#but yeah I’m bad at writing scene transitions

[gods-favorite-autistic]

I’m really bad at transitions guys

[alexa-fika]

Could I ask for robin and franky kinda adopting a little girl? Like she sits and cuddles Robin whenever Robin is reading. Just loves how silly Franky can be? Just imagine a little kid running up to then when their scared

Relaxation and entertainment( Robin x f!child!reader x Franky)

A/N okay anon im gonna confess, I ‘ve had this ready for a week… maybe more. I just was so ashamed cause I thought it was really bad so I just kind buried under other works but you deserve something even if it’s not the best.

Reader here is replaced by Dokucha as a placeholder which means reader in japanese

Dividers by @/saradika

Robin sat in her usual spot, on the deck of the Thousand Sunny. Sitting at one of the tables and enjoyed one of the rare peaceful moments they were able to have as she read one of her books.

In her lap sat the youngest of the crew, a darling little girl who was taken in by the crew; she had grown particularly fond of two of the members; however, the one she was currently cuddling with and a certain Cola-loving Cyborg

“Here you go, Robin-chan,” Sanji said, dropping down a drink in front of the archeologist, his usual love-sick look adorning his features

“Thank you, Sanji,” Robin replied, smiling at the blond and putting her book down

“Anything for you, Robin-chan,” he exclaimed, heart filling his eyes until he glanced down at the child in her lap

“Here you go, Dokucha,” he said, placing a similar looking drink in front of her

She beams quickly, grabbing the drink

“Thank you, Sanji-nii!”

“You’re welcome,” Sanji replies, ruffling their hair and waving the pair goodbye as he entered the kitchen once again

“It’s yummy, Robin-nee!”

“I’m glad it’s to your liking,” she says, smiling, her face softening as she looks down at the young child

“I love you, Robin-nee!”

Robin laughs and ruffles her hair gently

“Love you too,” she replies hugging her softly

“Franky-nii!”

Yeahhhhhh?

“Im boreeed”

“Uh oh, sounds like a big job for the SUPERRR Franky!“ he said, turning with them with his usual grin

“So whatcha bored about?”

She giggles at that and shrugs

“Everyone’s busy.”

“Well, if no one is around to entertain you, then it looks like it's up to me! You want to hang out and have some fun?”

“Yeaaah”

“Awesome! I've got a good idea... I know a new cola shop that has the good stuff; we could start there?”

“Wah, really?!”

“Yeah! It just opened, and they have all kinds of cola! They say they have one that's so good it makes your skin feel tingly; wanna try it?”

“Yeah!!”

“SUPERRRR” he exclaimed, throwing the small girl onto his shoulders and making his way out of the ship

“Superrrr,” she parrots, strings of laughs escaping her as she tightened her hold on his neck exited for the bubbly drink.

My first time trying this Format… what do you think? Nay or yay? I could also just write a transition between the two rather than dividing them, I just din’t have any idea how to join them so I wrote two different scenes, originally I had them separated by a divider/timelapse but I thought ‘Might as well try this’

Taglist:

@imaginarydreams

@amethystviolin

@h0n3y-l3m0n05

[keef-a-corn]

THAAAAAT’S RIIIIGHT! It’s everyone’s favourite time! Keef watches TFP and you just get the notes!

This is for season 1, episode 9: Convoy.

I write down the timestamps, but I watch Transformers Prime on Stan (an Australian streaming service) so they may be slightly off.

