weeks before the happy day as he realizes he can’t spend another minute of his life with his betrothed.  The catch - he must take a wife before his Coronation, only a month away.  In desperation, his sister and aunt conspire to find him is happy ever after - and it’s going to take a master matchmaker to do it.

-

Based on the Hallmark Movie ‘Royal Matchmaker’.  Chapters will be posted every Sunday.

As always, beta’d by the wonderful @stupidsatsuma​!  @doctorroseprompts

Masterlist  |  AO3

—

Monday, April 8th

Rose essentially spent all of Monday on Skype, interviewing their shortlist.  Each candidate got twenty-five minutes, and the list was fairly easy to pare down – too easy.

“Why does Reinette have to be out of the country?” she whined, going to the corkboard and crossing off another name.  “My gut says she’s the best of them all.  I just… don’t get the sense that any of them will be able to get past the gruff exterior.”

“Are we sure there is anything past the gruff exterior?” Mel asked, queueing up the next interview but not yet connecting.

Rose nodded, folding her arms tightly across her stomach and staring out the window.  “Absolutely.  The question is, will he let any of these women in?”  She thought about how he had behaved when they were alone, first on Saturday at the festival and then again on Sunday, in the library.  She’d seen another side of him, a softer side, one that just wanted to take care of the people he loved.

Her theory was that was what attracted him to his previous fiancée; the anonymity.  The ability to just be, with no duties or expectations.  Someone who wanted him for Ian, not for ‘the King’.

A normal life.

-

Ian scowled at his closet, wondering how he could have so. much. clothing. and nothing to put on.  Another evening, another dinner shared with Rose, and he couldn’t decide what to wear.  Rather than try to analyze the why of that particular angst, he instead started at one end again and flicked through his options.

Typically after a day full of pomp and pompousness, or more specifically meeting with the Privy Council, he tried to go casual with his dress, normal trousers and a rock band tee – but this was the first one since his daily dinner dates arrangement with Rose started.  He wanted her to have a good impression of him, wanted to appear dignified and royal, but he also wanted to be himself.

A fresh suit hung on the back of the door and he crossed his arms, staring between it and the Beatles tee he wanted.

I want to know you, she had said when she first arrived and he got blindsided by Donna and Sarah’s treachery.  The real you, the one your wife will know.

Well, that settled it.  Nodding sharply he pulled the tee off the hanger and over his head, smoothing it down before searching out an old, worn pair of jeans he loved.  His queen would have to understand that Ian Reginald Docherty was a force unto himself, and in the privacy of his own home (palatial as it may be) he was going to be comfortable.  If she didn’t like rock music, they would have an issue.

He made it as far as opening his bedroom door before stopping with a sigh, slowly turning back and grabbing the jacket from a black suit and shrugging it on to add a bit of decorum to his look.

Rose was waiting in the hallway outside the closed dining room doors, fidgeting, and he took a moment to stop and watch her.

She was all dolled up in a dress and heels, turning to check her reflection in a mirror hung on the wall.

Gazing at her his heart gave a painful thump, one that was growing steadily harder to ignore.  After spending the last several days answering her questions and being forced to reflect on the kind of partner he wanted for the first time, he was slowly coming to form a picture of his perfect wife in his mind, and the image was perhaps a little too clear.

She turned then, catching sight of him, and her face lit up like the sun.  “Your Majesty,” she shot him a teasing grin, dipping into a curtsey that grew more natural and less formal by the day.  “Nice shirt.”

“Thanks.”  Ian could not have stopped his answering smile for anything on Earth as he joined her, and in a fit of whimsy, offered her his elbow.  “May I escort you to dinner?”

“Why thank you.”  She laced her arm through his, letting her tongue peek between her teeth and wiping his mind clear.  “Shall we?” she prompted when he didn’t move.

“Yes.”  His pulse thundered in his ears, and he turned to guide her back up the hallway closer towards his inner sanctum.

She trotted along with him easily enough, though he could feel the heat from her curious glances.  “Where are we going?”

“In here.”

As if by magic a door on their right swung open, and they walked into a far smaller room than the usual.  A table that sat six took up the majority of the space, with two places set across from each other.  Ian guided her to the closer one and helped her into her seat, before coming around the table and settling down across from her.  The head of the table sat empty, and the only decoration was a vase of flowers.

“This is lovely,” Rose murmured, looking around the room, “but I don’t understand.”

“It’s a bit less formal in here,” Ian shrugged, delighting in the awe and wonder on her face as she noted the details in the space.  “When I take meals alone, or with just Donna or Sarah, we eat in here.”

She nodded slowly, opening her mouth as if to speak before snapping it shut again.  “How was your day?” she asked instead, and leaning forward he began to tell her, pushing away the soft voice in the back of his mind that grew louder every day.

If you play with fire, you’re bound to get burned.

-

After dinner they attempted another stroll on the grounds, though this time, Ian did his best to avoid controversial topics.

“What’s your favorite thing about Gallifrey?” Rose asked, once they’d made it a few yards from the patio.

“What?”

“Your favorite thing,” she repeated.  “Just… when you think about Gallifrey, what do you think of?”

The first thing that came to mind was so surprising he stopped dead, barely noticing when Rose continued on for a few feet before turning back.

“Your Majesty?”

“Home,” he said roughly, blinking rapidly and meeting her eye with no small amount of wonder.  “When I think of Gallifrey, I think of home.”

“That’s good, isn’t it?”

Ian shrugged.  “I suppose,” he allowed, starting to walk again.  “Especially now.  It’s just something I never expected.  Donna is home, Sarah Jane is home, but Gallifrey?” he trailed off.

Rose nodded, peeking shyly up at him.  “I never thought I’d miss living with my Mum, but it only took a few weeks of living on my own to make me.  Even now, after almost eight years, ‘home’ is still her flat, not mine.  Not really.  I call it home, and it is home, but it’s also not… home.  It’s strange.”

“I felt that way when I moved to the States for school.  When my grandfather was alive and king we lived down at Lungbarrow House, by the edge of the lake, but he died when I was young, and my father ascended.  After that we moved into the palace, but there’s a bit of me that still thinks of that place as home – especially since Donna had her twins and moved down there.”

“I’ve always quite liked the idea of home as a person,” Rose murmured, sticking her hands in her pockets, giving him a fleeting smile when he glanced down at her.  “You know, ‘home is where the heart is’?  I think I’d quite like that.”

“Can I ask…”

“Yes?”

Ian hesitated, but her open expression made him ask, “You don’t seem to be attached.  How can you be a matchmaker without finding your own love?”

“Fair question,” she allowed.  “I’ve seen love, absolutely.  I believe in it, clearly, but I’ve seen it in action.  My parents… Mum never remarried, and when I asked, she said she’d had offers now and again, but that Dad was it – he was her true love, and nothing could compare.  I see it in my clients’ eyes, when they’re dancing at their wedding.  I see it in people’s smiles everywhere.  I know it exists, and I know it exists for me, I just haven’t found him yet.  But I will, when it’s time.”

“I admire your optimism,” he said diplomatically, “and I certainly hope that’s true for you.”

“It is,” Rose spoke with such confidence she had him half-convinced.  “And it’s true for you too.”

“I’m so tired of being alone,” slipped out, his eyes widening slightly in surprise at the confession.  “I’m so tired of having no one to share my evenings with, my life with.”

“You’ve your sister, and aunt, and a kingdom full of people who love you!”

Ian shook his head slowly.  “I’m utterly alone at this time of night, if you haven’t noticed.”  He stared out towards the lake, able to see it only after decades of experience – it was a cloudy night, the sky pitch black.

Rose tugged on his sleeve and he stopped, mostly at her audacity, and he glanced down at her again.  “What?”

“There’s me,” she said earnestly, giving him a smile bright enough to power the entire kingdom.  “At least until you find The One, there’s me.”

And suddenly, he could see.

-

Tuesday, April 9th

The next day was full of engagements, Rose continuing to shadow the King.  Most of the morning was spent standing back with Sarah Jane and watching him work, and she relished the opportunity to see him interact with his subjects.

“How goes the search?” his aunt asked, as he read a story to a preschool class.

“What?”  Jarred from her thoughts Rose blinked, tearing her eyes away from where they’d been studying him.  Despite his brusque personality with adults he was a hit with the kids, giving Rose an idea of what he might be like as a father; it certainly improved her opinion of him as a future parent.  She could almost see it, him sprawled on a twin bed next to a tiny blond tot, reading bedtime stories and using funny voices as he was doing now, pretending not to notice her watching.

Wait, what?  She shook her head violently to clear the image, though it only faded into the background versus vanishing completely.  I’m certainly not going to be there!  Her heart gave an uncomfortable lurch at the idea, and she promptly promised herself to lay off the fine wine they’d been plying her and Mel with since they arrived.

“Rose?  Are you all right?”

“Yes!  Yes, fine, everything’s fine,” she said brightly, trying to focus on the woman next to her.  “He’s awfully good with them, isn’t he?”

The other woman gave her a speculative look, but merely nodded.  “He would never admit it, but he likes kids.  You should see him as ‘Uncle Ian’ – he loves Donna’s children something fierce.  And Luke, though he was obviously older when they met.”

Rose hummed, distracted once again by Ian.  Every so often he would catch her eye and his smile would widen, sending her heart racing and stomach clenching.  The better she got to know him the less severe his features seemed – what once seemed impenetrable ice blue eyes now held a brightly burning fire, one he seemed to keep well hidden.

“I did have a question, though,” she started carefully, peering at the other woman’s expression, but Sarah Jane just blinked.

“Yes?”

“I can’t help but notice that these engagements aren’t particularly well attended,” Rose bit her lip, trying to choose her words wisely.  “It doesn’t seem as though people are terribly interested in seeing their king.”

Sarah Jane burst into laughter, catching her nephew’s attention and earning her a frown.  “Because he’s so accessible,” she said, smiling.  “Things have been busy so he hasn’t had a chance since you arrived, but roughly once a month he dedicates a whole day to hear the complaints of the kingdom.  You know, if you have a squabble with the law, or a neighbor, and you want him to pass judgement.  There are events like this two or three times a week. Sometimes he goes for a stroll down High Street.  It’s… it’s like seeing the mayor.  You’re pleased to see him, it’s a bit of a celebrity event, but also not.  That’s not to say they don’t love or respect him, that they don’t want him, but it’s more that he’s such a permanent fixture that it’s not necessarily something special.  We’re a tiny country, you can drive the perimeter in less than an hour.”

“I see,” Rose nodded, still surprised.  “I just know at home, whenever the Queen goes anywhere it’s a big deal, but here…”

“It’s nice, I think,” the other woman said.  “There’s still the… mystique that one needs as a monarch, the distance, but he’s not so high up on a pedestal that people think about knocking him down, even in this day and age.  Quite frankly, he’s too valuable to lose.”

Rose looked back at the King to see him coming straight towards them, the children’s young, pretty teacher left standing where he’d been sat, looking disappointed.

“We need to be going, don’t we?” he asked his aunt brusquely, the look in his eye suggesting the answer better not be a no.

“Of course,” Sarah Jane said quickly, and with a quick wave ‘Goodbye!’ from Ian, they hurried out to the car.  Once they were pulling away, though, she raised an eyebrow.  “We were scheduled to be there for another hour.  What do you propose we do with that time?”

Staring out the window, Rose caught sight of the building from the festival and gasped, an idea coming to her like lightning.

“Stop the car!”

[cyb-by-lang]

Shell Game (13/?)

Training begins.

During lunch on Monday, Kei stopped in with Principal Nezu to let him know about what had happened on Sunday. He could take it or leave it, but she was nonetheless slightly relieved to hear that the water villain would probably get his hearing back. Eventually. In prison.

She wouldn’t have been that happy if the jackass had actually managed to lay a finger on Hayate, but that was an alternate universe she hadn’t allowed to manifest.

After classes on Monday, Kei and Shinsō met for their mutual tutoring session in the school library. First of all came studying and, like the good student he was, Shinsō actually had all the notes from the classes Kei variously daydreamed through, missed, or simply didn’t understand. Though Kei did copy a fair portion of them and asked Shinsō for explanations for various topics, a fair chunk of the trouble came from not actually reading the coursework. She’d read more of the Modern Literature coursework in the past hour as a result than she had since the term started, with Shinsō outlining his note-taking strategy in between barely-hidden yawns. Sunday night clearly hadn’t treated him well, but he seemed game enough for their agreed-upon training.

And then, after the sky started to change color, it began.

It was…probably about the physical equivalent of what studying was for Kei. To wit: An embarrassing slog.

