#buy cotton seeds

[meowsuguru]

U wanna put 'em in your mouth, pull 'em all down south

perv!Geto x perv!reader

ꨄ cont: perv!geto, unprotected, masturbation, p in v, oral f!receiving, panty shenanigans, dirty talk, breeding kink (if you squint)

ꨄwc: 2.5k

ꨄ a/n: dedicated to my muse @nanaslutt the inventor of perv!geto. The people yearn for him <3

Suguru just couldn’t get enough of you. The way you walk, how you speak, that light perfume you always wear, how you wear your hair when you’re at home.

He can’t seem to get you out of his head lately, your ass in those shorts you always wear plaguing his mind. 

He thinks of you as he walks toward your bedroom, placing his ear on the door. He hears the shuffle of your feet and he exhales, thinking about all the things you could be doing together if you only knew.

The spout of your shower turns on, and he pushes your bedroom door open, socks padding on carpeted floors as he slips inside without a sound.

He thinks of you as his pants tighten, your little sigh as you step into the water going straight to his groin. 

He can feel the steam in your ensuite bathroom seep through the crack in the door, and he can only imagine what you’re doing in there. 

Are you touching yourself? He thinks, heading to the bathroom door. You’re filthy, he groans internally; you leave your underwear lying on the floor in your room while you shower. He picks them up, bringing the soft cotton to his nose. So sweet, he thinks, eyes rolling back into his head. His tongue darts out to taste the crotch, savoring the sweet and tangy flavor on your underwear. 

And, he thinks of you as he wraps your panties around his cock, stuffed in his fist as he jerks himself off. 

He groans, biting the heel of his free hand, as he pumps his fist, the black fabric woven around his fingers as his grip slips from the base of his cock to the tip. 

He’s gotten pretty good at doing this quickly, letting his mind wander to what your naked body might look like in the shower, spurring him on as he fists his thick cock and grunts, muffling the sound with his hand. He’s getting close now, hips bucking into his hand as his hand slides around himself, the fabric of your panties adding just the right amount of friction. 

How he'd love to see you with your legs up on his shoulders as he pushes the head of his cock between your thighs, your soaking wet panties shifting against his length. Just the thought alone has his cock twitching and begging to come into your pretty black panties. 

He hears you make a sound in the shower and his head perks up, What was that? He wants to hear it again. You’re such a dirty girl, he thinks as he imagines you using the showerhead on yourself. Do you have one of those? You would… his filthy girl would be doing something nasty like that behind closed doors. 

All the thoughts he’s having are driving him insane, and he grips his cock tighter, squeezing around the head to finish himself off. He comes, right on the crotch of your panties, fucking into the fabric as he spills himself out. 

Carefully, he massages his seed into the fabric, leaving them wet and thick with his come. He sets them back down on the floor next to your shorts, tucking himself back into his pants. 

The water shuts off, and he slips out of your room, closing the door soundlessly. 

–

You find yourself in Suguru’s room. He’s out buying groceries, so you snuck into his room. You’re rummaging through his top drawer, looking around frantically as you find what you’re looking for. 

Black boxer briefs. 

You slowly step out of your shorts and underwear, leaving them pooled on the floor at your feet. You slide on his boxers and have to stifle a whimper as the heat in your center grows at just the feeling of the fabric touching you. You bite your lip, heading over to his bed with your vibrator tucked into your left hand. Laying down, you smell the fragrance of the expensive shampoo he uses leftover on his pillow. It sends you reeling. Long hair falling over broad shoulders, you imagine him in the kitchen, sweats hanging low on his hips as you click the vibrator on to the first setting. 

Placing the bullet over your clothed clit, you moan, the sensation almost as good as you imagine Suguru’s fingers would feel, doing little circles over the bud. You’re soaking, the fabric of his boxer briefs dampening as you keep the pressure of the vibrator over your clit. 

You left a crack in the door so you could hear in case Suguru got home, and you whine, thinking about him walking in on you. It makes your cheeks heat and your legs clench, juices pooling in his underwear. 

You’re getting close, you can feel it. Just like how you imagine you feel Suguru’s hot breath on your neck as he’s pummeling into you, and you slip your vibrator under the waistband of the underwear. The direct contact has your head spinning, hips grinding into it as you chase your high. 

“Suguru, Sugu…” you whisper breathlessly, begging the ghost of him you’ve conjured up to let you come. 

Come for me, baby. You imagine him saying, and you’re right there. 

You hear the keys jingle in the door and you cry out, biting your lip as you come.

-

Suguru hears you as his keys unlock the door. My filthy girl, while I’m not home… he thinks, pants growing tighter. When he steps into the apartment, he drops the groceries off at the counter before making his way down the hallway to your bedroom door, pressing his ear up against it. He needs to hear you panting as you come down from your high. But he doesn’t hear anything. 

-

You scramble, sliding his underwear off and tossing them somewhere randomly as you hastily put on your own underwear and shorts. You stuff your vibrator into the back pocket of your shorts and sneak to his bedroom door. When you open it, you see his own form pressed against your own door.

“Suguru?” You ask, taken aback. 

He turns quickly to face you, but then a confused look flickers in his expression. 

“What were you doing in my room?” He asks, face unreadable. 

“I was… looking for my shirt. I think our laundry got mixed up,” you lie smoothly. 

“Didn’t find it? I’ll help you look,” he says, a smirk playing on his lips as he walks towards his room. Suguru knows what you were doing. It lights a fire in him.

You put your hands out to stop him. 

“No, that’s okay.”

“I think I can find it.”

“No really, it’s fine.” 

You’re suddenly very aware that you left his underwear out and you’d really like to stop him from finding those. You’ll just have to sneak back in to throw them in the laundry later.

“Let’s put the groceries away,” you say, backing him up.

“I’d like to go to my room, please,” he smiles, squinting his eyes closed. It makes you throb. Oh, he’s gonna catch me, you think, and it does something to you. 

“...Okay,” you say, stepping out of the way. You follow behind Suguru as he goes into the room, eyes scanning for the discarded underwear. You spot them, quickly stepping to the side to retrieve them and you ball them in your hands and hide them behind your back. Suguru notices this movement and turns. 

“What are you doing?” He asks, cautiously.

“Nothing.” 

“What do you have behind your back?” 

“Nothing. Why so many questions?” 

“Let me see.” He comes closer to you, grabbing your arm. 

“No.” 

He pulls your arm, and you fight back against his grip for a minute, but he quickly overpowers you. His underwear falls to the floor in between the two of you and you hang your head in shame. 

“...Why did you have these?” He asks, picking them up off the floor, running his fingers along the damp fabric. “They’re wet.” 

“I…” 

“Were you… wearing these?” He asks, grinning. 

“No, I was…” You fail to come up with an excuse. 

“Were you getting off on it?” His voice dips low, hand coming to tip your chin up. 

“Pervert…” you say, shaking your head and closing your eyes tight.

“Maybe. But I’m not the one who masturbated in someone else's underwear.” He smiles that same unreadable smile. 

You groan, heat flooding to your cheeks and in between your legs. Your eyes open and your gaze finds his, his face closer to you than you would’ve expected. 

“You’re not denying it.” 

“I…” the words catch in your throat, leaving you to choke out another sound. 

–

How you found yourself under Suguru you’ll never know. He’s got his head between your thighs, tongue lapping and sucking on the cotton of your underwear. 

“It’s so much better when it’s the real thing,” he moans into your clothed cunt, lips and tongue pressing against you. 

“You fucking perv,” you practically sob, needing him closer. 

“Says you, filthy girl. I heard you getting yourself off earlier when I came home. Didn’t know it was in my underwear, though.” He grinds himself into the mattress, pulling your underwear to the side. 

“Don’t think I didn’t notice my panties going missing,” you try. 

“Why didn’t you come get them, then?” He licks a stripe up your puffy cunt, moaning as you buck your hips up to meet his lips. 

You respond with a moan, high and breathy as it leaves your throat. 

“I knew you were fuckin’ dirty,” he groans against you. 

“You’re n..nasty Suguru…” 

“Say it again.”

You oblige, calling him every nasty word you can think of. His lips meet you again, tongue swirling around your clit. You feel yourself getting hotter, needing more and more. Your hands fly to the back of his head, pushing his nose into your clit. He pushes his tongue inside of you, moving his head as he breathes in your scent. 

“Fuck, you smell like heaven,” 

“You’re going to hell,” you whine.

“You’re coming with me, baby.” 

You clench around his tongue as he calls you that, it sounding just like how it did in your fantasies. You grind your hips against his face, your orgasm nearing. 

“Suguruuu…” you pant, hand gripping his hair tightly, “‘M close…” 

“C’mon nasty girl, come in my mouth,” he groans, and that is not the same as what you had fantasized about earlier. Though, you listen anyway, letting go as your vision goes white and you're coming, so hard, riding his face as you do so. He laps you up, hips bucking into the comforter of his bed as you come, choking out his name and cursing him. 

“F..fuck you, Suguru, you’re nasty…” you cry as you come down. He chuckles, his breath hitting your aching cunt and the sound low and reverberating. 

“Should I remind you of what you did earlier?”

And he’s sitting up now, slipping your underwear back in place as he slides his throbbing cock over the fabric.

“Wanna fuck you with your panties on, baby,” he’s saying, both of you moaning as he ruts against you.

“Dirty freak,” you moan, clamping your legs shut as he fucks in between your thighs. 

“You’re dirtier.”

He slips your panties aside again, the tip of his cock begging to be sucked into your cunt. As he pushes in, you moan, crossing your legs at the ankles where they rest on his shoulder. 

“Fuck, so tight,” he groans, “better than I imagined, baby.”

He’s pummeling into you, leaving no room to breathe as his cock scrapes your walls. You just moan, the feeling of being so full making your stomach flip and your eyes squeeze shut. 

“Your pussy is so much better than the panties of yours I’ve been fucking,” he says, panting as he drives himself back into you again. 

“Fuck, always put my panties back on after you came in them, Sugu,” you babble, and he fucking moans. 

“Shit, baby. You wanna hold my cum in this pretty pussy?” He’s stuttering, your words threatening an early release. “I wanna fill you up so bad, baby, please. Please let me.” 

He’s begging, and who are you to deny him? Suguru losing it right now is making your pussy ache, and his cock is hitting so good inside that you think you might see stars. 

“Yeah, Sugu. Gimme your cum. I want it,” you’re begging in return. 

