#but the set up would be full thriller/horror

[yeyinde]

I know you plan on doing a Johnny baby trapping but it would be funny if the rest of the 141 were baby trapping their partners and Johnny and his partner actually plan things out with each other.

could you imagine, though. the plot twist is actually that he's wholesome, down-to-earth, and completely well-adjusted. the cabin in the woods? his family vacation home. his dirty secret?? he doesn't pay his property taxes.

[greengoblinswifey]

hey, babes! can you make fratboy!nick but a theater/movie geek please i’m begging. i’m talking like him spewing facts, giving commentary, theories, minor details, and he even wants to recreate an iconic love scene with you. like the pottery scene from ghost it would eat down so hard. that’s if you’re up for it!

Fratboy!Nicholas Chavez x Fem!Reader

warnings— nicholas being a cutie, fluff, L bombs, unprotected sex, praise kink, creampie.

a/n— i love this, def need more fratboy!nicholas requests🤭hope you enjoy <3

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Nicholas led you upstairs to his room at his parents’ house for the first time, his hand wrapped around yours, his grin wide as he opened the door. “Okay, don’t judge me,” he said, stepping aside to let you in.

The room was big and full of character. Shelves lined the walls, filled with DVDs, Blu-rays, and vintage cassettes, alongside stacks of theater playbills. A massive movie poster for Titanic hung above his bed, while smaller posters for Scream and Beetle Juice were tacked up on the other walls.

Your eyes widened as you ran your fingers over the spines of the cassettes. “Nick, you have so many movies. This is crazy.”

“It’s a collection, not just movies,” he corrected with a playful smirk, leaning against the doorframe. “I’ve got everything. Horror, romance, thrillers, musicals, you name it. This right here is a lifetime of excellent taste.”

You laughed, pulling out a cassette with a faded cover. “Pretty Woman? Really?”

“Are you kidding me?” He stepped forward, taking it from your hand and holding it like it was precious. “This movie is a masterpiece. Julia Roberts practically redefined what a rom com could be. The jewelry box scene? Improvised. That’s the kind of magic you can’t plan.”

“You’re such a geek baby,” you teased, putting the cassette back.

“And proud of it,” he said, grinning as he reached for a DVD case. “This? The Notebook. I dare anyone to watch Noah and Allie kiss in the rain and not believe in love.”

“You’re serious about all of this, huh?”

“Dead serious,” he said, his voice softening. “Movies and theater are everything to me. They’re not just entertainment, they’re moments. Like, take Phantom of the Opera. The chandelier crashing, the Phantom singing Music of the Night, it’s pure, raw emotion. And horror? Don’t even get me started on Halloween. That single shot of Michael Myers standing behind Laurie Strode? Chills. Every time.”

You couldn’t help but smile as you traced your fingers over another row of his horror DVDs. “Do you ever stop thinking about this stuff?”

“Nope,” he said, unapologetic. “And I’ll die on this hill, Dirty Dancing is the greatest romance of all time. That final lift? Cinema history babe.”

You laughed, shaking your head. “You’re so over the top, Nick.”

He grinned and took your hand, tugging you toward a small box beneath his bed. “If you think that’s over the top, wait till you see this.” Inside the box were old theater programs and ticket stubs. “This is everything I’ve been to, plays, musicals, even little community theater stuff. My first was The Lion King on Broadway. I was like ten, and when Mufasa appeared in the stars? I cried like a baby.”

You leaned against him, flipping through the programs. “It’s kind of adorable how passionate you are about this.”

“Adorable?” He raised an eyebrow. “I’ll take it. But, for the record, I’m also very serious about recreating iconic movie scenes. You, me, and a pottery wheel? Ghost style. It’s happening.”

“Oh my god,” you said, laughing. “You’re obsessed with that scene.”

“Because it’s perfect!” he said, his hands flying. “It’s intimate, romantic, and ridiculously sexy. Tell me you wouldn’t want to try it.”

You raised an eyebrow. “You don’t even own a pottery wheel, baby.”

“Not the point,” he said, taking your hand. “Come with me.”

The two of you ended up in his parents’ basement, where a table was covered with an old sheet, and a small hunk of clay sat in the center. Nicholas grinned as he set up a Bluetooth speaker, scrolling through his phone. “If we’re doing this, we’re doing it right.”

A moment later, Unchained Melody began to play.

“Nick,” you said, laughing as he dragged a stool over. “You planned this?”

“Of course,” he said, motioning for you to sit in front of the clay. “This is the ultimate love scene. Come on.”

You sat down, shaking your head as he moved behind you, his arms slipping around your waist to guide your hands to the clay. His touch was warm, his breath brushing against your ear as he whispered, “Relax. Just follow my lead.”

Your boyfriend’s arms stayed wrapped around you as he guided your hands over the clay, his voice low and playful. “You know this is how it starts in Ghost.”

You laughed softly, turning your head slightly to look at him. “Are you going to start quoting it?”

“Oh, absolutely.” He grinned, leaning in to nuzzle your neck before his voice dropped into a soft, dramatic tone. “‘It’s amazing, Molly. The love inside, you take it with you.’”

You rolled your eyes, giggling. “You’re so corny.”

“And yet,” he whispered, his lips brushing against your ear, “you’re still here. You love me.”

He wasn’t wrong. His warmth pressed against your back, his hands still covering yours as the clay spun beneath your fingers. The intimacy of the moment, coupled with the deep sound of his voice and the soft strains of Unchained Melody playing in the background, sent a shiver through you.

Nicholas noticed. “Cold?” he asked teasingly, his lips moving to the curve of your shoulder.

You shook your head, your voice barely above a whisper. “No.”

“Good,” he murmured, his hands leaving the clay to slide down to your waist. He turned you slightly on the stool, his gaze locking with yours. His brown eyes were soft, holding the weight of the moment.

“You’re not even paying attention to the clay anymore,” you teased, your voice shaky as his hands rested firmly on your hips.

“That’s because I’m paying attention to you,” he said, leaning in closer. His lips found yours, gentle at first, before deepening the kiss. His fingers went to your sides, pulling you closer as he whispered, “You’re so beautiful.”

You couldn’t stop the smile that tugged at your lips as he kissed you again, his passion matching the way his hands explored your waist and ass.

“Nick,” you moaned when his lips trailed back to your neck, planting soft kisses along your skin.

“Mm?” he hummed against you, his voice warm and teasing.

“This isn’t exactly like Ghost anymore,” you said, laughing softly as your hands tangled in his hair.

“Better,” he murmured, pulling back just enough to meet your eyes. His lips quirked into a mischievous grin. “Way better.”

His lips found yours again, soft, as he cupped your face. The clay on your hands was forgotten, smudges left on both of you, but neither of you cared. The air around you felt hot, the faint strains of Unchained Melody still playing in the background.

“Are you okay with this?” Nicholas whispered, his forehead resting against yours, his breath warm against your lips.

You nodded, your hands sliding up to his chest, feeling the steady beat of his heart beneath your fingertips. “I’m okay baby,” you said softly.

“Tell me if you’re not,” he murmured, brushing a strand of your braids behind your ear. His hands lingered on your waist, his thumbs stroking gentle circles.

“I will, baby,” you assured him, your voice steady, though your pulse raced.

“I love you,” he said, the sincerity in his voice making you feel like the only person in the world.

Your cheeks warmed as his hands moved from your waist to grab your ass guiding you closer. His kisses deepened, slow and steady, leaving no doubt about how much he wanted you.

His lips found their way to your neck again, pressing gentle kisses along your skin. “You’re perfect,” he whispered against you, his voice thick with emotion.

Your hands slid to his shoulders, feeling the strength there as he leaned into you. “Nick,” you whispered, his name slipping out like a prayer.

“Yes, baby?” he murmured, pulling back just enough to look into your eyes, his thumb brushing against your cheek.

“I want you so bad. Please fuck me,” you admitted, feeling a shiver run down your spine as his gaze softened further.

“God, you’re so beautiful when you’re needy like this,” he said, his lips curling into a small smile before kissing you again, his hands caressing your ass.

He stood, lifting you effortlessly in his arms. “Come with me,” he said softly, carrying you toward the couch in the basement. He sat down, pulling you gently onto his lap, your legs straddling him.

“You’re so beautiful my love,” he whispered, his hands sliding up to cup your face again. “I want to make you feel good. Tell me if I’m doing too much, okay?”

You nodded, your fingers tangling in his hair as you leaned in to kiss him. “I trust you baby, you know that,” you said softly, feeling his hands settle on your hips.

He groaned softly, his head falling back as you pressed kisses along his jawline. “You’re driving me crazy, you know that?” he murmured, his hands squeezing your waist.

Your laughter was soft as you leaned back to look at him. “Good,” you teased, feeling more confident under his gaze.

“You’re the most perfect girlfriend ever,” he said again, his voice full of awe as his hands roamed your back, pulling you closer. “You feel so good in my arms.”

Nicholas moaned as you straddled him, your short dress riding up your thighs as you settled onto his lap. His hands slid up, gripping your hips, his breath already coming in shallow gasps. “You’re going to kill me,” he whispered, his lips brushing against yours.

“You’ll survive,” you teased, your fingers slipping into his sweats to pull out his hard and leaking cock.

When your hands touched his cock, he hissed softly, his hands gripping your hips. His fingers moved to the hem of your dress, hiking it higher as his dark eyes met yours. “Do you have any idea what you do to me?”

You smiled, leaning in close enough for your lips to brush his ear. “Why don’t you show me?”

His breath hitched as he slid your thong to the side, his movements hurried yet careful. He reached down to position his cock, his jaw tightening as you took him and guided him to your entrance. The stretch was slow and deliberate as you sank down onto him, both of you moaning softly at the sensation.

“We don’t have much time before my parents get back,” he murmured, his voice thick with urgency, his hands gripping your waist.

“Then we’d better make it count,” you said with a sly smile, rolling your hips and eliciting a low, guttural moan from him.

You began to move, bouncing on his cock, your hands braced on his shoulders before one slid to wrap around his neck. His head fell back, his hands sliding to grip your ass as you picked up the pace. “Y-you feel better than Heaven,” he gasped, his words breaking apart as his hips bucked instinctively.

“Just sit there and take it,” you whispered, your tone dripping with authority as you ground your hips against him.

“Yes, ma’am,” he moaned, his hands squeezing you tighter. “Anything you say.”

His praises spilled from his lips between moans, his eyes locked on you as though he couldn’t get enough. “You’re so perfect, so beautiful. I can’t get over how good you feel.”

You smirked, leaning forward to press a kiss to his jawline. “You’re doing so well for me, baby,” you murmured, your voice sending shivers through him.

His breathing grew more ragged, his grip on you desperate. “I— I’m close," he stuttered, his head falling forward to rest against your shoulder. “Please, baby. I’ve been your good boy. Please let me cum.”

His tone made your heart race as your own orgasm began to build. “Cum with me,” you urged, your voice soft but commanding as you wrapped your arms around him, pulling him closer.

When your climax hit, it felt like a wave crashing over you, leaving you breathless and moaning. Nicholas followed moments later, his body tensing beneath you as he moaned your name and his cum exploded inside you, his face buried in your neck.

“I love you,” you whispered against his skin.

“I love you more,” he replied, his voice low but sure as he pressed a kiss to your shoulder.

Before either of you could fully recover, you heard the unmistakable sound of a car pulling into the driveway. “Oh shit,” you breathed, glancing toward the window.

Nicholas’ eyes widened, and he helped you scramble off his lap, both of you moving quickly to adjust your clothes. He pulled you into a quick kiss, his smile soft and adoring despite the rush. “You’re amazing,” he whispered before stepping back to make himself presentable.

By the time his parents walked through the door, the two of you were seated on the couch upstairs, your hands intertwined and matching smiles on your faces as though nothing had happened.

[lxvsiick]

CAMPING HORRORS: EPISODE ONE | BOYNEXTDOOR

PAIRING: college students! BOYNEXTDOOR! members x college student! fem! reader

SUMMARY: finishing their exams for the year, they thought a camping trip would help them reconnect with nature and get away from the busy student life -- after arriving to the camp grounds, strange things start happening and the weird feeling in their stomachs starts to grow ,, how did this camping trip go so wrong?

GENRE: horror, thriller, imagine

WARNINGS: mentions of killing, deaths, blood, gore(ish), etc.

WORDCOUNT: 2.7k

A/N: i was supposed to post this yesterday but i actually hibernated... enjoy!

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It was early, and the air had a crispness to it that hinted at the adventure to come. Y/n stood by her car, loading the last of the camping gear into the trunk. Woonhak had already claimed the front seat, bouncing with excitement, his face pressed against the window.

"Is that everything?" Y/n asked, glancing over at Leehan, who was hoisting a cooler into the back of the car with ease.

"Yup, we're all set," Leehan smiled, his laid-back attitude a sharp contrast to her own anxiety about making sure nothing was forgotten.

From the other side of the car, Taesan leaned against the hood, arms crossed, watching with a look of clear disdain. His lips curled into a smirk as he eyed Leehan, who had offered to help her without even needing to be asked. Taesan rolled his eyes, pretending not to care but clearly annoyed by the whole situation.

"Can we leave already?" Taesan muttered under his breath, loud enough for her to hear but still avoiding direct eye contact.

Jaehyun, along with Sungho and Riwoo, finished packing up the second car. After a brief head count and gear check, everyone piled into their respective vehicles. Y/n took the driver's seat, Woonhak already buckled in beside her. Leehan climbed into the back behind her, and after a dramatic sigh, Taesan took the last spot, pulling on his headphones and immediately tuning everyone out.

As the cars pulled out of the driveway, Woonhak gleefully scrolled through the music playlist. Soon, the familiar beats of their favorite road trip songs filled the car, and he was singing along, loud and off-key, but full of energy.

"Are you really gonna do this the whole way?" Taesan grumbled from the backseat, not bothering to lift his head or remove his headphones.

Y/n chuckled. "He’s excited. Let him have his fun."

In the rearview mirror, she glanced at Leehan, who had already leaned back in his seat, eyes closed, fast asleep. A small smile tugged at the corners of her lips as she took in the peaceful look on his face. It was rare to see him this relaxed, and the sight made her heart flutter.

But just as she thought no one noticed, a sharp voice interrupted her thoughts.

"Don't get too carried away staring at him," Taesan snarked from the backseat, his eyes still glued to the window. His tone was dripping with mockery, and though he hadn’t looked directly at her, she could feel the heat of his judgment.

She shot him a look through the mirror. "I wasn't staring," she said quickly, though her face flushed, betraying her embarrassment.

"Sure, you weren’t." He pulled one earbud out just enough to hear her response, his smirk widening. "But don’t worry, your little secret crush is safe with me." The sarcasm in his voice was impossible to miss.

Woonhak glanced between them, oblivious to the underlying tension. "Are you guys talking about Leehan hyung?" he asked innocently, his eyes wide with curiosity.

Y/n sighed, trying to brush it off, her hands tightening on the steering wheel. "No, we're not," she said firmly, turning up the music to drown out any further comments from her brother.

Taesan laughed softly, satisfied with the slight discomfort he’d caused, and returned to his music, but not without throwing one more glance toward Leehan sleeping in the backseat. "Must be nice to sleep through all this drama," he muttered under his breath.

Y/n just shook her head, focusing on the road ahead. The trip had barely started, and she could already tell it was going to be a long ride.

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The cars slowed to a stop at the edge of the woods, and the group piled out, stretching their legs and taking in their surroundings. The campgrounds were deep in the forest, with towering trees casting dark shadows over the area despite the sun sitting high in the sky. Jaehyun glanced around, his face scrunched in unease.

"This place looks kind of... creepy," he muttered, shifting his backpack nervously.

The others groaned in unison.

"Already?" Taesan rolled his eyes, grabbing a cooler from the trunk. "We just got here, and you’re already freaked out?"

"I’m not freaked out, I just—" Jaehyun trailed off, eyeing the dense forest that seemed to swallow all sound. "I have a weird feeling about this place."

"Yeah, yeah," Sungho chuckled, slinging his backpack over his shoulder. "That’s what you said about the last camping trip, and we survived that."

The group laughed as they grabbed their bags, tents, and coolers, beginning the walk down the narrow, winding trail. The tall trees loomed overhead, their branches intertwining like claws, creating a canopy that dimmed the light. Their footsteps crunched over dry leaves, and birds chirped distantly, the only noise in the stillness of the forest.

"Where is everyone?" Leehan asked, peering down the empty trails that branched off into the woods. "I thought these campgrounds were supposed to be popular?"

Riwoo whipped out a camcorder and pointed it at the group, capturing their journey as they made their way deeper into the woods. "Guess we’re getting the VIP treatment," he said, laughing lightly. "Private campground, no distractions."

Jaehyun wasn’t convinced. "I still have a weird feeling," he said again, his eyes darting around as if expecting someone—or something—to jump out at any moment.

The others waved him off, continuing down the path until they finally arrived at their campsite. A clearing in the trees revealed a flat patch of ground, perfect for setting up their tents. They began unloading their gear, chatting as they worked, when a strange sound broke through the rustle of leaves and snapping of branches.

It was a dull thud, like something heavy hitting the ground.

Y/n and Taesan froze, their heads whipping toward the source of the sound. The rest of the group fell silent, following their gaze down the trail.

"Did anyone else hear that?" Y/n asked, her eyes scanning the treeline.

Jaehyun, now visibly tense, edged closer to Woonhak, gripping his arm. "What was that?"

Before anyone could answer, the faint shuffle of footsteps drew their attention. Emerging from the trees was an old woman, hunched over, gripping a cane as she made her way toward them. Her skin was wrinkled and her movements slow, but something about her presence sent a chill down their spines.

The group exchanged uncertain glances but politely bowed as she approached.

"Are you young folks here to camp?" the old woman asked, her voice raspy and thin.

"Yes, ma’am," Leehan answered, forcing a smile. "Just arrived."

She nodded slowly, her eyes scanning their setup. "This campground is old. Very old. Been here for 127 years," she said, her voice cracking on the word old.

"Is that so?" Y/n replied politely, though the tightness in her smile hinted at her unease.

Sungho cleared his throat, trying to keep things casual. "We didn’t see any other campers on the way here... Is it usually this quiet?"

The old woman hesitated, her bony fingers tightening around her cane. "The grounds are big," she said slowly. "Campers are... spread out."

A suspicious tension gripped the group, but they nodded, not wanting to press her.

The old woman gave a faint smile, but there was something unsettling in her eyes. "Make sure to keep your lamps and lights on at all times," she warned. "The forest gets... dark."

With that ominous advice, she turned and shuffled down the trail, disappearing into the trees before anyone could say anything more.

"That was... weird," Riwoo muttered, his brow furrowed as he watched her go through the screen of his camcorder.

"She was creepy," Taesan added bluntly, crossing his arms.

"Hey, watch your words," Y/n whispered, glancing nervously back at the trail. "She could hear you."

But when they looked back, the old woman was nowhere to be seen. It was as if she had vanished into thin air.