Also, I’ll warn, I don’t have a lot to say. (Not compared to other episodes)

~~~~Transition~~~~

00:03 - beautiful scenery- for fucks sake, Fowler.

00:05 - ✨walk cycles✨ I Will never not love the way the bots walk and I will never stop reminding you.

00:12 - hehe, height difference.

00:16 - good. (I don’t like Fowler, he’s unnecessarily rude.)

00:21 - hehe Dingus.

00:49 - Raf’s got his priorities straight.

00:52 - Miko’s reaction

01:14 - you already know that a bunch of children had to ask their parents what Propagate means.

01:28 - Optimus knows Fowler would be a reckless driver. But I can also imagine that it’s just generally very uncomfortable and unnecessary stressful for the boys whenever someone else is driving. If not, then I’m making it a hc.

~intro~

02:53 - WOOOOW FOWLER. JUST WOW.

03:07 - Optimus uses that T.H.I.N.K acronym and I will not hear otherwise.

03:18 - if the yellow dot is where the D.N.G.S is, why is it placed between two orange dots? Bee hadn’t moved in front of Optimus yet.

03:22 - I mean.. the truck’s obviously being escorted by two other cars. Why would they assume that all three are unarmed?

03:42 - that’s rich.

03:48 - damn right, Optimus! Shut him dooown! Also Bee, Get back in the lane.

03:55 - translation, ‘a worse evil’

04:15 - Bulkhead said that, but Stan decided Ratchet did.

04:29 - From what we know, most of the cons are greys, black and purples. These are green. The decepticons have a colour scheme going, why would there all of a sudden be a bunch of green cons??

04:54 - that was what Bee did in the first episode.

05:09 - why.. why was his window open?

06:33 - someone that knows transformers lore, could you tell me.. would Optimus be able to feel that?? At the end of the day, that’s still apart of his body.

07:04 - that made me laugh, ngl.

08:23 - Bee really ain’t doing anything, huh? Like they’re breaking in from behind and Bulkhead can’t do anything.

08:41 - oh yeah, forgot about Arcee.

09:03 - makes the whole thing a lot more twisted.

10:44 - FOWLER. WHEN WOULD THE BOTS HAVE GOTTEN AIR SUPPORT?!

10:51 - that’s what it’s like rocking up at school wearing your uniform.

12:23 - Transformers Running well never not be funny.

12:26 - they look like frogs on two feet.

12:37 - specifically watching Bee fight is so entertaining (not just because he’s a favourite, also because he’s really bouncy during his fight scenes.)

12:42 - Optimus moving as though the punch was a minor inconvenience.

12:43 - then he just destroys the con.

13:25 - the big eyes and the cute wave, I caaaan’t!!

14:01 - “I understand-” d o n k

14:12 - Isn’t Fowler able to.. see the fight? Wouldn’t he have seen Optimus get dinked off the cliff.

14:16 - he was taken down by some wood. If you know, you know.

14:25 - Arcee and Bee jumping is the strangest visuals ever.

14:27 - that’s just a group hug in a buttshell.

14:34 - I would love to hear the bloopers for this. How did the VAs manage to say ‘DNGS’ without dying of laughter.

14:37 - you’re telling me that they didn’t have a backup plan??

14:53 - It’s strange hearing ‘suicide’ in a show that probably has a large child audience.

15:00 - How Ratchet pronounced ‘yours’ sounds so out of character that it made me cry. He cares so much he forgot to be an old man.

15:01 - When you watch this scene, watch how Ratchet moves. Like it’s so appealing the way he doesn’t stop moving.

15:54 - did they seriously only have one person in the cart with the D.N.G.S? Seems very flawed.

16:58 - to be fair… yes. He’s right.

17:14 - I’m so confused as to why they went on the train in the first place. Yes it was a bad idea- OF COURSE IT WAS A BAD IDEA AND IT DID NOTHING!

17:15 - BIG TALK, MIKO! Raf was working remotely and managed to give them more time. (I don’t understand how, though, because it seems that they went a different route)

17:32 - quick shoutout to character design. Look at the detail on Optimus’s helm here.

17:55 - I’m pretty sure that the using a fire extinguisher the normal way is going to prove more useful than whatever Jack is planning on doing.

19:38 - Excuse me, but… what?. Just… what??? Also does anyone else see any parallel between Miko and Jack and Optimus and Arcee? Where Miko’s trying to think of different ideas of how to get out while Jack’s like ‘we may die, but I’m just gonna accept that’. And in Scrap heap Arcee was trying to think of different ways to stay alive and Optimus is just like ‘if I stay here and relax there will be an outcome. The outcome may be death, but I’m alright with that.’

20:09 - Optiman, Optiman, does whatever an Optimus can. Can he swing from a web? No he can’t, but he can stop a fraggin train. Look oooooout, Optimus aboooout.

20:28 - I may have laughed loudly when I noticed the unconscious guy.

20:49 - Silas really went ‘GG but-’

20:53 - no. What. The. Actual. Fuck?. When and where did he get that??

—————

So that was Convoy. Because the episode was more focused around the humans than the bots I always found the episode kind of boring.

But considering the episode is mainly about introducing MECH, it’s one that I would watch in a binge, but not one that stands out.

Although being a human focused episode, I thought that they came off either annoying, dumb and/or punchable (with the exception of Raf, he did a good job), particularly Agent Fowler. I hate him in this.

Also, could someone tell me if I should put screenshots before or after their related timestamp. Thanks!

[collecting-stories]

Okay obx after season one feels super kid show like to me it’s literally an ma show but they don’t cuss anymore or anything also certain actors for the show literally seem so over this show as a whole like they didn’t go to a ton of interviews for the show this season and the whole pougelandia speech they had Sarah do was weird to me and I wish they didn’t put jj and kie together so unnecessary to do that cause no everyone in the group is dating and I doubt they’ll break any of them up the writing was good season 1 then it went downhill after but also I don’t really like the show either because everyone from the show in real life Is problematic or dating or hangs with problematic people like it’s crazy how famous they all are now and how many followers they have 2020 right after the show came out when everyone were friends was the vibe anything after like right after it came out the vibes were gone the new season gave me like shows I watched when I was young I also don’t think any of them act very well

There is a lot to unpack here but I’m gonna try lol…

I don’t necessarily feel like the last season of obx felt like it was for kids so much as I felt like they were trying to be more family friendly. I think with the first season the idea was that the show was for like teens/young adults. After it took off and really got popular I think the Pate’s and Netflix realized it was whole families that were watching together, not just the demographic they intended to appeal to. I mean, I’ve watched some really great kids shows on Netflix (Anne with an E, Julie and the Phantoms, Babysitter’s Club, She-ra) and just because no one really curses on obx and there aren’t any explicit scenes doesn’t make it a kids show. I curse a lot irl but I don’t think that cursing has ever added to a tv show (language is vast and unending, you don’t need to say fuck twenty times to get your message across and if you do that’s just bad writing).

I obviously can’t speak to actors’ decisions not to do every interview but I’d imagine that some of it had to do with scheduling conflicts. Like yeah, for the majority of them OBX was their first major show but it’s not the only show they’re ever gonna work on. I mean Madelyn Cline alone has a lot going on, and I know Rudy has done one or two other things besides OBX, it stands to reason that they aren’t just sitting around waiting for interviews post-filming and that they have other job obligations. I also don’t really think not being on an interview is proof that they’re “over” the show. Maybe they are but also they’re making a shit-ton of money so I’m sure they can suck it up and be professional.

Story wise, I’ll agree that I didn’t really love this season, which I’ve definitely said multiple times. It just didn’t have the same vibes as season one. I’ll agree too that I didn’t love the Poguelandia speech or even the idea that Poguelandia (which is a stupid name, thanks JJ) was paradise on Earth. I can’t go on vacation with someone for longer than three days without absolutely losing my shit (and I know that’s just my autistic ass not transitioning well but you can’t tell me getting stranded on a deserted island was all good times…I’ve seen Castaway).

I think the Kiara/JJ storyline was all fan service. Which like, on the one hand I love fan service. But you know who does fan service well? Pysch. After season one I think the vast majority of the fandom wanted Jiara to happen but the Pate’s had already written Kiara getting with Pope and weren’t prepared to amend that who season one ending in season two just for the fans. But obviously in season three the fans won and Jiara became a thing (I’m still holding a candle for JJ/Pope).

As far as the cast being problematic…as I said earlier, this show got way bigger than anyone could’ve known and this was the first major show for a lot of this cast. When you become that famous that quickly you aren’t gonna make everyone happy all the time and you don’t have a team of people curating everything you do and say. Also I hate this idea that someone is problematic and we immediately can’t like them anymore like…there just needs to be some definition to the term or something.

Yeah I’m sure some 20-somethings who are suddenly super famous and who exist in a timeline where everyone strives to know everything about you all the time aren’t going to have the most spot-free reputation but unless they like actively murdered someone/assaulted someone/are antisemitic/racist/homophobic/transphobic/Islamophobic etc. I’m not gonna subscribe to this idea that you can’t like their work because they’re problematic. (Harry Styles is problematic but everyone loves him…I love Taylor Swift. Is she problematic? Yeah, a lot of the time). People are people and they aren’t perfect. And expecting a 20 year old that suddenly has hundreds of thousands of followers to be is insane.

And finally, I disagree that none of them can act. As I’ve said before, I think Madelyn Cline and Drew Starkey are their most talented actors. Jonathan Daviss and Rudy Pankow are also fantastic actors and they’ve really had some excellent scenes where I’m just blown away by their talent. So I wouldn’t ever say none of them can act.

tl;dr - I can’t even summarise this…basically, I keep saying I don’t want to talk about the actors just the show and somehow end up talking about the actors.

[space6hostkurp]

PINNED POST TIME

Edit:

If you follow me on here You will probably get followed back by @punkyvamposts bc this is technically a side blog 😭 just a heads up that account is my non art focused main blog

meta is shit, and I’m transitioning to other platforms atm

I am also on Bluesky :3

Anyway, Let’s do an About Me,

Mi’apél Thrax! But you May Call me Kurp!

My Pronouns Are He/Him and I may or may not be one of them transgenders-

I’m also a Gay Man and In a happy Poly relationship with my beautiful two bfs :3

I am also Autistic and ADHD with a pretty bad case of C-PTSD 😔 that’s what my art is for.

(rizzed my bfs up with donovan melero memes)

I am An Afro-Creole Artist from Portland Oregon,

Since I am From Portland you may be able to guess My political leanings, And depending on who you are you either Just fist pumped, or The Joy faded from your eyes as soon as I name Dropped The city of Roses~

Yes I am One of those filthy Commies,

or more accurately I’m a Radical Leftist, a Punk, A socialist and every day I become more radicalized.

So yeah Imma make

it clear if you’re a fascist or fascist sympathizer gtfo off my page.

Some fun things about me

-I like Music and I sing

-I draw Gay shit

-I do dabble in Fandom Occasionally :3

-Stuilly Fag 4 lyfe

-I’m 19 turning 20 in march!

-I’m a little autistic about Hail The Sun

-Mixed, Afro-Creole, White, and Nigerian. I’m actually wayyy more african than I realized…

My art may have dark themes, Some of my biggest inspirations are Postmodernist Stories, Gothic themes, Punk And other alternative subcultures, street fashion.

i’m writing a comic, it’s in Scripting and planning phase right now.

I will probably do an info post about it sometime soon!

Just know my art is a reflection of my personal feelings and experiences which are quite heavy, so Keep that in mind and stay safe.

My favorite artists atm are Too many To count- But I love Hail the Sun and Tyler the creator A Bunch :3

I call myself a punk but if we were being more specific I’m a midwest emo, or simply an emo. But regardless My hard belongs to the pdx punk scene forever!!!

below is some of my art, and a screencap of my bsky acc thank youuu

[m1ckeyb3rry]

LMAOOO but no fr considering how dramatic bllk is too some of the backgrounds just really don’t feel all that important? Like being in the situation irl is one thing but it doesn’t really match the same vibe in fiction since the ceiling for angst in fiction is so high if ykwim?? I feel like it’s even worse with all the recent backstories we get where they try to make them spicy by adding some form of angst or drama which I totally understand but it kinda waters down the impact even more imo LOL

Fr cackling the new profiles are too funny Kunigami being the only one to be properly influenced by his sisters is lowk crazy LMAO THE NUMBER TWO HAD ME SENDING kuronas such a silly little guy though the hedgehog thing totally matches him also LMFAOO THAT WOULDVE MADE MORE SENSE the raws literally says “broken bone girl” though and I fr double taked (apparently because the celeb constantly wore a cast or something that’s still crazy work though)

So true!! I know I stay hyped because I’m always looking for new Karasu moments but imagine if we got the same amount of detailed play through for the side matches in the main series but alas….

LMAOO FR I’m just glad to see Karasu animated and hear his voice (that one scene where he gives chigiri a chance to show off with the dramatic lighting was so good though) but it’s funny how it really looks like a slideshow transition sometimes

BROOO WHAT IS THAT??? Ok if we ignored the ship though the art style isn’t bad but why…?? It’s so random LMAOA whenever I see ships like these it’s not even me being like ew wtf it’s how tf did you even come up with this pair???

Ok also read the KAISER fic before coming here but I narrowed it down to either him or Isagi but had a feeling it was him based off your prev comments LOL 18k words for opp Kaiser is crazyyyy work but I LOVED the subtle little foreshadowing moments of y/n feeling cold despite it not being cold I caught the first one and was like “ohhh yeah death flag right there yup this ones diseased” I also really like the angel take on the fantasy au!!! Very unique and refreshing the whole angel of death contrast was really cool like kaisers appearance being a death flag itself too LOL another fire piece also love the colors and layout you made (I’m suddenly forgetting the tumblr word for it) but the color combo is very visually appealing LMAO

Also NEW THEME OMG WAIT THE NAGI BAROU KARASU PANEL IS PERFECT literally made for you LMAOOO but WE GOT KARASU ON THE BLOG OMG!!!

- Karasu anon

HAHA tbh sometimes the drama in bllk is so unserious too like at the end of the day so what if they fail they can go work a 9-5 in the corporate world like everyone else /j i do think bllk is better about it than most sports animes where the stakes do feel a bit real (especially in first/second selection i was fr on the edge of my seat watching the first season) but compared to the type of stuff i usually watch it’s just like…ok…was it really ever that serious…and agreed they’re just giving everyone sad backstories but not even in impactful ways??? like icl kiyora’s wasn’t even necessary especially at that point in the manga and same w himizu’s SDKLJFHS of the recent backstories introduced i’ve really liked karasu’s from (not just favoritism i think it fits with his established character rlly well), kaiser’s, and snuffy’s

i feel like now i have to do kunigami justice just because he’s the only one who was raised right LKSJDHFSKD (also barou but he’s the older sibling so it’s different) WAIT DID YOU SEE KARASU IS APPARENTLY THE NUMBER TWO GENTLEMAN IN BLLK??? yayoi canon equivalent ate with that one but we’ve KNOWN from the start that he’s built like that…my goat fr 🥹 PLS THE NUMBER TWO WAS CRAZY WORK kurona is so unserious HELP not hiori literally being attracted to casts omg somebody karasu save white butterfly y/n ASAP that’s actually insane 😭 sometimes i try to incorporate things like that into my writing (like their types and all) but i in fact will just be pretending i did not read that because wtf

no yeah the animation isn’t AMAZING but karasu looks beautiful…and so does otoya…haven’t seen yuki/nagi yet but those two are def the animators’ favs this season so i think they’ll be good…idgaf abt isagi rin and kinda shidou being done dirty because i’m not a fan like that so me personally??? I AM WINNING 🔥

THAT’S WHAT I’M SAYING like i’m not even judging i just NEED to know how they arrived at the conclusion that karasu and sukuna would be a good pair??? i know a lot of people ship megumi and sukuna maybe it was like a black spiky hairstyle thing or smth?? but like i said i mean the art ate i guess so good for them…😭

I WAS GOING THROUGH IT WRITING THAT FIC OMG this was literally me the entire time:

not even justin biebering anymore just straight up suffering…but yeah i cannot believe it ended up at 18k i don’t want to ever hear people saying i don’t write a lot for my opps IT’S LITERALLY THE PROMPTS GUYS I SWEARRR GIVE ME SMTH GOOD FOR ISAGI AND I’LL COOK FOR HIM TOO TRUST AHAHA anyways thank youuuu hehe i had sm fun dropping in all of those little hints that she was dying literally the ENTIRE story (had to add in a disclaimer though in case people thought i was just making women be weak for the silliness of it all 😭) and yesss heheh kaiser himself being foreshadowing and a mere plot device as well as the “male lead” (ngl i wouldn’t even say it’s a romance because at the end of the day it’s never confirmed if he loves her or if he just realizes that all of humanity doesn’t suck because of her plus like y/n says we don’t even know if angels are capable of feeling things like love so it’s very reader-interpretation)

ANYWAYS so fun fact that story is based on pope gregory’s vision at castel sant angelo which i visited a year or two back and for some reason something about the myth had me SO inspired that i’ve wanted to write smth based on it since i heard it 😩 i never got around to it and never really had a character it would work for until i was like ok fuck it kaiser’s name is LITERALLY michael and the request is for fantasy i’m just going to do it and hope for the best SDKJFHSD i feel like he’s not the perfect character for it necessarily because in the story i made him be a bit more detached and, eventually, merciful, which idk if canon kaiser would’ve been like that but eh close enough i hope it wasn’t awful

OMG YAY I LIKED THE LAYOUT TOO ACTUALLY!! i tried to make the gradient thematically appropriate…since the gold and blue relate to the story sm and are mentioned a few times i thought it made sense hehe i think that’s the format i’m going to follow for this event since it’s a little easier to do (just find a good panel, run it through the ibis paint x color change filter, make a gradient on canva, resize it to a line that doubles as the divider, and put it together on picsart or smth) especially compared to my typical “graphic design is my passion” ahh headers LSDKJFHS

BROOOO AS SOON AS I SAW THAT PANEL I WAS LIKE BAZINGA it’s toooooo good SLDKFJHS WE MAKING IT OUTTA THE FACILITY WITH THIS ONE 🔥 karasu AND barou getting their spotlight on my blog truly as they deserve

WAIT I LITERALLY FORGOT OMG EDITS

karasu (you’ve def seen this)

THIS OTOYA ONE HAS ME LAUGHING he’s pretty though

[chorusfm]

Neon Trees – Sink Your Teeth

