#but seriously i've had at least ten in the last two days

[funnylittlelad]

this influx of faceless and bioless users following me... who are you? are you bots? are you a new wave of users? i can't tell based off these urls anymore😭😭 if you're a person please do something to indicate it... the bots are among us and i am drowning

[sturniqlo]

In Between- M.S

summary: with their usual bickering, Y/n and Chris escalate into a heated argument and Matt has to break up a fight between his girlfriend and his brother

cw: angst, cursing, crying, fluff at the end

an: thank you to @ik33pitundercover for this wonderful idea (if you have any idea pls comment them here or in my 'send requests' in my bio and i might make them happen!)

masterlist

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Before Matt and Y/n got together, it was always Chris and Y/n the bestest of friends. Though they never had any feelings for each other, they were always together. Everyone always told them they had a sibling like relationship. And they both agreed. They constantly bickered, pushed each other around playfully, just everything siblings would do. Eventually, the two other brothers, Nick and Matt, also became close with Y/n.

A couple of month of hanging out one on one, Y/n and Matt ended up dating. And Chris couldn't be happier. His brother and best friend were both together what more could he ask for?

Earlier today, Chris had texted Y/n if she was down to hangout. She politely declined, telling Chris she was going to hangout with Matt for most of the day. He understood and responded to her that he'll probably hangout with his other friends. He was a bit bummed to say the least. Chris can't remember the last time him and Y/n hung out one on one. Not that he was jealous of her and Matt, never. He just wanted to spend some time with his best friend.

After messaging Y/n, he didn't text any of his other friends, too upset to even hang out with anyone else. As the day went on, Nick had came into Chris' room to ask if he wanted to go hangout with him and Madi, he declined. When the afternoon came by, he ordered takeout and ate his taco bell. After eating he hopped on fortnite and played a couple of rounds before deciding to take a nap.

Y/n spent the whole morning and afternoon with Matt. Although she did feel a bit bad for declining Chris, Matt reassured her and told her Chris would be fine. Around ten in the morning, she picked Matt up in her car, and drove them to their usual breakfast spot. They shared each others plate and were both bloated with good food at the end of it. During their breakfast time, Matt had mentioned how Chris had seemed a bit down as of lately. "Do you think it's because you haven't hung out with him?" He said while taking a bite of his pancake. "I've hung out with him. We were all together last weekend." She replied.

"Yeah, I get that but, I mean one on one." Matt didn't mind at all when his brother and girlfriend hung out one on one. He liked that she had a good relationship with Chris and Nick. "Oh, yeah, I see it now. Maybe I can plan something with him next week? If he want to, that is." That conversation was a couple of hours ago. The time was now nearing five in the afternoon and Nick had called Matt that he was staying over at Madi's. "Do you think Chris is home?" Matt asked as they picked out the ingredients for tonight's activity. "Not sure, he texted me earlier that he might hang out with some of his friends."

Y/n and Matt had spent the afternoon at her place watching movies and playing games. Y/n ended up making them lunch, and here they are now in the grocery store. They had both agreed the would make something at Matt's house so Y/n can drive back to her place when she was ready to go. Matt was a bit bummed that she couldn't stay the night but understood that she had an exam early in the morning. "Wait, let me get Chris a pack of Pepsi. He told me he was running low yesterday." Y/n said, pushing the cart towards the soda isle.

"He seriously needs to cut down on the Pepsi. But we just keep feeding into it." Matt wrapped his arm around his girlfriend's shoulders. "I agree."

Chris woke up to the sound of a loud bang followed by laughter coming from upstairs in the kitchen. He checked his phone and saw it was almost six in the afternoon. He had slept for about an hour and a half. Confused about the loud bang, he got up to check. Coming up the stairs half awake, he saw Y/n on the floor cleaning up what looked to be some sort of dessert batter. "The fuck happened in here?" Chris said, startling Y/n. "Oh shit! Chris what the hell, you scared me." Y/n stood up from her spot on the floor. "My bad." Chris scoffed, going to the fridge.

"I thought you were going out today?" She threw the many stained paper towels in the trash. "I was going to but, you declined." He threw some shade at her. "I told you I was sorry, Matt had this planned for a couple of days now." She said, walking away to go retrieve their mop. "Where's Matt anyways?" He asks, as Y/n fills up the mop bucket. "He spilled his cake batter on the floor and it got all over him so he went to shower."

"Oh, well clean this mess up then. It not gonna clean itself up." He points to the remaining with his water bottle. "Woah, who put a stick up your ass?" Y/n was taken back a bit. Most of the time she could tell when Chris was joking when saying rude comments because he always smiled and tries not to laugh whenever he says them, so does she, but, he seemed serious about this one. "Stop playing around. Are you going to clean it or not?" Chris slightly raises his voice. Y/n's eyebrows furrow.

"Okay, You've never talked to me like that and I'm not going to let you talk to me like that." She stops filling the bucket up and stares at Chris with a confused glare. What has gotten into him? "Whatever." He scoffs, as he starts walking towards his set of stairs. "Hey, no! You come back here and tell me what this is all about." She tells him, she slowly starts getting mad. "I'm not a fucking child for you to be talking to me like that." He fights back. "Well you're acting like one right now." She crosses her arms. "Just leave me alone and enjoy your time with my brother. Seems like he's the only one you've known for years."

"Is this about us not hanging out as much anymore?" She says as Chris turns back around to face her. "What do you think? You get with my brother and now you forget about me? Was being my friend just an act to get to Matt?" Chris yells. "Are you hearing yourself right now?" Y/n yells back, and she sees Matt walk in with wet hair. "What's going on." Chris turns his head to see who was talking. "Oh look, your boyfriend is back, looks like you won't be needing me this evening." He smiles sarcastically.

"You're being a fucking dick right now." She walks closer to him. "Woah, okay. Let's- why don't you two settle down. And talk without yelling." Matt intervenes and steps in the middle of the arguing pair. "Matt, move. Chris is being unreasonable and isn't thinking before he speaks." Y/n tries to move Matt out of the way. "Babe, hey, calm down. Tell me what happened."

"He came up the stairs and just started being rude to me. He's mad about me and him not hanging out as much. When he could've just told me in a nicely manner." Y/n leans her head at the last part to where Chris can see her. Chris only rolls his eyes. "Yeah, you always tell me you're busy. Seems like you have time for everyone else besides me. I hope you're happy Matt, considering the fact that you ruined our friendship." Matt turns around. "Chris, I didn't ruin no friendship and your friendship with Y/n isn't ruined."

"Matt do you know what he said to me?" Matt shakes his head. "Oh, please enlighten him, Y/n." Chris says mockingly, she only rolls her eyes at him. "If you keep rolling em' they're going to get stuck." Chris adds. "Chris, stop it." Matt turns his head towards him "Go on." Matt tells her. "He told me that I only became friends with him to get with you. Can you believe that? He doesn't know the shit he's saying!"

"Chris? Do you really think that low of her?" Matt is shocked by all of this. He's never seen Chris and Y/n argue this bad. And it's making him upset that he's in the middle of this. "I'm starting to." Chris' comment ticks Y/n off. "That's it, I'm out of here." Y/n grabs her purse and phone and pushes through them. "Y/n come back." Matt gently grabs her arm. "I can't be in the same room as him right now. Not when he's acting all bitchy."

"I'm not acting bitchy, so get your facts straight." Chris adds on to her anger. "Chris that's enough." Matt raises his voice at his brother. "Here, come to my room to cool down and I'll talk to Chris, okay?" Matt softly talks to Y/n as he sees that she near bursting into tears. He knows she hates arguing with anybody. "Okay, okay." She whispers walking off to Matt's room, not making eye contact with her best friend.

Once Matt hears his room door close he starts going off on Chris. "What was that all about." He points to his room where Y/n is. "An argument, dumbass." Chris makes a smart mouth comment. "You know you could've talked to her like a normal person right? And to accuse her of using you so she could get to me was a low blow." Chris now realizes how bad it sounded. When Y/n entered Matt's room, she sat on his bed and let her tears out. She's never fought with Chris this bad. Yeah, they might've had a little argument or two over something small, but it never got to this point where someone had to intervene.

"Sorry, I got carried away. It's just, I miss hanging out with her. I feel like she's slowly forgetting about me ever since you two started dating." Chris says, wiping his eyes to prevent his tears to come down. "She's not forgetting about you, trust me. We always talk about whenever we hangout. And, she's also noticed how you two haven't been hanging out as much. Also, Im sorry for hogging her for months now." Matt tells Chris, earning a light chuckle from him at the last comment.

"Why don't you go in there and talk to her while I clean this up, okay?" Chris nods and starts walking towards Matt's room where Y/n currently is. He lightly knocks before opening the door. "Hey." Chris says, walking towards the bed to sit next to her. "Hi." She says, lifting her head off her knees. "I'm sorry about everything I said out there. I know you didn't use me to get to Matt. That was stupid of me to say." He shakes his head thinking back on it. "I just felt like you were forgetting about me and I was upset and let out my anger on you instead of talking to you like a normal person would." Y/n finally looks at him. "I'm sorry you felt that way. But, I also wish I would've realized it sooner, it would've prevented this whole shit show."

"Do you forgive me?" He asks lowly. "Of course I do, you're my best friend." After a couple of minutes basking in the comfortable silence, Matt finally walks in. "Nobody has been killed, I'm guess you two made up?" He takes a seat next to Chris. "Yup, we're good now." Matt smiles at that. "That's great, how about tomorrow you two spend the whole day together after Y/n is done with her exam?" Both Y/n and Chris liked the idea of that. "That sounds nice. What do you think, Chris?" Y/n asks Chris. "I'm up for it."

"Come on, let's go bake the boxed cake since I spilt the other one." He stands up and sits in the middle of them wrapping his arms around both of them. "That's the first ever biggest fight, definitely going into the book."

"Shut up!" Chris and Y/n say in unison and laugh.

[wynnyfryd]

💖 2024 Steddie Fic Recs 💖

@thefreakandthehair and i were talking about how so many of the fics we can name off the top of our heads are from right after the show came out because we were still actively making rec lists back then, so:

in no particular order i present to you an incomplete list of fics i love that were published or completed within the last two months

short fics (<10k)

Found God In A Tomato by @beetlesandstarss 5.7k | rated M | fluff, text fic

syrupy sweet strangers to first date fic. without spoiling anything, eddie is a flustered cutie and steve is a fuckin' menace who's lucky he's so hot

he tightened he grip by @steddieas-shegoes 1.3k | rated E | crack not treated remotely seriously

Mickala beloved your commitment to the bit makes me wanna commit myself to you 💍

Slide It In by gayhandshake 1.8k | rated E | multimedia crack

another truly impeccable work of crack fic, i laughed so hard at the first image that i made it the icon for my private discord server

what's that sound? (there's a funny man at my door) by @jewishrat420 4.8k | rated M | spicy six text fic

laughed out loud at this fic so many times i really don't know what else to tell you. as a matter of fact, i went to look at my bookmark note to see what else i had to say about it when i read it, and my note just says "fucking hilarious i laughed out loud like 6 times" 💀 did not do not will never know what else to tell you except that the phrase "the goyim of gender" just randomly pops into my brain once every four or so days now

medium fics (10-20k)

In the Kitchen or the Tulips by @teddywesworl 44k | rated E | telepathic soulmate AU

this fic said "watch me flip this trope inside out like a freshly cubed half of an avocado" and then DELIVERED. i finished this fic and then stared at the side of my husband's head for long enough that he looked over and went "wtf are you doing" lmao hush baby i am contemplating the implications

they're going to send us to prison for jerks by @greatunironic 16k | rated E | social media AU

okay firstly the premise of this fic is so specifically and delightfully unhinged; love that i'm not the only one who looks at a random tiktok account and manically whispers to myself "there's a fic in there somewhere." secondly the execution is a 10 outta 10 outta 10 outta TEN

long fics (50k+)

Sneaky Link by @morningberriesao3 152k | rated E | onlyfans au

the sex is HOT the boys are dumb as goddamn ROCKS what more do you need? oh, what's that? you do need more? sick because this fic also has: the tags "cum slut eddie munson" and "everyone is gay (because i say so)", chrissy the homophobe slayer being the cutest little spy, and jason getting his ass whooped, like, spiritually. on a spiritual level. physically unharmed but that boy's soul is missing teeth do u understand what i am saying

podfics!

it was love, love alone read by @reena-jenkins 21min | rated E

am i technically reccing my own fic on my own fic rec list? you bet your sweet ass i am, i don't even care how tacky that is reena's performance is hilarious and deserves to be listened to at least 40 more times while doing the dishes

relax (lay it back) read by @flintandfuss 1hr 10min | rated E | yogi dom steve x sub eddie

listen if i'm already being gauche then i gotta include my internet wife's belated birthday present to me, like i gotta. morally and lustfully obligated.

