#but yeah my friend obvs thought it was hilarious

[kingkatsuki]

In one of my silly little discord games you drop cards and if you grab them you get to date them, which helps to make your cards pretty and level them up— so in the game I dropped Childe from Genshin who’s my friends fave but she’s never managed to drop him herself so she can’t date him.

So I said I’d marry him for her so I could make her card pretty, and when you date characters you have to answer questions to build your relationship with them— and so I’m looking at this guy like “He looks cute, sweet, respectable. Lemme just answer all the answers opposite to what Bakugou would say—”

And I’m picking every single answer that’s like sunshine and daisies, and wondering why I’m getting a negative red reaction every time and our affection rating isn’t increasing.

Can you tell me why my friend did NOT fucking tell me that this guy is a WAR CRIMINAL?! Mate I was so shook. So I started answering questions like he was Bakugou and suddenly our affection rating is shooting up so fast😂

So yeah, I definitely do not know your blorbos but I’ll be there with you until the very end😭😂

[suzie-shooter]

Alex Rider season 3 unhinged liveblog ramblings scribbled during first watch. Spoilers, obvs. (also fair warning, I am not particularly a fan of Tom or Kyra lol)

Episode 1 - Widow

S2 recap trivia - Alex's therapist is Molly Doran from Slow Horses and married to Alan Blunt IRL

Malta: Ok, so we're not just going to pretend it's Venice lol.

Creepy old men already hitting on Alex. Standard.

"After this we're out of leads." How do you even have any leads in the first place? Oh ok, Smithers' phone. Terrible security protocols from him, leaving that much historical classified data on it.

"Find the Widow - surely he could have given you an address?" First thing Tom's ever said I've agreed with lmao

Aaaand within a second he's back to being deeply irritating, okay.

Yassen living rent free in Alex's head, you love to see it.

"They've got this picture of me being the responsible one." Have Tom's parents actually met him?

Ooh Razim mention.

You maybe want to clean that wound before whacking a dressing on it Alex?

"Do you think you'll ever lose your appetite Nile?" Spat my drink.

Damn, no harem pants then. Scrubs up well tho.

Listing Levin in the opening credits than having him be only a S2 flashback should be a warcrime.

Episode 2 - Lab

"This weapon is called pork sword, wait, no, shit, wrong USB."

"Julia Rothman. Definitely a wrong un." Spat my drink again.

Do Crawley and Pritchard not warrant helmets and visors? Are they somehow immune to shrapnel?

So, room 6, wired to blow, yes? It's what I'd do…

Oh yeah sure guys, they're going to still be sitting there, all unmoving in the dark, for sure that's a person, and not a Massive Trap.

Thereeeee we go. Agent mince. Top of your class huh, well you're certainly at the top now, and down the sides and partially out of the window.

I know there's the whole 'characters don't know what genre they're in' thing but you are literally in the 'working for MI6 genre', you are up against people notorious for booby traps and blowing shit up, why the fuck would you touch something that hadn't been declared safe first? Apart from anything else you're fucking up the scene before forensics get there.

"I love you man." Vom.

Alex: breaks into super sekkrit lab. Also Alex: doesn't have the faintest fucking idea what he's looking at, so not really helpful.

COMICALLY LARGE BOMB KLAXON.

Episode 3 - Enemy

"Welcome to Malagosto." OooOOooh.

Maybe I'm just looking at it from a fic writer's perspective but it does seem a massive anticlimax to immediately let Tom and Kyra know Alex is okay? Like, you could have got a good couple of episodes of angst out of that uncertainty.

"Do you want me to kill them?" Oh God yes please.

Why the fuck have they plugged the USB directly into the network rather than an isolated PC? 'Hur dur we checked it first', you literally believe Scorpia are smart enough to not be bluffing about the nebulous death threat but you don't think they could hide something on the hardware? Fuck's sake lads. Amateur hour.

Is this Home Secretary meant to be Suella Braverman? Or Priti Patel maybe lol. (Equal rights and all that, and if it had been a white male character I don't think I would have thought twice about the dialogue but having both your two new female characters be immediately proved wrong/ massively patronised/ blown up ain't hugely comfortable viewing tbh).

HOW MANY FICS INVOLVING ALEX GETTING FUCKED ON THAT BED HAVE JUST BEEN BORN?

"Are you suggesting we break into a dead man's house?" "It's not like he's going to be there." 😂

"He became a very close friend of mine." Fnar.

Omg making Alex read his father's love letters is hilarious.

Alex: you could have faked that news report Also Alex: handwriting can definitely never be faked (how is Alex even familiar with his dead father's handwriting? wouldn't recognise mine)

Ugh please stop trying to make Alex/Kyra happen.

Alex up the vent shaft. I hope they're sitting casually at the top going - you could have just taken the stairs love.

If he's climbing upwards, why is his hair dangling like he's upside down? Have they filmed this like 60's Batman, and he's just crawling along a horizontal set lol.

Alex never once asks about his mother does he. Given the shagger-John route they seem to have gone down you almost think Julia would be in a better shout of getting Alex to switch sides by claiming to be his mother.

And - yeah, Alex's recruitment just doesn't feel that convincing here. Adding Tom/Kyra/Jack so much to the mix has changed the feel of his life a lot, and TV verse Alex has had a lot less fucking over by the Department by this point too. And Rothman feels too creepy to be effectively convincing him of anything.

"I want you to meet your tutor." FUCK YES FINALLY 🙌 (may have rewound that part several times lol)

Episode 4 - Recruit

Nicaragua: 18 years ago OH MY GOD IT'S HAPPENING

Baby Yassen is adorable, I'm in love.

OH MY GOD THAT'S SO MUCH BETTER THAN THE FUCKIN SPIDER THING

OH MY GOD THE REVEAL OF HIM STANDING OVER THE SLEEPING ALEX I'M DEAD

(Ok, I'm calm again. For now. We continue.)

"You killed my uncle" - all the hundreds of ways this conversation has been written over the years and Yassen's just like lol get over it 😂 (here for it tbh)

Rothman: He's one of our best Yassen: One of? Bitch.

Yassen watching Alex train like 👀👀

"Did he ever tell you you're no fun?" Oh you want to have FUN with Yassen do you?

Yassen bitchslapping Alex to fuck, both hilarious and hot.

Oh, you want to be WET wet.

"Matteo's the guy with the blanket." Why is that so funny.

Omg Yassen stepping in to protect his boy and humiliating Nile in the process lol. And Alex doing what Yassen tells him, because of course he does 🥰

"This one is my responsibility" 🥰🥰

"What about love, friendship?" Alex has only known Yassen five minutes and is already down bad.

"Kind of lonely though, right?" Yeah, Yassen needs you at his side Alex, so step up and stop being a whiny little bitch about killing people.

Never get in the first taxi, rule one of espionage.

Yep, called it. Tom's like: I'll have my fucking tip back in that case.

This scene is so dark I have no fucking idea what's going on, I thought Nile had attacked Alex, but apparently not. Is Nile officially part of this exercise or not, it seems really unclear lol.

The power of friendship and sparklerabbits saves the day, apparently. Yawn.

Jesus, we really ATE with this ep, huh.

Episode 5 - Revenge

"Would you rather your arms around me, or my arms around you?" Way to make it creepy Tom you skeevy fuck.

"Can we focus please?" "We're multi-tasking."

Sure Grendel, rock up to the super sekkrit spy base in a massively conspicuous car why don't you?

"Yassen will give you everything you need." Oh I BET he will.

Feels sloppy them not removing the diffuser from the vent tbh.

"What does this say?" Alex hasn't inherited John's neat handwriting then lol. Alex leaning into him like that > me making noises only dogs can hear.

"You've put lockpick?" "I left my last one in Nile."

Ooh, suicide pill, nasty. Kind've pointless though, given they've been left with the evidence anyway.

Yassen in Alex's bedroom again, likely place for him to be.

"I don't want you to fail. I don't want you to die." 🥹💕🥰

Yalex roadtrip, let's goooo.

Disappointed they're not making Alex do the Entrapment infrared acrobatic sequence here lol.

If this is Yassen's idea of a date it definitely needs work.

So no surprise scorpions then? Can't have shit in Detroit Malta.

"Why? Why did she kill him?" Well taking things at face value here he was a highly murderous member of a terrorist organisation, so you know, kind've her job.

Yassen does like a casual lean, doesn't he.

Episode 6 - Target

Alex and Yassen have shacked up in London, hope there's only one bed.

Now they're in the back of a van, SO many opportunities for shagging, they're spoilt for choice.

Yassen's impressed look when Alex reels off all the security details, so proud of his boy.

"What happened to my mum?" Finally he wonders lol.

"And I'm good at it. You could be too." 🥹

"You think Alex killed him?" I mean, he was also there with a notorious assassin, so probably not, y'know.

Domestic Yassen cooking Alex's dinner and also cooking him a gun lol.

Smithers' "How I've missed you" ahahaha. Smithers/Kyra much better pairing tbh.

"He's actually quite good at this stuff." Smithers' little snort lmao

Time for Alex to be blacked up/ dunked in a teabag bath/ gussied up. Although he still looks exactly like Alex afterwards, which feels less useful lol.

"You love him, don't you?" Yassen loves him more. I have to say Alex had far more chemistry with Syl, and frankly for that matter with Tom. I really don't get the Kyra agenda.

"It's a dry hole." Alex's worst nightmare.

Is Alex going to look through Mrs Jones' knicker drawer?

Episode 7 - The Shot

Mrs Jones and her tall murderous hobbit son lol. Otto really looks about 58 here.

Hope they bill him for her fucked up fridge.

Is that Bath? Oh, it is.

Mrs Jones casually throwing Alex back into play lol. Maybe she can have a little revenge for him trying to shoot her.

"Everyone breaks into houses." Jack's face lol

Ewww put him down, you don't know where he's been (Yassen's bed, almost certainly)

"Remember they can't hurt you unless you invite them in." "That's vampires."

Yassen arguing in favour of going to rescue Alex MY HEART

"Sit down. I'm going to tell you a story. About your friend, John Rider." HOLY PLOTHOLE TIMELINE PATCHING BATMAN

"John was embedded inside Scorpia for three years." Not the only thing he was embedded in by the sounds of it.

Alex seems to be hallucinating again lol.

Yassen, maybe psychoanalysing your insane boss isn't the safest thing to be doing?

"It's quite mad Julia." Yassen really gives no shits omfg

"I know my place." Yes, at Alex's side.

I like how Julia thought telling Yassen she'd killed John would do anything other than piss him off lol.

Episode 8 - Invisible Sword

"But you do owe me a new fridge." LOLLLLLL

Crawley feeling like a spare part during this lift convo, hahaha

"Smithers, you can do me some kind of tracker, right?" "Yeah, if you promise to keep it on you this time."

Alex is like ohshit I'm gonna die fr

"Not for the agents. They undid their seatbelts." Eyyyyyyyy 👉

Aww they've given him a little baby assassin outfit, how cute.

Where's Yassen, has he just fucked off to the pub?

"For the head of Scorpia, you're a really bad liar."

Laughing at all the other Scorpia agents having to listen to this convo about their boss like we are not paid enough for this shit 😬

"Everyone else is getting what they want, let me have my cereal."

Protecting his boy to the last. Yassen really is purely on Alex's side, we love to see it.🥰

And OMG HE LIVESSSSSSSS 🙌🙌🙌🙌 (I voted yes in that poll, I had faith lol)

Well that was - far more fanservice than I dared hope for, after the meagre pickings we got in the first two series. Yalex supremacy to the motherfucking end, let's go.

[sharpth1ng]

*resurrecting from lost password hell* i recently re-watched near dark with my friend and we decided that a) stu would love that movie and b) would totally find severen hot and hilarious gven they have the same kind of energy. obv need your thoughts on this v imp matter <3

Omg @zeldaaaaaaaaaaaa thats where you've been! Im so glad to hear you've been re-alived. Also your new name is giving me this

But yeah I agree Stu definitely loves near dark, literally how could he not be into Severen, fucking look at this dude:

Billy looks, Stu energy fr.

[urlocalnonbinarybastardwrites]

HEYYY you alr know i love you and your blogs SM🥰🥰anyways could you ship me w an outsiders character pls?

i go by she/her pronouns and i am straight btw!

looks: i’m 15 (almost 16😭) 5’7, with an athletic body type and wavy medium blonde hair that i usually blow out in curls, expressive brown eyes, kinda chubbier cheeks, and suntanned skin

personality: obv you already know me bestie but anyways, i am pretty smart☝️🤓, im quick to laugh and to smile, and i don’t really take myself all that seriously. i am an introvert at first but once someone else starts a conversation im automatically like best friends w them. im told i can’t hide my emotions like at all😭. i love to take care of people and am def the therapist friend in my group

hobbies/interests: i love photography and like still life/sports photos the best. i also like sports med which is so random ik but 🤷‍♀️ i just enjoy helping people. i really like cooking too. i play the piano all the time, i used to take lessons but now i just self teach the songs i wanna learn. i do enjoy reading but i prefer classics compared to more modern books.

fun facts: ermmm i love you bestie🥰also dally is my fave but i prob won’t get him realistically but THATS OK🙏🙏anyways byeeee

Your Outsiders Ship: Ponyboy Curtis

(yeah I’m sorry I’m not putting you with dal- I don’t want to pay for your therapy /jjjj)

Explanation: I think whenever he saw you, he thought you were like very, very gorgeous. He thought you were one of those athletic girls that would maybe be a little bit too good for him, but he still wanted to shoot his shot anyway. He really loves the color of your hair and I think that he’s definitely written poetry about how pretty you are and then never actually showed it to you because he’s so embarrassed of it. he almost thinks that you’re a dream because of the fact that you can are so perfect for him. You’re really kind which he always adores as a quality in someone because the world is already so unfair and cruel. Why can’t there be more people like you and that’s something that I think he would wonder consistently you’re also very smart and get good grades so I think he would love talking about things with you and like study dates would absolutely be something very common in your relationship: and he would love discussing tests or whenever you guys go into English together I think that he would like discussing the novel that you both read and make jokes about it with you. I don’t know. I just really see you guys being kind of academically based, but nothing too extreme like you don’t always do study dates and things like that. I just think you guys would find your classes, genuinely interesting and be able to relate to that and kind of a way that no one else in the gang can. I also think that he takes pride in making you laugh like if he can make you laugh or smile he’ll he’ll feel so good about himself. He will like I don’t know. It just makes his chest up. He’s just very very happy whenever he can do that. I also think that he would love talking his problems out with you and you would be a very great listener and that’s one of the reasons you guys make such a great couple is you’re not too afraid to express your feelings and neither is he and I feel like you guys would get into minimal fights because of this and he feels very comfortable being able to talk about literally anything with you just like Johnny or Cherry he feels that way about you too. He can talk about nearly anything he wants and he feels free to not be judged. It was just something kind of rare in his life that you can give him. I also think that he thinks it’s hilarious. You can’t hide your feelings at all and really deeply appreciates that because he’s so used to masking his own feelings and hiding his own feelings about certain things and being told to not be so sensitive so he finds it insanely refreshing that you never hide your feelings. I feel like he would also love photography and would love taking photos of landscapes because I think he finds landscapes and sunsets the most satisfying things to take photos of, but he would also take photos of you with a beautiful background. I don’t think he’s too much of a person himself. I think he plays football in his neighborhood and it was one of the things that could do altogether without fighting too hard, but he would absolutely come to all your games and support you. I think he relates to enjoying classics more than more modern books on another level. I think that you guys would definitely have so much fun reading them together and having your own little mini book club and then talking to each other about it afterwards, and I think you both go on deep rants about how much better the old classics are and how old writers used to have soul and modern writers just write whatever they want and I don’t know. I just think you guys would be really really passionate about that. He’s not the greatest cook, but I think he would enjoy it with you and if you actually managed to make something good together, I think he would be so proud of himself, but he would be way more proud of you. he also thinks the piano was a beautiful instrument. I also think he’s just addicted to it whenever you play the piano like he could stand there for hours and just listen you play and be all right and if you ever play the song that he requested, he would just die like I don’t know. I feel like he would love it so so much

I think he thinks that you’re really talented as a person. Also, yeah, I’m sorry you’re not getting Dallas. I don’t wanna pay for your therapy. 