I didn’t realize it was this bad, Kei remarked to Isobu, while watching Shinsō get warmups out of the way. It’d been a long time since Kei had seen anybody huff and puff that hard after running a mile. Or its equivalent.

Training was all right in theory. Between Hayate’s pestering and Shinsō’s offer, Kei didn’t have much choice other than to study. She just hadn’t expected to have that kind of time while waiting for Shinsō to exercise.

Their route today was in Mustafu, solely because that was where UA was and it saved them train fare. Besides, studying after school meant there didn’t really seem like anyplace else to go that still felt like they’d be keeping momentum going. So, Mustafu it was.

By mutual agreement, neither of them were running anywhere near the bank from yesterday.

You may have forgotten that the majority of humans cannot keep up with a special jōnin in any capacity.

…Crap.

Shinsō managed to catch up to her, eventually. Checking her phone, she timed it out to about ten minutes. Unless the internet was lying to her, Shinsō was somewhat slower than average for a Japanese boy his age, and he was definitely not going to make the cut with the Hero course kids with a score like that.

Kei wasn’t even winded. She felt vaguely guilty about that, but figured Shinsō wouldn’t appreciate what’d look like pity coming from her.

Maybe she should have started him out with a kilometer run instead.

Once Shinsō got his breath back, he gasped, “Please… Just let me focus on Modern Literature.” Before Kei could pose a clarifying question, Shinsō went on, “If I have…to also tutor you in math…before doing this? I am going to die.”

Kei did her best to channel Gai. It was generally a safe bet. “Don’t give up yet, Shinsō-san!”

Shinso muttered something unintelligible, reaching up to adjust the sweatband around his head. He didn’t seem encouraged.

“Anyway, now it’s time for stretches and cooldown activities.”

Kei’s outlook didn’t really improve from that point onward, though she wasn’t nearly as frustrated as Shinsō was. He made it through most of the stretches fine, though he couldn’t touch his toes particularly well. At the end of it all, both of them were differing levels of annoyed, but at separate problems.

Are my standards completely broken?

Yes.

She didn’t even know where to start with katas. She needed more of an idea of his capabilities, even if his physical conditioning wasn’t filling her with confidence.

They went to a completely mundane non-beach park, which was conveniently free of witnesses on a Monday afternoon. There wasn’t exactly much to attract people besides the playground fixtures, and those were a little stooped and sad due to too many Quirk-blessed children attacking the structure over the years. And there was a water fountain, which Kei supposed was probably the only thing to recommend it.

Kei poked and prodded until Shinsō stood across from her on the grass, his feet shoulder-width apart. Given his expression, he was less enthusiastic than she’d been as a kid about the entire process. Then again, her mother had been using a shinai and had, perhaps with a bit too much faith in Kei’s impulse control, given her one to hold while the corrections went on. The trouble then had been keeping Kei still, not getting Shinsō to keep his muscles loose.

“Throw a punch, please,” Kei said, after she was almost happy with what she’d managed.

Shinsō blinked. “Right now?”

“No better time,” Kei said, and before she’d finished the last word, Shinsō had already thrown it at her face.

Kei caught his fist one-handed and said, “Gotta change a few things before you do it again.”

Shinsō huffed. “I’ve only thrown one.”

“And I’m here to make sure you don’t break your fingers on the second.” Kei turned his hand, saying, “Thumb on the outside. Otherwise you can hurt yourself more than the enemy.” She let go of him and reset their starting positions. “Again!”

A second punch.

“Don’t punch with the flats of your fingers. Knuckles first.”

A third.

“Stop aiming at my face. You’ll hurt your hand worse and just barely break my nose. Too many bones.”

A fourth.

“Keep your wrist straight. Good thinking, aiming for the throat.”

And on, and on, and on.

Shinsō switched arms before he could get tired, while Kei continued to correct him with the patience drilled into her by her mother and by trying to teach Hayate kenjutsu in their younger years. There was a different tempo to this kind of lesson, and Shinsō didn’t have the experience Kei relied on as a fighter to fall into step with the constant demand. Falling into a pattern in a real fight could be fatal, but here she just needed Shinsō to keep pace.

“Enough,” Kei said finally, while Shinsō shook out his wrists. His hands looked a little reddened by the constant impacts. Her own palms hardly tickled. “Take a break.”

Shinsō glared at her, but she ignored it. While he stalked toward the water fountain, Kei tried to think her way through the problem.

Would they get further with pure physical conditioning? The technical details were important, but Shinsō’s endurance wouldn’t really matter in a match with students who’d been training all along. Either he could grab someone with his Quirk and would win the match after essentially trash-talking someone into submission, or he’d be forced to rely on barely two weeks’ worth of training to rally after mind control failed.

Dammit, if only we had more time.

That is what everyone says, eventually. But you do not have that kind of time.

Kei pressed her thumb to her lower lip, trying to think.

Her thoughts were interrupted by a familiar flare of fiery chakra, and Obito stepped out from behind a cherry tree in his Tokyo clothes. Jeans and close-toed shoes had been a hard sell for him, but the medical eyepatch and long-sleeved shirts without the Uchiha high collar had been comparatively easy. He still wore gloves to hide his mismatched hands, but otherwise Obito was about as inconspicuous as he ever got.

He had a smiley face on the eyepatch. Because of course he did.

“Hiya, Kei,” Obito said brightly. “How’s life?”

“Kind of weird. Did Hayate tell you what happened yesterday?” Kei asked, hand on her hip.

“A bit. You really do run into a lot of trouble, don’t you?” Obito’s gaze focused on Shinsō, who was making his way back to them.

“Trouble finds me.” Kei gestured toward Obito. “Hey, Shinsō-san, this is a friend of mine. Dropping in to check on me, I guess.”

“Kei needs looking after sometimes. I’m Uchiha Obito.” He inclined his head just slightly. “Nice to meet you, Shinso-san.”

“Likewise, Uchiha-san.” Was it just Kei’s imagination, or did Shinsō give Obito a searching look after all that? “So, are you two close?”

Oh, great.

“Uh, we did grow up together.” Obito was oblivious, of course. “So, what’re you two up to today?”

“Training,” Kei said, before Shinsō could dig any further into that topic. “The Sports Festival is coming up, so we’re trying to get in shape.”

Obito brightened. “Can I help?”

“Mark out another…two kilometers,” Kei suggested. With a sweet smile that sat not-at-all on her face without a twist, she said to both boys, “We’ll finish with that!”

Shinsō looked like Kei had just signed his death warrant.

Obito trotted off, whistling.

“So, are you two—?” Shinsō began with the beginnings of a teasing smirk.

“He’s my best friend, not my boyfriend,” Kei corrected him immediately. With a stern expression, she indicated the direction Obito was traveling. “And we do have a beach. What do you think about running in sand, Shinsō-san?”

Shinsō, even despite his exercise flush, somehow managed to go pale. “I’m good.”

“Thought so. Now, I don’t have much else going on in the afternoons, but I don’t think it’s realistic to meet every day.” Mostly because having a purple duckling following her around would put a severe cramp in her ability to keep up the whole “shinobi” thing. She hadn’t done a proper perimeter circuit since the school year started. “Okay. How about I show you how to fall safely on Wednesday? And maybe throw people.”

“Why Wednesday? Why not today?”

“I can show you how to throw Obito today, but only because his Quirk means we don’t need mats,” Kei explained. She tapped her foot on the grass. “Softer than concrete, but I’ve had concussions that say otherwise. So has he. And he already knows how to fall, so there’s that too.”

Shinsō sighed. “At this point I’m not sure who got the better deal here.”

“I did say I was fine if you cut it down to just Modern Literature,” Kei responded. She checked her phone for a cheerful “Done! ᕦ( ᐛ )ᕤ” from Obito, then said, “Let’s go. We’re wasting daylight.”

“I hate you so much already.”

“Big words for day one! Come on, it’ll make you feel better to throw Obito around.”

Shinsō groaned aloud.  

[ringgaard05cooper-blog]

Why we Love Horror Films

Once again, don't do not understand. Much of the movie works. The soundtrack and score provided by the creepy group Goblin is efficient. The bright colors gives the blood and gore a surreal, terrifying encounter. I am just saying, to me, the movie doesn't generate the suspension of disbelief it wants you to have from the comfort of the beginning. What do I mean by it? Let me give two movies as one example.

This bit of music perfectly sets down the atmosphere all over the world inhabited by Freddy Krueger. At one point, you hear a voice yell out, "Tina!" Shades individuals disembodied voices from the "Suspiria" soundtrack abound here and are most beautiful. Not exactly the kind of music would likely listen to at Thanksgiving. And somehow, it just doesn't quite fit the 4th of july. Of course, might depend regarding how you go about their routines defining your patriotism. Once again, currently have music manufactured for Halloween! Special features on this disc are pretty weak since they previously loaded earlier disc pretty heavily, but there are still some goodies to be discovered. Commentary with the producer Richard Pour. Rubinstein, Monroeville Mall Commercial (this is great), Behind the curtain Photos, Memorabilia Gallery, and Production Stills. check extended version had also been never mastered up from original mono audio track so adhere to. Lead singer Jyrki 69 based record around by far the new obsession with vampires and Twilight mania. He involved in his own movie collection with Jean Rollin's erotic French flick Lips Of Blood, The Hunger and also the modern-day opus Night Watch all taking center stage in the songs on the album. Somehow, Certain think higher . play also during The festive season. It's completely inappropriate for Groundhog's Day, when i can't imagine anyone drinking to this on Street. Patrick's Day (you could always try though). Halloween will be the amount of year you can take the actual world fully horrifying pleasure of listening for this song. It is a perfect song to tell a ghost story to, unless believe you can deliver it without additional benefit of sound improvements. Play this one at full volume. Seriously! Just not modest stereo, correct? The speakers on mine aren't as powerful as they used to. Finally my cousin and I made it up to the rim of the bowl. The lighting continued to crash overhead and the rain smacked against us, washing the remnants of one's climb away, leaving us stranded with no evidence, or alibi regrowth our tardiness to my mom and step dad. The Thing - I've never liked the first one. This version, directed by John Carpenter, am disgusting it made me queasy. I have totally fallen in love with this movie your years. The grosser the scene tougher I think itrrrs great. This which a movie that owns a claustrophobic feel because I is about men trapped in Antarctica facing off against an alien that looks like buyers. The special effects were state-of-the-art and there isn't a single computer-generated effect to be seen. They did all this with latex and tubing pumping jets of fake blood all around the setting.

[bbclesmis]

Collider: Lily Collins on ‘Les Miserables’, Isolating Herself to Play Fantine, and ‘Tolkien’

From award-winning screenwriter Andrew Davies, the latest dramatic adaptation of Les Misérables (airing on Masterpiece on PBS) is a six-part epic story that delves deep into the many layers of Victor Hugo’s story. Exploring the cat-and-mouse relationship between Jean Valjean (Dominic West) and Javert (David Oyelowo) with a modern relevancy in its powerful themes, plotting and characterizations, all set against the backdrop of France at a time of civil unrest.

During this 1-on-1 interview with Collider, actress Lily Collins (who plays the tragic seamstress Fantine) talked about the incredible experience she had making Les Misérables, the unexpected way they shot the episodes, why it was a gift to get to explore all of the characters so much deeper with the extra hours to tell this story, her first introduction to the story, and staying in Europe to explore some of the surrounding areas once the shoot wrapped. She also talked about her experience making Tolkien and what a huge The Lord of the Rings fan she is, as well as her desire to do comedy, even though it makes her nervous.

Collider:  You’ve certainly been amassing a very interesting collection of characters.

LILY COLLINS:  Oh, thank you! I know. My friends are like, “Couldn’t you maybe just do a comedy?” And yes, it’s a dream. I wanna do a comedy. Something more lighthearted, for a second, would be nice.

Is comedy something that you’ve actually tried to actively seek out?

COLLINS:  No, it’s something that I now am wanting to put out there. I would love to do a comedy. I love comedies. I love old school comedies, and new comedies. In order to appreciate the darker stories, it’s always nice to have the lighter. My friends hear about all of these filming experiences, where I’m off on these different locations, shooting these characters that have tragic stories, or that have tragedy but end in positivity, and they’re like, “Just do a film that we can go to, on a Saturday night, and watch and laugh about it.” One day, I’ll get there.

Does comedy make you nervous?