Consistency is hard to come by in the music industry. Times change, sounds change, and stylistic choices over time can evolve into something completely different than what was popular a decade ago. The great thing about music, however, is that if you can write good songs you can find sustainable success in the music business, regardless of genre. Neon Trees have been one of the most consistent pop rock bands since they debuted in 2010 with Habits, and found early success in singles like “Animal” and the karaoke favorite of “Everybody Talks.” Having now released their fifth studio album, called Sink Your Teeth, Neon Trees’ sound still feels as refreshing as ever as they return to the music scene. The band released the first taste of the new record back in June of 2023 with lead single “Favorite Daze.” As great as Neon Trees are at writing a catchy chorus, this particular single features some of the best verses of their career to date. The rest of the material that surrounds the track feels like a sonic evolution of the band that continues to showcase their staying power in the pop rock scene. Where Neon Trees last record, I Can Feel You Forgetting Me, embraced the more somber side of the pop genre through darker tones and moody aesthetic, Sink Your Teeth gets back to the shimmering sound that the band embraced on Pop Psychology. After the aforementioned vibrant opening track, “Secret” follows in the sequencing with great guitar work and an amazing build-up to the chorus of, “Now you’re so far away / But you’re still here in my head / Gonna lock you up and keep you like a, secret / Every night and all day / The feeling like we just met / Gonna lock you up and keep you like a secret.” The hook feels like a burst of sunshine hitting you in the face on a perfect summer day. My personal favorite in the set, “Bad Dreams” is a solid mix of guitar-driven pop rock meshed with the smooth vocals of Tyler Glenn, who commands the song and never lets up. Not to say that the lyrics have a few missteps, like in the second verse when Glenn playfully sings, “I’m still on stage, and you’re watching me count the stars / Then I eat you up like milk and lucky charms.” The lyrics are forgivable when the music that comes through the speakers are a burst of good vibes. “Recover” features some different sounding guitar tones in the opening bars before getting to a comfortable blend of synth pop in the verses. The pre-chorus of, “We fought with each other / An ending so blue / I’ll never recover / Recover from you,” is as well thought out as it is sad to hear about the heartbreak in Glenn’s life. The summery pop bliss of “Heaven” marks a stark contrast to the spanglish track of “El Diablo” and makes for a memorable transition in the sequencing to go between the two vibes. It’s a nice way to close out the Side A of the disc, and keeps the listener engaged in the album listening experience. The back half opens with “Past Life” that kicks things off with a unique, programmed beat before Glenn’s vocals cut through the heavy synths with surgeon-like precision. The heavy bass line in the chorus by Branden Campbell is top notch and it pulsates the song into a club-ready anthem. “Paper Cuts” features some great lyrical wordplay in the chorus of, “I can cover a scar, yeah I’m keeping it cool / Cause the thicker the skin the darker the blue / Why does it hurt so much / Every time we touch / You’re givin’ me paper cuts.” You can tell Neon Trees were in a good groove at this part of their songwriting process for Sink Your Teeth, and their great band chemistry remains on full display. ”Cruel Intentions” features a very The 1975-esque chorus with the guitar tones brought forth over Glenn’s vocals of, “You got cruel intentions / Sink your teeth in / To your new obsession / 3 day weekends / Well I’ll be gone on Monday / You clean up the mess you made / You got cruel intentions / And I intend to run away.” The guitar work by Chris Allen cannot be understated in its importance throughout the… https://chorus.fm/reviews/neon-trees-sink-your-teeth/

[three--rings]

So I’ve finished reading all of the Vegaspete sections. 

General thoughts under cut

TW for discussion of sexual assault, violence, very toxic romance

So it’s definitely interesting to compare to the series.  Obviously I prefer the series, because starting a romance arc with one half the ship violently raping the other isn’t ideal.  Like, I understand the sorta challenge of the thing, and why that might be interesting to some people, but yeah.

The series really substituted torture and physical violence for the sexual violence.  Because there’s not really any real harm to Pete in the book, other than the rape.  Which happens a few times at the very beginning, but as soon as Vegas begins to like Pete at all, that all stops. 

Vegas’ POV is honestly really interesting.  It focuses on how just having Pete around and showing him any concern or attention makes him feel better, not full of rage, like he can be himself and drop his masks.  Pete makes him want to be a better person and reminds him of the possibility of joy even among bad things.   So from Vegas’ POV, the transition from violence to love is quite believable.  And reading his parts does give some good insight into his headspace.

But from Pete’s it’s a MESS.  Like the Pete POV is honestly such a misstep IMO, because while Vegas says he thinks Pete is a masochist and is actually enjoying the things Vegas does to him, Pete makes clear he isn’t.  He pretends to go along with things Vegas tells him because he wants him to get bored with him and let him go, and he does come around a little on Vegas once he sees how abused and lonely he is.  But there’s really not a believable transition on Pete’s part.  He leaves after convincing Vegas to unchain him but he goes from spooking when he hears Vegas’ name to suddenly professing his love and devotion when Vegas’ life is in danger in the final showdown.  I think the idea is supposed to be that Pete is in denial of his feelings both as a queer man and for Vegas specifically, but in context it doesn’t work very well.

So yeah, definitely think the choices made in adaptation were very good ones.  Having their sexual contact be initiated by Pete, focusing more on kink than rape (cause it seems like book Vegas is less a dom and more just a serial rapist?), it works much better.  As well as putting that scene where Vegas confronts Pete after he escapes and asks Pete to kill him, that is a strong addition as well.  (In the book he follows Pete around watching him, but only talks to Porsche, not Pete.) 

However, it’s nice to read all the stuff after the showdown, with Pete and Macau waiting for Vegas to wake up in the hospital (which is practically its own genre of Vegaspete fic, lol) and also the adoption of Venice.  The ending story about the three of them going back to Pete’s village and meeting his grandparents is really sweet and I’m adopting it into my personal canon.

So I might recommend a vegaspete fan reads just the ending parts and not the whole thing.  Honestly you could probably just skip the first 5 chapters of the Vegaspete stories and miss all the actual rape and get the rest of the story.  Though there are some flashbacks to it and references so I’m not saying it’s SAFE if you have real triggers, but well, it’d be more pleasant.

As for my opinion of the novel based on this, the impressions I’ve gotten, it doesn’t make me want to read the rest.  I really dislike how Porsche comes across in this?  He is like over-the-top offensive in how he talks to everyone and extra super dumb.  In fact everyone comes off as giant idiots most of the time, with the exception of Vegas, and he only has a braincell like 60% of the time. 

So no, I’m not very impressed by the writing.  It feels like it leans heavily into the parts of the show I dislike rather than the parts I love.  The people making the show and the actors seem a lot more thoughtful and intelligent on how they approached characters and motivations.  So, yeah.

[dramavixen]

watch this! – delicious romance

How do I describe my appreciation for a show, marketed as a feminist drama, that actually turned out to be a pretty darned good feminist drama? Gone are the days in which I feared such empty promises of compelling female characters, only to be cursed with some of the most obnoxious personalities ever known to womankind. Because now that I know C-dramas are capable of writing women, no one has an excuse to write any more that garbage with a “feminist” label slapped on it. I’m sure many can understand my pain.

Today, I’m officially recommending this drama called Delicious Romance (爱很美味), which just finished airing and ended with as much flourish as it began. And I’m recommending it loudly, because it is extremely, extremely good.

What is it?

A rather short (20-episode) drama centered around three 30-year-old women as they try to find their way through personal struggles in romance, the workplace, and life in general. One is an intelligent and ambitious vice president at her job, another is a naive (note: not stupid) and sweet housewife, and the third is a quirky lady who’s also the picturesque 剩女 – or, “leftover woman.”

Very down-to-earth comedy with its fair share of fun moments. Romance is involved, but the focus is always on the female leads and their growth during their transition into their 30s.

Part of the reason why people outside of China are not aware of this show is because Tencent has horrible priorities has not made a move to subtitle it. But fear not, for I am currently subbing it here; i.e., you now no longer have any excuses to not watch it.

Why watch?

A+ characters – I’m not sure what it is about C-dramas in particular that have a habit of writing boring, unrealistic female characters; but for some reason the entire industry belongs to this hive mind of doing so. You know exactly what I’m talking about – there’s always that female lead who’s sold to us as being really strong or the beacon of justice, and then you really think about it and realize that she’s super useless without the male lead or just a real bitch? Alas, this show has made me see the light: each character, including the supporting characters, is so entertaining to watch. The girl boss is actually a girl boss. The kindhearted one isn’t a pushover. The weird one isn’t a caricature. Bless. I think the great thing about each of these characters is that you can find a little bit of yourself in any one of them. You will have your gripes with them since they’re all rightfully flawed. You will feel bad for them and also cheer them on. This show is built on its characters, and these characters are the strongest of foundations.

What exactly is “girl power”? – There’s this odd misconception about what makes a good female character. Even though I’ve already brought up the characters, I think it’s worth mentioning how effective the feminist aspect of each truly turns out to be. For one thing, each of the leads feels like an actual person; this alone trumps about 80% of the female characters in Dramaland. For another, the way they’re all so different from one another, yet no less deserving of our respect as people, is something that I’m deeply thankful for. I think a lot of female audience members are frequently being forced to think that you can’t be a strong, independent woman without being overbearing. Or, conversely – that being nice or soft automatically makes you weaker. We constantly complain about it as viewers, but writers keep putting female characters into boxes. Gosh darn it, maybe I just want to be a person, you know? This is that show which tells you, yeah that’s fine. You do you, whoever you are.

Noms – Let’s talk food. Many important conversations and revelations happen when the characters are eating, and a lot of food metaphors are also utilized. This might just be a me thing, but this is actually one of my biggest biases when it comes to storytelling. I absolutely adore scenes where a character is eating something, and they suddenly feel like it’s okay to be vulnerable in the face of whatever is troubling them. By which I mean, I cry every time.

Intensely meta – This is a very self-aware show. It will constantly take tropes and clichés and turn them on their heads; then it’ll take that and turn it on its head again. It’s incredibly comedic but also a great lesson in creativity. There are more effective ways at delivering clichés than just...using them. So, yeah, I think my time watching low-effort rom-coms has officially ended. Welp. I won’t miss them.

Please stop telling me to get married – I don’t know if the poster in which they’re all donning wedding dresses might’ve been a hint, but marriage is a huge central theme. I mentioned the concept of “leftover women” in the beginning. So this is a really fun term – if you’re a woman in your mid- to late-20s and not married or are to be married soon, then you’re already considered a leftover woman. Yes, as in, “no one will want to marry you because you’re too old.” The way the drama goes about critiquing this term is both very interesting and incredibly positive. Frequently, the gut reaction to being called a “leftover woman” is for said woman to show in what other respects she’s been “successful.” For example, maybe she’s made great advancements in her career. Basically, she has “legitimate” reasons for not being married. I’m very thankful to this show for not relying on that. It will bring up that, yes, some careerwomen will delay getting married to focus on their job. However, it does not look down on women who may be single simply because they don’t want to get married, or aren’t ready to handle a relationship. Shout it from the rooftops! We don’t need an excuse for not being married! (Mom, please stop telling me to find a boyfriend.)

TL;DR please watch this quality drama, especially if you’re looking for one that’s easy on your heart without being stupid. Missing out would be the shame of all shames.

[majestyeverlasting]

Hi!! Could you write for Bucky prompts 4 and 26??

♡ Hi, Anon!! I love this prompt pairing so much! Thank you for requesting this, and for waiting on me to get around to it! In this one, Bucky and the reader visit a park in Brooklyn that stirs up some nostalgic memories. But what he doesn't know is that, later that night, he'll learn that he's going to be a father. There's some pretty fall imagery and lots of sweet moments. I hope you like it! (Note: this isn’t canon regarding Bucky’s true age)

♡ Prompt 4: "Remember we used to come here when we were kids?"

♡ Prompt 26: “I’m not reading this thing wrong, am I? You’re really pregnant?”

All I Ever Wanted

There was a crispness to the evening air as the beginnings of fall settled within Brooklyn. The trees of Prospect Park, once green, were slowly transitioning into rich shades of orange and red. As you and Bucky walked along one of the pathways, leaves crunching beneath your shoes, there was an absence of car engines and horns—it was peaceful. All there was to be heard was chirping birds, the soft chatter of other park-goers, and the occasional whir of a cyclist’s wheels whenever one passed by.

Upon reaching a wooden bridge, the gentle sound of flowing water emerged as well. Beneath it, was a slender waterfall that fed into a small pond with dead leaves floating on the surface. Bucky wrapped an arm around your waist as the two of you admired it from over the railing. Somehow the whole day, including that moment itself, had managed to feel like a dream.

The two of you hadn’t been to Prospect Park in what felt like forever. Life had a way of sweeping you up in winds of responsibility that kept you from enjoying moments of stillness. But those winds had since drifted elsewhere, leaving the two of you with the freedom to simply be. Venturing out into nature and away from the noise had been Bucky’s suggestion earlier that morning. There was no place like the outdoors that was capable of soothing the soul.

“Look, doll,” he said eventually. Your eyes followed where his free hand pointed.

On one of the big rocks peeking out of the water below, a yellow butterfly had perched itself on a rock. “Yeah, I see it. It’s so pretty.” You smiled when he gave you a gentle squeeze.

“You know what butterflies symbolize?” You met his gaze, willing for him to continue. “Life and new beginnings,” he said, pressing a kiss to your temple.

For a fraction of a second, you froze. You’d managed to keep yourself collected for the entirety of the day, but hearing those words quickened your heartbeat. Enough so that you became all the more reminded of what he didn’t know—not yet.

That morning, as he spoke to you through the bathroom door about going to Prospect Park, you’d been staring at a positive pregnancy test. You barely had enough breath to agree to the outing. And when he’d asked if you were okay, you told him you were fine, but left out the fact that your lives would be changing forever in the months to come.

The two lines on the stick explained weeks worth of your body trying to communicate to you. It explained that deep sense of knowing that refused to go away. To say that you wanted to merely tell Bucky would’ve been the largest understatement of your lifetime. With all the emotions that stirred within you, you wanted to scream, cry, and jump at the same time.

A voice within you encouraged you to make the moment you told Bucky really special and intimate. Especially considering every turn that his life had taken over the years. So you vowed to wait until the two of you arrived home from your evening at the park.

“Life and new beginnings,” you repeated. You were already aware that such was associated with butterflies, but hearing him say it in that moment carried a certain magnitude. “I love the sound of that.”

Later, after walking further, you found yourselves nestled on one of the benches overlooking the lake. The water sparkled in the warm light of the sun as it prepared to set. A couple men stood peppered along the bank fishing. Children giggled as they chased after each other. Paired with the fall trees and colors all around, it was nothing short of a beautiful scene.

You let your head rest on Bucky’s shoulder, and took his real hand in yours to play with his fingers. There was a time, years ago, when the two of you would play along that same lake—throughout the whole park, actually.

You were the first to speak after a while, “Remember we used to come here when we were kids?” You straightened up from his shoulder to look at him.

“Of course I do,” he said, a smile starting on his face. “Especially during the summer. We’d always try to find open fire hydrants to play in after we left. And if we were lucky, our mom’s would let us get ice cream or shaved ice,” he recounted, chuckling. “Those were the days.”

You shook your head. “I know. Now look at us.” About to have a child of our own, you thought.

“Yup. Time flies when you’re having fun,” he said, casting out a brief look around at the serenic evening. Then he focused back on you, his tone shifting, “Are you okay?”

“Yeah...” you tried not to answer too fast. “Why?”

Bucky narrowed his eyes a bit and gave a shrug. “I don’t know, I can just tell that something’s on your mind—ever since this morning,” he noted. “But you have yet to tell me what that something is, pretty girl.”

It took everything not to tell him right then and there, as you sat under a blue and orange sky in the park you knew like the back of your hand.

You offered him half a smile. “I’m that easy to read?”

He lifted a shoulder. “Not necessarily. I’ve been reading you for a long time so it’s easy.” You allowed yourself to chuckle when he playfully quirked his brows. “So am I gonna have to work really hard to coax it out of you?”

You shook your head earnestly. “I promise I'll tell you when we get home… I have something to show you.”

On your way out of the park, there was a mama duck waddling under a tree with her ducklings trailing behind her.

It wasn’t until after you and Bucky made it back to your apartment, and had changed into something comfortable, that you told him you were ready. He sat on the edge of the bed as you went to retrieve the small gift box holding the pregnancy test. It was a miracle that you had had enough supplies left over from birthdays and holidays to be able to make it look as presentable as it did.

You extended it to him from a couple feet away. So much anticipation had built within you that you felt light, and as though you were buzzing.

Bucky accepted the box, and looked up at you. There was a sparkle in his blue eyes. “Why are you standing a mile away from me? C’mere.” You inched closer, and laughed when he pulled you to stand more so between his spread legs.