Also, I’m so so sorry this took so long. I’ve been really really really busy and trying to get all these done.

[lexicals]

System collapse notes made as I read:

(Spoilers, obvs, mostly out of context)

Amazing opening page as usual. This feels like coming home I'm so happy

Side note, "one of you" - like, is this being delivered to an actual audience, or does mb just like to pretend it is? I know it's just an in-universe excuse for the conceit but either option is so good

ART canon tax fraud?? ART canon embezzlement???

ART @ BE ship: "people die in car crashes all the time. I just thought that was interesting :)"

The note about iris having grown up alongside ART is so funny. And the note about her being ART's ratthi is so sweet from both sides of that comparison

I adore Three so much. The fucking baby deer comparison killed me this poor construct

I could be misremembering but it feels like secunit's narration has more colloquialisms than before, which is fun if I'm right

Love than mb and mensah have the exact same reaction to the extra settlement lmao. Handshake meme

ARGUCUSSION

SECUNIT YOUR BOUNDARIES. YOUR NEEDS. PLEASE STOP TELLING PEOPLE YOU'RE FINE

"Fun stuff like space battles and rescuing people and space monsters and throwing asteroids at planets" this bot loves its cheesy tv so much I'm gonna cry

WHY DO YOU KEEP REDACTING THINGS SECUNIT PLS THIS IS STRESSFUL. I can't tell if this is it editing out trauma discussion or something else

Mb casually using ART as a dictionary lmao

Oh god is it hurting over 2.0 specifically. Oh man of course it is. God this poor bot I'm so 😭

Mb and ART working as a team so fluidly.... best friends......

Ratthi can tell secunit is busy thinking/working just by glancing at it.... FRIENDS.....

"SENTIENCE SUCKS" LMAO. YEAH OKAY WE'VE ALL FELT THAT

MB JUST HAS THE VIDEO FILE OF RATTHI ALMOST GETTING EATEN BY A WORM ON HAND. AMAZING

Mb and pin-lee bonding over watching scifi car crash videos. Incredible

SECUNIT THE SELF-DESTRUCTIVE TENDENCIES. LITERALLY TRYING TO JUMP OUT OF A PLANE WITHOUT A PARACHUTE. PLEASE

I'm gonna cry pls mb stop beating yourself up for being traumatised. This is exactly what you were giving mensah shit about!!!!!

"It was always my job to get hurt" I Am Going To Fucking Cry

CITING ITS SOURCE ON THE PRE CR HISTORY LESSON LMAO

God I feel like this poor bot spent six books building up its confidence and it's all just been shattered after the thing with 2.0. Like it's so palpable in the narration that it thinks it's broken in some way and is forcing itself to carry on regardless but with no regard for its own survival, which has always been of pretty high priority for it even in ASR!! It's let itself get beaten up in the other books but it's never been reckless like this. Mb please stop punishing yourself.....

Ohh tarik and mb shared corpo trauma..... can we talk about that maybe

Ratthi correcting iris about the ex-secunit thing.... ouuououugghghh

"Under normal circumstances that would be kind of hilarious" mb honey as a reader. That IS hilarious

Mb "so is this guy your..... ex-security..... not that I'm feeling jealous or insecure rn....."

HEY GUYS YOU EVER HAVE A PTSD FLASHBACK SO BAD YOU PASS OUT. GUYS

HEY GUYS HAVE YOU EVER HAD YOUR BRAIN-CRASHING PTSD FLASHBACK ANALYSED IN DETAIL BY A BUNCH OF PEOPLE YOU WANT TO RESPECT YOU

Mb once again having the worst time of its life but being offered a media archive by a friendly bot: oh fuck yes hello there

Ooooh pre-corpo media no less......

THE ART THERAPY-SPEAK..... "that’s for humans" "this affects the part of you that is human" I'm going to yell and yell and yell

"No, it doesn't read my mind, it just knows me really well" 🥺

I feel like MW has gotten more up to date on current gender/pronoun usage since the earlier books which is nice to see. We've had neopronouns before but having pronouns attached to feed/character intros is new and appreciated

Mb: "aw fuck am I being tall and intimidating again"

Local secunit physically repelled by power phrase "sexual discussion" like a fucking skyrim shout

VISUAL EQUIVALENT OF A WET BLANKET..... SECUNIT......

OHH...... OHHHHH!!!!! OHH MY GOD THE. IS THIS THE. WHEN I TALKED ABOUT THE CONCEIT EARLIER.........

Oh okay no BUT MURDERBOT NEW CREATIVE DIRECTOR POSITION BABEY!!!!!

And ratthi is so supportive. God I'm so. AAAAUGH

Just patch out the anxiety lmao. New mental illness fix dropped please restart your OS to apply

Telling your bestie to fuck off IS a kind of love language and I'm glad that ART appreciates it 😌

LITERALLY "(INTERNAL SCREAMING)". LMAO

Mb literally in a life or death situ rn: I could just burn part of this person's brain out to save us..... that seems mean though :/

"I lack a sense of proportional response" LMAO ART. At least it's self-aware

"I didn't come here to make friends" says the secunit who literally cannot go anywhere without forming some kind of allyship with someone

The delayed-hack though, that's fun. Wonder whether this file is gonna slowly make its way from CR secunit to CR secunit as mb gradually becomes some kind of mythic figure, lmao

"Be safe" 🥺

FINAL GIRL IS OUT. FINAL DRONE IS IN

ART: "Oooh you guys care about me ^^ lol"

LMAO ART YOUNGER SIBLING BEHAVIOUR

ALSO YES SET THREE UP WITH THE OTHER CRAZY SMART AI THEY CAN ALL GET A SECUNIT BESTIE!!!!

Murderbot trauma acknowledgement 😌 You go working through your feelings mb you're doing so well ily

WHERE ARE WE GOING NEXXXTTTT THAT IS INDEED THE QUESTION!!!

Summary thoughts: this was really good and I like that MW has taken the time to address the NE fallout before moving on to whatever is coming next, I'm mostly just excited for that whatever-comes-next now. I didn't expect this story to still be focused on the same planet, but it's cool that it was! And now we're moving on with more machine intelligences and rogue secunits in play!! And they mentioned the comfortunit from artificial condition so hopefully that'll come back into play soon as well! I feel like something is building up wrt construct rights in the setting and I'm very excited to see that, but in the meantime I loved getting this familiar romp through MB having a very bad day and working through its emotions while also trying not to die. And it was fun having the twist on the usual formula with things being so isolated and it having to handle everything while being off its game, it felt a lot more tense than some of the other entries just by virtue of the fact that MB's narration was so much less confident than usual, and it made it really nice to hear the fire come back to its voice once we hit that point in the story. 11/10 as usual I love this bot so goddamn much

[ashxketchum]

TyHil for the five sentences obvs.

Yes, OBVS, there's no question about it 😆

Since you didn't mention a title, does that mean I can tease my Regency Romance AU 👀 👉🏻👈🏻

And yeah I CHEATED 😭 but how was I supposed to stick to just five sentences for TyHil 😭 I have a problem and we all know it by now.

Some background for this can be found here.

~~~~

It was a miracle, Hilary thought, that the glass of lemonade in her hand had not yet slipped away as she felt excitement rush through her whole being, the tingling sensation travelling right down to her toes, at the sight of him making his way through the crowded ballroom towards her. It should not have made her that happy, after all, she had spent the entire afternoon in his drawing room with his sister, discussing the possible places Kari could travel to in the future, while he sat across her, scoffing every few minutes at how she was comfortably indulging the youngest Godsworth's fantasies. Her brows furrowed into a frown naturally at the memory, so she gave her head a slight shake, hoping to focus on the present scene instead, now that Tyson was no more than a few steps away from her. He painted such a different picture of himself tonight, one she wasn't sure if she could get used to, the face of him that she was most familiar was that of a meddling and protective elder brother, not the dignified Lord who now stood tall in front of her, a courteous smile playing his lips as he dipped his head in a silent greeting towards her and Sora. She felt Sora nudge her from behind, reminding her of her manners as the two bent down for a proper curtsy. Hilary hoped that her face was not reflecting the warmth it felt when Tyson's blue eyes fixed themselves on her, because it was truly a strange feeling for her to be intimidated by someone's gaze, let alone someone she thought she hadn't held in high regard.

"My mother," he spoke, pausing to clear his throat once and tug at his collar, "she insists that I have you save a dance for me this evening."

For a reason beyond her comprehension, Hilary felt her heart sink to her stomach. She looked at Sora, just to check if her friend had detected the same meaning in Tyson's words as she had, but to her disappointment, Sora just beamed back at her, nodding her head encouragingly.

"What about you, my lord?" Hilary asked, confusing both Sora and the Viscount with her words. She grasped onto the glass tightly, hoping that it would provide a sense of comfort and courage when she raised her determined eyes and locked them with Tyson's, "Do you truly wish to spend your precious time in my company?"

~~~~

[florbelles]

cw flops thoughts under the cut (this is a joke)

there is no universe where i could viably justify sile in-character letting him go through with the ascention because she has already lost literally everyone EXCEPT for those currently around her (nessa included she's with them by then) she's ever been close to and so the second she even gets a vague "lol btw you'll be destroyed" inkling she is going to shut that the fuck down absolutely not (would love to claim it's because she has a moral interest here but she does not) BUT

gnashing my teeth over that lowkey bc yeah yeah good for her this bitch actually wins and gets her Good Ending for once in her long long existence (sorry baby) and yes that warms my cold cold heart and if i think too long about the fact that this is the only life where she is fighting tooth and nail to live instead of a determination to take the world down with her i'll have a fucking meltdown but i am who i am so naturally what i spend my time thinking about instead is that she would never be able to stay with ascendedstarion as a partner she would not be who she is if she was someone who could live with that imbalance in a relationship (she would not want it in reversed roles either at this stage in her life, hashtag growth) so while she would stay his ally and sort-of friend once he has his three days of sulking because morality has never been the obstacle for her there and she and minthy probably still sneak into his parties for the next few decades (if i decide to metagame and just say Uh They Assumed She Was Dead and call it a day since it wouldn't occur to sile to leave anyone alive on purpose which i. probably will i will allow myself SOME indulgences) that would be that on that but!! while that's not their Canon End and it's not her canon #Winning end i 1) think their dynamic would be objectively fucking hilarious and 2) it's still kind of. a good ending for her in the way that her actual ending is because look on paper playing consort and seizing power and control dot mp3 was always MEANT to be her future that's quite literally what she was raised for and trained for and the endgame of her life as essentially a glorified courtesan before her family fell and no she never wanted that for herself. no she's never been good at sitting still no she's never been good at doing what she's told and while she's an excellent leader she is too intemperate to be an excellent ruler and she has always known that she NEVER wanted that constraint but she also always knew it was realistically what was in store for her in spite of all of her small rebellions and public scandals of self-sabotage. and maybe maybe maybe if she stands still long enough to hear her inner voice creep up (she has spent the last decade doing her very best not to give it the chance) maybe it wasn't mercy or pragmatism or compliance that led her to take the blade her father handed her and slaughter them. maybe she already knew she'd never finish it and turn it on herself because maybe this was the only way she could ever actually live the life she wanted maybe it was the only way she could ever escape her fate and maybe her sort-of uncle did her the greatest service anyone ever would when he led that coup. and now she's not that nineteen year old girl anymore she's not a spoiled noble brat anymore she's been the one in control now for ten fucking years and she is never giving that up for anyone or anything so she looks at the life she was meant for with whatever is left of her best friend and says no i won't do this for you i won't be this again. haha. :)

(obvs Bad Ending~~ or whatever would be she does cave and she does become exactly what she was always meant to be and fate came and swallowed her whole Even After Everything and she's the beautiful woman with everything and nothing again, now eternal, which also holds its appeal for my diabolical self but that's a character choice she would never make AFTER a character choice she would never make so. very far removed from anything i could viably do without betraying her characterization integrity)

but again this is all for naught because she actually just Wins and Gets Everything She Wants in this life. enjoy the rest of your human lifespan. bitch

[meduseld]

20 Questions for Fic Writers

I was tagged by my dear @angel-starbeam so let's get into it.

1. How many works do you have on AO3?

234! To be found right here.

2. What’s your total AO3 word count?

586,701... I thought that number would be higher tbh.

3. What fandoms do you write for?

A lot, but currently mostly The Terror and 911 on fox. The duality of man I guess.

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

In order: I’d Learn To Float, You're Looking At Me (Like You Don't Know Who I Am), Water Is Sweet, Blood Is Thicker, Tough To Talk To and Down On Both Knees. Which is kind of a hilarious progression as it's two Superbat Big Bang fics about love and secret identity, an epic Aquaman with GOT style politics one and two sexy rough Buddie from 911 fics.

5. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

Yeah I always try to! People are sweet, they highlight stuff I hadn't even seen and sometimes they end up kickstarting the words juice. Like the second half of Nature Teaches Beasts to Know Their Friends is several k written exclusively for/in the comments section.

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

Probably After The Night (When I Wake Up)  since it's such a dark premise regardless and the ending is just about fucking everybody up.

7. What’s the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

Probably I’d Learn To Float up above, since it's a happy family time and personal fulfillment for Clark with less angst overall than some of my other fics.

8. Do you get hate on fics?

I have, mostly for NickxZiggy fics and other canon/practically canon ships which always suprises me because I've written pairings that on the surface should be way more "problematic". That being said, hitting that comment moderation button cleared them right up. Haters are cowards, basically.

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

I have yeah, but I don't think of myself as primarily a smut writer. My niche is probably masturbation as an excuse for character study.

10. Do you write crossovers? What’s the craziest one you’ve written?

Sort of? Like I like taking elements from one verse to apply to another to see how that works but more in the sense of like an AU over a strict crossover so not in the sense this was meant.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Not to my knowledge and I'd prefer to keep that ignorance going because yikes.

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

No, it's been offered but I'm kind of a control freak in these matters as you can infer from the answer above and have asked that people don't translate my fics.

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

Yes, but none have seen the light of day for different reasons which sucks because I do enjoy it very much, it just hasn't worked out to get to the publishing stage for life reasons.

14. What’s your all-time favorite ship?

I can't pick one, that's too hard, but obvs it really hits when you have a Character who thinks they are unlovable but committed to duty regardless and then a Character who goes on purpose, I love *you* on purpose. You can uh. Infer that from the fics mentioned above.

15. What’s a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will?

Ugh too many in my files! That's why I refuse to post WIPs they haunt me. But right now mostly the two big-ish Terror ones I really want to post but alas.......

16. What are your writing strengths?

I think a feel for character? Like I think I get what makes them tick, if that makes sense.

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

Describing the fucking area they are in!

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic?

I don't think this one has a hard and fast answer to be honest. Like, is it canon compliant (aka do you have a character known for swearing in Klingon? Are language barriers a theme in the work? Does this world have a second language for like magic and shit? Tolkien Elvish and so forth) or is it part of the story you're telling (i.e. does the POV character know this language or is their lack of understanding a plot point? Are you deliberately keeping information from the reader because this is a mystery?) I mean, if you don't have Gomez Addams saying cara mia you're doing it wrong. So basically it really depends on what is going on. If you need the reader to know what is being said/the POV character should know the language italics or implication (he swore in Spanish, and then she used a very romantic phrase in French or whatever) make sense, if you're deliberately highlighting the language barrier or setting up a plot point like they misheard the thing or are trying to piece it together then it should be rendered in that language. Or as implication I love that device.