Schiava by @teddywesworl read by aheada_lettuce 1hr 30min | rated E | kas!eddie AU

said it once already today and i'll say it again, i cannot believe one of the best reading voices i've ever heard belongs to a person i mentally refer to as fucking lettuce LOL anyway this read is incredible and i have listened to it Times(tm)

and lastly, if you want more recs (like, 348 more specifically), you can browse my full list of public st bookmarks here

[ladykailitha]

The Caged Bird Still Sings Part 12

Welcome to act 2. These are going to be a rough set of chapters for Steve. I hate to do it, but I've got to get him low, to have Eddie build him back up.

If you've been following along to WIP Wednesday, you'll know (or at least suspect) that I'm nearing the end of act 2 and the return of Eddie.

Then I'm not sure how much longer it's going to be. It could be a couple of chapters. But it might be several.

Here we have Jeff teasing Steve and Eddie. Steve decides to spend all his money on movies and popcorn, and at last a wild Birdie appears.

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 Part 8 Part 9 Part 10 Part 11

~

It took a month before Clint Harrington gave up on his crusade to chase his son out of town. That didn’t make Steve safe, per se, just safer. But he took what little comfort in that that he could.

The kids were jealous of the Sunbird, Mike finally admitting that yes, some mysterious benefactor had come in and swept Steve off his feet. He was a kept man.

Steve squirmed at the term. He was going to start looking for work. Just as soon as the dust settled. There was no point in looking when Clint Harrington was just going to come in and throw his weight around get him fired again.

Mike just rolled his eyes when he explained it to the kids, but Max was of the idea to milk for as much as it was worth.

“Seriously, Steve,” Max huffed, “if I could live in a hotel and swim whenever I wanted and order as much food as I wanted, I��d never want to leave.”

He scoffed. “That’s because you’re like ten and actually have friends your age or did you all forget that my dad chased all my friends off?”

“Ooh,” Lucas said clicking his tongue and shaking his head, “yeah, man. That’s rough. And it doesn’t help that this place has one movie theater, an arcade, and a handful of specialty shops none of which scream fun times for teenagers.”

“Yeah,” Will said from the couch, “Jonathan has been complaining about it all summer. There’s Bloomington or Indy, but considering you don’t know which direction your parents went, you’re pretty much stuck in Hell.”

Steve waved his hand at Will. “See? Will gets it.”

So all the kids got their heads together will Claudia and Joyce and tried to plot out something for Steve to do so that he wouldn’t have be staring at the same set of walls every day, no matter how gorgeous those walls happened to be.

Which is how Steve became cinaphile. He started just picking random movies to see at random times of the day during the week. His favorite time to go was Tuesday afternoons before the middle school got out. Not enough time for high school students to evade the place, but later than the moms taking their small children as a way to beat the summer heat.

It also allowed him to find new genres he liked and through all this Eddie stayed his constant phone companion. He loved listening to Steve talk about the plot and how hot the actors were. It was fun.

Steve was also starting to make friends with the rest of the band. He found out who the other person that picked up before thinking it was his phone that was ringing.

“Hey, is Eddie around?” Steve had asked, calling the mobile phone.

“He just stepped out for a minute but he’ll be right back,” the person said. “I’m Jeff by the way, I’m the one that picked up before.”

“Oh hello!” Steve said in surprise. “You’re the other guitarist, right?”

Jeff laughed. “Yeah that’s me. Thanks for not saying ‘the black one’ by the way.”

“Happens a lot?” he asked with a grimace.

“All the time,” Jeff deadpanned. “All the god damned time.”

“That must be shitty,” Steve commiserated. “I guess it’s not quite the same as saying the blond one or the tall one.”

“Yeaaaahhh, no,” Jeff said. “The other two are neutral attributes while being black carries a certain disdain to it.”

“One of the families I used to babysit before this all went to hell,” Steve said, “was a black family and I didn’t realize all the little shit they go through each day. All the snide remarks and sneering glances all the for the crime of existing in the grocery store.”

“Yeah,” Jeff agreed. “Oh wait, your lover boy is back. Hey Ed, it’s Steve.”

“Little Canary!” Eddie said excitedly upon being given the phone. “Jeff didn��t spill any of my secrets did he?”

Steve heard Jeff laugh in the background. “I didn’t know there were secrets he kept... I’m going to have to pump him for information next time.”

‘No, no, no,” Eddie whined. “Not allowed! Shoo Jeffy. Mine! Shoo!”

“Don’t worry, Eddie,” Steve giggled. “You can tell all your secrets yourself the next time you’re in Hawkins.”

“Yeah,” Eddie said softly. “I think I’d like that very much.”

“You’re just a gooey marshmallow, aren’t you?” Steve said with a giggle. “A perfectly roasted marshmallow. Hard on the outside, but all melty and gooey on the inside. Sweet and sticky.”

Eddie burst out laughing. “You really had me going there until the sticky part. Yeah, baby. I’ll be your marshmallow and you’ll be my little Canary.”

“Yeah, Eds,” Steve said, “I’d really like that.”

They talked for a little bit longer before Eddie hummed.

“Steve we have to talk about the last month of the tour,” he said seriously.

Steve’s blood froze in his veins. Eddie rarely called him ‘Steve’. It was a petname like baby, sweetheart, or honey, or little Canary, or maybe even Stevie. But never Steve. “Oh yeah? What about?”

“We’re going to be in Canada,” Eddie continued. “I’ll still be able to call, but only from hotel rooms. I don’t get good service there.”

The ice in his veins turned to lead in his stomach. “So while you’re on the road, you won’t be able to call me?” he asked, his voice small.

“Oh, little Canary,” Eddie said sympathetically. “I’ll try to call from payphones when we stop for gas, but yeah. It’ll be pretty sporadic. But I’ve gotten Chrissy to promise that she’ll take good care you.”

“She still doesn’t like, you know,” Steve said, “she thinks I’m distracting you from doing your job.”

“Which is fucking ridiculous,” Eddie assured him. “I shake my ass on stage and sing and play my heart out. I never skimp on that, and never walk out one meet and greets with the fans. It’s her job to worry, but it’s not your problem. It’s mine. Plus I have my little elf in play who will be plying you with as many little bird gifts I can find.”

Steve couldn’t help but smile at that. He had gotten in addition to the necklace that he only took off to shower, a couple of graphic t-shirts with canaries on them. A keychain as well as one with his name on it. Three little ceramic canaries and a glass one. All brought in by Eddie’s little elf.

“Yeah, okay,” he huffed. “I can’t wait to see what you come up with next.”

“Well, I’ve got to go, babe,” Eddie murmured, “I’ll talk to later. The change won’t happen right away, but I’ll tell you when the date gets closer, okay?”

“Roger that,” Steve said with a sigh of relief. Then they hung up and he flopped on the sofa like a fainting Victorian maiden. In a couple of weeks, he would go back to being as lonely as fuck.

He didn’t even know who the little elf was or why they never showed themselves. All though, knowing Eddie, it was probably just because he thought it was cute. Which it was. It was also a little on the creepy side. He had gotten to know the porters, bellboys, and cleaning staff very well, so he didn’t mind them coming in while he was out or even in the shower.

But a mysterious person whom he knew nothing about? Yeah that was a problem. He didn’t know if they were male or female, how old they were, were they friendly or just doing their job.

To say it drove Steve nuts would be an understatement.

It had been six weeks since his dad chucked him out for making out with Tommy on the sofa and all that time he hadn’t seen hide nor hair of the bastard or any of their friends. It was just then his luck ran out.

He had accidentally spilled almost his whole bottle of shampoo and had to go and get more. He spoke briefly to Joyce and chatted with her about Will and how Jonathan was adjusting to being newly graduated and turned around to run directly into someone.

“Shit!” Steve hissed as the basket he was carrying slammed into his stomach. “I’m sorry, I didn’t see you there.”

He looked up, right into the green eyes and freckled face of Tommy Hagan.

“Steve!”

“Hey, Tommy,” Steve said with a fake smile. “How have you been?” The unasked question of ‘why did you leave me?’ hung in the air between them.

Tommy reached up and rubbed the material of Steve’s shirt between his finger and thumb. “That’s some pretty fancy new getup you’ve got there. Where you get the money for such nice things?”

Steve took a step back and crossed his arms. “I’m surviving. Like I always do.” He hated how he was already put on the defensive.

“Mhmm...” Tommy purred. “Pretty little slut like you, I bet you’ve got yourself a sugar daddy you’ve spread your legs for.”

Dread immediately pooled in Steve’s stomach. That wasn’t what Eddie was? Was he?

He smacked Tommy’s hand away. “Jealous that someone is fucking me better than you ever could? Maybe I have someone paying my bills or maybe I just have a trust fund. I’ll never tell you jack shit.”

The thing was is that he probably did have a trust fund. He just wouldn’t get it until he turned twenty-one. He had two years of running on empty he would have to do first. At least he had until Eddie came home anyway.

“No,” Tommy agreed, “you were always more of a screamer than a talker.”

Steve rolled his eyes and scoffed. “At least I didn’t run like a bitch when my parents walked in on us fucking. You find another dick to ride or did you go back to Carol like the coward you are?”

Tommy scowled. “You keep her name out your dirty mouth, Stevie boy. You don’t want to see what will happen if you don’t.”

“Yeah,” Steve said with a snort, “you’ll go running back to Daddy to protect you, like always do. Now pardon me, I have better things to do.” His eyes flicked over Tommy’s body. “If you hadn’t been the only option, I wouldn’t have picked you.”

He pushed passed him, bumping their shoulders together as he did.

He quickly bought what he needed and about as much junk food as he could get hands on. Joyce looked as though she wanted to ask if he was okay, so picked a different line to go though, hurrying out to his car. He looked around to make sure Tommy wasn’t waiting for him, but he didn’t see his car.

He drove back to the hotel, ready for a junk food night in front of the TV. He ordered room service and turned on the shower to wash off the slimy feeling of the interaction with Tommy. He had removed his shirt when he realized he had left the shampoo out there.

He opened the door and stopped in his tracks. Because there putting a couple of boxes on the end table was a girl with choppy blonde hair and boxy clothes. She was definitely not staff.