"Wow, she sure does walk fast." Sungho joked, trying to lighten the mood. A nervous chuckle rippled through the group, though the tension remained palpable.

The group finished setting up their tents, the eerie feeling from their encounter with the old woman still lingering in the air. With the sun still bright above, they decided to rest for a bit before planning the rest of their day, though none of them could shake the unsettling feeling that had taken hold since the old woman’s visit.

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Laughter filled the air as the group finally finished their lunch, which had taken nearly two hours longer than expected thanks to the guys' constant horsing around. Y/n wiped her hands, trying to suppress a smile at their antics, but inwardly she was growing restless.

“Anyone want to check out the campgrounds?” she asked, eager to explore.

Sungho leaned back, arms crossed. “Someone should stay behind to watch the campsite. You never know.”

Before anyone else could respond, Leehan stood up, stretching. “I’ll go with you,” he said casually, though his eyes held a softness that made Y/n’s heart race.

“Yeah, sure,” she replied, trying to sound nonchalant as her nerves buzzed inside.

The rest of the group waved them off, too full from lunch to move much, and soon, it was just the two of them walking the dirt path. Tall trees towered above, casting deep shadows, and every once in a while a cool breeze would rustle the leaves, making the woods feel even more isolated.

“So, how’s everything going? You seem a bit quiet today,” Leehan asked, glancing sideways at her.

“Oh, it’s nothing,” Y/n replied quickly, cursing herself for sounding so awkward. Inside, her stomach twisted with nerves, but she forced a smile. “I’m just enjoying the walk.

"Uh, who's watching your fishes?" Y/n asks, nervously fidgeting her fingers.

"I asked my parents to." Leehan replied, a smile on his face at the mention of his beloved fishes.

They fell into a comfortable conversation, but she couldn't shake the butterflies. Every time he spoke, her pulse quickened. She was so distracted by her thoughts, she almost didn’t notice when they approached something unusual.

“What is that?” Leehan pointed ahead.

In the distance, nestled between the trees, was a small, rundown house. Its walls were covered in vines, and the roof sagged under the weight of age. The windows were dark, and the whole place looked as though it hadn't been touched in years.

A breeze swept through the trees, carrying with it a chill that made both of them shiver. Y/n wrapped her arms around herself as an unsettling feeling crept in.

“This place is... creepy,” she murmured, unable to take her eyes off the house.

A sudden snap of twigs behind them made them both jump. They whipped around just in time to see a tall bush near the path rustling wildly.

Before either of them could react, Taesan popped out of the bush, covered in leaves and twigs, muttering as he swatted away the foliage.

“Seriously?” Leehan breathed, letting out a laugh.

Y/n clutched her chest. “You nearly gave me a heart attack!” she scolded, though the adrenaline in her voice betrayed her.

Taesan raised an eyebrow, looking between them with a sly grin. “What’s going on? Did I interrupt something?” He gave them a knowing smirk, eyes flicking between Y/n and Leehan.

“Nothing,” Leehan said quickly, though his voice held a playful edge. He pointed toward the dilapidated house with a smile. “We were just checking that out. You up for exploring it?”

Taesan blinked in disbelief, then glanced at the house in the distance. “You’re crazy,” he said flatly, eyeing the old, worn-down structure as if it might come alive at any second.

Y/n let out a nervous laugh, her hands already pushing at their shoulders. “Yeah, no thanks. I’m not about to end up in some horror movie.” She ushered them both back to the trail, eager to put as much distance between them and the eerie house as possible.

As they made their way back, the uneasy feeling lingered in her gut. Leehan chuckled beside her, but Y/n kept glancing back over her shoulder, the tension refusing to fade.

They didn’t see the door to the house slowly creak open as they walked away, the heavy, wooden door moving just enough to cast a shadow on the ground.

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The forest was unusually quiet as Y/n, Leehan, and Taesan continued to walk down the narrow trail. The towering trees arched overhead, blocking out most of the sunlight, casting long shadows across their path. They were trying to see if they could find any other campers or hikers, but so far, the trail remained eerily empty.

Taesan walked off to the side, hands in his pockets, casting side glances at Y/n and her crush as they chatted ahead of him. His eyes narrowed slightly in annoyance every time he caught them exchanging a laugh or a smile, but he said nothing.

Suddenly, a faint sound of footsteps broke the stillness of the forest.

All three of them stopped in their tracks, the laughter dying in their throats. They looked around, eyes scanning the dense trees and shadows, but there was no one in sight. The footsteps continued, slow and deliberate, getting closer.

"Did you hear that?" Y/n whispered, her heart beginning to race.

Leehan nodded, his eyes wide as he looked around. "Yeah... but where’s it coming from?"

The footsteps grew louder, the sound of crunching leaves and snapping twigs filling the air. They turned in circles, trying to spot whoever—or whatever—was approaching them, but the trees were too thick to see through.

Y/n turned to Taesan, her voice sharp. "Is this you? Are you messing with us? Did any of the other guys follow us?"

Taesan scowled, crossing his arms defensively. "What? No. It’s just me. I wouldn’t waste my time freaking you out—"

Before he could finish, the footsteps turned into running. The sound of something—or someone—sprinting toward them echoed through the trees, pounding footsteps getting closer and faster.

Leehan didn’t wait to find out what it was. "Run!" he shouted, and without hesitation, he took off down the trail, his face pale with fear.

Without thinking, Taesan grabbed Y/n's hand and yanked her forward. "Come on!" he urged, pulling her with him as they both ran after Leehan.

Their footsteps thundered along the trail, matching the speed of the unseen figure that was still running behind them. Y/n’s heart pounded in her chest, adrenaline coursing through her veins as she tried to keep up, her breath coming in short, panicked bursts.

They tore through the trees, branches whipping past them, the campsite finally coming into view. As they neared the clearing, they stumbled into their group. Woonhak and the others looked up, alarmed at the sight of them running breathlessly back.

"Whoa, what’s going on? Noona? Hyungs?" Woonhak asked, standing up from the log he was sitting on.

Panting, Taesan bent over, hands on his knees as he gasped for breath. "Something... or someone... was running at us," he managed to get out, his voice trembling with adrenaline.

Leehan, who had collapsed onto the ground, nodded in agreement. "We didn’t see them, but they were close. Too close."

The group exchanged uneasy glances. Jaehyun, already looking nervous, clung to Woonhak, his eyes wide. "What... what do you mean someone was running at you? Was it... a person?"

Sungho stepped forward. "I’ll check it out," he said, grabbing a flashlight as he walked back toward the trail. The rest of them watched in tense silence as he disappeared around the corner.

Several minutes passed before he returned, shaking his head. "There’s no one there," he said, though his tone was far from reassuring. "Trail’s empty."

"Maybe it was just a deer or a fox," Riwoo said, trying to sound casual, though the nervous waver in his voice betrayed him. "It’s probably nothing."

But the heavy, uneasy feeling that had settled over the group remained. Y/n glanced back at the trail, the trees now swaying gently in the breeze. She couldn’t shake the sense that something was watching them, just beyond the tree line, waiting.

The group sat down again, though the air felt colder now, and none of them spoke for a while. The forest was still quiet, but the silence was no longer comforting—it felt like it was pressing in on them, thick and oppressive.

Even though the sun was still up, casting dappled light through the trees, none of them felt safe anymore.

And so it begins.

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THE HAUNTING HOURS MASTERLIST | BOYNEXTDOOR MASTERLIST

© ALL RIGHTS RESERVED, lxvsiick, 2024

[honey-milk-depresso]

Batboys watching anime with reader

You know my ass went FULL ON LOCK MODE with Tim. I went crazy- 💀

***S/o is above 18, which means characters below are also aged up!

Doing requests until 1 Feb! Please see my pinned post and read the request rules on the navi! Thank you!🩷

Batbros watching anime with you

Dick Grayson

He’s watched a few 90s anime before, more the basic ones like One Piece and Pokémon, and he probably still watches them to this day. Boy has old CDs he has and you should probably try finding a Blue Ray (or use his if he can have Tim help fix it because it’s good as dead 💀) because he’s popping in every CD of old anime’s he have lying about.

“Wow, I didn’t know I had cowboy bebop! Or Slam Dunk!” He got a few rare gems, which makes it all the more fun to sit down on the couch under a blanket as you huddle and watch the nostalgic 90s anime shows together while eating popcorn.

He doesn’t mind watching new, modern day animes, just be prepared for when you two watch sad anime shows because he will sob like it’s the end of the world.

“NO, WHY WOULD KAORI DIE LIKE THIS?? AND SHE LOVES ARIMA- OH MY GOD IM SO—”sobs even more. He gets emotional while watching them because it’s so sad that it’s sO GOOD-

Loves dancing to those danceable anime music with you. He goes ALL. OUT. He even sings all of it in Japanese like wow-

I would love to hear him sing Cruel Angel’s Thesis in his Discowing suit and with goth makeup on it because it “sets the mood”, PLEASE-

Overall, great time watching with Dick. <3

Jason Todd

You expect someone like him to like Chainsaw Man, Trigun or something like those grunge-y, guns and knives animes, right? I mean, he does, but only with you and ONLY with you will he let his inner Magical Girl enthusiast ass shine. Because he LOVES Magical Girl animes. That’s probably the reason and one point of time why he wore red ribbons around his arms, he wanted that Sailor Moon experience and Tim might’ve just teased him about that era without knowing his love for Magical Girl animes and Jason might’ve flipped and freaked the fuck out and started chasing him down the manor.

Jason watches Sailor Moon, Madoka when he feels edgier than usual, Cardcaptor Sakura, every Precure series, Tokyo Mew Mew, man has all these shows somehow. He swears they weren’t through illegal means and he just worked very hard to gather all of them. He also might be a shoujo anime fan because if he loves Jane Austen books, you bet his ass would be reading Fruits Basket, Maid Sama or something because of course he would.

Also a Studio Ghibli fan, although watching the Tale of Princess Kaguya might make him feel too much, especially getting pissed off with the dad who forces his daughter into a wealthy life without her input and- yeah, you gotta calm him down as he cries bitterly and sourly with a pout on his face.

The two of you can go on and on about debating about unclear endings of animes all day long. You know the “AND SHE WAS A PRINCESS” video? That’s Jason.

Great man to watch anime with, and he’ll gladly be your Tuxedo Mask to your Sailor Moon (and not the “But you did nothing meme- or the other way around- he don’t mind being the Usagi-). <3

Tim Drake

I’m very convinced this man got into his whole detective shit because he watched Detective Conan and honestly I can’t blame him. Tim has probably the largest vessel of anime knowledge out of all of them. He doesn’t really have a specific genre he likes but he’s pretty fond of old 90s and 80s animes. He can explain the whole lore of One Piece, Fairytale, Pokémon like Jesus Tim, calm down- 💀

I can see him watching Neon Genesis Evangelion, Serial Experiments Lain or Key the Metal Doll because he likes that little bit of horror nature and mystery and thriller in his animes although he really doesn’t mind watching Haikyuu all over again if you want to.

Might introduce you to underrated and/or old animes like Revolutionary Girl Utena, Nadia the Secrets of Blue Water, every Studio Ghibli movie, those kinds of animes that give off the really pretty and aesthetic old anime animations that is just so pretty to watch and with really good storylines that both of you can cuddle on a couch together and watch. I bet he even watches anime with you even before you two got together, so you guys pretty much have “watching anime together” as part of the foundation of your relationship. Owns so much manga that you can’t even count, too.

Just… don’t make him watch those really slow burn, comedy love animes, specifically Love War. Not that he don’t like romance animes, he watches Ouran High School Host Club and Your Name, trust me, but Love War? He is going absolutely insane because of it.

“OH MY GOD- PLEASE JUST KISS ALREADY. ME AND S/O ARE ALREADY TOGETHER FIVE MONTHS AGO ANF YOU TWO ARE STILL TOO PROUD TO ADMIT YOU LOVE EACH OTHER WHILE BLUSHING- JUST KISS ALREADY-” <3

Damian Wayne

Damian likes anime. Would 100% go to an anime convention with you as a date if you’re up for it. He doesn’t mind (surprisingly- just for you only-).

He doesn’t necessarily like showmen animes although he has enjoyed a few, but he really loves slice of life, I feel. It just feels like he wants to put himself in a normal life and with a tad bit of drama in it like what the characters go through. The touching ones like Hyouka or Natsume’s Book of Friends.

Also animal related anime maybe except Beastars because he didn’t understand shit-?? He calls that peak anime. Aggretsuko, Chi’s Sweet Home and My Roommate is a Cat?? Damian loves this shit, he watches it intently with his arm around you. Even if he doesn’t smile, you know he loves it by the way his eyes sparkle.

Just don’t tell his brothers. He will seriously feel betrayed if you do so because he only watches these kinds of shows with you: the cute animal ones that are actually wholesome and/or funny.

The whole family is into Studio Ghibli, and he is no exception. He feels like it’s the best kinds of anime to watch with you when you guys just want to turn in for the day and huddle up on the couch. It’s one of the rare times he relaxes and softens and he’s glad to have quality time with you. <3

Duke Thomas

He likes anime! Studio Ghibli is definitely a favourite of his and he would gladly watch it together with you! He also love a fair bit of Shounen animes, the more popular ones like Jujutsu Kaisen, One Piece, Haikyuu, or Spy x Family. He likes them a lot!

A big fan of romance animes too: Ouran High School Host Club and The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya (if you two are in the mood to huddle on the couch together and cry).

Duke doesn’t mind any kind of anime so long as it doesn’t have too much horror or gore like… Higurashi. He gets chills when that anime is mentioned. D-Don’t watch it for your own sake if you don’t know. And if you do, avoid it with him at all cost because he will.

Duke also like singing some good anime songs with you and you guys can go crazy and dance around, just not as dramatic as Dick.

He would be super excited to spend a date with you watching shounen anime movies like from Jujutsu Kaisen and he would be so hype to spend time with you being a fanboy while also sharing that romantic air for the shared love of anime between you two and the love that you two share, although that love is far stronger. <3

Reblogs help! ^^

[theunvanquishedzims]

Okay, I'm making mummies the new monster du jour

We all know the story: daring adventurer and nerdy historian discover hidden treasure in a tomb, and just need to survive the undead and their curses long enough to douse themselves in holy water or whatever to sally off into the sunset with their bags of gold and live happily ever after.

What about the mummy's side?

You're dead. You've been dead for millennia, had your organs removed and rites read, been embalmed and dressed and laid to rest amid vast and well-appointed rooms chock-full of wealth. You strode into the afterlife like the king that you are, and have been reigning ever since. The river flows with milk and honey, eternal virgins attend your every physical desire, and your generosity knows no bounds as you shower endless wealth upon your adoring people.

And then...it stops. The river dries up, sour milk rotting in rivulets across the sticky bedrock. The maidens have vanished one by one, carried off by callous, disrespectful hands. The gold that once towered in piles around your palace disappeared much more quickly, not a single coin or ingot left. And your people turn on you. Not in anger, but in fear, hands clawing you, gaping mouths screaming soundlessly, bodies flattening and fading like living murals.

Anubis snatches you out of the waking nightmare, to something much worse: judgement. What? You have been judged already! Your heart weighed against a feather, the wisdom and love you so carefully curated in life keeping it light enough to guarantee your safe passage into an eternal paradise.

Except not so eternal, it seems. Robbers, he tells you. You cannot believe it. Even the bravest, most brazen, most despicably faithless dogs would not disturb your rest. Raid your tomb, yes, take your finery, yes, strip your body of its ornaments and peel the gold off the sarcophagus, perhaps, but not you. Your body in its wrappings, your organs in their jars, should be left alone. They could dump your empty bones on the floor of the pyramid and walk away with every material possession your people saw fit to entomb you with, but nothing of consequence would be taken from you in the afterlife.

They have not just taken your possessions, says Anubis. They have taken you.

Taken the sarcophagus? Surely they would remove your body to lighten the load--

They have taken you, he says.

Removed me to some lesser grave, to set up some new king in a glorious pyramid he himself could not afford to build? Tacky, and rude, but it has been done before--

They have taken you, he stresses again.

...have I fallen so far out of favor with my people, with Egypt herself, that they would strip me of my title and my rest?

Your god crouches, and looks you gently in the eyes, and says again, They have taken you.

And then he adds: You have ten days to return.

And you awake on a boat, a horrific thing of metal and smoke, surrounded by treasures packed in wooden crates and straw, admired by an endless parade of foreigners who ooh and ahh over your dead body and do not, cannot understand what they are costing you, making you their macabre trophy of the dullest hunt you can imagine.

You will teach them what a real hunt is.

(The rest of the movie is a timed horror-thriller as the hero, trapped in his own desiccated corpse, shambles around London trying to find his heart and return to Egypt, while attacked on all sides by monster hunters and grave robbers who don't understand that they're the bad guys. It is an epic struggle to stay the course and not fall into a vengeful frenzy, to keep his heart pure enough to pass the feather again, to FIND his heart in the first place.)

[movingmusically]

Caught Feeling - Chapter 4

Synopsis:

A quiet evening together strengthens the bond between y/n and Hank, but when their bowling date takes an unexpected turn and ends at the hospital, y/n realises their growing connection may be more unpredictable than she imagined.

Word Count: 5,434

Masterlist

After dinner, we were both too full to move, lounging on the couch with the remnants of takeout scattered on the coffee table. I reached for the remote, scrolling through the endless list of movie options while Hank stretched out beside me, his leg brushing lightly against mine as he settled in, looking completely at ease.

“You really want to watch that?” I teased, pausing on an old action flick that looked like it hadn’t aged well, judging by the grainy cover and outdated tagline.

“Don’t knock it till you try it,” Hank grinned. “You’d be surprised how much heart these movies have.”

I rolled my eyes but couldn’t hide the smile tugging at my lips. “Right. ‘Heart’ hidden under explosions and cheesy one-liners?”

“Exactly,” he said, giving me a playful nudge with his knee. “The explosions are just a bonus.”

I laughed, sinking a little deeper into the cushions. “Fine, I’ll let you pick next time. But tonight, we’re watching something with an actual plot.”

As I scrolled through more titles, Hank leaned in slightly, his hand lightly grazing my knee. “Alright, I’ll bite. What kind of movies are you into? Aside from ‘actual plot,’ of course.”

I grinned, feeling comfortable enough to reveal just how varied my tastes were. “I love Horror, Thriller, Fantasy… but I’m a sucker for a good Comedy too. And every once in a while, I’ll go for a Romance or Drama.”

He raised an eyebrow, intrigued. “You’re into Horror and Comedies? You’ve got range.”

“Why does that surprise you?”

“I don’t know,” he said, smirking. “I just wouldn’t have pegged you for a Horror fan.”

“Oh, I love them,” I said, grinning. “The scarier, the better. But Thrillers? That’s my sweet spot. I love the suspense, the tension—it’s addictive.”

“Interesting,” he said, clearly impressed. “I’m more of an Action and Comedy guy, but I don’t mind the occasional Romance. Gotta mix it up sometimes.”