19. First fandom you wrote for?

Uh. The Fullmetal Alchemist anime as a tween. It's for the best the sands of time swallowed that.

20. Favorite fic you’ve written?

I can't choose! That's too hard. Idk, you tell me your favorite fic that I have written, sound fair?

Tagging, only if you dig it:

@warrenkoles @jacksonmaine @dsudis @poeedamerons @boilyerheid and @dancinbutterfly

[m1ckeyb3rry]

OK CATCHUP TIME bro I fr thought you meant a HIATUS LMAOO GLAD YOURE BACK THO!!!!!! I fr was wondering if you’d be back for s2 maybe I was just primed by the usual tumblr hiatus sessions LOL

Tumblr the ultimate opp bruhhhhh someone come fix this site

ISAAC NEWTON AHAHAISHABAB bro what kind of poster is that…it’s FUNNY but aren’t you trying to encourage your students LMAOO??? It’s most definitely oaeu vibes coded

FR that’s the description I was looking for like he’s emo but that’s it. No other personality flavor. No you’re so real for megumi sae has no wit no sass it’s just flat emo and insults his insults aren’t even creative

BRUH I SAW THAT AND WENT ?????? Im ngl that ending felt like a whole load of nothing like huh??????? Idek what to say atp like yes gege give us NOTHING??? Whatever wars over ig truly the end of an era can’t wait to get my sanity back

SHAHSSH LOUDER FOR THE PEOPLE IN THE BACK sometimes I scroll through a tag and see a completely different character from a completely different fandom like WHAT are YOU doing HERE??

No because I usually look on the usual site likes bulbapedia or serebii but I didn’t find anything at first glance so I scrolled a bit to find something that was more formatted for fast looking ig that was my first mistake

Wait actually???? Wtf…ok wait BAROU how did I not think of that LMFAO anti-ginger campaign so real (I also don’t like the carrot juice aesthetic dw) but OMG can’t wait to see the manifestation of that Reo fic

LMAOOO real almost forgot that I didn’t even recognize some of those pokemon (Kunigami getting slandered and catching strays real wc Kunigami ESPECIALLY gives me scovillain vibes)

OOOOOOH wait the summoning concept slaps I’ve always found it really interesting but I haven’t read anything that uses that trope in awhile I’m very intrigued

Too real I think we have the same brain I LOVE CJILDHOOD FRIENDS TO LOVERS had to resist from adding fairy to mine because Wb already has that going on but yeah that’s also why I’ve always preferred rivals instead of enemies like something about the “extreme” of enemies usually ends up in a lot of wacky and cliche things that I don’t specifically enjoy

LMAOOOOO WAKT I’m excited and scared (only because of the swerve factor) KARASU MEDDLING WOULD BE SOOOO GOOD also wait on that note if you did feel like childhood friends would help you feel free to add it idm either way lowk I had some vague ideas about miscommunication but nothing concrete either LMAO I mean my first thought is always angst relating to his traumatic upbringing but that’s kinda a given…maybe his differing personalities (when he’s with friends vs parents) idk I’ll leave this in your capable hands and leave it vague so you can work your magic….i trust you’ll cook!! (No pressure though obv we will NOT be channeling Hiori parent energy) karasu fr about to come save hioris ass though HAHA

OOOOOOH I’m living for it I can sense a real work of art brewing here

AIKULATIONS anything with aikulations is gonna slap I can just feel those vibes

LMAOOOO dumbass Karasu we love to see it trip down memory lane to fwtkac vibes

“Sae number 2” has me crying (still not getting over the fact that there’s 3) LMAO sae would fit that trope perfectly like with the way he’s got his manager sweating HAHA

The love triangle is actually so exciting it’s been awhile since I’ve read a good one that combo of characters too is also such a unique choice many possibilities

The Isagi one is fr so isagi it’s hilarious but OOOH MURDER MYSTERY I see the vision

Sae number 3…ok wait Spanish tutor that’s kinda cute I also think when done well childhood friends with Rin has a lot of potential too excited to see what you cook

WAIT IM ON MY KNEES PLEASE USE THE SCATTERBUG IDEA LMFAOOAOOOOOOO especially with it being from Tullia I’m crying I’m so invested in the aiku Niko dynamic now (wait speaking of what vivillon variant do you think he’d get….lowk idr the mechanics of how you get different ones I just know they exist)

CRYING its kinda giving fwtkac once again this is so funny yuki is about to have a really good sense of smell at this rate if Karasu blows his eardrums out

RANDOMLY PASS AWAY (NOT THE HOLLYHOCK REF) he would just do a ninja despawn move and never come back

I forgot he liked owls I was fr like “bro what sparked you to think of this” now I see it HAHAHA wait you should use this for the Rin fic for the event it’s actually perfect (wait this would also be really funny in ref to the sae spanish teacher fic but sae likes seagulls)

NOOOOO omg hope your wrist gets better soon!!! Wait that’s actually crazy bro writing a whole PhD thesis paper in 36 hours or something and THE EYE omg manifesting a very speedy recovery!!!!

NAGI HATING MUTUAL SHAHSHSH but that’s so funny imagine no one ever caught it until pursuits full debut

REST AND RECHARGE TIME!!!! Yes omg a long kdrama binge session is in order! I think the most recent one I watched was “marry my husband” that was actually CRAZY although if you’re looking to not get mad maybe choose a different one because I was getting invested into that drama

SHSHSHS no because I kept debating how I should’ve perceived the way you worded it but the “come back stronger” made me think you were gonna go through a journey first not a 36 hour boot camp LMAOOO welcome back though HAHAHA I originally read it as “oh shit I have more work than I thought this is now going from 36 hours to indefinite” oops

- Karasu anon

SLDKJFHSK no i could not do a hiatus i fear…like yeah individual stories of mine go on hiatus all of the time because i start them and then don’t feel like writing until i randomly get motivation months later but me going on hiatus from being online is like antithetical to my character i NEED my phone time talking with my online friends hehe it was like actually terrible when i was gone for two and a half days i couldn’t even make it through the full 36 hours 😭 and omg you’re so right i could never be gone when bllk season2 is on the way!! just barely a week until it’s out AHH

HELPPP no he was such a silly teacher he did not gaf…i took calc 2 my senior year of high school and bro would make fun of us like i remember one time someone asked him what math he took in high school and he was like “i never took calculus in high school because i wasn’t a nerd like all of you” LMAOOO it sounds mean but he was really chill and funny (plus he was a really good teacher too) so i loved him…my friends and i made jjk ocs of some of our teachers (i wish i had a reason but it truly was that we had the free time) and i think his was my favorite he even features in the one megumi story i never talk about online because it’s so dependent on the high school teacher jjk oc lore that i could never post it but it’s SO special and dear to me even though i’m not into jjk much anymore

SAE A LOAF OF WHITE BREAD HAHAHA no because i would defend him but even giving him personality in oaeu made him feel like he was leaning ooc?? like wdym he makes a couple of sassy jokes and suddenly he’s not even himself?? that’s just not a character i fw i fear…yeah the jjk ending was. well. it was something!! idk like i said i wasn’t super impressed at all honestly i’m probably not going to engage with much jjk content for a while just because the ending was so…yk. anyways i saw a really interesting video on tik tok (during my self imposed isolation so sadly i didn’t save the link) that was talking about how animanga tends to rely on the visuals aspect of the storytelling which allows authors to get away with much more simplistic worldbuilding that doesn’t get explained as thoroughly and this also seeps into the plot/characters as well and i really think that that’s something that impacted jjk — there were definitely points where there was more flash over substance (in my opinion) and the magic system is definitely unique and well thought out in some ways but also unnecessarily convoluted in others?? it’s a story that would not at all hold up as a novel which again different medium of storytelling but if key elements of the plot/world like cursed techniques such as hollow purple fall apart when you cannot physically show them to the audience (just think about if you had to read gojo explaining his technique and then he just uses it on paper SKLJFHS it’s so anticlimactic lowkey) then that’s a marker that more groundwork needs to be done 😭 people who glaze relatively basic shounens like jjk for being peak writing and having amazing character dynamics etc etc (in my opinion and this is controversial hence why i’m hiding it in our chats) need to go read like…actual books (or even light novels) because if you think that gojo and geto is the most interesting dynamic conceivable then i fear you are cooked because number one craziest mira take they are NOT that special/compelling/appealing to me like i can see why people might like them but they are so normal and average to me in terms of writing 😰 READ ORV OR SMTH whatever kim dokja and yoo joonghyuk have going on is 10x more fascinating (superior white x black duo sorry not sorry)

BROOO EVERYTIME I SEE ONE OF THOSE PARAGRAPHS I CRASH OUT no because like i said it’s always such a random blend too like wdym sukuna and nagi are both in the “they would definitely cheat on you” category?? HELLO??? first of all WHAT do those two characters have in common and second of all NO THEY WOULD NOT?? ugh the mischaracterization is insane fr bro idk i was “off” of tumblr for like. two days. and now my dash is just going crazy (not about me it’s just like everyone is going through it atm for some reason which means a lot of negativity and complaining and whatnot from others) so i have a lot of rage in my heart for tumblr users rn SDLJFHSDK (not really but also like all i’m saying is if anyone ever tries to drag me into some dumbass conflict on here i’m fr just going to block them i don’t have time to beef w 14 year olds when i have characters to write fics about and actually enjoyable people [like you] to talk to)

NO WAIT WE NEED TO EXPAND ON THE BAROU VISION just like first of all i can so easily imagine him in a royal guard uniform holding a sword and being all stern but immediately caving as SOON as you bat your eyelashes at him and letting you get away with things like sneaking out of the palace as long as you take him to look after you but he starts falling in love with you when he realizes you’re not as stuck up as the rest of the royals (yes i did steal this from the megumi fic what about it…) imagine we get aikulations in here via aiku also being a royal guard to like. fucking sae or smth…omg wait yeah imagine you were sent to marry sae and barou’s your guard and aiku’s sae’s guard so he occasionally pulls up, says smth sassy/wise/meaningful/borderline insulting and then he just leaves (bonus points if niko’s his squire) AHHHH omg hold on imagine we throw in a little tullia and aiku subplot while we’re at it…i would say bring back elakshi but she’s deadass public enemy number one i’ve gotten so many comments on wattpad hating on her to the point that i’m abt to delete my work off of wattpad and be like “sorry but you all suck”…anyways so instead of elakshi we could have a may ducat comeback i suppose 🤔 if i didn’t have a bazillion things to be doing and a royal au following almost exactly the same plot for jjk already (which lowkey idk if i’ll ever finish given my motivation for jjk rn) i’d fr be attending to this but alas. pursuit and my requests are taking precedence rn

i def think the summoning concept is NOT what the requester had in mind but ykw i’m not basic so we’re going to do smth a little different hehe and honestly one day i want to write an enemies to lovers but to do it PROPERLY if that makes sense…like miraverse enemies to lovers where it’s not just stereotypical cold rude black haired male lead x idiot dumbass “perfect” badass female lead…however sae itoshi is NOT the one i would do that for (even though i’m fr in an enemies to lovers with him irl i think) i’m trying to imagine who in bllk i’d give that honor to 🧐 not nagi he has no enemies he doesn’t care enough…karasu’s too much of a lover at heart he fits rivals perfectly but true enemies no…barou’s the same he’s just a simp at heart despite his gruff exterior…otoya and yukimiya are too chill to ever give antagonistic vibes…kaiser and rin are too annoying and obvious for it it would end up being basic and cringy…reo is a sweetheart he can pull off angst well but not enemies…i’m stumped actually maybe just because i hate the trope HAHA

ooh vivillon colors…iirc it was just based on what country/region your ds was set to!! so like depending on where you lived irl you would get a diff vivillon but since pursuit obviously takes place in one region where the outside world has no bearing i’m going to say that it just depends on where you end up evolving scatterbug into vivillon (maybe like an evolutionary advantage thing in terms of camouflage??) i think niko’s based on vibes would be the jungle variant and tullia’s is either the meadow variant (which is like the really famous pink one) or the savanna one!!

LMAOOO yukimiya cannot escape the fwtkac menacing karasu role i think it’s so funny how in actual canon we honestly barely see him interacting with karasu (actually i cannot remember if we ever see them have even a single conversation it’s very much so tabieita + ken…bro’s fr just ken 😓) but in the miraverse he’s always pulling up and accidentally making karasu miserable by being too perfect 😭 PLSS otoya’s like “i was never even there baby i was an illusion” so hollyhock mysterious core of him

PLS i lowkey was looking through the account they’ve also made these gorgeous blue and gold rose dividers that would be PERFECT for kaiser i was going to reblog those too and be like “ok kaiser girlies come on now” and then i remembered that i actually also have to write for kaiser now…tbh i don’t usually use super embellished dividers those!! like i prefer to use plain lines and let my headers be aesthetic but lowkey maybe the move for this event will be no headers only ask response + pretty dividers because that’s less work for me SLDKJFHDS

AHHHH my wrist is feeling much better today!! i tried to write smth and my body took a screenshot so i’m giving my hand the weekend off but she’s feeling much better already and same with my eye!! i can use my contacts again on like tuesday ish so hooray for that (i actually don’t mind my glasses as much as i used to in the sense that i don’t think i look horrible with them anymore and everyone actually says i look really cute BUT they hurt behind my ears because i’m not used to wearing them for long periods of time so i cannot wait to retun to my beloved contacts and seeing how i like)

HAHAHA she’s a kaiser stan but she absolutely hates nagi it’s actually very funny to me plus i love meeting a fellow hater no matter who they hate so i love when she drops new haterism posts BUT omg agreed i can only imagine how many people would be in my inbox like “you linked the wrong master list 🧞” (<- sae itoshi emoji)

i feel like mentally and emotionally i do NOT have the space to start smth new so it’ll probably be one i’ve watched before…cloy was the first kdrama i ever watched (only last december!! i am very late to the kdrama game) so it might be time to revisit that one since i haven’t rewatched any of the ones i’ve already seen yet 😩 i also really really liked a time called you so i could def go for another watch of that one 🤩 and i can’t rewatch yet because i literally just finished it in july-ish but i watched this one on netflix with my mother about a vet that gets psychic powers and has to team up with this police officer (tbh reader and noel noa coded) and i wasn’t expecting much out of it but it ended up being really funny so i do think that’s one i’ll probably watch again when i’m bored or looking for something silly to lighten my mood

LSFJK no i’m just really dramatic it was still just a 36 hour “these are the consequences of procrastinating” grind session but i was being emo because i wanted to tap out (i didn’t though!!) fr glad to be back (although i wasn’t on tumblr as much today because i was working on a new pursuit chapter so it probably seemed like i had cut myself off again but in fact i was just working hard so i can please you 🙂‍↕️ you know what they say a win is a win or smth like that)

[marleyybluu]

Miss Ivy

Pairings: Oscar Diaz x black!teacher!OC, Cesar Diaz x black!teacher!OC(obvs platonic)

Genre: Fluff (?)

Word count: 1.3k

no warnings

(he actually had no business being so fucking fine its ridiculous actually.)

The pipeline from needing to be in a relationship to being completely fine in accepting the role of the fun, single aunt is an interesting one. Well, at least Ivy thought so. When she was a teenager all she thought about was boys, she wanted to have that, yeah we're high school sweethearts, storyline so badly but unfortunately, she never got it. If anyone ever asked her out it would be a joke for their own entertainment or it was from someone she just flat out wasn't interested in.

It felt like all her friends got attention from boys and she was left in the back to rot. Then came college, she was getting the attention she wanted in high school but now for some reason, she didn't want it— call it growing up I guess. She'd roll her eyes or make up an excuse as to why she couldn't talk to someone and it made her friends look at her sideways especially when some of the finest men on campus were trying to pull her.