“So you’re my elf.”

~

Part 13 Part 14

Tag List: CLOSED

1- @rozzieroos @itsall-taken @redfreckledwolf @zerokrox-blog @beelze-the-bubkiss

2- @gregre369 ​@a-little-unsteddie @chaosgremlinmunson @messrs-weasley @cryptid-system

3- @maya-custodios-dionach @goodolefashionedloverboi @val-from-lawrence @carlyv @wonderland-girl143-blog

4- @irregular-child @bookbinderbitch @bookworm0690 @forgottenkanji

5- @anne-bennett-cosplayer @yikes-a-bee @awkwardgravity1 @littlewildflowerkitten @genderless-spoon

6- @dragonmama76 @ellietheasexylibrarian @thedragonsaunt @useless-nb-bisexual @disrespectedgoatman

7- @counting-dollars-counting-stars @tinyplanet95 @ravenfrog @swimmingbirdrunningrock @lingeringmirth

8- @gutterflower77 @a-lovely-craziness @just-a-tiny-void @w1ll0wtr33 @sticknpokelightningbolt

9- @scoops-aboy86 @kurofuckingshi16 @watermelonmite @eyehartart @dreamercec

10- @little-birch-boy @yearningagain @micheledawn1975 @blondie1006 @sadisticaltarts

[chishiyae]

— HIS LOVE FOR YOU ! [𝙛𝙚𝙖𝙩𝙪𝙧𝙞𝙣𝙜] e42! miles morales.

𝙧𝙚𝙫𝙞𝙚𝙬 ┊ a ten headcannon summary on what it’s like being the prowlers girlfriend. a man whose demeanor is cold but heart is warm.

a/n. — pretty sure it’s been…what? five months since i’ve last been on here? damn that was a long time ago, but i’m back and after restarting my layout and things, i’m writing 🤍

E42!MILES, will never tell you how he feels about emotional matters in your relationship. and by this, i mean that if you were to lay on his chest one day knowing he's had a rough day, instead of saying thank you or how much he loves you (or anything like that), he'll massage your back and close his eyes in contentment. he's been more reclusive to himself than ever since he lost his dad. and, as much as he loves and appreciates you, it's difficult for him to be so honest. so, he does that slowly…but even then, he holds a few things back. because he can never just show you all of his love.

when it comes to “i love you”, he takes that phrase very seriously. he believes it’s more than just a catchphrase and hence only says it when the situation really calls for it. that way you feel the meaning. like when he's leaving to do his duties as prowler, not knowing if he'll return. there have been a few occasions where he’s said it when the situation "didn't call for it" — by few, I mean less than five. although, as the relationship progresses, he says it more frequently than he normally would.

don't let him not saying it all the time mislead you for rejection. he fills that hole with a plethora of reassurances ranging from presents to nicknames. looking at "ma," "mamas," "baby," and "princesa," and you'll know he's serious when he uses your real name.

in arguments, he has a small tendency to forget that you have feelings. not to the point that you wanna end the relationship, but enough that you need to ignore him for a day because if you tried more than a day, he wouldn't be able to handle it anymore. you each have a day to chill out and that's all. he values communication. always has been — even before his father died — but now that he's allowing another person into his life, his priorities are shifting and you’re definitely in his list of people to cherish and protect. so he does everything he can to talk things out and apologize. arguments don’t happen often.

he’s not possessive, but rather protective. I mean, can you blame him with this fucked up city? every time you two go out, it’s either holding hands or him putting an arm over your shoulder so no one messes with you. if you’d ask him if a revealing outfit you're wearing is okay, he'd answer "doesn't matter, I can fight." for sure.

for your safety, he never includes you in prowler-related activities, talks, or general topics, but of course he told you about him being the prowler. he told you the instant he realized he loved you. and only tells you he loves you after you’ve accepted that reality. disregarding his uncle's advice not to tell you anything. communication is key right? and that’s a big part of his life.

just like physical touch. he loves kissing you. your forehead and neck especially. passionate kisses are his favorite, slow and sweet. his kisses always aimed at determining what you ate or placed to your lips prior so he could get a taste and guess. regardless of how horrible or delicious it tastes because it's a tiny game he made. did that have anything to do with wanting to kiss you longer? yeah. but what did the first headcannon have to say about his emotions? plus, he liked it after the first time he tried it, and now it’s his favorite portion of any day.

meeting his mom would almost certainly be by coincidence. he wouldn't have planned for you to meet her for at least three months, so he knows it's serious, but she’d meet you sooner. you'd walk by her house and she'd say something like, "i've seen you around miles before," knowing he doesn't let many people in. and is curious about you. she'll naturally ask you as many questions as she can before miles interferes, but even if she likes you, don't address her by her first name.

it doesn't matter when, but whenever your finger is in his way? he’s gonna bite it. there’s no hesitation. as well as engaging in play fights with you whenever possible.

and last but certainly not least, encourages you to do things he’s never done. no elaboration. just gonna let you think on that one.

© 2023, CHISHIYAE

[queen-of-reptiles]

𝙿𝙰𝙶𝙴𝚂

description: Lauren runs through the same park everyday, at the same time everyday, but when she is an hour later one day, she finds her routine changing, so she can get one more look at the beauty hidden amongst pages of notes.

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lauren hemp x female reader

disclaimer: this is all fiction! Do not take any of this seriously

warnings: so much fluff omg, so much fluff, fluffffff

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y/n just posted

liked by, y/f/n1, y/f/n2, and 388 others

y/n man fuck whoever told me to study law 🤓

view 103 comments

y/f/n1: girl ik, I've just eaten a tub of ice cream, cried and banged out an essay on civil justice in the 80's. 😝

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y/n: lmao loved the add on of cried 😌

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y/f/n1: felt like it was needed ☺️

y/f/n2: I don't get how you make everything look so aesthetic??? 😩😩

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y/n: because I am deffo failing this course so might as well make it look good ! 💙

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y/f/n3: Didn't you get an A in our last test? 🤨

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y/f/n4: I am a drama kid, and even I know she's fucking dramatic 😭

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y/f/n3: Such a drama queen this one!

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y/n: I hate both of you stfu 🙄

y/bff/n: That's my best friend, she real bad bitch, she don't got no money, cause at law she's shit... 😏

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y/n: how long did that take you? 🤨

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y/bff/n: too long honestly...

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y/n: 😭😭

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Lauren was running an hour later than usual, they had quite an exhausting game yesterday, so on her day off, she usually slept in until half eight ad was running in the park by nine.

Today it was ten am, and as Lauren jogged through, music pushing her through, she paused in shock. The most beautiful girl she had ever seen was lying on a picnic blanket, basking in the warm summer sun.

Rings littered her thin fingers, as well as several necklaces which hung from her neck and over the notebook she was writing in. Jeans and a sweet flowery top covered her, the mom jeans hanging on her body.

She had wired headphones in, which Lauren found odd, but the girl didn't seem to notice her as she stared, too focused on writing whatever she was writing.

Lauren briefly though about going over, but then she realised she was messy haired, red faced, and sweaty and thought better of it. So instead, she jogged on.

But suddenly Lauren found herself changing her routine, and every day off she had, which changed, she went to the park at 10am, and every time, other than Thursdays and Tuesdays, the girl was there, buried in pages.

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lauren_hemp just posted on her close friends story

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lauren_hemp just posted on her close friends story

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y/n just posted on her story

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After Lauren's complete fail, the next day off they had, Chloe, Alex and Jill came with her to the park, the four in relaxed outfits and hoping to sit and relax together, as well as help Lauren with this painful crush.

As they got there, the mysterious girl was already there, writing out pages and pages once again, and Jill let out a light whistle, nodding at Lauren in agreement.

The girl was hot. Chloe and Alex both sat down near her, dragging the other two with them, y/n looked up and she waved nicely at Lauren, who waved back with a smile.

Chloe sighed in relief that Lauren had at least reacted normal to that, and as y/n went back to studying the four friends started a conversation as they relaxed in the sun.

Eventually the group got up to play some football, y/n having not moved since the turned up, Chloe had hit the ball slightly hard and Lauren blanched as she ran.

The quick blonde, only manged just to get to y/n, pulling the girl who had stood up to stretch out of the way of the incoming ball the football instead hitting one of her notebooks and sending loose pages everywhere.

"Oh my god." y/n gasps.

"Sorry!" Chloe calls. "I am so sorry!" She adds again, but y/n waves a hand kindly.

"Luckily I have my guardian angel!" y/n calls, smiling at Lauren gratefully, who blushes at the sweet nickname. "Thank you." y/n adds as she bends down to pick at her papers.

Lauren kicks the ball across to Chloe who restarts their game of up, with the other two, but Lauren stays by y/n leaning down to help pick up her scattered papers.

"Oh you don't have to." y/n starts but Lauren smiles and shakes her head.

"I want to." Lauren promises as she hands the girl her papers. "Do you maybe want to get coffee sometime?" Lauren suddenly asks, as if she had been forced to say it.

Truth is, if she hadn't of said it then, she never would have. y/n looked up at her and furrowed her brows slightly, as if trying to figure something out.

"Like a date?" She asks and Lauren nods.

"Unless you don't want to." Lauren adds.

"No I want to, I was just trying to figure out why Lauren Hemp is asking me out." y/n admits and Lauren winces.

"You know who I am?" She asks and y/n shrugs.

"My best friend is a city fan, though I am more partial to Arsenal I must admit." y/n teases and Lauren pretends as she's been shot dragging and heart-breakingly beautiful laugh from the student.

"How could you?" Lauren asks jokingly and y/n laughs again.

"Quite easily, I suppose I will have to make it up to you." y/n hums. "How about a date tomorrow, after coffee today?" She asks and Lauren grins.

"Uh, yeah, yeah that would be great." Lauren smiles, a bright gleam in her eyes.

"Cool, well can I get your number then?" y/n asks and Lauren jerks forward, quickly tapping her number in and sending a message to herself.

"Do you want to go get coffee now?" Lauren asks, y/n sighing in relief and nodding.

"Please, I look at anything else about civil justice proceedings, my brain is going to self-destruct." y/n says and Lauren chuckles and looks up to tell her friends.

However, she finds no one, the three having dispersed with shared grins as Lauren and y/n started talking, finding no reason to interrupt they left.

y/n packed away her notes, throwing her highlighters into her pencil case and standing up, she smoothed out her summer dress, the article stopping just below her knees.

"You're so pretty." Lauren said without thinking, and even though she had just said it aloud, it sounded so calm and meant.

"Charmer." y/n blushed, smiling softly as she held out her hand. "Come on." She smiles and Lauren takes her hand.

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lauren_hemp just posted on her story

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y/n just posted on their story

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lauren_hemp just posted on her story

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y/n just posted on their story

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twitter/ X

username1: has anyone seen Lauren's story???? 🤨🤨

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username2: YES - is she out on a date?

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username3: it looks like it !!!! 😏😏

username4: Lauren and a girl have been seen out in Manchester!!!

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username5: She is in my class at school!!! 😱😱

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username6: her @ is @y/n - She is so pretty! 😊

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username7: nahhh she's not 🙄🙄

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username8: yeah what if she is just using Lauren??? 😡

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username9: stfu it aint our bsuiness! 🖕

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lauren_hemp just posted

liked by, chloekelly, leahwilliamsonn, and 487, 288 others

tagged y/n

lauren_hemp So proud of you baby <3 you deserve this after all the sleepless night and pages of notes! Also happy one year love - best WAG I could have asked for!

view 13, 711 comments

username1: has it been a year already??? WOah !!

username2: feels like just yesterday we were hunting her down ...