“Sure, sure,” I teased. “I bet your idea of ‘mixing it up’ still involves a lot of car chases and shootouts.”

Hank laughed, nudging me gently. “Maybe. What about all-time favourites? If you had to pick your top three.”

“That’s tough,” I said, pausing for a moment. “But I’d say Jurassic Park, Jaws, and Lord of the Rings. Those are classics I could watch over and over.”

He nodded in approval. “Solid choices. I respect that. I’m more into Die Hard and Lethal Weapon, though.”

I chuckled, shaking my head. “OK, important question for you.” I leaned closer, a playful challenge in my tone. “Would you say that Die Hard is a Christmas movie?”

His grin turned mischievous. “No, it just happens to take place at Christmas.”

I gasped, pretending to be scandalised. “How dare you? Die Hard is definitely a Christmas movie!”

Hank looked amused. “Just because it’s set at Christmas doesn’t make it a Christmas movie.”

“Yes, it does!” I shot back. “Bruce Willis saves Christmas, Hank. It doesn’t get more Christmas than that.”

“We’re going to have to agree to disagree on this one,” he said, shaking his head with a laugh.

“I’ll convince you one day,” I said, grinning back.

“I’m looking forward to it,” he teased. I raised an eyebrow but couldn’t help the grin tugging at my lips.

He leaned in a little closer, eyes still gleaming with amusement. “So, what else do you love that I should know about?”

“I’ve got a soft spot for war and gangster movies too,” I said, enjoying his reaction.

Hank’s eyebrows shot up. “Seriously? That I didn’t see coming.”

I smiled, leaning back against the couch. “Yeah, Goodfellas is one of my favourites. I watched it with my Mum and Dad growing up.”

“Goodfellas?” he repeated, clearly impressed. “That’s a bold pick. You’ve got taste.”

“Bold, but true,” I said. “And my Dad? Total Arnold Schwarzenegger fan. We used to have movie marathons—Terminator, Predator… you name it.”

“You’re full of surprises,” he said, a grin spreading across his face. “I never would’ve guessed.”

I shrugged with a small smile. “I’ve got layers.”

He glanced at the remote, then back at me. “Well, since you’re already a fan of Die Hard, I think we’ve found our movie for tonight.”

I raised an eyebrow but couldn’t help the grin tugging at my lips. “Fine. But only because it’s my favourite Christmas movie.”

“Exactly,” Hank said with a wink as he hit play.

As the familiar opening sequence of Die Hard rolled across the screen, I sank back into the couch, resting my head on Hank’s shoulder. His arm slid comfortably around me, and I could feel the steady rise and fall of his chest as we settled in. It felt easy being close to him, like this was something we’d done a thousand times before, even though it was still new.

Halfway through the movie, between Bruce Willis’ quips and the explosions on-screen, Hank shifted slightly, his voice low as he spoke.

“You know, we should do something fun this weekend,” Hank said casually, his voice soft against the low hum of the TV. He was playing with a loose strand of my hair, and his relaxed tone made the idea sound spontaneous, like he’d just thought of it in the moment.

I tilted my head up to look at him, intrigued. “Oh yeah? Like what?”

He shrugged, but there was a playful glint in his eyes. “I don’t know. Maybe go see a movie? Or we could do something active… like bowling.”

I grinned at the suggestion, instantly imagining the disaster that would follow. “Bowling? I should warn you—I’m not just bad, I’m the worst. Ever.”

Hank’s smirk widened, his eyes gleaming with amusement. “Worst ever, huh? I find that hard to believe.”

“No, really. I’m talking gutter balls. Every. Single. Time.”

He raised an eyebrow, the challenge clearly sparking something in him. “Well, now I have to take you. I’ll teach you how it’s done.”

I let out a laugh, nudging him playfully. “Oh, I see. You want to show off?”

He chuckled, shaking his head. “You got me. But come on, it’ll be fun. Worst-case scenario, you’re terrible, and I get to give you a hard time about it. Best-case scenario, you impress me.”

“I won’t,” I said, grinning. “But I’ll take you up on the challenge anyway. Just don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

“I’m up for the challenge,” he said confidently. “Besides, how bad could you really be?”

I shot him a mock glare. “You’re underestimating how bad I am. Like, genuinely embarrassing bad.”

Hank laughed, his chest vibrating beneath my head. “I’m looking forward to seeing it.”

I rolled my eyes, settling back into his side. “Well, when you’re done laughing at me, I’ll just kick back and let you win.”

“You’re not off the hook that easily,” he teased, leaning down to press a kiss against my temple. “I’ll get you a strike by the end of the night. Even if I have to guide your hand.”

I laughed at the thought. “If you can do that, I’ll buy you dinner.”

“Deal,” he said, his grin widening. “You better start thinking of which fancy restaurant you’re taking me to.”

I relaxed against him, already picturing the disastrous but fun night out. Hank’s enthusiasm for the challenge was contagious, and I couldn’t help but be excited, even though I knew I’d probably end up embarrassing myself. It struck me how easy it felt to make plans with him, like we’d been doing this for longer than just a few days.

Just as I was about to suggest another potential plan for the weekend, Hank’s phone buzzed on the coffee table. He reached for it, glancing at the screen. His relaxed expression shifted ever so slightly—something that made his brow furrow for a split second before he quickly masked it.

“Everything okay?” I asked, lifting my head to study his face, curious but not overly concerned.

He sighed lightly, locking the screen and setting the phone back down on the table. “Yeah, it’s just work. They need me to cover a shift tonight.”

I could hear the subtle shift in his tone, a mix of frustration and responsibility. He clearly wasn’t thrilled about the idea of leaving, but I knew from the way his brows furrowed that he felt like he had to go.

“You don’t have to go, do you?” I asked softly, not wanting to sound needy but also not exactly ready for him to leave.

Hank leaned back, rubbing his jaw thoughtfully. “No, I don’t have to, but… they’re short tonight, and I know Yvonne’s been dealing with a lot of the busy shifts lately. I’d feel bad leaving her to handle it on her own.”

“Yvonne?” I asked.

He nodded, his expression still relaxed but distant. “Yeah, she works at the bar too. She’s been picking up a lot of shifts since one of the other guys quit. It’s been pretty hectic.”

I tried to keep my tone light, not wanting to pry too much. “Sounds like things are pretty crazy at work.”

“Yeah,” Hank said with a slight smile, but I could tell his mind was elsewhere now. “It’s been busy, but it’s manageable. I just didn’t expect to be called in tonight, especially since I was hoping to spend the night with you.”

There was a sincerity in his words that made my heart flutter, and I could tell he wasn’t just saying it to be polite. He genuinely wanted to stay, and for a moment, I considered telling him not to go. But I didn’t want to be the reason he felt guilty about leaving his coworkers hanging.

“Go,” I said, offering him a reassuring smile. “If they need you, you should go. We’ll have other nights.”

Hank met my gaze, and for a moment, it seemed like he was debating whether to argue. But then he smiled, soft and warm. “You sure?”

I nodded. “I’m sure. You can make it up to me this weekend.”

His eyes brightened at that. “Definitely,” he said, his hand brushing a strand of hair away from my face. “I’ll make it up to you.”

I laughed softly, leaning into his touch. “I’ll hold you to that.”

Hank stood, stretching slightly before grabbing his phone and jacket, but his eyes lingered on me for a moment longer.

I stood too, and he stepped closer, wrapping his arms around my waist. He paused for a moment, his eyes searching mine before he lifted a hand to gently cup my face. Then, he leaned in and kissed me. It was simple, unhurried, but full of warmth.

When he pulled back, there was a softness in his eyes, and I found myself smiling up at him, wishing the night didn’t have to end.

“I’ll call you tomorrow,” he said softly, his voice warm and steady. I smiled, standing there for a second longer. He stepped back reluctantly, and I followed him to the door, watching as he slipped on his shoes. It felt like we were both silently holding onto the night, neither of us wanting it to end. But reality had other plans, and before I knew it, he was opening the door, pausing to give me one last smile.

“Goodnight, y/n,” he said softly, his voice carrying a promise of more moments like this.

“Goodnight, Hank,” I replied, my heart doing that little flutter it always seemed to do around him.

He left, the door closing softly behind him, and I stood there for a second, listening to the sound of his footsteps retreating down the hall. The apartment suddenly felt too quiet, the absence of his presence leaving a hollow kind of stillness in the air. I sighed, turning back toward the couch. The movie was still playing, but my mind was far from it.

I flopped back onto the cushions, staring at the screen but not really paying attention. My thoughts drifted to Hank, the way his eyes lit up when he talked about the future, even if it was just about something as simple as bowling.

And then there was that text from Yvonne. It wasn’t a big deal. Work was work, after all. Hank had a job, and I knew what the service industry was like—unpredictable hours, people needing shifts covered last minute. I shook my head, brushing the thought away. There was no point in overthinking it. He was just doing his job, nothing more.

Still, the flicker of disappointment lingered as I grabbed the remote and turned off the TV. I glanced at my phone, half-hoping for a message from him already, but of course, there was nothing. He’d barely been gone for ten minutes.

I stretched out on the couch, letting the quiet of the apartment settle around me. As much as I wanted to distract myself, my thoughts kept circling back to Hank. The way he’d opened up to me tonight, the ease of our conversation, the comfortable silence that followed. It felt… real. Like we were building something more than just a casual fling.

I smiled to myself, hugging a cushion to my chest as I thought about the plans we’d made for the weekend. I was already looking forward to it.

*

The next day at work, I found myself replaying moments from last night more times than I cared to admit. Between patient check-ups and scribbling notes into charts, my mind kept drifting back to Hank. His smile, the way his hand had brushed against mine as we joked about Die Hard, and the playful challenge in his eyes when he suggested bowling.

I wasn’t used to feeling this… giddy. Like a teenager with a crush. But I couldn’t deny how much I enjoyed it.

The next few days flew by, punctuated by Hank’s texts that never failed to bring a smile to my face. Each message was like a little nudge, reminding me of our budding connection and the easy banter that had become a highlight of my day.

My phone buzzed in my pocket just as I was finishing up a routine exam on a tabby cat. I eagerly pulled it out, my heart lifting as I read his latest message.

Hey. Still ready for our little bowling disaster tomorrow? ;) I’ve already started looking up fancy restaurants for the victory dinner after I get you that strike.

I bit back a laugh, quickly typing out a reply as I stepped out of the exam room.

You’re really confident, huh? You think you can work miracles?

His reply came almost instantly.

Don’t worry, it’s not a miracle—just skill. See you tomorrow?

I smiled at my phone, excitement buzzing through me.

See you tomorrow.

As I tucked my phone back into my pocket, the flutter of anticipation for tomorrow’s challenge made the rest of the workday feel like a breeze.

*

The day of our bowling date arrived with a sense of something imminent and thrilling. It felt like stepping into a scene I had replayed in my mind a thousand times, each replay slightly different from the last, anticipation building with each iteration.

I chose my outfit with more thought than usual, opting for comfort yet wanting to look good for whatever the evening might throw at us. Settling on a pair of well-fitting jeans and a soft, fluttery top that I knew flattered my figure, I left my hair down, hoping the curls would hold through the night.

By the time I got to the bowling alley, I was half-excited and half-dreading the inevitable disaster that was about to unfold.

Hank was already waiting by the entrance when I arrived, his grin spreading across his face as soon as he saw me. He was dressed casually, in a faded orange tee layered over a long-sleeve white shirt, paired with rugged green cargo pants—perfect for a laid-back evening but stylish enough to show he’d made an effort.

“Ready to embarrass yourself?” he asked, that familiar spark of challenge in his eyes.

I rolled my eyes but couldn’t stop the smile tugging at my lips. “I’m warning you now—this is going to be bad. Like, really bad.”

Hank chuckled, slipping his arm around my waist as we headed inside. “Don’t worry. I’ll make sure you look good out there.”

The energy of the bowling alley hit us as soon as we walked through the doors. The clattering of pins echoed in the background, and the warm scent of fried food mingled with the polished wood of the lanes. Hank grabbed our shoes from the counter, handing mine over with a smirk.

“You’re about to witness true talent,” he teased, lacing up his bowling shoes. His eyes glinted with challenge, and I couldn’t help but feel the spark of competition light inside me, even though I knew I had zero chance of winning.

I raised an eyebrow as I slipped on my shoes. “Talent? We’ll see about that.”

We found a lane near the back where it was quieter, and Hank took his position, confidently selecting a ball like he was a pro. He rolled it effortlessly down the lane, and naturally, it was a strike. The pins crashed, and Hank turned to me with a cocky grin.

“Alright, show-off,” I muttered, but I couldn’t help smiling.

“Let’s see what you’ve got,” he said, leaning casually against the ball return as I approached the lane.

I selected a ball, already feeling the weight of failure pressing down on me. With a deep breath, I gave it my best shot, releasing the ball with a prayer… and watched it veer straight into the gutter.

Hank let out a deep laugh that filled the air, and I turned back to face him with a sheepish smile. “Okay, so maybe I wasn’t kidding about being terrible.”

“You weren’t lying,” he teased, coming over to stand beside me. “But don’t worry, I’ll help you. I’m not just a bowling master; I’m also a teacher.”

“Oh, how generous of you,” I laughed.

He stood behind me, guiding my hands as I gripped the ball again. His hands settled on my shoulders as he adjusted my stance, his voice low as he murmured instructions. “Relax your shoulders. Focus on your target. Don’t overthink it.”

His proximity sent a shiver down my spine, but I managed to focus long enough to send the ball rolling down the lane. It teetered dangerously close to the gutter again but stayed just inside the line, knocking down a few pins.

“Hey, progress!” Hank cheered, high-fiving me. “Next time, we’ll get you that strike.”

I couldn’t help but laugh, feeling a little thrill of victory. “At this rate, you’ll have me competing in leagues.”

We took turns after that, the lighthearted competition between us growing with each round. Hank was obviously better than me—every shot he took seemed effortless—but I wasn’t doing as badly as I’d expected.

Finally, after a few more rounds, it happened.

I rolled the ball, holding my breath as it glided smoothly down the lane. One by one, the pins toppled over, and before I even realised it, they were all down. I blinked, staring at the empty lane in disbelief.

“You did it!” Hank exclaimed, grabbing me around the waist and spinning me in the air, his excitement almost infectious.

I laughed, feeling a rush of triumph. “I actually did it!”

“You owe me dinner,” he said with a wide grin, setting me back down.

“Fair enough,” I replied, breathless but happy. “So, where are we going?”

His hand lingered on my waist for a moment longer before he pulled away. “It’s a surprise,” he said, “But I think you’ll like it.”

We grabbed our things, leaving the bowling alley behind as the excitement of the evening still buzzed between us. There was something about the ease of the night, the way we slipped into this playful, carefree rhythm with each other, that made it feel like we’d known each other forever.

Outside, the night greeted us with a soft breeze, the distant hum of the city filling the silence between us. Hank reached for my hand, his fingers lightly intertwining with mine. I glanced over at him, smiling as we strolled down the street together, curious about the mystery spot he had in mind for dinner.

We meandered through the city, the lively energy of the evening palpable as people dined and laughed around us. Hank’s steps seemed purposeful yet relaxed, and his hand felt warm in mine. As we approached a colourful, somewhat eclectic-looking place with a neon sign proclaiming “Lucky’s Brew & Q,” my curiosity piqued.

“This place is a bit of a local legend,” Hank said with a grin, pushing open the door to a buzz of activity and a mix of aromas that promised good food and a great time.

Inside, the decor was a vibrant collage of vintage signs, quirky artwork, and strings of lights that cast a cheerful glow over the wooden tables. The chatter of patrons and the clinking of glasses added to the lively atmosphere, making it immediately welcoming.

“Lucky’s is famous for their craft beers and killer BBQ,” Hank explained as we found a spot at a rustic bar table. “It’s laid-back but always a lot of fun.”

The menu was a delight of comfort foods, featuring everything from spicy buffalo wings to loaded nachos and slow-cooked ribs. We ordered a pitcher of their house craft beer and a mix of finger foods to share, keeping the mood light and carefree.

As we sipped our beers, I took a moment to glance around the busy bar, noting it was a typical bustling Saturday night elsewhere in the city. Intrigued, I turned back to Hank. “So, it’s Saturday night and Lucky’s is packed. I’m surprised they didn’t need you at the bar tonight, especially since you mentioned being short-staffed.”

Hank nodded, his expression mingling gratitude with a hint of worry. “Yeah, it’s been a rough couple of weeks. We’re short-staffed since one of the bartenders quit. Yvonne’s been picking up a lot of slack, and normally, I would have had to help out.” He took a slow sip of his beer, his gaze lingering on the glass as he set it down. “But I talked to my manager Edwin earlier this week, made it clear I needed tonight off. Took a bit of negotiating and promising to cover some extra shifts next week.”

“That sounds tough, always having to balance things like that,” I said, my tone soft, empathetic to the strain such a situation must place on him.

“It’s part of the gig,” he shrugged slightly, but his smile returned quickly. “But it’s worth it, especially for nights like this.” His hand found mine across the table, giving it a gentle squeeze, his warmth reassuring.

“I’m glad you did. It’s been a great night,” I smiled, squeezing back, appreciating the effort he made to make our evening together possible.

The food was delicious—messy and rich with flavours. We challenged each other to try the spiciest wings, which led to a bout of playful competition as we raced for the cooling relief of our beers. The casual setting felt just right, allowing us to let our guards down and enjoy each other’s company without pretence.

As the evening wound down, the bar began to quiet, and the earlier energy settled into a comfortable hum. Hank glanced at me, a playful yet sincere expression on his face. “I hope this place hit the mark for our victory dinner.”

I laughed, wiping my hands on a napkin. “It was perfect. I couldn’t have asked for a better evening.”

Hank’s smile deepened, and he reached across the table to squeeze my hand. “I’m really glad to hear that. I wanted tonight to feel just right.”

We lingered a while longer at Lucky’s, finishing our drinks and talking about everything and nothing at all. The comfortable ease that had defined our evening was still there, but now it carried a little more weight—something unspoken hanging between us. Hank leaned back in his chair, his gaze soft yet intent as he looked at me across the table.

“You want to grab another drink somewhere? Or…” he trailed off, his eyes flicking to the door, then back to me. His voice softened as he added, “We could head back to my place, or yours. No pressure.”

The way he said it, so casual and sincere, made my stomach flip with both nerves and excitement. There wasn’t any expectation in his tone—just an invitation. The night had been perfect so far, and part of me wanted to keep it going, to see where this connection would take us.

I met his gaze, holding it for a beat longer than necessary, weighing the options. The warmth of the bar, the low hum of conversation around us, and the slight buzz from the drinks all made me feel bold. “Your place sounds good,” I said, my voice steady even though my heart raced.

Hank’s smile widened, not quite a smirk, but something close. He stood up, offering me his hand. “Let’s get out of here, then.”