Now with college out of the way and a little more growing up she was entirely too busy for the bullshit anyway. Some of her friends had married off and reproduced, but she was solely focused on her career and she was fine with that. Being an eighth-grade teacher was fulfilling, especially with a class like hers. Her students were absolute clowns, there was middle school drama that they came to her with and family problems that they felt they couldn't express at home. She was their safe haven and she was happy to be.

They filled that void in her life, and she was glad to be that person to help them transition from middle school to the chaotic jungle that was high school.

She did have one favourite student, in particular, his name was Cesar Diaz, an absolute sweetheart with a hilarious group behind him. Cesar was often the last to leave school so he'd come back to her classroom to either finish homework or just hang out. Occasionally she'd put on a movie of his choice or she'd show him movies from her childhood until his father came to get him.

However, lately, he'd been staying a little longer than usual, the school closed at six and he was still there at quarter to seven. I mean Ivy didn't have anyone to go to so she wasn't in a rush but it was Friday and she did want to go home and smoke, drink and watch something unrelated to children.

Cesar sighed, you could tell he was tired himself and maybe even disappointed that he was still at school. Ivy's shoulders fell as she looked out the window, no sign of Ray coming anytime soon. "You hungry? We can order a pizza." She offered. Cesar shook his head and continued to scroll on his phone. The sudden sound of a car door slamming could be heard outside, so hard you'd think the car window would bust. She watched as a younger male with a permanent scowl on his face approached the school doors but they were locked, so she knocked on the window and shook her head hoping he'd get the message. 

"Is Cesar in there?" She heard him ask, she nodded and looked over to her student. "Cesar, do you know who's outside my window?" 

He looked up from his phone and quickly sat up, "It's my brother, Spooky." 

Spooky? What the fuck kinda name was that? 

"Alright, let's go." 

Ivy gathered her things and slugged her arm over his shoulder as they walked down the hall, she caught Mr. Taylor who was the school's janitor sweeping the floor and asked him to unlock the door so they could leave. "Any plans this weekend?" She asked Cesar. "Yeah, uh, me and Monse are going on a date." 

She raised her eyebrows. Monse was a girl in the class across from hers, Cesar had been talking about asking her out for weeks but was too scared to do it until she encouraged him to. Telling him that she was most likely interested in him as well, at least judging by the way she would look at him. "See," She playfully nudged. "I told you she'd say yes. Make sure you get flowers, never show up empty-handed." 

Cesar let off a sheepish smile and shoved his hands in his pockets, he was excited but also nervous. They made it outside to see the same man leaning on a red car, a cherry red 1967 Chevy Impala to be more precise. It was nice and clean, you could tell the owner took pride in it-- she could damn near see her own reflection if she got close enough. He stood with his hands crossed over his chest, she couldn't tell if he was genuinely pissed or if that was just how his face rested but it was intimidating. It seemed to soften once he saw Cesar. 

"I'll see you Monday, miss Ivy." He smiled looking up at her. "Have a good weekend kiddo and good luck on your date." 

He nodded at her and headed over to the car, he received a hug from his older sibling and then slid into the passenger's seat. "Thanks for uh, watching him." He reached into his back pocket and pulled out a wad of cash, the gesture making her face scrunch as he counted enough and handed it to her. She pushed his hand back. "Look, I'm not a babysitter, you don't owe me anything. I don't mind staying with him." 

That voice. He could've become a puddle at that soft voice, that caring tone when she said that she didn't mind. He put the money back in his pocket suddenly feeling foolish for even offering it but in his world people didn't do shit for you without looking for an IOU. A question wavered over her mind, "Where's Ray?" 

Spooky dropped his head looking for an excuse on the ground. "He's um, he's working late and I just got off work so." 

There was a moment of silence, the two just gazing at each other. He was handsome, with cute rose-pink lips that sat in the middle of a moustache and his goatee, a small dimple in his cheek that appeared when he flashed her a small smirk-- a clean-shaven head that would've repulsed her a bit if he didn't pull it off so well. He was quite the looker. Which wasn't surprising considering their father was fine as hell too. 

Spooky liked what he was seeing, her beautiful dark brown skin, her wide nose that was accompanied by two nose piercings, his eyes fell to her plump lips that were two shades-- the top lip that was slightly bigger than the bottom was more of a medium brown while the bottom was the same shade but had a pink middle. They were glossy, and little specks of sparkles could be seen even under the street lights. 

Ivy cleared her throat figuring she was lurking a bit too long and stuck out her hand. "Well, it was nice to meet you... Spooky." The smirk was very apparent in her voice even though she tried to hide it on her face. He gently took her hand and shook it, her nails gently scratching his palm as they parted. "Nice to meet you too, Miss Ivy." 

She felt herself becoming warm and decided to head over to her car which was conveniently two parking spots away from his. He watched as her hips swayed, whether it was natural or maybe a little twist in it for him, either way, he was fascinated. Ivy looked over her shoulder and smiled once more. "Have a good weekend." She waved.

"Yeah, you too."

Well hello hello out there. It is finally fucking Saturdaaay and I am so happy to finally upload. Though ill be real this wasn't what I originally wanted to post, I like how this turned out.

hoping to make this a mini series, don't know how many parts yet but it probably won't be mad long. If you liked this story, feel free to like this story. comment and reblogs help and as always

be cool 🤙🏾

[pippytmi]

Roommates au, enemies to lovers, “you confuse me.” Supercorp obvs

“You’re a fucking liar.”

This is—objectively speaking—not the worst greeting Kara has ever received from her roommate, and so she takes it in stride. “Uh, hello to you…too,” Kara says slowly, silently running through a list of everything she could have done wrong to warrant such strong words.

But Lena does not offer any explanation; in fact, when she spots Kara in the doorway, she sends her a nasty glare as if Kara has said something wrong. “Don’t pretend you’re a saint in this matter, Lex,” Lena hisses, and only then does Kara notice the cell phone in Lena’s hands. “If I have to go and clean up your mess again…”

So it’s one of those days. Kara wisely shuts the door quietly behind her, and sneaks into the kitchen as Lena takes her argument into her room.

There is a list of chores pinned to the fridge—four black X’s cross out Lena’s, and Kara’s are underlined twice. They have a code, so as to avoid speaking to each other; X’s mean done, underlined means Kara you're a slob and a pain in the ass to live with. (All verbatim, by the way.)

The dishes, however, are not on Kara’s agenda at the moment. She instead takes the expensive whiskey hidden under the sink (that belongs to Alex, not that she has noticed it’s missing), and pours it into a glass with some ice. Then she whips out the ingredients for a stir fry, complete with every vegetable she had been saving for the potluck at work this weekend.

It is an unspoken rule that Lena will shut herself off into her room after this phone call is over. She does that every time her brother calls (and on occasion her mother), and Kara has picked up enough information about her roommate to know Lena will appreciate a hard drink and some food. She hasn’t said so or anything, but every time Kara knocks three times on the door and leaves a plate outside, it will re-emerge an hour later completely empty.

Lena’s voice grows louder despite the distance, and Kara turns on the stereo out of respect for her roommate's privacy. Lena hates the stereo and all it stands for; she argues it is outdated, and they have numerous pieces of technology that are less bulky and fully able to connect to radio stations. But Kara keeps it around anyway, because she still likes buying CD’s (and maybe to bother Lena, which is a bonus).

Blink-182 is playing on that alternative station Alex likes. Kara cranks it up as she cooks, singing under her breath as she sautes bell peppers and onions, ignoring the rumble of her stomach and the tight belt of her work pants still digging into her hips. “Say it ain’t so, I will not go,” she practically yells, poking her head into the fridge for the tofu that Lena always keeps. Kara personally won’t touch the stuff, but Lena is trying to eat less meat. It cuts up easily enough, even though Kara isn’t sure what the proper technique is.

She leaves the finished plate and drink outside after it’s done, rapping on Lena’s door in tune with The White Stripes’ “Seven Nation Army,” and then finally has some dinner herself. Since the tofu is unappetizing, Kara stores the rest of the stir fry in a container for Lena to take for lunch, and opts for a sandwich. She eats while scrolling through her notifications (she owes Nia twenty bucks, and so far Nia has been clogging up her phone with Venmo requests all well over $500), and keeps the radio on just for background noise.

That’s probably why she doesn’t even notice when Lena approaches; Kara has barely begun to type a text to Nia swearing to bring some cash next time she visits when a sharp voice declares,

“You confuse me.”

Which. Is not at all what Kara expected from her usually empty kitchen. And, caught exceptionally off guard, she nearly falls off her chair. “What the—Lena,” she sputters, righting herself. Unfortunately, the crust of her sandwich is a casualty of the surprise, and she watches as it crumples devastatingly on the floor.

Lena is not half as concerned about the fate of her dinner, and she stalks forward to jab a finger at Kara’s chest. “You confuse me,” she repeats.

Kara blinks. Then blinks again. “Um, okay,” she says. “…why?”

A strange, strangled noise rises from Lena’s mouth, and she appears angrier than Kara has ever seen. (Well, except for that one time that Kara did laundry and flooded the apartment laundromat, which had other pissed off tenants leaving mean messages for two weeks straight). “Because,” angrier-than-usual Lena says, “you do shit like cook food for me and don’t even say anything.”

“What do you want me to say?” Kara frowns, not sure where this conversation is going. “If you want I can start saying ‘Hey Lena, I made dinner’ every time.”

“You and I don’t do dinner,” Lena says, and it sounds like an accusation. “Every time I get off the phone, you decide to leave food outside my door. Why? What on Earth compels you to do that?”

“Because you’re always upset afterwards,” Kara says slowly. “And I thought you could use some cheering up, or at least a drink.”

“Whiskey,” Lena notes. “It’s always whiskey. And it’s never a cheap brand.”

“Well, yeah,” Kara says, gesturing pointedly to Lena’s designer work clothes (that she never seems to be without; Kara’s not sure Lena even owns pajamas). “You would probably accuse me of poisoning you if I gave you anything less.”

Lena narrows her eyes. “You don’t owe me anything,” she says. “So whatever this is, you can stop it.”

“What do you mean, ‘whatever this is’?” Kara repeats incredulously. “I’m just being nice!”

“I never asked you to be ‘nice’!”

Kara exhales, and reminds herself that it is illegal to strangle people. Especially since she is Lena’s roommate, and will therefore be suspect #1. Kara has never been a violent person, but her roommate just manages to test her limits.

“Look,” Kara says patiently, “I give you my sister’s whiskey, and she doesn’t care because she is trying to give up drinking. And I’m not a frequent cook or anything, but I can still throw together a plate because I know you don’t cook at all. That’s it! I don’t have a hidden agenda, or some secret plot here. I’m just being friendly.”

“We are not friends, Kara Danvers,” Lena says. “And I know exactly what this is, even if you refuse to acknowledge it.”

God, what an insufferable—“Okay, know-it-all,” Kara says, instead of the ruder words echoing through her head. “What am I doing?”

Lena’s jaw clenches noticeably. “You pity me,” she accuses. “You look down at my relationship with my family, and—and I don’t want your sympathy, or your stupid food, anymore.”

“If you wanted me to back off, that’s fine,” Kara says, holding her hands up in mock surrender. “But I don’t pity you, or feel sorry for you. Heck, with your track record, I’d feel more sympathy for your family. They seem to be on the other end of some nasty phone calls.”

Lena’s expression darkens. “You don’t know my family.”

“I don’t know you very well, either,” Kara retorts, and she turns back to her phone where three new Venmo requests are waiting (two of them well in the thousands range; Nia must think she’s hilarious). “Message received, okay? I’ll leave you alone.”

At first, Kara assumes that's the end of it—assumes that Lena is going to stalk off, and leave a strongly worded post-it on the fridge later that night for Kara to wake up to. That has always been how their relationship works; they fight, reiterate how much they hate living together, and go right back to ignoring each other.

But Lena doesn't walk away. Instead she sighs, and at that unexpected sound Kara looks up just in time to catch Lena frowning. “I—” Lena begins, and then she pauses uncomfortably before getting the words out. “I'm...sorry. I have been having the worst day, and it’s—it’s rude of me to take it out on you.”

“Okay,” says Kara dumbly, because she’s not sure what to respond. Lena never apologizes. Ever. It’s about as rare as, well, Kara actually doing her chores on time. “Thanks?”

Lena bites her lip, glances away. “You’re welcome,” she says stiffly. And this time she leaves—leaves, and abandons the plate of food Kara left her on the edge of the table.

Kara looks down at her phone. There are ten texts waiting from Nia, and about double that of Venmo requests. But she can’t shake the feeling that she is forgetting something, and it’s more than a twenty dollar bill. “Wait,” she blurts out, “Lena. What—what does that mean? You were an asshole to me, and I was an asshole right back, so why are you apologizing?”

“Well, you are more than welcome to apologize too,” Lena says, pausing in the kitchen doorway. She has a quizzical expression on her face, a kind of raw confusion that Kara has never seen before. Without the sharp clenched jaw and the angry eyes, she’s…just a girl. A girl, with a nervous tic of wringing her fingers together. A girl, despite her guarded nature, who is gazing right back at Kara as if she has no right to.

“Do you want me to apologize to you?”

A beat. “Not really,” Lena says. “I don’t—want that. You’re right, you don’t know me. Or my family. We’re nothing to each other, and I can’t expect you to know how complicated my relationship with them is.”

“Still,” Kara says, and she scratches the back of her neck absentmindedly at the sudden flush of guilt that overtakes her. “I am sorry. It was rude of me to, um, say that. Like if your family is a bunch of serial killers, who am I to say you’re worse than that?”

Lena scrunches her nose in a manner that is sort of cute. “Serial killers? Really?”

Kara shrugs—aiming for casual—and really that just looks like attempting nonchalance when suddenly she’s consumed with thoughts about how pretty her roommate is. “Like you said,” she says, “I don’t know your family.”

And, surprisingly, all Lena does is smile. A real smile, the kind that Kara has never witnessed, barely soft and just kind enough. “They’re not,” she says, and unnecessarily clarifies, “serial killers.”

“That you know of,” Kara points out, and Lena’s cautious smile becomes something fuller. That is the only thing that gives Kara the courage to add, “So, now that we have covered the whole you’re not your family thing, are you really not going to have dinner? I cooked tofu for you and everything!”

“You didn’t have to,” Lena argues, because she is defensive to a fault. But she falters immediately after, and sighs again, albeit in a more mellowed tone. “What I meant to say is, I really don’t need you to keep cooking for me. I’m fine.”

“Well what if I want to cook for you?” Kara says, and that is her own fault: she is ready to argue to protect her (noble) intentions. “We don’t have to be friends, if it terrifies you that much—”

“It does not terrify me—”

“—but we can be friendly,” Kara offers, and it’s a testament to her newfound appreciation for her roommate that she manages to even make a sentence. “If you want.”

Lena tilts her head, considering, and this time when she smiles it is curious. “If you knew what I wanted, Kara Danvers,” she says, “your delicate sensibilities would blush to their roots.” And with that odd goodbye, she eventually takes her leave; however, she does take the plate of stir fry with her, so Kara guesses that means they’re on their way to being friendly, if anything.