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username3: who would have guessed how much we would love her too! ☺️☺️

leahwilliamsonn: Well done y/n!!

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y/n: Thankooooo xxx

y/bff/n: SOOoooooooOO PROUD! 💙

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y/n: love youuuuuu 💙

y/f/n1: It seems like only yesterday you were crying with dominoes saying you were going to drop out. 🥹

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y/n: what a time, what a time. 😊

username4: This is all just so cute! 🥹

chloekelly: This happened because of me just so everyone knows 👏👏

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lauren_hemp: yes lets all thank Chloe for nearly knocking out my girlfriend 🙄

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y/n: thanks Chloe! Thought she would never come and talk to me. <3

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lauren_hemp: I would have! 😶

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chloekelly: nahhhhhh ☺️

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username5: HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA 😂

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END

loved this one as it is just cuteness honestly !!

-

Queenie xx

[icallhimjoey]

Can we have a sweet and soft Christmas eve with Joey? Just the two of us? pretty please

this was requested at the perfect time, so thank you, and merry christmas my sluts! Wordcount: 1.7K

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Still Love Me?

"I'm sorry, I'm not crying because I'm upset, d-don't worry, I just..."

You don't get like this very often. Usually, trying to be extra affectionate makes you scrunch your nose up, makes you squirm and laugh and cringe. Makes you push him away, not taking the extra hugs and kisses seriously at all.

Joe doesn't mind.

"What's wrong?"

It's actually nice to not always feel the need to give you more. To not be afraid that maybe you'd be upset after not immediately coming over to hug and kiss you when he'd walk in at the end of the day.

But something's different tonight.

It's likely the holiday stress that's getting to you. Nothing a pair of extra affectionate warm embracing arms won't fix.

"I thought we had more cheese, but all we've got left is this..."

You suppress a sob.

Unsuccessfully.

Joe knows the tears are only there because all of everything has come together for the perfect storm, and you're just about ready to fall apart.

It's sort of cute that it's a lack of cheese that does it, and Joe's secretly glad it's not something that he'd done or said that got you. That it's not his fault, and that he doesn't have to apologise over something unimportant.

It's fine, though, the crying.

Joe had been ready for it.

He's got steady hands and is prepared to catch whatever needs catching. Knows how to put you back together just fine.

"Why did I do this? I've got to stop sneaking things, I– look, there's no... this is all we've got..."

You've got family coming over tomorrow, and it's the first year that your place is the spot for the big get together. It's nerve-racking in new ways you didn't know existed before because you're bringing both sets of parents in, and all you want to do is make the family proud.

Be the perfect daughter.

Have the stepmothers and stepdads get along as well as all of the divorced people. All of the siblings. Step-siblings.

Fuck, there's too many people coming over.

Could you still cancel, do you think?

You just... you just want Christmas be wholesome, and festive, and cosy, full of laughter and love and just... have it be perfect.

It's almost become a bit of a passion project, and it's quite literally driven you mad.

Well. Driven you to tears, at least.

Joe looks over and sees you hold a little block of brie cheese. It's not much, and it's got a bite taken out of it.

"Wait, did you–" Joe's already smiling, because what the fuck is he looking at right now? His girlfriend's got tears in her eyes and is stood in front of the opened fridge door, holding a bit of French cheese that has teeth marks in.

Surely, you are able to imagine what this looks like from his point of view.

It's at least a little funny.

But another sob wracks from your chest and all Joe can do is step closer and wrap arms around your shaking frame.

He's allowed to laugh as he does so.

"I didn't know- I thought we had more, b-but this was all we have, and I snuck a bite last night, because I– I was peckish and just wanted a little something, and–"

"Hey," Joe leans back and gets your face in both his hands. He's still smiling. Can't not smile, because this is ridiculous, but you also look very cute. Red nose. Fat tears stuck in your eyelashes. The colour of your eyes about ten times brighter because of the unshed ones.

"We'll serve 'em dry crackers, and they'll fucking take what they're given, all right?"

You pout and hold up the evidence of your late-night-snack-run in your own kitchen from the night before. It's right in between your faces and gives Joe a chance to really see the cause of the outburst.

"Still love me?"

Joe looks at the brie a second and then lurches forward with a growl, sinking teeth into the soft cheese for a bite of his own.

"Still love you." he replies, mouth full of cheese.

You can't help the choking laugh, head cocking to the side as a defeated soft chuckle leaves you. It only makes Joe want to grab hold of you tighter.

"Hmm," Joe hums, now chewing, and he frowns. "This is good. We should–" he can't finish the sentence without laughing, knowing it's likely the wrong thing to say, but he's already started the sentence. You get a good eyeful of the cheese in his mouth, in between his teeth. "We should get more of this."

Well, you can't.

Hence the crying.

You pout once more and then groan. It's so stupid, you're well aware. You just need a bit of sleep. Your family won't hate you because there's no cheese.

And if anything, you could throw it into the group chat and are sure that at least three people have some brie to bring along tomorrow.

You really are just very tired.

"Tell you what," Joe says, now taking the little piece of cheese from your fingers, one arm still around you. "We'll finish this, have some hot chocolate and just... relax. Watch a Christmas film. Tomorrow is tomorrow and tonight is tonight, you've done enough prepping and it'll all be fine–"

"Perfect." you correct.

It's important that everything will be perfect.

"It'll all be perfect." Joe coos, voice smooth like butter.

You sniff and look at him a moment. He's still chewing. Smiling. Joe's being all playful and it's reminding you of why you love him so much. Glancing into the living room, you know Joe's right. Everything's ready. Everything's done.

It's Christmas Eve.

"Calm before the storm." you sigh, patting Joe where you're holding onto him. Then lower down, quick touch to the bum. Joe easily lets you.

"Calm before the storm." he confirms before you let go of each other. You move to collect yourself, wiping fingers below your eyes, and Joe opens a cupboard to get to mugs out and says, "And I'll go get extra cheese tomorrow, it'll be fine."

You're about to protest. Tell him that the shop you usually go to won't be open. It'll be Christmas. And everyone's stocked up already. Shelves are empty all over. But Joe sees it across your face before you can say anything and adds, "I'll find some, don't worry about it."

And so you don't.

You accept a kiss to your temple, a deep inhale of your hair and you tilt your head for a kiss on the lips. A quiet thank you.

After a squeeze of your arm, Joe gets started on the hot chocolate and you decide to see if there's anything good on TV or if it'll be Netflix for the night.

Before you've been able to make a choice, you hear mugs being filled and you scurry back into the kitchen. You get to the fridge before Joe does, which was the plan. You find the can of squirty cream amongst all of the food and drink - your fridge has never been this full. It's almost triggeringly full; so much food, yet so little cheese.

It takes you too long, and Joe joins to look over your shoulder, to see if he can spot it before you do.

He doesn't.

You find it and giggle excitedly, a little delirious (you've gone mad, remember?) as you shake it with a wild arm. Your demeanor is the opposite of what it was minute earlier.

No tears. Just manic laughter.

Makes Joe laugh just the same. His girlfriend's gone insane and, if he's honest, he's kind of into it.

You spray some cream into both mugs that Joe's filled with hot chocolate, and before you place it back into the fridge, you shake the can again.

"You just said you should stop sneaking things," Joe isn't exactly trying to stop you, but he knows what you're about to do. Feels like it's worth saying something, to maybe prevent a further break down.

It's of no use, though.

His comment makes you glance him pointed a look. It's ridiculous of him to assume you'd been serious. Of course you're not going to stop sneaking things. He doesn't see the deadpan stare you give him because he's busy placing mini marshmallows onto your drinks, but despite the advice, you go for it anyway.

You tip your head back and spray some of the cream directly into your mouth.

"My God," Joe says when you let it go for a little too long, and when he looks, he barks a laugh.

You've overdone it.

It's too much.

Well, is it ever too much? Not really. But it doesn't fit into your mouth and thus there's a problem. This is going to be messy.

With your head still tilted back, you release a small sound of panic at the inability to close your mouth and raise a cupped hand, ready to catch whatever is going to spill.

But Joe knows just the perfect fix, and he's quick.

Before you know what's happening, your boyfriend's got his hand on the back of your neck, digging in strong fingers and guiding your head forward.

Just before whatever your lips can't curl around is about to slide down your chin, Joe's mouthing at it and manages to get it all, tongue licking and lips closing around your opened ones.

What follows is a weird, full-cheeked sticky, creamy, sugary kiss that has you giggling into each others mouths.

It's still messy, but you'd easily do this again. Would it be too obvious if you just went for an insane mouthful once more?

Joe pulls back, sees he's missed a bit and doesn't hesitate to lick at the corner of your mouth, making you shriek with your mouth closed, pushing him away.

"You're gross," you say fondly after swallowing.

He's also adorably sweet, but he doesn't need telling.

Joe lets his head bobble back a little as he silently laughs, wiping at his own mouth with the back of his hand, glad to have been of service.

"Yea? Still love me?"

Tomorrow's going to be fine.

There's no cheese but for the little chunk you're about to share. It'll likely be all gone if you both have a single cracker with some on.

And there probably also won't be any squirty cream left, what with your plan to bring the can over to the sofa for top-ups after you've eaten all of it off. Or, you know, after you've sprayed more of it into your mouth just so Joe can eat it out of there again.

You families can have hot chocolate without any, and Joe's right. They'll fucking take what they'll be given and be grateful.

Or, Joe can find some tomorrow.

Somewhere.

Whatever.

You're no longer fussed.

It's Christmas. Christmas Eve.

"Still love you." you beam, because you do.

You really, really do.

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The Taglisted

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[nymphomaniaa]

something about us [XIX] "two glass bottles" — a preview!

summary: this chapter will follow lunch club's last major filming day in LA. the events before this snippet involve the group exploring the griffith park observatory at night after spending the afternoon in santa monica. schlatt and reader are driving back to the offlinetv house.

warnings: just a bit of angsty miscommunication word vomit. mention of alcohol/sobriety.

notes: sooo i mentioned about a month and a half ago that i've been struggling to finish this chapter because this story loosely follows events that have happened in my own life, and this chapter is especially full of personal experience that was difficult to resurface after years of repressing them. regardless, it was pretty therapeutic for me to write this, and i'm really hoping i can finally post this full chapter soon whenever i have the time (i don't lol)

Schlatt is unnervingly quiet at first as he stares ahead, too.  The road is long and dark, and what lies ahead can only be revealed if he turns the engine on.  However, you both wait in silence for the longest few seconds of your life.  The both of you sit in unnerving darkness.

“To be honest,” he seems to try to get words out, “I mean, there’s nothing, like, wrong, but it’s more like…”

He dances around his thoughts for a moment, trying to come up with the right words to say.

“I guess, I just feel a little… y’know.”

He falters before he truly begins, and with an annoyed sigh, ends up taking his key out of his pocket, and using it to start the car instead.  “Yeah, I can’t do this right now, [Y/N],” he remarks with defeat, letting his foot off the brake to begin driving.

“No, hey,” you reach out, placing your hand over his forearm, which softly drops into his lap the second he feels your touch.  Maneuvering his way out of a parallel parking spot with just one hand, he ignores your fingertips pressing into his skin, telling himself he just needs to focus on driving, and maybe he can stave off his thoughts, at least for tonight.  “J, seriously.  I can tell something’s on your mind,” you press further.  “Did something happen?”