“Look so pretty in these panties, baby, I like these ones. I wanna fuck you in the black ones too, you know– the ones with the lace and the bows. I love those,” he babbles as he grips at your thighs, slapping against you as he drives his cock in further. 

“Can’t believe you got yourself off in my underwear, you dirty girl. So nasty.,” he grins, pace getting sloppy. 

“Sugu, gonna come again,” is all you have to offer him. His hand flies between your thighs to rub up on that tight little bundle of nerves and you're shaking, his touch all you needed to fall over the edge. You lose vision a second time, gripping his wrist with your hands as it’s all too much and you’re crying out his name. 

He fucks you through it, but he’s sloppy as he does so. He groans, nails digging into your thighs as he comes, pumping you full of him. 

You both still, panting in sync as you come down. He flops over, laying down next to you as you both stare at the ceiling. 

After a beat, you speak, and you can hear him roll his eyes. 

“Give me my panties back. All of them,” you say. 

“Not a chance.”

[trashmouth-richie]

𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞’𝐬 𝐧𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐦𝐞𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐦𝐮𝐜𝐡 𝐭𝐨 𝐦𝐞 :: part 1

꧁ eddie x female reader :: part 2 here

a multi chapter mini series— based on thoroughfare by ethel cain

listen here (apple music) + here (spotify)

summary: jumping into his truck at seventeen, eddie takes a journey in hopes to find love. years pass with no such luck, along the way he stumbles across you, a timid drifter who reluctantly agrees to join him, heading west. you’ve never trusted men, but something in those kind, deep colored coffee eyes stirs up a feeling you’ve never felt before. strangers to lovers trope, one bed trope.

triggers: 18+ smut

author’s note: no upside down, eddie was raised by his mom and dad in florida and they were in love.

The wet shell of a sunflower seed stuck to the tip of your finger. Slicked with salted spit and the tart bite of cherry chapstick, you hung your hand out of the passenger window, waiting for the western wind to blow the husk from your finger.

His thumb rubs against the rough edges of the flint wheel of his zippo, the sweet tang of tobacco invading your nose as the flame sparks leaving a burning cherry on the white paper. A slight chap to his lips from too much sun yesterday at the motel pool in BullHead City, you had supposed. Still, you couldn’t tear your eyes away from him. The only time you could was when his eyes caught yours, daring you to look away.

The way he stared at you with a smirk twisted on his mouth took every bit of breath from your lungs. Holding your gaze in a cozy embrace with the deep warmth of his russet colored eyes until you finally forced yours to break away and look out the window instead. Bottom lip bit between your lips as a growing heat travels over the apples of your cheeks.

If you would have looked back at him you’d have noticed the way he licked his lips as he watched you sigh as if you hadn’t been breathing. Snapping another sunflower seed between your teeth before putting them on the crest of your lips to put them out of the window— he had your movements memorized. Each more tantalizing than the next.

Neither of you were able to deny the tension between you lately, letting it build and fester, aching for relief in the form of pleasure.

The last eight weeks had started to wear heavy on your chest, and you found yourself daydreaming about the beginning of this adventure, like a record on an endless spin to your favorite song.

Not a single radio station would come in wherever the hell it was in Texas he was right now. With every crank of the tuning dial, only the agonizing noise of static strained through the speakers to keep him company as he drove along this highway that never seemed to end.

He cursed himself for not buying a map at the gas station he filled the truck up at this morning. His gut instinct usually guided him on which roads to take, and today was no different. Only today felt like he was pulled by something else, something deeper within himself.

The sky was a mix of cyan and cotton clouds, already hot for May, he was just about to give up on the radio before he popped over a hill and an oldies station came in clear as could be. And something else came into view, plenty far away yet.

Hot wind whipped at your shirt, providing next to nothing for comfort as you trudged along the broken asphalt. You now understood why this place was called the Lone Star State, because you haven’t seen a damn soul in miles. For today, you didn’t mind the loneliness. Leaving home, years ago, you didn’t have a destination in mind, only the knowledge that you needed to get the hell out.

Whatever highway you were on looked to be deserted. As if the state built a multi-laned monstrosity elsewhere and gave up on this slow, lonely stretch, leaving it to the elements. Prairie grass poked through the splintered road, tumbleweeds swayed in the ditches, collecting and tangling as one like a tawny bundle of barbed wire.

Looking behind you, a vehicle showed in the distance like a wavy mirage in the desert. You had half a thought to stick your thumb out and catch a ride to the nearest bus station, but when the vehicle got closer your conscience took over, and anxiety thumped in your chest.

Please don’t stop, please please.

The engine hummed to a lower gear, and you automatically put a hand on the pistol at your waistband. Moving further over to the side of the road where whoever was driving could see that you weren’t interested in their good deed, you kept your head down and kept walking.

Tires slowed and you went into a small panic, wishing you had something sharp to hold between your fingers, but the barren highway offered no such vice.

You heard faint music as the vehicle got closer, crawling almost to a stop as you quickened your steps hoping they would just keep going and leave you be.

“Pretty hot out today… need a lift?”

The voice felt like velvet on your skin, a warmth you’d never known. Endearingly charming, no southern twang like someone from Texas would have. You ignored him, letting the crunch of gravel on your worn boots answer instead.

You had never been given the luxury to trust someone, and you’d be damned if you were gonna start today with some stranger on the side of the road. Heart rate kicking up, you all but bolted to avoid him.

“Baby don’t run, I’ll take you anywhere,” his drawl wrapped around you like a vice, soft and pillowy, and finally your curiosity got the better of you, as you came to a halt. You wanted to look this asshole in the eyes and flash him the pistol you kept, maybe fire a warning shot over the hood of his truck so he’d get the message. That no, in fact you did not need a ride, not from him.

Stopping so his passenger window lined up with you in the center you eyed the only other beating heart on the side of the road.

His hair was past his shoulders, brown and wavy, more than likely frizzy in high humidity. Eyes that were shaped like Bambi’s colored like a bottomless cup of coffee without creamer. His nose sat with a fading sunburn painting along his cheeks, each dwelling a poked dimple in the center. And you swore the key to Heaven was buried in his smile.

When he spoke it was clear that his intentions weren’t to cause you any harm. Minutes ticked by as he waited for your answer.

“Hey, do you wanna see the West with me?”

It was a simple question asked from the quirked mouth of a guy you’d never met before, you would have remembered those eyes in any setting. He leaned an elbow out his window as he threw the truck in park, twisting in his seat to face you a little more. A cigarette dangling from his large hand.

The butter colored sun shone against his caramel curls like a breakfast roll full of sticky sugar, the same light changing his eyes into a whiskey auburn.

He was a complete stranger, but what was even stranger was your one word answer that spread that million dollar grin further onto his face than you thought humanly possible.

You moved your hand from that handle of the gun in your tattered jeans, bearing more holes than actual threads of denim. It was meant for situations just like this, and you had nabbed it from your dad right before you walked out the front door for the very last time.

Instinct told you to run, but something in those dark eyes brought you a wave of calm, whispering out as if you’d known him for years. Your boots had already blistered your heels from walking this far, so what the hell?

Pressing a thumb into the release of the door handle, you swung yourself and your knitted bag into the moth-bitten navajo rug that covered the seat.

His smile didn’t fade, never so much as creased into a frown as he waited for you to get situated. Before he put his truck into drive he explained where he was going.

He was making the grand gesture of looking for love like the kind he grew up watching with his own mom and dad. Explaining that love like that was out there waiting for him, and he was determined to find it, no matter the distance.

Suspicion jumped to your brow, and you tried to stifle the scowl on your lip. “What?” he chirped, a little twist to his lips, “don’t believe in stuff like that?”

This bastard clearly didn’t know heartache the way you were practically related to it. You sigh lazily before looking over at him. Trying not to break his dreams before he even had the chance to realize what a waste of time it was, you simply murmur, “honey, love’s never meant much to me, but I’ll come with you if you’re sure that’s what you need.”

After years of living and growing without being loved, it had become almost useless, something heard in songs or read in books, surely it wasn’t real. But hell, you’d humor this man whose smile danced like a western sunset against a salty ocean breeze, what was the worst that could happen?

A large calloused hand reached across the cab of the truck, and you shook it with a small grin as his voice rubbed like silk across your soul, “I’m Eddie.”

And so it began, the journey to find a love daring to be something greater than anything he’d ever known, hell bent and determined it was out there, wherever that may be.

He had asked about your life. Never pushing when your answers were too short, or ended the conversation entirely. Letting you have your space, he built a trust between the two of you that you weren’t sure about at first.

The roads were desolate, and you couldn’t imagine walking along them alone. You thanked whoever cared that your thoroughfare crossed into his, almost as if destiny had placed you there. Knowing you needed a friend after leaving the only thing you’d ever known and not having a single soul to rely on.

But as time went by, you realized just how much you could rely on him.

That first day, he drove until the windshield bled to ink. Stars dotted across the sky once the sun went to rest, and he encouraged you to follow suit, pulling a hooded sweatshirt from behind his seat and tossing it towards you. Your hesitation told him all he needed to know, that the uncertainty of him was rooted deep. Too deep for you to let your guard down around him.

That pearl handle poked out from your hip and his kind eyes met the scared look in yours. He rubs his lips together before he speaks calmly, “you uhm,” he looks over at you to show how serious this was to him, even if you couldn’t see it in the dark, “you don’t have to worry about using that with me… I’m not that kind of guy.”

His innocence spoke through his eyes in words he hadn’t said, showing you that he wasn’t lying, that you could trust him. You took a deep breath, wondering if you were insane for feeling comfortable with a guy you just met, but it wasn’t long before you whisper, “okay.”

When you snuck a peek over at him, his face was lit by the dim lights of the dash, a smirk nestled on his lips, cheeks welled with the deepest dimples you’d ever seen, and your shoulders eased for the first time since hopping in.

Neither of you spoke for the rest of the night. Your head resting on the window, his sweatshirt rolled under your neck as you fell into a sleep so tender and warm you felt like a baby being lulled to bed as he sang along to the radio.

The heat from the window warmed your cheek when you woke, leaving a less than glamourous mark. Letting out an embarrassingly long yawn, you stretch your arms above your head, feeling your back crack into submission.

“Shit, ‘m sorry, how long did I sleep?” you ask, covering your mouth again from another yawn.