We stepped outside, the sudden quiet almost jarring after the buzz of the bar. Hank’s hand was still holding mine as we walked, his thumb lightly tracing circles over my skin. The streets were quieter now, the occasional car passing by, but it felt like the city had slowed down just for us.

We were nearing Hank’s building when I heard a scuffling sound from farther down the street, followed by a gruff voice and the unmistakable thud of someone being shoved. I turned my head and saw two figures hunched over someone—an older man, who stumbled backward into a parked car.

“What the hell?” I muttered under my breath, my steps slowing. Hank’s expression darkened instantly. His hand left mine as he picked up his pace, his entire body tensing. “Stay here,” he said firmly, but I didn’t.

As we approached, I got a better look at the scene. The man being pushed around looked dishevelled, his clothes worn and grimy, his face creased with age and weathered by something more. He was trying to stand upright, but it was clear he wasn’t in any shape to defend himself. The two younger men messing with him barely even glanced our way as we came closer, too focused on taunting the helpless man.

“Hey!” Hank shouted, his voice cutting through the noise like a whip. The two men froze for a moment, then turned to face him, eyes narrowing. The taller of the two sneered, clearly unimpressed.

“Mind your business, man.”

“This is my business,” Hank said, stepping between the older man and the two younger guys. His voice was steady, but there was a sharp edge to it. “Leave him alone.”

The second guy, wearing a ratty hoodie, raised his chin defiantly. “Or what?”

I felt my heart hammering in my chest. The last thing we needed was for this to turn into a fight, and Hank wasn’t exactly small, but these two guys looked like they were itching for trouble.

“Or you’re going to regret it,” Hank replied evenly, his posture unyielding. “Just walk away.”

For a moment, no one moved, and I felt my pulse quicken in the silence. But after a tense beat, the taller guy scoffed, nudging his friend. “Whatever, man. Let’s go.”

With one last glance at Hank, they slinked away into the shadows of the street, leaving the older man slumped against the car, groaning softly.

Hank immediately turned his attention to him, crouching down and gently placing a hand on the man’s shoulder. “Jason,” he said quietly, his voice softer now. “You alright?”

I blinked, taking a step closer. “You know him?” I asked, surprised.

“Yeah,” Hank sighed, helping Jason stand upright, though the man was clearly struggling to stay on his feet. “He’s been around the block for years. Jason’s… he’s got a rough life. Drinks a lot, doesn’t really have anyone looking out for him.”

Jason mumbled something incoherent, his eyes glassy, and I could smell the alcohol on him from where I stood. He was in bad shape, bruised from the attack and barely able to hold himself up.

“He needs a hospital,” I said, glancing at Hank.

Hank nodded grimly. “Yeah, we need to get him checked out.”

I quickly pulled out my phone, calling for an Uber. “I’ll get us a ride,” I said as Hank shifted Jason’s weight onto his shoulder, steadying him as best as he could.

Within minutes, the car arrived, and with some effort, we managed to get Jason into the backseat. The driver shot us a wary look but didn’t say anything as we told him to head to the nearest hospital.

The drive to the hospital was quiet, the atmosphere heavy. Jason was slipping in and out of consciousness beside Hank, who kept a close eye on him, holding him upright. I sat in the front seat, casting glances back at them every so often, a knot of worry tightening in my chest.

When we arrived, Hank and I practically carried Jason inside, the nurses at the front desk immediately recognising the severity of the situation. A wheelchair was brought over, and they whisked him away without hesitation.

We found ourselves in the waiting area soon after, the harsh lights of the emergency room flickering overhead. Hank sat beside me, his elbows resting on his knees, his hands clasped together tightly. His face was tense, his mind clearly elsewhere.

I touched his arm gently. “You okay?”

He nodded, though his expression didn’t change much. “Yeah. I just… I hate seeing him like this,” Hank muttered, rubbing his jaw. “Jason’s been living on that block longer than I’ve been around. He’s harmless, but no one really looks after him. I try to keep an eye on him when I can, but…” He trailed off, shaking his head. “I should’ve done more.”

“You’re doing what you can,” I said softly. “You helped him tonight. If you hadn’t been there… I don’t even want to think about what might’ve happened.”

Hank let out a long sigh, the tension in his shoulders easing just slightly. “I guess. It’s just… it’s tough seeing someone like that. It feels like the whole world’s forgotten about him.”

We sat in silence for a while after that, the hum of the hospital around us filling the quiet. Eventually, a nurse came over to let us know that Jason was stable, but that his condition was a result of years of heavy drinking. They were going to admit him for observation, but it wasn’t his first time here, and it wouldn’t likely be his last.

Hank thanked the nurse, but I could see the worry still etched into his face as we stepped back outside. The night air was cool, a stark contrast to the stuffy warmth of the hospital.

“Do you want to head back to my place?” Hank asked quietly after a moment, his voice subdued.

I thought about it for a second, then nodded. “Yeah, let’s go.”

The ride back to Hank’s was quiet, the earlier buzz of the night replaced by a heavy calm. By the time we got to his apartment, the exhaustion from the night had settled in. Hank unlocked the door, pushing it open, and I followed him inside, both of us moving quietly, still processing everything that had happened.

I sat down on the couch, letting out a long breath as the weight of the evening finally settled over me. Hank disappeared into the kitchen for a moment, returning with two glasses of water.

“Thanks,” I said softly as he handed me one. He sat down beside me, leaning back, his hand finding mine again.

“I’m really glad you were with me tonight,” he said quietly after a few moments of silence. “It… it made everything easier.”

I smiled, squeezing his hand gently. “I’m glad I was there too.”

We stayed like that for a while, the quiet between us comfortable, almost soothing. After everything, there wasn’t much else to say. Eventually, Hank’s arm slipped around my shoulders, pulling me close until we were lying together on the couch, the weight of the night slowly giving way to a shared sense of calm.

And even though the night had taken an unexpected turn, being here with him felt exactly where I was meant to be.

Masterlist

[connorsnothereeither]

So like, a while ago I did a little update on the Brink fics, and I figured it was worth giving a kinda sad update on my other Fable fics as well.

At this stage, there are no plans to continue or finish Your Skin Beneath My Teeth (the second book in the Blood series).

I know this is probably disappointing, because I know a lot of people really loved the Vampire AU. But from a personal writing level, I’m just sort of unhappy with the direction of the books, and I don’t have the time to commit to rewriting them. I’m not invested enough in my own story, and while that’s a shame, I don’t know if there’s much I can do without just giving myself time to stew on it.

There’s also a logistical side to things as well. Fable is coming to an end in less than a month. I feel like it’ll probably take me months to finish the Brink series still first, which are the fics I’m personally more passionate about. And at a certain point, I don’t want Fable to be the only thing that consumes my writing for the next year+. Not to mention the time I want to dedicate to other SMPs and creative projects I’m involved in, like Cantripped, Bound SMP, and Terramortis, with even more stuff in the works.

On top of all that like… I’m just a guy, ya know. I’m a full time student, work part-time most days of the week, commute between 2 major cities regularly, and I have other things that just deserve my time more.

Don’t get me wrong, I’ve been in fandoms for years, I know it’s shitty when fics you enjoy never get an ending. But I hope that like, people get where I’m coming from with discontinuing it, I guess.

Besides, there is, technically, an ending for Blood. I’ve had the ending written since the end of the first book (it’s just getting there that’s the problem) and so if people would like, as some sort of closure for the story, I would be happy to release that here on Tumblr or on my Kofi or something. Maybe I’ll make a follow up post with a poll.

I might as well mention that there is likewise no plan to “finish” the Band AU, but since that was always a collection of one-shots, there was never really a plan or end for any of it. It was always kinda disjointed without an end in sight lol.

I’m not saying that I’m NEVER going to go back to these fics. Just that it’s unlikely. But who knows, maybe someday I’ll crawl out of the dirt to finish them-

If you did only follow my Fable fics for the Blood books though, I’m sure some elements of my other fan works might appeal to you, if you want to give them a go! The horror/contemplations of humanity are the key theme of Brink, and the mystery/thriller, high stakes political conflict mixed with interpersonal melodrama is the focus of Cascading Skies, my new Bound fic. And of course those and so many more things are just key elements to like all of my storytelling my canon characters lol. But if none of that ticks your boxes, it was great to have y’all along for the bloody vampire ride :D

Anyway this was me getting sappy about setting aside a project I worked really hard on lol. Sometimes you gotta do that and sometimes that’s okay, and that’s an attitude I struggle with but am getting better at. I know don’t owe y’all any kind of explanation for this, I could have just stopped and let it die, but I wanted to give one. More for me personally really; I needed to say something about it publicly to like… fully cement in my mind what I decided on a long time ago. Anyway, catch y’all later when I’m not incredibly tired, and hopefully with a more silly goofy post ✌️

[cupids-chamber]

FIRST DATE WITH XIAO, WHERE YOUR quiet standoff-ish crush asks you out on a date.. how will this unexpected proposal end?

TAGS: GENDER NEUTRAL READER, MODERN!AU, COLLEGE!AU, SOFT!XIAO, FLUSTERED!XIAO, MAY BE A TAD BIT OOC

Xiao asking you out was quite unexpected, he seemed closed off, in fact you were more then certain you would have to make the first move in this relationship. It was quite clear the two of you liked each other, with his swift glances in between halls, how he’d speak with you and strike a conversation with you almost always despite hating the idea of speaking with others so much, he always seemed to have something to talk about.. with you! This and many other signs, all led you to believe that he had feelings for you.. but imagining him to make a direct move was.. well far fetched to say the least. 

So it was quite the surprise seeing Xiao’s flushed face, while he asked if he could speak to you alone, even then you didn’t expect anything out of the ordinary, until of course Xiao spoke out “Hey um— would you like to go out with me?”.. 

“Like a date?” you added, and you swore you could see his ears turn bright red, “Yes..  um.. Like a date!” His response was sweet, and some of his words came out as incoherent babbles, and you couldn’t help but let out a chuckle at his rather innocent reaction to the question, “Sure!”

Xiao offered to pick you up, but you preferred going there yourself, hoping to run some small errands before you got to the actual location at hand, as for his plans, he said he wanted it to be a surprise! So, the conversation ended with him handing you the location, and time.

You had gotten to the location about 15 minutes earlier than the time Xiao had given, yet Xiao was already there, he seemed to have been waiting for you.. Taking a moment to think, you decided to sneak up on him, quietly tapping his shoulder, startling him in the process.. “Waiting for someone?”

“You’re here” his voice was just above a whisper, but you could feel the excitement laced within them, “Yep! Where we goin’?” you asked, curious as to what he had planned for the two of you today, he didn’t even bother hinting or indulging your pleas, when you asked beforehand. 

“Well I have um— a couple things prepared, if you don’t mind!” he asked, carefully picking his words not to sound way too excited, he didn’t want to alarm you.. “Not at all!”

“Then let’s get going” 

The date started out simple, the two of your first stop was to the movies, nothing too surprising yet it was interesting to say the least, if anything you expected Xiao to pick out a horror movie, or maybe a thriller, however instead Xiao had picked a slice of life movie, and it was rather entertaining to say the least, in the middle of the movie you leaned down on his shoulder, and you could swear he froze in his tracks, as he stiffened in his place. You took a look at his face and saw his bright red face, “Are you good?” you whispered catching him of guard, “Y-yeah”

Then the two of you went to an arcade, where he showed you some of his favorite games there, he then taught you some of the cheats he learned to win more tickets, the two of shared many laughs, and you learned that Xiao was terrible at puns, yet you couldn’t help but laugh when you saw his genuine confident smile while he said some of the cheesiest of things. 

The last stop of you both was at the park, before you head there Xiao picked up some take out for the two of you as you both walked throughout the area looking for a comfortable spot to sit down and eat. The sun was setting, and you were sure the date was going to come to an end soon. 

You took another bite of your food, “I had a really great time today” you said, trying to break the awkward silence, though saying that with your mouth stuffed full was probably one of your worst ideas today, however it probably wasn’t the first time you embarrassed yourself this evening. 

Xiao didn’t reply, he seemed out of it.., “Hey— um, do you mind if we do this again sometime?” you asked, it seemed fair that this time around you’d ask him out. “Huh?.. well.. um.” You took notice of how his ears turned slightly red at your question, “I’d love to” he finally responded. 

The two of you spend the rest of the time talking about your plans, and just about anything really, enjoying the comfort of one another's presence.

© cupids-chamber, do not repost, plagiarize, translate, or adapt my work without prior permission and or confirmation.

[romanceyourdemons]

fatal attraction (1987) certainly deserves its reputation as one of the most iconic neo-noirs and erotic thrillers of the 80s. the acting is both naturalistic and intense, the sets and costumes are beautifully done, and the cross-cutting editing ratchets the tension up to fever pitch with a skillful hand. however, the element of the film that fascinates me most is how deliberately it juxtaposes “safe” danger, the veneer or aesthetic of the exotic and dangerous, with the “real” danger of the 1980s cultural mind—that is, the disrupting of white suburban family life. the beginning of the film shows the protagonist indulging in all manner of big-city pleasures that pastiche the aesthetic of the foreign, the exotic, and the abnormal to provide an illusion of danger, whilst still purpose-made to protect and entertain him. from the japanese restaurant with its samurai self-help book, to the samba nightclub, to madama butterfly and its quintessential orientalism, these “safe” dangers parallel alex forrest’s role at this point: of the 1980s big-city masculine woman, tough and independent and shoulder-padded, offering an exotic and dangerous—but not truly dangerous—weekend of fun. but alex’s black plunge-neck gowns and fitted skirtsuits do not last forever. as she grows more dangerous, so too does she grow more feminine, in both costuming and behavior; it is her imminent motherhood, her obsession with entering into family life, that takes her danger from “safe” to “real.” the film has very little sympathy for her. she expresses her legitimate grievances in no uncertain terms, but her exaggerated obsessiveness from the starting gun transforms her from a full character into a mere force of threat. this force of threat slowly spirals inward from the safety of new york danger to the suburbs, where any disruption is considered truly terrifying; in the end, the climactic horror of the film is a stranger-danger kidnapping and a home invasion, rather than anything that might have happened in a seedy nightclub or a bar. it is a wealthy white person’s privilege, the film argues, to act as a tourist to danger in the city; but for this danger to follow him home is a grotesque violation of contrast. as a representative of its genre and era, as well as a piece of high-voltage thriller film, fatal attraction (1987) functions beautifully, and i would certainly recommend it

[maineventbts]

DON’T SCREAM

genre: horror, thriller, smut, angst

pairing: taehyung x reader (featuring jk, hobi, joon, jin, yoongi)

word count: 10.4k

warnings: mentions of murder & death, violent attacks, unprotected sex, vulgar language, knives & guns. lmk if I’m missing anything else!

summary: you just branded your boyfriend as the murderer, after your gruesome attack. you think you’re finally safe in your friend’s home, but you receive a call from the killer while he’s in jail. the town continues to be in fear, awaiting the next killing. the police set a citywide curfew, which is ignored by many. like any good horror movie, a party is thrown during all of the chaos. thinking you have a night of fun ahead, you find yourself fighting for your life, and get the surprise of a lifetime.

a/n: i wrote this very quickly, please ignore any mistakes. this has turned into a series, but this is the last part that will be almost exactly like the movie. please leave any thoughts/comments/questions in my inbox (anons are on)!

"I got it wrong," your words come out hoarse, feeling like you were just kicked in the chest. Nayeon's mother left the room in silence, too stunned to speak on what just happened. The voice on the other side of the phone made your ankle wound throb. Tears dripping down your face, burning like acid eating at your skin. Not even a full three hours have passed since your attempted murder, and you're receiving a threatening phone call. What makes matters worse is that you've already labeled your boyfriend as the boogeyman, the killer is still on the loose, and targeting you. Taehyung was behind bars, and you believed that you were safe. This couldn’t be happening, there was no way that this was your life. You have no idea who was behind the mask or the chilling call. You were just at the police station, getting your ankle patched up and having your statement taken by Seokjin. All eyes were on you while you pointed the figure towards Taehyung. You knew he’d never forgive you, especially after he tried to get you to believe him.

Tensions were high; a murderer was running loose, you told the police your boyfriend tried to kill you, and the anniversary of your father's murder was just around the corner. Even though you were in a house full of people, you felt alone. No one in the room could see or understand what you were going through. Nayeon pulls you in for a hug, her hands wrapping around your quivering frame. You couldn't stand to be here anymore, you were ready to hop on the next flight and join your mother. You just wanted to get away from the carnage that is your new life. "I just want to sleep," you mutter, shuffling towards the extra bed in your friend's room. You cry silently, tucking yourself in the sheets. Late to the party, Nayeon's brother bursts into the room. With a pistol in his hands ready to shoot someone, he asks, "What happened," his question goes unanswered as you turn over, and his sister rolls her eyes. "You're late, Jin," she said, crossing her arms over her chest, annoyed with her brother's late arrival. For a police officer, he wasn't the best when it came to emergencies. It was his job to keep an eye on you and he was failing miserably. You could hardly comprehend what just happened, and since you surely weren't ready to tell the story, you let Nayeon speak for you. 

As you walk onto campus the next morning, you're surrounded by reporters who were awaiting your arrival. They didn't care about your well-being, they were just ready to use you for another top story. The flash from the camera blinds you and brings back the worst kinds of memories. All you could think about were the invasive journalists from your dad's trial. The theories and the articles were the worst part of it all. You wouldn't be surprised if one of the top reporters were among the sea of bastards with a microphone and a camera. With Nayeon by your side, you believed that you would be okay and could make it through the turmoil. "Just ignore them," she says quietly, ushering you through the crowd. This was the last place you wanted to be. After the night you had and the fact that no one could get ahold of your mom, you were beyond petrified.

You sit at your usual lunch table, digging through your bag, as you talk with your friends. Bandaged ankle propped up, slightly in pain after all the walking you’ve done. The first thing you did was ask about Taehyung. He’d been released, but you haven’t spoken with him since. You expected that he’d be pissed, wanting nothing to do with you. "What do you mean, how does he feel? You told the cops that he tried to kill you. The kid's spirit is crushed," Hoseok chuckles, his comment receiving a smack on the chest from Nayeon. You already felt bad, but he was just making matters worse, "what else was I supposed to think?!" The last thing you wanted to do was rehash last night's events, but you couldn't just stand there and let him railroad you. There was a valid reason for you to think Taehyung was guilty, you didn’t just pull him out of thin air. "He knew I was alone and just happened to pop up as soon as the killer was gone," you said, aggressively zipping your bag closed, clearly annoyed. Jungkook forced his way into the conversation, saying, "I'm with, ___ on this one. He's always seemed like a killer to me, he’s got the charisma of killers from those true crime shows! He has 'murderer' written all over his face. This entire situation straight out of a horror movie."