As he began to undo the white ribbon on the box, your lower lip was secured between your teeth. It seemed as though he was moving entirely too slow and fast at the same time.

As soon as he popped the lid off to reveal the pregnancy test sitting on top of little strips of crinkled, beige paper strips, your heartbeat sped up. Bucky’s attention lingered on the test. When he finally looked up, his gaze attested to the influx of thoughts that had been sparked into motion within his mind.

“I’m not reading this thing wrong, am I?” He briefly looked back down to stick again. Two lines. “You’re really pregnant?”

A smile broke across your face. With the news out, it felt as though you were uncaging a group of birds that had been longing for freedom for way too long. Before you could say anything else, Bucky set the box aside and stood to press his lips to yours. You stumbled back at the intentness in which he gripped your waist. It was a kiss that you felt every part of him through; his love, his passion, his warmth. And an intoxicating mix of joy and expectation.

He pulled away just enough to speak. “We’re gonna be parents?” His breath fanned over your lips. Then he leaned back in to kiss you once more, a soft peck. “You’re carrying our child?”

Bucky’s hands slipped under your shirt, and the feeling of palms against your skin was pleasant in the best way. One was cooler than the other, but they were both gentle and reverent.

“Yes,” you breathed. “I found out this morning.”

He scratched gently at your stomach, sending a shiver through you. “You managed to keep it to yourself the whole day. That’s what was on your mind?” He kissed you again.

“You have no idea how bad I wanted to tell you. No idea.” You brought your hands up to his cheeks, the budding stubble scratchy against your palms. “But I wanted to wait until we came back from Prospect.”

Bucky released a breath after a few beats of silence. “I don’t even know what to say,” he said, voice low. “This is so crazy—a good crazy.”

“I know. I’m happy and terrified at the same time,” you admitted. “I’ve never felt this way in my entire life, but it feels….”

“Good,” he finished.

A laugh escaped you. “Yeah.”

Seconds later, he was getting down onto his knees to be level with your stomach. It wasn’t until he lifted your shirt to press a kiss to your stomach that the reality of the moment set in. For the first time since learning about your pregnancy, tears slipped down your cheeks.

Bucky heard you sniffle, and stood back up to take your hands in his. “This is all I ever wanted, you know that, doll?” A few tears had come to the waterline of his eyes. “A beautiful wife, a family. This is all something I thought I’d never have.”

You sniffled again, nodding. “You deserve everything,” you murmured.

“I have my everything right in front of me.”

Without waiting another moment, you wrapped your arms around his waist and squeezed him tighter than you had in a while. Parents. The two of you were going to be parents.

-

Thanks for reading! Feel free to leave a comment, if you'd like. For more fluffy Bucky Barnes fics, click here.

[buckmepapi]

I saw Doctor Strange and The Multiverse of Madness yesterday so spoiler warning, I’m gonna give my opinion below under the cut.

Like serious spoiler warning I’m going to be talking about specific things, so if you still moan after these warnings you can eat a bag of multidimensional hairy dicks

What the fuck was that ?

Honestly. I hate to say it because I’m a marvel ass-licker and I hate admitting anything my autistic special interest does is bad, and it wasn’t, but I’m kinda on the fence about whether I loved it or hated it - I’m gonna watch it again in a few days to really take it in properly the second time around.

But one thing I am annoyed about is how the fuck you can say you have The Illumanti and have pretty much all the OG members and not Namor ????? WHEREMST THE FUCK IS ME SWEET ANGSTY SUB MARINER BOI?!

That really annoyed me lol

I’ve never been a fan of Raimi’s spiderman films, like I think tobey is a great actor, but I think those films are objectively not good. Don’t get me wrong, I still like them, it’s nostalgic and it’s fun and silly, but from a movie watching point of view it’s cringe, shit acting, bad and lazy writing, poor cgi, and all around cheesy.

But I have a love / hate relationship with those moviee so it’s hard to give a definitive answer.

Raimi definitely channeled all that cheesy cringe action shots / scene transitions and cheesy lines into this movie but I guess it kinda made it great though because it captures how zany and cheesy and ridiculous doctor strange comics are (and the classic og marvel comics in general) ,,, so I do kind of hate it and love it in that regard also - it’s probably because I was not expecting that type of style for a marvel film so it’s just taken me aback. I think once I watch it again in a few days I’ll love it Lmao

Right so all that out of the way , those fucking horror scenes and all the other spooky elements *chef kiss* very scary and very unnerving and fucking badass very cool MWAH

Honest to god the horror elements and references were super cool and flowed nicely.

The unexpected deaths was fucking ace, I love when movies do that bc it’s so out of left field, it’s very Deadpool 2 x force-esque and I loved it.

Idk if y’all have ever read Deadpool Kills The Marvel Universe but it gave me those vibes, if you read it you’ll know what I mean

Especially the scene where professor x is in Wanda’s mind, there was a moment where it looked like he was looking directly to the camera and I thought for a brief fleeting moment they were going to have him look into the camera, go wide eyed and say “oh” before having his brain completely melt - which is professor x’s death in the Deadpool comic I mentioned, it just really reminded me of it and with Xavier being in Wanda’s mind at the time I thought maybe reading her mind or seeing how self aware she was would cause his brain to implode with the knowledge that none of his world was real a La Deadpool kills the mcu

This film though did feel disappointing. I don’t think this will be the last of the multiverse concept in marvel obviously, but it felt wrong to have the first introduction into different universes and their hero’s variants be only 2 hours long, it felt like it should have been more of a Zack Snyder feature length film

There was no mention of loki and kang and their timeline issues - which you’d think would have been in the film

You’d also have thought with multiverses and such opening up that all 3 spidey boys would be back as well but nah - so that was weird too

Kang is literally related to Reed Richards so he is one of the most intelligent human beings there is, he is one of the biggest threats to the timeline the mcu has but I guess the mf must have been on vacation

Also are you telling me that one of the universes most intelligent men, the man responsible for creating the COUNCIL OF REEDS was fucking dumb enough to say oh yeah black bolt can kill you by opening his mouth , like bro why did you not just shut the fuck up HAHA

But then again the death scenes were so fucking awesome

I guess the film is a 7/7.5 out of 10

I think the horror sequences bumped up those scores for me tho. I deffo have more to say but I’m probably forgetting a lot of stuff so I’ll be back with more to say once I’ve watched it again 😎

[mayasdeluca]

ACA, Hi how are you doing?

So…. I saw the main Maya Carina and Carina clips of the episode:

Just a couple o quick things:

That Beckett dude is doing so many illegal things I’m not sure how he’s still working, I understand this is a TV Show but the writers are becoming (already were) illogical and the show really doesn’t make any sense at all in terms of Firehouse/firefighters and such, not that GA makes much more sense lol, but it’s like they have given the show to kids that just finished school and they are there only cause their parent put them there cause they don’t care if they ruin the show lol.

They are getting so many dangerous behavior wrong and kinda acceptable in the sake of drama, that is becoming very toxic for the audience too imo, it’s like someone in the WR has a kink to make women suffer especially minorities.l and there’s never accountability.

Not only is illegal to make anyone work those crazy amount of hours but even more so if is a job where they use dangerous equipment and deal with dangerous situations, and doing so without a break could be dangerous not only for a firefighter but for people around them, it’s also super unrealistic that nobody noticed, Federal firefighters are employees of the US Government and have even more rigid laws and control especially for hours of work, so weird the fact that there was no red flag up high, at least to the chief, it’s fucking bullshit (pardon my language but this is getting ridiculous)

Plus what Beckett is doing is mental and physical abuse (pushing a person to work so much to exhaustion, the bucket and so on), abuse of power and retaliation, things that if you bring it up to HR, they pretty much get fired on the spot (there are proofs like the fake blood bucket and the logged hours of work) but even more.

Danielle was amazing, but I think Stef is still trying to balance her new acting skills with her old self especially while talking, it’s like she’s more concentrated at time on how she talks than on how she acts, cause some scene seems off and forced, like when Maya is coming out of the shower, I think irony and fake laugh is not Stefania forte, but I also think the directing is not that great!m, if they can’t see this. I still think she’s amazing but for her acting it’s a period of transition and you can tell.

I kinda liked the callbacks they did with Maya storyline and her father abuse and realizing what she’s doing and how it’s affecting her and her marriage, I would have written it a bit differently but subtlety and organic writing is something S19 writes are not able to do…so I’ll get what I can and thank god for Danielle talent.

Don’t let me start with Jack or Sullivan they are a waste of storyline…

Last thing: it’s clear they are making everybody look bad, shitty, incompetent and over the top nasty, and making Andy the super emphatic nice understanding strong intelligent one, just to push her in likability as a character and as future captain, it seems very forced and sudden like “someone” requested cough cough for it, again no subtlety at all, just pure basic boring predictable writing…smh

Anyway that’s it.

Happy Halloween, I’m gonna get dressed as my cat

Hi ACA! Besides having a swollen arm from my booster shot I'm good lol I hope you're good too!

Yeah it's definitely ridiculous how much Beckett has been able to get away with at this point. I know they are trying to drag out the drama but at this point either Maya would try to transfer, flat out quit, report him to HR or something. There's no reason anyone would stay and deal with this kind of torture for like 6 months. And for no one else to step in either. The oversight by Beckett of him not realizing she worked 5 shifts in a row was just...ridiculous but he's also made ridiculous decisions while on calls (when he was drinking mostly though) and still got away with it so I just don't understand what the writer's plan is long term. Is he going to be held accountable or what? He shouldn't need Theo to tell him about Maya but I guess they are doing it that way for a reason.

I agree with you about Stefania in that scene, it definitely felt off and wasn't executed the best, though the writing wasn't my favorite either. I don't know why they chose to have Carina laugh at Maya in that spot in the first place even if it could be considered a realistic reaction and Carina just reacting to the fact that they've barely seen each other or spoken and that Maya was avoiding her and all that. I wasn't a big fan of that scene at all besides them bumping into each other at the beginning.

Yes everything with Maya and the comparisons to what she dealt with with her dad is heartbreaking but Danielle is doing an amazing job with it all and I'm curious to see where they take it and what's going to happen in the last two episodes before it's on hiatus again.

Super predictable and forced for them to make Andy the hero is basically every situation but it was obvious they were ready to put her front and center again once she was back from Station 23 and joined the team again. I don't know why they force things that don't need to be forced when there are better options but these writers make questionable decisions all the time so here we are!

Happy Halloween! That's adorable haha...I'm not a big Halloween fan so I'm not taking part in it!

[shares-a-vest]

I was initially going to post some death predictions but then I started thinking about who I really don’t want to die *Steve and Robin* so I’m going to talk about that. It’s long-winded (because I’m incapable of writing anything short) so it is under the cut. Plus I’m doing some death speculation, so yeah.

I just think it would be a complete waste of character development to kill off Steve. I’m obviously sooooooo biased because he’s my fave but, why establish his platonic relationship with Robin and show him in the middle of trying to find someone to be with and struggling to transition out of high school only to kill him off? It feels like a character who is still ultimately in the middle of their character arc rather than some other characters who seem like they are reaching finality (Brenner). I would also like to see more of an exploration of the impact all the fighting monsters stuff has on people – including Steve – and more about his crap relationship with his parents.

I feel similarly about Robin. Last season she was cool but was immediately thrown into the thick of a Russian conspiracy. We are really only starting to see her beyond that this season: when she is crushing on Vicky, being besties with Steve and pairing up with Nancy. I would really like to see more of the Steve/Robin dynamic because I have always found there to be a TOTAL lacking of platonic male/female relationships in media and theirs is great, but has so much more potential to explore.

Also straight up - if Robin dies, as a queer person I would find it such a blow. Her coming out scene last season was literally so important to me. For once I was seeing someone come out and it wasn’t entirely about the person they are talking to and it wasn’t a forced outing situation or steeped with queer suffering. And on a personal note, being able to engage with my family about a queer character in a show we all collectively love has been fucking awesome for me and I can't emotionally handle that being taken away.

I don’t want to sound like an anti (shipping wars are dumb guys) but for Nancy to get back with Steve at the last minute – or they declare their love and then immediately die – it undoes like four seasons worth of character development for both of them. And it just kinda leaves Jonathan out completely and dismisses Jancy in a way that feels like actively bad writing on the Duffer Bros part. To me, Nancy and Jonathan are having a rough patch because they have been separated geographically and now they are unable to communicate with each other because everything has turned to shit. Aaaaand they have no idea what is happening with the other AT ALL.

Another problem I have with Steve potentially dying is that it would be like this other level of cruelty to have Dustin working through that death (and likely see it). There are many sad/emotional moments throughout Stranger Things that I feel are completely earned. For me, Steve dying would just be shock value. He is such a popular character and plays this protective/heroic role to other characters and for me it would veer into that space of like, hopelessness that other series go in where it becomes a downer to watch. Personally, I would hate for ST to go in that direction because I just don’t get those vibes from this show and it’s a big part of the reason I love it so much (that isn't to say I need to be handled with kid gloves all the time but, yeah - can i have stuff that isn't an insufferable bummer to watch lol).

[elianamarie-blog]

The Things You Give Pt 21

I'm so excited for you guys to read this chapter! Everything from here is going to get SO good and I hope you guys enjoy it! Because I'm enjoying writing this for you <3 Thank you to all my readers. I appreciate each and every one of you. I love you guys so much. Enjoy the chapter!

November 7, 1978

Point Place, Wisconsin

Forman Residence

Four Days Before the Wedding…

“Mom, we’ve tried on like twenty different dresses and none of them are the one,” Y/n said, stepping out of the dressing room with a white dress in hand. “They’re either too big, too frilly, too poofy—”

“Too ugly,” Jackie snidely commented.

“We’ll find something,” Kitty said and patted Y/n’s shoulder. “We’ve only been to four stores.”

“Only?” Donna asked, sitting back in a chair, as she held her head in her hand. “We’ve been at this for six and a half hours.”

“Yeah, and we even haven’t eaten lunch yet,” Jackie complained, stomach rumbling.

“And I’m bored,” Laurie said, messing with her nails. “Can I go home?”

“No,” Kitty said sternly. “You are going to be here for your sister and that’s final.”

Laurie huffed and took a seat on a chair nearby.

“You would be at lunch right now if you’d gone to school,” Donna said to Jackie snidely.

“I’m not going to miss my best friend buying her dress!” Jackie said and flipped her hair behind her shoulder. “Besides, we’re here to buy our dresses too.”

“Speaking of which, have you girls found anything that you like?” Kitty asked as she set aside the wedding dress.

“Well, we haven’t really looked,” Donna admitted.

“All the bridal stores don’t have either much selection or not good enough selection,” Jackie added.

“Well, there is one store we haven’t been to yet,” Kitty said and eyed Y/n.

She caught her mother’s eye and shook her head. “No.”

“Oh, come on. It’s been a while now. I’m sure they’ve forgotten.”

“No, Mom. I’m not going back there.” She shook her head again. “No! No, no, no, no, no—”

—Scene Transition—

“Oh, Y/n,” Heather drawled out with a twinkle in her eye. “And what do I owe this pleasure to? We’re not hiring, just so you know.”

Y/n pressed her lips into a thin line. “That’s not why I’m here.”

“Oh? Here to buy a dress?”

“Ding, ding, ding,” Y/n responded dully. “And that’s why you were the brains here.”

Heather hummed unamused. “Sasha thought so too and that’s why she made me manager.”

Y/n pressed her lips into a tight smile. “She always knows what’s best.”

“I know.” Heather flipped her long blonde hair over her shoulder, staring down her nose at Y/n.

“Alright,” Y/n said shortly and walked away from her ex-boss.

“I’ll be here if you need any assistance,” Heather said sweetly.

“Thanks for the warning,” Y/n quipped back.

Once they were out of sight, Kitty leaned into Y/n’s ear. “So, that’s Heather?”

“Unfortunately, so.”

“She seems unpleasant,” Kitty responded.

“You have no idea. She’s the reason why I quit.”

“Too bad Sasha couldn’t be here,” Kitty said, pulling at a dress on a rack, examining it. “I wonder where’s she at?”

“Right here,” a velvety voice spoke from behind them.

They turned to see a beautiful, raven-haired Latina beauty, smiling widely at them with perfect white teeth.

“Sasha,” Y/n greeted with a chuckle and wrapped her arms around the petite woman’s shoulders. “Hi.”

“Hello, Mi Corazón,” Sasha chuckled, embracing her. “It’s been a bit.”

“Yes, it has,” Y/n responded, pulling away. “What’re you doing here?”

“It’s my store,” Sasha said with a smile. “I’m working. ”

“Of course,” Y/n smiled.

“I heard about what happened. I called but never heard back.”

“Yeah, I’m sorry about that. Things have been…hectic.”

“Sounds like you’ll have to catch me up,” Sasha said and cupped Y/n’s hand with hers. “I wanted to talk to you about coming to work with me again.”

“Sasha, I’d love to, but I can’t,” Y/n said with sadness in her eyes. “You know with Heather—”

“Oh, I know all about Heather,” she responded with a look in her eye. “That’s what I wanted to talk to you about.”

“Really?”

Sasha nodded. “But not here. Not when she can hear us any moment. What do you say we meet up for lunch? Tomorrow afternoon?”

Y/n smiled at her innocently. “Sure. Lunch sounds nice.”

“Muy bien,” Sasha said, turning to Kitty and the girls. “Kitty, nice to see you again.”