Eddie smiled tiredly, his hair was wrapped into a bun at the base of his neck, sunglasses topping his nose, pushing up from his cheeks as he grins, “don’t apologize for sleeping when you’re tired,” he said, shrugging, “besides, you probably would’ve woken up if I crashed.”

A chuckle hits your dry throat and you cough, “where are we?”

“Still in Texas believe it or not,” he groans, turning it into a long yawn, holding a hand to his mouth, swallowing a bit, “I hoped we could’ve made it to New Mexico before I pulled over but I’m starting to think that ain’t gonna happen.”

You figured he would have stopped to sleep at some point in the night, even if it was just for a few hours. Guilt throttled you at the thought of him staying up while you were asleep. “I can drive while you take a nap.”

“Nah,” he says with a lazy smile, looking over at you, “not that I care if you drive my truck or not, I just think we could both use some decent sleep, watch a little tv, eat, plus… I need a shower.”

Taking a whore’s bath in the gas station sinks had kept you clean, but you almost cried outright at the thought of water, cold or hot you couldn’t care less, running down the length of your body. But the lack of money burning in your pocket stopped that dream in its tracks.

You had a couple hundred bucks left after selling off your car before leaving home. The cost efficient option would be to drive while he slept. “It’s really not a big deal, I promise I’m a good driver.”

The charm you tried to emanate when pulling out your license to show him that you indeed weren’t lying, fell flat as Eddie waved you off, “deodorant only lasts so long before we’ll have to ride with our heads outta the window.”

He laughs in your place as you stare out of the windshield, mind racing over the trouble of being able to afford a motel room.

“C’mon,” he smirks, that same lazy smile stretched on his face, you wondered if he ever got mad. “We survived almost a whole day together, if I was gonna rob you I would’ve done it already.”

“It’s not that,” you say, picking at your nails, fighting the urge to bite them to shreds, “I wasn’t walking because I wanted too…”

Wheels turn in a tired mind as Eddie nearly chokes when he realizes what you meant.

“Don’t worry about it,” he confirms, brushing you off as if it wasn’t a big deal that you’d be bunking with him for free, and when your facial expressions didn’t change, he lowered his voice, and took off his sunglasses, “seriously sweets, you’re doing me a favor keeping me company, ‘m not gonna make you pay for a trip you didn’t plan, okay?”

You sighed, and shook your head yes.

The nearest motel was a hole in the wall type of place. Adhering to the kind of people that either paid by the hour or stayed for weeks at a time. The perk being it was next to a gas station where you refused to let Eddie pay for the armful of snacks he had carried to the counter. Including two hotdogs that you couldn’t be bothered wondering how long they’d been spinning in the warmer.

His boots clunked against the sidewalk as he jumped from the bed of the pickup hauling his duffle bag over his shoulder, the hotel keys wrapped around his forefinger. Outside of you both relieving yourselves on the empty shoulder of the highway last night, this was the first time you’d seen just how tall he was.

He squints in the sun and cocks his head, “bet you a dollar the carpet is orange.”

Room 8 consisted of two full sized beds, a lamp between the two, an arm chair and a small television. A stiff neon brochure for adult channels lay next to the remote, and you scrunched your nose as Eddie pushed it to the floor with the heel of his boot.

Laying out the snacks neatly on the table, you hand him the other hot dog, licking a drop of mustard from your palm. He thanked you, and took a bite consuming almost half of it before dropping onto the bed closest to the door, laying flat on his back.

Having four walls around you gave you a sense of peace you hadn’t been expecting. Slipping off your shoes you wiggled your bare toes and sat on the bed facing away from him, rolling your socks into one another.

“How’s the hotdog?” you asked over your shoulder, moving your bag between the side of your bed and the wall for the bathroom.

A muffled sound comes from the other side of the room as he shovels another bite in, “rubbery, but not too bad for having been made at midnight.”

You snort and swing your legs into the bed. Grabbing the hotdog from the comforter and peeling back the white paper around it, taking a small bite. It was warm, and tasted a hell of a lot better than the moldy ham sandwich you ate yesterday. A satisfied hum leaves your mouth and you giggle.

“Hotdogs for breakfast… don’t think I’ve ever had this before.” You laugh again before taking another bite of the squishy snack. Eddie looks up as he chews the remaining bite, realizing this was the first time he’d ever heard you laugh loud enough for him to hear, what a beautiful sound.

“Stick with me, we’ll have breakfast for dinner, too,” his tongue pokes out to lick a smear of ketchup from the corner of his lip, and he yawns loud and proud.

You cross your feet beneath your legs, a content little smile on your face. “Do I still owe you a dollar if the carpet is also brown and green?”

Your combined laughter echoes across the wood paneling and the pictures of dogs playing poker. The two of you joke about the severely dated room, agreeing that this was probably the place to stay in its prime. But the sheets were clean and that’s about all you could ask for at this point.

Eddie’s eyes were nearly closed as he scrubs large hands down his face, his voice strained, “mind if I shower ‘fore I fall asleep?”

“Not at all,” you say, jumping from the bed and looking through the snacks to find the licorice, “take all the time you need.”

He tosses the remote to your bed and unzips his bag, pulling out a toothbrush and a clean pair of boxer briefs, a minute passes and he scratches his head before diving back into the bag, yanking out a folded pair of sweatpants.

Sighing as he peels off his boots, he walks to the bathroom door and before shutting it, he pokes his head back out, a curious little grin on his lips as he asks earnestly, “you’re not gonna run away, are you?”

You swallow the bite of licorice and smile back, “think you’re stuck with me, if that’s cool with you?”

His grin broadens to a cheshire smile and he says he won’t be long, promising to save some hot water.

Neither of you can quit the grin on your lips until the door unlocks, and Eddie mutters “cool,” to himself before leaving the steamed bathroom.

Diners with smudge stained windows and siding that was warped from the sun's rays, came few and far between on those lone, dust covered roads. Eddie had pulled into almost every one. “Never know when the next one will pop up, sweetheart,” he smirked, sending a wink your way that had your stomach fluttering.

Each menu, although stickier at some places than others, was relatively the same. Eggs, Bacon, Toast. Waffles at the fancier joints or maybe a bowl of fruit alongside a flapjack.

He watched you intently as your eyes scanned the menu, keeping his promise of having breakfast for supper a few week into your trip. His own stomach had been grumbling since you packed up from the last motel somewhere on the border of Oklahoma and New Mexico. A wrong turn near McCamey had taken you North to Amarillo, three hundred miles in the completely opposite direction.

Instead of screaming about the wasted fuel, Eddie had only shrugged. He was excited to cross into the panhandle, and to make a check along the list of states you’d scribbled onto a napkin a few days into the trip to cross off as you came through them.

That quiet, suspicious drifter he had picked up three weeks ago seemed to blossom with life the more he peeled back the bricks that you had surrounded yourself with. But Eddie was charismatic, easy to talk to, and you found yourself deep in the throes of explaining things to him you haven’t talked about in years.

When your cheeks would heat and embarrassment creeped up your neck, you apologized for talking too much. He only shook his head, a small smile on his lips as he said that he didn’t mind, he wanted to know more.

The waitress strolled back over with a cigarette hanging from her lip, a gray ash practically a mile thick on it as she grumbled about the specials and set glasses of water on the table—ice already melted besides a sliver of a stubborn cube.

“I’ll take a cup of coffee,” he charmed, folding the menu placing his hands on top of it, “two eggs hard fried, a couple of sausage patties and wheat toast, also one of those slices of lemon meringue pie I saw in the display window.”

Without so much as a grunt, the waitress lifted her eyes to look you over. Setting down the vinyl menu, you place your order and lick your lips at the thought of the homemade lard crust on the rhubarb pie.

Looking out the window to the dry landscape, you sigh with a breath of content. You had never been this far west before, never been anywhere really besides the small town you grew up in.

Two coffees sit in front of each of you and Eddie thanks the waitress, a dimpled grin on his cheeks as he opens a packet of sugar. Warm eyes look at you as he stirs the coffee into a swirl, “Nothing like home, huh?”

A smile presses to your lips and you sip the bitter liquid, chipped porcelain against your front teeth, “definitely not, the air is dry here.”

“Yeah,” he agrees, slipping the spoon into his mouth to clean the coffee up, taking a big gulp of the burnt— probably microwaved— concoction, “it is, but that’s the beauty in the journey, exploring different places, meeting new people.”

He tucks a curl behind his ear, a tiny silver hoop in his lobe, you hadn’t noticed before and you ask, “you keen on picking up strangers on the side of the road?”

A laugh bubbles from his throat, and he smiles big showing all of his teeth, “in all the years I’ve been on the road, I never have, not until you,” he takes a sip of his coffee, a pretty blush rides on his cheeks, “guess I haven’t run out of luck just yet.”

You hide your own smile, itching your nose, “how long has it been?”

Eddie thinks for a minute, “well, I left Florida when I was seventeen..,” he adds up the years on his fingers with this thumb moving to each one, “… shit,” he says with a smirk, “almost nine years now.”

He was older, not by much, but you had both left at a younger age. Calling the open road and warm air home for years. Living like a Steve Earle song sporting a two pack habit and a motel tan, it seemed like fate put you on the same road that he was traveling that day.

But you push that thought away, Eddie was looking for love, and you were just tagging along like a pet, a friend at best.

“Do you ever miss it?”

He stretches himself across the booth, arms on the back of the peeling seat, pearl snaps straining against the denim from the broadness of his chest, and you find it hard not to look, “Nah, I’ll go back someday, me and my girl.”

That flutter happens again in your stomach and you feel almost nauseous at how infectious his smile is.

You spend the rest of dinner that way, trying to shove down a grin with each bite of breakfast food as the sun fell behind the mountains. Letting the butterflies swarm, with each time he looked into your eyes.

Not knowing that Eddie was also slowly losing his own battles, leaving with something more in his stomach that was sweeter then the stiff meringue on that damn lemon pie.

🌵 taglist: @joejoequinnquinn @micheledawn1975 @dashingdeb16 @hereforshmut @welc0me-t0-hellfire @aropodcastfuck

[sunnie-angel]

Strawberry Pie

jason todd x gn!reader

summary: you spend a lazy morning finishing baking the pie that Jason started

tags: kissing, fluff, domestic jason todd

rated teen | wc: 1.1k

a/n: a loosely inspired song fic. can be read as a future scene from A Soft Touch or as a standalone. just wanted something light and fluffy and was possessed with the urge for pie so here it is.