[joonessence]

The compliment // jjk

summary: When Jungkook remembers a passing comment you made about one of his friends, he makes sure you’ve learned your lesson.

wc: 2.9+k

tags: smut, pwp, kinda possessive/ jealous jk, dirty talk, oral (f and m receiving), fingering, unprotected sex (obv stay safe guys), slightly dom!jk, praise kink, jk calls oc baby an insane amount, fluff at the end though, hmm i think that’s it?

notes: this is a part 2 for this but it can be read alone, also there’s like a year time jump between pt 1 and 2 so if i turn this into a series i’ll order them in the series masterlist in chronological order soon

Maybe it’s all the blood rushing to your head, but you’re positive you didn’t hear Jungkook correctly. It’s one of the rare days that you and your boyfriend have a day off. Normally, one of you would have come up with a way to spend your time together but after that time Jungkook tried taking you to the park and ended up pushing you just a little too hard off the swing (your unripped jeans became ripped jeans that day), you mutually decided that the plan-making responsibility, minus the times he planned dates, would fall to you. Today, you felt like doing absolutely nothing, leading to you and Jungkook laying on his bed with both of your feet resting on the wall behind it. You’d spent more than an hour like this before Jungkook asked you something that had you wracking your brain in search of a memory of what he mentioned.

You turn your head to look at him, incredulously. He’s still looking up at the ceiling with a growing smile on his face.

“Do I remember what?” you ask as you sit up, half expecting Jungkook to take back his statement and say it was all a joke.

“I said, do you remember when you called Namjoon the buff one? Before we started dating?” At this point, his smile looks like it’s taken up more than half his face. Why is he smiling when he’s asking if you remember complimenting someone else? Seeing the prolonged, baffled look on your face he sits up too and reaches for his phone.

“I’ll show you, I think I can still find the message,” Jungkook’s got this determined look on his face while scrolling through thousands of your texts throughout the last year. When you met him over a year ago, Jungkook instantly made you lose your breath. What really surprised you is that he still had the ability to do so, with his twinkling eyes and too bright smile. You were stuck for good, but you don’t mind; you actually preferred it. Jungkook lets out a triumphant noise, signaling to you that he’s found what he’s looking for, and he reads it out to you.

“Here it is, and I quote, ‘I was just wondering if you could tell your tall buff band member that I liked his voice.’ It’s right here!” Jungkook looks at you expectantly, waiting for you to confess your sins.

It takes everything inside you to not burst into laughter. Of course, the second Jungkook started reciting your message, you remembered it. You recalled testing the waters, to see if Jungkook would give you any sort of reaction and you also recalled thinking it was hilarious. God, you were so funny.

“Oh, I remember that, why are you asking?” you wonder, suddenly curious as to why he would bring it up so long after the fact.

“I just remembered it randomly, it’s so funny that you lied to try to get me to be jealous,” Jungkook states.

All in under a second, you decide to play along.

“Lied? Babe, what are you talking about?” you put on your best confused face to sell the act. You’re praying Jungkook falls for it.

He cocks his head to the side and looks puzzled for just a moment before he lets out a huff, “I know what you were trying to do, you lied and used Namjoon to get me jealous. I’m big enough to admit that it worked. You got me.”

You almost feel bad for what you’re doing. “I mean, yeah, that’s what I was doing but I wasn’t lying about Namjoon,” you trail off, quietly.

You can feel Jungkook’s fists clench on the mattress and you look up to see his eyes hardened. You’ve come to learn that Jungkook doesn’t like sharing much and definitely hates sharing attention from you. Jungkook is scooting towards you. He’s towering over you, making you feel small, his jaw clenched as he looks down at you.

“Since when have you thought that about him,” Jungkook spits out ‘him’ like he can’t speak Namjoon’s name anymore.

Your gaze falls as you hesitate to speak, considering calling the whole thing off, but you’re a beat too late. Jungkook’s thumb finds your chin and tilts your head up, forcing you to look at him.

“I was just kidding, Kookie. You know I only have eyes for you,” you gulp, nervously.

Jungkook scoffs, as if he doesn’t believe you, and then smirks. You already know what you’re in for.

“How about you try to prove it and if I believe you, you’ll get something in return,” Jungkook’s words flow out so smoothly that you’re already crawling down the bed.

When you muster up the courage to look up at Jungkook, he’s positioned himself with his back against the headboard. He sends you a questioning look, silently asking if this is okay, and when you nod, he’s smiling at you with that too bright smile, like he’s already forgiven your transgressions. You’re climbing into his lap to straddle him and before either of you can say anything, Jungkook pushes your head down, your lips meeting his. Jungkook’s hand slides over your cheek to your jaw to pry it open, his tongue slipping in and meeting yours. Underwear already soaking, you shift on Jungkook’s lap to find some relief, which you find only for a moment before he removes his hand from your jaw and places it on your hip to still your movements.

“I thought I said you’d get something in return only if I believed you,” Jungkook says with a smirk.

You let out a whine, this is so unfair, and Jungkook laughs, “Don’t complain, baby, you did this to yourself.”

A huff escapes past your lips before Jungkook is pulling you down again, this time towards his neck. You kiss his searing skin, the spot under his ear, then his jaw, and trail down the column of his neck. Jungkook’s letting out little grunts to encourage you to keep going. You lower your hands to the hem of his shirt to lift it up and pull it over his shoulders. You continue kissing down his chest and look up, anxious to get Jungkook’s approval. By the way his face is flushed, you know you’ve already got it. You get to the band of his sweatpants and leave light kisses, the kind that almost tickle.

“Don’t try teasing, baby, I won’t let it slide,” Jungkook states in a dominating tone.

You nod briefly and slide the sweats down. Jungkook’s cock, already hard, slaps his stomach. You let out a giggle, another thing you’ve learned: your Jungkook never wears underwear when he doesn’t have to. Your laughter dissipates quickly when you spot the curve of his cock, it always makes your mouth water and right now is no different. Jungkook moves his hand from the mattress to the side of your head, pushing your hair out of your eyes. You make an appreciative noise before grabbing the base of his cock and leaning over it to release a trail of spit, connecting him to your lips.

Jungkook’s breathy grunts let you know you’re doing something right when you move your hand up and down the length of his cock. You poke your tongue out to lick your lips and Jungkook groans.

“If you take any longer, I swear I’ll make you take care of yourself,” Jungkook threatens.

With that horrible thought in mind, you lean forward and place small kisses up the side of his cock, skin so hot you feel like it could burn you. You swirl your tongue around the angry, red tip and Jungkook’s hands find a place in your hair. Opening your mouth, you wrap your lips and the tip and suck, using the hand that’s not steadying yourself on Jungkook’s thigh to slide up and down the rest of his cock. 

“That’s it baby, look so pretty with my cock in your mouth,” Jungkook praises, “Let’s see if you can fit some more in that pretty mouth, hmm?”

You try to nod without moving too much and continue sliding down, tongue rubbing against the thick vein on the underside. Jungkook’s cock feels heavy on your tongue, the way you like it. You get halfway before you hollow your cheeks. When you look up, Jungkook’s head is thrown back, his hair framing his face. Your heart swells at the sight for two reasons. 1. You love Jungkook so much and 2. Jungkook looks so good when you’re making him feel good, you make it your mission to have him always looking like this. 

Gripping your hair, Jungkook pulls you up, off his cock. You’re confused for a second before he explains.

“Are you gonna let me fuck your mouth, baby?” Jungkook’s tone is strong but his eyes give him away, he wants you to say yes so bad.

You nod your head and place your palms on his thighs to steady yourself before opening your mouth and taking his tip back in. You look at Jungkook to let him know you’re ready. Jungkook’s breath is shaky as he puts his hands back in your hair and starts to thrust into your mouth.

“Oh fuck, f-fuck that’s so good, baby,” Jungkook’s tip reaches the back of your throat. Your eyes are tearing up. “Take some more, baby.”

You try to slack your jaw to take more of Jungkook. Underwear beyond soaked, you straddle one of Jungkook’s legs and press your core down on it. The pressure is tamed by your shorts but it’s enough for now. Letting Jungkook thrust forcefully into your mouth, you circle your hips on his leg, moaning around his cock at the feeling of your sticky underwear against your skin. 

“Namjoon’s cock wouldn’t look as good in your mouth, hmm, baby?” Jungkook lets out between groans. You look up at him and nod, eagerly. When Jungkook catches sight of your gyrating hips, he shoves you off his cock and sits up, chest to chest with you.

“Didn’t you hear me the first two times? What makes you think you can use my leg?” Jungkook looks angry now.

“I-I’m sorry, I can’t help it.”

Jungkook’s frown grows into a smirk. He’s got something planned.

“You want it that bad, hmm?” Jungkook fakes concern, “Beg.”

This was new for Jungkook, not that you minded. He looks at you with real concern this time, afraid he’s overstepped his boundaries.

“Jungkook, please, I need something, please, Jungkook, please help me,” you plead, repeatedly. If he doesn’t touch you, you think you could die.

“Good girl, baby. Come here,” He lays back down and motions you to come up.

His lips clash against yours in a messy kiss. His hands slide over your shoulders and down to your waist, pushing down your shorts. You wiggle out of them and place your legs on either side of Jungkook, his hands instantly finding your hips and pushing them down against him. His cock is hard against your clothed pussy, rubbing up and down providing relieving friction for you both. You moan, aching for something.

“Lay down,” Jungkook mumbles against your mouth.

He flips you over on your back and leaves wet kisses down your neck. With your help, your shirt comes off and right away his hands find your breasts, massaging and kneading. He’s kissing around one nipple while his hand is tugging on the other. It’s a little rough but Jungkook knows you like it like that. You moan loudly, unable to keep it in and Jungkook is smirking against your nipple.

“Namjoon wouldn’t have you making those noises, right, baby?”

You nod, hoping and praying that eventually Jungkook will move his hand towards your pussy. Instead, Jungkook shakes his head and tuts. 

“Not good enough, gotta say it,” Jungkook looks smug now.

Normally, you would show some resistance to Jungkook’s inflated ego but right now that issue pales in comparison to how badly you need him to touch you. 

“Namjoon can’t, he couldn’t, just you. It’s just you, Kookie,” you babble. 

Satisfied, Jungkook kisses down your stomach, his tongue tracing the sensitive parts above the waistband of your underwear, your body is second nature to Jungkook. With his fingers hooked onto the sides, he drags your underwear down your legs, slowly, not wanting to give into you just yet. His hands come back up your legs and push them open to reveal your dripping pussy. He squeezes the flesh of your thighs and leaves open-mouthed kisses on the insides. Your hole clenches around nothing, as if trying to tempt Jungkook into giving it a taste. 

“Such a pretty pussy, baby, so wet for me,” Jungkook says and you bask in the glory that is another praise from Jungkook. 

Finally, Jungkook’s fingers trail from your thigh to the puffy lips of your core and spread them open to see your swollen clit. Jungkook sighs like it’s the most beautiful sight he’s ever witnessed, he makes you feel like it really is. He blows warm air and the contrast between it and the cool air of the room makes you tremble. In a swift movement, Jungkook is pushing forward and leaving a wet kiss on your clit.

“Oh m-my god, Jungkook, please, keep going,” you beg him, but it’s your idea this time.

Pleased, Jungkook rewards you and licks a fat stripe from your hole back up to your clit before stuffing you full of his tongue. Your legs try to shut around his head, but Jungkook pushes them back open and circles his arms around the backs of them to keep them in place. His thumb moves to press down on your clit and circle around it. Your hips buck involuntarily into Jungkook’s face and he groans out like he welcomes it. Jungkook circles his lips around your clit and sucks while prodding your hole with two fingers.

“You look so good, so good for me only,” Jungkook asserts.

“Only for you Jungkook, no one else,” you breathe out, surprised you can even make out the words.

Jungkook’s fingers slide in smoothly, you’re unable to keep your mouth shut, going from letting out high pitched whines to begging Jungkook to keep going. Your hands shoot to his hair, pulling it the way you know Jungkook likes. His fingers move in and out with a purpose while his tongue rubs over your clit. Legs shaking and the feeling of release nearing, you tug on his hair and remove him from your core.

“Kookie, I-I can’t, I’ll come if you keep going,” you say breathlessly, hoping he gets the message.

“Fuck, okay, baby.”

He leaves one last kiss on your clit before he’s moving up to kiss you. You moan at the taste of yourself on his lips. Jungkook takes hold of his cock and rubs the tip against your swollen lips.

“Look how wet you are, just soaking for me,” Jungkook’s in awe.

Jungkook finally pushes himself past the tight ring of muscle. Both letting out a sigh, you revel in the way he stretches you out so good. Jungkook thrusts hard into you and you let out a whine- turned moan.

“You take me so well, baby, so perfect. Namjoon can’t make you feel the way I do, hmm?”

“F-faster, Kookie, p-please, I’m so close,” you say, feeling your stomach tightening.

Jungkook listens and throws your legs over his shoulders, at this new angle you can feel every vein, every ridge of his cock. Moans are spilling out of both of you at an uncontrollable rate.

“F-fuck, say it, say I’m the only one that can make you feel like this, can make you come like this,” Jungkook pants out between thrusts.

“It’s only you Jungkook, just you, no one else, I love you, Kookie,” you ramble on, almost to tears.

Jungkook lurches forward to press his lips to yours. His hand, between your sweaty bodies, travels down to circle around your clit, bringing you closer to the edge.

“I love you, baby,” Jungkook mumbles on your lips, unwilling to move his lips from yours for just a second. 

Jungkook’s thrusts are becoming more sporadic, and he brings his free hand down onto the pillow, beside your head for balance, you can tell he’s close. You squeeze your eyes shut, feeling your release coming any moment now.

“Open your eyes, baby, look at me when you come,” Jungkook says and who are you to refuse?

Your hand reaches up to grab his hand, the one on the pillow, as you come. Your legs shake and your lips tremble as moans tumble from your mouth. With a few more thrusts, Jungkook is covering your fluttering walls with his warm come. Jungkook removes himself from inside you and lays beside you, both trying to catch your breaths. His breathing still hasn’t returned to normal when he turns and looks at you.

“I feel kinda bad for Namjoon.” Jungkook laughs, breathlessly.

“Why are we still talking about Namjoon after all that,” you ask, almost too tired to, but you know if you don’t ask, he’ll just tell you anyway.

“Well,” Jungkook sits up with his head leaning on his hand and explains, “He doesn’t get to love you like I do. I feel bad for everyone who isn’t me because they don’t have you like I do.”

It’s so true, it’s only Jungkook who can make you feel the way he does.

[favberrys]

I'm bored and in a kkg brainrot mood, so i'm just gonna rant about my opinions of kakegurui ships and i will make some headcanons:

Kirasaya

Ok i had to start with them bc they're just too iconic, i think they have one of the most interesting and complex dynamics in kkg, they really got me obsessed with them, it's probably my number one kakegurui ship and the reason i started watching the show and reading the manga. Honestly yeah their relationship has some power imbalance, since sayaka is kirari's secretary, and is probably disfunctional, but contrary to what some ppl say kirasaya is not abusive, kirari never physically or emotionally abuses sayaka throughout the story. Anyway they're a 10/10, peak lesbian yearning, if they don't kiss at least one i will jump the author. Probably one of my fav ships ever, i think they're made for each other and i can't see kirasaya with anyone else, they're just so good together and their chemistry is >>>>>>

Yumary

Ok this one is kinda an unpopular opinion bc most people like yumary, but honestly i can't get invested into it, there's something in this ship that doesn't make my heart go "fuck yeah they should be gfs". Personally i don't ship yumeko with anyone bc i can't imagine her in a relationship since her main thing is being a compulsive gambler, her existence revolves around it and she forms relationships when they're useful for her gambling games. I think yumary could be friends with benefits for some time, but after a while mary would probably break it off because i don't think she can handle a sexual/romantic relationship with yumeko and after a while it would make her go nuts. A friendship between them is already messy and complicated and honestly i don't think they are compatible that way. Yes they have chemistry and there's probably some mutual attraction but to me it's a no. Also can cishet dudes stop fetishizing this ship ? My vote is 6/10, mostly bc mary doesn't seem much physically comfortable with yumeko, idk mary just seems off with her in that sense and i prefer them as gambling partners or friends.