“No, nothing’s like… wrong or anything, I’m just…  tired and I wanna go home and pass out.  That’s all it is.  I mean, we had two shoots today.  Can you blame me for being a little cranky?”

You don’t mean to glare at him.  But a lie is a lie.  And lies are not something you wholeheartedly tolerate, especially not from someone like Schlatt.  Maybe he’s on too high of a pedestal in your mind at this point, but no matter how you try to picture the podium, he’s standing there with a trophy of guilt firmly gripped in his hands.  And all you could think about is whether or not it’s your fault that he’s feeling like this, because if it weren’t, he wouldn’t be stubbornly avoiding you, right?

Your hand withdraws as you sit back into your seat, crossing your legs as you listen to the faint flow of the air conditioning kick in.  “Fine,“ you surrender.

“Fine?”

“Yeah, fine.”

“...Okay.”

He’s stunned into hesitation at how quickly you gave up on prodding for more information.  It’s uncanny, almost, for you to be so quiet after obviously caring about something.

It takes ten minutes of Schlatt driving in awkward silence for him to contemplate that maybe, there isn’t actually any point in hiding from you.  He could tell that you had some degree of attraction and admiration for him – you weren’t exactly stellar at keeping it a secret.  The off-camera flirting, your body language, the soft side you reveal around him, the way you show him your commitment to everything he has ever thrown at you professionally…  He knows there’s something there.

It takes ten more minutes of Schlatt driving in silence for him to arrive at the OfflineTV house.  He slowly pulls into the driveway.  The moment he puts the car in park, the pressure in his head is making its way out of his mouth before he even realizes it.

“I was sad, okay?  I was sad this morning when you left.  There,” he states bluntly.  “And now I’m irritated because… ‘cus I don’t know why I feel this way.  We were drunk and you said it was okay, so I thought it was fine, but then afterwards you left and you haven’t mentioned it at all today.  And I feel like you’re trying to pretend it didn’t happen, and I’m trying too but…  I feel like an asshole because how could you have known any better?  You were drunk.  I was drunk.  Just…  fuck, dude.  I’m sorry.  I’m just…  I’m sorry.”

He’s staring at the parked car in front of him, with both his hands on the steering wheel, and his car still running.  He’s tracing his eyes along the letters and numbers on Cooper’s license plate.  He’s counting how many rooms of the OfflineTV house have their lights on.  

“You were trying to be sober.  I don’t know why I didn’t think about that in the moment.  All I could think about was how grateful I was to be able to hold you with no consequences.  No complicated feelings, no nothing.  Just…  just you.  God, I’m a fucking dick.”

He’s observing the building redness in his knuckles.  He’s doing everything to avoid looking at you when he’s about to directly address you.  

“And look, [Y/N], I like you and all as a friend, y’know, you’re so pretty and talented and smart and you’re just— you’re the whole package.  But I don’t know if I’m…  I don’t know how I feel about taking it beyond that.  I don’t wanna fuck up anything between us.  I don’t wanna ruin what we have.  You’re so special to me, and you deserve the absolute best, and I just don’t want you to be hurt.  I’m not the best.  I’m not what you need.”

He is a deer in his own headlights.

“I’m an asshole.  You just like me because I’m nice to you.  But I’m just a regular guy.  At the end of the day, I could take advantage of you without ever knowing it.  And I’m just not confident that you’d be able to speak up for yourself against someone like me.  I just can’t let you do that to yourself in good conscience.”

For the first time in his life, he is trembling.

you guys will hate me for what comes next. i'm sorry. i had to leave it out in this preview because it will build up anticipation for you guys, but i'll be upfront by saying it's genuinely so gut wrenching and i'm sooo sorry. but feel free to read the story from the beginning here to prepare for the new chapter! thank you for always motivating me.

[ariundercovers]

Standstill (When Paths Cross Pt. VIII, Javier Peña x Reader)

Pairing: Javier Peña x Afab!Reader (No use of y/n!)

Length: ~3.2k words

Series Summary: Chucho's been like a father figure to you since he helped you out of a sticky situation on your second day in Laredo. What happens when you finally meet his son, the former-DEA agent, who just happens to ignite you in a way that you haven't felt before?

Chapter Summary: The next week. Some shared flan, and an unexpected question.

Chapter Warnings: no porn only plot, angst, (i promise this is the last plotty angst chapter!) spanish nicknames, idiots in love, Chucho being a Dad to two idiots in love (the poor man omg).

A/N: I made a moodboard for this series! I hope it doesn't suck. I've never been great at making them. But do let me know what you think, and if you can pick up on each image! ALSO - If you're so inclined, please drop a like and a reply/reblog! I live for your feedback, and it keeps me going and keeps me writing. Did you like it? love it? hate it? I want to hear all of your thoughts! And of course, just lmk if you'd like to be added to the taglist, too!

PREVIOUS PART (VII) HERE

It takes everything in you not to start calling Javi first thing in the morning, begging him to talk to you, to have a conversation, to hear you, or something. You’re regretting the way you lost it and stormed out, too. You let your emotions cloud your judgment, acted too reactionary, in the interest of yourself and not in the interest of your relationship.

But isn’t that what Javi was doing to you, too? 

You heave out a frustrated sigh, staring into the abyss of your ceiling. At least you had work today to keep your mind busy and off of this mess of a situation. Belabored, you start to sit yourself up and dress yourself for the day. It feels mindless, going about your morning tasks like this, but you think some semblance of normalcy will actually help you get through these next ten hours. You can wait until then - reach out after you’ve let yourself fully cooled down, maybe. 

If he’ll even answer you, that is.

You sigh, exasperated, and quicken your pace, trying to get through every step of your morning routine as fast as possible, figuring that if you keep yourself busy with moving quickly, your mind won't have time to whirr to a stop in the case of Javier Peña.

It doesn’t work. 

You bemoan every action and step you took to get here, endlessly infuriated by your own inability to test out the waters before charging full steam ahead. You realize, reluctantly, that you probably should’ve eased into that conversation rather than blurt it out in the middle of the mall food court. You should’ve pressed him for more explanation, but gently, without engaging self-defense mode right away. There are a thousand things you wish you had done differently in hindsight. You can’t do anything about it now, though, so you pick yourself up, finish making coffee, and head out the door to catch the bus to the museum.

When you arrive, your co-worker, Anne, can tell right away that something’s wrong.

“Uh-oh. Trouble in paradise?” She asks you.

“Yeah. Something like that.” You sulk your way back to your office and unload your bag and the lunch you packed for yourself, tucking it away in the mini fridge on the other side of the room. Anne slides into the office, too,  and takes a seat at the chair across from your desk, looking at you with expectant eyes.

“Are you going to tell me what happened or are you going to leave me hanging? Spill.” You sigh and look at your watch - you have a few minutes before the work day actually starts, and you figure you could use some additional perspective from someone besides Chucho. So, you go ahead and rehash the situation. 

By the end of it, her eyebrows are about as high as the ceiling, and her head is propped on her hand, leaning forward on the desk as if to ask for more.

“His dad drove you home? Seriously?”

“Is that really what you latched onto after all of that, Anne?” She laughs at you and sits back in her chair, arms crossing gently over her chest.

“You know you went about that all wrong, right? Even the best-seeming guy gets spooked when you start talking about marriage and kids and stuff, you know?” You sigh in agreement, shrugging slightly.

“Yeah, I know. I know now. Things have just been going so well and I think about it all the time, I thought I could just ask, you know? We’re not kids, I figured it’d be at least something he’s thought about, even not in the context of the two of us.” You sigh, melting further into the chair as you shake your head in frustration. “What do I do?”

“I don’t know. It sounds like he made his position pretty clear.” The deep, heaving breath that follows from your chest is as dramatic as it is comforting.

“I know,” you finally respond. Anne sits up and looks at you with a forceful glare. 