“You too, Sasha,” Kitty giggled. “How is everything going?”

“Very well,” Sasha responded. “I’m opening up another store in Kenosha and Milwaukee. How are things going for you?”

“Congratulations!” Kitty said. “Me and Red are doing good. Red is working again and about to open his own muffler shop.”

“How wonderful!” she cried out. “A celebration is in order! Tomorrow night for drinks!”

Kitty smiled widely. “Count me in!”

Sasha returned the smile and turned to Donna and Jackie. “And you two must be…?”

“I’m Donna.”

“And I’m Jackie Burkhart. You might know me because of my dad. You know, the rich lawyer.”

“Jack Burkhart?” Sasha asked with raised eyebrows.

“Yes!” Jackie cried out. “You friends with my dad?”

“No. I just know of him for being arrested for fraud.”

The air between them thickened and grew uncomfortable. Y/n and Donna turned their heads away, snickering.

“No…he’s, uh…he’s in the rainforest…helping building…houses,” Jackie stammered.

“Okay,” Sasha smiled uncomfortably and turned to Laurie. “Hi, Miss Laurie. I don’t see you around anymore.”

“Oh, you know, I’ve been busy,” she responded sweetly.

“I know you have been,” Sasha said. “You know my doors are open if you ever need a job too.”

“Oh, Sasha you’re too kind,” Laurie said, plastering on her charm. “I know where to reach you if I do.”

“And that’s if her pimp’s money runs out,” Y/n murmured to Donna and Jackie.

Laurie glared at her sister and turned back to Sasha. “I’ll keep that in mind. Thank you.”

Sasha nodded and turned back to Y/n. “So, what are you doing here, Mija?”

“Well, uhm,” Y/n said, nervously looking towards her mother who nodded at her to continue. “I’m here…for me.”

Sasha knitted her eyebrows together. “Are you getting married?”

“It’s complicated to explain—” Y/n began, but was interrupted by Jackie.

“What’s complicated? You got knocked up, married in city hall and now you’re having a real wedding.”

Y/n closed her eyes in frustration before turning to Jackie with lips pressed tightly together. “Thank you, Jackie.”

“Anytime!”

Y/n rolled her eyes, heaving a sigh and turned back to Sasha.

“Is it true?” Sasha asked her with wide eyes.

“Yes, it is,” Y/n responded nervously.

Suddenly Sasha’s eyes lit up and a wide, bright smile broke out on her face. “Ave María! Felicitaciones! That’s amazing, Mija! Who’s the lucky guy?”

Y/n smiled brightly at her. It was a nice change to get a positive reaction from someone other than shock or anger. “His name is Steven.”

“Awe, I’m so happy for you! Well, come, come! We need you to get you the best dress there is.”

“Thank you, Sasha! This means a lot.”

“Oh, of course. Now, let’s begin.”

—Time Skip—

Sasha helped out Y/n and the bridesmaids pick out some beautiful dresses, but unfortunately for Y/n, she still couldn’t find one that was the one. The bridesmaids had settled on a beautiful pink long sleeved dress with a Sabrina neckline. The sleeves themselves were made of pink lace which followed the rest of the dress in lace, completing the look.

After a while, the girls and Kitty had gone next door to get a smoothie and a pretzel while Y/n looked for a new dress, leaving her alone with Sasha.

“So, Y/n. How far along are you?” Sasha asked.

“I’m six weeks now,” she replied, glancing at her stomach in the mirror. If it was possible, she could see the teeniest bump showing, but she shook it off as her imagination.

“Wow, that’s amazing,” Sasha said as she patiently put a rejected dress back on the hanger. “Have you heard the heartbeat yet?”

“Not yet. We’re supposed to hear it on Thursday.”

“How exciting!” Sasha said and turned to her. “Tell me about Steven.”

“Well, he’s super sweet, super cute, and crazy smart. He makes me laugh even when I don’t feel like it and treats me well,” Y/n replied with a smile on her face.

“And you’re already married?”

“Yeah. It’s a long story, but everything kind of got chaotic after we told everyone I was pregnant, so we thought it was better and easier for everyone if we got married in city hall.”

“So, then why are you having a wedding?”

“Because I want to give my mom that pleasure of seeing me get married,” Y/n responded.

“Honey, you know this is for you, right?” Sasha asked.

Y/n opened the door and peaked her face out the crack, leaning into the door. “I know. But I kind of want it to, you know? I found the man of my dreams and I want to celebrate that.”

Sasha gave her a kind smile. “Well, then in that case, what is your theme going to be?”

“It’s set in this barn that we found out west and it’s beautiful. Some privacy and some land. So, I guess rustic country is going to be the theme?”

Sasha’s eyes lit up. “I think I have just the perfect dress for you.”

—Scene Transition—

Y/n stood there in front of the three way mirror in complete awe. Kitty stood behind her with glossy eyes while Donna and Jackie sat further back, smiling and nodding.

“This is it,” Y/n whispered and turned to look at her side. “This is the dress.”

The dress clung to her every curve, tightly and perfectly, complimenting her skin. The dress was made of white lace with a silk underdress. The off-shoulder sweetheart neckline brought out her bust in classy yet sexy way and the train followed behind her, blending in with the lace veil that was attached to a floral crown.

“You look so beautiful,” Kitty choked and wiped at her eyes.

“Thank you, Mom.” She smiled at her mother.

“So, are we buying the dress?” Sasha asked.

Y/n and Kitty nodded. “Yes. This is the one,” Y/n answered.

“Perfect. And because you are my best friend and were a good standing employee, I’m going to give it to you for free.”

“Are you serious?” Y/n asked excitedly. “Are you sure?”

“Think of it as my wedding gift to you,” Sasha said, smiling.

“Thank you!” Y/n shrieked and wrapped her arms around Sasha once more. “This is the greatest thing ever!”

“You’re welcome, mi amor,” she replied. “And I’ll only charge the bridesmaids dresses half off too.”

“Sasha, we seriously owe you one,” Y/n said. “Come to the wedding on Saturday. It’ll be at 4pm.”

Sasha smiled widely once more. “I wouldn’t miss it.”

Y/n smiled and turned back to her reflection, admiring the dress. “I never want to take it off.”

“Yeah, but Steven might,” Jackie snickered, earning a look from Kitty. “What? She’s already knocked up!”

Later on that night, Kitty, Y/n, Donna, and Jackie sat at the kitchen table, tying up little bags of colored almonds.

“This is boring,” Jackie complained. “We should be out celebrating. Instead, we’re stuck here tying up nuts in bags.”

Y/n and Donna chuckled while Kitty gave them a puzzling look.

“I don’t get it,” she said. “What’s so funny about tying up nuts?”

The three young girls burst out into laughter before Y/n looked to her. “Please, Mom. Don’t worry about it.”

At that moment, Eric walked into the kitchen. “What are you guys doing?”

“We are putting nuts in bags!” Kitty exclaimed excitedly making the girls giggle.

Eric jerked around with wide eyes. “EW! Mom!”

“What?!” she asked exasperated. “What does it mean?!”

“Nothing, Mom,” Y/n said through giggles.

“What are you up to, Honey?” Kitty asked, going back to her tying a knot.

“Just came up here to see my favorite girls,” he said. “And Jackie.”

Jackie made a face at him as she finished tying up a bag.

“Awe, you never called me that before,” Y/n cooed. “What do you want?”

“Okay,” he said quickly and hopped on the counter. “I was hoping that we could change something about the wedding.”

Y/n eyed him. “Like what?”

“Well, instead of us wearing tuxedos, why don’t we wear—”

“Eric, I swear to God, if you say Star Wars I’m going to kick you in the head,” Y/n threatened.

“Fine,” Eric grumbled and hopped off the counter. “Oh, Donna, want to come with me to get my lame and boring tux?”

“Yeah, I can do that,” she said absentmindedly. “As long as you actually get the tux and not buy an Obi Wan costume.”

Eric lifted his finger and opened his mouth to say something, but Donna cut him off. “And not a lightsaber either.”

Eric rolled his eyes. “Fine. Killjoy.”

“He’s such a baby,” Donna said and finished tying off the last bag. Y/n and Jackie chuckled along with her as they all threw in the last of the bags.

“So, Y/n,” Kitty said and gracefully tossed the last bag into the bowl. “have you decided who is going to be your maid of honor?”

Jackie and Donna leaned forward, eyeing her intently.

“I did actually,” Y/n said casually and looked up.

Jackie gasped and grabbed Donna’s forearm. “Oh, my God. This is it.”

Y/n chuckled. “It’s not that big of a deal, Jackie.”

“Yes, it is. Now spill!”

“Okay, before I say, I just want to let the both of you know that I love you very much and you girls are my best friends and even my family.”

“Awe, that’s so sweet,” Donna said, smiling.

“Yeah, yeah, we love you too. Now who’s it going to be?!” Jackie asked impatiently.

“Okay, okay,” Y/n replied. “I pick Jackie.”

Before Y/n could say anything further, Jackie was jumping up from her seat and howling like a monkey.

“In your face!” she shouted at Donna who looked surprised and a little sullen. “I got picked and you didn’t!” She gasped. “This means I’m better than you! I gotta go and start planning the bachelorette party! Oh, and Y/n, because you picked me I’m going to go get you a little surprise.” She smiled, giggling, and ran out the house.

Once Jackie had left, Donna softly turned to Y/n. “Have fun with her.”

“Y/n, honey, are you sure you want Jackie to be your maid of honor?” Kitty asked.

“Yes, because I have something bigger to ask her,” she replied, turning to Donna. “There’s a reason why I chose Jackie to be my maid of honor.”

Donna shifted her seat to look at her best friend. “Yeah?”

“I haven’t talked to Steven yet, but I was wondering if you would like to be the godmother to my child?”

Donna’s face lit up like a Christmas tree. “Are you serious?!”

Y/n smiled, nodding. “Yeah. While you and Jackie are going to be aunts, I want you to also be godparents.”

“Oh my God, this is awesome!” Donna exclaimed and wrapped her arms around Y/n’s shoulders. “Thank you!”

Y/n returned the hug, smiling widely. “Of course! You’re the only ones I’d trust to raise my child in case something happens to us. Well—I trust you. Eric would make a great father, but he’d lose the kid in five minutes.”

Donna chuckled. “I’m not even going to disagree with you.”

“Listen, don’t tell Jackie,” Y/n said. “She’ll rip our hearts right out.”

“Hey,” Steven greeted as he walked in the kitchen, hearing the girls laughing. “What’s so funny?”

“The idea of Eric being father,” Y/n answered, getting up and grabbing a soda out of the fridge.

“Wait, are you—?” Steven asked, pointing at Donna.

“Oh, God, no,” Donna said and got up from the table. “This is just in case something happens to you and Y/n.”

“Oh,” Hyde responded. “Okay. Wait, why would something happen to us?”

“Because you’re you and I’m with you,” Y/n responded, giving him a fake smile.

“Cute,” he responded and saw the carbonated drink in her hand. “Should you be having that?”

“Relax, it’s a Sprite. It won’t harm the baby to have it now and then,” Y/n responded and noticed the look on his face. “Awe, you’re worried!”

“No, I’m not,” he defended. “I just remember seeing pop on the list of forbidden food.”

“Forbidden Food?” Y/n asked, amused.

“Yeah, food that you shouldn’t eat because it’s bad for the baby,” he replied in a small voice.

Y/n kissed his cheek. “You have the biggest heart.”

“Yeah,” he replied, feeling comfortable and cleared his throat. “What are you doing right now?”

“Just finished getting some things done for the wedding. Why?”

“Let’s go out to eat,” he said.

“Okay, sure. Where?”

“It’s a surprise,” he said and turned to Kitty. “Can I show you something outside for a minute?”

“Sure,” Kitty responded, standing from the table. “You know the last time someone told me that, I ended up pregnant with Eric.”

She cackled a laugh as the three young adults stared at her in horror.

“Wow, that was something I did not need to hear,” Y/n mentioned as she set the soda aside.

“What are you showing her anyway, Hyde?” Donna chuckled.

“Uh, nothing,” he said. “But I can show you…nothing too.”

“Well, that made sense,” Y/n poked and made a face in return when Steven made one at her first.

As Donna, Steven, and Kitty went outside to the driveway, Y/n shrugged and turned to the fridge, raiding it for some food. Just right when she was about to reach for some string cheese, she heard an excited shriek come from outside. She slammed the door shut and jerked her head across the counter to see Steven with his back to her and Kitty jumping up and down, Donna looking amazed.

Y/n knit her eyebrows together, feeling confused. She saw Steven quickly shove something into what she hopes was his front pocket, and turn to enter the kitchen with Donna and Kitty.

“Y/n, let’s get you ready for the night,” Donna said, beaming.

“For what?” Y/n asked as Donna pulled her by the arm upstairs.

“Donna, I feel ridiculous,” Y/n said as Donna finished the last touch of her Farrah Fawcett, feathered hair. Donna had also picked out a black dress that flowed down to the knees and sheer long sleeves with button cuffs. “We’re just going out to eat. I don’t see why I have to dress up like I’m going to a red-carpet movie premiere.”

“It’s still a special night for you two,” she said.

“How? I’m already pregnant and married to the guy.”

“You’ll see,” she said, grinning.

—Scene Transition—

“Wow, Steven, this place is really nice!” Y/n said, impressed as she shook off her coat. “I didn’t think you’d ever take me all the way to Milwaukee to a fancy seafood restaurant on the harbor.”

Steven scoffed. “And why would think that?”

“Because you’ve said you’d never take a girl outside of Point Place to go eat,” she deadpanned.

“Yeah, well, that was old me. And I’m different now. Because of you.”

Y/n blushed as she looked down at her menu. “Everything looks so good.”

“It really does,” he said.

The rest of the time was spent chatting and laughing at each other’s jokes. As their food arrived, Steven couldn’t help but admire how beautiful she looked in the dim lighting, her smile brighter than lighting in the room, and her eyes twinkling more than the stars in the night sky. For some reason, he felt nervous about the surprise he had planned. Would she like the ring? What if she doesn’t? Oh God, what if it’s not big enough for her?

He smirked to himself before slightly shaking his head, forcing himself to be serious for five minutes. He kept telling himself that there is no need to because they were already married. Hell, even expecting their first child together. But he just wanted to see her happy.

Once their main course was done, they opted for a shared dessert: a huge slice of chocolate cake.

Y/n moaned once the chocolate lit up her taste buds. “So good.”

Steven stared at her amused with his fork in hand. “I’ve heard that before.”

“Shut up,” she laughed. “Try some.”

He dipped his fork in the cake, allowing the fudge filling to coat it. When he brought it to his lips, he swore it was almost better than sex. Almost.

“Oh, wow,” he said. “We should have this at the wedding.”

Y/n’s eyes softened and a smile played at her lips. “We can definitely do that.”

After they finished and paid for their meal, Steven suggested they take a walk on the harbor bay. The wind was a little nippy that night, making Y/n tug her trench coat tighter against her body. Hyde noticed this and wrapped an arm around, pulling her closer.

“So, Steven,” she piped up. “What’s up with the romance tonight?”

“What do you mean? I’m always romantic with you.”

She snorted. “Not like this. Donna said this is a special occasion. What’s the occasion?”

He sighed and had them stop walking. “There is something I wanted to give you.”

“Last time you said that, I ended up pregnant,” she deadpanned.

He chuckled. “That—that is true. No, it’s something different.”

She hummed, amused as she turned to him. “And what would that be?”

“Okay,” he said nervously and reached into his pocket, pulling out the velvety black box. “I know with everything that’s happened so far, it’s been fairly rushed and hurried. I mean we started five months ago and in that timeframe, got married in City Hall, we’re only given a week to plan our wedding only because we’re expecting a kid, so we haven’t just sat back and enjoyed any of it and that’s kind of what I wanted for tonight.

“Tonight, I just wanted us to hit the pause button on everything and just fully enjoy us. And I know I hadn’t been able to get you a ring during our first ceremony so…” He opened the box, revealing the beautiful antique ring. “I wanted to give you this. W.B gave it to me to give to you. Said it was his grandmother’s and it’s been passed down since.”

Y/n’s eyes sparkled at the sight of the ring, breath hitched in her throat. “Oh my God, Steven…it’s beautiful. Is W.B sure he wants me to have it and not Angie?”

“Yes,” Steven chuckled, almost evilly. “He said he wanted you to have specifically. It’s passed down to the first son to give to his wife.”

Y/n gave him a white smile as she took the ring out from the box.

“Here,” he said gently and slid the finger onto her ring. “There, now you have a ring. Just like I promised you.”

“I love it,” she breathed and pressed her mouth to his. “Thank you. And thank W.B for me.”

“Will do,” he chuckled and brought her in closer for a passionate kiss under the pale moonlight.

Three days before the wedding…

“Thank you for meeting with me,” Sasha said the next day at lunch as they sat down at an outdoor table.

“Of course. Thank you for inviting me,” Y/n replied back. “I know we haven’t talked much since I quit.”

“Oh, I understand,” she replied and ordered them two waters with lemon as the waiter came by. “But I wanted to take some time and sit down with you and catch up.”

“Oh, well, I think you know all that I’ve been up to,” Y/n joked, pointing at her belly.

Sasha chuckled. “I know what you’ve been up to, troublemaker. I wanted to talk to you about an opportunity that I have for you.”

“Oh?”

“The store that I’m opening up in Milwaukee,” she began and Y/n nodded. “I want to give it to you.”

Y/n blinked. “Wait…you…what?”

“If you’re interested, I’d like to give you that store to run. You would be running the store completely on your own. Of course, you’d still have to report to me, but it would essentially be your store.”

“Are you serious?” Y/n asked, still completely shocked.

Sasha laughed. “Yes, silly. Would that be something that you’re interested in?”

“Sasha, I’d love to, but I don’t know anything about running a store.”

“No problem at all. I can bring a trainer from another store to help you.”

Y/n sighed, contemplating. “Why me?”

“Because I know you and I know you’ll do really well,” she stated. “And I also know you will do your best. Just like you did at the other store.”

“Don’t you want Heather?”

Sasha snorted. “Of course not. The only reason why I hired her is because her mother begged me to take her in. To be honest, I’m not even sure I want to keep her there any longer.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, she’s been pissing everybody off. Especially me. For the last couple of months, I’ve heard nothing but complaint after complaint. I’m getting sick of it and I just want it to end.”

Y/n chuckled lightly. “So, would it come with benefits?”

Sasha’s eyes lit up. “Absolutely. You don’t think I’d hire people and not take care of my employees, would you?” She smiled. “Of course there are benefits. Especially for you and your little one. You can even add your husband if you wanted to.”

“This sounds really great,” Y/n answered and nodded. “You know what? I’ll take it. I’d be honored to work with you again.”

“How fabulous!” she cried out in excitement. “I’ll draw up the paper work and have you come by my office. Now, it will be a few months before we even get started. But when you come by my office, we’ll talk more. But for now, let’s celebrate!”

--Time Skip--

“So, she just offered you a store? Just like that?” Jackie asked later that night as they all sat in the basement, watching tv.

“Yeah, and she said she’s also probably going to let Heather go. It’s a twofer!” Y/n said with glee.

“Wow, you’re happy for other people’s demise?” Hyde asked her seriously, but then cracked a smile. “That’s my girl.”

“You guys really are made for each other,” Fez said and Y/n and Steven looked at each other with a loving gaze. “You both are terrible people,” he finished.

“Well, congratulations, that’s awesome,” Eric said.

“Thank you, Eric.”