It’s warm this morning, but there’s a cool cross-breeze coming in through the open window. It’s not late enough in the spring to start turning on the AC yet, the breeze currently lifting the sheer curtains enough to keep the apartment fresh. You reach over to the empty side of the bed, let your hand bunch up into a fist before pushing yourself upright and out of bed. Jason had told you, between parting kisses, that he’d be late coming home, the planned stakeout likely to go on until noon. You’d expected this, unworried by his absence but still secretly hoping he’d have returned safe to you.

You make yourself a cup of tea and drink it leaning against the countertop, the Formica countertop digging into the small of your back, the thin cotton of your tank top barely blunting the edge. Feeling hungry, you go looking for breakfast ingredients in the fridge. There’s a note from Jason, stuck to the top of the strawberries you’d bought at the farmer’s market yesterday. For pie, do not eat! signed off with a little heart and smiley face. A few shelves down is the pie dough, covered in plastic wrap and exactly where Jason had left it, in a hurry to follow up on the lead his lieutenant had called in.

It’s a lazy Saturday morning, time stretching out in front of you. You pull out the dough and berries, set them onto the counter. Go rummaging through Jason’s box of recipe cards, one of his last keepsakes from his mother and added to by Alfred, until you can find the one for strawberry pie. The recipe is easy enough, Jason having done all the hard work of making the dough.

You start by turning on the radio, an old analogue thing that Jason had been determined to fix by himself, and setting the oven to preheat. The strawberries go into a colander, washed and ready for slicing. You pop one into your mouth and it just about bursts on your tongue, bright and sweet like sunshine. They’re smaller than the kind you can buy at the grocery store, seeds more prominent and scent stronger. It’s a shame that these wild strawberries are only available a few months of the year but it makes them that much sweeter. Humming, you slice through the quart of berries, juice staining your fingertips. Put them in a bowl with cornstarch and sugar, a dash of lemon juice to finish.

Turning to the dough, you start rolling half out onto the floured countertop. It fits into the pie dish Jason had brought back from one of his missions almost perfectly, only a few hanging edges in need of trimming. Feeling adventurous, you decide to braid some of the lattice work for the top. It comes out a little lopsided, but it’s a good first attempt. Fingers pinching, the fluted edge of the pie takes shape. A light hand with the egg wash and a sprinkle of Demerara sugar later and it’s done. You step back to admire your work. It makes a pretty picture, the pie on the marbled countertop, white tulips in a vase from your one foray into pottery, mid-morning sun bright and white through the kitchen windows.

The pie goes into the oven, and you start cleaning up the evidence of your morning’s activities. The dishes go into the washer, the countertop wiped clean, leftover berries into your stomach. So engrossed in your tasks, you don’t hear the door open or the duffel bag hit the floor of the entryway. Arms circle around you, pick you up and spin you in a circle. Jason sets you down, buries his face in your neck.

“Something smells good,” he murmurs into your hair. And it does, the air filled with the scent of golden pastry and roasting strawberries.

“It should. I’ve been working away on that pie all morning.”

“Thought that was my job.” He tries to pout, but you swat at his hip with the dish towel. The timer on the oven goes off, interrupting the moment.

“Well that,” and you gesture at the oven, “can be your job now.”

He accepts his new job with minimal pouting, scooping up the bee-patterned oven mitts and taking out the pie. It’s perfect, golden with rich red juice bubbling through the lattice work. Steam rises off the top in a way that’s got both of your mouths watering. Jason reaches out to pinch off a piece of crust with his bare hand, but you swat his hands away before he can burn his fingers.

“Not yet! It’s got to cool first Jay.” Looking him over, you finally catch on that he’s still got his jacket on and fully zipped up, despite the warm day. He only ever does that when his shirt’s got bloodstains on it. “Go on, take a shower. By the time you’re done the pie’ll be ready and you can have some for breakfast.”

Jokingly holding his hands up in surrender, he starts heading for the bathroom. “Okay, okay, I’m going!”

“Oh and don’t forget to throw anything bloody into the washer, not the laundry basket! I want to run the next load before the stain really sets in this time,” you call over your shoulder. Last time Jason had left it too long, had ended up having to throw away a previous favourite shirt when neither of your combined efforts had gotten the dried blood spatter out.

He makes a noise of assent and you get busy unloading the dishwasher as you can hear the spray of the shower turn on, leaving out two small plates beside the pie. Some forks, a large knife, and an ice cream scoop join them on the counter. You’re just getting the ice cream out of the freezer, the expensive kind with real vanilla beans that Jason splurges on, when he walks back into the kitchen. He hasn’t dried his hair properly, a habit you haven’t gotten him to break in all the time you’ve known each other and grown to just accept.

You hand the knife over to him with a careful kiss, let him carve up slices for the both of you, hands sure and steady. You’re struggling with the ice cream, frozen solid and unwilling to be scooped. Jason notices, gently nudges you out of the way with his hip and takes over, depositing two perfect spheres of ice cream on top of each slice of pie.

Picking up a fork, you feed him the first bite, hand cupped below it to catch any droplets of ice cream. He closes his eyes, goes silent for a moment. You start to get worried that somehow you’ve messed it up, maybe mixed up the salt with the sugar but you were sure it had tasted just fine when you’d licked the filling syrup off of your wrist.

“So? What do you think?”

He smiles before opening his eyes. “I think it tastes like home.”

[h3artstain]

A list of (realistic) things you can do to be more environmentally friendly

(from an earth-loving horticulture student.)

— COSMETICS

Use bar soap instead of soap bottles

Use old toothbrushes for cleaning surfaces

Try exploring and researching some homemade face/body/lip products

Use ice sleeves, sunglasses, and caps instead of sunscreen (Edit: I’ve seen people say that it is safer and even necessary to wear sunscreen at all times so try to use eco friendly sunscreen instead! In my country it’s pretty uncommon to wear sunscreen often as we usually wear ice sleeves which is why I did not know this oof)

Use coffee grinds or homemade tumeric masks instead of cosmetic products with exfoliator beads

Invest in a metal ear cleanser instead of cotton buds

Try placing more importance on skincare instead of contributing to exploitative beauty companies by buying makeup

Use cosmetic products that do not contain palm oil

— CLOTHING

Try as much as possible to rewear your outfits at least twice before washing them

Actually WEAR your clothes! I know some of y’all just wear them once for your Instagram post and let it rot in your closet forever. Stop doing that!

Thrift, stitch up holes in your clothes, and use second hand clothing instead of supporting fast fashion companies like SHEIN, H&M, Zara, etc.

Cut up your old clothing into yarn and do macramè with it

Cut patches of old clothing to turn into reusable cotton pads

Learn how to knit, crochet or stitch your clothes!

If you use tampons, try menstrual cups or discs instead. If you use pads, try reusable pads or period underwear. (Trust me, it works). Also, use reusable panty liners instead of disposable ones. They may seem expensive but you will end up saving a lot more in the long run

— GARDENING

Plant seeds/cuttings in your old bottles, jars, and containers

Propagate your plants and exchange cuttings with your friends instead of buying new plants

Make your own soil mixes instead of buying soil mixes

Better yet, don’t use soil for your indoor plants and try getting into hydroponics or semihydroponics instead. This saves so much water and doesn’t contribute to mining of soil

Fertilise plants with fruit peels, coffee grinds, and tea leaves. (DO NOT use chemical fertiliser on soil)

Plant more legume plants in your garden instead of using nitrogen fertilisers. (Look up the nitrogen cycle if you need an explanation on this)

Avoid pesticides unless really needed. Try sprinkling cinnamon powder on soil or spraying neem oil on plants and soil to keep away pests.

If you have a lawn, try looking into rain gardens and consider making one

Let the (non invasive) weeds in your lawn/garden grow! They are there for a reason!

Stop killing earthworms and millipedes in your garden. This also applies to snails native to your region. They are there for a reason.

Water used to wash fruits and rice can be used to water plants

— REDUCE, REUSE

Use the caps of jars as soap holders

Use recycled paper/notebooks

Wash and dry your glass/plastic items before throwing them in the recycling bin

Keep any plastic bags for future use

Use eco friendly or reusable dish sponges

Use reusable straws and cups

Invest in a fabric cup holder

Bring a water bottle with you wherever you go

Drink more water and less sugary drinks

Bring reusable bags for buying groceries instead of using plastic ones

Always keep a folded up tote/shopping bag with you in case you spontaneously decide to buy something

— ELECTRICITY

Set a timer on your air conditioning instead of letting it run throughout the night

Better yet, use a fan instead of an air conditioner

Open your windows! Aerate your home!

Allow natural light to enter your home during the daytime, so as to avoid turning on your lights

Switch to LED lightbulbs instead of regular lightbulbs

Turn off any switches in your house when they are not in use

Collect the water from your air conditioner/dehumidifier condenser and use that to water plants, clean surfaces, steam ironing, and flushing toilets. Do not drink it though!

— INTERNET

Delete your all of your unwanted emails

Delete your inactive social media accounts

Try not to post excessively on social media and stop scrolling excessively too. This not only reduces energy usage but also improves your mental health and productivity

Try to keep to one social media app instead of having so many

Reduce your internet usage

Save your eBooks on a thumbdrive instead of on cloud

Use Ecosia instead of Google

Stop being influenced by social media trends that only just contribute to consumerism

Download music instead of streaming

Reduce online shopping

— FOOD

Reduce intake of processed foods

Reduce intake of fish, beef, and dairy

Try eating vegan or vegetarian foods at least once or twice a week

Cook your own meals instead of eating out

Bring your own food containers when taking away food from stores

Beeswax wrap instead of cling wrap!

Buy loose-leaf tea or plastic free tea bags instead of regular tea bags

Eat more mushrooms, vegetables, and fruits and drink more water

Support local farmers

And finally, educate yourself more about ecology and the environment!

[eeboshmeebo]

💐Dandelion💐

Incorporating a childhood aspect with my favorite character.

@jyohan :3

@the-copycat-hero >:(

✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿

Every time you saw a dandelion, you always told your parents to stop the car so you can go pick one and blow on it just for the sake of seeing the seeds scatter in the wind. Not to make a wish, but to see more of the bright yellow blossoms and their puffy seeds spread even more.

Safe to say, not many actual wishes were made unless they involved dandelions magically growing at your home or your parents buying some cotton candy in the fancy machine the ice cream parlor had.