Meariri

I honestly love this ship, especially after reading the manga, they have such an great dynamic, i think they both care about each other, they have chemistry and i think they're compatible and that their personalities compliment each other, mary is often loud and aggressive and passionate while ririka is more closed off and quiet, they're like fire and ice and this case i think the saying "opposite attract" works with them. Mary counts on ririka and i love the fact that she is so comfortable with her physically (mary is almost always the one to initiate the contact, holding her hand, touching her head, etc) and ririka gets inspired by mary to be her own person and chase her goals. Plus they're really cute together, aesthetically i find them the most attractive couple, i'll give them a solid 9/10

Itsukaede

Lmao i don't even know if this is the correct ship name for itsuki x kaede, ok i don't hate it and i think they could work as a couple, it's not my cup of tea bc m/f ships bore me, but i like their relationship, they have the kind of old married couple dynamic that always works. 6/10.

Ryomeko

I can see it happening, i don't ship it, but i don't mind it either, i'm kinda neutral about ryota x yumeko, but i think he's one of the ppl who care about yumeko the most in that academy (with also mary ofc), the ship is boring bc ryota is bland (he's a good guy don't get me wrong and he defo doesn't deserve the hate he gets) and as i said previously i don't ship yumeko with anyone. Sorry i gotta give it 5/6 out of 10

Yumedari

Ok i love midari but just like yumeko, i don't ship her with anyone bc i see her as someone who's too much unstable for relationships, but i know that canonically she loves/likes/is attracted to yumeko so i don't hate this ship, i think it's decent, the only problem is that yumeko hates midari. Still i think that since they're the most insane mfs in that school somehow this ship could work. 6/10

Yuridari

Again midari in my eyes is kinda unshippable, but this ship is not bad at all, they would have that kind of bickering married couple dynamic like itsuki and kaede, i like it but it doesn't do much for me. 7/10

Ryomary

Jsjssjsksk i looked the name of mary x ryota's ship on wiki so if it sounds weird it's bc i don't know their ship name and i have looked at the first site google gave me. This ship is hard no, mainly bc ryota is very bland and i consider mary a lesbian (i read that she is a canon lesbian but idk if it's confirmed by the author, let's say lesbian mary is just my hc) so shipping her with men feels like a hate crime to me, mary is for the girls only, 4/10.

Tsumary

They are kind of cute together right ? I think they're adorable, tsuzura is mary's first love and i think that someone like her would make mary very happy. I still haven't finished kkg twin, so my opinion on tsuzura is incompleted and it might change, i don't hate her but i find her character a little basic/boring so even though this ship is cute it doesn't make me fall in love with them. 7/10 bc probably also tsuzura had feelings for mary and they have a healthy dynamic, you can see they love each other.

Midasaya

I enjoy this crackship, i know that they both like different people but i headcanon that they were together during middle school or that midari had at least a small crush on sayaka during that time, before kirari came to hyakkaou i like to think that they explored their sexuality together so midari was probably sayaka's first kiss, her first date, etc, so they would have history together and we also see that midari knows sayaka bc her character is described through her pov during tower of doors. I find this ship pretty funny bc sayaka is always so serious and composed and midari is a ball of chaos. 7/10

Yumesaya

This is another crackship i don't mind and find hilarious, yeah i'm a huge kirasaya stan but i'm also a multishipper and sayaka deserves all the girls in the world, so the more the merrier. I like to think this ship as one sided love in which yumeko sort of pines after sayaka and i think it would be very interesting to see kirari being jeaulous that sayaka is getting yumeko's attention. We saw jeaulous/protective sayaka in kakegurui, but i would also like to see how kirari reacts when someone tries to take sayaka away from her, it would be really interesting. Obv this would create some tension between kirasaya and also between kirari and yumeko, almost a sort of love triangle dynamic. My opinion is that yumeko is just too unstable to settle down, also they both probably would get bored/lose interest in each other after the heat of the moment. 6/10

Ririsaya

Sorry but i really can't see it happening not even if i squint, but i really enjoy the ririsaya fanfictions and i think those works are pretty great even though i don't ship them very much. It would be interesting if both twins were in love with sayaka and there was some tension/coldness between them for a while bc they liked the same girl (maybe i read too many fanfictions). My headcanon is that both sayaka and ririka had a crush on each other when they first knew each other and for sayaka it was probably pretty confusing bc she already had feelings for kirari. I see them as friends, 7/10

Yumemisaori

Again idk if this is the correct name of the ship, many said that yumemi and saori are a healthier/mentally stable version of kirasaya and i agree. the dynamics are similar bc we have the secratary that is willing to do everything for her boss and the relationship is a little more balanced, i think they would be very cute together, but sadly they had very little interactions and if i could see more of them i would probably ship them even more. I like them 7/10.

Sachiko x Mary

I didn't even find a ship name for this couple, so they must be pretty unpopular, i like both characters and their antagonistic dyanamic is very interesting, but i don't ship them much bc i think mary needs/wants someone who is completely different from sachiko, who wants to make mary her pet and mary is someone who cares very much about her freedom, her indipendence and wants to make her own choices and this completely clashes with sachiko's extremely sadistic and domineering nature. I prefer them as enemies who have some sexual tension or enemies with benefits or one night stand adventure, but nothing more. 5/6 out of 10 bc the only mary ship i really love is meariri and i also like tsuzumary a bit.

Sachiko x Mikura

This is probably one of the most unhealthy relationships in kakegurui, but i kinda like it. Their dyanmic is pretty much vertical with sachiko who has all the power and makes mikuro do everything she wants and mikura who is completely obsessed and devoted to sachiko (my opinion is that she developed a sort of stockholm syndrome towards sachiko). I think that someone like sachiko could never have genuine romantic relationships bc of her extremely sadistic nature, she sees ppl like toys to break and what she enjoys the most is seeing ppl suffer, so the only compatible person with sachiko is someone extremely masochistic like mikura. Giving them a 6/7 out of 10 bc their interactions are fun/interesting and spice things up.

Rin x Ibara and Yumeko x Kirari

Hard no to both of them, i don't ship incest, yall can do what you want but personally it's a huge no for me. When i first started watching the anime at the beginning i thought yumeko and kirari had some sort of tension and could have been enemies to lovers (lmaoo i was so naive), but then i discovered they were cousins and i saw more kirasaya interactions so i got completely turned off by this ship. 3/10 to both of these ships.

Sachiko x Sakura

Now this ship is very sexy, idk why i like it but i do, yes i don't see sachiko with anyone besides mikura, but this pairing is not bad at all, even though it's a crackship. I think they would be rivals with benefits and would argue a lot and then make out/have hot sex. 7/10 (maybe it's too high but since these are just my opinions i won't be objective)

Mary x kirari

Uhm is there really someone out there who ships them ? Yeah i thought they had some sexual tension in s1 with that tea scene, but it's a no from me, i don't like it and i don't think they're compatible in any way, i can't see kirari with anyone who isn't sayaka. 4/10

[youwerenevermeanttofeelalone]

Strangers | Joaquín Torres

✦ pairing — Joaquín Torres x female!Plus Size Reader

✦ word count — 5.8k (I’m sorry, I don’t have much self-control left)

✦ loosely based on the song Strangers by Mallory Merk

✦ request — I’d like to ask for something where Bucky and the reader are roommates but she’s younger (Joaquin’s age) and one day Sam and Joaquin are there for whatever reason and that’s how Joaquin and Reader meet and they get along (and flirt obv) and Bucky is like a protective older brother and Sam vouches for him but Bucky doesn’t loosen up until Joaquin saves reader from danger or does something nice for her

✦ warnings — angst, awkwardness, Bucky acting like a jealous brother, mentions of beverages and food, light depictions of anxious worry, fluff.

════════════════════════

Bucky and you were in the middle of discussing whether you should adopt a cat or not when a rhythmic knock on the door interrupted the urgent conversation.

“Are you expecting someone?” he asked, eager to go back to the pressing matter at hand.

“You know I am not. I didn’t order anything either...”

Bucky sighed. “I’ll check.”

“No!” You stood up abruptly from the couch. “You’ll scare whoever is behind the door off like you scared our poor neighbor.”

“Can you let that one go?”

“Nope,” you replied as you crossed the small living room.

You would never. The lady still tried to hide from him when she saw him down the hallway which was hilarious because it wasn’t due to the fact that he had famously been The Winter Soldier but because he grumpily opened the door when she needed a favor and closed it on her face.

As you opened the door, you found two attractive men standing in the doorway.

“Is Barnes here?”

“Oh, God. What did he do now?”

“I didn’t do anything!” he exclaimed in your ear, making you jump.

“Jesus, Bucky.”

“Sorry.” He then acknowledged one of the men in front of you, the one who had asked for him, “What’s wrong, Sam?”

“Can we come in?”

Both Bucky and you moved out of the way so the pair of handsome men could come inside.

“So you’re the roommate?” Sam asked.

“I am.”

“And you don’t think he’s the most annoying person you’ve ever met?”

“No. Should I?”

“Hey!”

“I’m joking, I’m joking.”

“I’m Sam Wilson,” your interrogator introduced himself properly. “And this is Joaquín Torres.”

“Nice to meet you.” You smiled at Sam, then at Joaquín who smiled back.

Bucky cleared his throat.

Sam looked tense as he ominously said, “We need your help.”

“Give us some privacy, sweetheart,” Bucky told you.

You retreated to your bedroom, wondering what the secrecy could be about. You knew who Bucky was, what we had done, and everything in between.

And sure, some people thought you were crazy for being his roommate, but you weren’t scared of him. You trusted him and cared about him. In the few months you had gotten to know him he had become an important person in your life, one of your best friends.

His visitors didn’t stay for too long. You hadn’t even gotten comfortable on your bed after having put on a tv show to have something on the background when you heard the front door close.

A couple of minutes later, Bucky knocked on your door and opened it just enough to ask if he could come in.

He sat on your bed, fixing his eyes on your desk.

”So...” you broke the silence, “should I be worried?”

“No.”

“Bucky. Look at me.”

He turned to the side, fully facing you. “What?”

“You don’t have to hide things from me or coddle me.”

“I know. But it’s nothing that can’t be fixed,” he assured you.

“Promise?”

“Promise.” He gave you a small smile. “Now, about that cat...”

════════════════════════

After a long week of work, you found yourself relieved to have the apartment just for you. Bucky was a lovely roommate, you just wanted an alone moment.

Saturdays were usually the day you had the apartment for yourself, Bucky had a strict routine until something extraordinary happened and you were comfortable with adapting to it.

To your luck, somebody knocked on the door. You hoped it was somebody looking for the neighbor or something because you weren’t in the mood for people.

Your mood, however, did a 180 as soon as you opened the door.

Joaquín gave you a small smile. “Good evening, (Name).”

Why did he have to come by when you were in sweats and an old t-shirt?! You smiled at him. “Hi.”

“Is Bucky home?”

“No. But he should be back in a couple of hours.”

“Oh. Well, I’ll wait for him outside.”

“Do you want a cup of coffee?” you asked. A part of you wanted to be polite, the other wanted to chat for a little bit. “I just started a batch.”

“Uh—“ Joaquín cleared his throat. “I would really like that.”

You motioned for him to come in. His eyes fixed on you as he did, but for some reason, you didn’t feel uncomfortable. There seemed to be no malice in his eyes.

“Free day?” he made small talk.

“Yeah. I actually don’t work on weekends.”

He shifted in order to face you and asked more about your job. You hoped it wasn’t part of his small talk anymore.

As the conversation progressed, you were sure it had been. His gaze remained on you whether he was speaking or listening, interest never wavering as he found more things to ask about you.

His eyes were such a peculiarity and you couldn’t understand why. Brown eyes were common, you had seen them thousands of times.

“I think the coffee’s ready,” he murmured.

“Right!” You abashedly stood up, smoothing your t-shirt as though it really mattered anymore.

“Do you need help?”

You shook your head. “I’ve got it.”

Glancing at him as you poured the beverages, you saw him staring at you too. Either you weren’t being subtle and were making him uncomfortable or he wasn’t being subtle either. Both options were terrifying.

You walked slowly towards the living room and put both cups down. “Sugar?”

“Please.”

As you went back to the kitchen, you checked the state of your hair on the microwave. Deciding there was nothing you could do to it, you left it as it was and took the container of sugar in your grasp along with a teaspoon.

You placed the sugar container on the table. “Cream?”

“No, thank you.”

Joaquín sweetened his coffee as you sat down next to him once again.

“You don’t like it with cream either?”

“No. I only remember to buy it for Bucky.”

Giving you his entire attention back, Joaquín lifted both eyebrows. “He takes his coffee with cream?”

“Oh, yeah.” You nodded enthusiastically. “I was as shocked as you are.”

“My grandma loved coffee with milk. She added so much that I don’t think it was coffee anymore.”

“Did you ever try it?”

“I didn’t. Well, maybe as a kid?” He tilted his head as he tried to remember. “I would prepare her coffee all the time...”

“That’s so sweet.”

He took a sip of coffee. So did you. For a moment both of you remained silent, and although it wasn’t uncomfortable you found yourself wanting to ask more about him.

You were out of practice in terms of social interaction. It was terrifying to admit, but the fear only made it truer. The blip changed and ruined lives, and while you were getting back on your feet, you still found yourself socially and emotionally stunted at times.

Joaquín didn’t seem to mind the silence. You wondered if he sought it.

Peacefulness and silence didn’t last. The front door opened unexpectedly and Bucky’s heavy steps cut the harmony of Joaquín’s and your breathing.

“I didn’t know you would be coming over,” Bucky grumbled.

Joaquín jumped off his seat. He took the file in his grasp and handed it to Bucky. “Sam wanted me to give you this.”

Humming, Bucky opened the folder. He gave the contents a quick read, then closed it again. “Well, you gave it to me already.”

“Right. Uhmmm...” Joaquín turned to the side and lightly bowed. “Thank you for the coffee, (Name).”

“Anytime,” you said, voice too enthusiastic even for your liking.

Joaquín gave you another smile before leaving the apartment, causing your face to flush.

You attempted to entertain yourself by washing the cups, but you still couldn’t believe you had spoken like a teenager with a crush.

Bucky leaned onto the wall. “I saw the way you were looking at Torres.”

“With my eyes?” you teased.

“With too much enthusiasm.”

“He’s cute,” you admitted as you twisted to look at him.

“Nope, not happening.”

“Not happening what?” Feigning innocence never worked with him, but you still liked trying. However, his glare told you this wasn’t the time to be playful. “Bucky, come on, I just admired the view. It’s not like I’m planning on running after him to ask him to marry me.”

He narrowed his eyes.

“Do you believe me capable of asking somebody I barely know to marry me?” As soon as the question left your mouth, you added, “You know what? Don’t answer that.”

“He gave you the same eyes you were giving him,” Bucky said grumpily.

“He did?”

“Can you be serious for a moment?”

“Oh, Buck, I’m being more than serious.”

He rolled his eyes. “Is this my first time seeing you with a crush?”

“Do you find it charming?”

“You weren’t this cocky with him.”

“Were you eavesdropping?!”

“I thought you had another type of company. Wanted to make sure it was safe to come in.”

“That’s such a bad excuse.”

“Not as bad as your flirting.”

“Just because you used to be a good flirt doesn’t mean you still are. Be humble, Barnes.”

“I’m still better than you.”

You stuck your tongue out. “I’ll become the best flirt in the world. You’ll see.”

“Absolutely not. And Torres is off limits!”

“Awww, do you want him for yourself? Can I have Sam then?”

“You don’t even know him!”

“Sam or Joaquín?”

“Joaquín,” he grumbled.

“Whose fault is that? I couldn’t even get his number because you had to show authority or whatever macho bullshit is clouding your judgment.”

“My judgment isn’t clouded.”

“You need to get laid so I can get laid.”

“What’s wrong with taking things slow? The last date I went on was a disaster.”