“Does that mean I’ll get a discount on my wedding dress?!” Jackie asked excitedly.

“If you can find a poor guy to marry you first,” Hyde remarked.

“Hey!” she shrilled. “He’s not going to be poor!”

Y/n laughed lightly at her friend. “Oh, have you guys gotten your tuxes yet?”

“No, not yet. It won’t take long anyway,” Eric said.

“You still have to get fitted,” Y/n responded. “Us girls already have our dresses. Hey, Jackie, as my maid of honor, can you force them to go buy their tuxes? Today perhaps?”

Jackie beamed. “As your maid of honor, I’d be happy to.” She jumped up from her seat and grabbed her purse. “Be ready in ten. I’ll be in the car waiting.”

Once she left, all four boys looked to Y/n, glaring.

“What the hell you do that for?” Steven asked. “I don’t want to go shopping with her!”

“Too bad,” Y/n shrugged. “Jackie is good at riding people’s asses and if she won’t do it, you guys will never get your tuxes. So, get to it!”

“Fine, but you’re really cutting into your foreplay tonight,” Hyde threatened and stood with the guys.

“Ew,” Eric drawled out.

“Sexy,” Fez commented.

“Shut up, Fez!” Eric cried out. “Their room is right next to mine.”

“Then you might want to start wearing ear plugs,” Hyde replied, clapping Eric’s shoulder then letting out a hyena laugh when he freaked out.

Once they disappeared out the door, Donna turned to Y/n. “How long are you going to be rubbing your guys’ sex life in his face?”

“Until it stops being funny,” Y/n said amused. “Which will be never.”

“So, let me see the ring again,” Donna said and Y/n raised her hand to Donna’s face.

“It’s so pretty,” Donna cooed, holding Y/n’s hand. “I can’t believe Jackie tried to steal it off your finger.”

“I can’t believe I didn’t hit her,” Y/n joked.

“Well, you don’t want her to have a black eye for the wedding, now do you?”

“That’s exactly why I didn’t hit her,” she said. “Also, she’s my best friend blah, blah, blah.”

“You’re such a good friend,” Donna laughed. “Anyway, are you excited for Saturday?”

“I am.” She smiled.

“Most people would be nervous,” Donna pointed out.

“Yeah, well, most people don’t have the same situation as us,” Y/n said. “It’s okay. I can’t wait to look breathtaking and have Steven just blubber like a baby when he sees me,” she said jokingly.

“Blubber huh?” Donna asked. “You really live in your own fantasy world, don’t you?”

“Shut up. A girl can dream.”

—Scene Transition—

“Okay, now, Eric, this one makes you look like you have shoulders,” Jackie said as she smoothed out the linen across his shoulders.

“I do have shoulders,” Eric said, admiring himself in the mirror.

Jackie chuckled to herself as she helped all four men find the right tuxes. “Steven, are you still in there? Come on out. I want to see what you got.”

“I look ridiculous,” he called from behind the changing room door.

“I seriously doubt that. Come out,” Jackie encouraged.

Steven grunted as he stepped out from the changing room, feeling awkward. Jackie’s line of sight followed from his shoes all the way up to his neck. He sported a normal black tux with a white long sleeve undershirt, a black bowtie fitting snugly beneath his chin.

He stood with his hands in his pockets, impatient and itching to get out of it and back into his usual Led Zepplin T-Shirt.

“No, you don’t look ridiculous at all,” Jackie breathed, turning to fully look at him. “You actually look…really handsome.”

“Ya think?” he asked, making a face at his own reflection. “You don’t think I look stupid?”

“No, Steven you look great,” Jackie said and walked over to him and placed her hands on his shoulders. “Trust me, you look handsome and Y/n is going to think so too.”

“Are you wearing a wedding dress?” Steven asked, furrowing his brows together as he glanced down at her attire.

“Oh, I do this every week,” she replied and smoothed out his jacket. “You really do look handsome, so don’t feel ridiculous.”

“I’ll tell you who’s handsome,” Kelso called from his dressing room and stepped out wearing the same tux. “Me. In this tux. I don’t know how you ladies are going to be able to keep your hands off me.”

Fez stepped out as well, admiring himself in the mirror. “Look at this rock-hard candy ass,” he said, jiggling his butt.

“Oh my God,” Jackie groaned, regretting not bringing at least Donna along.

Later that day, the girls were hanging out at the hub, enjoying burgers and fries, and Y/n of course enjoying a milkshake.

“So, Y/n have you written your vows yet?” Donna asked.

“Not yet,” Y/n said. “I don’t know exactly what to say. I mean, us getting together isn’t the most romantic story. It’s not yours and Eric’s.”

“Maybe not, but it’s still kind of cute,” Jackie offered. “Despite him being, well, him.”

“I actually agree with Jackie,” Donna said. “There’s something special between you two and you guys have changed for the better.”

“Well, you’re the writer. Can you help me?” Y/n asked.

She nodded. “Sure, I’d love to.”

“Don’t you want to ask your maid of honor?” Jackie shrilled.

“No offense, Jackie, but I need my vows to sound good and meaningful. Not something straight out of a cheesy rom-com.”

“That’s not true! I can be romantic.”

“Jackie, when you and Hyde went on your first date, you literally gave him this whole speech if he was worthy of love,” Donna said.

“Wait, he told you that?” she asked.

“Duh,” Y/n and Donna said together.

“I’m going to kill him,” she mumbled. “Fine. Do whatever you want.”

“Trust me, I plan on doing it,” Y/n chuckled.

—Time Skip—

Two days before the wedding…

“Have you kids talked to Pastor Dave yet?” Kitty asked the couple at the lunch table.

The couple froze and looked at each other wide eyed.

“Please tell me you did it,” Y/n said to him quietly.

“I thought you were going to,” he said, pointing his fork at her.

“You two didn’t do it?” Kitty asked, eyeing them.

“You see, the funny thing is—” Y/n began.

“No,” Steven finished for her and ducked his head into his plate.

“Seriously you two? Your wedding is in two days and you haven’t talked to Pastor Dave?!”

“Well, Mom, to be fair, we’ve been extremely busy with everything else.”

“Still!” she exclaimed. “Alright, that’s it. Finish up your lunch and then we’re going to go see Pastor Dave.”

“I can’t Mrs. Forman, I have to go back to work,” Steven said as he quickly got up and gave Y/n a quick peck on the cheek before high tailing out the house.

“Park it!” she called out, causing Steven to freeze. “Now, I know that’s not true. You took the day off so you can go with to Y/n’s doctor’s appointment.”

Steven sighed and sat back down. “Damn it.”

“Now, after you two get back from the doctor’s office, we will go talk to Pastor Dave. Got it?”

“Yes, Mom.”

“Yes, Mrs. Forman.”

“Good. Then it’s settled,” Kitty said, plastering on her wide smile and finished eating her lunch.

“What time is the appointment?” Steven asked his wife.

She checked her watch. “In one hour.”

“Well, then you better get going!” Kitty said excitedly.

“Mom, the office is fifteen minutes away. We’ll leave here soon.”

“I know, but I’m just so excited for you guys!”

“Really?” Y/n asked. “A few weeks ago you were getting ready to bury us in the backyard.”

“I know, but after the anger and the initial shock wore off, I actually got really excited. After I found out I had started menopause when I thought I was pregnant I just…well, I was really sad. I really wanted another baby, but now I get a grandbaby who I get to love and spoil.”

Y/n smiled at her mother and placed her hand over Kitty’s. “Thank you, Mom.”

“I’m just really happy to see you two getting your lives together,” Kitty said, looking at them. “I mean, Steven has this wonderful job with his dad and now Sasha offered you a store…you two have grown up so fast. This is great.”

“It is,” Red said, speaking up for the first time during their lunch. “It also means they can get out of the house sooner.”

“Red. Knock it off,” Kitty warned and turned back to the young couple with a smile.

“Now, that we got that mushy crap out of the way,” Red said again and set down the newspaper he was reading. “Let’s get real for a minute. What are your plans now that you both have jobs lined up? Y/n, do you plan on going back to school?”

“Maybe,” Y/n answered. “If I have time between running my own store and taking care of the baby.” She beamed at hearing her own words. “That feels good to say. So grown up.”

“Well, Y/n, if you really want to go to school, you can go at night and I’ll stay home with the baby,” Steven suggested, catching everyone by surprise. Surprising Y/n the least. Instead, if it was even possible, it made her love him even more.

“You’d do that?” she asked him. “Thank you, Steven.”

He nodded his head and looked back down at his food. “You’re welcome.”

“Well, what about me?” Kitty asked, resting her hand against her heart. “I’m the grandmother, don’t I get to help take care of the child?”

“Kitty—no,” Red said.

“Well, of course, Mom,” Y/n responded. “I just didn’t want to expect it from you because you know, it’s my kid. I don’t want to be that mom that pushes her kids onto the grandparents to raise them.”

“But I want them here!” Kitty said excitedly. “They’ll be children in the house again!”

“No,” Red said sternly. “Once our kids are out the house, I don’t want anymore living here!”

“Oh, c’mon, Red. There’s no one here for me to take care of! Steven, you’re off with your dad, Y/n, you’re off with about to run your own shop, and Eric, you’re busy with your silly little not working project, and Laurie is off…being Laurie. I just want to take care of someone again. That’s what grandchildren are for!”

“Awe, well, cheer up, Kitty,” Red said positively. “You’ll always have me to take care of.”

“Oh, the way you eat, you’ll be dead long before me.”

“You’re the one who puts bacon on everything!”

“I do not,” Kitty defended sternly.

“Last week you put bacon on ham!” Red pointed out, making Kitty throw her hands in the air.

“Fine! Everything is my fault!”

“Man, I can’t wait to be married,” Eric mumbled with a smirk on his face.

“Alright, fine. Look, we can talk all day, but I still see one little fella who still needs you,” Red said and bent over, grabbing a familiar looking face from underneath the table.

“We still have Schotzie?” Eric asked. “I thought he ran away.”

“No, he’s been living under the house,” Kitty responded, rocking the dog in her arms.

“For a year?” Y/n asked, confused.

“Poor little fella. He’s afraid of the garden hose,” Red said, smirking as he brought a fork to his mouth.

Kitty gave her husband a horrified look as Y/n turned to her, scratching Schotzie behind the ears. “Look, Mom, maybe you should stop worrying about everyone else so much and start thinking about yourself. Maybe find something to enrich your life?”

“Oh, but honey, the baby will enrich my life! Trust me, there’s nothing more enriching than a grandchild.”

“Or, may I suggest the teachings of the Jedi?” Eric asked, causing everyone to look at him with irritated expressions.

“And may I suggest the footing of your ass?” Red snapped.

Eric waved a hand in front of his face, acting as if he was mind tricking Red. Just like in Star Wars. “This is not the ass you were looking for.”

Everyone ignored him and turned back to the conversation.

“I want you to enjoy being a grandmother,” Y/n continued. “Not worrying about feeding it and having to make sure we have enough diapers for it.”

“Oh, honey I know. But trust me, you’re going to need all the help you can get. Being a first time parent is, well, it’s not the easiest.”

“She’s right, you know,” Red said, turning serious. “You’re going to lose sleep—and a lot of it. You’re going to be sleep deprived and constantly consumed with the baby. Even when the baby is sleeping, you still have to take care of things around the house.”

“How the hell would you know?” Kitty asked, almost bewildered. “You slept like a baby the whole time!”

“Well, watching you do all the work made me tired!” Red defended, rather weakly.

The tension between them grew deadly as all three teenagers look horrified.

“Dad!” Eric whispered-yelled. “No!”

“Oh, you are such a—!” Kitty exclaimed but was cut off by Y/n.

“Wow, we should really get going!” she said, rushing to stand up.

“After you, dear,” Hyde responded and rushed her out the door, grabbing his keys on the way. He waved meekly to his in-laws and quickly slid the door shut.

Later in the basement…

“Where are Y/n and Steven?” Jackie asked, sitting in Hyde’s usual seat.

“They’re at their doctor’s appointment,” Eric responded, flipping through a comic book.

“Are they going to hear the baby’s heartbeat?!” Donna asked excitedly.

“Yeah, I guess so,” he responded, still interested in his comic book.

“C’mon, Eric, that’s your niece or nephew! Why aren’t you more excited?”

“I don’t know, Donna, maybe it hasn’t hit me yet.”

“That’s funny you say that because you hit Hyde when you found out Y/n was pregnant,” Fez laughed.

“Eh,” Eric said, shrugging. “Babies really aren’t my thing.”

Donna knitted her eyebrows together. “What do you mean? I remember when you went crazy over when I changed a poopy diaper that one time, you were over the moon. And then it was like you almost couldn’t wait to get me pregnant.”

“I know, but, I don’t know. I still feel like this a dream,” Eric responded, putting the comic book down. “It’s still hard to wrap my mind around them being a couple. Let alone them getting married and having a kid.”

“I get it, it happened really fast,” Donna agreed. “It feels like they’ve only been together for like a week.”

“Well, maybe it’s because they hid from us for so long,” Kelso said, bouncing a ball.

“Yeah, it is crazy how fast all this moving,” Fez commented and caught the ball from Kelso.

“It still feels like yesterday we found out about them,” Jackie said.

“Are you kidding? I still have nightmares about it,” Donna said, shivering from the memory.

“Yeah, I’m sure yours is so bad,” Eric said sarcastically. “I had to hear them do it.”

“I saw them,” Donna said, pointing to herself. “I think I win.”

Eric made a face at her, thoroughly disgusted. “I’m never going to get used to that.”

“I caught on immediately when I found Y/n’s shirt and Hyde tried to play it off like it was some random girl he was banging,” Kelso said, laughing. “Man, I’m so proud of myself for figuring that out quick!”

“Kelso, man, the only time you figure things out quick is when it comes to sex,” Eric commented. “You’re like Einstein when it comes to it.”

Kelso nudged Fez’s shoulder. “See? I told you I was smart!”

“Yeah, but you’re stupid with everything else,” Fez laughed and turned to the rest of the group. “I made a joke.”

“Hey, has Steven made a choice who’s going to be his best man yet?” Jackie asked. “Because, you know, Y/n chose her maid of honor. And it’s me. Perfect me.”

Donna rolled her eyes. “Yes, Jackie. You’re her maid of honor. The highest honor you can ever get. You know I think that will help you get into college.”

Jackie’s face lit up. “Really?!”

Donna smacked the heel of her hand to her forehead. “Yes. Yes it does.”

“Has Hyde asked you guys?” Eric asked, redirecting the conversation. “I haven’t heard him say anything about it.”

“Me neither,” Kelso mumbled and grabbed the ball back from Fez, bouncing it against the wall.

“Nada,” Fez said, shrugging.

“What the hell?” Eric asked. “Why hasn’t he picked one of us yet?”

“Maybe because he’s really busy, Eric,” Donna pointed out. “He’s planning a wedding, getting ready to become a father, and just started a new job. His hands are a little full.”

“Picking a best man is still part of the wedding!” Eric cried. “That’s it, I’m asking him when he comes home.”

“I hope he picks me,” Fez said dreamily. “I’ll be the best man ever.��

“Why should it be you?” Kelso asked. “I’m the good looking one. If anything, I’ll make the wedding look better!”

“No, you won’t,” Eric shot back. “You’re going to do something to mess it up. That’s why it should be me!”

“Why? So that it can be Star Wars themed?” Fez sassed. “It should be me!”

“Oh, yeah, I’m sure he’s going to love his candy-and-porno themed bachelor’s party!” Eric shouted.

“Still better than Star Wars!” Fez shrieked.

“You take that back!” Eric shrieked.

“You guys, let’s all agree on one thing,” Kelso said, stepping in between Eric and Fez. “That if I become best man, I promise we will have strippers at the bachelor’s party.”

“Kelso, you do realize that you can’t take home any of the strippers, right?” Donna interjected.

“Well, if I pay them to then they will!” Kelso laughed. “They will do anything for money.”

“That’s a prostitute, Sweetie,” Jackie said.

“Okay, well then they’re just gonna wanna do it with me because I’m so good lookin’,” he said.

Jackie rolled her eyes. “Moron.”

“Okay, guys, seriously, we have to settle this,” Eric said, now standing behind the couch with Fez and Kelso. “The wedding is in two days and no one is best man yet.”

“I have a wild idea,” Donna said and turned to look at the guys. “Why don’t you let Hyde decide?”

The guys looked at her as if she had grown a second head.

“That is the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard!” Kelso cried out.

“Yeah!” Fez agreed. “He can’t make this decision on his own!”

“Actually, he can, but whatever,” Donna said, putting her hands up in surrender.

“I say we make this interesting,” Eric said, crossing his arms with a sly look in his eyes.

“Yeah?” Kelso asked, mimicking Eric’s stance. “How so?”

Fez saw this and copied their stances as well.

“I say, whoever can please Hyde the most, wins,” he responded, a smirk playing on his face.

“That can be so easily taken out of context,” Donna murmured to Jackie which caused her to snicker.

Kelso narrowed his eyes at Eric, confused. “Wait, what do you mean by please? Do you mean like…to impress him or…please…him?”

“Oh, God, Kelso!” Eric cried out. “I meant impress him!”

“Okay, how do you suppose we do that?” Fez asked.

“I don’t know,” Eric sang song. “Maybe, he’ll give me the title of best man by me giving him Led Zepplin tickets.”

Fez and Kelso gasped.

“You wouldn’t,” Fez whispered.

“I would,” Eric whispered back with wide eyes and a maniac smile.

“There is no way you’re winning this one!” Kelso shouted.

“Oh, I. So. AM!” Eric enunciated loudly.

“May the best man win,” Fez said seriously and then cracked a smile, laughing at his own pun. But that smile was soon replaced with a serious pout when he noticed that Kelso and Eric were slowly inching their way closer to the door.

With a minute of hesitation, all three boys made a beeline for the door, clambering on top of each other to get bribery gifts for Hyde. It took them a minute to get out the door as they each tried to shove each other out the way, but looked like they were all trying to get out in slow motion.

Donna and Jackie watched in amusement as Eric poked Kelso in the eye and Kelso shoving Fez’s face out of the way.

“Get out of my way!” Eric screeched.

“Get out of mine!” Kelso shouted back. “Ow! My eye!”

“You both are in my way!” Fez yelled back.

“Oh my God, just stop trying to get out and file out like normal people!” Donna cried out, making them stop and glare at each other before running out the door, slamming it shut behind them.

“Sometimes, I’m in awe that I’m with that man,” Donna chuckled as she turned on the TV.

“Please, I was with the other two. Imagine how I feel,” Jackie said, earning a laugh from Donna.

--Meanwhile—

Y/n sat on the bed, listening to the crinkling of the paper as Steven sat in the chair adjacent from her.

“Are you nervous?” she asked him.

He made a face, bringing his mouth downwards and shrugged his shoulders. “Not really. You?”

“A little.”

He looked up at her through his aviators. “Why?”

“I’m not sure. Maybe because it’s officially real.”

“Yeah, I get it,” he said, rubbing his hands together. “I’d never thought in a million years would I end up here.”

“Yeah,” she agreed. “I’d never thought I’d end up here with you, that’s for sure.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” he asked, his eyebrows knitted together.

“Nothing, it’s just that you were the last person I’d imagine here with me and…I’m not making it better,” she said, her voice squeaking under his scrutinized stare.

“Are you saying that this isn’t what you wanted to begin with?” he asked feeling insulted.

“No, honey. You know that I’ve always wanted you. I just…never thought I would get you, that’s all.”

He stared at her, jaw clenched. “Fine. Whatever.”

She scoffed. “Oh, c’mon, don’t be upset. That’s not what I meant.”

He rubbed his face. “Yeah, okay.”