The few wishes you actually made, though, always got fulfilled. Mostly because you said them out loud and your parents could always hear you, so you didn't think much of it.

One day, there was this one specific wish that stood out from all the others, one that you made on your thirteenth birthday.

"I wish to meet the prettiest boy in the whole world!" You cried out, before blowing and letting the dandelion seeds float into the air, carried away by the breeze.

It was just a spur of the moment thing. You didn't actually believe you'd meet him, since you were always told you had to keep your wishes quiet for them to come true, but it was nice to dream.

✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿

And what a surprise it was, indeed, when you saw a boy with hair that reminded you of a dandelion about to bloom, eyes as blue as the morning sky, and a vitality in his voice that outmatched the plant that he reminded you of.

"HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Is this what 1-A does in their break time? None of you even look like you're having a break, you're just sitting and talking!"

Maybe you were hallucinating, but there was this pinkish tint in the room the moment you saw him. Or there was sunlight shining on Mina again. Didn't matter.

He was, certainly, without a single doubt...

"...the prettiest boy in the whole world."

You smiled and leaned over your desk a bit more, resting your chin on your hands before he turned to face you, a sneer on his face as he immediately had something to say.

✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿

"And you! You look extra stupid, anything to speak or is your head too empty to say a single thing?"

Monoma immediately had chosen the student that had a head in the clouds, despite the fact that those eyes were keenly focused on him and not having an unfocused gaze into nowhere. He surely won't regret thi-

"You're a wish come true... the prettiest boy in the world is real!"

"...ah!? What're you talking about?! I didn't come from a dumb wish!"

Why did you say that in front of everyone.

He bit his lower lip in an attempt to retain his composure, though he could physically feel the blush rising on his face.

"Wow, he even looks like a Rainier cherry when he blushes. I can just take a big ol' bi-"

"Harassment!"

"OW!"

Thankfully, the rectangular-looking student with glasses had slapped the back of your head before looking up back at him.

"I dearly apologize for our classmate's behavior. This has never happened before, and frankly, I expected better."

"Yeah, just... discipline your classmates better. Hmmph. Unruly..."

Before his face could turn even redder, he quickly fled out of the classroom while covering his face, running past Kendo who looked at him with an expression he'd rather not see at the moment.

He'd have to look up Rainier cherries later and send a thank-you gift to glasses guy in secret afterwards since nobody could know he thanked a 1-A student of all people.

"Can't believe that... that..! Ugh! Just go and... and eat dirt!"

He kicked a stray eraser on the way back to the 1-B classroom, grumbling to himself the entire time.

✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿

"No. Way. Iida!" Mina hissed, pulling Iida by the jacket and closer to her desk, her eyes wide with shock and her teeth gritted together as she pulled him down by the collar.

Iida practically felt the urgency in her voice and toned down his voice, but also made sure to fix his glasses' position. "What's the problem, Mina? I've rarely heard you this panicked before."

She rolled her eyes before leaning in even closer to him, whispering into his ear.

"Our classmate's in love with the blondie that came earlier."

His reddening face immediately paled at that news. Proximity to the opposite sex was nothing compared to the realization that his classmate was in love with that guy who just barged in, insulted his class, and then left.

"The whole thing..?" He weakly asked, covering his mouth with one hand to hide the way his jaw dropped at the news.

"Yes," Mina hissed yet again, looking around before continuing. "The doki-doki, badump-badump. The rose-tinted glasses. The whole head-over-heels. The comment about biting the other guy. Our classmate is in love."

"Oh no... we're too young! Studies should be a priority, not romance!"

"I'd love to say otherwise, but right now we have to find a way to help our classmate fall out of love with that guy before it's too late."

"A shameful thing..."

"But our classmate, our friend, can do so much better than him. We just need to expose a side worse than the one he exposed today."

It was settled. Mina and Iida would help you rise back out of love via... exposure therapy.

"What're you two talking about?"

"Nothing big, just planning a few things, dear classmate!"

"Okay then... you do you, I guess."

They both sighed in relief as you went back to doodling and rubbing the back of your head. This had to be kept a secret, lest unwanted events occur, like you falling deeper in love.

~✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿~

Part one of plan Yellow Rose. Yellow roses mean 'friendship'. They can accept friendship, but not romance.

Mina and Iida brought you to 1-B's classroom. Surely, seeing Monoma new side would diminish your affection for him, right? That's what they hoped for, anyways.

"What're we doing, again?"

"We're taking you to class 1-B to apologize for your uncouth comment. Their class representative heard you from the hallway."

That right there was a rehearsed line from last night. Thankfully, it wasn't too hard to convince you to follow them so a lot of the lines they practiced didn't need to be used.

"And right here is the other class..." Mina started talking as she opened the door, but she hesitated when you stepped inside.

"Don't make a scene, okay?"

"..."

"Buddy?"

Too late. Iida was frantically moving his arms and making robotic gestures that Mina couldn't make heads or tails of, while you had already locked onto someone and beelined towards him.

"Wishboy! You're here! No wonder you disappeared so quickly yesterday, you were here all along! Oh, wow, you're really pretty up close. Has anyone told you before that you've got really smooth skin? Your lips, too. They're like flower petals."

Monoma's face progressively got redder the longer you rambled on, to the point where it was visible despite his efforts to hide his blush.

"Oh, really? well, I wish I could say the same for you, but I'd rather not waste my breath on the likes of you." Monoma teased, though he was as smooth as almond butter at the moment.

"Really? Damn... because even your voice is pretty, too."

Part one obviously failed, judging by the current situation. Mina facepalmed while Iida picked you up by the arms and walked back out of the classroom, the lovestruck look on your face obvious to anyone seeing it.

However, while they left with you in tow, Monoma couldn't help but wonder...

"...are you playing with me, or is this real?"

~✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿~

Part two. Since meeting him when he was calm didn't work, how about when he was riled up after training? Surely, seeing him all messed up, exhausted, and disheveled should do the trick.

Mina and Iida had teamed up with Sero and Tooru to make sure this plan won't screw up... again.

They had told you to bring some perfume and towels just in case, though you came to the training grounds with the entire beach supply set. Handheld fan, sunscreen, UV umbrella, the works. Maybe you saw that the temperature was high today or something.

Sero, Tooru, and Mina were definitely thankful for the shade since it was sweltering outside. Iida was negotiating with Vlad King to watch the rest of training. The 1-B students had mostly finished their training ahead of time and were resting under one of the thinner umbrellas on the training area at the moment, but there were a few more students that didn't come over yet...

"Can you see him, Mina..?" Tooru whispered behind you, fanning herself to keep away the heat.

"No, not yet. Where is he? He- oh."

And over the negligible hill came Monoma.

Dear god, what a mess.

Sweating, shaking, stumbling, somehow in last place, and downright unrecognizable to the untrained eye. And he somehow lost his gym uniform top.

What. A. Mess-

"Wait. Hold on, are you kidding me?"

"Noooo... nooo!"

When the trio looked towards you, you were practically eyeing him up like a critic over a runway model despite him being the furthest thing away from a model at the moment.

Mina had hidden behind Tooru to shield herself, though it was the handheld fan that did most of the work and not Tooru herself for obvious reasons. Sero had just looked away.

While the three students had deigned themselves to not look while you fawned over what was probably the messiest sight ever, you walked up to Monoma with a towel, some water, and an ice pack in hand.

Iida, however, was able to see what was going on after Vlad King was satisfied with his explanation.

"Want some water?"

"Yeah, sure. Thanks for the wa..." Iida could see that Monoma took the offered water and took a hefty swig, but choked when he saw who it was.

"Y-you!?"

"Yeah, it's me. Heh, you're really cute when shocked."

"I'm not cute! Why're you here, anyways!? To make fun of me? You probably are!"

"But that's mean, and you're far too cute to be mean to..."

"You're lying. I can see it on your face. AH! Let go unless you want me to copy your Quirk!"

"I'm fine with that if it means I get to hold your hand."

"...you're not deterred by the fact I can copy your Quirk?"

"Of course not! I actually think it's a really cool and useful power,

Iida felt like he was watching an unstoppable force and an unmovable wall go head-to-head, but the wall was crumbling quickly and gaining the shade of red bricks as it did.

The wall being Monoma. Oddly enough, Iida felt a bit sour watching this entire exchange, watching you wipe the sweat off Monoma's face casually despite the boy's protests and how you kept on teasing him.

"Ah, the sourness of being single..."

Iida jumped, or would have, if he didn't have Mina's hands on his shoulders while she grimaced.

"It's like they're in a relationship and they don't even know it. Frustrating! I ship it, though."

"Mm-hmm." He agreed, before guiding his friends away from the training grounds. He now knew what it felt like to be a 'single dog' that he always heard about, unfortunately.

♡✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿♡

A week later.

"So..."

Monoma fidgeted around with one the many daisy-buttercup flower rings on his hands, sitting on a picnic blanket under a tree while you had two dandelions in hand and scoured the field for more.

"Did you really mean them? Those compliments you said to me."

"Hmm... yep. All of them. I wouldn't be bothered to even think of any if they weren't about you, wishboy."

It was so, so confusing. He plucked a daisy from nearby, admiring the petals and the slight pinkish hues. English daisies with their gentle hues and layers of petals. He started picking at the petals, a small game of 'Love me, loves me not' going though his mind.

"That's more flattering than I thought it'd be, really. I still can't believe that you don't mind me touching you, even my own classmates needed a little while to get used to me, and boom! Here you are, just..."

"Waltzing up to you without a hint of discomfort?"

You sat down next to him and offered him a dandelion that had already turned into a soft puff of seeds. He took it, but didn't look at it closely in favor of looking at you.

"Yeah. It's almost uncanny, but also comforting."

"Aww, it's nice to hear that you think of me in that way. Really."

You stretched out, raising your own dandelion in front of you while you held onto his free hand.

"Wanna know why I brought you out here?"

"It's not because you want to compare blooming dandelions to my hair, is it?"

"Only partially. The real thing is that... well, it's a childish thing, really, but if you blow on these," You lifted up your dandelion a bit more to emphasize it. "And make a wish, it might come true. That's what I grew up being told, anyways."

Blowing on plant seeds to make a wish, huh? Curious. He set aside his half-plucked daisy and kept the dandelion you gave him securely in hand, ready to blow on it whenever.

"It does seem a little silly, but judging by how big the field is, it must be fun, anyways."

"Definitely."

Monoma could feel his hand being squeezed, but he successfully ignored the blush on his cheeks as he saw you ready to blow on your dandelion.