COLLINS:  Yes. There are so many different forms of comedy. There are so many ways to make someone laugh, and sometimes things are not funny. It’s a different world. But just like being surrounded by David [Oyelowo] and Dominic [West] on [Les Misérables], to be surrounded by the best comedians would only teach me more. I feel like it would maybe help raise my game, with the ability to improv. When you’re faced with anyone at the top of their game, it makes you wanna be better. It also just helps you be more in the moment ‘cause you’re not worried about what they’re thinking. They’re just on it, and that really helps. With [Les Mis], some of the dramatic moments, where my character is having to flail for her life and begging for her life on the floor, I can’t think about any of the peripheral distraction. You just have to be so focused in on the other person, when that person is giving you everything. Whether that’s in comedy or drama, it’s a huge gift ‘cause then it allows you to just give of yourself, so much more. It’s a blessing. Comedy is just a different beast, but it’s still a beast that I wanna be able to be a part of.

When you finished this, what did you go do?

COLLINS:  It’s interesting, in the beginning, I was really quite frustrated with the order that we were shooting this in, but then, I actually ended up loving it. I did Tolkien, in the end of 2017. Then, I did the table read for this in January 2018, went straight home to L.A. and packed, and then went off to Kentucky and did Bundy (Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil, and Vile). Then, I went back to L.A. and had three days, unpacked and re-packed, and then went to Brussels and started shooting this. I had no idea where I was, but I honestly think that helped so much. Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil, and Vile was dark, so going from that mind-set into this one was really helpful ‘cause it wasn’t like I was shooting some comedy and had to backtrack, all of a sudden. My second day of filming on this was the deathbed scene in Episode 3. I literally started at the end of Fantine’s life, in the dead of winter, and then go back in the summer, where I then had Episode 1, when you meet her, and she’s young, naive and falling in love. At first, I thought, “Oh, my god, I’m starting this at the end. No pressure there. I don’t even know where I’ve come from, to know where I’m ending.” I didn’t think that was ideal. But then, it actually turned out to be perfect ‘cause not only was it minus temperatures and snowing, and she’s wearing minimal clothing, but I looked so sick and decrepit. I had never really spend that much time in Brussels, so I was feeling all of these feelings that Fantine would have been feeling, which was brilliant. I try to use my surroundings and my feelings for the betterment of the character, and I got to take it all the way to the end and see the worst, before stepping away for about a month and going back in the summer, when it was 95 degrees, and sunny and beautiful. When I went back, I got to shoot all of her beginning, and because I knew how bad it got, I got to make the happy side 10 million times happier, just to show the distinct polarities between the two. I think starting in the middle would’ve been the worst because not knowing where you started or where you’re ended would mean that you wouldn’t know how far to take it. I was so happy to end in the summer, on a happier note, because I was more back to myself than I would have been, if I’d ended with the death sequences. I was already in Europe, so I just stayed in Europe and took a little vacation with a friend of mine. We went to Italy, and attended a film festival and just detoxed a little bit. And then, I went back to L.A.

It seems like it would have been so hard to end with her death, and then have to walk away.

COLLINS:  It would have been too finite. I would have needed to completely revamp myself and come back to some reality. But because I had that break, in between, to go back home before going back in the summer, I was able to become excited to go back, knowing it would just be a completely different environment. I was gonna have friends because Fantine has friends, so there were gonna be younger people that I could go exploring Brussels with. Also, during the summer, I found out that you can just take trains and hop around to different castles and explore Brussels for the beauty of what Belgium has to offer, as opposed to holding myself away and being somewhat depressed because Fantine was depressed. I didn’t want people visiting. I was like, “I love you mom, but please don’t come visit me because I think [the isolation] is actually really helping.” She’s alone in the world, so I was like, “I’m just gonna hole away, for a second.” It required that.

It sounds like a pretty incredible experience, overall.

COLLINS:  I grew up in Europe, but I never had that experience of backpacking around Europe, or taking a train somewhere, just because. On this, I made a friend for life in the hair and make-up department, and when the schedule permitted or on weekends, we would just take a bag and get on the train in the morning and go to Antwerp, Bruges or Ghent, and visit castles and cathedrals, or just go eat somewhere different, and then come back. It was a version of just hopping around Europe with a backpack. I went to England, and I went to France. The fact that, within an hour and a half, you could be in a different country, and they didn’t even ask for my passport, was amazing. I really felt like I got to have this epic adventure while shooting an epic adventure. It was great.

When you have so many extra hours to explore this story, does it seem like such a gift, as an actor, to get to go so much deeper than we typically get to see in film versions?

COLLINS:  Oh, yeah. It’s written in the novel, but you’ve only really heard about her falling in love and having a child through a song lyric. With this not being a musical version, it enabled us to see more of the drama. It’s a six-parter, so you get many more hours with the ability to show more, especially for Fantine. In the film version, you usually cut into her life, half-way through when she’s already working in the factory. I was excited because Tom [Shankland], our director, was very much about inserting bits of myself into Fantine. What does her naive, youthful, more loving side, at the beginning, look like? When she’s meeting this guy, what does is that scene like? When she has Cosette, what is she like as a mother? How does she hold her baby? How does she calm her down? Those were all these things that we got to discuss and decide together. At least we’re not singing, so you can’t have that comparison. We haven’t really seen any of these scenes before. To me, that was actually really exciting. There’s more screen time to figure out who she is. All of that would’ve been backstory, which is great, but I got to live it out. I think that also allows the audience to have more empathy for her, at the end, when you’ve seen her get left. You’ve seen those moments where she’s hopeful, so the audience will be like, “No. Don’t open the door. Don’t go in the dark. Don’t go into the dungeon. Don’t fall for him ‘cause he’s gonna leave you.” Because we all know the story so well, to allow the audience to have more empathy for her, at the end, is made stronger by the fact that they get to fall in love with her, at the beginning. That allowed me to know where I was going, and where I had been, in order to have those deep polarities, and to create such an arc for a character. It’s six episodes, and I die in Episode 3. Even though she’s only in half, what you’re left with of her has to help propel Jean Valjean, for the rest of the story, so you need to see all of those sides of her, that provided for that lightness in her, just to believe the story, as much as you can.

What was your first introduction to Les Mis?

COLLINS:  Being in school and going to the library. I used to go to the library a lot, to do research for projects, before the internet was really big. Wikipedia was not a valid source for your bibliography then, so you needed to go to the library and source it. I was always at the library, and Les Mis was always there. You can’t miss it. It’s so massive, but it’s also such a classical story that’s well-renowned. You’d hear about it in school, especially talking about the French Revolution and post-revolutionary France. It’s so historical and it’s based in so much history, that it was impossible not to know about it. And then, growing up in the West End and seeing the musical, it’s the longest running musical. And then, it was in the States. So, if you’re a lover of literature and entertainment, in whatever capacity, it’s impossible not to know what Les Mis is. And I had friends in the musical movie, so I had heard about that and their experience doing it. I just never knew that it would ever come around to me. Had I known that, in elementary school and high school, I probably would have done more highlighting and taking notes. Knowing and deeply respecting it, but never expecting to be in it, was the best attitude to have. I felt like I had grown up around it, but at the same time, knew very little of what my character would go through, at least from the beginning. It was a really nice introduction to it, in a new way. So, I felt like it had always been there, and yet there was still so much to learn, that I could almost start from the ground up with Tom. He didn’t overly encourage watching any of the previous renditions again. It was really novel-based, with deep discussions about how we felt the scenes should go.

While it’s such an epic story that must be a dream to tackle, it also seems terrifying.

COLLINS:  Yeah, there definitely was an anxiety portion of it, just because I always wanna give 110%, with whatever I do. This character required the physicality and the emotion of 110%, all the time, especially in the later part of her life. So, I was really excited to see where I would be able to go with it, just to know what I’m capable of, but also to allow the character to live and breathe, in a new way. It’s something that I will never forget shooting. Everything about it is just so stunning. Some moments are like paintings. It’s just beautiful. I’m really happy with it.

What was your experience making Tolkien like?

COLLINS:  That was actually really fun. I’m a huge fan of The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit. I love anything magical, like The Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, and any of that. I’m like, “Just give me a marathon.” But, I didn’t know much about Tolkien. I had actually auditioned for one of the elven characters in the last The Lord of the Rings films, but I obviously didn’t get it. It’s ironic that I ended up playing the woman that inspired the elven characters and the elven queen. I’ve been a huge fan of Nicholas Hoult for years. I’ve known him socially, and he’s just such a wonderful person. So, when I heard that he was doing it, I was interested. And our director, Dome [Karukoski], is such a visionary and so passionate about what he does. With the aesthetics that he wanted to bring to this movie, I thought the way that he was gonna blend the fantasy world of Tolkien and the reality of his life was such an interesting marriage. It could have gone in many different ways and been either too fantasy-based, or it didn’t weave the two correctly. But the way that he wanted to tell it was so inspiring that I thought, “This is the way that I’d want to tell the story.” And it’s Fox Searchlight and their taste in movies is so interesting. The way that they tell these stories behind the stories about authors is so fascinating. As a kid that grew up reading, I hope reading doesn’t ever die out. Reading is becoming less and less of a thing for kids, in terms of holding a book, and I remember holding books, and going to the library and just immersing myself in these worlds. The Lord of the Rings was a huge part of that ‘cause it had so much fantasy. So, to be able to bring it to a new audience, in a way of better understanding where it all came from, humanizes the stories in a way that we haven’t seen before. And we got to shoot in Liverpool, which was really fun. I’d never been up there. We also had a really fun cast, with a lot of young people that are fascinating. It was a really fun period drama. Les Mis is quite dramatic. With this, you really get to see a young couple that’s growing up and figuring out who they are, and encouraging one another to embrace those quirks that people don’t normally understand. There’s a lot that can be understood through Tolkien about today’s society. It’s a very modern story, just set in a different time.

Les Misérables airs on Sunday nights on Masterpiece on PBS.

x

[your-dietician]

Entertainment heat wave is coming this summer: What to watch for | Entertainment

New Post has been published on https://tattlepress.com/entertainment/entertainment-heat-wave-is-coming-this-summer-what-to-watch-for-entertainment/

Entertainment heat wave is coming this summer: What to watch for | Entertainment

Remember 2019, when hot girl summer became a motto for living with confidence?

Well, with life getting closer to normal and vaccines nudging the pandemic into — fingers crossed — the rear-view mirror, 2021’s entertainment calendar for the next few months has a similar mood.

Call it a hot everything summer.

Blockbuster movies are returning to theaters. Live concerts are set to resume. Television and streaming shows are back to being a nice part of the mix, not a sole entertainment lifeline. And with travel heating up again, beach books can actually be read on a faraway beach.

To navigate this soaring heat index for fun, here is a list of recommendations that are sunny, breezy, steaming and sizzling. You get the idea.

Hot Jeff Daniels summer

Michigan’s resident acting great always keeps it real — remember his plaid dad shirt at February’s virtual Golden Globes? His latest project evokes his home state’s ethos of blue-collar endurance. “American Rust,” a nine-episode series premiering Sept. 12 on Showtime, stars Daniels as the police chief of a Rust-Belt Pennsylvania town who is feeling “ticked off and kind of jumpy” when a murder investigation tests his loyalties. If the preview looks a bit like HBO’s gritty “Mare of Easttown,” that’s a very good thing.

Hot goofy summer

In real life, metro Detroit native Tim Robinson could be a calm, collected guy. But as a sketch comedian, he’s made an art form out of wildly overreacting to life’s little embarrassments. “I Think You Should Leave,” his mini-masterpiece Netflix show, is back July 6 with a second season. Besides brilliantly making himself the butt of the jokes, Robinson always remembers his hometown friends. Let’s hope for repeat appearances by his pals like “Detroiters” co-star Sam Richardson and Troy’s own Oscar nominee, Steven Yeun.

Hot retro Motor City summer

The Detroit of the mid-1950s comes alive in director Steven Soderbergh’s “No Sudden Move,” available July 1 on HBO Max. The crime drama starring Don Cheadle, David Harbour, Benicio del Toro, Jon Hamm and more is about some low-level criminals given a simple assignment that draws them into a mystery that stretches to the heights of the automotive industry’s power structure. The film was shot last year in Detroit under strict COVID-19 safety measures, because Soderbergh, who filmed 1998’s “Out of Sight” here, would accept no other city as a substitute.

Hot road trip summer

Six years ago, a young waitress from Detroit created a viral Twitter thread about a bizarre journey she took to Florida with a new friend to do some freelance stripping. It was as compelling as a novel and as vivid as a movie. Cut to June 30 when “Zola” hits theaters starring Taylour Page and Riley Keough. It’s a comedy and a thriller that defies expectations and makes J-Lo’s “Hustlers” seem mild. Director Janicza Bravo and screenplay co-writer Jeremy O. Harris have created a raunchy adventure that still respects A’Ziah (Zola) King as a strong woman and original writing voice.