“I’m serious!” she said. “What I meant was, I never thought I would be lucky and blessed to be able to share these moments with you. You know?”

“Yeah,” he said, sighing. “I know. Sorry, I’m just on edge.”

She leaned over, grabbing his hand. “Hey, it’ll be okay. We’ll be okay.”

He squeezed her hand. “I know.”

A sudden knock came at the door, causing their conversation to stop. A middle-aged woman with mid-length brown hair and glasses came in through the door, holding some supplies in her hand.

“Mr. and Mrs. Hyde?” The couple nodded. “Hi, I’m Dr. Lee and I’m going to be your OB/GYN. Nice to meet you.”

“You too,” Y/n said nervously, squeezing her husband’s hand.

Dr. Lee walked over to the sink and washed her hands before drying them and turned to the couple.

“How’s everything?” she asked, taking a seat.

“Well, everything is fine, I hope,” Y/n responded.

“Are you nervous?” the doctor asked.

The couple nodded, releasing a breath that they didn’t realize they were holding.

“Yeah,” they both replied at the same time.

Dr. Lee chuckled wholeheartedly. “Don’t worry, it’ll be fine. In fact, it’s completely normal. Now, are you still experiencing morning sickness? Any abdominal cramps?”

“I still feel a little morning sickness randomly, but it seems to hit me in the afternoon rather than any time of the day,” Y/n responded. “No abdominal cramps. Not yet at least.”

“You’re still pretty early in your pregnancy,” she replied, writing some notes on the clipboard. “But they’re coming soon, but don’t worry, they’re mostly completely harmless. Any pain or discomfort during intercourse?”

Steven looked at Y/n with eyebrows raised, interested in her answer. Y/n pretended not to see his stare. “No…is there supposed to be?”

“Yes and no,” the doctor responded. “Normally, when sex is painful it’s because the vagina is dry due to hormonal changes and that’s completely normal. So, if it does happen, don’t freak out. It’s normal.”

“Good to know,” Y/n responded and glanced over at her husband who shifted uncomfortably. “Don’t be such a prude.”

“I’m not,” he squeaked and cleared his throat. “I’m not,” he said deeper this time.

Dr. Lee laughed. “I’ve been doing this for twenty years and if I had a nickel every time the father grew uncomfortable of me mentioning their partner’s vagina, I’d be a millionaire.”

Y/n giggled, tapping Steven’s hand.

“Are you smoking or drinking?” Dr. Lee asked.

“No, not at all,” Y/n said, immediately shutting it down.

“Okay, and Dad, what about you?”

Steven’s hands suddenly grew clammy and he could feel the back of his neck heating up. “Well, um, I…I…if I did, would that harm the baby?”

“Well, it definitely wouldn’t help,” the doctor said. “Drinking is fine as long as she doesn’t do it, but smoking near or around her can give her second hand smoke which is what we definitely don’t want.”

Steven nodded. “Dually noted.”

Dr. Lee nodded. “Good. And one last question before we get started. Anything abnormal that you may be feeling that you’d want to discuss?”

Y/n thought about it for a minute, but shook her head. “Not that I can think of. If I do, I’ll make sure to give you a call.”

“Wonderful,” Dr. Lee responded and turned towards the counter, putting her clipboard down. “Are you ready to hear your baby’s heartbeat?”

Y/n and Steven nodded nervously.

“Alright, I’m going to spread this gel around your lower stomach, so if you could please unbutton your pants and push them down a bit so I can spread the gel.”

Y/n nodded and did what she was told and leaned back against the bed. Dr. Lee slipped on some latex gloves as she pulled up the machine closer to them along with the wand to spread the gel. Dr. Lee fiddled with the machine for a minute before grabbing the gel.

“This might be a little cold,” the doctor warned before squirting it on her revealed flesh.

Y/n’s stomach muscles responded by twitching at the cold gel, but immediately relaxed as the gel was spread. Noise started erupting from the machine as Dr. Lee moved the wand, looking for the heartbeat.

A noise emitted from the machine, causing the doctor stop and listen. At first Y/n didn’t know what it was until she started to realize the familiar rhythm was, indeed, a heartbeat.

“Is that…?” she asked the doctor who nodded, smiling widely.

“It is,” she responded. “That’s your baby’s heartbeat.”

“Oh my God,” Y/n said breathlessly as Steven jumped up to her side, grabbing her hand. It was like all of a sudden, their anxieties had melted away and was replaced with this amazement. Y/n's and Steven's hearts picked up speed, listening to their little life's heart beat like a drum. “Steven…we made that.”

Steven removed his glasses and stared at the monitor in awe. He felt his throat tighten from the sudden flow of love filling him. “I know…this is unbelievable. I can’t believe we…did that.”

Y/n laughed in amazement and squeezed his hand. “I know.”

She glanced over at the doctor who was staring at the machine in confusion and watched her move the wand over by a slight degree. “Is everything okay?”

“Yeah,” the doctor replied, suddenly her eyes widening slightly. “I just…I hear another heartbeat.”

The couple snapped their heads over to the doctor.

“You what?” Steven asked.

“Huh?” Y/n said.

“Have you guys thought of the possibility of…twins?”

“Of…what now?” Y/n asked. “Twins?”

“Yes, twins,” Dr. Lee answered and moved the wand some more, hitting a spot that showed, in fact, two different heartbeat rhythms. She sighed in shocked as she listened to the monitor. “Well, congratulations, Mr. and Mrs. Hyde. Looks like you’re having twins.”

Tags: @jeeperky​ @05-feet-off-the-table-06​ @cooloclown​ @mdittyz123​ @n-dg-wm​ @undead-sierra​ @random-thoughts-003​ @lieswithoutfairytales​ @taysirene @ xxivy-32 @supertrappy @chloem4a1

[andypantsx3]

say the word and you know i’ll follow

pairing: Todoroki Shouto / Reader

status: complete

length: 3,262 words

summary: While moving in with Shouto, you get caught up reliving the scene of his confession. Quite literally.

(A smutty oneshot sequel to my fic if i could keep cool.)

tags: romance, reader-insert, fluff, smut

warnings: aged up characters, eventual smut, cunnilingus, light bondage

notes: Also cross-posted on my AO3! The manga really has me all in my Todo feels rn but I don't wanna write a whole other fic before I finish the Hawks one, so please have this fluffy smutty one shot as a compromise. It likely won’t make sense unless you’ve read if i could keep cool first, so please check it out if you have the time!

It was sweltering when you stepped outside to make your way to Shouto’s apartment.

A thin film of sweat immediately began to build wherever your skin pressed against the box you carried, and the sun beat down furiously on the crown of your head. You instantly started to second guess your choice to take the train, wondering how dumb of a move it had been to decline an alternative means of transit. It was going to be like being packed into a sardine can and roasted over a hot stove.

Shouto had offered to send an agency car, but there were only so many more times you were going to make the trip from your crumbling student apartment to his place, and you had wanted to make the most of it. You didn’t even really need to bring boxes over just yet--as Shouto had hired a moving company to take care of everything next week--but you didn’t want to lose anything that was inside this one. This one held all your most treasured items--keepsakes from your friends, a pressed white tulip, and all the gifts Shouto had ever given you (minus, of course, the vegetables).

Steeling yourself for an uncomfortable twenty minutes, you set off towards the station, weaving through the tired crowds of people who looked just as sun-weary as you. Thankfully, with a hat over your face and a box you could shift to obscure your features, very few people seemed to recognize you as you did so.

A lot of the media attention surrounding your mishap a year ago had died down, and you had been good about keeping your relationship mostly private, so you weren’t exactly a household name to most people. But there were enough twitter-savvy teens and meme-literate college students that you were sometimes recognized as you went about your daily life.

This time, you were only eyed curiously by one pair of teenage girls as they bundled into the train car across from you, but they didn’t say anything to you, didn’t ask you to reenact the most embarrassing five seconds of your entire life into their phones, as many often did. The box hid you from the rest of the train car, and no one else seemed to take interest in your presence.

After exiting the train at downtown, you made it to Shouto’s building in record time, all but rocket-fueled by your desire to get out of the hot sun. The security team in the lobby of his building gave you friendly nods as you passed, one of them graciously pressing the button for the elevator so you didn’t have to fumble around your box.

You thanked her, making your way into the elevator and elbowing the button for Shouto’s floor. The elevator was even cooler than the lobby, and you shivered in delight as the frigid chill of air conditioning washed over you. God, this building was so fucking nice compared to yours. You were going to be spoiled as fuck once you lived here.

You made it to Shouto’s floor without incident, though digging in your bag for your keys was impossible at the moment, so you knocked on his door as firmly as you could manage with the box still balanced in your arms.

There were a few seconds of silence. Then, the door swung open and Shouto stood there, grinning at you.

His hair still looked a little damp from a recent shower, and he was wearing a dark button up over a soft tee shirt and a pair of dark jeans. He looked unbearably good, as boyishly handsome as ever, and your heart gave an embarrassing little stutter, like it always did whenever you saw him. You suspected it was always going to be like that, no matter how long the two of you had been dating.

Shouto’s eyebrows went up as he considered the box in your arms. That heterochromatic gaze picked over you curiously, expression going carefully blank, like it typically did when he was up to some mischief. And then, after a long moment, he spoke.

“You’re not wearing the scarf,” he said, sounding upset.

You stared up at him, feeling your brow wrinkle. The scarf? It was fucking summer, and the scarf was neatly tucked away in the box you were holding. It was literally boiling hot just outside the well-air conditioned hallways of his building. Why on earth did he think you would be wearing--

You inhaled a little sharply when the answer hit you.

The scarf.

The scarf was the first thing he had mentioned the day he had finally confessed to you. Well, after you had confessed first, really, on national television earlier that week, that you were thirsty as hell for him and were also really bad at picking up subtle clues. Or overt clues. Or any clues, honestly.

But now you were standing in his hallway with a box again, and he was clearly remembering what had happened the last time you had done so.

You wracked your brain for what you had said to him in reply that day, trying to hone in on the words past the sudden swell of embarrassment.

“Uh, it’s in here,” you finally replied, gesturing to the box.

That grey and blue gaze dropped to the parcel in your arms, then flickered up to your face. You pushed the box at him, the way you had the day he’d confessed, feeling just as squirmish as you had then.

What else had you said to him? Something very watery and over dramatic, likely. Something like...

“It’s all, um, there--if you wanted to check,” you said. “Except for the vegetables obviously. But I can pay you back, if you give me a couple months.”

Shouto was clearly suppressing a smirk as he feigned curiosity. “Pay me….what?”

You suppressed your own absurd laugh, wondering how far down mortifying memory lane he wanted to go.

“I also wrote down a recommendation for a new cleaning lady, if you want,” you said, patting the top of the box. “It’s in there. Her name’s Mika, she’s super nice. And I can message you or your manager when I have the money. Just let me know which one you’d prefer. Or I can have Mika drop it off.”

Shouto gripped the box, then, long, elegant fingers pulling back the flaps for him to peer inside. He looked absolutely delighted to find the scarf actually within. In one fluid movement, he pulled the scarf out, depositing the box behind him, and turned back to grab your sleeve, pulling you quickly into the apartment with him.

“Okay, what are you doing with the scarf this time?” you laughed, breaking character.

One white eyebrow went up as Shouto gripped your wrist firmly, eyeing you closely as he pulled off your baseball cap.

“Mm,” he hummed absently in his deep tone. “Something I should have done the first time.” He caught your other wrist, pressing it into the sinfully soft fabric of your favorite accessory.

You looked at him, bewildered, feeling your mouth twist into a slight frown. You rather liked the way things had gone the first time around, considering that you had ended up with a boyfriend at the end of it all. What was his bone to pick with the first time around?

“Uh, if I’m recalling correctly, the first time went great,” you said to him. “Like, really really great. Christening your countertops several different times great.”

There was a flash of white teeth as Shouto grinned.

“Ah, but I missed an opportunity,” he said. A soft sensation slid over your other wrist, and you looked down in confusion.

Then it hit you what he was up to, and your face instantly went up in flames.

A firm tug had your wrists knotted together, and Shouto smirked down at you, tugging you closer by the silky fabric of your scarf. Your stomach swooped at the intent look in his eye.

“I had been upset you weren’t wearing the scarf,” he said. “But there was an easy way to fix that.”

You swallowed heavily, your tongue feeling strangely thick. Your brain was suddenly, but predictably, very very empty.

“Y-yeah. But technically you, um. You did fix it,” you babbled helplessly, limbs growing shivery with static as Shouto pressed closer. He was so warm, and he was so stupidly handsome.

“I’ve, uh, worn it a lot since,” you managed.

Shouto considered you quietly, a familiar, wry little smile pressing at the corner of his mouth.

Before you’d started dating, you’d been confused as hell by that expression, suspecting it meant he was bewildered by your very existence but was too polite to say so. After just over a year together, however, you had learned that was just what his face did when he thought you were being unreasonably appealing. Which, mystifyingly, was mostly when the working part of your brain disconnected from your mouth.

You scrounged around for other coherent words, thoughts thick and sluggish, like you were thinking through pudding.

Shouto, however, was merciful, putting an end to your suffering by leaning down and taking your mouth with his.

All the coherent thought you’d managed to dredge up melted away like frost under the morning sun. You pressed yourself closer to him, leaning up to give him better access to your mouth. Shouto kissed you as stupid as he always did before a hot hand came up to cup your face, thumb sliding over your cheek affectionately.

“It seems I’ve got you in the scarf as I had wanted,” Shouto said quietly, once he let you up for air. “But now I find that the scarf is all I want you in.”

You opened your mouth to respond, though what you might have said was as much a mystery to you as anyone. But all that managed to come out was a choked, breathy little noise.

Shouto laughed.

Then there were large hands on your waist, and the next thing you knew, you were staring down at the wood paneling of Shouto’s floor as it moved underneath you. Shouto adjusted you over his shoulder briefly, and then he was charting a brisk course to his bedroom, depositing you like an errant pillow back onto his sheets.

Your cheeks burned as he crawled over you, gaze hot and searching.

“Are you alright, love?” he asked.

You nodded vehemently, eyes pulled to the little flat sliver of his abs where his shirt had ridden up.

“Good, yeah, I’m so good,” you managed to garble out. You were going to be so embarrassed about this later, but as usual when it came to him, you really couldn’t help it. If you’d learned anything in the year you’d been together, it was that you would always have the world’s fattest crush on Shouto Todoroki.

Strong fingers came up to grasp your chin, tipping your face up for another searing kiss. You managed to loop your bound arms over the back of Shouto’s neck, tangling your fingers in his soft hair and pulling him down to you more firmly.

Shouto flattened himself against you, so that you could feel every strong plane of his body, every hard muscle. You shuddered, and you could feel Shouto smirk against your mouth.

“Like that, do you?” he asked, hands pulling at your shirt. You wiggled so that he could pull it out from under you, sliding it up to rest just below the scarf. In the next second he’d also gotten you out of your pants, so that you were mostly bare to him in the cool apartment air.

Shouto looked you over for a moment, looking like he still couldn’t believe you existed. “Having you over the countertops was something that I wouldn’t change. Something that I won’t change, once you move in.”

Your face went hot and you squirmed underneath him.

“However,” he said softly, “I believe I would have liked to have been more deliberate with you. Taken my time with you,” he paused. “Perhaps...I might have made you come once for every photo of me on your twitter.”

The tips of your ears went hot. Jesus Christ, he couldn’t be serious.

You had deleted that twitter over a year ago, and though he’d apparently been allowed access to the contents by his manager (rude) there was absolutely no way he could remember how many pictures of him you’d retweeted. You’d been the one doing the retweeting, and even you didn’t remember, though you thought the number was probably embarrassingly high.

“There was like, one,” you squeaked out.

Shouto’s smile went dark and he leaned over you, his perfect, infuriating mouth so close he might have kissed you again.

“Thirteen,” he said, mouth brushing yours as he spoke. “There were thirteen photos of me on your twitter. All while you tried so hard to act like you didn’t want me, that you wanted to be just friends.”

“Hey, you said you wanted to be my friend,” you protested. You jerked when his hand slid up your side to cup a breast, thumb slipping under the band of your bra.

“You weren’t accepting my gifts,” he said, fingers grazing your nipple. You bit down on an embarrassing noise, letting out a sharp breath. “How else was I to make you take them?”

You opened your mouth to respond but Shouto made another pass over your nipple, and a moan escaped you instead.

“That’s right, love,” he said encouragingly. “Now I’m going to make you give me something in return. Thirteen somethings, in fact.”

He peeled down the cup of your bra, fastening his hot mouth over your breast. You whined, twitching when he flattened his tongue, dragging it slowly over the point of your nipple. A strong arm came up to press your hands down over your head.

“Shouto, thirteen is insane,” you panted.

He paid you no mind, instead swirling his tongue in a way that made your vision blur.

A tugging at your wrists made you look up, in time to see Shouto one-handedly looping the long end of the scarf through the slats on his headboard and pulling tight. Your whole body clenched up at the implication.

The slide of fabric over your breasts told you that Shouto had also managed to get your bra up, and hot mouth closed over your other nipple, long fingers carefully plucking at the other. “We have all weekend, love. Thirteen is ambitious but quite possible.”

You made a weak noise of acknowledgement, hips shifting forward against his stomach.

Shouto laughed, hot breath ghosting over your breast, and then he was crawling down your torso, hands grasping your underwear. He pulled it down slowly, torturously, until he managed to get it off you, then pulled your knee over his shoulder.

You whimpered, feeling like you might actually pass out from how hot he looked, one thigh thrown carelessly over his shoulder, gaze intent, staring down at you like a starving man looking at a hot meal.

You squirmed, trying to pull your arms down to get your hands on him, but the scarf held fast, pulling more firmly over your wrists.