Three...

Two...

One...

Fwuuuuuuu!

You and Monoma blew on your dandelions at the same time, watching the seeds scatter into the wind and lift into the sky.

"This feels kind of like a date."

And there goes the mood. He gulped a bit out of nervousness, and suddenly, his collar felt a bit too tight.

"Oh, sorry. This could just be hanging out if you want-" "No! No, I- uh... I'm fine with this being a date, actually."

Your silence felt suffocating. More suffocating than anything else's he's felt. He squeezed his eyes shut, anticipating disappointment.

He didn't anticipate the soft touch of your lips on his hand.

"A date it is, then. I was just a bit shocked earlier because wow, you're really pretty and I just realized that again."

He opened his eyes, much less tense than earlier... then he threw a bunch of petals into your face.

"Don't do that! You scared me, hahaha!"

"Pfffbwth- ah, okay, I won't do that next time, but also, petal attack!"

♡✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿✿♡

Class 1-A and 1-B were watching from a distance to make sure everything went well as it could be... and in return, they got the heart-wrenching feeling of being single.

A worthy sacrifice. Especially since Kaibara got some really good pictures on his polaroid camera to pin up later.

[passivenovember]

Billy knows he's pregnant because he has a double whopper with no cheese on the way home from Loch Nora.

Billy hates the Burger King. It tastes like cardboard and the cheese burns noxious holes in his stomach, probably, but things change when you're gonna be a mom.

A dad. Whatever.

Steve Harrington shoots his wad and, like magic, like Steve Harrington's spunk has turned everything inside him into stardust, Billy can't get enough of the shit. He'd buy cologne made of BK's burger fat, if he could, and spend all day sucking on his wrist like a dog.

So. Billy's pregnant. It's obvious. Among other things.

And no one ever said Steve Harrington was smart, not in any way that matters, and Billy can't learn his lesson. They fuck on Thursday night because apparently this is a middle-of-the-week kind of arrangement, now, and Harrington comes apart inside of Billy because you're on the pill, Malibu, it's okay.

Billy likes it. Lets him. Thinks, there's probably no harm in it now that he's no longer the Virgin Mary. It feels immaculate, anyhow, that this could happen.

Steve fucks into him sloppy, losing his rhythm until he spills, and tears swamp Billy's vision so he misses the whole fuckin' thing. The main show.

He wants to keep the baby. No one ever said Billy was smart, either.

But there are things in this life he'll keep to himself. He's allowed that. He shares so much with Max and Steve, and by association all the other fucking people that love Steve, and it gets old.

He can have this.

Billy thinks that this could be just for him.

"Fuck, Billy," Steve pulls out, but not before peppering Billy's face with soft butterfly kisses. His breath smells like them. Like blueberry seeds, underneath it all, "Goddamn, your pussy's magic."

Billy's hole runs sloppy. Too fucked out to hold anything in.

Billy almost laughs out loud, because. It's magic. It's a joke, right, his pussy swallowed and now there's--

"Love that thing you do with your hips. Love the sounds you make when my shaft rubs--"

"You're a fucking pervert."

"I was normal, before you let me hit," Steve trails damp, sticky fingers through Billy's chest hair. "You hungry?"

I'm pregnant. "No."

"Sure?" Steve rolls closer on the mattress, nosing Billy's damp, pillow-squashed curls out of the way, "You smell like you could eat a fucking village."

"I'm fine."

"Orphans and all, baby."

"So fucking weird."

Steve hums. Pulls on Billy's earring with his teeth and then licks a wet, fat stripe over his bonding patch. Teasing. "If you're hungry I could get us food."

"I'm fine."

"Really, I just need to put some shorts on and I'm outta here, fuckin'. Pedal to the metal--"

"Jesus Christ, I said I'm not hungry so fucking drop it, asshole," Billy shoves away, sitting on the edge of the mattress. He feels around on the carpet for his jeans, his t-shirt, his converse.

Steve runs out of him, gluing him to 500 count Egyptian Cotton. Pisses him off.

"Billy," Steve says.

Billy tugs his socks on. He was freezing, apparently. Never realized it. His teeth chatter so he stoops, reaching for the closest hoodie shaped thing in their heap of discarded clothes, and then.

"You don't have to go, baby," Steve pokes him between the shoulder blades, gentle as a falling leaf. "Please stay."

"You're pissing me off."

"What else is new."

"I'm gonna--"

Steve wraps around Billy like a blanket, cock soft and sticky against Billy's tailbone. His legs are lean and strong, all muscle and good intentions, just like the rest of him.

Billy hates it.

He melts back against Steve's chest, anyway, vision swamped again.

"You gonna tell me what's wrong, or do I gotta beg?"

"Little manners might be nice."

"Billy Hargrove. Please tell me what's got you smelling like a sugar factory caught fire." Steve pets through his hair. Knows how it turns Billy to putty. Has to. "Omega troubles?"

Billy bites down on the inside of his cheek. Tastes blood. "You wouldn't get it."

"I could try," Steve tells him. His lips are soft against he back of Billy's neck, at his ear lobe, on the tense knob of his shoulder. "Please. Tell me so I can fix it."

"You can't," Billy says, traitor voice cracking open, raw, "You can't fix it. It's mine."

My life. My baby.

"Okay," Steve says easily. Kind and good and sweeter than anything Billy could ever deserve, "Stay the night, so I can cook for you before you fall asleep, and again in the morning."

Billy swallows, throat clicking like a dead lighter. Can't breathe, can't--

"It's alright," Steve kisses his neck, "Everything will feel better in the morning."

"We never should've started this bullshit," Billy sits up, heart lurching at the soft, pained noise Steve lets out into the air between them. He can't handle this shit. He can't do this, he can't--

"Billy--

"I'm pregnant," Billy says to Steve's Duran-Duran poster. Can't believe how young he feels, in this moment. Can't begin to wrap his head around the fact that he's twenty years old, and he's in Hawkins, Indiana, and he's going to have a fucking baby with someone who's got such a shitty taste in music, and--

He wants it.

More than he's ever wanted anything. Billy opens his mouth to say it, to scream it at the popcorn stucco, watching like a trillion angel eyes overhead.

But Steve breathes, like an old car trying to start. "You're sure?" He asks.

Billy's shaking even though Steve is a warm, solid weight against his back, burning them up. "Yes."

"How?" Steve asks, full of wonder, and Billy has to get away.

The carpet is heaven under his feet. "I've been. Eating a lot of Burger King."

"Burger King."

"Yeah. Cravings for shit I never liked before. Double whoppers with no cheese," Billy wrings his hands, "And. I didn't have a heat this month, so Joyce took me to the clinic. They said I'm only a few weeks along, but everything is good with her."

Steve makes a wet, heavy sound.

"I dunno. It kinda. Feels like one," Billy rubs a palm over his belly, quick as lightning, "I think it's a girl."

"Billy, please look at me."

Billy does, horrified but swallowing it, one bitter mouthful at a time. He plants his feet and everything bubbles up inside him. This is his life, his body, his baby, and he's going to to this for himself. Steve doesn't have to worry or fork out any cash or put his life on hold just because he knocked up some desperate omega--

Steve's crying. "We're having a baby."

Billy didn't expect this. He falters, mouth working in shocked silence.

But then Steve moves.

He pulls Billy to him, chest heaving as he laughs, high and bright. "Holy, shit we're gonna be parents," Steve twirls them, hooping and hollering like they just won the NBA championship. "Goddamn, your pussy really is magic!"

Billy giggles, in spite of himself. All the other shit melts away, for now, shadows receding under the blinding light of Steve Harrington.

"I can't fucking believe this," Steve says, pulling back to hunt over Billy's face, full of wonder. "Do you think she's gonna have your eyes?"

"I. I don't--"

"I feel like in high school science class we learned something about the brown eyes gene kicking the blue eyes gene's ass? But I would fucking die if our baby comes out looking like you."

"You're not," Billy swallows, choking on tears. "You're not mad at me? Or disappointed?"

"Disappointed?" Steve repeats, his face falling. "Billy, are you serious? No. No, I've fucking. Ever since I met you I've been sitting in this room every night twirling my hair around one finger and kicking my feet because, I--"

Steve's thumb rubs soft, soothing circles against Billy's cheek.

"Billy, I love you," He says gently, "I love everything about you. You're smart and you're hilarious and you're so beautiful--"

"--Steve--"

"--You make my heart feel like it's gonna beat out of my chest. I can't believe you let a loser like me climb on top of you, much less--"

Billy kisses him, eating up Steve's next words.

They don't matter, when Steve leads them back to the mattress. He eats every soft, gooey whimper out of Billy's lungs, swallowing them down and tasting the damp running between Billy's legs.

Makes love to him, while they talk about the future.

Steve only makes one joke about his dick hurting the baby's head, and Billy thinks they should sign up for a class or two.

[vamprel]

Diwali with the Touchstarved LIs !!!

Quick little note, this is my first time doing anything like this so I’m sorry if it’s wonky and a bit out of character :’) also I’ll add the translations for some things at the end !!

—————

- For the puja, I think Kuras would be in charge of making the diyas

- Someone would have to make the sweets so uh I feel like Mhin could be a decent cook, Ais would cook out of nescessity, and Leander could cook well as long as someone makes sure he doesnt start experimenting and make whatever that gooey green drink was....

- Leander would buy the laddoos, and would assist Mhin in making the kheer

- Vere would be in charge of the rangoli, and obviously it’s going to look spooktacular (monster high reference, I can’t stop saying it.)

- During the puja, the MC/reader would be in charge of it because uh idk maybe they happen to be Indian so…!!! (Are there other Indian Touchstarved fans please where are you guys 💔)I feel like Vere would kind of be away from it because of the bell and I feel like he would have sensitive hearing because well, fox ears guy!!

- Mhin and Ais would DEVOUR all of the sweets after the puja

- For the first prayer song moment I feel like it would go well, then the second one Vere may try to annoy someone idk Mhin maybe and then everything spirals…

- it’s okay eventually everything calms down and we get to do fireworks !!

- Ais and Leander would go crazy with the fire bang or snaps or whatever those are called I don’t know 😞 they’d get into a competition on who can throw down the whole bag and get all of them to explode at once

- Mhin would look at the sparkler in their hand like Howl Pendragon looking at the star

- Vere would try to light everyone but Ais on fire. You’re next. Run.