Hot action dad summer

Yes, Matt Damon is now old enough to play a Liam Neeson-esque outraged father out for justice. In “Stillwater,” Damon is a worker for an Oklahoma oil rig who must travel to France to try and clear his daughter (Abigail Breslin) of murder charges. Think “Taken,” if it were a serious drama directed and co-written by Tom McCarthy of “Spotlight” fame. It comes out July 30, just in time to make Damon’s fans from his “Good Will Hunting” days feel ancient.

Hot reboot summer

It has been almost a decade since “Gossip Girl” ended its run, which is way too long to be without fashion tips from impossibly beautiful rich kids. The newly reimagined “Gossip Girl” on HBO Max arrives July 8 with some notable improvements, like the inclusiveness of its cast of newcomers. But it’s bringing back the original narrator, Kristen Bell (who grew up in Huntington Woods), as the voice of the title character with the hidden identity.

Hot sweating summer

Sweating is a bodily function, but what exactly is it all about? “The Joy of Sweat: The Strange Science of Perspiration,” out July 13, will explore the biology, history and marketing behind the moisture that makes us glow (to use a polite term). It covers everything from the role of stress in sweat to deodorant research that involves people who can sniff out, literally, the effectiveness of a product. Since the New York Times recommended the book as one of its 24 summer reads, you know that author Sarah Everts did sweat the details.

Hot Olympic star summer

The 2021 Tokyo Games, which run July 23-Aug. 8, will feature the world’s best gymnast, Simone Biles. She still enjoys competing, but quarantining gave her some time to improve her work-life balance, as she told Glamour for its June cover story (which comes with a dazzling photo spread of Biles). “Before I would only focus on the gym. But me being happy outside the gym is just as important as me being happy and doing well in the gym. Now it’s like everything’s coming together.” For the 24-year-old GOAT, the sky — or, maybe, gravity — is the limit.

Hot variety show summer

“What percentage of white women do you hate? And there is a right answer.” That was among the questions posed by internet sensation Ziwe to her first guest, Fran Lebowitz, on the current Showtime series that carries her name. Combining interviews, sketches and music, “Ziwe” deploys comedy to illuminate America’s awkwardness on issues of race and politics. The results are hilarious, so find out about Ziwe now before her next project arrives, a scam-themed comedy for Amazon called “The Nigerian Princess.”

Hot ice road summer

Take the driving skills of the reality series “Ice Road Truckers” and add one stoic dose of Liam Neeson and you’ve got “The Ice Road,” which premiered Friday on Hulu. The adventure flick involves a collapse in a diamond mine, the miners trapped inside and the man (Neeson) who’s willing to steer his ginormous rig over frozen water to attempt a rescue mission. Crank up the AC temporarily!

Hot kindness summer

There is a better way to be a human being, and he shares a name with an Apple TV+ series. “Ted Lasso,” the fish-out-of-water sitcom about an American football coach (Jason Sudeikis) who’s drafted to lead a British soccer team returns for a second season on July 23 —the date that Lasso fans will resume their efforts to be more empathetic and encouraging, just like Ted. Only there’s a new sports psychologist for AFC Richmond who seems impervious to Ted’s charms and home-baked biscuits. She doesn’t like Ted? We’re gobsmacked!

Hot podcast summer

When Michael Che guested on “Jimmy Kimmel Live” recently, his segment was interrupted repeatedly by Dave Chappelle, who kept plugging his “The Midnight Miracle” podcast available on Luminary. What Chappelle was selling is worth the listening. “The Midnight Miracle” brings him together with his co-hosts, Talib Kweli and Yasiin Bey, and his famous friends from the comedy world and beyond for funny and though-provoking conversations interspersed with music. If you were a fly on the wall of Chappelle’s home, this is what you might hear.

Hot series finale summer

The last 10 episodes of “Brooklyn Nine-Nine” start airing Aug. 12 on NBC, a too-short goodbye to one of the most underrated comedies in TV history. You can give all the glory to “The Office,” but the detectives of the Nine-Nine could go toe to toe with Dunder-Mifflin’s Scranton branch in terms of quirkiness, humanity and office romances and bromances. It’s hard to pick a favorite dynamic among the characters, but the irritated father-incorrigible son vibes between Captain Holt (Andre Braugher) and Det. Jake Peralta (Andy Samberg) are sublime.

Hot musical comedy summer

Keegan-Michael Key and “Saturday Night Live’s” Cecily Strong lead a star-studded cast in “Schmigadoon!,” an AppleTV+ series premiering July 16 that magically transports a backpacking couple to a land of 1940s musicals. Until Broadway reopens in September, this parody love letter to the power of musical theater should do nicely. And the premiere episode’s song “Corn Pudding”? Catchy!

Hot nostalgia tour

Hall & Oates are criss-crossing the nation with enough 1980s hits —”Maneater,” “Kiss on My List,” “I Can’t Go for That,” “You Make My Dreams Come True,” etc. — to make you want to trade your mom jeans for spandex leggings. As if they weren’t enough top-40 goodness, their opening acts are Squeeze, still pouring a cup of “Black Coffee in Bed” all these years later, and K.T. Tunstall, whose “Suddenly I See” is immortalized as the anthem of “The Devil Wears Prada.”

Hot all-female, all-Muslim punk band summer

A British import now airing on the NBC streaming spinoff Peacock, “We Are Lady Parts” would be notable alone for defying stereotypes about Muslim women. But this sitcom about an all-female, all-Muslim aspiring rock band is a gem of both representation and laughs, thanks to characters like Amina, a shy doctoral candidate in microbiology whose complaints about a guy she calls “Bashir with the good beard” inspires a song.

Hot documentary summer

While Woodstock has become synonymous with epic music gatherings, the Harlem Cultural Festival of 1969 is finally about to get the pop-culture recognition it deserves. “Summer of Soul: (…Or, When The Revolution Could Not Be Televised),” directed by the Roots drummer Questlove, will hit theaters and Hulu on July 2. It chronicles a mostly forgotten event that drew superstars like Stevie Wonder, Nina Simone, the Fifth Dimension, Sly & the Family Stone and B.B. King. Using his vast knowledge of music, archival footage and interviews with performers and those who attended, Questlove has created a history lesson that’s also the best concert you’ve never seen before.

Hot Marvel summer

Once you’re all caught up with the summer streaming sensation “Loki” on Disney+, please turn your attention to two new films. “Black Widow,” the long-awaited star turn for Scarlett Johansson’s former KGB assassin Natasha Romanoff, makes its debut July 9. It’s followed by “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings,” set for Sept. 3 and starring Simu Liu (“Kim’s Convenience”) as the martial arts master of the title. All brought to you by the corporate global entertainment domination machine that is Marvel.

Hot biopic summer

“Respect,” starring Jennifer Hudson, arrives Aug. 13 at theaters, nearly three years to the day the world lost the Queen of Soul. Although Cynthia Erivo gave a fine performance earlier this year as Franklin in “Genius: Aretha” on the National Geographic network, the odds are good that Hudson, chosen by Franklin herself for the part, will be the definitive screen Aretha.

Hot fiction summer

Terry McMillan calls “The Other Black Girl” essential reading. Entertainment Weekly describes it as “‘The Devil Wears Prada’ meets ‘Get Out,’ with a little bit of ‘Black Mirror’ thrown in.” This debut novel by Zakiya Dalila Harris mixes office politics with suspense in its story of Nella Rogers, an editorial assistant who’s the only Black staffer at a noted publishing company. When Hazel, a new Black employee, is hired, things seem to be improving. But then Nella starts receiving ominous unsigned notes. Sounds like yet another reason to keep working from home.

Hot slow dance summer

After nearly four months on Billboard’s Hot 100 chart, “Leave the Door Open” remains the song most likely to provoke a quiet storm on the dance floor. The hit single from Silk Sonic (aka Bruno Mars and Anderson .Paak) may sound like a cover of a long-lost ‘70s classic R&B tune, but it’s a contemporary song that can make you forget the humidity long enough for “kissing, cuddling, rose petals in the bathtub, girl, lets jump in.”

———

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[jerkbitchidjitassbutt]

It Was You (Part Five)

A/N: Jensen and Y/n are childhood best friends. When his agent informs him that his image could use some improvement for a role, will she help him? Or will her feelings get in the way?

Catch up here!

A holiday (Christmas centric) Jensen x Female!Reader Best Friends to Lovers series for @spnchristmasbingo​​​. This chapter and others will fill the square of ‘fake dating’ and this one specifically checks ‘ugly Christmas sweaters’. Un-beta’d, so all mistakes are mine. Header created by me with images from Google. Chapter word count: 3909 (its a longer one, oops)

Series Warnings: cursing, angst-ish at times (if you squint), but mostly all the fluff. Chapter warnings: an original character is sort of mean.

I consider this an AU, as Jensen is single in this fic. This is completely a work of fiction, and I wouldn’t want his reality to be any different, this is purely for entertainment.

Since you arrived late in the afternoon, you and Jensen had little time to rest before the party began. You stowed your things in your respective rooms in Jared’s home across the hall from one another and found the ugly sweaters Gen had chosen for you.

Jensen tried to peak into your room to see yours, but you shot him a look before you closed the door. “Oh c’mon, Y/n! Let me see!”

“Nope! We get to share in each other’s humiliation together!”

You heard him grunt on the other side of the door before he stomped across the hall and shut his door.

Yours was a bright, Christmassy red with white reindeer and an intricate pattern and overall, kind of cute. She also left you a jingle bell bracelet and earrings, so you quickly changed into a pair of jeans, your sweater, and a pair of black ballet flats. Loosening your hair from the tie, you let it fall and fluffed it a bit and applied a small amount of make-up, before finishing the look with some red lipstick and a small amount of gloss to be festive.

When you opened the door, you were met with a very grumpy looking Jensen. He pouted and gestured to himself, causing you to throw your head back in laughter. His sweater had red sleeves and a collar but had black and white patches with various designs all over, including a poinsettia, a string of lights, and a snowman. He was also wearing dark-wash jeans but had put on his black boots beneath that accentuated his slightly bowed legs. You couldn’t help but melt at the sight – he looked absolutely adorable and his pouty expression reminded you of when you were kids, when you wouldn’t share your ice cream with him after he’d eaten all of his own.

Covering your mouth to quiet your giggling, he put his hands on his hips and gave you a bitch face but softened his features when you told him how cute he looked.

“C’mon though,” he wined. “You look adorable. Your sweater is at least bearable. I look ridiculous.”

Something made you reach out to him, sliding your arms around his trim waist as he wrapped his around you. His dimples reached his cheeks as he smiled at you, a bit flirtatiously.

“Hey,” you reassured. “I’m sure you’re going to be the hit of the party with that outfit. You look great.”

Jensen sighed a deep breath, content to feel your body in his arms, “As long as you think so, sweetheart, I’m happy.”

“I always do.”

You felt that urge again as he glanced at your lips, the fire in your belly hadn’t quelled since that morning. Jensen growled down at you as you bit your lip once more, the noise making your blood rush to all sorts of places. He raised his hand to cup your cheek before tangling it into your hair, his mouth mere inches from yours.

Jared called from out of view at the bottom of the stairs, making your heads snap in the general direction, “Hey, guys! You almost ready? We’ve got your drinks made.”

You could hear some distant chatter, meaning that people had started to arrive. You shared a frustrated smile with Jensen as he pulled his hand from your cheek, grazing it slightly before he let go. You gripped his hand tightly as you led him down the stairs, but he was now pouting for a different reason.

You were met with hugs and smiles as you bounded into the room, Jared and Gen mixing in with the crowd of old friends and new faces. You were introduced to everyone and mingled, straying away from Jensen only slightly. He was chatting with a mutual friend of Jared’s as you socialized with a few of the women from the neighborhood, but each of you kept stealing glances at one another every few moments. Everything had shifted, both suddenly and slowly all at once. Instead of the casual glimpses you’d throw in each other’s direction when you were at a party in the past, which were more of just silent conversations asking if you or he needed saving from the person you were talking to in that moment, the stares tonight were affectionate and heated. It felt like he couldn’t keep his eyes off of you and anytime you were within reach, he made some sort of excuse to have his hands on you. Whether it was casually placing his hand on the small of your back to lead you somewhere or brushing your hair from your shoulder, he was constantly touching you in some way. It was comforting and fraying your nerves all at once.