As the group’s film nerd, Jungkook knew all about movies and the different patterns they have. He believed that he was the most qualified person for solving this, surpassing actual officers working the case. Ignoring Jungkook's commentary, Hoseok came to Taehyung's defense, once again, saying, "The message log came back clean, anyways, it's not like this is the first time he's snuck into your house. He probably just wanted to see you," Hoseok continues to speak for his friend, he’d fully believed that he was innocent, "he's here today, maybe you can apologize." His suggestion makes you scoff, standing up abruptly, "Why the hell should I apologize, I'm the victim here! He just got put in a cell for an hour; I was nearly fileted." You couldn't believe you had to defend yourself to your friends, especially after what happened to you. They should be more understanding; sadly, they've done nothing but make you feel bad.  "By the way, I'm fine," you throw your bag over your shoulder, turning on your heel, "since none of you even cared to ask." It was hard to believe that everyone has something to say about the situation, but no one cares enough to ask about your well-being. You limped away from the trio, refusing to spare them another glance. After you walked away, the group remained silent, reflecting on their choice of words.

You received various looks from your peers, some looked at you with pity, while others looked like you had brought the killer onto campus. All of the eyes on you made you queasy, you wanted to get out of there as soon as possible. You're rushing through the hallway until you collide with another person. You try to regain your balance as you get ready to apologize. Before the words can leave your mouth, you realize you've come face-to-face with your boyfriend. He holds his hand out for you, trying to stop you from falling, before quickly pulling away. The look of fear in your eyes has him confused, "you still think I did it, don't you?" His question made you look away, head tilted downward as you stared at the floor. The look of concern on his face, paired with the softness in his voice, was a dangerous combination. You felt extremely guilty, expecting him to react angrily.

Maybe you were still scared, "no, Tae," you mustered up the courage to answer him. "You were there at such an odd time. Maybe it was a coincidence, but it just looked bad. I know it wasn't you, but that's all I could think in the moment," you finally looked up at him, sad eyes staring into his angry ones. "I knew you were scared so I just wanted to come and see you. I figured you'd want company, but the door was open, which was weird. So I rushed upstairs to see if you were okay," Taehyung grabs a hold of your hand, his expression softening as he realizes how sorrowful you look. "It's not just this though," he deeply sighs before continuing, "since everything with your dad, you've just been different." You snatch your hand away from his, glaring up at him, "what do you mean different?" You were appalled that he would even say such a thing, after all that you went through.

"You've been acting weird for months. Sometimes you barely want to be around me," he explains, and you stare at him in shock. "I know what it's like to lose a parent. When my dad left-" you couldn't believe the words you were hearing, especially to hear them coming from your boyfriend. "Really? Your dad left your mom, my dad was murdered. You can't even compare the two," your hand grips the strap of your backpack, as you prepare to flee this conversation as well. "I'm sorry that my life is too much for you. Not all of us are lucky to live in some perfect world," you push past him, your shoulder connecting with his. Taehyung calls out for you, shouting an apology as he watches you walk away. You refuse to turn back to him, keeping your head high while you storm away.

Ignoring the stares from your peers, you hurry into the bathroom. You lock yourself in a stall, leaning your back against the door. First last night, and now this? You just couldn't catch a break; it's like the universe was punishing you for some horrific crime. What could you have done to deserve a life like this? What you really wanted right now was your mother. She knew exactly how to console you and calm you down, but she still hasn’t responded to anyone yet. Seokjin promised he’d keep looking for her but you were beyond worried. You just needed to clear your mind, to breath. A few deep breaths and the sound of nothing seemed to do the trick. As you prepare to leave the restroom, you stop as you hear the voices of some girls. 

"She's such an attention whore." 

"Taehyung is too hot to be dealing with this. The bitch is insane."

"She probably lied about getting attacked, just to throw the cops off her trail." 

"After what happened with her dad, she just snapped, and now she's dragging everyone else down with her." 

The girls erupt in laughter, as they continue to exchange jokes about your current state. Every word felt like someone had taken a hammer to your chest. They didn’t know the truth, they just knew what they saw on TV and read online. The same goes for everyone else, they only know what people choose to report, not the full story.

As soon as the bathroom was cleared out, you exited the stall and approached the mirrors. You stared at your reflection with a blank face, too stunned to move. Eyes puffy and droopy, jaw clenched, and a frown. The girl in the mirror was a wreck, practically dead inside. A loud band pulls you from your thoughts, causing you to turn around. No one else was in the room, but you did see several people making a mockery out of the incident, masks and all. After what you just experienced, you weren't in the mood to stick around and find out what that was. Without any hesitation, you hurry out of the bathroom and walk to your next class. 

_______________________________________________

"Students, for the rest of the week, classes are dismissed. Please acknowledge the citywide curfew and stay safe," an announcement goes through the intercom, receiving shouts and cheers from students all around. You and Nayeon are walking off campus, heading to her car, before you're stopped by Hoseok. "You guys coming to my party tonight," he asks, pulling Nayeon against his chest. You ignore their antics and keep walking, confused as to how they can party during a killing spree, with a curfew. "Come on, it'll be fun," Nayeon grabs your hand, giving you an overexaggerated pout, “Please, for me?” You figured she wanted to spend some time with her boyfriend, but just didn’t want to leave you on your own again.

You stared at them in disbelief, shocked that they’d even think you’d be up for a celebration, but the pair wouldn't budge. Part of you wants to stay in the safety of Nayeon's home, while the other part wants to be surrounded by a large crowd of possible witnesses. "Fine, I'll go," you give in, deciding that you deserve a bit of fun in your life. Hoseok gives the girl a final kiss before you snatch her away, ignoring his shouts directed toward you two. He does a celebratory dance before walking in the other direction, to get things ready for the evening.

_______________________________________________

"Nice to see you, ___" Jungkook grins at you and Nayeon, he was surprised to see you two in his place of work. "We're looking for some movies for tonight. What do you got," you take a look around the aisle you're in before Jungkook stops you, "don't worry about that, I got the movies covered. I'm thinking horror movie marathon!" You weren't surprised by his choices, knowing how much he adored movies, especially horror films. "Alright, well, we're going to the store to get some snacks and food. Don't pick out any of that weird shit, I'm not watching Human Centipede with you again," Nayeon drags you out of the store, as you say your goodbyes to your friend. Jungkook stares at you in awe as you walk away, "just one chance," he mutters before turning back to his stack of DVDs.

"You left just in time," Jungkook scoffs as Hoseok approaches him, "and you brought Michael Myers with you, great." He looks over in the direction of Taehyung, who is too busy talking with a group of girls to notice his comment. "Will you give it up? It wasn’t him, the cops let him go," Hoseok rolled his eyes, tired of having to defend his friend. No matter how many times he tried to explain it away, Jungkook wasn't buying it. "This is the kinda shit that comes straight out of the movies. You don't think I know what the fuck is going on," Hoseok watches the boy get riled up, about to go on a full-blown rant. He stands back and watches it all go down. "Anyone that's seen a horror movie knows what's happening. That boy has killer written all over him! For Christ's sake, he's even standing in the middle of the horror section," Jungkook sets down the DVD in his hand, "I don't give a damn how clean his phone records were. They could show me it themselves, and I still wouldn't believe it." He was frustrated, no one seemed to listen to his theories or the facts he was pointing out.

A man approaches Jungkook, a movie in his hand, "if you came over here to ask me what actor is in it, look on the back! It's right there," he says, shooing the customer away, ready to get back to his conversation. "The cops only let him go because they're stupid. It happens in every movie! The cops are either too late to the scene or they ignore the obvious signs about who the killer is." Hoseok brings another question to the table, continuing to egg him on, "if he's the killer, what's his motive? Hm?" Hoseok wouldn’t back down, he knew exactly how to get Jungkook going, and continued to push his buttons. Picking up a new stack of DVDs, Jungkook places it on the shelf, saying, "there's always some reason for everything. No matter how stupid it is. That's what makes these movies so great, they aren't overcomplicated. Everything is right in front of your face," Hoseok stares at the boy, wondering how much longer he could go before he starts to lose his mind.

"His motive? Maybe _____ has started to lose interest in him," Hoseok bursts into laughter, "so? You think that means she'll be interested in you next?" Jungkook shrugged his shoulders at his question, "I think so, we get along great. Last time I checked, she wasn't running from me. Only your friend over there," he points in Taehyung's direction. When he realizes just how serious Jungkook is, Hoseok can't control his laughter. Pointing at him and giggling like a kid on the playground. Unfazed by his disrespect, Jungkook continues stocking the shelves. "You know who I think it is? Her mom," Hoseok randomly throws a new suspect on the table, "no one's heard from her since she left." Jungkook shook his head, his luscious curls bouncing as his head turned. "Nah, she's probably dead. Have you seen her mother? There's no way she could kill two different people, and attack ____," Jungkook didn't believe Hoseok, to him, it made no sense for your mother to be the killer.

"Her body will be found next. Insides ripped out! Teeth bashed in! Rotting in a closet somewhere," Jungkook's vulgar language didn't surprise his friend, he tended to be very overly passionate about these kinds of things.  "Someone's just waiting for the right time to bring her body to the surface." Hoseok looked around the room, waiting for others to notice just how loud Jungkook was getting. "If they watched a simple horror movie, they'd know there is a formula to this shit! A specific formula that they forget every time," at this point, he's practically shouting in the middle of the store, arms flapping around as he speaks. 

"Don't you get it! Everyone's a suspect," the room instantly got quiet as everyone stared at Jungkook. Hearing only some of the things he had to say, they thought he was a madman. He didn't care about the looks, he shrugged his shoulders once again. "The moms a distraction, it's Taehyung," as he turns to walk away, Taehyung pops up behind him, making him stop in his tracks. A firm hand grips his shoulder as Taehyung glares into his eyes, "are you sure you're not the killer? Huh?? Maybe your sickass saw too many movies and decided to make your own," Jungkook's eyes widened in horror, as he was accosted by his primary suspect.

Jungkook jumps again, as Hoseok comes up behind him, "you have a point there, in a typical movie, I'd be the main suspect." Playing with his hair, Hoseok continues to invade his personal space, practically breathing on his neck, "what would be your motive?" Jungkook answered quickly, looking between the two men, "it's a new age in cinema, motives come accidentally, naturally." The pair found him amusing as they continued to poke and prod at him. They giggle amongst themselves before walking away from Jungkook. Leaning over to a customer near him, Jungkook speaks quietly, "you're telling me that dude's not a killer?" Before they can answer, Jungkook snatches the DVD from their hands, shooting them a disappointed look, "Is that the Texas Chainsaw with Trey Songz? You've gotta be kidding me, go pick another one out," he sets the DVD on his tray before sending the customer back to the horror section.

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"Hey Hobi," you greet the party's host as you enter his home. "Is Tae here," you ask quietly, avoiding eye contact, "No, he said he wasn't feeling it tonight." Part of you was disappointed, you didn’t want to see him, but you felt like he was avoiding you. You take a look around at the large crowd, feeling a sense of comfort. If anyone was coming to get you, there'd be several people around to witness it. As you walked further into the house, people began to notice you. Shouting your name and giving you pats on the shoulder. It felt better than the way you were previously treated, but it still felt odd. "Hey guys," you give a tight-lipped smile as you make your way to the living room. Already on his way to the television, you watch Jungkook put a movie on. No one dared to disagree with the movie he picked out, wanting to avoid any kind of battle with the man.

"What's up pretty lady," the sound of Yoongi's voice made you turn around, you look over to see your group of friends waiting for you to join them. He hands you a red solo cup as the group makes room for you to get comfortable. You sit next to Nayeon and Jungkook, the two being your closest friends. "Are you feeling better," Namjoon reaches over, resting a hand on your shoulder. "Yeah, thanks for asking," you say, shooting him a smile, surprised that someone finally asked how you were feeling. You weren’t surprised it was Namjoon, he tended to be the more caring one of the group. Since your father’s untimely death, he’s made sure to always ask how you are. "Everybody shut up! We're about to watch one of the greatest films ever made, Nightmare on Elm Street," the room lets out some cheers as they settle in their seats.

Hoseok joins the group, plopping down next to Nayeon and asking, "can you get me another drink," the request makes her roll her eyes, but she does it anyways. She gets up from her seat and heads down to the basement. "Can you get me another drink," she mutters under her breath, mocking her boyfriend as she takes several drinks from the fridge. As she heads back to the door, the garage door opens up, stopping her in her tracks. With her hand on the doorknob, she looks to see who's there before trying to get into the house. "What the fuck," she groans, twisting the knob on the locked door. Instead of waiting around, she decides to go through the garage, to get back in the house. Walking towards the open entrance, she jumps. In front of her is someone in the same cloak and mask that attacked you.

"Jungkook? You've gotta be kidding me, take that off before ____ sees you," Nayeon shakes her head as she tries to walk past someone she thinks is a friend. A clothed hand wraps around her forearm, holding her in place. "You freak, let me go," she groans, trying to pull her arm away. "Fuck!" she shouts as she feels a sharp tip glide against her arm. Trembling in fear, Nayeon thrashes in her spot, trying not to freak out at the sight of her blood dripping on the floor. She thought it was just a prank gone too far, but they weren't stopping. "Let me go," her voice shakes as she finally pushes them away.

She bolts out of the garage, running from the assailant, just to be snatched back by her hair. Glass shatters on the floor as the drinks fall from her hands. Her back collides with the concrete, knocking the air out of her lungs. Coming to the conclusion that this was actually the killer, she’s aware that her end is coming. She tries crying out for help, words coming out as gasps, while tears run down her face. "Help me," she starts to shout before her mouth is covered. Letting out a series of muffled pleas for help, as she stares into the mask. She was beyond petrified, nearly about to give up. The phantom hovers over her, one hand over her mouth and the other hand wielding a knife. Her eyes widen as she notices the blade, thrashing on the floor, trying to save herself. Smacks to their face and fists to their chest, the killer refuses to let that stop their mission. Her attempts are unsuccessful, as the knife is plunged into her chest. Her hands come up to grip the mask, pulling it off of their face. Eyes fluttering as she’s losing consciousness, she looks in the face of the attacker. Her blood spilling onto the floor, as her world goes dark.

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"Nayeon, let's go," you shout throughout the house. Jin was on his way to pick the both of you up, being your bodyguard and your ride. You already broke the curfew, but now it was time for everyone to head home. People leaving in their cars, going to lock themselves in their house. You'd been looking for Nayeon for the last five minutes, with no clue where she was. Little did you know, she was lying on the garage floor and you'd be next. You stand with Hoseok at the front door, as you wait for your friend to show up. "Hey, ___," a familiar voice sounds in your ears, causing you to turn around. Standing in the doorway is Taehyung, looking as sorry as ever. You can still hardly hold eye contact with him, giving him a small nod. "Hey, why don’t I go look for Nayeon and you two can talk," Hoseok suggests, pointing towards the stairs. You quickly nod your head, realizing that you can't ignore him forever. "Yeah, let's talk for a bit," you say, extending your hand, waiting for him to grab it. Taehyung jumps at the opportunity to be close to you again, intertwining your fingers. He leads you upstairs to the closest bedroom. After you enter, he closes the door behind you, wanting some privacy.

"Tae… I'm sorry," you sit on the bed, looking up at the man in front of you. Taehyung sits down beside you, resting a hand on your thigh. "I've been going through a lot, and I haven't been fair to you," you say, taking a deep breath before continuing. "I've been dragging you into my fucked-up world and expecting you to be okay with it." You stare down at your hands in your lap, trying to hide the fact that you're crying. You had expected him to handle all of the baggage you came with, not concerned about how that might’ve effected him. Taehyung radiated comfort; in this moment, you felt like you could trust him. Taehyung places his hand on your cheek, lifting your head up. "Baby, you can't blame yourself. You've had a lot to deal with this past year, and the least I could've done is be understanding," he says, wiping a tear from your cheek, giving you a small smile.

"My pretty girl… don't cry. You have nothing to be sorry for, I'm the one who's sorry," you finally look into his eyes, lips curving upwards. "Let me show you how sorry I am," you know what he's insinuating, and you're quick to nod your head. After the week you've had, you needed this. Not waiting another moment, you smash your lips against his. His hand comes up to cup your cheek, as you part your lips. His tongue slivers through, making its way into your mouth. Your hands come up to his shoulders, pushing her flannel off of him. You pull away, pulling your shirt over your head as Taehyung's eyes fall to your chest. He's quick to pull his shirt off and ask, "are you sure you want this?" Your hands come down to his pants, fiddling with the belt, "I want this, now," you speak softly, as you continue to get his pants off. You wanted nothing more than to be with him in the most intimate way possible. Taehyung was always your safe space, and you needed every bit of him to feel better.

_______________________________________________

The living room is still full of people, most of them being your friends. They've moved on to their next horror movie; Halloween. "It's obvious she was gonna die, she broke the main rule," Jungkook speaks to the group as he leans against the couch. The room as a whole was confused, assuming he was just speaking nonsense, as usual. "What rules," someone asks, clearly unaware that Jungkook has a habit of rambling on about movies. "You don't know the rules," he jumps up from his seat, looking at the people in disbelief. He lets out a big sigh and sets his beverage down. "There's a certain set of rules that everyone must follow if they want to survive a horror movie," Jungkook says, pausing the television as he begins to lecture the crowd. Little did they know, he’d give them some knowledge that would guarantee they’ll make it out alive. 

"Rule one, don't have sex," that rule made the group groan out a variety of complaints, people throwing chips and solo cups at him. "Rule two, no drinking! Rule three, no going off by yourself," Jungkook spoke passionately as he listed off the rest of the rules. "And finally! Do not say 'I’ll be fine’ you won’t be fine! You will die next," Hoseok laughed at his friend, standing up from the couch. "I'm gonna go get some food, do you want some," Jungkook quickly nodded his head, “by yourself,” he questioned, not knowing what idiotic comment would come next. "Yeah, I’ll be fine," Hoseok tried to contain his laughter as he exited the room, the rest of the people giggling behind him. "That's the kinda shit that's gonna end with a knife in your back," Jungkook shrugged his shoulders, knowing that he tried his best to give them survival tips.

_______________________________________________

"Fuck, I'm so sorry," your words come out as a moan, your voice quivering. Taehyung fucking you from behind as you grip the sheets beneath you. Each thrust was more exhilarating than the last, making your legs wobble. His cock slid in and out of your sopping hole, leaving you a whiny mess. Your legs practically shaking from the intense pleasure. Taehyung's hands grip your hips, bringing you to meet his thrusts. "It's alright, pretty girl," one of his hands comes up to caress your head. What started as a soft touch turned into him pulling your hair, "best apology ever," he groans loudly.

Things started off soft and slow, but got heated quickly. You both were eager to please the other, willing to do anything to make things better. "Taking me so fucking well," he picks up the pace without a warning. The sounds of your moans mixed with your hips smacking against each other was unholy. You can't even respond to his praises, too high in the clouds to even form a sentence. All you can do is let out airy moans, while you clench down on his cock. His cock was stuffed inside you, making you whimper and whine for more. Your thighs are soaking wet at this point, dripping down onto the bedding. You didn't care about the night before or what he said to you today, all you needed was for him to give you what you wanted.