“So you have to decide, then. Is he worth losing those possibilities for the future? Or not?”

~~~

You take the week to regulate yourself back into your regular, daily life. You go to work, focus as hard as you can for as long as possible, then you stop at the store on your way home, cook yourself a real meal, and eat on the couch, alone, in front of whatever shitty movie you’ve picked out for yourself today. You’re bored. And lonely. And still unbearably and unbelievably heartbroken. 

On Friday, you’re partway through the shittiest of movies that you’ve managed to pick out so far this week when your phone rings. Picking it up quickly, you hear a familiar gravelly voice on the other side.

“Mija.” 

It brings a smile to your face immediately. “Hey, Chucho. What’s up?”

“I made flan. Care to stop by for some?” You chuckle lightly at his suggestion.

“Now?” You ask.

“Only if you want to,” he responds.

“Is Javi home?” He pauses, but answers nonetheless.

“He is, but he’s moping elsewhere, as is the usual these days.” Something tugs at your heartstrings when he mentions Javi’s mood, unsure whether it’s because you feel eased that Javi’s grieving the same as you, or if it’s because it confirms that Javi does, in fact, feel something for you. 

“Who would I be to say no to flan?” You can practically hear his smile through the receiver.

“Come on, then. I’ll save you some.”

You hang up the phone with a quick sign-off and get yourself dressed - at least, a little more dressed than you are now. You throw on a sweater and some jeans, a pair of shoes, and grab your keys, bounding out of the door and down the steps, toward your car parked on the street.

The busy city streets quickly shift to the winding roads you know and love so much, leading you all the way back to the Peña ranch. As you pull into the familiar property, you park in front of the house and turn off your lights before sitting back in your seat for a moment. You take a deep breath and work yourself up to getting out of the car and going inside. This was Javi’s house, afterall… you might see him. But you’re also not sure what you’ll do if he does show up.

Finally deciding that you’re prepped well enough, you open the car door and stand, stretching your arms and back for a moment before walking up to the front door of the house that still felt so much like home to you. 

The door opens before you can even reach the handle, Chucho looking down at you for the briefest of moments before he’s crushing you tightly to his chest.

“Mija. I missed you.” You laugh and wrap your arms around him - he always gave the best hugs - and sigh into the embrace. It’s much appreciated, on your part. It turns out you’ve been craving human contact. 

“It’s only been a few days, Chucho.” He finally releases you and holds you at an arm's distance away, brows scrunches behind thick glasses as he looks you up and down.

“A few days where I thought you might not ever come back. They felt like forever.”

“I told you, Chucho. Nothing’s gonna keep me away, I mean that.” You offer him the most genuine smile you can muster and he finally releases you as you walk into the house. Javi is, as you figured he would be, nowhere to be seen. There’s a flan sitting in the middle of the dining table and you eagerly take a few steps in as Chucho closes the door behind you.

“Come on. Let’s get you some flan.” Laughing lightly, you follow him into the kitchen, reaching for forks as he reaches for the plates. You meet each other at the table and he serves up two too-large slices of flan, one to each of you, before you take a seat, Chucho at the head of the table and you just next to him. “So I take it you haven’t talked to him?” he prods. 

You sigh and shrug, unsure how to answer. “I’m not sure what I’d say. I know I should try, but I can’t shake the feeling that he just doesn’t want me.” The incredulous look he gives you makes you snort slightly.

“Oh, mija, you have never been so wrong. He wants you desperately. He’s like an abandoned, grumpy puppy dog right now. He wants you, very much. Anyone can tell.” You smile nervously at him, unsure how much he knows, and how much you really want to divulge.

“Okay. Maybe that’s true. But he doesn’t want a future with me. And, to me? They might as well be the same thing.” He sighs and sets down his fork, propping his chin on his fist for a moment.

“You need to talk to him about it. I don’t think that’s true, either. I really don’t.”

“But he told me that. Not in so many words, but he said he doesn’t want a future with me. Not with me, not with anyone, Chucho. I can’t convince him of something he doesn’t even want in the first place.” He sighs and reaches across the table to take your hand, softly.

“If that’s what he said to you, know that it was a terrified little boy speaking, not Javi.” You tilt your head, brows scrunching as you try to piece together what he means. Chucho continues. “I know he probably said something horrible. Probably out of fear. You don’t have to tell me what, because it’s between the two of you, not me. But I know him. And I know how he is. He’s my son.”

There’s that word again.

Fear.

If he’s not afraid of you, then what is it? The future? Commitment? Kids?

You look down at the already nearly-empty plate in front of you and swallow thickly.

“Okay, Chucho. I get it.” You sigh, feeling like you’re at a stalemate. “I just don’t know what to do. I don’t know if I’m supposed to reach out to him or if I’m supposed to wait for him to come to me or something in between? I just don’t know.” You rest your head against the back of the chair for a moment until you hear the sound of Chucho’s heaving sigh.

“You’ll figure it out, mija. I know you will.” You look up at him with a smile and force yourself back to vertical, reaching for your fork once again.

“You have too much faith in me.”

“No. I have just enough.”                                    

~ ~ ~

You sit with Chucho for a long while, talking back and forth about nothing and everything like you always used to, in the days before Javi came home. It’s easy, simple, and you appreciate the companionship greatly. He lets out a yawn, eventually, and stands up to excuse himself back to his room.

“Thank you, mija, for coming over. It was getting lonely without you around.” You stand as well and walk over to him as he wraps you up in a big hug.

“Thank you for having me, Chucho. You head off to bed - I’ll clean up. I can let myself out.” He nods back at you in response with a tip of the brim of his hat and turns, hobbling off to his room. He knows better by now than to argue with you about these kinds of things.

So, you set off to start cleaning up. You wrap the flan up in some cling wrap, and set it in the fridge before you grab your plates and move to the sink, washing each of them in turn.  You dry them each on the dish towel that hangs from the handle of the oven, before you decide to go ahead and just wash the rest of the dishes in the sink, while you’re at it. Less for Chucho to deal with in the morning. When you’re done, you make sure everything out on the countertop is set back in its rightful place and you straighten out the chairs at the table. 

You’re sliding on your shoes and reaching for your keys on the hook near the door when you hear the telltale sound of a doorknob and then a familiar set of footsteps moving down the hallway. You stop in your tracks, unsure how to proceed, until you hear the footsteps track closer to you, eventually stopping. Turning over your left shoulder, you look in the direction of the hallway, only to be confronted with the same one you had spent the entire week pining after.

“Javi,” you huff out with a breathy sigh. His lips turn up in their tell-tale smirk, a distinct 5-o’clock shadow graced across his jawline. His hair is tousled, more unkempt than he usually lets it get. And then he opens his mouth and speaks - the sound sending a shiver straight down your spine.

“Muñeca.” 

You can see something brimming in his eyes as he steps further toward you, closing the distance between you two quickly. His hands stay firmly rooted in his pockets, but he’s now in breathing distance, right in front of you. You set your keys back down and turn fully toward him, looking at him from where you stand.

“I was just, uh… getting ready to head out.” You stumble, unsure of how best to approach this conversation. Fiddling your hands together, you look away, down at your feet, as the intensity of his gaze is too much for you to bear.

“What if you stayed?” He asks. Your eyes snap back up to his, taken aback by his suggestion.

“Stayed?” You couldn’t have heard him right, right? He nods.

“Yeah. Here. With me. I know… I know we need to talk about things. I know. But… We’ll talk in the morning. I promise. I just…” One of his hands leaves his pocket and swipes across his lip, in the way it always used to - albeit much more cockily before. Hesitantly, he reaches for you, his hand cupping the side of your face. His thumb brushes across your cheekbone and you lean into the touch, closing your eyes as you take a deep breath, the contact soothing you.

You blink your eyes open at him and nod once. He waits just long enough to see that you’ve truly said ‘yes’ before he’s wrapping you up into his arms, inhaling the scent of your hair like it’s a salve. Your arms circle tightly around his torso, grappling tight to his body like if you lose your grip for even a moment you might fall away from him entirely. You can feel tears brimming at your eyelids, but you don’t let them fall. Not now. Not yet.

You can hear Javi take a few deep breaths, arms squeezing you a little more tightly with each one, until he’s reluctantly pulling away from you, hands on each of your shoulders as he looks deeply into your eyes.

“Come to bed with me?” He asks you.

You hesitate - you’re not sure what to do, exactly. Do you want to stay? More than anything, really. But should you?

You blink back at him for a while, trying to figure out how you should respond. His face looks like its just as close to breaking as yours is, though, just as close to falling apart, and that realization is enough to solidify your answer.

“Okay, Javi. I’ll stay.” You nod in agreement with your words, a small smile up-ticking on his face, and he takes your hand, leading you down the hallway. When you make it to his room, he closes the door behind you and pauses, just long enough to pull you into him again so that he can press a gentle, tender kiss to your forehead. “Here, I’ll grab you a shirt-”

You watch as he fishes an old t-shirt out of his dresser for you, handing it to you before he turns back to you, seriously. “Do you want me to…” He nods toward the door, gesturing toward it with his chin. You scoff slightly and let out a small laugh, shaking your head.

“No. You’ve seen me naked plenty, Javi. I’m not shy.” He responds with a serious look and turns away from you, tugging off his own button up as he swaps it for a plain t-shirt, instead. You realize, suddenly, that he’s trying to give you some sense of privacy - a moment to change, alone, with a sense that he’s not entitled to look right now. Not just yet. 

You get to it as quickly as you can, tugging off your jeans and sweater and folding them, setting them on one side of Javi’s dresser, before tugging on his t-shirt and climbing into bed. You look up at him from your seated position, eager to get your hands on him again. You know there’s a lot the two of you need to work through here. You know there are tough conversations ahead. But you’re also damn sure that you’ll crumble if you can’t have his arms around you as quickly as possible. 

Eventually, he turns around, smiling at the sight of you in his bed. “Cariño-“ he starts, “my bed has never looked more comfortable.” You offer him a sleepy smile, reaching one hand out for him as he climbs in. He obliges, even though it makes crawling the rest of the way over to you more difficult, holding your hand in his and pressing his lips to it gently. When he makes it over to you, he lays down, pulling you into his side and against his chest. He inhales deeply, much like he did when he first wrapped you up in his arms earlier, and you ratchet yourself to his side, throwing one thigh over his hips and digging your fingertips tightly into his ribcage. There’s a possibility that this might actually be uncomfortable for him, you think, but it’s too worth it to bother adjusting. You need this right now. 

He reaches down to gather up the sheets and quilt from where they’re bunched on the side of the bed and throws them over you both, tucking you in gently as he makes sure you’re properly wrapped up. 

“This okay, mi amor?” You nod affirmatively into his chest and hum, happily, feeling an ease that had been missing over the course of the week. 

“More than okay, Javi. Thank you.”

“No. Thank you. I know we need to… talk. But this is- this is good. Just like this.” Nodding again, this time, as you settle back against him, you let the persistent beating of his heart soothe you. You have lots to think about and talk through together tomorrow - or at least you hope you do - but he’s right. This is good. Just like this. You’ll figure it out in the morning. 

~ ~ ~

A/N: I guess it's more feels than angst. But still. One of the big moments I've been working up to in this series is coming next - I can't wait to get it out for all of you tio read!

Let me know what you think! Your interactions and comments and criticisms and all of it are so so so very appreciated!

xoxoxo

Taglist: @amyispxnk @picketniffler @kirsteng42 @vee-bees-blog @samiamproductions grippysockedtoebeans

(lmk if you'd like to be added!)

Next part HERE (IX)

[marvel-ous-m]

writing patterns

i was tagged by @devondespresso @pearynice @ataliagold and @withacapitalp !! Thank you all for the tags, this was so much fun!

rules: share the first line of your last ten published works or as many as you are able and see if there are any patterns!

Time Marches On- It’s dark when Steve wakes up.

When the Day Met the Night (In the Middle of Summer)- "Oh my god, Robin, these shorts are worse than the ones we had at Scoops. I can’t believe I let you talk me into this.” 

D&D&D (Dungeons and Dragons and Dustin's Birthday)- “Steve, thank you so much for agreeing to help with this. Come on in.”

The Planets and the Fates (and All the Stars) Aligned- “Robin, do you seriously think that it’s a good idea to empty out our savings accounts so that we can fly across the country for a film screening?”

Faire Thee Well- “You know something about today. Something that you are not telling me.”

The Stuff of Our Lives- “Do you need help with your other things, babe?” 