You made your way into the kitchen to freshen your drink and grab a few of the snacks that Gen had made. She always pulled out all the stops for her parties and tonight was no different. She’d made a gigantic charcuterie board that expanded across their entire kitchen island, full of a variety of meats, cheeses, crackers, sauces, fruits and veggies. You filled your dish and grabbed a napkin and your drink before making your way back out to the living area where everyone was gathered, saying hi to a few people that passed by you.

Setting your drink down beside you, you picked through your plate as you began talking with Gen’s college roommate about the random happenings in Austin when Jensen’s form caught your eye. He was talking to someone who had their back turned to you, but she looked familiar though you couldn’t quite place how until she turned to wave at someone, and you couldn’t help but roll your eyes. It was Melanie. She was one of those people who always showed up to Jared and Gen’s parties and that everyone knew, but no one really cared for. She was very open about the fact that she was trying to up her social status in town and was anxious to settle down with someone who could help her do so. She paid to get into all the right clubs and have all the right things, but the hunger and greed radiated from her. Granted, to each their own and you wouldn’t normally judge, but you knew why she was being so chummy with Jensen. You felt a pang of jealousy that he was being his usual, charming self with her, chuckling when she told him a joke. His eyes scanned the room before they landed on you and his smile lit up his features, but when Melanie placed her hand on his forearm his attention went back to her. She was trim and beautiful on the outside and you couldn’t help but feel a bit protective and bitter that she was trying to sink her claws into Jensen, and so a bit of doubt flowed through your mind that he would want someone like you.

Jensen internally groaned when Melanie started another conversation about her macrobiotic diet as her acrylic nails drummed against her glass, praying that she would take a breath so that he could excuse himself. He let his mind wander to Y/n for a moment, anxious to be done with this party so that he could be alone with her again. He needed to know what she was feeling about them… and couldn’t wait to find out. His attention shot back to Melanie when he heard her shrill giggle and she asked, “So, are you seeing anyone?”

He knew that look. She’d given him that look plenty of times before – she plastered on a coy smile, trying to seem sexy as she batted her eyes up at him.

“Well…” he began, but paused, which Melanie took as an opportunity to shoot her shot.

“If you’re not, we should go out sometime. I know this great little club downtown that—”

Jensen held his hand up to stop her gently, “I’m sorry to if I gave you that impression, Melanie, but I’m spoken for.” He said firmly, and he meant it. She wouldn’t be his type on any given day, but he also knew he didn’t want to see anyone else anymore. At least not until he explored things with Y/n.

Melanie seemed taken aback, and almost offended. She turned her nose up slightly and scoffed before jutting her chin in the direction where Y/n was sitting. “Well, have you told her? She’s going to be a bit disappointed when she finds out.”

Jensen felt anger rise in his chest, his features contorting into a deep scowl, more at the fact that Melanie even had the audacity to mention Y/n, “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Oh, come on, Jay.” Don’t call me that, his mind roared. “She’s been clinging to your heals for as long as I’ve known you.” You don’t know me, she does. “You two have been in the news lately and everyone’s always questioned how close the two of you were.” You have no idea. “It’s not like she fits in here, you know.” She said disapprovingly as she glared in your direction, making Jensen’s blood boil.

He cleared his throat loudly, making Melanie jerk to face him in surprise. When she looked at him, he had a fire in his eyes that made her swallow thickly, but he kept his voice calm as he spoke, “Honestly, Melanie? Who I am or am not seeing is frankly none of your business, nor is it anyone else’s. And Y/n?” he motioned to where you were still seated, “No one compares to her. She’s the most beautiful and caring person I’ve ever met. She’d give anyone the shirt off of her back and she deeply cares about other people, not about what they can do for her. You could learn a thing or two from her.” He barked, moving to step away from her. “She’s one of the only true friends I have in this world, and I’ll be damned if I hear her name out of your mouth again.” With that, he left her standing with her mouth agape and waves of emotion rolling off of him.

Jared eyed Jensen heading for his back patio, looking more pissed than he’d ever seen him. He caught Y/n’s worried eyes and gestured that he’d go, following him as he weaved through the crowd. He found Jensen gripping the railing, steam radiating from him as his knuckles turned white.

“Hey, man. You okay? What happened?” Jared called, noting the tension in his shoulders.

Jensen huffed, pointing over his shoulder in the direction of the party, “Melanie.”

“Yeah? What’d she say?”

“Just something about Y/n. It pissed me off.”

Jared crossed his arms, immediately becoming concerned. You were one of his closest friends as well, so he wasn’t about to stand idly by if Melanie was talking about you, “What the hell did she say?” he asked, his own anger growing.

“She was trying to ask me out. When I told her I was seeing someone, she made a smart-ass remark about Y/n, talking about how her and I are always together and that she didn’t fit in.”

“Are you kidding me?” Jared’s voice rose. “She belongs here more than anyone else! Especially Melanie. That bitch wouldn’t know shit about fitting in.”

“I know. She’s insane.”

Jared had already made up his mind to say something to Melanie, but his focus was on his best friend at the moment, “Try not to let it bother you, okay? I know you have your fears about what’s going on with Y/n, but her fitting in isn’t even a question.”

Jensen nodded, “Nah, it’s definitely not… and that’s not even what bothered me the most.”

“I know.” Jared empathized, “We always get defensive about people we love.”

Love. Jensen smiled a bit at the word, and Jared caught it. He clapped him on the shoulder, Jensen returning the sentiment, before Jared his way back inside and immediately seeking out Melanie. When he couldn’t find her, he assumed she’d left and he was more than happy to see her go. She wouldn’t be on the guest list of anything else he had a hand in any time soon.

Y/n ventured outside in search of Jensen, abandoning her glass in the kitchen. He was leaning his elbows against the railing with his shoulders slumped. He didn’t look as upset as he had before Jared came out, but she could tell he was still angry about something.

“Jay? You okay?”

He turned towards her, his green eyes shimmering in the dim light casting from inside. He actually looked sad, more so than angry. “Hey sweetheart, I’m fine.”

“What happened?”

“Nothing, really. Melanie’s just an ass.”

“Well, yeah… I could’ve told you that.” You laughed, making him smile a bit.

He pulled you to him, circling his arms around your shoulders as you rested your head on his chest. The gesture was welcome, but it worried you all the same. You ran your hands on his back, feeling him take a sigh of release and letting the tension melt from him. He rested his cheek on your head, inhaling that floral scent once again.

After a moment, you eyed him from your place under his arm, “You sure you’re alright? Is there anything I can do to help?” you asked.

Jensen smiled to himself again. That was one of the things he loved about you. It was a humble question, but it was very meaningful to him. You always tried to care for him in the simplest ways, even if it was just being there, and no one could comfort him the way you could.

“I’m fine, Y/n/n.”

You pursed your lips, but didn’t press, “Okay. Do you want to stay out here a bit longer? Or go back into the party?”

“We can head back in.” he said, pressing a kiss to your hairline. “Thanks, sweetheart.”

“Of course, honey. I’m always here if you need me, okay?”

“I know.”

He already knew it, but he’d never get tired of hearing it. He walked back into the party with his hand securely bound around your waist, not caring about the wandering eyes and looks. That was the point of the original arrangement anyway, right? To make people talk? These were people, and they were talking. Now, though, the arrangement didn’t matter. He was holding you because he wanted to, and he wanted everyone to know just who he was here with.

He steered you towards the kitchen and poured himself a whiskey, taking a long sip as you accepted a glass of champagne from someone that was passing them around to all the attendants.

Jared and Gen were standing together in their large living room as they called everyone’s attention, “Everyone!” Jared’s voice boomed over the noise and the soft carols playing in the background. He raised his glass of champagne in a toast, “We just wanted to thank you all for coming out tonight. We think of you all as family and couldn’t think of a better way to celebrate the holidays than with everyone here. Our lives are blessed, so thank you. Merry Christmas everyone, and happy holidays!” Gen acknowledged to everyone in the room as she smiled brightly, tucked beneath Jared’s arm.

You and Jensen were huddled beneath the doorframe that entered their kitchen, your back lightly pressed into his chest as you both sipped from your glasses.

“Uh oh!” A loud voice sounded behind you, causing a few people to look your way. “Looks like someone found the mistletoe!”

You searched the crowd, trying to find who the man was talking about, but found that everyone was looking at you. You and Jensen both glanced up at the same time to find you were standing beneath the small plant that had been tied to the mantel with a red ribbon.

You looked at him wide-eyed but remembered that the two of you had an arrangement to appear as a couple. He raised an eyebrow, and when you nodded up to him, a flirty smile graced his lips. His hands came to cradle your face, with yours coming to rest on his forearms as you peered up at him.

Before he could question himself, he laid a feather light kiss against your lips and your eyes fluttered closed. It was quick and enticing, making your nerves stand on end. When you moved to wrap your arms around him, he deepened the kiss, the cheers and clinking of glasses a dull whirl in his ears. Your heart was pounding furiously in your chest and your skin tingled and buzzed, lit aflame at the slightest touch. It felt like every fiber of your body had sparked to life as his fingers danced across your skin and his lips molded to yours, laying small but deep kisses against them. He pulled away but kept you in his embrace, leaning down to whisper in your ear, “We’ll continue this later.” He promised, his voice deep and smooth.

You smiled up at him as you laced your fingers with his that still rested against your cheek, “Yes, please.” You breathed.

Everyone around you had gone back to chatting or eating, ignoring the two people still standing beneath the mistletoe, except for Jared. He’d initially been worried when his old friend Cole had outed that the two of you were under the mistletoe, but now he was grinning from ear to ear, knowing that he just witnessed something special for his two best friends. When he met Jensen’s eyes over the crowd, he jerked his head to the side, signaling that the two of you should leave with a slight smirk.

Jensen shot him a wink and grabbed your hand, pulling you towards Jared’s front door and you gladly followed on unsteady feet, but still feeling as though you could float if needed.

“Hey, Jensen?” you heard a voice call.

It was Melanie again, and Jensen’s grip tightened on you as you shot her a glare.

She stayed a distance away with a guilty but remorseful expression, “I just wanted to apologize. I didn’t have any right to say what I said. I’m sorry.”

Jensen’s hold softened, and he gave her a curt nod, “Thanks.”

She gave a gentle smile and added, “You’re right. I could learn a bit from her.” Before she ducked behind the banister, making her way out of the house and to her car.

You looked to Jensen with a questioning gaze, but he shook his head and gave your hand another reassuring squeeze, “I’ll tell you later, okay? I don’t want to think about it right now.”

He pulled you around to the side of Jared’s house, where there was a large garden and strings of lights illuminating the area. Tugging you towards him, he rounded on you to back you against the brick. You weren’t entirely surprised when he caged you within his arms and leaned in to rest his forehead against yours.

“Y/n.” he breathed, “Is this okay?”

Not trusting your own voice, you nodded.

“Sweetheart, I told you I’d never do anything to ruin our friendship, but I’m afraid I might be about to.”

Even standing in his embrace, the words made a wave of fear course through you and Jensen saw it flash in your eyes. “You’re my best friend, Y/n/n. You’ve been there for me through everything and there’s no one I’d rather have by my side, and I hope what I’m about to say won’t change that.”

With a trembling voice, you asked, “What is it, Jay?”

He tangled his hands into your hair, holding the base of your neck in his palms, “I can’t think of you as just my best friend anymore. I tried. I can’t do it. You’re so much more, Y/n. So, so much more.”

You released a relieved breath, smiling with tears in your eyes as you took his face in your hands, feeling his scruff beneath them. He closed the distance between you even further, pressing his body into yours so that you could feel every ripple of strength and softness that his build provided. Slowly, torturously, he leaned down and gently grazed your lips with his.

Your eyes fluttered shut as you carefully kissed him in return. After a single touch, he pulled back, almost desperately asking for permission. His eyes shown with a mixture of affection and desire as he silently searched your features for any sign of hesitancy. When you nodded up at him, he pressed himself against you and kissed you with more need, his plump lips puzzling to yours with ease.

Jensen’s tongue ran across your lower lip, opening you to him as you gasped into his mouth, the warmth of him flooding your senses as you grasped his shirt in your fists. His hand traveled along the hem of your sweater, lifting it slightly to press his palm against the small of your back, creating chills as the heat sunk into your skin against the chill of the Texas December.

You stayed outside for a while, simply exploring each other in a way you’d never had, with bodies entwined and hands searching out every inch. When you heard people loudly making their way towards their cars and pulling from Jared’s driveway, you returned to the house hand in hand. Jared and Gen were cleaning up the kitchen but stopped when you came through the door. With reddened cheeks and huge grins, there was no denying what you two had been discovering in the depths of their backyard.