“Nothing,” you assured him. “I just think you need to de-stress, have some clarity and see I just have a mild crush.”

“Mild?”

“Yeah. I was kinda intense in high school.” You feigned a shudder. “Dark times.”

“What about college?”

“We don’t talk about that. I had terrible taste.”

“See?”

You tried another approach, “We’re acting like children and I’m pretty sure we are adults. I pay taxes, dude, I can have a crush on whoever I want.”

“Of course. You’re a big girl.”

You could tell he was only going with your flow. But you would take it.

════════════════════════

Bucky sat in front of Sam. Brows furrowed as he went through the same file Joaquín had given him a few days ago.

He didn’t like the idea of going after anybody. He had left violence to the side already. Did this count as ruining it all so soon?

Glancing at Sam, who was expectantly watching him, Bucky sighed. “What about (Name)? What should I tell her?”

“I could send Torres—“

“NO.”

“Barnes,” Sam sighed, “you know we can trust him.”

“For this type of stuff. Not with (Name). You didn’t see the way he was looking at her the last time.”

“He might have a crush,” Sam conceded, “but you’re acting like he wants to murder her.”

“He might,” Bucky said without really meaning it.

Sam crossed his arms. “Do you like her or something?”

“Not like that,” Bucky replied, almost offended. “She’s like a sister to me, Sam. I care about her, I want to protect her.”

“By not letting her see people?”

“You don’t get it.”

“No, I do. And I know damn well this isn’t the right way to do it.”

Bucky scowled, yet knowing Sam wanted to say something else, remained quiet.

“Think about this. You’re worried something will happen to her while we do this, and I’m telling you Torres could keep her safe but you’re being childish because you think you should act like a jealous brother.”

“What if he breaks her heart? Huh? What then? She likes him!”

“He’s nice, of course she likes him! You should be glad he likes her too, dumbass.”

“She’s not ready to date people.”

Sam rolled his eyes.

Bucky shifted in his seat. “I’m not trying to be a dick, Sam. She’s been through hell.”

“Something might not even happen between them, you’re jumping to conclusions way too quickly.” Sam then added, “Unless both are into fast dating in which case things would be fine too.”

“You don’t know that. He could hurt her.”

“You already managed to run a background check on him and—“

Bucky interrupted, “How do you know?”

Sam nonchalantly shrugged. “I’d do the same.”

Bucky hung his head, staring down at the file on the small table. “Can I beat him up if he does something he shouldn’t?”

“He won’t.”

“But can I?”

“Will you shut up if I say yes?”

“Maybe.”

Sam withdrew his phone, tapped the screen a couple of times and brought the device to his ear. “Torres. Are you busy?”

Bucky huffed through his nose and then went back to read the file for the hundredth time.

════════════════════════

The forecast that morning had forced you to carry an umbrella and a jacket that you ultimately had to shed. It rarely rained around your workplace; you couldn’t say the same about your apartment.

You weren’t sure what type of natural phenomenon was at play —or fault, really— but you were not happy about it.

Hoping you hadn’t forgotten to close your bedroom window, you quietly wished your coworkers a good night and made your way towards the exit.

You found a face you seemed to see everywhere. Mostly due to your daydreams, but who could blame you apart from Bucky?

Joaquín slid his right hand off his pocket and waved at you.

Waving back, you approached him. “What are you doing here?”

“You weren’t home so I contacted Sam so he could ask where you could be and Bucky said you worked here so I came here.”

You couldn’t hide your smile upon hearing his convoluted explanation. “I imagined as much. What I meant with my question is why are you here?”

“Oh! I’m making sure you get home safe.”

You frowned. “Is something wrong?”

“I don’t know,” he answered honestly. “But we don’t want to take any risks.”

You didn’t know who was we exactly although you could assume he was talking about Bucky. And about himself. The realization made your stomach flip.

“Are we walking?”

“I drove here,” he explained, hesitating to make the first move towards his car.

You gave the first step forward, getting slightly closer to him. A whiff of his cologne hit you and just like that it was gone. He started walking too.

“Had a nice day?”

“It wasn’t too bad. How about you?”

“Nothing out of the ordinary.”

You wanted to oh so badly ask what his ordinary was. Fuck, it was like you were having a crush for the first time all over again.

“So... are you staying at mine or...?”

“I’ll sleep here in the car.”

“There’s a couch right there. Kinda comfy if you ask me...”

“I don’t want to intrude.”

“Please, you’ll be there because of me, it’s the least I can do.”

“It’s no problem,” he hurried to assure you.

The streets looked different from the car. Bigger. You were so used to public transport, to see people from afar — to perceive everything from the perspective of somebody trapped in a box that had been created to make things easier for them.

You didn’t feel small per se, yet people looked bigger too. It was as though you had forgotten that people outside of your bubble existed.

Friends were almost nonexistent in a world that still was trying to recover from a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

The people you considered friends kept their distance from you and each other because they didn’t have other choice. Work, school for those privileged enough, debt, grief... all those things got in the way. And perhaps it was better that way for now. Everybody needed to heal.

An empty hallway greeted you. It wasn’t too late, but your neighbors kept mostly to themselves. Bucky preferred it that way.

You pushed the door open after unlocking the two locks, allowing Joaquín to get in first.

He shed his dripping jacket, bashfully hanging it on the coat hanger.

“Can I offer you anything to drink or eat?” you asked, placing your belongings next to the couch.

“Whatever you’ll be having.”

You tugged the fridge door open. “Are you allergic to anything?”

“Not that I know of.” He approached you, leaning on the kitchen bar. “Surprise me?”

“Oh, yeah, I will. With a visit to the ER.”

“Hey, it’d be a surprise nonetheless.”

You giggled and took a glance at him. The ghost of a smile crept into his face before he started laughing too.

“You don’t have a boyfriend that would get mad at me for staying here, do you?”

You chuckled. “No.”

“Are you even into guys?”

“I am.”

“That’s good.” Realizing he had sounded too happy, he added, “I mean... it would also be good if you weren’t, obviously.”

“I get what you meant.”

“Do you?”

“Yeah, it’s cool.”

“Cool.”

Neither of you stopped smiling. You only moved when the fridge’s door alarm interrupted.

You ended up ordering takeout and talking to him past midnight.

But not every night was lighthearted. Such a thing was true to life and to this particular week.

Joaquín was a good distraction before and after work, but the moment the time to say goodnight arrived, worry heaved on your entire body.

You tiptoed your way towards the kitchen, desperate for a glass of water. Hoping the stream of water wouldn’t make too much noise, you filled the glass and stood in the middle of the kitchen, slowly drinking it.

“Can’t sleep?”

You jumped, splashing water onto you and in consequence the floor. A couple of days or so weren’t enough for you to be completely used to Joaquín’s voice. Albeit nice, it was still new.

He turned the light on. “I didn’t mean to scare you.”

You clumsily placed the glass on the counter. “It’s okay. I didn’t mean to wake you up.”

Sleep was elusive, something you had assumed was in the past. Insomnia had been your loyal friend throughout the blip, then grief joined.

Bucky was the closest thing you had to a family now. What if you had to grieve him too?

As though he had been reading your mind, Joaquín softly said, “He’ll be okay.”

“You sound so sure...”

“He’s strong and skilled. Sam is too.”

“I’m scared,” you confessed. “I don’t wanna be all alone again.”

He placed his hand on your shoulder. It almost burned you. “You won’t be.”

You pursed your lips. You had heard that one many times before.

“Are you alright?”

“Yeah, just... you know...” You started laughing instead of truly explaining yourself.

But you didn’t need to explain anything. “It’s okay, everything will be okay.”

You laughed again, louder this time, nodding because what else could you say? That you couldn’t believe him if you wanted to?

He looked at you with worry. “Do you have any tea?”

You nodded once more, unable to speak as you continue laughing and pointing to the top cupboard.

“I’ll fix you a cup.”

Crying out of laughter, you sat at the small table, leaning on your forearms as you tried to watch him — the tears didn’t allow you to truly assess the damage.

Said tears worried you. The last time you had properly cried seemed to have been too long ago to be healthy.

Then again, not many people were in a healthy position as of now.

Before you could even realize what was going on, Joaquín softly set a cup on the table. “Sorry for not adding sugar, I didn’t think it was a good idea.”

Embarrassed due to the fact that you couldn’t stop laughing, you avoided his eyes and wrapped your fingers around the cup. “Thank you,” you mumbled.

“Hey,” he said softly, “it’s no problem, okay?”

You hummed, inhaling the scent of the tea before taking a small sip.

He made you company as you drank the hot beverage at your own pace. In complete silence, trying to hide from you that he was playing with his fingers under the table.

“Better?”

“I think so.”

“Do you need anything else?”

“I don’t know.”

“You have work tomorrow...”

How could you forget? You stood up with the cup in your grasp and went into the kitchen to wash it.

“I can wake you up for work if you want,” he offered.

“My alarm is loud enough.”

“Oh, yeah,” he said as if he was just remembering, “I’ve heard it.”

You huffed a laugh. “Good night.”

“Good night.”

Before he could turn around, you called for him, “Joaquín?”

“Yes?”

“Would you keep me company until I fall asleep?”

“Of course.”

It felt strange to have somebody that wasn’t Bucky in your bedroom. Joaquín curiously eyed the room while you got comfortable in the bed — his eyes eventually landed on you.

He gripped your desk chair and took it out.

Before he would sit down, you told him, “You can sit on the bed if you prefer. That chair ruined my back.”

Considering the offer, he approached the bed, slowly as he looked at you in case you changed your mind.

You patted the empty space. “I don’t bite.”

Tentatively sitting down, he asked, “Why haven’t you changed the chair?”

“I like the color.”

He softly laughed. “It’s pretty,” he agreed. “Looks nice with your decoration.”

“Thank you.”

His hand brushed your forearm as the two of you shifted at the same time. Your face heated up, and now you wondered if his palm contrasted the softness of the back of his hand.

Joaquín cleared his throat. “Try to sleep,” he whispered, “I’ll be here.”

You took a deep breath before closing your eyes. Focusing on trying to remember what you had been thinking before falling asleep the last time you got some rest, you got lost in your own head.

The door creaked as it was pushed open. Bucky opened his mouth.

Joaquín brought his index finger to his closed lips, signaling for Bucky to not make a sound.

Joaquín looked down at your form, still fast asleep. Your head was on his shoulder, face semi-buried in his t-shirt.

Bucky watched as Joaquín softly removed your head from his shoulder, delicately making it rest onto the pillow — he then left the bed in silence and tucked you into the covers before leaving the room.

”Everything in order?”

Bucky grumbled in affirmation. “What was that?”

“She was worried about you. Couldn’t sleep.”

“Nothing else?”

Joaquín shook his head, hoping he was managing to mask his disappointment.

Bucky hummed. “Thank you, Joaquín. For everything.”

“It was no problem.”

Joaquín collected his few belongings in a minute, taking a glance at the ajar door that separated your bedroom from the lounge area.

“Bucky...”

“Mmh?”

“Could you text me when she wakes up or if she needs anything?”

Bucky stood silent for a few seconds. Seconds that for Joaquín felt like hours. “I will. Go home.”

════════════════════════

Having Bucky back at home was relieving. Except for the fact that he looked like he wanted to say something but didn’t know how to spill it.

“Is there anything you want to say?” you yelled from the couch.

He stopped chopping carrots to lift his head. “Did you get Torres’s number?”

Turning the TV off, you pushed yourself to a sitting position and eventually left the couch.

“Yeah, I did.”

“Have you called him?”

“I sent him a meme.” You extended your hand, taking a piece of carrot. “He laughed and sent one back.”

“I assumed you would have asked for his hand in marriage by the time I would be back.”

“Ha ha, you’re so funny.”

Bucky snorted. You munched on your cube of carrot.

“Maybe you’re reading too much into it. He’s genuinely nice, you know? People can be friends regardless of gender.”

“What happened to wanting to get laid?”

“I doubt it’s mutual.”

“He likes you and you like him. That’s practically the definition of mutualism.”

“You said he was off-limits,” you accused.

“He isn’t anymore.”

“I didn’t get the memo.”

“Don’t get grumpy with me.”

“I’m not grumpy.” You pouted. “But what if he doesn’t like me that way? He’s a really nice person, maybe that’s it.”

“Oh my God,” Bucky exhaled, shaking his head. “You’re impossible.”

You whined, “Buuuuuuuuucky. Don’t be mean.”

“Don’t act obtuse then.”

“I haven’t dated anybody in years. I don’t know how to do it. He’s fun to talk to, don’t get me wrong — I’m the problem.” You sighed dramatically. “We should throw a pity party for me,” you sarcastically said.

“Why do you think I’m making lasagna?”

“I honestly thought Sam was coming over for dinner.”

Bucky blushed due to his inability to be subtle which was the most shocking thing you had learned about him.

Truth to be told, Bucky’s words stayed in your mind for days. You continued casually texting Joaquín, not sure if you should ask him out or let it go.

You wanted to, and it wouldn’t be the first time you had made the first move — that didn’t bother you. What bothered you was the mere idea of asking him out too soon.

Seeing your phone light up with Joaquín’s name and a message attached to it genuinely improved your day every single time.

It was so hard not to be in his orbit when apart from being handsome he was so nice and easy to talk to.

You liked him, you really did. You also liked that things didn’t feel awkward with him when you knew they would’ve been unbearable with somebody else. It was liberating.

Are you home?

Nope.

If you were looking for Bucky, he’s out on a date.

I know. But I’m not here to see him.

You’re there?

Yeah. I’ve been here for a few minutes now.

I’m having drinks with my coworkers. Two of them are celebrating their birthday. I can ditch if you need anything.

I wanted to see you.

I also wanted to ask...

Are you busy next Saturday?

Your heart skipped a beat. I’m not.

Eyes glued to the three dots that signaled he was typing, you finished your drink in a single swig.

Would you go out with me?

You can pick wherever we go, I don’t mind.

I would love to!

Was the exclamation mark too much?

Fuck, you felt like a teenager again.

And I don’t mind if you pick.

Why don’t we make that decision later?

Sounds good to me.

Sorry for making you wait outside for nothing.

I’m the one who appeared unannounced, but it’s okay. I got almost everything I wanted.

You’re making not ditching really hard right now.

Good to know I’m doing something right.

But you should hang out with your coworkers.

And be careful. If you remember, text me when you get home.

It was stupidly hard not to be smitten by him.

════════════════════════

“For the millionth time, you look fine.”

You glared at Bucky.

“He’s right,” Sam assured you from the couch. “You look fine, and it’s just a casual date. You’ll be okay.”

“Just a casual date?” you asked in a high pitch that surprised the three of you.

“He’s seen you in the morning already,” Bucky reminded you, lifting his eyebrows. “I don’t understand why you’re so nervous.”

“I’m not nervous,” you defended yourself. “I’ve had these jeans for literal years and I’m scared I’m gonna rip them.”

“Take a jacket or coat with you just in case.” Sam offered the solution immediately.

You did as Sam suggested and carried your favorite jacket over your forearm.

In contrast to what you saw every morning, there wasn’t a single familiar face in the subway. As you checked the time to make sure you wouldn’t be late, you saw that one of your other friends had wished you good luck on your date.

The fact that somebody apart from Bucky —and Sam— openly wanted you to succeed at something outside of work improved your mood. You had lied to Bucky earlier regarding being nervous, less due to embarrassment, and more because you didn’t want to admit you were scared of still not knowing how to handle things when they went wrong.

Rejection was easier to take in comparison to the way things crumble after they seem to be going well. Rejection is quick, it eventually passes — regret and what-ifs potentially stay forever. You had the scars to prove it.

You had to walk a couple of blocks from the station to the place you would meet Joaquín at. The area was new to you, colorful and lively from what looked to be brand new businesses.