As he continues to thrust into you, an overwhelming feeling begins to approach. You're sucking him in harder than before, not wanting to let this moment end. "Come on baby, cum all over my cock," Taehyung encourages you, as he feels you reaching your end, "you can do it, pretty girl." Those final words did it for you, you shut your eyes as you let the euphoric feeling take over you. "Fuck, squeezing me so well," Taehyung grunted as you continued to clench down on his throbbing cock. Your whines were music to his ears, aiding him in reaching his own high. He lets out of a string of curses, as his thrusts begin to falter. He spills his seed in you, coating your walls, before pulling out. His cum drips out of your pussy, spilling onto the sheets in a little puddle. You both take deep breaths, before saying anything else. Turning over, you lean forward, giving him a light kiss on the cheek. After you two cleaned yourselves up, you began to put your clothes back on.

"Did anyone come to see you, when you were in jail," you ask, pulling your shirt down. Taehyung sighed, confused as to why you were even bringing it up again, "My mom visited me." Your eyebrow shoots up in confusion, his mother was already at the station before he arrived, it was far from a visit. "That's not a visit, she was there to speak with officers," you proceed to fix your appearance as you ask your questions. Taehyung sits on the floor, lacing his boots, and trying to contain his frustration with you. "Then no, I didn't have a visitor," he gets quiet for a second, refusing to even look your way, "why are you asking about that? I thought we already settled this shit."

You shrug your shoulders, before turning to look at him, "I was just curious. It'd be funny if you had someone come and see you, so you could tell them to call me. It’d be a smart way to throw me off and make yourself look innocent," You knew your admission would make things worse, but you didn't care, it was a harmless statement. Taehyung jumped to his feet, finally looking into your eyes, "you still think it was me, don't you? We just had a whole conversation, the call logs were clean!" As he shouts at you, your eyes wander past him. The door was slowly being pushed open, "what is it gonna take for you to realize that I'm not the killer? Huh?" You ignored him shouting at you, too focused on what was going on behind him. Your eyes focus on a black cloak, trailing on the floor.

"What the-," you mutter before seeing the rest of the costume. Once again, you've come face to face with the phantom. Taehyung continues to yell at you, unaware of what was lurking behind him, "are you even listening to me?" Your mouth falls agape as you look on in pure horror. The masked killer carefully approaches you both, "Tae, look out," you finally shout, but your alert is too late. You watch as a knife is plunged into his back, causing him to hunch forward in pain, grunting loudly. Turning around to see his assailant, the knife is rammed in his chest. You let out a gut-wrenching scream as your boyfriend falls into a pool of his own blood. Sadly, you were standing close enough for his blood to have gotten all over your face. You try to let out a cry for help, but no words can come out. With a quick swipe of the knife, the phantom jumps over the bed, in an attempt to get you next.

You hop over the bed, barely escaping the swipe of the knife. As they try to leap towards you, they land on the wooden floor, buying you a bit more time. Sprinting through the halls, you take a look around at the wide variety of doors. Knowing you can’t stop running, you choose the one farthest away from where you were. The killer was at your heels, matching your pace. With your heart beating out of your chest, you snatch the door open, quickly closing it behind you. Once you noticed there was no lock, you pushed the nearby dresser in front of it as a barricade. You were in a bedroom, looking around for some kind of exit. Loud bangs come from the other side of the door. It was only a matter of time before they would break through. You come across a window on the left side of the room. Rushing towards it, you lift the latch to unlock it. You try to move as fast as possible, lifting the window up and crawling through. Just as you’ve made it to the other side, the door busts open. The assailant was instantly heading your way, you let out a gut-wrenching scream, praying someone around could hear you.

The floor under your feet was slippery. The roof boards were unsteady, and you could no longer use the window seal to hold yourself up. Carefully taking steps to the right, you lean down, using your hands to balance yourself. Looking beside you, the phantom is making its way out of the window. They’re moving faster than you were, not worried about falling down. You stand up straight, arms stretched out, as you try not to fall down. Taking large steps towards you with the knife in their hand, the killer dives towards you. "Somebody hel-" your voice cracks as a sharp pain in your abdomen stops you from finishing your cry for help. You’d been stabbed through the side, the knife was quickly pulled from your wound. The blood is pooling out, dripping down the side of your shirt. You feel yourself falling over, losing your balance, as you’re about to fall to your demise. Their hands wrap around your frame, you try to fight them off, kicking and throwing your arms around. They continue their attempts to stab you, swinging the knife in your direction. Throwing your hand up to protect yourself, the knife jabs straight through your hand,leaving you screeching in pain. You bring your wounded hand against your chest, trying to stop the bleeding.

You were either going to die up here or fall to your death, you couldn’t decide which was worse. Your attempts at fighting back were useless; you were barely able to dodge the knife coming towards your face. Ducking down, you throw your hands forward, pushing them back. As they stumble and try to regain their balance, you try to stand up. Before you can even move, you get kicked in the chest with a heavy boot. The force being too powerful, you slip off the roof, falling backwards as you shout at the top of your lungs. Your back connects with the roof of a car in the driveway. Groaning out in pain, you can barely believe that you’re alive. Slowly opening your eyes, you look up, only to see an empty rooftop. You hope they think you died on your way down; you weren’t sure how much more of this you could take. This was your second time being attacked, and this one ended with you being kicked off a roof, you were scared to think what was next.

Mustering up the strength, you roll off the side of the car. As your feet connect with the ground, you find yourself being drawn to the floor. You can hardly stand up, your back in excruciating pain from your previous fall. Using the side of the car as leverage, you pull yourself up and prepare to run. Before you can turn away from the house, a dark red puddle on the floor catches your attention. It's the body that's accompanying it that brings you to tears. Your best friend was stabbed and left bleeding out on the floor. You want to stay there with her, see if there's anything you can do for her, but you can't help her if you're dead. You limp away from the scene, moving as quickly as you can. As you make your escape, you continue to scream and plead for someone to come to your rescue.

Trying to shake the disturbing image you just saw out of your head. You make your way to the front of the house, thankful to see a friendly face. "Jin, we have to go," you shout, happy that there's someone with a gun to save you. To your surprise, he drops to his knees, falling onto the floor. Your eyes pan to the tear in his clothes, blood staining his uniform. You rush over to the porch, taking the gun out of his holster. You’d gone so long without a weapon, now you had the chance to fight back. Loud arguing catches your attention, and you turn around, pointing the gun at the two men approaching you.

Jungkook limping comes out of nowhere, fear evident on his face. He pushes Hoseok back before raising his hands, "he's lost his fucking mind! I found Nayeon by the garage, we need to get the fuck out of here." Jungkook tries to rush towards you voice quivering, before Hoseok pushes him to the floor as he holds his hands out toward you, "you gotta give me that gun! He killed my best friend, my Nayeon," the faux tears and the blood on his clothes aren't doing him any justice. The men continued to point at the other, screaming about all sorts of things. Hoseok begged for you to give him the gun, promising he could protect the both of you. At this moment, you can't truly trust either of them. One of them was guilty, and you weren't sticking around to find out which one. You run into the house and close the door, ignoring the screams from outside. They continue to beat on the door, pleading for you to let them in.

You hear your name being called from the top of the stairs. Your heart usually swells when you see him, but this sight wasn't something you enjoyed. Drenched in his blood, Taehyung stumbles down the stairs. You rush towards him, helping him hold himself up. He lets out small gasps, like he’s trying to catch his breath. Without thinking, you hand him the gun, knowing you'll be safer with him around. "We have to get out of here," you tell him, your voice hoarse and tears welling in your eyes. He shushed you, letting you know that you were safe now.  "We gotta get the fuck out of here, now! Hoseok's lost it, he's gone mad," Jungkook pushes his way through the front door, immediately locking it behind him. Frantically pacing, he looks quite happy to see you two are still alive.

"Madness, is a lot like gravity, all it takes is a little push," Taehyung says, raising the gun, aiming it at Jungkook. You grip his arm, confused at his actions, only for him to fire a bullet through him. Falling through the table behind him, Jungkook hits the floor and now you're left alone. You scream in shock, staring at your friend lying on the floor. You want to rush over and hold him, you couldn’t lose another friend today. "Been waiting to do that all day. The little fucker figured it out too fast," Taehyung giggles, rubbing the barrel of the gun over his temple. You're confused, you watched him get slashed up in the bedroom, just to find out that he was behind it all. You willingly gave him a loaded gun, and now you’re about to lose your life.

Bolting towards the kitchen, looking for an escape, you come in contact with Hoseok. Falling into his chest, hands shaking as you pull on his shirt, "Hobi, we have to go now!" You start pushing him, trying to get him to run with you. He doesn’t move from his spot, just standing in front of you with a grin. Reaching into his pocket, Hoseok pulls out a black device. "Surprise, surprise," he speaks into the voice modifier, and you pull back in shock. The sound of his voice made your ears bleed, taking you back to the predicament from yesterday. You should've known it was them, all Hoseok did was defend Taehyung when he was guilty. The whole ordeal was confusing, nothing was making any sense. He was just supporting his accomplice, making sure neither of them got caught. You push past Hoseok, sending him into the wall.

When you think you've got away, here comes Taehyung, coming around the other side of the kitchen. Gun pointed in your face, as he backs you up against the kitchen sink. The way they stared at you made your skin crawl, you’d never been this uncomfortable in your life. "Where you going," Hoseok asks, as he approaches you, blocking off the area so you can't run away. "It's all a part of the movie, baby," Taehyung starts, keeping the gun in your face, "and you're the star, just like your father." You look down at the floor, too afraid to look either of them in the face. "Now, we're gonna ask you a few questions, alright? Get it wrong, you die," Hoseok jumps in to finish, "get it right, you still die." Taehyung puts the barrel to your head, shooting you a chilling smile, "There are only two survivors here, and I'm sorry, baby, but you didn't make the cut," the fake sadness in his voice was taunting.

You look up, glaring at the pair, "you both are psychotic! Fuck you," you shout, only for Taehyung to return the energy, "no, no, you already did that. Remember?" You feel sick to your stomach, remembering his hands all over your body, all of the sweet words he said to you. It was all a hoax and you fell for it. You felt disgusting, like you needed to scrub off this layer of your skin to feel better. Gripping the edge of the counter behind you, eyes moving back and forth between the two, "you're never gonna get away with this." You wanted to believe the words you were saying, but you weren’t sure. Clearly they’d planned this whole thing out by detail, they just might prevail. Taehyung bursts out in tears, laughing in your face, "oh, but we already did! Your father was an easy kill, and it was even easier to blame the whore he was sleeping with.” You feel your heart shatter like you're reliving the death of your father, all over again. You let out a small whine in disbelief. For months he’d been deceiving you, just for it to come out that he killed your dad. You needed to know what drove him to that decision and why he chose to string you along.

"Why'd you kill him," your words come out quietly as your head hangs low, you couldn’t bare to look at either of them. Absolutely repulsed at the fact that you had been friends with them for so long. They were the ones to console you when your father was killed, little did you know that they were the culprits. "Why? I think she wants a motive, Hobi," Taehyung turns to look at his friend, as they share a smile. They were excited to let you in on all of the gruesome details. "I don't really care for motives. You see, as our dear friend Jungkook told me, there's always a reason for everything. Motives come naturally and accidentally," he says, raising his voice toward the end of his statement. He looked at you like you were just a prop, a disposable piece in his movie. His aura was once warm and loving, now he just had the face of a psychopath. Eyes wide, a sinister smile, and a thirst for your blood. 

"Did they ever find out why Jigsaw liked to kidnap people and put them in traps? Or why Leatherface liked to cut people up with a chainsaw," you raised your eyebrow in confusion. It was the wrong moment to argue, but you didn't care. You were dying tonight, so why not try and bruise his ego before you go, "we found out about both of them. For someone so obsessed with movies, you seem to know nothing about them." Your rebuttal has Taehyung scowling, his expression turning sour, as he looks appalled by your response. You're expecting him to at least hit you, even make another joke about killing your father, but instead, he takes another route. "You wanna know why your father's lying in a coffin? My mother was in love with your father, they’d been having an affair for months. Drove my dad away," you groan, knowing the chick from TV wasn't wrong, her theory was spot on. Your dad might’ve made a bad decision but he didn’t deserve to lose his life.

In the back, Hoseok is jumping around like he just took a hit of something, "your father was a man whore! Walking around town like he was some macho man. Somebody had to bring him back down to earth," every word felt like a kick in the teeth, "my father left me, you know what kind of damage abandonment has on a person? It made you slip up and sleep with a killer." You felt like you were about to pass out, wound still bleeding as you felt your brain shutting down. For months, you ignored the stories and theories about your father, only for it to all be proven correct. "Now let me tell you how this is gonna go," Taehyung speaks as he picks up the signature knife, handing the gun over to Hoseok.

"Your mother went crazy, her husband was murdered and she was traumatized. She went on a killing spree, getting everyone except me and Hoseok," knife touching your chest, tip poking into your skin. Chiming in, Hoseok keeps the gun pointed at you from afar, "she thought we were dead but no! We get to stick around and plan out the sequel!" If you heard the word 'movie' one more time, you were going to get the gun and finish yourself off. “I mean, people need to hear about this shit. Imagine the kind of movie deals we’re gonna get,” Hoseok was beyond animated, imagining how their lives will change once this is over. An idea pops into Taehyung's mind, a smirk coming onto his face, "why don't you go get my baby's surprise." He orders Hoseok to retrieve whatever sick secret they kept in the house, while he keeps his eyes on you.

"Oh, you're gonna love this one," Hoseok cackles as he backs out of the room. Silence fills the air as you're left with Taehyung. You look around the room, too disgusted to spare him another glance. He stares down at you, grinning like he’s won something special. You should've known there was something wrong with him, nobody is that perfect. You hear Hoseok coming back into the room, your eyes moving over to the entrance. A look of fright is painted on your face as you look at the body thrown to the floor. "Mom!" you whimper, trying to reach for her. She's tied up with tape over her mouth, looking like they roughed her up before her capture. "Stay back," Taehyung points the tip of the knife at your chin, making sure you can’t get to her. He liked watching you tremble, in a powerless position.

"Enough of this shit, let's get on with it!" Hoseok shouts, still jumping around. She makes eye contact with you, eyes widening in pure fear. She's innocent in all of this, and now she's about to be blamed for everything. It was your dad that fucked up, and now she would suffer the consequences. You felt like there was nothing you could do to save her or yourself. You couldn't believe the scene in front of you: your boyfriend pointing a knife at you, your friend pointing a gun in your face, and your mother on the floor. Lost for words, you decided to prepare yourself for whatever would come next. "Hold still," Taehyung turns to Hoseok, raising the knife into the air. To your surprise, he's plunging it into Hoseok's abdomen, "FUCK," he wails out, as he’s stabbed near his chest. You couldn’t believe your eyes, they were truly committed to their plan, willing to be sliced for five minutes of fame.

Blood drips to the floor as he screams in pain, "Your turn," one hand gripping the island, and the other reaching out for the knife. The look on his face was horrifying, like he was excited to return the favor to his accomplice. Taehyung hesitantly hands over the weapon and grabs ahold of your T-shirt. "Not too deep," he directs as he braces himself. Knife penetrating his lower abdomen as he shrieks in pain. Taehyung smacks a glass cup off of the counter, letting it shatter on the kitchen floor. The knife piercing his skin hurt like hell, neither of them prepared well for this part of the act. You watch as the two continue to take turns, tearing into one another, screams of agony coming from them both. The counter covered in blood, dripping onto the kitchen floor. "You sick fucks, this isn't just some movie," you shout from the corner of the room, slowly backing away from the two men. Clothes covered in their own blood, holes from the knife slashing their attire. "But it is, sweetie! This is act three, and I'm sorry but your role has been cut short," Taehyung giggles in your face, a pained look remaining, after being cut into by his friend. You stand there in shock, unsure how you got yourself caught in the middle of a movie. The men continue to slice and dice each other, you watched closely, jaw hanging and eyes wide.

On the other side of the room, Hoseok is leaning against the island, his hand over his largest wound, trying to stop the blood from spilling. "Give me the gun," Taehyung gives Hoseok an order, his hand waiting for the weapon as he glares at you. You felt like you were on fire, his gaze burning through your skin. Your mother was next to go, choosing to save you for last. "Uhhh," Hoseok mutters, nervousness evident in his voice, "I don’t know where it is, man," He looks around the room in shock. Taehyung clenched his jaw, groaning, the last thing he needed was a missing weapon with their fingerprints all over it, "don't just stand there! Find it," he barks at him, his voice startled you, making you jump. Hoseok searches the room, looking under every surface. "I have a better idea for your movie," everyone stops at the sound of a new voice, confused as to what's happening.

A surprise cast member, coming to rescue you from the third act. You finally look up, eyes landing on your friend with a gun in his hand, "Namjoon comes across you two idiots and saves the day." He speaks confidently, walking further into the room. He never left the house after the party, he chose to stay back and watch movies, hiding once he heard screaming. You have never been this excited to see him. A bit of hope runs through your body, you feel like you might finally stand a chance in this situation. "I think I like this ending much better," you mutter in the background, earning a chuckle from your friend. Namjoon aims the gun at Taehyung, pulling the trigger, "what's the matter," Taehyung walks towards him, making him back out of the room quickly. He opens the door, but before he can escape, Taehyung makes a swift move. With a brutal punch to the face, Namjoon is knocked down, his body piling next to Seokjin's.

Taehyung approaches the bodies, picking up the gun he dropped. "These things work so much better when you turn the safety off. Say goodnight," he snickers, turning off the safety and aiming the gun at his head. "Umm, Tae! We have an even bigger problem," Hoseok shouts from the kitchen, looking frazzled. Too entertained with the battle in front of him, he forgot to keep his eyes on the other victims. As Taehyung rushes back into the kitchen, frantically looking around. He wondered, how the hell did you managed to get out so quietly.

Leaving Namjoon alone, Taehyung rushes back to the kitchen, as angry as ever. "Where the fuck is she," he screams at the man, pushing him around. You and your mother were nowhere to be found. As soon as their attention was off of you two, you quickly fled the scene. Hoseok takes a seat, an exhausted look on his face, "find her! Get u-" before Taehyung can finish, the landline begins to ring. They get silent as Taehyung reaches for the phone, "you should really think twice before turning your back," he says, recognizing your voice with the modifier. Getting visibly upset, he shouts into the phone, "bitch! We're gonna finish you off like we did your fucking father," cackling on the other side of the phone, and you give him the best response, "awe baby, you gotta find me first." Now that you’re on the other side of things, you return his taunting energy. Toying with him as he did you.