You began to help them clean up, you and Jensen hip to hip as you washed and dried the dishes, still beaming at one another.

“So, how’s the ‘fake dating’ thing going, you two?” Gen quipped.

Jensen winked at her, “It may have started as fake, but it’s real now. At least for me it is.”

“Me too... but you and I can talk about that more later.” you said giddily, adding the last part just for him.

Jared spoke up, apologizing for earlier, “I’m sorry about Cole and the, you know, mistletoe.” He said, pointing to the incriminating doorframe.

You laughed and patted his arm for reassurance as Jensen shrugged beside you, “It wasn’t exactly how I wanted our first kiss to happen, but I’m happy it did.” He said, his eyes bright and happy. You didn’t miss that he had thought about your first kiss before that, so you noted to ask him about it later.

The rest of the night was spent laughing and talking with your best friends before the two of you excused yourself to bed. You had a drive to Dallas tomorrow, and your parents were expecting you for lunch.

Jared and Gen each gave you both a hug goodnight and watched you retreat up the stairs, giving each other a high five when you were out of sight.

When you reached your door, Jensen shuffled nervously.

“Do you want to come in?” you asked shyly.

His chest visibly rose and fell as his eyes darkened, but a gentle chuckle left his lips, “Of course I do, Y/n… but I don’t want to move things too fast.”

You giggled, opening the door to your room, “We’re not, Jay. I’m just talking about a sleepover.” You winked, happy when his eyes lit up.

He grabbed his pajamas and changed before meeting you in your room, sighing as he tucked himself underneath the covers and pulling you by your hips to meet his. You fell asleep to the rhythm of his breath in your ear and the rise and fall of his chest against your back, feeling both of your hearts beat along with one another.

To be continued...

………………………………………………………………………………

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[thehiccunzelnetwork]

Making Harmony

Riley Corona couldn’t believe what her manager had said. “What?!”

   Tina sighed. “Now Riley, I know it sounds odd, but think of it as an opportunity.”

   “I’m a pop singer, he does hip hop.”

   “And?” Tina responded, raising a brow.

   “It’s dirty! Have you heard his most recent song?” Riley grimaced at the mere thought of the offensive lyrics.

   “I’ve heard it. I’ve also heard he was bound by contract to sing it and he wants to change his image. Another reason he wants to perform with you.” Tina defended.

   Riley frowned. “Fine, I’ll do it.”

   “Riley, things aren’t always what they appear to be. Just because he sings what he sings doesn’t mean he means it.” Tina left Riley with that thought and a growing fear of the catastrophe that was bound to happen.

   “Get jazzy on me.” Hiccup finished, silently thanking God it was the last performance of the tour for his latest forced song. “Thank you Arendale, good night!” And with that sentiment, he walked off stage.

   Gabe quickly came up to him. “Gobber, tell me you have good news.”

   “Hiccup, Riley Corona agreed to do the duet with you for the Burgess Music Festival.”

   Hiccup smiled. “Good. Hopefully this will be just the push to get people to see I’m not some sort of pervert.”

   “We can only hope.” Gobber nodded, “Now go back to your hotel, get some sleep.”

   Hiccup complied, his notebook of songs in hand, maybe they’d finally let him sing what he wanted to.

Riley sat in the labels plane, looking over the snow of Burgess, Canada. She’d be landing soon. And then she’d meet the man himself. Hiccup Haddock. She grimaced as his song invaded her ears again, quickly switching the station. She smiled as she heard her friend Merida, or “Red” , sing new song.

   She hummed along, not even minding the cussing. Pretty pretty please, don’t you ever ever feel, like your less than, fucking perfect. To me. The pilot announced their landing and Riley sighed. “Well, let’s get this over with.”

Hiccup sat in the small sitting room for Lunar Records. Jack, his friend from the boy band The Guardians, had agreed to get him a meeting with Manny Lunar, one of the larger music producers. The man smiled amicably as Hiccup spoke of his ideas and even had some of his recordings for his newer songs.

   Manny smiled as he listened. Don’t get too close, it’s dark inside. It’s where my demons hide. It’s where my demons hide. “I must say, I can see why Berk Records wanted you so badly. Your music is certainly inspired.”

“Thank you sir. And so you know, my contract with Berk Records is almost up to end.” Hiccup smiled, hoping the older man understood what he was trying to say.

Manny smiled. “Well, you certainly have made a career for yourself and you’re an admirable artist. And personally, I like this stuff more than that awful music they were having you sing before.” Hiccup nodded.

   Manny frowned in thought before extending his hand. “Well, I’ll cut you a deal young man. Impress me at the Burgess Music Festival and as soon as your deal with Berk ends, you’ll have one waiting here for you.”

   Hiccup shook the man’s hand. “Thank you sir. You won’t regret it.”

   “I’m sure I won’t. Now I’d suggest you go and meet your duet partner.”

Riley sat on one of the large plush couches in the recording studio for Lunar Records. Apparently Hiccup Haddock had a meeting with Manny Lunar. She was beginning to get nervous, a mental picture of her partner forming. He seemed nice during the interviews but it could all be a lie. He could walk into the room and immediately be dirty and suggestive with her. Her head was swimming with ideas of escape when the door creaked and Hiccup stepped in.

She hadn’t known what she’d been expecting, but he wasn’t it. He wore a simple button up green shirt, a black blazer over it and some jeans. He looked… approachable. She eased up and was surprised to see he offered her a lopsided smile. “Um, I’m Hiccup, although I’m guessing you already knew that.”

   He extended his hand. She took it, shaking it gently. “So, Riley, um… We’re singing together.”

   “It would appear so.” Riley offered, still confused as to why he was so… normal. He even seemed nervous. “So we’ve got to come up with a song to duet, we could either use either one of ours or write a new one.”

Hiccup looked up. “You mean, you were your own songs?”

   “You don’t? Riley asked, extremely confused.

   Hiccup frowned. "I’m just the face for the songs they write. None of my songs get past them. Why do you think I sing all that kind of music?”

   “I-I just assumed…” Riley dropped off, seeming unable to continue.

   “That I wrote them?” Hiccup seemed scandalized at the idea.

   “I write mine and I just… I assumed that was how it worked.”

   Hiccup sighed and frowned. Well, that’s not the way it works for me. I came in with a list of songs when they first got me and they basically put mine through the shredder and handed me songs to learn.“

   Riley frowned at the sheer honesty in his voice. Lunar Records always listened to her suggestions as an artist. When she had a song, they listened and if it was good, the let her record it. If it wasn’t, they found ways Riley agreed with to improve on it. She couldn’t imagine a reality where they’d trample her ideas and give her a song to sing. They chose her to begin with because of her love for making music and her artistry.

   She held out a hand. "Can I see that notebook?” Hiccup nodded, handing it over.

   Riley began flipping through the pages, surprised to find songs unlike anything she’d seen before. “You wrote these?”

Hiccup nodded, blushing slightly. Riley smiled. “I think this is the beginning of an amazing career. But I think I have an idea to make this performance better.”

   “How?” Hiccup asked. Riley smiled and picked up her pen.

   “You’ll see.”

Hiccup heard the crowd cheering, waiting for him. He was shaking. He was about to sing his own music in front of a crowd of thousands. He was about to openly slap Berk Records in the face by doing his own music rather than the stuff they gave him. And he was about to duet with Riley Corona under the watch of Manny Lunar, which could very well make or break his chances at Lunar Records. Riley sidled up to him, all dressed up for her song. She gave his arm a squeeze for reassurance. “You’ll do great out there. They’ll love your song, trust me. And even if you lose the people who love the rap, you’ll get all my fans given your songs are amazing and they’ll especially love the song we made together.”

   Hiccup nodded, noticing it was Riley’s turn. She started to leave before pecking his cheek and going to the stage. “Hello Burgess! Can I just say something?” The crowds cheered as she began. Nice to meet you, where you been? I could show you incredible things.

   The song gave Hiccup a chance to calm down and before he knew it, he heard the final words to Riley’s song. And I’ll write your name. Hiccup walked past Riley as she walked off the stage, noticing everyone’s eyes were on him. He remembered he wasn’t in his usual hip hop attire.

   He gulped and began. When the days are cold and the cards all fold. When the saints we see are all made of gold. When your dreams all fail and the nicest we hail are the worst of all. And the blood runs stale.

   Hiccup was surprised to see that people were listening, interested in his new music. I wanna hide the truth. I wanna shelter you. But with the beast inside, there’s nowhere we can hide. No matter what we breed, we still are made of greed. This is my kingdoms come. This is my kingdom come.

Hiccup continued, growing more and more emboldened as everyone really seemed to like his music. His music. He smiled as he sang out the last few words. It’s where my demons hide. It’s where my demons hide! The crowd cheered and Hiccup walked backstage, promptly being tackled by Riley.

   “I told you they’d love it. I heard tons of people telling Manny to sign you up with Lunar Records!”

   Hiccup smiled. “It’s not over yet. There’s still one last song we have to sing.” Riley nodded and the duo walked to the backstage, getting ready to perform.

Riley smiled as she thought of Hiccup, glad to know he was getting to live his dream without anyone controlling him. She heard the crowds scream both their names eagerly as she started.

   All those days, watching from the windows. All those years, outside looking in. All that time, never really knowing just how blind I’d been. Hiccup joined in. Now I’m here, blinking in the starlight. Now I’m here, suddenly I see. Standing here, it’s all so clear, I’m where I’m meant to be.

   They looked at each other before continuing together. And at last I see the light. And it’s like the fog has lifted. And at last I see the light. And it’s like, the sky is new. And it’s warm and real and bright, and the world has somehow shifted. All at once, everything looks different, now that I see you. Riley blushed at how close they were before they moved apart for the second half.

   Hiccup continued. All those years, chasing down a daydream. All those years, living in a blur. All that time never truly seeing things, the way they were. Now she’s here, shining in the starlight. Now she’s here, suddenly I know, if she’s here, it’s crystal clear, I’m where I’m meant to go.

   They rejoined, Hiccup even grabbing her hand as they sang together. And at last I see the light, and it’s like the fog has lifted. And at last I see the light. And it’s like the sky is new. And it’s warm and real and bright, and the world has somehow shifted. The song slowed down, Hiccup noticing Riley had a stray hair and tucking it behind her ear. All at once, everything is different, now that I see you.

   Riley blushed at Hiccups gesture, noticing his cheeks were red as well. Which meant he was nervous too. Now that I… Their faces were a hairs width from each other and Riley honestly wanted to close the distance.

   See you. They finished together, staying close. They only pulled apart when the crowd cheered like crazy. Both walked off the stage, Riley daring to grab Hiccups hand.

   “I-I need to tell you something.” She confessed.

   Hiccup smirked. “I think I have an idea of what you’re about to say.” Riley playfully slapped his arm, but leaned up as he leaned down. Their lips once again so close.

   “Haddock!” An angry voice came. Hiccup groaned.

   “Can’t you see I’m occupied at the moment?” Riley turned to see Mr. Black, the boss of Berk Records. “Haddock, it says quite clearly in Section 7, Subparagraph B, line 6 of your contract with us that you have to sing what we give you to sing. And last I checked, the song you were bound by contract to sing at this concert was Talk Dirty to Me, not that load of rubbish you sang up on stage.”

   Hiccup smirked, putting an arm around Riley’s waist. “Mr. Black, I’m not seeing a problem here.”

   “The problem is that you broke your contract. And according to your deal with our record company, breaking your contract results in direct termination of your employment with us. Meaning you are out of a job, Haddock. Good luck finding someone to produce the rubbish you call music.”

   “He already has.” Manny Lunar interrupted. “In fact, I offered him a job a few days ago, but he declined given he wanted to let your contract with him end before joining us. He could’ve embarrassed your company by joining mine, but he saved you the public scandal. Now, if you’ll go Pitch, I can begin to discuss a contract with my newest artist, Hiccup Haddock.”

   Pitch glowered but admitted defeat, walking away. Manny smiled at Hiccup and Riley. “Actually, come to think of it, I have a previous engagement. Hiccup, what do you say we meet tomorrow to discuss the contract. 10 o'clock?”

   “10 o'clock.” Hiccup agreed. Manny gave the duo a knowing smile and walked off.

   “So, what do you think the paparazzi will think when they see Riley Corona with Hiccup Haddock?”

   Hiccup groaned. “Oh, I can see it now, the tabloids, the monitoring of every detail of our relationship.”

   “Relationship?” Riley blushed.

   “If we were about to kiss back there, and I’m guessing we were, I’d suspect we’d be getting together sooner or later.” Hiccup admitted.