Upon arriving at the diner, you understood why Joaquín had chosen that place. It wasn’t crowded by any means, but it looked far from empty. It was the perfect middle ground for a first date.

Such observation didn’t ease up your nerves, yet giddiness couldn’t stop itself from bubbling up.

“Oh!” he exclaimed from behind you. “I was about to text you.”

You turned around. “I just got here.”

Joaquín silently stared at you, taking a shaky breath and bobbing his head open and closed.

He settled for a short compliment, easier to say than the jumbled mess of euphoric reactions he internalized, “You look great.”

“I—“ You weren’t expecting that. “Thank you. You look really nice.”

You might have been selling it short, he looked as handsome as ever and more — but you didn’t want to sound intense or say too much and scare him off.

He looked down for a moment, trying to fight the warmth crawling up his skin. “Thank you,” he said quietly before looking up once again.

His bashfulness was a good sign, it would be less awkward if both of you felt the same way about the prospect of a first date.

“I found this place by mistake a few weeks ago,” he told you as he opened the door for you. “Their coffee is great.”

He let you choose the table, arguing that it was your first there and he wanted you to have the best experience. You appreciated his effort.

Bucky and Sam mentioned you could come across as being uncomfortable around others, he must’ve been under the same impression.

In all fairness, it was less about being uncomfortable and more about being scared of oversharing.

“Are you a big coffee guy?”

“Kind of. I’m used to instant coffee even though I don’t like it so I try a different one every time I can.”

“I have a coworker who is obsessed with that stuff.” You chuckled. “But they drink it cold.”

Joaquín huffed a laugh. “It might taste better like that.”

The conversation deviated from mindless small talk to work, and then to your interests — it was refreshing to know you shared a few and even more so to find he was open to giving things he didn’t know a try.

After eating, the two of you decided to take a walk just so you could talk some more.

Your hand brushed his by mistake. Joaquín looked down. He pressed the back of his hand against yours, momentarily pushing his fingers between yours.

“Is that okay?”

“Yes.”

He pulled away then slid his hand under yours. Clasping his palm against yours, he stared at your face in search of your reaction. “How about that?”

“Also yes.”

He smiled. “Good thing I listened to Sam when he said I wasn’t imagining things and you were into me too.”

“You know, I almost made the first move.”

“What stopped you?”

You shrugged. “Maybe I would have drunkenly asked you out if you hadn’t beat me to it.”

He hummed yet made no further comment.

“You don’t believe me?”

“I do, I do!”

“Buuuuuuut?”

“It took us a while to exchange phone numbers. Imagine if it had taken us the same to go out?”

“Oh God, we would be stuck third-wheeling Sam and Bucky.”

“I’m so sorry you have no escape from that,” he joked.

“I just hope they never have sex when I’m in the apartment or I will need therapy I can’t afford.”

He lightly squeezed your hand. “I’ll rescue you, don’t worry.”

It was your turn to smile. “I’ll take that as a sign that I’ll be seeing you again.”

“As long as you don’t see it as a threat...”

You giggled. “I would never.”

According to the blog posts you read online, guys seemed to like it when the other person assured them they had a good time with them. You hoped he had gotten the hint.

In case he hadn’t, you said, “There was this coffee shop near my childhood home that I used to love... They had the best chocolate cake I’ve ever tasted and the coffee was delicious too. I heard it reopened...”

“We should go there next time.”

“Sounds good. I haven’t visited the neighborhood in a while.”

“Any reason in particular?”

“I don’t know anybody around there anymore.”

It was getting late and you knew your time together would be over. At least for tonight.

He walked you toward the subway station, swinging your intertwined hands. The conversation didn’t seem to end, he could thread on any topic and you would’ve listened to him until his voice was hoarse and his throat dry.

You couldn’t leave without properly telling him what a great time you had. It was too soon to know what would happen, you weren’t naive, but you also really fucking liked him.

“I had a great time,” you reassured him. “Thank you.”

“Me too. I hope it repeats soon.”

You did too. All those nerves had thankfully paid off.

He scratched the back of his head with his free hand. “I’m sorry if I’m being too forward, but... can I kiss you?”

“You’re not being too forward.”

“Is that a yes?”

“Yes.”

Joaquín licked his bottom lip and cupped your cheek with a hand. His other one tightly held yours, giving you time. You wetted your lips too. Then he leaned in and kissed you.

You basked in the kiss’s bliss. Short, sweet, perfect in every single aspect. The kind of human contact you had longed for years and had been too scared to look for.

His eyes were on you as you opened your own — shining with a happy glint.

“You’re even prettier from up-close,” he commented lowly, hand still on your face.

Your gaze fell to his wrist for a second. Then you held his. “I could say the same to you.”

“Thank God.” He giggled.

“You said you needed to wake up early tomorrow...” you said, much to your own dismay. You didn’t want to be selfish.

“I’ll wait for your train to get here.”

And so he did, and you almost cursed the stupid giant can when it arrived.

You reluctantly let go of his hand. “Text me when you get home just so I know you arrived safely, yeah?”

He nodded. “Promise.”

“Goodnight.”

He kissed your cheek. “Goodnight.”

[1ddiscourseoftheday]

Thurs 15 April ‘21

A proper OT5 day today, how are we doing? Well, #stressed, apparently, LOL! Oh darlings, don’t worry...

First up, Liam finished his Prince Phillip drawing and captioned it “rest in peace… small tribute to you and your service,” sighhh. As Louis put it “boss drawing and that but get your priorities straight”, I truly couldn’t have put it better! I mean Louis may not have been referring to his politics, he was following up a tweet demanding Liam’s attention (“I see you on Instagram lad, answer your phone!!!!!”), but still he hit the nail on the head. Anyway, maybe Louis wanted to chat to weigh in on Liam’s haircut! (‘WTF mate I thought we were growing it out YOU LOSE’, perhaps?) Yes, Liam’s lion mane got a shearing; he posted a picture looking handsome showing the change, and #jesusLiam trended in memory of the lost hair as fans mourned dramatically. Also there’s a little behind the scenes video of Liam making his BAFTAs performance avatar (last glimpse of the long hair, RIP)-- no footage of him making funny faces but it does feature the very tight suit and the even tighter mo-cap outfit.

And what else is Louis up to? Well he came back to say that yes, he did talk to Liam, and to ask, “how’s everyone doing?” Just saying it wasn’t enough, fans trended the answer for him; STRESSED. We’ll be all right, said Louis, “Faith in the future. Keep your head up.” Faith in the future again!! Nice. We hear you sir and are looking forward to knowing what this is the title of… Also, a geotagged photo of him that wasn’t meant to be shared, was; it shows that Louis flew into LA the other day after leaving Mexico (it’s him at LAX in the outfit he left Mexico in-- look at that hair!! FLIP FLIP FLIP.) Is he still in LA, no way of knowing, so even if the pic wasn’t supposed to go out at least there was a delay and his location remains unknown, as he likes it, though he doesn’t seem to be home to London yet. For some reason people are really stuck on the idea that Sergio (his new footie bestie) said he was going back to London but even aside from the fact that I doubt they got that deep into itineraries, I’m pretty sure he actually just said that when Louis was back in London they’d meet up; not the same thing.

Assuming Louis is still in LA that’ll be convenient for him to go punch Nick Kroll if he wants! Nick said that during DWD filming Harry fell in love with him and they ‘made an omlette’ together... oh wait, no need, he just said they literally made some eggs and fake meat and ate it one night (and obvs that he was joking about their love, but it can for sure be hard to tell Harry’s supposed love affairs from jokes, I get it if you were confused.) He also said Harry is “very good at making everyone around him feel very comfortable. He's just very grounded.” Gucci is having some kind of online fashion opening today and there was a rumor Harry would attend which, yeah, sounds legit, and there’s a Harry puzzle in a Gucci puzzle book. First clue to the Harry Styles Puzzle, “a fictitious narrative.” Timely! Yes indeed, he and Olivia “were spotted together” in London last night, oooh my the scrambling to try and come back from those legal documents is really ON! Really though, WERE THEY? The tabs claim to have interviewed multiple people who were dining there and saw them. Reaaally, okay tell me- how did this come about? Were these people so excited to see a celeb that they called the papers… but none of them took a single picture or posted to their social media about seeing them?! Pics or it didn’t happen guys, COME ON: this is very much in keeping with how unbelievably half-assed they’ve been from day one but still, pretty pathetic attempt. Then rumors went around that Harry was actually out with GEMMA which would be hilarious, but seems more likely to me that no one was actually out anywhere at all.

The To Begin Again video is out! It’s pretty and tearjerk-y and it’s got sweet laughing Zayn content, good times!! It’s mostly sweeping shots of New York City and people there, living and laughing and being quirky and stuff, big humans of NY vibe, and Ingrid and Zayn in their studios happily making music. Zayn’s studio of choice (in Pennsylvania) celebrated their star turn by posting a pic of a signed guitar Zayn gave them back when he recorded Icarus Falls there. The TBA video director says, “we filmed this video in one day- sunrise to sunset.” TBA merch is on sale today in Ingrid’s store.

And there were lots of pap pics of Niall and Anne Marie filming their video (which is not out yet) in Essex. Seems they were FILMING it on the 8th, the day of Niall’s “it’s happening” post. So what’s HAPPENING is not the actual release of it, just yet, okay then. When will it come out? Who knows! We’ll be able to tell though, Niall will come back online for non-golf posting when the time is nigh, you’ll see. Meanwhile, pics of Niall out at a pub with his friends (outdoors) last night were posted, because that’s a thing that happens when celebs go out for public outings and lots of people see them.

[spacedikut]

hi different anon here! but what if spencer had to take a mandatory arts class of some kind for his degree (i don’t know how caltech or phd courses work but we’re going to ignore that) and he’s getting super frustrated because he’s so good at all of his other academic classes but he just! can’t! figure! out! the arts!!! but then reader is in the same class as him and notices that he’s struggling so they offer to help him out?

it’s kind of a role reversal of the usual spencer-tutors-reader in college (because he’s a genius so it’s an obvious [and very good!] dynamic)

and bonus points if it’s a pottery class and they have a “ghost” moment 🙈🙈 (reader is obv patrick swayze 🤤) but make it any medium you want! or even a music class!! up to you my dear <3

ok for some reason i immedaitely thought of finger painting but. have decided against that

idk how art classes work either but if it’s anything like art was in school then you’re kind of left to you own devices? so let’s go with that. it’s fiction babey!

this was meant to be headcanons/random concepts but turned in a messy blurb so it’s under read more

he loves art and isn’t so bummed out that he has to take the class because - again - he likes it But the issue is he likes Looking at it, Not creating it. he’s got jiggly hands that squirm and twitch without his consent constantly and that doesn’t bode well for drawing fine details and intricate patterns, so he’s hoping because it’s an introductory course it’ll be. maybe more theory than anything else? or at least just basic tools and mediums so he can struggle through with a grimace from the professor

he ends up with /oil/ paints though and he’s looking from the bowl of fruit to his easel to thr OIL PAINTS and derek is there, in spirit, going hahahaha good luck pretty boy! and spencer Could ask to change the type of paint he’s using but he’s awkward and so. grits his teeth and goes. alrighty this is it this is life im using oil paints, something notoriously difficult for a beginner, which is what i am, a beginner, and i am now putting these expensive paints to this expensive easel with my inexperienced hands-

and you’ve been watching him since he stepped in, because he’s pretty, and now you’re grimacing cause Oh Boy he does not know what he’s doing and he’s. he’s breaking the paintbrushes. you can hear the bristles cracking from across the room.

spencer would’ve noticed you if he wasn’t so Humiliated (he, too, easily notices pretty people) so when you creep up behind him and say, “oil paints are difficult, aren’t they?” in this understanding voice that he follows with his head, his first thought is- oh, so to top it all off a piece of art has come to life? this is where we are now?

he does that thing where he forces out a little breath along with a small smile and goes, “ah, yeah. i didn’t want to ask for something else, so,” and weakly lifts the palette in his hand as if to say, it is what it is.

“i could help, if you’d like?”

and he agrees cause he’s eager to learn! and you, a masterful artistic genius, blow him away with not only your knowledge (you’re into the theory kind of stuff too and at one point he jolts himself, realises he was staring at you with his mouth open, and deeeeep down wishes someone would think of him the way he thinks of you when you ramble) but your actual skills too! and you’re a great teacher! patient, understanding, and did he say patient? because he has painted a damn sky at least 15 times and every time he Somehow makes clouds look phallic and you just go hehe :) and he’s like I love u (internally)

several weeks in, when you and spencer have become arty friends, the subject turns to drawing people rather than objects - you tell him getting people /right/ is something you struggle with yet you love doodling your friends and family in your sketchbook. the first body spencer draws (that isn’t a stick man) is done in crayons, which he’s found is the medium that works best for him (only when the crayon is properly wrapped. because the waxy feel of them Freaks him out)

you help him learn about drawing anatomy while he tells you /about/ anatomy, he attempts to sketch a hand and it’s so odd looking he laughs so hard he CRIES and you finally convince him to try charcoal, your personal favourite

it’s messy and gets everywhere (spencer opens his mouth to complain about his expensive grey cardigan but then- the little mark is a physical representation of this memory between you and him, huddled close together as you both draw aimlessly in your sketchbook, and the mark feels more like a blessing) but spencer ends up agreeing that charcoal sketches look the best.

then he sees something he shouldn’t have.

you’re talking about how you sketch your family all the time - there’s several of your roommates and your pets and a sheep u saw this one time - then there’s...someone oddly familiar? that he catches a glimpse of? and before he can think he goes “wait-“ opens that page and it’s him. him, standing too close to an easel with his tongue slightly poking out in concentration and it’s a charcoal sketch of him from last week.

you’re embarrassed. “that’s weird, im sorry-“

“you make me look good” he tells you, smiling sweetly, and you’re convinced it’s just to comfort you but you’re too glad he isn’t filing a restraining order you let it slide

i mean. have you seen his face? how can anyone look at that and not want to start chiselling marble?

then he gets secretive, weird, a little odd and definitely is avoiding you. he paints and draws with his back to you, still talks to you but over his shoulder and can never really look you in the eyes. you think this is it and that the sweetheart you’ve come to see as more than a friend is Done with you, because you’re a CREEP, and then after a weekend of silence on his end this happens:

while you’re getting your stuff ready, he walks up silently and slides a small sketchbook in front of you. you stare at it, wondering what it’s for, and he nods at it and tells you to open it. when you go to, he stops you-

“a-actually, let me give you a page to start on-“

when he manhandles the book his hands brush yours, his already bright red cheeks get redder, and you bite your tongue so you don’t sigh dreamily.

he’s drawn you.

it’s not perfect and kind of not pretty - a lot of harsh edges and weird shading - but you can tell its you. it’s you, drawn by him, probably from memory, and he’s drawn little hearts around your head because he’s the cutest? evidently?

“it’s really bad, but i thought-“ you look directly at him, making him freeze. he’s got a little charcoal just under his eye. unabashedly, you reach up and wipe it away, hand remaining at the side of his face when you’re done. “i thought you deserve to feel how i felt when you drew me.”

“and how did you feel?”

he gulps. “loved.”

all you can do in the Classroom you’re in is beam sickeningly sweet at one another, lost in your own world while there’s a wordless exchange. the rest of the sketchbook is full of half attempts at sketching you - in different positions, with different expressions, some with a full head while others are half a face. some of them are hilarious, but they’re all made with the purest intentions. “i love it.”

and when you share a look then, you don’t need to verbally say what comes next just yet.

(and. yes. the second you see a pottery class is available you drag him and Make him sit between your legs and he’s never blushed so much in his life the teacher asks if he needs air. at one point you think it’d be funny to peck his neck and the shiver it sends through him is so shocking your mould on the wheel is squished between his hands)