“Shouto, please,” you said, though whether you were begging for him to touch you or to let you go, even you didn’t know.

Shouto seemed to take it as permission. Those two-toned eyes passed over you hotly, and then he was leaning down, biting down gently on the inside of your thigh. You jerked violently, but he held you in place, mouth trailing slowly, slowly down to where you wanted him.

You thought you might actually black out before he got where he was going.

“I can’t believe I ever told you you were unwelcome in my apartment,” he murmured, sucking a slow bruise into the skin at the crease of your thigh. “Once you move in, I’m never going to let you leave it.”

“Oh my god,” you said.

Shouto’s tongue flicked out, catching the edge of your sex, and you tried not to choke on air.

Then, finally, he moved, fastening his mouth over you, exactly where you wanted him. All reason completely left you.

After that, everything was an unbearable flurry of feeling--a soft tongue swirling over you, the tickle of his bangs on your stomach, the press of broad shoulders between your knees. There was the rasp of his sheets between your shoulder blades, the slow, deliberate press of two fingers inside of you, a firm grip on your thigh, fingers digging in tightly.

You could feel every point of connection with him, every minute movement of his mouth over you, and the sensation built up into something so horribly, terribly good. You were unable to do anything but writhe and pant underneath him, babbling something that sounded like it might be an approximation of his name.

Shouto hummed and sucked softly, those long fingers curling inside you. He finally hit a spot that made you see stars, and you practically lifted off the bed, back bowing. Shouto licked you through it, tongue curling expertly around your clit while you sobbed out his name, only slowing when your body went slack, collapsing back into his sheets.

When you could see straight once more, you realized he was staring up at you, that wry smile curling the corner of his mouth again.

You fought down a blush, feeling an embarrassed grin pull at the corner of your own mouth.

“You’re unreal,” you said. “I can’t believe I’m going to get to have you all the time.”

Shouto pressed a short kiss to the skin of your hip. “You already have me all the time.”

You flapped a hand in its bindings. “You know what I mean. I can’t believe we’re going to live together.”

His fingers slid gently over the back of your thigh. “I’d have had you in here sooner, if you hadn’t insisted on graduating first.”

You laughed. He was always so very straightforward about whatever he wanted.

He had been making very unsubtle noises about living together only a few months into your relationship, but you’d insisted that you wait at least a year. He’d grown up with more conservative mores, having been raised a rich boy, and taking things quickly once he knew he was serious about you seemed to be the style of things. But you, despite your frankly unreasonable thirst for your own boyfriend, knew the value of taking things just a little bit slower.

So you’d waited a year, just to be prudent, though you’d known all along how things would end up.

And now he finally had his way.

“I’m all yours now,” you promised, laughing. “Soon you’ll be sick of me hogging the bed, and leaving books everywhere, and getting so blackout at the farmer’s market that we don’t have room for all the vegetables.”

“Ah, you’re using me for vegetable access,” he accused, though the effect was somewhat ruined by the smile he was attempting to smother into your thigh.

“A girl’s gotta have her priorities,” you grinned.

Something lit up in Shouto’s gaze again, and he shifted up against your thigh to lean over you more fully. His fingers gripped the back of your knee tightly.

“I'll make you pay for that,” he promised darkly. “Twelve more times.”

You shivered as he took your mouth again, fingers sliding back between your thighs with obvious intent.

And then you really did. You paid for it.

Twelve more times.

[borkthemork]

Drabble Request: Anne and Marcy after her rescue

You know what, Anon? You get a 2,600 word draft as a treat. Thank you for your patience!

-----

Anne had read books before.

She wasn't the kind of person to read long-winding literature like the typical bookworms back home, but she did read whatever interested her. From magazines to comics to zoo books about bird mating dances, Anne liked stuff that had meat to it.

Give her enemies to lovers, she'd cheer at the makeouts. Give her gut wrenching biographies about surviving the Himalayas, she'd bawl her eyes out. And if one gave her story about being one's true self under the guise and acceptance of a duck instructor then she'd quack it up and never be heard from again.

There needed to be meat, drama, scenes of people kissing in the rain. Stories were all about getting punched in the gut over some random guy, and that would always be the best part!

So she had no idea why Cynthia Coven never stood out to her.

It might be because of the choppy writing style or perhaps fantasy wasn't her thing, but that didn't make sense to her. After all, she'd read anything as long as it was interesting and somehow the Coven books just…didn't stick?

Sure, Cynthia had a pet squirrel. Anne could find a squirrel at the park anytime. Cynthia had spells, curses, people with talking body parts that shouldn't be talking at all. Okay, cool — ugh, why wasn't she interested? Everything about it seemed right up her alley!

She chalked it up to preferences and moved on. 

But somehow, after all these years, the same book fluttered between the pages in her hands. And she found herself narrating, speaking the paragraphs out loud under the green canvas of her tent. 

All because the bedridden girl beside her couldn't sleep. 

It had been forty-six hours since Anne and the girls united. It felt a lot longer than that, if she wanted to be honest, but all the footing, fighting, and planning they did to get out unharmed from Andrias's castle had taken a toll on them. And for Mar-mar even more so, what with the amount of stuff that went down. A lot of explosions. Crying. Frog-on-frog violence.

So in this tent came privacy. Not enough privacy to basically stop Sprig or Sasha from barging in, but the makeshift walls were one of the most protected cliff faces inside the forests. So they were basically between a rock and a hard place.

And since Amphibia's nature became a hazard to not only the typical frog but aggro robot intruders, nothing got through as a threat in the end. Not even the huge mother frobo that she and Sash fought days prior.

Anne flipped a page.

The cold draft had slipped in and raised goosebumps on her umber skin. It almost seemed surreal that Summer started to transition out with the months passing, but the chirp of birds and the lack of cicada song had marked a new season, and now Anne shivered slightly with her narration.

Marcy's wounds needed to heal. From the remains of the stab wound to the headache to the numerous nicks upon her feet, if she didn't start sleeping then the medicine Maddie gave wouldn't come into effect anytime soon.

And if she didn't snore in the next ten minutes, Sash would have to knock her out with some sleepshroom grub saute and Anne wasn't going to let her get drugged anytime soon.

But from what was currently happening, Anne became unsure.

Marcy's eyes fluttered shut a few times. She would start drifting off at some random part in the story and then jolted back to listening intently as if nothing had happened. Nothing in the book could get her to sleep. Not Cynthia's introduction to werebeasts, her dramatic one-liners, or how she got knocked out for a minute straight from drinking a pint of Canadian beer.

Wait, could teens drink beer in Canada? Gah, that wasn't important!

What was important was that Marcy looked dead — terrifyingly dead — and no matter how much Anne tried to keep her eyes on the words, the fear clung to the recesses of her mind, asking if everything was going to be alright despite the girls' current luck streak.

That maybe this would be the last time she'd ever see Marcy alive. All because she fell asleep.

Anne leveled her voice when these thoughts struck her, and hoped Marcy didn't note the hitch in her throat or how she blinked faster to catch herself from crying.

Because Marcy was strong. She was stronger than people gave her credit for.

Anne peered down. Marcy's thumb had pressed to the side of Anne's fingers, their eyes meeting for a second; one harbored bags under her eyes, the other of worry.

"I promise I'll sleep." Her smile reached her gaze, the weariness plain on her worn out dimples and ashen cheeks. Anne might need a washcloth later. "It's been a long time since I've read the Cynthia Coven series, my brain can't help but pay attention."

"I know, Mar-mar." Anne closed her eyes for a second and let out a relaxed sigh. "Seven months can be pretty long."

"Tell me about it." Marcy's eyes lingered at the ceiling, licking her lips. "I've been so busy with everything that's been happening that I've barely caught up with the latest book."

"Yeah." Anne smiled. "You know they've got a new release out?"

She blinked. Almost as if Anne punched her in the face at that moment. "Are you serious? Aw man, I missed so much."

"Hey, it's alright. It'll be waiting for you when we get back." Besides, Anne already wrapped the edition in a lot of Christmas paper, might as well keep the surprise.

But Marcy still looked miserable. She pouted,  letting her sink more into the mattress almost comically, and Anne bit back a laugh when she groaned. "Oh man, I'm so excited, this sucks! At least tell me if Cynthia gets over the Bridge of Quintessence."

"I don't know what that means and besides, you're two books behind, why would you wanna spoil it!"

They shared a laugh and carried on. Anne missed this. She did. In between the page clips and the eagerness flowing in Marcy's voice, it almost seemed like they were back to what they once were: Two girls laughing and making fun of bad jokes, giggling at stuff that didn't make sense in the story. It almost made the worries over Andrias and her parents grow into background noise.

Almost.

Anne perked up. A question had flown past her, and now Marcy stared at her, inquiry clear in her eyes. "Oh, sorry, I zoned out a bit. What'd you say, Marbles?"

"I'm curious, Annarama."

"Curious about what?"

Marcy's eyes traveled over her shoulder for a second. Was it the fatigue? Judging from how she fiddled with her fingers, the question must've been something serious, maybe something about Andrias or what happened back in the castle.

Whatever it was, Anne readied herself as she waited.

And then:

"Is that mine?"

Anne blinked. She ogled her book, then at the bedside table with its medicinal herbs, then the Thai Go logo printed fresh on her shirt. "What's yours?"

She pointed to Anne's waist.

When Anne looked down, the realization struck her like a bat. Under the filtered sunlight, she almost forgot that the yellow jacket around her waist was there to begin with, snug and tight in that hard knot Anne tied everytime she stepped out of the house.

And somehow, it remained clean from countless dimensional hops and Super Saiyan power-ups. And now it was here. Being scrutinized by her and the girl opposite her.

With that, she started to sweat.

Right, that.

A nervous laugh burst out from her mouth, making Marcy stare at her more out of concern.

How was she going to explain that?

"Oh, yeah! I almost forgot!" She rubbed her neck, trying her best to pick out the right reasons in her mind, but nothing stuck out to her. "It's a funny story actually, so funny that you'll probably forget in the morning so why not another time?"

A smile formed. "I don't know, Anne." Her eyes scrunched up too in pleasure, pressing her thumb against Anne's knuckles. "I'm all for sleeping to a comedy. Remember when we watched Borat? I laughed so hard I passed out."

"Oh, Mar-mar, that's not what I mean."

"Then what do you mean?" She then pulled her hand away, frowning. "Unless I'm pushing you, then I'll just—"

"No, no. You're fine!" What wasn't fine was how her heart pounded against her chest. Or, that the more she tried to take a deep breath, Marcy's growing concern made her laughter sound more like an old man wheezing from an asthma attack.

Anne was about to make a dumbass out of herself and that was fine! As long as she stayed calm and explained then maybe she wouldn't feel nervous about this.

Wait, why was she nervous anyway? It was just a jacket!

Oh, she knew why.

"Okay." Anne placed the book down, trying to regain her breath. Might as well go for it. What was the worst that could happen? Don't answer that. "So you remember how I've been trying to find my way back after I got through the portal?"

"Yeah?"

"Well, I didn't want to forget. Not like I would've but I thought you died and I knew taking down Andrias was the only way to avenge you and get Sasha back." Anne sharply inhaled — words speeding past her ears. "So I thought 'Hey, I'll carry your jacket so I don't forget' and I basically wore it around everyday until I finally found a way back. So…"

Marcy's stare didn't help her sweating as she spoke, giving jazz hands to finish it all off. "Here I am. Yeah."

Marcy continued to stare at her. She'd never seen her this gobsmacked before; usually she found a way to ask questions, to let her enthusiasm shine through with eager stride, but now she became a deer in the highlights. All agape. All wide-eyed.

Oh Frog, I broke her.

"Mar-mar, you okay?"

"So you wore my jacket as a reminder to stop Andrias," she asked slowly, "after months of finding a way back?"

Anne puffed out her cheeks. "Maybe?"

"Anne…"

"Okay, okay, yeah." She hung her head, defeat in her voice. "I did."

"Oh." Marcy's eyes widened to the size of saucers, a shaky exhale breaking through. "Oh."

Anne stood up. If she didn't get out in the next fifteen seconds, she was going to explode. "Okay, yep! That's it for the Cynthia Coven series! Goodnight, Mar-mar, I'll check up on you later—!"

"Wait, wait!"

Marcy latched onto her wrist. Her ears pounded on, hard to focus with her sweaty palms and the shallowness of her breath. Because this whole situation was awkward and weird and it made her feel funny things in her heart and darn it Anne should've handled this back on Earth — not while they were stuck in the middle of a Frog darn war!

"Anne, please look at me."

She did. 

When she turned, the sight surprised her. Marcy's cheeks had darkened considerably as they held each other's gazes, the hold on her arm still having them tethered to one another.

Then the touch loosened slightly. It didn't speak of fear nor did it speak of pain. It didn't speak of the desperation Marcy once had when she held her fists in the broken halls of the Newtopian castle. What Anne instead found was reassurance. A reassurance in their interlocked hands, at how they gazed intently under the tent canvas, a heat creeping well onto Anne's cheeks too.

"It's really sweet that you wore my jacket like that." Marcy then bore down at the bedding lines, almost squeaking her words. "And very clever! Yeah! Because a physical reminder is a great alternative to notebooks and to-do list, and since my jacket has emotional connotations to me, of course you'd wear it! It just makes sense."

Marcy coughed into her sleeve, words almost a whisper. "You've always been good at improvising, after all."

"Mar-mar..."

"And thank you."

Anne stopped. She could've honed in on the bustling Wartwoodians outside. Or the rustle of the forest trees. But she focused on the comforting tap of Marcy's fingers, and the gleam in the girl's eyes — almost as if Marcy was about to cry.

"You've always been kind," she murmured. Her fingers trailed circles on Anne's palms, leaving her to shudder slightly under the touch. Especially when Marcy's eyes grew half-lidded. Remorse on her lips. "And to know you worked so hard after everything I did to you and Sash, I don't how I'll ever make it up for it."

"You don't have to do that," she said. Her words drifted between them, remembering what Mrs. Wu said a few months ago: That Marcy was the best out of all of them. Because she always needed to be. "What Andrias did was not your fault, and I'll beat him again if he ever makes you think it is."

"Besides," she said, putting on a smile. "Having you beside me has always been enough. Honest."

But Marcy's grief remained on her face, unspoken as her fingers faltered their dragging on Anne's palms.

Because she wanted to hold her hand instead, both their fingers trembling from the bedridden girl's arm.

"Anne, I hurt you. I did. No matter how much I try to justify myself, I still omitted everything about what I knew." Her eyebrows furrowed, glaring more at their shaky hands. "I was selfish. I wasn't honest."

"Don't say that. You didn't know this would happen, I understand this now."

"But you're still angry." Marcy sighed. "I know you are."

The conifers rustled silently. The faraway bugs whistled, occupying each interval as they held hands, their gazes observing anything but the other. Until Anne couldn't think up a better excuse anymore.

As much as Anne tried to forgive, there was something frightening about the resentment in her skin, underneath all that warmth. It went against every lesson she learned. Every lesson of compassion. Or maybe she was just denying it for what it truly was — a tight angry wound that had reason to exist as much as their handlock. 

Her body sagged at the thought. She'd gotten so far, trying to deny anything about herself would reverse so much.

"Yeah," she said softly. "I'm still mad. I don't want to be, but I am. But that doesn't mean I was gonna leave you guys in the middle of a war." The next words were under her breath. "I never wanted you guys to get hurt in the first place."

Marcy brushed her knuckles. "Take as much time as you need."

"I think a few months is enough."

"Or a year."

A smile. "Maybe more."

And Anne held her hand until the silence heard their heartbeats. Until their smiles returned slowly, surely.

"I talked to Sasha before you came in," Marcy said.

"You did?"

She nodded. "Mhm. And I don't know if she told you this, but we both agreed to a concordance." Marcy faltered. "An agreement I mean."

Anne snorted. "You don't have to dumb yourself down around me."

"Heyy, I'm not, I just don't want this to sound...clinical."

"Right."

The younger girl shuffled closer to her, which was surprising enough with the limited room on the bed itself. But when Anne held her eyes, there came recognition of something new. Was it relief? Worry?

"What we agreed on is that you don't have to forgive us. Maybe you'll be mad at us for a long time—"

"Mar-mar, I'm not—"

"Let me finish," she said softly. Anne hesitated. She resolved to caress Marcy's knuckles instead, and, of course, she didn't seem to mind. "Whatever happens, whatever you decide, we're not going to abandon you. If you want us out of your life, we'll respect it. If you want us to stay, then we'll respect that too."

Marcy inhaled, slow and careful. 

"And when you're ready, I'll make sure to be close by."

There had been times where Anne couldn’t predict what her future held. There had been numerous moments where Anne wanted to quit, to get angry, to question how her life hit upon all these coincidences like pinball and found herself in the most surprising of situations.

But when Marcy finished, stared at her, waiting for her to let her statement sink in, everything seemed to click in place. For just a single moment.

Each word had come out resilient, well thought-out. Anne could imagine the planning so clearly: How Sasha and Marcy sat in the same positions as them, sat with their heads together as they discussed what to say. And the more Anne listened, she could only hope that Sasha was just around the corner, ready to say the same things in her own Sasha-like way.

But for now, they gripped each other's hands, squeezed their fingers until Anne could only think of the heat. The burn in her nose. Then the bit-back sob and her trembling lip as Marcy pressed a thumb carefully to Anne's cheek, rubbing the tear trail away.

Because out of everything Anne predicted to find at the other end of the portal, it wasn’t this. 

"You promise?"

Marcy smiled, the ends of her lips twitching weakly. "I promise this time." Her voice broke. "I do."

With it, came the waterworks.