   Riley smiled and leaned up, quickly kissing him. She smiled at the blush she earned. “Come on, I know a great coffee place near here. And what do you say to making a scene when we leave? Give them something to write about?”

   Hiccup smiled before wrapping an arm around Riley’s shoulder. “Let’s do it.”

[nerissa98]

Kiss me - Vik Imagine

Vik and I we have been friends forever. We used to go to the meadows all the time. It was our spot. Just sitting in the knee high grass together. Talk about anything and everything. We have been each other’s best friend for as long as I can remember. Our relationship had been platonic at first, but it turned into something more. We had developed feelings for one another. He was the first to take action. We had been in our spot for hours  and decided to go back home. When we were about to step on the road he pulled me back and turned me around to face him. Suddenly the next thing I now he plants his lips on mine.

Tonight, Vik and I are going on a date. We have been on quite a few now, but I always feels like I did before the first date.I couldn’t be more excited.  However it has been a nightmare deciding what dress I should wear. After 2 hours  of constant changing I decide on a cute Turquoise dress. His favorite colour. It falls just below my knees. He gave it to me last Christmas. I absolutely love it. Why didn’t I think of it earlier? I put on my nude heels and grab a bag to match them. The doorbell rings. I open the door. In front of me stands Vik. He’s wearing a long sleeve black button down shirt, light grey-ish jeans and the dark grey shoes I gave him that same Christmas. “Shall we?” I nod. After I lock the door I grab his hand. Together we walk into the night.

Kiss me out of the bearded barley Nightly, beside the green, green grass Swing, swing, swing the spinning step You’ll wear those shoes and I will wear that dress

We walk around town for a bit. I look up to the sky. I stare at the moon which is shining bright on this particular night. Eventually we stop at a small festival. It’s a field full off people, but at the same time it’s not that crowded. We walk to somewhere in the middle and turn to one other. As we embrace each other we stare in the others eyes. His brown eyes are absolutely captivating. I always get lost in them. We start to dance along to the music and eventually we lean in for a sweet kiss.

Oh, kiss me beneath the milky twilight Lead me out on the moonlit floor Lift your open hand Strike up the band and make the fireflies dance  silvermoon's sparkling So kiss me

When we were kids we stole a map we found in Vik’s attic. There was markings on there going somewhere out to the forrest. We decided to go on an adventure and follow the map. When our parents found out they weren’t that mad actually. They agreed to make our very own spot there. We made our own tree house (okay our dads did all of it).  It was so much fun, but after a few years it started falling apart after a while. We ended up tying a rope with a tire on a branch underneath the tree house.

Kiss me down by the broken tree house Swing me, upon it’s hanging tire Bring, bring, bring your flowered hat  We’ll take the trail marked on your father’s map

Everything is just perfect. The music is amazing. The stars and moon are shining bright. The man who I’m with is incredible. We fit together like a puzzle. I love being in his embrace. He makes me feel safe. We sway to the music for a long time. There is a silence between us, but it’s a comfortable silence. We don’t need to talk at this moment. Just being this close to each other is enough.

Oh, kiss me beneath the milky twilight Lead me out on the moonlit floor Lift your open hand Strike up the band and make the fireflies dance  silvermoon's sparkling So kiss me

We spend hours dancing in that field, but eventually we decided to go eat somewhere. As we walk around town we almost walked past a fast food place. We both agree that we don’t want anything fancy to eat tonight, so we head in. After placing our order we go and sit at a table. We talk the night away. Spending at least an other hour just talking. With his job as Youtuber you would think there would be no way that nights like these would happen often. However he always finds a way to make time for me. I couldn’t be more appreciative. We finally decide to head home. He brings me back to my place like the gentleman he is. 

kiss me beneath the milky twilight Lead me out on the moonlit floor Lift your open hand Strike up the band and make the fireflies dance  silvermoon's sparkling So kiss me

“I had an amazing time tonight” I smile at Vik. “Me too. It wasn’t what I had planned, but I loved it anyway” he replies. I get lost in his eyes for what seems the millionth time tonight. After just gazing at the others eyes we lean in to kiss each other goodnight. When we break away I slowly open my eyes to see his already staring at me. We bid each other a good night and slowly lean in for another kiss. 

So kiss me So kiss me So kiss me

————————————————————————

Thank you for reading <3 I hope you enjoyed it.</p>

If there’s anything you see that you think can be improved, please tell me. I’m not a writer. However I would love to improve my writing skills.

Have a good day x

[titushartmann]

Notebook 2: Intersectionality of Blue Jeans

Changelog:

Translational contexts: San Francisco, 1850-1873 and Moscow, 1957

Added image and quote sources

Added national binds: whiteness - class - property

Added intersectional analysis: gender - class / nationality - class

Blue Jean pants are a staple of today’s fashion all over the world. They are worn by people of all ages and genders everywhere and have become the most popular apparel in the history of fashion. Obviously, jeans have not been around for ever and, like most fashion trends, started out completely differently from what they are used as nowadays and under different circumstances.

Most people know that the jeans of today had been invented by Levi Strauss (the founder of Levi Strauss Co., or Levi’s jeans). Tracing them back to their origin I found that the word jeans most likely comes from Gênes, the french word for Genoa. The French in the city of Nimes really appreciated this new garment and tried to recreate it in the 17th century. They failed. However, they did create a fabric, different from the Genoan kind. Today it is called denim (de Nimes) (Damian, 23).

Blue Jeans as we know them, a symbol of fashion and conformity nowadays, began their history very differently. Levi Strauss created them in 1873 with rivets for the working class. Miners, farmers, and anyone who needed durable clothing were the target audience for his product. Levi’s story as a German immigrant is a classic one, with his family moving to New York seeking a better life like many Jewish immigrants. Moving to San Francisco during the gold rush, he opened a small dry goods business, importing fine dry goods from his brothers in New York. When a Latvian-Jewish tailor named Jacob Davis approached him for the riveted pants business idea, Levi knew he had struck gold. Together they created the first pair of blue jeans with iconic copper rivets and received a patent in 1873 (Davis).

In the 19th century jeans were seen and used as a simple working tool and only later evolved into a symbol of fashion and rebellion in the fifties. Today, jeans are worn everywhere. Through rapid globalization, companies all over the world began developing their own styles and types of jeans while still keeping the original, unique, Western look. In the 1950s, in the USSR people saw them as a symbol of the western world and wearing jeans became a symbol of wealth. The globalization of Western products and ideas was inherently linked to a simple garment. The earlier addition of indigo to denim material to create the iconic blue jeans may be a cause of this symbolism as, due to its expensive nature, indigo was seen as sign of wealth and power for a long time. This now obsolete meaning may have transferred and become the cause of the rapid success and status achievement of jeans. Of course, the fast globalization of blue jeans was not due to their blue color but their association to western culture and the American Dream.

San Francisco, a small town in the 1840s, had become a booming city due to the California Gold Rush in the 1850s. Many were seeking their fortune and found it, but most failed. Life was extremely competitive as a miner and many found themselves with less money than they had started with. Other lost their land and larger gold-mining businesses began to take over, making life as an individual even harder. Levi Strauss himself profited greatly in 1873 when he created the extremely durable, riveted jeans as miner’s pants that wouldn't tear or break. These miners searching for gold would place it in their pockets and their pockets would tear, so denim overalls or jeans became very popular. Poor working conditions created a need for inventions like these. Starting off as utility items in the US, jeans moved to become an icon of rebellion in teenages in the 1950s and were banned in many schools (Geller). 

Something important to consider is that almost all customers of Levi’s would have been men at the time. Here, gender intersects with some of the previously mentioned ideas of class and moving up in the world. As men were miners, they were the ones to wear jeans, they were the ones working hard to earn a living, successful or not. I feel that this connects with the later use of jeans by the cowboys of the wild west, and the development of jeans into a symbol of pure, raw masculinity. Other genders needed to be protected by the man, the one who worked, who needed something that could contain his spirit and would not break under rough usage. Something like jeans.

Interestingly, these pants then moved to the USSR in the 1950s as well and became extremely popular under communist rule. Jeans became symbol of the west, of freedom, and of independence. The extremely poor social conditions in the post war Soviet Union and a lack of freedom catapulted jeans to a symbol of status. Seeing Americans wearing jeans in films, many Russians began to believe that if you could afford jeans you had made it and done well for yourself. In 1957 in Moscow the World Festival of Youth Students took place exposing many to the American jeans that they had previously only seen in movies (Rudevich). Jeans were then also quickly banned as they became more popular, just like in the United States and the contexts echo themselves in 1950s at different places. In both situations, jeans became symbols of rebellion of the working class and of teenagers. 

The intersection of class and nationality or race becomes important to consider as these freedom-seeking russians were really, in addition to seeking freedom and a better life, seeking a change in their perceived nationality. The whiteness exuded by Westerners who wore jeans and who were free and who had a high class was so alluring that by purchasing the mere symbol of wealth - jeans - one could change one’s pseudo-nationality and race. The western culture that influenced many Russians in the 1950s was the epitome of whiteness and jeans played a small but integral role in the perpetuation of this ideology. By owning a simple piece of property, one could have created a higher class for oneself, and changed one’s nationality to the more desired and white race.

1850s working conditions in San Francisco and 1950s social conditions in Moscow can be compared in their lack of care for the individual and their harsh nature. Jeans presented themselves in both cases as quasi-solutions, with actual utility in San Francisco, and social status and achievement in Moscow.

Today, due to the immense globalization of industry, everyone wears jeans and they have become a standard fashion statement with purpose and style. A good pair of jeans will most likely always be a symbol of freedom, of Western Culture, of the American Dream, and really of anyone’s dream.

Sources:

Images:

Image 1: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/75/Levi's_logo.svg/2000px-Levi's_logo.svg.png

Image 2:

https://yesteryearsnews.files.wordpress.com/2011/02/gold-rush-caligoldmine.gif

Image 3: http://rbth.com/arts/2014/09/16/worth_going_to_prison_for_getting_hold_of_jeans_in_the_ussr_39833.html

Information:

Davis, Jacob W. "Patent US139121 - Improvement in Fastening Pocket-openings." Google Books. N.p., 20 May 1873. Web. 23 Jan. 2017. https://www.google.com/patents/US139121

Rudevich, Alexéi, and Russkaya Semyorka. "Worth Going to Prison For: Getting Hold of Jeans in the USSR." Russia Beyond The Headlines. RBTH, 16 Sept. 2014. Web. 23 Jan. 2017. http://rbth.com/arts/2014/09/16/worth_going_to_prison_for_getting_hold_of_jeans_in_the_ussr_39833.html

Geller, Marine W. "Eureka! The Surprising Stories Behind the Ideas That Shaped the World." Google Books. Penguin, 6 July 20101. Web. 23 Jan. 2017. https://books.google.com/books?id=IvRg_38ToLQC&pg=PT17#v=onepage&q=jeans&f=false

Damian, Véronique “The Master of the Blue Jeans: A New Painter of Reality in Late 17th Century Europe”. Paris: Galerie Canesso. 2010. p. 23. https://books.google.com/books/about/The_Master_of_the_Blue_Jeans.html?id=QHsRtwAACAAJ

[justauniform-blog]

Beret (Similar) | Boring Jumper | Name Necklace

Well didn’t that come around quickly? 2018 is here and I tell you what, I can’t wait to get stuck in! I know it is oh so cliche but I have a really good feeling about this year. It’s an even number for starters and I had a really epic New Years Eve, the best in a long time, so ya know, it all looks pretty good from here.

This post is going to be filed under a new little category for Just A Uniform, called “My Thoughts On Life.” A category that I intend to develop throughout 2018, I want you to get to know me a bit better and vice versa. But before I get carried away with what’s to come, I just want to say 2017 was epic. I feel like it was the year that I really found my feet with Just A Uniform. It was a year of discovery, a year of growth and the year of laying solid foundations.The last month of 2017 was particularly phenomenal. I hosted a Facebook Live for HQ hair and Uni Days, was featured in Blogosphere Magazine by the ever so lovely Emma Mumford and took part in a live Style Panel, a la Blogosphere magazine also. Oh, and after what felt like I had been campaigning to become Prime minister, I hit 10k on Instagram. A goal I had secretly set my self at the beginning of 2017 and one I seriously couldn’t have met without you lovely lot. I was absolutely overwhelmed by the features on your social media channels and it made me realise what an amazing community I had grown during 2017. So thank you so so much for all your support, you truly rock!