He sets the phone down next to Hoseok, before smacking him on the back of the head. "Get the fuck up, Hoseok," Taehyung grunted, as his friend is resting on the countertop. Hardly able to construct a sentence, he groans, "you cut me too deep man," he looks like he's about to pass out at any moment. Enraged by Hoseok's inability to help find you, he rushes off by himself, running throughout the first floor. It’s apparent that he’s run out of tricks. The police were on their way and you were nowhere to be found. His movie ending was crumbling right before his eyes and he couldn’t handle it. "Hello," Hoseok picks up the phone, his blood dripping all over the Dialpad. "What are you gonna do, Hobi? The police are on the way, Tae already has a motive, what about you," he tries to find the strength to respond, as he feels like he's about to slip away. "He pressured me into this, I'm easy to manipulate," Taehyung is still in the back, tearing up the couches, and kicking over household items. "You didn't really call the cops, did you," cackling at his question, you're quick to respond, "of course I did." Clearly, that wasn't the answer he wanted, a wail coming from the back of his throat, "this house is a mess, I am so dead!" He was absolutely insane, sobbing about getting in trouble for a messy house, when he just committed several murders. 

Taehyung stalks through the halls, moving as quietly as he can. Gun gripped in his right hand, as he kicks open every other door. At this point, he was running out of options. The police were on their way and they knew what he did. He might be going to jail but he needed you to die first. He’s eager to find you and finish you off himself. You’ve already ruined their plan, there was no way he was going to let you escape. Little does he know, you aren’t too far from where he was. Out of nowhere, a closet door busts open, and here you come, leaping out at him. Raising your weapon, you impale his chest with the same knife he tried to use on you. "Bitch," he groans out in pain, his body starting to drop to the floor. Looking down at him, you think everything is finally over, putting the knife in your back pocket. You begin to walk towards Jungkook on the floor, wanting to see if he was okay, until you're tackled sideways. Hoseok came out of nowhere, seeming to have regained some of his energy. Your back comes in contact with the wood floor, a shooting pain passes through your body. You’ve been fighting all night, but you don’t plan on giving up anytime soon.

Hoseok hovers over you, wrapping his hands around your neck, "die already!" He presses down, ignoring your hands clawing at his forearms. You raise your knee, hitting him in his groin. Hoseok falls back in pain, moaning on the floor. You hop to your feet, trying to catch your breath. You scan the room for the nearest exit. The stairs being your first choice, you sprint up the steps. You slip into an empty bedroom, closing the door behind yourself. Hiding from him was practically pointless, this was his house, you were at a disadvantage. “Don’t run baby,” Hoseok shouts, busting into the room. He charges towards you, hands instantly wrapping around your throat. “The movie isn’t finished, you’re ruining everything,” he screams every word in your face, bits of his spit hitting your face. He starts tightening the grip on your neck, making you thrash. Your hands come up to his face, trying your hardest to push him away. Hoseok backs you in a corner, your body colliding with the wall. You feel your life slipping away, running out of air in your lungs. You reach into your back pocket, raising the knife up. Jamming the end of the blade into his forehead, making him grunt, you could feel his hands loosen the grip on your neck. Pressing your foot against the wall, you push yourself forward, causing him to stumble back.

He lets you go before he drops to the floor, hands coming up to console the sore spot on his face. You lie in the corner, caressing your neck like it would help make the pain go away. You gather all of the strength you have to pick yourself up and hobble out of the room. You were on the verge of dropping to the floor, having to use the walls in the hallway to hold yourself up. Just when you thought you had gotten a substantial amount of space between you two, he catches up quickly. Right behind you as you approach the stairs, “why won’t you die!” You try to ignore the screams behind you, as a pair of hands pulls you back. You drop to the floor, making sure to keep ahold of the knife in your hands. Grabbing your shirt, Hoseok snatches you up. As your feet hit the floor, you raise the knife up, plummeting it in his chest. Letting go of you, Hoseok drops to his knees hands coming up to grab the railing. You decide to give him the same ending that he tried to give you. You pick your foot up, pressing it against his chest. You watch as he tumbles down the stairs, before hitting the wood floor at the end. A slight smile crawling onto your face, this being the best thing to happen to you all day.

You quietly walk down the stairs, just in case there’s another unwanted surprise waiting for you. Limping into the living room, you find yourself looking for another way to escape. "Jungkook," you notice your friend hobble into the room. You rush towards him, examining his chest, saying, "I thought you were dead." He looks relieved to see you, throwing his arm over your shoulder, saying, "I definitely should be, I’ve never been so happy to not get any action." You choose to ignore whatever he's rambling about, your brain is too clouded to comprehend anything.  "This is one of the worst movies ever," a voice groans from behind you two. Namjoon is rubbing his head as he walks over to you guys. He gawks around the room, shocked to see the state of the house. Pictures and statues knocked over, glass coating the floor. You stand around, looking at the bodies on the floor, knowing your life has been changed forever.

"Wait, I've seen movies like this, it ain't over. Evil always comes back, you need to shoot it in the head," Jungkook's commentary concerned you. Nudging his body with your foot, you wait for him to pop up. His body remains still and stiff. “I guess this movie has an alternate ending,” you mutter, before limping over to the closet to untie your mother. “Are you okay,” you ask, already knowing the answer as you pull the duct tape from her mouth. All she could do was grunt, she was in horrible shape, bruises all over her face from her attack. Jungkook and Namjoon come over to help you, untying her wrists and ankles.

“It’s Billy,” a quite voice speaks from the front door. You all whip your heads around in unison, scared as to what might lurking behind them. You feel a lump caught in your throat, words unable to leave your mouth. “Holy shit, you should be dead,” Jungkook stops his movements as he observes the person in front of him. You feel like your paralyzed, too confused to make a move. Something pulls you back into reality, you jump up to your feet and run across the room. Colliding with your best friend, wrapping your arms around her. You pull away, examining her wounds. She leans into your chest, on the verge of collapsing, “I’m fine, so is Jin,” she points over to her brother on the floor, regaining his consciousness.

Once the police arrive with EMTs beside them, you truly believed it was all over. Evil was defeated and none of your friends lost their lives in the process. You’re in the back of ambulance, sitting on the edge, as you wounds are being tended to and you’re hooked up to machines. Looking over, your friends have the same thing going on, faces looking exhausted yet thankful that they made it out alive. For the first time in a long time, you felt like you could breath. “We got two more in here! They’re still breathing,” your heart beats rapidly, making the machines go haywire. Tears run down your bloodstained cheeks as you watch paramedics go rescue the same two men that tried to kill you. Your mind was hazy, you didn’t know what to say or what to think. All you could do was let out an agonizing scream.

[kolbisneat]

MONTHLY MEDIA: July 2024

I read a lot more than I was expecting this month but I ain't complaining. Here's how I spent the month of July!

……….FILM……….

Evil Dead II (1987) Didn't love Evil Dead (not that it's not good, I just get too spooked by straight horror) but had no idea that this would be what it is. Puppets and stop motion! Looney Tune antics! Magic with rules! This is my kinda movie and I'm baffled the modern films in the franchise don't try for this sort of energy.

Poor Things (2003) It took a while for me to settle into this, but around the time Dafoe's Godwin explains Bella's condition, I was all in. It's a dreamlike movie with dreamlike logic so despite some of the discourse I tried not to take too much of it literally. Beautiful and far funnier than I expected.

……….TELEVISION……….

Columbo (Episode 1.04 to 1.07) Gosh I love the era of television where each episode was self-contained. Episode 7 features Columbo smoking in a doctor's office and I was not at all expecting him to comment on the dangers of tobacco, but he did! I notice this first season only had a handful of episodes with the classic "oh one more thing" schtick so I'm curious if that pops up more in later seasons.

Scavenger's Reign (Episode 1.01 to 1.12) This is a show where I sit down, turn it on, and while the beautiful opening credits play, think, "I wonder what horrifying imagery is gonna f*** me up this episode?" The animation and design are sooooooo good that it made up for the occasionally baffling writing. Please go watch it so a second season can get greenlit.

Bridgerton (Episode 3.05 to 3.08) I missed a few eps there in the middle but it all worked. That final party, and all that went with it (the speech, the bugs, the reveal of who paid for it) was 10/10. Good stuff.

……….YOUTUBE……….

Yoko and The Beatles by Lindsay Ellis Yoko Ono didn't break up the Beatles. And while this video essay expands on the factors that DID split up the band, it's also a really great dive into the weight of fame and the weight of fame on women. VIDEO

Was starting a product business a mistake? by Simone Giertz An honest and detailed insight into the dream vs. reality of small business and internet fame. Looks like it's going to be a full series and I'm looking forward to more. VIDEO

……….READING……….

N or M by Agatha Christie (Complete) Spy Thriller set during the Second World War? With a husband/wife spy duo? Oh heck yeah. Sometimes I find the clues to be a little convoluted/unnecessarily obscure but this one struck a great balance of visible but easily forgettable.

The Knight of the Swords by Michael Moorcock (Complete) Having first read the comic adaptation (penciled by Mike Mignola!) I now realize some of my issues (pacing, understanding the abstract) work better in novel form. An elevated pulp adventure that has some great ironic twists.

Sherlock Holmes vs. Dracula or The Adventure of the Sanguinary Count by Loren D. Estleman (Complete) Thrift find purchased based on the premise alone. Exactly what you'd expect but not much beyond that. It's at its best when you get Dracula directly interacting with Holmes and/or Watson.

Spider-Verse by Dan Slott, Christos N. Gage, Mike Costa, Dennis Hopeless, and many many more (Complete) Really enjoyed reading this but am baffled by its production. Why the issues aren't collected in chronological order, I'll never know. I know the book is over ten years old now but the writing (especially all of the Spider-Women) really stands out as...not great. All but the Superior Spider-Man essentially sound the same (perhaps the point?) but Gwen and Jess and Cindy mostly talk about things like body image and pheromones and it's glaring. I'm curious what I'll think upon a second readthrough (reading in order, and after the first wave of nostalgia has completely rinsed off) but I definitely think this story walked so the movies could break the speed of sound.

The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl Beats Up the Marvel Universe! by Ryan North and Erica Henderson (Complete) North's writing and Henderson's artwork are the perfect blend for such a bright and enthusiastic character. Unbeatable Squirrel Girl is such a great series (which I gotta go back and finish) and this is an equally great introduction to the character.

Superior Foes of Spider-Man Vol 1 by by Nick Spencer, Marcos Martin, and Steve Leiber (Complete) I was really excited for this series (the premise! the cover art!) but the pacing, humour, and art just didn't connect. Honestly really bummed that I didn't like this more.

……….AUDIO……….

3D6 Down the Line (Podcast) A nice change of pace from the modern D&D games I play in. They use Old School Essentials for their system (more akin to 2nd Edition D&D) and play with a mindset similar to the 70s style of play (treasure for experience, everything is lethal). I'm still having trouble distinguishing some of the voices from each other, but it's a great listen.

……….GAMING……….

Oz: A Fantasy Role-Playing Setting (Andrews McMeel Publishing) Tuesday crew watched a peaceful inauguration and gained notoriety for saving a neighbourhood from roaming monsters (you can read all about it here!) and the Mof1 crew is dabbling in dangerous contracts with dangerous people (all for a cap that controls the winged monkeys).

And that's it. See you in August!

[littlemelaninfics]

Welcome to Boston

an: this wasn’t requested but I’m high asf right now (not on purpose bc I have work in 30 minutes), but I thought this was cute. Enjoy ☀️

tw: smoking weed, fluff, reader is 21+

You lounged on the bed flipping through the Firestick waiting for Chris to finish getting himself and Dodger ready for the day. You both woke up past 11:30, the soothing sounds of outside keeping you lull. It's rainy and cold which makes the perfect weather to stay in and watch movies, but you couldn't find one.

It wasn't necessarily a horror movie vibe; maybe tonight. Action? No. Drama? Ugh. You slam the remote down on the bed and flop backwards letting out a big sigh.

"Heeey. What's all that for?" Chris asked walking over the bedroom threshold. You sat up briefly taking in the physique of his sweatshirt covered torso and gray lounge shorts,

"Babe, you're not cold?"

He shook his head, "Heater's on," he said crossing to the bed and plopping down,

"What's with all the sighing?" He started to rub his hand over your thigh as you started to answer him,

"There's nothing to watch."

"There's nothing to watch or you don't know what to watch?"

"Is there a difference?"

"I guess not," he said with a chuckle. "What about a psycho-thriller? You love those."

"I don't have the mental capacity for that right now."

"What about a comedy? You don't have to pay full attention and you get a few laughs."

"Hm. Fine, I'll give a look."

"I'm gonna grab a quick snack. Want anything?"

"Just water please." He nodded his head and walked out. You scrolled through the endless pages of comedic movies and landed on a comedic duo you and Chris both loved. You hadn't seen the movie, but the synopsis sounded interesting. You cued it up to start when Chris walked back in the room,

"I thought you were getting a snack."

"We don't have much. We've been eating on the leftovers my mom left I guess we didn't notice. Find anything?"

"I'll Instacart some stuff here and yeah! It's called "The Interview" with Seth Rogen and James Franco. Have you seen it?"

"No, I've never heard of it, but okay." You were quickly ordering groceries when you realized Chris hadn't moved from across the room. Feeling eyes on you, you looked up and at him, who was grinning like a kid.

"What? What did you do?"

"Nothing... yet."

"Yet?"

"Just.. found something that may make this day even better."

"What did you find?"

Chris brought his hands from behind his back and held up the baggie of weed and swishers, giving them a very enticing shake. You looked at what he was holding and shook your head, letting a small smile creep.

"Oh you just happened to find that?"

"It was in the back of a drawer in the kitchen. I didn't think I had any left."

"Baby...you know I gave that up. Weed is weed. It's nothing special."

"You gave up SoCal weed. This is Boston weed."

"And what is 'Boston Weed'?"

"The shit that'll change your life." You looked at him for a second before giving in. He gleefully walked to his side of the bed and climbed in. He got comfortable, handing you your water and opened the baggie.

"Whoa!" You both exclaimed. The potent odor of the raw flower permeated the room before a spark was even lit. Chris brought the baggie to his nose and inhaled deeply.

"Smells like a Saturday filled with Looney Toons and Captain Crunch."

"Babe, how old is this stuff?" You asked, hinting that it may not be safe for consumption if he was smoking it in his teens.

"Like 6 months." You rolled your eyes and ginned looking back at your phone at how childish he could be sometimes. You were finishing the delivery order while Chris took the nearest book and set up to roll.

"They should be here by the time the movie is over. It's gonna take a little longer because of the rain."

"That's fine. We can keep ourselves occupied," he said holding up the tightly rolled blunt.

"Chris Evans, that is a beautifully crafted j. Willie Nelson himself would be proud.

"Thank you, baby," he said holding the blunt to his lips and lighting it. You watched as he inhaled the smoke deeper into his lungs. He leaned back on the exhale, head hitting the headboard. He kept his eyes closed as he took another hit, holding it in and passing you the blunt. You looked at it for a second and then back at Chris who was already glossy eyed.

You took a deep breath and put the blunt to your lips, sucking in the potent smoke. You held it as long as you could before exhaling followed by a string of heavy coughing,

“Oh what the fuck,” you said between coughs.

“I told you that shit is different,” he said laughing at your pain.

You swallowed hard and took another hit after your chest stopped burning so much. The same thing happened, but not as strong. Then you went for a third,

“Whoa whoa hey. Puff puff pass, remember? And take it easy. This’ll have you stoned into next week.” You two passed the blunt between yourselves until you noticed the movie was already on. Your attention turned to the screen and you zoned out until your brain registered something funny which enticed you to laugh.

The movie was a little more than half over when your stomach started to growl,

“I think I have the munchies,” you said without your eyes diverting from the film.

“I know I do.”

“Wanna get a snack?”

“We have to go to the store.”

“Oh yeah. I can’t drive for shit right now, should we walk?” You asked holding your hand out in front of your face as a test of sobriety. Chris slowly turned his head to look out the window,

“It stopped raining. Should we walk?”

“Wait. Didn’t I say we should walk?”

“No you said you were hungry.”

“Oh yeah. Um, yeah. Let’s get dressed.”

The two of you took almost 20 minutes to get ready to walk half a mile but you finally made it to the front door. Chris got distracted yanking your hood over your head and calling you his little Eskimo baby. The two of you giggled in the foyer for almost 2 minutes before grabbing the knob.

When the door opened, both of you instinctively inhaled the fresh air deeply, letting the chilled Boston air hit your flushed faces. You smiled slightly as the beautifully golden sun beamed down on your cheeks. The sky after the rain was your favorite. You were about to take a step, when…

“I can’t.”

“What?” Chris asked looking down at you.

“I can’t do it,” you replied starring blankly ahead at the slick driveway.

“Do what, baby?”

“Move.”

“Ha! You can’t move?”

“No.”

“Do you want me to carry you?”

“Then people will know for sure that I’m high.”

“Babe, people are going to know. Or they might not because they’re probably high too.”

“Are you sure?”

“Positive. Just walk slow. We’re not in a hurry.”

“Okay,” you said as you reached for his arm to help guide you down the front steps. The two of you walked linked together to the corner mart. You picked out everything you have a craving for or might crave later. You went to check on Chris and saw he abandoned the “pick what you can carry” and opted for a whole ass basket.

“Babe.”

“Don’t look at me like that. It’s supposed to rain all weekend and I’m not coming back out if I don’t have to.” His logic wasn’t flawed so you emptied your arms into the basket and walked the rest of the store with him. The security guards must’ve had a good ol’ time watching you two laugh at absolutely everything and do silly dances in the isles to the music.

It was finally time to check out and you waited patiently, thinking about what you would eat first…or if you should elevate the high and then eat. You were pulled from your thoughts when Chris put his hand around your waist and walked you out of the store. Luckily the baggers were great because you only had three bags each to carry back home.

You were in mid conversation when you walked up the driveway and Chris stopped midway. You were finishing your sentence when you looked at him,

“What?”

He looked at the bags in his hands and then back up to the door as if something wasn’t making sense. You followed his eyes up to the porch and dropped the bags in your hands to cover you face.

“We already ordered groceries,” Chris said as he turned to you.

“Yes. Yes we did.”

“Hopefully the power doesn’t go out,” he said picking up the bags you dropped and waking up to the door. You couldn’t help but let out a little giggle at the oopsie you both made.

‘Maybe we can donate some’, you thought as you entered the house and closed the door.

[anim-ttrpgs]

Extreme Versatility: Things Eureka: Investigative Urban Fantasy can Run Smoothly and Easily with Next to No Tweaking to the Core Rules or the Source Material

Unlike certain other popular TTRPGs that market themselves on their versatility, our original TTRPG Eureka: Investigative Urban Fantasy is actually versatile. It would be a lie to say it’s the last TTRPG you’ll ever need to buy, but it certainly covers you for almost anything set post-1850.

*if you like, you can append “with vampires, werewolves, fairies, and witches” to every single entry on this list.

Any prewritten Call of Cthulhu adventure module.

Any prewritten Delta Green adventure module.

Any prewritten Monster of the Week adventure module.

An SCP: Foundation campaign.

A S.T.A.L.K.E.R. campaign.

An X-Files campaign.

An Agatha Christie-style Murder mystery.

A Wild West gunslingin’ adventure.

A Weird West gunslingin’ adventure.