- Okay time for fireworks show time !!

- Vere loves looking at the fountain of colors exploding in the sky, but would hate how loud it sounds

- Kuras and Ais likes all of the fireworks, he isn’t bothered by the noise or blinding colors, he admires them all.

- Leander seems like the guy to love fireworks, and the type of guy to start saying some huge festival speech that the others tune out

- I don’t think Mhin would like fireworks at all because of how flashy and loud it is, so they’d be inside consuming the rest of the kheer or chugging some falooda

- Or Leander dragged them out because festival time!! We must be together!! Friendship!!!! So now they’re by Kuras covering their ears and glaring at Leander

- Eventually everyone calmed down and finally looked at the fireworks

- Happy ending.

——-

Hey y’all sorry for the abrupt stop, I’m exhausted. I have so many art ideas and fic ideas all while being a student and it’s exhausting, so this is bad I know. Anyway the translations

Puja- it’s basically worshipping or prayer time.

Diyas- 🪔 THERES AN EMOJI FOR IT anyway it looks like that! The way my family does it is we have the little clay cup part and a piece of cotton, twist it, put it in the cup with some ghee(a specific type of butter) and boom you got a diya

Laddu/laddoo- for this you have to search up… it’s this orange colored and spherical shaped sweet, but i don’t know what it’s made of

Kheer- Indian rice pudding 10/10

falooda- kind of a milkshake, with basil seeds and sev (noodle things) inside, and it’s scrumptious there’s multiple flavors the the rose flavor is the best and iconic one 10/10

[rumade]

I'm going to cut up this dress today 🥲

Well probably, anyway, unless I chicken out. I've had this dress since about 2008 (age 18) and stopped wearing it around 2015 when the zip broke. It was in a pile to be fixed but I never got around to it, and it has some clay staining on it too

This dress... man I loved this dress. I had to hard-core persuade myself to buy it at the grand price of £42 (about £68 in todays money, yikes), but convinced myself that if I wore it 42 times, well then that would be just £1 a wear. And I wore it so much, it fit so well and felt nice on my skin, made me feel put together and pretty, and was breathable because it was cotton. It was handmade by someone in Reading and was in a Traid Remade charity shop. The person who made it probably has no clue how much joy their little canary dress brought me.

I wore it to art galleries (see me sat upon Ai Weiwei's Tate Modern sunflower seeds below), dates with both boys and girls, trips to the park, my mum's Open University graduation, and many other places. Countless units of alcohol were consumed in this dress, and I'm sure a fair few lovers unzipped it too.

Anyway, goodbye dress! I'm going to cut you up and use some of you as backing for my family heart scrap quilt, and then keep the rest for another sentimental quilt I will make one day with lots of bits of important clothes in it. I loved you so much. Thank you for being part of my transition from teenager to adulthood 🙏 mwah mwah mwah 💋💋💋

[butts-bouncing-on-the-beltway]

By the way, if you want to level up your chef vibes by about 5000%, you can buy a four pack of oil cruets for like $20, and then what you do is you pack each one with cracked whole spices and a fancy oil like olive, avocado, grape seed, cotton seed, etc. Set the bottles on a window sill in direct sunlight for about 24 hrs, and now when you want to season stuff, you just pour a lil fancy infused oil on it. Truly it was a small luxury when I bought them, but it has rapidly become load bearing to my mental health lmao

[bullet-prooflove]

Valentine's Day Bingo: Red - Bobby Goren x Reader

Tagging: @kmc1989 @id1ehands @darqchilddaydreamz @words-and-seeds @malindacath @malevolent-muse @trublu2u @yezzyyae

Hitting the Red Bingo Square

Bobby can’t take his eyes off your lips. The vivid red hue accentuates them as you run your finger over the outline chasing away any smudges from the lipstick.

Forever Together, the shade is called. He knows that because he’d bought you a new one after you’d spent the night, leaving sensual imprints all over his body.

Your eyes flicker up to meet his over the mirror of your compact. You smile that salacious little grin of yours before you snap it shut, depositing it back in your desk drawer.

You know exactly what you’re doing to him. It’s a game, he realises as you adjust the collar of the pretty blue dress you’re wearing, revealing the faint bruise he’d left on the hollow of your throat last night. A way of driving him a little crazy before the two of you go out this evening.

The edges of his mouth tip up into a smile as he turns his attention back to his paperwork, his pen tapping lightly on the table. Eames is the only one that knows about the two of you, she’d cottoned onto it the second she’d returned to work. Everyone else including your partner Logan have no idea that you’re in a relationship.

“I’m going to head out.” You tell him, raising to your feet and picking up your purse.

“Have fun on your date.” He says without looking up.

“Oh, I will.” He hears the light teasing in your voice and his cock stirs at the implication.

 “Oh Bobby, I left the file you were asking about in your top drawer.” You call over your shoulder, the sound of your heels clicking across the wiles as you head towards the elevator.

He pauses for a moment, the lift chiming in the background before you step onto it as he replays the conversations you’ve had throughout the day.

He doesn’t recall asking you for a casefile…

When he opens his desk drawer, he sees the flash of red lace almost immediately. His hand slips inside, his fingertips brushing over the damp material and he clenches his jaw to prevent the moan working it’s way out of his throat. He glances around before he removes your panties from his desk before tucking them into his trouser pocket. He takes his personal cell out of the interior compartment of his suit jacket before he pulls up your text chain and types out his message.

You have been a very bad girl…

Love Bobby? Don’t miss any of his stories by joining the taglist here.

Like My Work? - Why Not Buy Me A Coffee

[vasiktomis]

The Seeds Eating You Out - AFAB!Reader (18+)

Tags/Warnings: Humiliation, angst, illiteracy, yelling.

Buy me a coffee! | Commission Me!

Joseph

Joseph doesn’t beat around the proverbial bush. He wants to make sure you’re satisfied.

He takes an ultra long time worshiping your body.

Lots of kisses.

After a while the spit in his beard goes cold and it feels like a gross stamp.

Also, you realise that despite all the worship, he never actually looks at your face.

When he finally settles between your legs and you’re looking down at the top of his head, you realise how aggressive the male pattern baldness really is.

A strangled sound escapes him the moment he lowers his face to your cunt.

You look down again. He’s crying. Choked sobs, shoulders wracking against your thighs.

“I’m sorry.” He blubbers, drooling saliva and snot all over your vulva. “My wife had a vagina, too, you see.”

Deep in the ocean of his balls, the sperm that will one day become the fetus that will one day become Ethan Seed is strangling its siblings to death. It will lead the New Eden.

___________________________

Faith

Faith is one to keep her nails clipped, god bless.

She just hasn’t washed her hands since the 3rd grade.

There’s almost as much grime on her fingers as there is her terminally bare feet, which are leaving patches of wet grit and sand and the odd blade of grass on your sheets as she crawls toward you on the mattress.

“Welcome to the bliss.” She smiles, holding eye contact until she’s lowered herself enough that you can only see the whites of her eyes.

A muddy hand grips your thigh, and it distracts you from a long lick through your folds, and the expectant look that goes unanswered.

Bravely, she continues on. First in an ‘A’ sequence, then ‘B’.

She’s tracing the alphabet into your clit, and what’s worse, you can hear her humming along so as not to forget her place.

When she gets to ‘F’, she stops and cranes her head to meet your gaze again.

“F for Faith.” She whispers, expressionless.

“That’s right. Very good.” You nod, hesitant.

You wish to leave this place.

___________________________

John

For the past minute, John has been rubbing your shit like a scratch 'n' win lottery card. Sweat gathers on his forehead.

When this started, he was brimming with charisma. Now, 60 seconds in, he looks like he’s about to kill you.

“You like that?” He pants yet again, near sanding off your clitoris with the sheer elbow grease he’s putting into it. “You gonna squirt? You gonna come? Come already. Just —why won’t you come?” John punctuates his accusation by straight up punching the mattress.

For a moment, he looks like he might burst into tears. Into the layers of cotton and padding, he screams himself hoarse before going deathly quiet.

It’s a matter of seconds before he composes himself.

He’s a pro, after all.

A bead of sweat (or perhaps a tear) that had been wobbling at the end of his nose smears into your folds as he lowers his mouth to your entrance — and all but shoves his tongue inside with a faux-appreciative hum that makes it obvious he really thinks he’s doing a good job right now.

Just as soon as the ill-informed venture begins, he’s pulling out and away from you, settling on his knees with what is either a grin or a grimace.

Hastily, he fumbles with his belt.

Apparently it’s his turn now.

___________________________

Jacob

Jacob traces a grimy finger around your clit, ignoring the hitch in your breath.

“See, if you had some more meat on this, there’d be more for me to work with.” He grumbles. “No balls, either. Not only am I going hungry, but thirsty, too. How do you expect to feed a platoon like this?”

“Sir, it’s a pussy, SIR!” You bark back at him, doing your damnedest not to flush red while his eyebrows raise.

His expression turns thoughtful, then. “So this is what a pussy looks like. And the hole?”

“Supposed to be there, SIR.”

“Ew, yuggy.”

“Sir, it is yuggy, sir!”

Jacob shifts back, then. He turns to look over his shoulder at the sliver of arm peeking out from behind a corner.

“Peaches, you see this shit?” He hollers. “Is this common?”

“Y-yes, sir.” Comes the trembling response.

Jacob hums at that, returning to scrutinising your cunt.

“So this is what the liberal agenda is pushing.” He scoffs. “This is the America I fought for.”

[darkartsandkrafts]

Pick a Doodle!

It’s time again. Let my art vomit guide you in life.

There's poison festering inside you. This disease has been present in your heart for a long time, but you don’t remember where it originated. As far as you can tell, you’ve had it since the day you were born. You’ve made peace with it, or at the very least tolerate it. Oh dear apple, I’m sorry to say that the tree you grew from has rotted down to its roots. The best you can do now is wait awhile, submerge into the earth and decay with the worms and the maggots. Maybe you’ll come back as a new seed.

GODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODDOGGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODDOGGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGODGOD

Oh barbles you’ve lost your marbles. Do you taste the sweet cotton candy in the air? Do you wanna party like it’s 1969? Or whenever is the best time to party? I don’t know, I don’t get out much. Anyway, go crazy my dude. Shoot a missile at the sun because you only live once, right? Who the fuck cares if the world burns? Dance like the skeleton you’ll soon become. You’re a fucking vibe, own it.