Time Will Tell- “-An emerald, I mean, really , could that man at least try to act like he knows me?” 

Saving the Best for Last- Eddie wasn’t expecting to do anything to celebrate his birthday aside from sitting with Wayne to watch some horror movies, seeing that he was still being persecuted by the majority of Hawkins.

Catastrophizing- “Stevie, it’s almost two in the morning, what are you still doing awake?”

Tonight, Tonight- “Did you really expect me to stay in Hawkins forever? Don’t be foolish, Steve.” 

Okay!! The main thing I've been able to learn from this is that apparently I LOVE starting a fic with dialogue, which honestly makes a lot of sense? Dialogue is certainly the thing that I'm most comfortable writing, and I feel that a good punchy line of dialogue can be a great hook for the rest of a story! It's definitely making me want to challenge that pattern moving forward, though.

As for other tags- I don't know if y'all have done this yet, but I'd love to see if y'all have any writing patterns! @hairstevington @hotluncheddie @steviewashere @kikidoesfanfic and anyone else who would like to participate!! <3

[sparklepocalypse]

First Line Analysis

Big thanks to @kiwiana-writes, @energievie, and @read-and-write- for the tags here! It's been awhile since I've done something like this, and I've posted a few things since then, so here we go!

RULES: post the first lines of your last 10 fics/chapters posted on AO3 (if you have less than 10 fics posted, post the first lines of all your fics) and try to draw some conclusions.

Opening Lines, from most to least recent:

“We’ll just have to keep it very casual, of course.” Henry is an idiot. He hopes desperately that this realization isn’t written all over his face, like his every thought always is when it comes to the man sitting opposite him on the boldly colored sofa. The taste of Alex’s cum still lingers in Henry’s mouth, and he might have just prevented himself from ever getting a refresher, and — [Nobody Knows, Just We Two | Alex/Henry | E]

Each evening, Alex texts when he gets off the subway, and today is no different. Be home in ten. Love you. Missed your face. [He Drives Me Fucking Crazy; I am His Everything | Alex/Henry | E]

“Ma, seriously. I’m sixteen. I can go to the UN fundraiser,” Alex huffs, smoothing down the front of his shirt as the car rolls to a stop. “It feels like you’re dropping me off at daycare. I don’t even know these people.” [Count to Ten & Breathe Real Deep | Alex/Henry | E]

“Oh, come on,” Alex groans as traffic grinds to a halt on I-10 just outside of Norwalk. His shift starts in an hour and a half; it’s his first as a face character, and he’s going to be late if the cars don’t get fucking moving. [Love Like Yours Will Surely Come My Way | Alex/Henry | E]

The worst part about being a siren in the modern era, Henry ponders as yet another ship flies past his cove at a speed that he knows will disturb the anemone gardens below, is the yacht bros. Between the sound of their vessels’ motors and the dissonant noise the humans call music, Henry’s singing has no chance of attracting anyone’s attention. [All the Ocean Was Sleeping | Alex/Henry | E]

Alex Claremont-Diaz is sixteen years old, and he hasn’t presented. His dad seems to think it’s fine and offers Alex regular reassurance that his cousin Angel hadn’t presented until nearly 20. His mom, though, gets a little crease between her eyebrows whenever she thinks Alex isn’t looking. Presenting is a Big Deal in the Claremont family, and Alex just... hasn’t. [Late Bloomer | Alex/Henry | E]

For once, they’re not due on set until nearly noon. The night shoot at the V&A had run until nearly 1 AM, and Matthew had deliberately given the cast a recovery day, with only their Prime Video interview scheduled until that evening. It will, the Prime reps have promised, be a low pressure interview featuring some unserious activities framing an opportunity to reintroduce themselves to the world as the men bringing Alex and Henry to life. [You're the Spark That Won't Go Out | Taylor/Nick | E]

Nick can pinpoint the exact moment the line disappears. [Just Want You to Make Me Move | Taylor/Nick | E]

It’s coming. [Single Sad-Sack Seeking Same | Alex/Henry | E]

“Go win an election.” [Wrap Me Up, Unfold Me | Alex/Henry | E]

Analysis and tags behind the jump because that's already a wall of text. 😅🤣

First Line Analysis:

Not a ton of world-building in any of these first lines.

You can typically tell what sort of AU one of the more out-there AUs is going to be from the first line; Late Bloomer mentions presentation; All the Ocean Was Sleeping mentions sirens. The less outlandish AUs are less obvious.

60% of my last 10 fics make it clear whose POV you're reading in the first line.

Only one of these first lines contains a swear word; likewise, only one contains an overt reference to smut (even though these are literally all rated E).

Two of these first lines are a single sentence under five words; the remainder are... much longer.

Two of the first lines are either just a quote from the movie script or include a quote from the movie.

Four of the first lines open on dialogue, and of the rest, five are expository and one is ominous.

Tagging @eusuntgratie, @firenati0n, @hgejfmw-hgejhsf, @duchessdepolignaca03, @priincebutt,

@violetbaudelaire-quagmire, @cactusdragon517, @bigassbowlingballhead, @anincompletelist, @cha-melodius,

@orchidscript, @porcelainmortal, @thesleepyskipper, @onthewaytosomewhere, @mudbloodpotter05

[charlotterhea]

I'm thinking about leaving the English Fandom

At least as a writer.

I've just finished posting the translation of one of my longest fics and... Boy, the feedback is depressing. I've planned to start translating the next long thing but I seriously lack any motivation to do so. Yk, translating is exhausting! I already wrote that story once, I went through it several times, and now I am supposed to engage with it yet again only for that sad outcome of verbal engagement I get in return?!

There is a lot I dislike about the German fandom and the way the German archive works, but the comments... the comments!

And currently, ISEM gets translated into Russian and I sometimes take a look at those comments as well and honestly, almost every poorly translated Russian comment excites me more than the majority of the English ones I get.

Why the heck is that? What is wrong with you English folk that you are so notoriously unable to write some decent comments nowadays? I know this has been different! There were authors writing oneshots for the writer of every 1000. comment they got on a story! 1000!!! I didn't even reach 600 for a 70-chapter-long story! WTF?!

I know, I know, I sound very ungrateful right now, but I'm done with being humble and grateful for a bunch of emojis that get thrown my way. I sit at my desk for hours and hours on end, pour my heart onto empty pages, and bring characters and bad-ass-long plots to life - resulting in stories longer than a couple of the HP books combined! -, and a considerable part of what I get in return is some emojis and a generic thank you?! No! I refuse to be grateful for that any longer! There are enough sympathetic posts around trying to encourage readers to at least leave an emoji or a key smash as a comment and yet I have this story that got over 1300 kudos and has more than 500 subscribers and not even the last fucking chapter, not even the finale gets me more than ten comments!

'Oh, but maybe there will be more soon!' you might say but I assure you: No. Most likely there won't because y'all started treating AO3 like fucking Instagram and the likelihood of somebody commenting on a story older than three of four days is LOW! If I don't churn out story after story after chapter after story I just get no feedback at all anymore although I already wrote all that stuff that is right there waiting to be fangirled about!

And the worst thing is: Those old stories are fangirled about! But not in the comments. When did you begin excluding authors? When did you begin seeing us as some bunch of untouchables instead of the dude next door who is just as insane about the same two to ten blorbos as you are? When did you begin to squeal about stories far away from the authors instead of with them in the comments? Y'all are acting like old stories are lava when it comes to comments! The only way I see that old stuff actually still gets read is by the daily kudo mail.

Really, I wish AO3 would turn off kudos. Kudos are such an easy way out of commenting, and all the 'Let me give kudos for each chapter!' posts are a testament to that. Honestly? No! You don't deserve to give kudos for every chapter. You don't deserve to feel like you've sufficiently done your duty by pressing a fucking button! You deserve to be ashamed of reading amazingly crafted stories for fucking free and not even having the decency to cobble some lousy sentences together when you're done consuming!

Oh, you are shy? Well, Brenda, guess what! I was shy about posting that story as well and yet I did so you had a good time after work! Suck it up! Nobody knows who you are anyway! Fuck, log out and write a guest comment if you really have to!

You don't have time? Well, you bloody well did have time to read the 6k+ words I churned out, so stop whinging about the five minutes it takes to write three sentences of gratitude!

You don't know what to say? Honey, you just read 6k+ words and there is not a single thing on your mind to say about it?! There was not a single line you could copy and say something like 'I laughed out loud at that!' or 'You had me in tears about this!' or 'I couldn't believe he fucking said that!'? Then why are you even reading the story?!

Stop those lame excuses and start commenting on fics! Start showing some fucking gratitude for the work writers do just for you to consume it like a bloody Netflix series! We don't get a single penny for the hours we spend in front of a screen! We cannot earn money with fanfiction! We cannot open commissions to get our rent paid! All we get are comments and most of them are a fucking shame considering the amount of work they are supposed to show appreciation for!

So, if in 2024 you still silently consume stories or keep chicken out of writing a couple of cohesive sentences by throwing some heart emojis in the writer's vague direction you deserve to be robbed of the kudos button and to be ashamed of yourself because you're actively supporting the death of fandoms and with that one of the few free sources of joy we still have. One of the few spaces no corporation uses to squeeze some money or data out of us and I cannot believe that this still has to be spelled out. Fandom is a group project and nobody likes the idiots sitting by, contributing nothing, and still getting all of the benefits.

Phew. I needed to get that out of the system. And now I'll go and contemplate translating another story. But after posting this I probably won't get comments anymore anyway because it's always the wrong people who feel addressed by shit like this.

Well, whatever...

[hel-phoenyx]

Oli is @thal-ent's character and Kaizarz @corneille-but-not-the-author's

Wing cleaning duty is quite the mandatory task when you know Oli these many years. It can happen very quickly, because of unexpected rain, some beastmenphobic idiots throwing them mud on their face or just some teasing remark earning them a little seawater shower.

In the last case, I'm often the one in charge of the very important duty. Really, the situation is ironic. Shutting down vicious mockery takes you like ten seconds, to earn a dozen or two minutes of calm, and then you need to spend four hours on preening bullshit.

You're lucky you mean a lot to me, Oli. Genuinely.

I sit down, and starts cleaning the feathers. They're soft under all the salt and the water, even if it doesn't stop me to litteraly feel them itch. While they're drenched, Oli is still kinda in my domain, so my senses toward her own sensations are heightened.

I really gotta control this.

Close my heart to everything outside so I can't let myself hurt or be hurt again.

Oli's wings shudder when I go to the primaries. Sensitive part, I guess.

"Hey, you're better at this than I thought."

I sigh.

"Be careful, Oli, I just started. Nothing is stopping me to drench you again."

"Com'on, Tyr, that was a compliment."

I once regretted letting them, all of them, use that nickname. It was not theirs. I thought it will never be. Today, it's somewhat comforting.

I let myself smile a little bit.

"You're not the only beastperson I know..."

Knew.

"So I had experience. My hand is not too much of a handicap in this situation."

"Good, good. Wouldn't want you to spend the day preening my feathers, you wingwetting bully."

They stick their tongue toward me, enough so I can see the tattoo. I always wondered why so many marking on their skins, but I never asked. I'm not much of a curious person anyway.

Me, at least. I can see Oli has something on their mind. Their wings are shivering in some emotion I can't itnerpret, and their face is crisped in pensive worry. I have an idea of the question she's gonna ask, and of course, I'm not dissapointed.

"I never asked you how you lost it ?"

"Because you knew I wasn't gonna answer."

They laugh.

"Good point. But seriously, Tyr, only thing I know from that day is Kaizarz fetching the doctors. I'll never forget his expression. I thought... I thought someone died."

"Maybe someone did, who knows ?"

"Com'on, don't joke with that, it's not funny."

I'm not joking, Oli.

But those are words I am not able to say. Not yet. Not while I have to endure the shame and the pain. My honor, shattered in pieces. My childhood, drowned in sorrow. Everything I believed in, tainted in blood.

The silence is enough of an answer for my dearest rukkorn friend. They shrug, let me move onto the wingpit. This place always accumulate a lot of dirt and salt, I'd better be careful.

My peace and quiet do not last long, however. Oli may ended up getting tired of the silence, or they just want to talk to me, while I can align more than three consecutive words. I've never been a talker, but ever since that event, it's been so hard just saying hello to them. I couldn't even look Kaizarz in the eyes up until not too long ago.

And then it was too late.

"Hey, Tyr, there's something else I wanted to ask you."

"Hm ?"

"You went to the Tournament for Glory, right , How was it ?"

I don't think they're asking that question without any hidden thought. Out of all of us, I am the only one that could go. And it was because I regained some fighting ability, enough to defend my sovereign, even if my former level was the one of a genius.