A serial killer thriller mystery.

A slasher-horror or creature-horror adventure.

A reverse slasher-horror or creature-horror adventure. (PCs are the ones doing the killing.)

A wilderness survival adventure.

A 1940s hardboiled noire adventure.

An organized crime thriller adventure.

A heist adventure.

Anything else that takes place between around 1850 and the present day.

This last one does require a little tweaking, but a friend of ours is also planning to use it to run an Eberron campaign, which we think is pretty cool.

Click here to visit our website where you can download a free shareware copy of the rulebook+a free murder mystery starter adventure module.

Click here to pick up the full rulebook+a murder mystery adventure module and two other horror adventure modules all for as little as $5.

[bloody-pony]

What I say: a book-accurate adaption of Blood Meridian into film is very much possible. Due to BM's age, published in 1985, it has accumulated nearly 4 decades' worth of interpretation, discussed and analysed in academia and in the wider public sphere. One need only, for example, search for the novel on Spotify, and they’ll be met with a wealth of playlists and albums showcasing the vastly different lenses BM's readers have applied to the novel (a personal favourite of mine is Hellenica's sythensizer-spaghetti soundtrack). This goldmine of art, writing and music, not to mention McCarthy's own prose and dialogue, should make it ridiculously easy for any director to produce a halfway acceptable film that, by and large, ought to largely appease its long-awaiting fanbase.

Most detractors for a BM film cite the novel's extreme violence, but this, imo, is the easiest part to render for the silver screen. Full Metal Jacket and Apocolypse Now prove compelling showcases of the disorganised-organised chaos of war and the violence it wroughts in the hearts of its participants, with no short supply of dark humour, and even The Passion of the Christ portrays human cruelty and suffering with unflinching affect (see Acolytes of Horror's YT video). However, as is the curse of all adaptations of grand novels into grand films *gestures to Villeneuve’s Dune series*, it will never wholly meet the expectations of its hardcore readership, because novels (but especially in BM’s case) rely so heavily—by design—on the imagination of its audience. This is a work where the sun rises "out of nothing like the head of a great red phallus", and where "little devils with their pitchforks" are thought to skitter along the mouths of volcanoes, not to mention the immortal, 7ft tall, 150kg hairless albino who traipses the pulsing red horizon in search of souls to recruit for his plight of perpetual war. How, then, can a film best capture the mythopoetic haze that stains the sands of BM? It's doable, sure (see certain shots from Ken Russell's Altered States or Tarsem Singh's The Fall for the general vibe I'm trying to get at), but like with any calamitous attempt at adapting Homer's Odyssey (not including the 1968 mini series <3), how do you make a myth concrete without clipping its wings?

Like I mentioned earlier, I think the recent Dune films (another book series that, in the wake of Lynch's 1984 adaption, was likewise once considered too dense and rich for film) have opened people up more to the idea of a BM movie, or even a whole franchise (there's certainly enough material to go around, personally I'd enjoy a duology), some may make the mistake in wanting a literal, line for line, act for act, page to screen adaptation. And, yes, thanks to McCarthy's command of plot and prose, he certainly provides material, and with a few edits here and there made for time (*cough cough* James Robert Bell/the imbecile *cough cough*), it can surely be shaped into a 20-hour masterpiece—which I would definitely enjoy—but, nevertheless, a literal adaptation still runs the assured risk of losing that blood-red shroud of mysticsm which makes the world of Blood Meridian so intoxicating. A literal adaptation would reduce it to solely a Western, but, to me, it is placed better as a Thriller (my mind always goes to Harry Powell as Robert Mitchum in The Night of the Hunter whenever I imagine the judge's speeches) or an Epic (see Aguirre, the Wrath of God) or, even better, a Horror (like Come and See). In a way, though, Blood Meridian is so vast, so fantastical, that filming it in the desert, with an endless budget to spend on fake blood and stunt horses might, strangely, prompt other failings. It's partly why I personally would rather see it not expanded but condensed, confined and made abstract, forced into sets like the kind Eiko Ishioka designed for Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters or Joel Coen's stark and foggy sets on Macbeth. Music is another tricky thing. The only person I feel could do proper justice with BM's score would be Ennio Morricone (RIP), but Johnny Greenwood is a close second, then again I'm also tempted to suggest no score at all, like with No Country for Old Men. Tarrantino's playing of 'Apple Blossom' by The White Stripes during The Hateful Eight is an interesting way of evoking theme while not adhering to a film's time period, but it's only used best in small doses.

Considering half of BM's dialogue is in Spanish, though it would be marketing suicide, it would be cool if they didn't provide subtitles during the Spanish conversations in the film, keeping in line with how non-Spanish speakers likely felt when reading the book.

Of course, we haven't even touched on the subject of the kid. A big part of the novel is how McCarthy never lets us properly gauge the extent of the kid's participation in the Glanton Gang's slaughter and debauchery. He's no angel, certainly, but his heinousness is only determined by us, the reader. A film may feel compelled to flesh the kid out in ways that undo the intentions of the novel, marketing him as sympathetic or relatable in ways that threaten BM's basis of having no likeable (or even knowable) characters. He is a blank slate that shuffles from bar to brawl, apathetic but not passive and borderline suicidal. He has few defining traits other than his dark humour and his proclivity for mindless violence which he's harboured since birth. The kid is not Paul Atreides or Luke Skywalker, nor is he Holden Caulfield or Arthur Morgan, and if he ever met any of them, he'd either tell them to fuck off or shoot them, or both. He's hardly blockbuster material.

Of course, I'd still love to see the kid portrayed on film. Casting and marketing is another area worth considering for Blood Meridian, as I am of the opinion there should be few, if any known actors cast to play the Glanton Gang. The kid, especially, should be played by a Tennessean random, to keep in line with his anonymity as a character. Glenn Fleshler would absolutely kill it as Judge Holden, going off his performance in season 1 of True Detective. I don't know why, but I always envisioned Tobin as Andy Serkis, but he's probably still far too young for the role. Whoever they'd cast, I don't want to see a single set of veneers or drop of botox. Role them in dirt if you have to, I don't care. I don't want a single member of the Glanton Gang to look like they know what Ozempic is, and cast as many Native American actors and Mexican actors as possible.

Given BM's violence and characters, I worry for the kind of audience it'll attract, media literacy being what it is these days (*gestures at the hundreds of Judge Holden edits all wildly missing the point of his "Before man was, war waited for him" speech*). With the marketing, I take issue with casts of serious films and shows doing dumb promotional content, like those Buzzfeed puppy interviews. Considering the tough subject matter of Blood Meridian, I don't see why they'd need to do anything more involved than simple, respectful interviews and panels.

In the end, Blood Meridian can obviously be made into a film and it looks like we're finally getting one, whether we like it or not. But just because you can doesn't mean you always should, and though I can't say I won't be the first in line to watch, I also can't promise it won't be without obscenely high expectations. Every director is different, and though John Hillcoat's track record with McCarthy adaptations hasn't proved all that inspiring, I am nevertheless pleased to be seeing another person's interpretation of a novel that has captured by every waking moment ever since I read it over a year ago.

What I want to say: Blood Meridian should be a ballet/dance with little to no plot à la Ravel's Boléro or Stravinsky's The Rite of Spring (and mayyybe Akram Khan’s Giselle)

[maddstermind]

Hey there, howdy, hello! Welcome to my writeblr that I am going to try real hard to be active on!

I'm Madd, they/them, and while I might not post it all here, I am a very active writer hoping for publication in the near future! I'm hoping to become part of the community, so feel free to tag me in things/shoot me asks/anything of the sort!! I'd love more writer friends :>

(Also, this is a sideblog! My main is warriorblood1, so if you get random follows/likes from that account, that's me!)

Want to know more details? Keep reading!

What do you write? I write all kinds of things! I have ideas in honestly too many genres and whatnot at this point, and I hope to someday write them all!

Right now, however, I have two main focuses: spooky short stories, and a novel series! (Though I do have a couple other novel things.)

Tell me about the short stories. My short stories tend to be 3k to 5k on average, and most wind up being horror or horror-adjacent. I tend to describe them as being "Twilight Zone-esque," but most would fit as being called gothic horror.

I have previously published some short stories, but my full legal name is on them so I hesitate to link them here. Regardless, I hope to publish a collection sometime soon!

Tell me about the novel series. Auberon Academy is a four-novel series told through a rotating POV of four main characters. It is a fantasy setting (though a bit more modern fantasy; more or less 1950s tech-wise), but the plot is more of a mystery/thriller.

I'm querying the first novel and have the first draft of the second one finished, and am now starting to draft the third book! You can learn more about the first book, Manifestations and the Missing, here in this funny slideshow I made. Update: Here's a slideshow for book two, In Pursuit of Knowledge!

What do you do besides writing? Not much. Just kidding.

I'm bad at video games, but I love to play them. A favorite hobby of mine is tabletop role-playing games, my favorites being Call of Cthulhu, Blackbirds, Dungeons & Dragons, and Vampire: The Masquerade! I also love to draw, and several of my story ideas are actually comics!

But lets be honest. Torturing my characters (canonically or otherwise) is my favorite thing to do. What kind of writer would I be if I said anything different?

How do you tag things?

General writing: #madd writing

Prompts: #prompt response

Tag games: #tag game

Ask games: #ask game

Asks: #questions

Resources: #holding

Short story work: #short story

Novel work: #novel work

Auberon Academy-specifc: #boberon

Soulbearer-specific: #sogbog

DIIE-specific: #DIIE

Cináed-specific: #dragondad

My art: #madd doodles

Other writeblr-related things: #writeblr stuff

Also, this post has the list of character tags for Auberon!

I'll also try to tag anything that feels like it should warrant a trigger warning!

Anything else to note? I'm very nervous about posting my work to Tumblr (fear of theft really gets to you), but I'm trying to overcome it. That being said, you might not see too terribly much of it here - if you're really interested, please reach out to me! I'd most likely be happy to share more on a more private level.

Also, I have ADHD! I tend to hyperfixate on my own work (which is a nightmare but also useful), but if you're ever confused by something. That's probably why.

Thanks for being here, y'all!

[novelmonger]

1-4 & 10-12 for The Unlikely Escape of Uriah Heep, 9-15 for FMA, 1 & 16-18 for Anne of Green Gables, 8-12 for Half-Magic, and 1, 3, 19, and 20 for The Little Riders, please?

The Unlikely Escape of Uriah Heep by H.G. Parry

what got you into this story?

My dear friend @rainintheevening recommended it to me, and I'm so glad she did! I wasn't even 20 pages in before I looked up from the page and went, "Ohoho, this book was definitely written for me!"

2. describe it in one or two sentences.

Charley Sutherland has always had the ability to read characters out of books and into real life. But when Uriah Heep, the villain from David Copperfield, begins to cause trouble, his older brother (who is perfectly ordinary in every way) will have to go to great lengths to help him out of his predicament.

3. quickly list 3 things you like about the story!

IT'S ABOUT BROTHERS

IT'S A BOOK ABOUT BOOKS

It started to look like the ending was going to be tragic, BUT IT WASN'T I CRYYYYYYYYYY T^T

4. assign this story a hyper-specific genre name, e.g. "inspirational religious semi-horror sci-fi western" (yes, that's Trigun)

Speculative literary brother fiction crossover thriller

10. if you made an amv about this, what song would you set it to?

"Brother" by Kodaline

I mean, would you look at these lyrics?

Oh brother, we'll go deeper than the ink Beneath the skin of our tattoos Though we don't share the same blood You're my brother and I love you that's the truth

;aldksj;sdkfl;sdkfldslkfj TT___TT

11. if you were put in the main character's position, how well would that go for you on a scale of 1-5?

Umm...maybe like a 4? Rob is a very normal kind of guy, and while I'm not a lawyer like him, most of the things he does are fairly ordinary, all things considered. (Well, it's not an ordinary situation at all, but I mean he doesn't have hidden magic or anything.) There's nothing particularly special about him except the lengths he's willing to go to for his brother. And I'd like to think I would do the same for my siblings if need be.

12. assuming your loved ones would be there, would you want to live in the world of the story?

YES. A world where I could potentially meet my favorite characters from beloved stories? Yeah, okay, some of the more unsavory characters show up too, but...like...I could have tea with Dumbledore. I could share crunchings and munchings with Gurgi. I could hang out with Pippi Longstocking! Maybe I could even give Kaladin Stormblessed a hug :')

Full Metal Alchemist by Hiromu Arakawa

9. give the most UNHELPFUL and/or SILLY summary possible.

A fake human uses a double amputee, a tin can, a war criminal, a butcher, and some old guy to try to become God. He fails because he didn't brush up on meteorology enough.

10. if you made an amv about this, what song would you set it to?

Funny you should ask, because I've got several ideas floating around in my head that I could actually make a reality if I just sat down and took the time! The first AMV idea I ever got, years and years ago, was one set to "Memories" by Within Temptation.

11. if you were put in the main character's position, how well would that go for you on a scale of 1-5?

Lol. 1. I would die immediately. I don't have a head for numbers or science, so I would probably be horrible at alchemy. Even if I somehow got clap-alchemy from the Truth (though how I'd be able to manage human transmutation to get that far is anyone's guess), I would fail miserably to do the things Ed does, because I am very flabby and weak and cowardly. Also I don't think I would have the gumption to do half the things he does, like pushing through the pain of automail surgery. Yeah, sorry, the world is doomed if I'm put in Ed's place.

12. assuming your loved ones would be there, would you want to live in the world of the story?

As much as I adore this story, I think I'd actually say no. There's so much danger and war on every side, and I don't much fancy the thought of losing my soul to a whirling vortex (even if my soul does get put back!). I've already laid out how I wouldn't be an alchemist, so there wouldn't even be that to compensate. Maybe I'd visit after it's no longer a fascist military state, though.

13. tell me an out-of-context piece of worldbuilding or lore!

Did you know that Amestris was the wife of Artaxerxes, king of Persia?

14. how likely do you think this story is to break a reader's heart? If you're not done with the story, just guess.

I'm biased, but I think it's pretty much guaranteed. If your heart doesn't break at least a little bit at a certain little girl and her dog, I'm not sure you have one. And there are so many other parts where I cried really hard, not least at the ending of the first anime. All I wanted to do after I finished it the first time was lie in my bed, staring at the ceiling and trying to figure out how to carry on with my life ^^'

15. what time are you most likely to be found reading/watching this story? (time of year, time of day, season of life, whatever makes sense to you)

ALL DAY ALL THE TIME.

Lol, that would have been my answer in my teenage years, but admittedly my attention has strayed to other fandoms more recently. I'm still down to read/watch FMA anytime at the drop of a hat, but these days I'm most likely to dip back into it this time of year, because I always try to have something to post for FMA Day on October 3rd. (Which reminds me, I need to get cracking on that D:)

Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery

what got you into this story?

I guess you could call it peer pressure, kinda? I just kept hearing people praising it over the years, until finally I decided I should probably see what all the fuss was about, rather than just writing it off as Not For Me because I decided that back when I was eight or something. And once I did start reading, it didn't take long for Anne to win me over ^_^

16. do you think this story has broad appeal, or is it meant for a very specific audience? if it's more "niche", what kind of person would most enjoy this story?

I do think it has broad appeal, though I'd still say it's not for everybody. Clearly, Baby Novie decided it wasn't for her because there wasn't enough high adventure in it. I think most people would be able to find something relatable or at least enjoyable about it, but some people might need to wait until they're mature enough to appreciate its merits ;)

17. compare this story to your usual tastes. how does it differ from what you've already enjoyed?

I usually prefer books with more fantastical elements in them, or at least adventuring, and that was especially true when I tried to read this book as a kid. I will certainly read the occasional historical fiction about ordinary, everyday ups and downs, but even so, I'm usually more inclined to reach for something like Austen or Dickens that has a more complicated, twisty-turny plot.

18. compare this story to your usual tastes. what parts of it are exactly the kind of thing you've always loved?

I'm actually kind of surprised this was never assigned for school, because it feels a lot like the kind of book I read a lot, and probably one I would have enjoyed more than some of the other stuff we had to read. If I'd only made the connection that it takes place around the same time as the Mandie books, I probably would have really latched onto it (even though Anne isn't about mysteries), because that was my bread and butter for several years as a kid. And Anne of Green Gables would have been much less embarrassing to return to as an adult ^^' Another element that is common to many stories I love is how friendship is treasured so highly.

Half Magic by Edward Eager

8. what questions are or were you most excited to learn the answers to while experiencing the story for the first time?

Oh man, it's been so long since the first time I read this book, I can't really remember. Especially because I was never really an "active reader" as a kid. I never stopped to ask questions, I just inhaled stories, and whatever happened in it, that was how it obviously had to be ^^' And by now, I've read the book so many times I know it back to front, and there aren't really any more questions that I care about.

At a guess, though, I might have wondered where the talisman came from and where I could get one :P

9. give the most UNHELPFUL and/or SILLY summary possible.

This book teaches you about fractions :)

10. if you made an amv about this, what song would you set it to?

Uhhhh...I really don't know. Probably some kind of instrumental track, maybe piano? And it would just be a montage of the whole story, I think.

11. if you were put in the main character's position, how well would that go for you on a scale of 1-5?

I'd say a 4 or a 5. I'd like to think I'd do pretty well at remembering not to say "I wish" out loud as much as they do, but that's never how these things go. But most of the times I say that, it's usually just things like "I wish I could remember..." or "I wish I knew why..." And I don't see how the consequences of that kind of accidental wish could be too dire XD

12. assuming your loved ones would be there, would you want to live in the world of the story?

A THOUSAND TIMES YES. How many times did I daydream about what my siblings and I would do if we got a wish-granting adventure like in the books? It might be a little annoying to have to put up with 1920s America or whenever it's supposed to be, but...wish-granting talisman. Come on.

The Little Riders by Margaretha Shemin

what got you into this story?

This was assigned for school. I don't remember when exactly that was, but I think it was a read-aloud rather than one I read to myself, so maybe first or second grade? And I just remember it being one of the books that stood out to me amongst all the others.

3. quickly list 3 things you like about the story!

It offers a unique perspective on WWII, humanizing the Nazi soldiers when most of the time, we're all content to just think of them as nothing but monsters.

It's tense and exciting - will the soldier find the little riders?!

Illustrated by Peter Spier, a staple of my childhood picture books!

19. pitch an idea for a sequel or spinoff novel for this story!

What about a parallel story about the soldier's family? What was their experience like during the war?

20. what's the WORST thing about this story, in your opinion? (feel free to be positive, e.g. "it's not longer", if you want!)

Okay, yes, I could definitely do with a longer version of this book. I would have liked more exploration of Johanna's experience of being an American girl growing up in Holland with her grandparents. Did she have culture shock at first? Does she feel more at home in Holland now? For the lack of exploration they do into her unique situation, I almost think it would have been better to just have her be a Dutch girl who's lived in Holland all her life. The extra details of her father being in the U.S. Navy kind of feels superfluous.

Story Ask Game