So yeah, I do free readings (with optional donation) More info on my pinned post.

[thepomegranatewitch]

chag sameach and happy chuseok!

This year, for the first time ever, I built a sukkah. It was tough. I'm not going to lie, even doing it on the cheap it was expensive. There was a lot of hot, hard work.

But I am so, so proud of myself.

I put in the effort to make sure my kids have access to both of their cultures through me, and then I got a shady hut to sit in this last week. I also am making sure to be visibly, loudly, publicly all my selves, so another queer, neurodivergent, mixed race Asian Jew out there knows they aren't the only one.

For those who don't know, Sukkot is a Jewish harvest-time festival celebrating the harvest with some ancestor veneration. It's not a big deal holiday anymore, but it was one of the three pilgrimage festivals during Temple times. I've seen lovely photos of streets in eretz yisrael lined with many sukkot. Chuseok is a Korean harvest-time festival celebrating the harvest with some ancestor veneration. It's not such a big deal holiday anymore, but many people still use it as a time to travel and spend time with living relatives. I hear tell of planes and hotels being booked out for months and traffic being horrendous as people roadtrip to childhood or ancestral hometowns.

Here's some photos of mixed race Jewish Korean queer joy. If you follow the link at the bottom, you can watch the video with voiceover on my instagram. (I could download the video, but because I added the theme from Practical Magic behind my words instagram wouldn't let me download my own voice.)

Come with me and enjoy!

Image description: a light skinned mixed race person with dark hair and eyes, large dark green glasses, a white kerchief, and a light blue jeogori with dark blue collar and cuffs and white dongjeong smiles at the camera, gesturing with one hand upwards and back to the grass fence sukkah wall behind them.

Image description: building the sukkah. A series of five shots, the first two with the person described above wearing a long sleeve green tee and a striped buff straw sunhat on a cloudless sunny day. They use white cotton twine to stitch reed fencing to a metal pop up tent frame, with the top lowered to waist height. The third shot, without people, shows the roof completed and raised to useable height, with flowering bougainvillea and white oleander in the background against a cloudless blue sky. The fourth shot shows the sukkah with walls and an orange outdoor extension cord going into the sukkah. The top has more schach of flowering bougainvillea, pyracantha with orange berries, and an olive-like ornamental covering the roof under the metal frame point. The last shot, at night, shows the interior of the sukkah with a round outdoor table and four patio chairs with cushions inside. Sandbags hold the corners of the sukkah, and a large blue tapestry with a combined sun and moon is pinned to the back wall. Outdoor lights are strung so the sukkah interior glows brightly against the dark night.

Making songpyeon! Songpyeon are as important to Chuseok as a hanukkiah is to Xanike or a seder is to Pesach. They are two to three bite rice cakes traditionally stuffed with sesame seeds, pine nuts, beans, or chestnuts, mixed with honey. They are steamed on pine needles to make a sweet, earthy, chewy treat. I wanted to buy them, but nowhere locally sells them. The white and purple are from our first batch, and the decorated green and purple are from batches six and seven. We had seven batches in 48 hours, and I am grateful my preschooler has been getting plenty of playdough time at school - they were really good at making songpyeon!

A note on togetherness: it is traditional to make songpyeon at home together. I have many memories of the work and stress that went in to pulling off picture-perfect holidays, and while the photographed objects are perfect, the smiles never reach our eyes. I committed to making ugly art and focusing my energy on enjoying time with my four and one year old. I want their foundational memories to be enjoying time together, not me screaming at them to make perfect edible art. It was only on the last batch, when we had an empty afternoon stretching out before us, that we tried some more beautiful candies. I think they turned out great.

The white are plain, the purple is made with blueberry juice, and the green with green tea powder. We stuffed ours with a mix of honeyed pine nuts, honeyed white sesame seeds, and honeyed black sesame seeds. We also made a batch tinted rosy brown with beetroot powder.

Image description. Set of seven photos showing songpyeon being made. The first three show a plate with measured but unstuffed pieces, shaped pieces, and the same person as above in a black shirt, black apron, and teal tichel using a spoon to stuff a white songpyeon with sesame seeds. These all sit on a table with a large print of orange fruits, leaves, and flowers. The songpyeon are white and purple. Below that is a set of four images with green and purple songpyeon decorated with purple and green flowers to leaves. They are simple in design. The first two show the paler, uncooked pieces sitting on cloth liners and pine needles in a bamboo steamer basket on the table, and the last two are steamy shots showing the cooked pieces, now darker, still in the steamer basket in the pot on the stove.

Some shots of the sukkah just before the triple holiday started: Chuseok, Sukkot, and Shabbat. After all the work I did (plus baking our challah), we got takeout for dinner.

Our lulav is not standard. We don't have an etrog, but a very special lemon our friends grew and gifted us the harvesting thereof. The palm came from our home, and the willow from our friends,' but instead of myrtle I opted for redwood branches (also from our friends' home). These are similarly fragrant, grow in sets of three, and were foragable by me and the baby close to home. I believe there is a balance to be found between traditional observance, and localized observance. It's not right for everyone, but it is right for me and my family.

The table with with shabbat candlesticks and food is our jesa table. Jesa is an ancestor veneration ceremony in which food and bows are offered to the ancestors. They consume the energy from the food, and leave their blessings behind. When we consume the food, we receive the blessings. For more on traditional Korean practices, I recommend popping over to instagram to follow Mudang Mia, Mudang Jenn (who has a free digital magazine), and Mudang Seo Choi (who regularly has kickstarters for books!).

Image description. Four shots of the sukkah interior, showcasing the food. First shot shows a table set for two adults and two children, with printed homemade colouring books at each child's place setting, The table has a blue tablecloth, three takeout boxes of food, a takeout container of fried rice, a small floral arrangement, a challah wrapped in a red and gold cover with bees woven in, a bottle of de-alcoholized red wine, a bottle of pomegranate juice, a large jar of lemon water, and takeout containers for soup. The second shot is the same set but pulled back and showing the whole interior so the lulav table relative to eating table is visible. The third shot is a very narrow table with a blue cloth printed with smiling white suns on it. It has two glass shabbat candlesticks, a package of beeswax candles, a stack of five coconut jellies, chopsticks, and a plate with homemade songpyeon in white, rosy brown, and purple, white mochi with red bean paste, and three cylindrical puffed rice snacks. The fourth shot is of the lemon and lulav bundle as described above. The lulav is wrapped and tied with white cotton twine.

Bonus: the video I made, with voiceover available on instagram.

You aren't alone.

moadim l'simcha.

Image description: a twig with flowering pomegranate in various stages for seven buds and blossoms total. It has a large white circle behind. Collaged on top are three rounds of moon cycles, spiraling in towards the center in black.

[darkx-the-dragon-kn1ght]

Chapter 30- Part 10

Will it still refuse to use Sucker Punch, assuming it even has it? Let's see-

Yes it does! And now for Gallade- yeah, I think we do need to send in Glare for a bit.

Glare™ first, let's see how that goes-

Oh, that worked better than I thought it would! But I can't risk switching Shimmer in to a crit, so I need to let Glare faint.

And now we can use Lucky Chant because even a crit Night Slash can't kill!

And with that, we're good to deploy Kirin to start doing some real damage!

Oh- oooh, Night Slash still does a lot. I mean, um…Zen Headbutt has a chance to flinch, and it's also paralyzed, so…Kirin's chances are looking kinda good? And even if not, we still have the rest of the team to fall back on.

OOOOH THE FLINCH!! COMING IN EXACTLY WHEN WE NEED IT!!

I knew she'd have a Medicham too…but who do I send in to face it? Do I keep Kirin in for pure damage? Do I repeat what I did with Hitmonlee and send in Gust?

I think…it's safe to keep Kirin, and only bring in Gust if Kirin goes down.

I DID NOT THINK THE MEDICHAM WOULD HAVE A SECOND TELLURIC SEED!!

Okay, maybe Kirin can outspeed and make it flinch with Zen Headbutt like it did with Gallade!

She could NOT outspeed! Well…if I send in Crater, that should buy some time to heal Shimmer.

I can't waste a second turn healing, I need her health as high as I can get it, so…I think I use the Full Restore here.

Now, I just need a turn to Lucky Chant, surely Medicham's next attack won't kill her, yeah?

OH!! BIG MISTAKE, THAT'S A FREE LUCKY CHANT!

Well shoot, Lucky Chant can't protect against +3 Attack. Luckily, we have Gust!

If I put up Cotton Guard, that should mitigate the damage from Ice Punch to some extent.

Oooh, that still did a lot…but Gust can still use Charm!

Now it just comes down to Riptide and Medicham…

Drain Punch and Ice Punch aren't too bad, but I have a sneaking suspicion it's got another elemental Punch up its sleeve, like Thunder Punch…

…Oooor it just had Strength again, okay. Yet another reset-

You know what's weird? Unlike last time, where I feel like I was going crazy trying to figure out how to beat Victoria, this time…I don't feel like that. Like, of course resetting and retrying is a little annoying, a bit inconvenient, but I don't feel mad or frustrated. The last time I felt like this was…the Corey fight? Y'know, another boss fight where I reset several times? And ultimately didn't feel that upset about it? I wonder what the difference is, hmm…maybe this is the inner peace Kiki teaches about...

Well, regardless, here's what we know so far:

Shimmer insta-kills Machamp 

Crater lives Aura Sphere with Amnesia and kills Lucario 

Gust deals with Hitmonlee and makes Kiki waste her Hyper Potions 

What if…I sent in Glare on the Toxicroak to Intimidate and paralyze it, to make things easier for Shimmer? So it'll be easier to heal her for Gallade?

But the final puzzle is the Medicham, and…I might have to use Suna for that…? It would mean taking Riptide out of the party, and I really don't want to do that, he's the starter and the partner Pokémon, but to get Suna on the team…I might just have to do that.

Let's see- Medicham's moves are Drain Punch, Ice Punch, Meditate, and Strength. Suna is immune to all but Ice Punch, so…if she uses Iron Defense, what then? I might need to bring out that one damage calculator from the last chapter…

Let's see…Suna could do fine against Ice Punch with Iron Defense, at least until Medicham uses Meditate. But she just needs to hit two Shadow Balls to get the kill…but can she do all of that with everything else to deal with, and only a few turns of Lucky Chant?? No no no, there's gotta be a better way- if it wasn't for the Telluric Seed and the risk of crits overriding Defense boosts…

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