I could have reach death battles and all of them know it. So, I suppose they're several reasons behind that question, and not all of them are about Kaizarz.

Still, it is too personal to answer.

"It was... Something."

"Aw. Nothing else ?"

"You're on dangerous grounds, Oli."

They laugh again.

"Look at him being all-mysterious. Come oooooooon, Tyr, I had Kaizarz' point of view but he doesn't talk much these days, he's too occupied with the war and you're always free since you lost your hand, I want your point of view, please tell meeee~"

My point of view ?

Mine ?

I could tell you everything about how I saw a man vanquish a dozen enemies in a fraction of second before laughing with me at the festival. I could tell you the story of how a double-sided axe almost killed the Khan of Khans before the wielder, the victor shook his hand in respect. I could tell you about a god's might and the one that never yielded, that landed a hit on the Herald of End of Times.

What's so interesting about my point of view ?

What so interesting about a pile of books with taboo subjects, laughs inbetween battles and the warmth of two hands taking mine at different times. Harmless jokes and alcohol that loosen up my tongue and the sun in my eyes and a back turned towards me. My throat hurting and the sun kissing my burning cheeks and words I never deserved, I'll never deserve. A hug behind a tent and words that would forever mark me because I hold them true in my heart there's no world we I can ever be happy.

What's so interesting

About me ?

[biscuits-of-bagend]

DnDoc, Space Band #5 - Exploring the SECC

Part 1 Part 4

Previous story: DnDoc, Coming Home

---

Half an hour in front of the dressing table and a trawl through the accessory box later, Rogue looked in the mirror and saw someone who could pass for at least a singer-songwriter touring his debut album, even if not a full on rockstar. His eyes were shadowy, his hair in wavy curls tumbling down his forehead, his wrists decked out in leather wristbands, and the Doctor had even found some cool boots like his own for him. He snuck a little air guitar in front of the full-length mirror when nobody was looking. Ruby had by this point found a crop top she was happy with and the Doctor had done some rockstar makeup for her too, so all three of them were ready to hit the streets of the SECC.

   Stardust City, as it turned out it was called by inhabitants, was surprisingly quiet for the night of an Earthlings concert. Rogue supposed it was possible that they weren't quite as popular these days, what with their core demographic growing up. Although, he hadn't actually asked what year they were in. Maybe there was a ten-year-old Rogue out there somewhere wishing he was here, with no idea that he actually was!

   "Oops, that explains a lot," said the Doctor. He pointed at a clock tower which said it was only 5PM. It looked like they were going to have a lot of time to kill before the gig, and they'd already eaten dinner on the TARDIS while they got ready.

   "The portal must have been that excited," said Ruby.

   "I've definitely seen better drivers, yes," said the Doctor. "Oh well, I guess if we're here super early we can get right down the front so that's exciting."

   The Doctor led the way through wide streets with large, blocky conference centres on each side, past a park with a giant gazebo, then down into a long, gently curving boulevard. Across the boulevard the standing area for an utterly enormous outdoor stage began, and as Rogue looked from left to right he saw that the curve of the street hugged its boundary the whole way round.

   "Uhoh, someone looks like they were out a little late last night," said the Doctor, nodding his head forwards.

   Someone was staggering along the boulevard on the other side of the road, their hand juddering along the black metal railing. The Doctor and Ruby rushed forward to give them a hand and hold them up. Rogue started, then realised that right, yes, this was what they did. No observation or evaluation, just straight in there.

   "Hey, what's the matter?" the Doctor was saying as Rogue joined them.

   The person seemed to be human, with worryingly pale skin and brightly coloured dots breaking out all over their face. Their hair was lanky and hung forward over the front of their shirt, but Rogue had a feeling this wasn't the fashionable sort of grunge. They looked seriously ill.

   "Stardust," they mumbled. Their saliva collected on their lips and dribbled down - also a strange colour, or at least a strange pattern. Really saliva having a pattern at all was quite strange.

   "Stardust City, yeah, that's where you are, mate," said Ruby. She and the Doctor let the person lean on them the way they had helped Rogue yesterday. They lowered them down to the pavement and leaned them against the railing.

   "No, stardust. Sickness. Call help. Please," said the person, rubbing at their eyes. Their hands came away blotchy, bright yellows and greens and blues and reds streaking across their palms.

   The Doctor got the sonic out and pressed it in the same spot three times. "Okay, that should call the emergency services."

   Rogue helped the Doctor and Ruby keep the person conscious until the ambulance got there and two paramedics jumped out to help.

   "Good job getting the call in," said the first paramedic as she brushed the three travellers out the way and started some examinations of the person. "Stardust overload isn't deadly, but it can knock you right out without much warning. Nobody wants to wake up alone on the street after that."

   "Stardust overload?" the Doctor asked.

   "They named it after this city, yes," said the paramedic, a short woman with curt blonde hair. "It can happen when you're constantly surrounded by music, art, ideas. Like trying to fit too much excitement in one person."

   "Will they be okay?" asked Rogue.

   "Now that we've got them, yes," said the paramedic. Her colleague was loading the patient in on a stretcher. Rogue was standing closest to them as they passed and the patient managed to reach up one hand and give his arm a quick squeeze in thanks. The paramedic went on, "Don't you folks worry. Go enjoy your night, but if you start to see multi-coloured spots that aren't part of any light show, do seek medical attention."

   The paramedics sped away with their patient and left them standing at the barrier.

   "Maybe that explains the empty streets," said Rogue. "An epidemic of some sort."

   "We can go back to the TARDIS any time, you know," said the Doctor.

   "No, no, it's fine," said Rogue. "Like she said, if anyone starts to feel ill, we can go see a doctor. I mean hey, we have you. As long as you two are okay with that?"

   "I'm good," said the Doctor. "Ruby?"

   "Hell yeah." Ruby did the rock-horns with her right hand, though with a slightly sheepish smile which suggested this wasn't quite her genre.

   "Alright, let's go," said Rogue.

---

Part 6

@off-traveling-in-the-stars @casavanse @monster-donut @letsargueacrossthestars (let me know at any point if you no longer wish to be tagged in each post)

[baronaliswritingcorner]

Discotek's Tales of Symphonia The Animation Blu-Ray is Rather...

So in preparation for next month's Colloyd Week, I rewatched the Tales of Symphonia OVAs to catalogue ideas/references. As it happens, it's been well over a decade since I last saw it, and what better way to celebrate my original OTP by finally fishing out that Discotek Blu-Ray I've had lying around?

And folks, now that the two worlds've been reunited and my original OTP's riding off into the sunset, I gotta ask...

Holy cow, did they have any budget on this thing or what?!

No, seriously, what happened here? The translated script's all well and good, but, come on: the absent omakes? The garish yellow subtitles? The untranslated credits? The mistranslated names?! Really, I'm convinced they had some half-complete style guide because while "Raine", "Genis", and Colette's angel symptoms are left intact, we're left to juggle the following silliness:

"Barraclough Temple" (Balacruf Mausoleum)

"Rewin" (Luin)

"Ascard" (Asgard)

"Haimah" (Hima)

"Techbirds" (Rheairds)

"Gaorakia Forest" (Gaoracchia Forest)

"Artesta" (Altessa)

"Cybac" (Sybak)

"Taiga" ("Tiga")

"Kuciak" (Kuchinawa -- HOW DO YOU MESS THIS UP THIS IS PLAIN JAPANESE)

"Trent Forest" (Torent Forest)

Now, us eagle-eyed Tales of Symphonia fans might pick up how a couple of these are indeed the original Japanese names (for instance, I can buy Ascard slipping through since it's on the opening map), but while localization discrepancies across multimedia are hardly anything new (VIZ Media's Dragon Ball/One Piece manga releases being prime examples), some of these display a shocking lack of professionalism -- you hear Sheena pronouncing "Kuchinawa" plain as day and "Techbirds" is the Tales of Phantasia name for the Rheairds! How did these happen?!

Look, I get it: licensing anime's expensive and sometimes things fall through -- these releases were mighty pricy over in Japan and if excising the bonuses meant an affordable $40 set, so be it -- but sheesh, if you're gonna treat us to a barebones release, at least show some care and consistency in the actual main course. This is a fan's-first work, after all -- us Tales of Symphonia faithful have been through the wringer with those dreadful remasters alone, and we'll take whatever respite we can get.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm off for a retreat into the Trent Forest. Full of Trents, I imagine. Maybe they'll help me write my fic

(The actual OVA itself? Again, a fan's-first product -- I can't say it's especially welcoming to newcomers with how a 40+ hour game's divided into 11 half-hour episode, but hey, could be way worse. The animation and overall look's gorgeous, Almateria's a hauntingly beautiful opening, the cast chemistry is genuinely endearing, the drama and messaging land as well as ever (I felt emotions on that last episode), and that sickingly-sweet Colloyd goodness drowns you in mushy, soppy fluff -- like being cuddled by ten Noishes at once. Mmm.)

[greensagephase]

I saw on one of your recent posts that you mentioned your birthday is on Wednesday so I wanted to take the time and wish you a very happy birthday!! 🥳✨ (but if I'm early then happy early birthday!!) You are absolutely the sweetest and nicest person I've ever talked to and the first moot I've ever just interacted with this much on here!! and I truly enjoy every one of our conversations and of course, your amazing stories!! Reading your stories and taking the time to talk with you on here has made the rest of my year so much better, really!🥹 Especially with school and everything, and you’ve also given me so much inspiration to draw after not doing so after some time. I’ll try not to make this too long but Alondra, you’re an amazing and wonderful person (and writer!!), and I wish you all the best, always!!! ❤️✨

Also wanted to make you a little drawing/card for your birthday!! ✨ I wanted to include the color “Rosa Mexicano” with some of the flowers as you mentioned wanting to include it with your spidersona to honor your Mexican Heritage and it's such a beautiful color. Also wanted to include the color sage green (or at least a version of it) because I’m guessing you also like that color too from your username! (and it's also just a great color!) I hope you have an amazing birthday Alondra, you deserve the best!! 🥳🥳

There's about ten minutes left before the 6th is over for me and THIS IS THE BEST WAY TO END MY BIRTHDAY ❤️😭 @sunsetdoodler I started to freak out as soon as I scrolled down a bit to keep reading and saw there was an image attached and then I saw it and STARTED TO SCREAM - I LOVE IT SO MUCH OH MY GOD!!!! IT'S PERFECT AND SO SO SWEET THANK YOU😭😭😭 I'm literally crying as I type this because it's one of the best gifts I've ever received, THANK YOU !!! I'm just going to keep saying it, I'm sorry !! But oh my god!! Yes, I love the color sage green!! I like green overall but sage green is one of my favorite shades of it!! I've had this username for about two years since I started liking the color and I thought it was just going to be a phase, so that's where my username came from lol but I'm still in love with it two years later! THE FACT YOU INCLUDED ROSA MEXICANO, NO, I LOVE YOU FR!!! THANK YOU for including it ❤️❤️ also the decorations on the cake!!! They look like poinsettias to me and I absolutely love them!! My mom gets me an arrangement every year for my birthday, so I'm just delighted by that detail, I'm seriously crying right now but they're happy tears!!! 🥹 I'm really sorry for screaming but THEN THERE'S MIGUEL - STOP IT, I'M CRYING EVEN MORE NOW!!! HE LOOKS SO SWEET AND SOFT AND HIS SMILE????!!! SCREAMING AND CRYING!!! AND THE LITTLE BLUSH??? I'M LITERALLY GIGGLING AND KICKING MY FEET WHILE CRYING !!!!!!!!!!! I LOVE EVERYTHING ABOUT IT - YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND!!!!! ❤️😭

Thank you so much for the sweet words and birthday wishes @sunsetdoodler😭You're one of the few moots I interact with and it has also made my last half of the year so much better!!! I genuinely didn't think that I'd be on here interacting much since I had no plans to write this much, which is really funny to think about now, haha! But I'm so thankful I'm on here and that you went off anon because we're moots ❤️I really enjoy talking with you when possible (which by the way, I meant to reply today to part 8's drawing but today just kind of went by, I'm sorry!!) and just getting to interact with you and hear about your schooling, which I hope everything is going well with, and life overall!!! You've given me so much inspiration for Miguel, too and your drawings, as always, make my days!!!! Please know that I truly cherish everything and us being moots makes me so happy I decided to start writing on here!!!!!❤️

@sunsetdoodler my birthday was a great one this year!! I had the amazing opportunity to spend it with my loved ones again and I had some bomb food as well (barbacoa and rice with homemade tortillas and some agua de Jamaica to drink!). It was already an amazing day and your drawing/card and sweet words and wishes were just the best way to end my 25th birthday!! THANK YOU SO, SO, SO MUCH!!!! It means so much to me, seriously, thank you from the bottom of my heart @sunsetdoodler❤️❤️❤️ I hope everything is going well with school and life in general, as always!!! And I'm sending you a warm virtual hug!!! THANK YOU ( I said it so much but seriously, THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!)!!!✨❤️✨