Right so let’s go for it, twenty eighteen, what do I have planned?

justauniform dot com – It seems only fitting to start with justauniform.com. A new website is coming your way with a rebrand, well, with actual branding that you will associate with Just A Uniform. The past couple of years have been building up to this, I didn’t want to rush in to the branding of Just A Uniform till I truly knew what Just A Uniform was. I have been playing around with ideas throughout 2017 and I now know what Just A Uniform represents. Of course it is going to be bold and colourful, what you have come to expect from this part of the internet, but it is also going to be whole lot more profesh (as she says by writing a made up word). There is going to be a brand new website, which my amazing husband is in the process of building, it will more user friendly, allowing you to enjoy all my content in one place. It is also going to be a really fun place to be. I’m not going to let any more cats out of the bag on the design front, but you know I’ll be screaming about it from the rooftops as soon as it ready to go live.

Content wise for justauniform.com I am getting a whole lot more organised, a theme you will see running throughout this post. I’ll speak more about that in a bit. There will be 2 posts a week, a regular fashion post on a Saturday, then a post pretty much about anything and everything on a Thursday. This could range from beauty, to travel, to a post just like this about my thoughts on life. I can’t wait to create more content right here, justauniform.com is the only part of the web that is 100 percent mine. I love love love reading blogs, each day throughout 2018 I am going to read a blog a day, so keep leaving your links on my posts.

YouTube – 2018 is the year I up my YouTube game. During 2017 I dabbled in the weekly vlog and I blamin’ loved it. Creating videos makes me so happy, it’s a place where my personality can shine through and a place where you can get to know me better. I think some content is better on video. It appears that I may have lost the plot as I have planned to vlog every day in February, vlogbury as it will be known. Two of my favourite events happen at this time of year, my birthday and fashion week so it should be full of fun.

 For the rest of the year expect to see the continuation of the weekly vlog, this will be on a Wednesday and then there will be another video on a Sunday too. The Sunday video will alternated between sit-down videos on a whole caboodle of topics and LookBooks. I really want to push style onto my channel, so stay tuned.

Presenting and Working with Brands – At the end of 2017 I started presenting for other brands on their social channels, and although being rather nerve racking to start with, I really loved it. I have always loved presenting and I am still convinced I would make an epic Children’s TV presenter. So yes, I would love to do more of this please universe. I’m really eager to do regular Instagram Lives on my channel too, collaborating with other influencers discussing subjects we’re both passionate about. I also dream of being on a TV advert for a brand. I’m just putting that out there, you know, in case you’re looking for someone?

Social Media and building a Community – So much has changed over the past year in terms of social media, I’m sure a word beginning with A has been the most typed word of 2017. Wind the clock back to this time last year, I was posting to Instagram daily and pretty much having heart palpitations if I missed a day. I no longer feel that way and I now aim to post 3 to 4 times a week. This year is quality over quantity on the ‘gram. And by quality I don’t just mean quality photos, I also mean quality time. Quality time engaging with you guys, taking time to reply to your comments / messages and to also taking time to check out your content too. Because let’s face facts, it’s not very social if it’s all one sided. Last year I aimed to interact on Twitter more, and I did, however I feel I can be even more interactive over there during 2018. It’s a great place to be involved in discussions, if you have any fab chats that you could recommend, do let me know. This year I have eradicated the dreaded number of followers target I have set myself in the past. As long as I am growing, my content is improving and you lovely lot are enjoying what you see, I will be one happy lady.

Jeans | Boots (similar)

New Ventures, Managing Time and FOMO – This year myself and the hubster (Jay) have set up our own social media management and website design company, which means there are now going to be two businesses on the go. I am soooo excited for this as it means I will get to work with Jay more and become the absolute dream team that I just know that we are. It will also be amazing to share Jay’s talents with the world and share my experience of social media with others. This business will also involve organising events with brands and influencers, particularly in Kent. In December I organised our first Kent influencer event for Iconic jewellery shop in Canterbury. It was a huge success for the brand but also for the Kent influencers. I am forever scouring the #kentblogger hashtag to find local influencers to be involved, so please do send me a mail if you’d like to be included. Equally if you’re a local business that needs help with your website or social media, we’re here… hello!!

So with all this going on of course I am going to have to manage my time better, there is a schedule and everything. To be honest I’m pretty good at working from home, I always get up early and go to my office as if I would if I worked in an actual office. The part that messes this up completely is my inability to say NO. I have complete fear of missing out, something my Dad highlighted a couple of months ago. So this year I only have time for ONE day a week for events, no more London 3 times a week. I assure you I am going to struggle with this, but there just aren’t enough days in the week.

Our Home – A few years ago we were lucky enough to build our house in the Kent Countryside. Due to time and my love of going on holiday A LOT, (sorry Jay) we haven’t got round to finishing it. Well 2018 is the year that this is going to happen! I will be documenting the progress along the way, with a interiors element to Just A Uniform, all I have to say right now is pink tiles.

Travel  -Because of our house plans, travel is now on hold, well abroad anyway. I am a huge lover of travel, so to have a year off is going to require some severe will power. To ease the pain I plan to do the staycation Just A Uniform Style, visiting all of the colourful spots in the UK. I’m thinking cities, country retreats, seaside splendour, festivals, spas, basically if it’s in the U.K I want to know about it. This will also be an added section to justauniform.com and the YouTube. I’d love to know where you think I should go? I plan to make my first stop in Glasgow, I was born there and I have been desperate to go back. Expect to see a Glasgow Colour guide very soon.

Health – Nope this isn’t about loosing weight or getting back to the gym, new year, new me style. This is about looking after myself. You may be aware that in 2014 I got diagnosed with type 1 diabetes and ever since I’ve been up and down with how well I have been managing it. My current HbA1c (google it) levels are too high and well, they need to be better, that’s me being matter of fact about the whole thing. Basically I need to stop eating all the bad carbs, in fact, I could probably do with cutting most carbs out all together for a while. Health is never really something I talk about with you guys, as I don’t want diabetes to define me or stop me doing life. I am interested though to find out if you would like me to share my daily goings on with my health, maybe you have type 1 diabetes or maybe you’d like just to learn more. Anyhow let me know and I’ll see what I can do.Making Time for Offline – Here it is, the one that can be measured, the one that sort of is a New Years Resolution and the one I am failing at miserable so far. The problem with having a job that you love and therefor a job that never feels like a job is…… I AM ALWAYS WORKING, even if I don’t actually realise it. Yes that’s right, from the moment I wake up, to when I go to bed, actually normally when I’m in bed too, I am doing work. I am actually convinced the main reason I love baths so much is, you guessed it, because I can work from the bath. Oh and obviously because Lush bath bombs are what they say, the bomb. In 2018 I need to set some boundaries, have some time when you know, I don’t have a screen in my face. I’m considering having a day a week without said screen, yeah I have all the crazy ideas but I am pretty sure it is the right thing to do.

So there you have it 2018 (Okay 2006) words on what I hope 2018 will look like.

This time last year I left you with some quotes that I then lived my life by throughout 2017

They were:

1.Your vibe attracts your tribe.

2.Be a radiator, not a drain.

3.You only get what you give.

This year I am adding this to it:

Be everything to someone, not something to everyone.

Right, well I suppose I better get on, I’ve got rather a lot to do.

BIG LOVE,

Siobhan

Be Sure to check out my NEW shop my style section in the menu bar (top right).

Here’s a few of my style picks to get you going

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    2018 It’s Going to be Anything but Boring Well didn't that come around quickly? 2018 is here and I tell you what, I can’t wait to get stuck in!

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Notebook 1: Circulations of Blue Jean Pants

Blue Jean pants are a staple of today’s fashion all over the world. They are worn by people of all ages and genders everywhere and have become the most popular apparel in the history of fashion. Obviously, jeans have not been around for ever and, like most fashion trends, started out completely differently from what they are used as nowadays and under different circumstances.

Most people know that the jeans of today had been invented by Levi Strauss (the founder of Levi Strauss Co., or Levi’s jeans). Tracing them back to their origin I found that the word jeans most likely comes from Gênes, the french word for Genoa. The French in the city of Nimes really appreciated this new garment and tried to recreate it in the 17th century. They failed. However, they did create a fabric, different from the Genoan kind. Today it is called denim (de Nimes) (Damian, 23).

Blue Jeans as we know them, a symbol of fashion and conformity nowadays, began their history very differently. Levi Strauss created them in 1873 with rivets for the working class. Miners, farmers, and anyone who needed durable clothing were the target audience for his product. Levi’s story as a German immigrant is a classic one, with his family moving to New York seeking a better life like many Jewish immigrants. Moving to San Francisco during the gold rush, he opened a small dry goods business, importing fine dry goods from his brothers in New York. When a Latvian-Jewish tailor named Jacob Davis approached him for the riveted pants business idea, Levi knew he had struck gold. Together they created the first pair of blue jeans with iconic copper rivets and received a patent in 1873 (Davis).

In the 19th century jeans were seen and used as a simple working tool and only later evolved into a symbol of fashion and rebellion in the fifties. Today, jeans are worn everywhere. Through rapid globalization, companies all over the world began developing their own styles and types of jeans while still keeping the original, unique, Western look. In the 1950s, in the USSR people saw them as a symbol of the western world and wearing jeans became a symbol of wealth. The globalization of Western products and ideas was inherently linked to a simple garment. The earlier addition of indigo to denim material to create the iconic blue jeans may be a cause of this symbolism as, due to its expensive nature, indigo was seen as sign of wealth and power for a long time. This now obsolete meaning may have transferred and become the cause of the rapid success and status achievement of jeans. Of course, the fast globalization of blue jeans was not due to their blue color but their association to western culture and the American Dream.

San Francisco, a small town in the 1840s, had become a booming city due to the California Gold Rush in the 1850s. Many were seeking their fortune and found it, but most failed. Life was extremely competitive as a miner and many found themselves with less money than they had started with. Other lost their land and larger gold-mining businesses began to take over, making life as an individual even harder. Levi Strauss himself profited greatly in 1873 when he created the extremely durable, riveted jeans as miner’s pants that wouldn't tear or break. These miners searching for gold would place it in their pockets and their pockets would tear, so denim overalls or jeans became very popular. Poor working conditions created a need for inventions like these. Starting off as utility items in the US, jeans moved to become an icon of rebellion in teenages in the 1950s and were banned in many schools (Geller).

Interestingly, these pants then moved to the USSR in the 1950s as well and became extremely popular under communist rule. Jeans became symbol of the west, of freedom, and of independence. The extremely poor social conditions in the post war Soviet Union and a lack of freedom catapulted jeans to a symbol of status. Seeing Americans wearing jeans in films, many Russians began to believe that if you could afford jeans you had made it and done well for yourself. In 1957 in Moscow the World Festival of Youth Students took place exposing many to the American jeans that they had previously only seen in movies (Rudevich). Jeans were then also quickly banned as they became more popular, just like in the United States and the contexts echo themselves in 1950s at different places. In both situations, jeans became symbols of rebellion of the working class and of teenagers.

1850s working conditions in San Francisco and 1950s social conditions in Moscow can be compared in their lack of care for the individual and their harsh nature. Jeans presented themselves in both cases as quasi-solutions, with actual utility in San Francisco, and social status and achievement in Moscow.

In addition to these circulations of 

Today, due to the immense globalization of industry, everyone wears jeans and they have become a standard fashion statement with purpose and style. A good pair of jeans will most likely always be a symbol of freedom, of Western Culture, of the American Dream, and really of anyone’s dream.

Sources:

Davis, Jacob W. "Patent US139121 - Improvement in Fastening Pocket-openings." Google Books. N.p., 20 May 1873. Web. 23 Jan. 2017. 

https://www.google.com/patents/US139121

Rudevich, Alexéi, and Russkaya Semyorka. "Worth Going to Prison For: Getting Hold of Jeans in the USSR." Russia Beyond The Headlines. RBTH, 16 Sept. 2014. Web. 23 Jan. 2017. 

http://rbth.com/arts/2014/09/16/worth_going_to_prison_for_getting_hold_of_jeans_in_the_ussr_39833.html

Geller, Marine W. "Eureka! The Surprising Stories Behind the Ideas That Shaped the World." Google Books. Penguin, 6 July 20101. Web. 23 Jan. 2017. 

https://books.google.com/books?id=IvRg_38ToLQC&pg=PT17#v=onepage&q=jeans&f=false

Damian, Véronique “The Master of the Blue Jeans: A New Painter of Reality in Late 17th Century Europe”. Paris: Galerie Canesso. 2010. p. 23. 

https://books.google.com/books/about/The_Master_of_the_Blue_Jeans.html?id=QHsRtwAACAAJ