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fragilefangirl · 3 years ago

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Nomad (lost and found, what’s new?)

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When Xialing first ran away, she brought nothing but the things she wore on herself and the rolled up Dance-Dance Revolution carpet, slung on her shoulders.

It was a daring escape, considering their hilltop fortress of a home; there were many guards, many traps, many weapons ready to impale anybody going in or out unauthorized. Xialing spent months just mapping the inner-maze of the house, and some more learning the sewer system, since that was a sure path down below, somewhere with civilizations.

Gege definitely had it easier, she thought to herself as her nose wrinkled due to the smell, knees deep in murky and questionable water, at least he got a free ride out of this godforsaken mountain.

She knew she had to be quick, she had to be agile, she had to be unseen; Baba had eyes everywhere, had ears everywhere, had hands everywhere. Xialing didn’t want anything of hers reaching him.

(She wanted to, once upon a time; yearned for it, when she thought that his eyes could still be filled with brightness and his hands were still warm and his ears would still perk up at her voice. She wanted to be seen, to be heard, to be ruffled by the head the way it used to.

But 6 years passed, and it took Xialing that much time to realize that a dying man could only do so much, so little.)

When she finally reached somewhere that was not a forest, asking for a ride to the city from a passing truck, the driver asked what she could give him, eyeing the carpet on her shoulder. “Is that the 2007 DDR mat for PlayStation 2?” He asked. “I liked to play it in my cousin’s house back then—always wanted to get it.”

Xialing tightened her grip to the binding rope, nodding stiffly. “Yes.” She said, curtly. Then when they arrived at the nearest metropolitan, she unlatched her bracelet—pure gold and adorned with rare, beautiful green jade, one of the things Baba gave her on the birthdays after, in lieu of his affection—and gave it to him. “Sell this to a jeweller.” She said, giving the wide-eyed man the accessory. “The money from it should be enough for you to start a trucking company of your own.” She paused, “and even buy your own mat.”

The driver stuttered, but Xialing had already stepped down from the platform, running into the early dawn, blending herself among the crowd, finally, finally free.

***

“Meimei,”

Xialing looked up to see Gege, face obscured by the shadowy silhouette of the living room as he approached her. “What are you doing?” Asked her brother, tone careful.

She paused from unrolling the DDR mat and setting the TV, looking at Gege like he just asked something stupid. “It’s Saturday, Gege.” She said, matter-of-factly, “Family game night, remember?”

Because they all seemed to forget; Xialing had done this for weeks now, recharging the karaoke mic, setting the dance game, picking a movie. She’d waited on the sofa until she fell asleep and Saturday turned to Sunday and she was moved to her room instead of the sofa, but nobody showed up.

Nobody ever seemed to show up, these days—Gege was always training at some corner of the house since the ungodly hours of the morning until the ungodly hours of the night, and Baba…

…well, Xialing didn’t really know where Baba was.

Gege moved forward, and Xialing could see his face now; bruised, with blue and purple blooming here and there. There was a black circle over his eyes, and his lip was split—he looked like he was one of those fighters in the combat games he used to play in their PlayStation so much, the one he didn’t let her borrow.

She gasped, rising from her seat on the floor and reaching out to him, trying to examine him,

(the way mama used to—)

Xialing blinked, throat suddenly feeling suspiciously dry as her eyes grew suspiciously wet.

“Lingling,” Said Gege as he leaned over to her touch, eyes drooping somberly as he looked at her. “I don’t think we’re going to have family game nights tonight.”

Narrowing her eyes, Xialing frowned. “But it’s cus-to-ma-ry.” She said, struggling to say the last word. “Mama said that means we have to play it every weekend, unless we’re doing something even more fun!”

Gege gave her a pained smile, and tucked her under his right side, wincing a little as he did so. His eyes blinked a bit when Xialing mentioned the word ‘mama’, and his gaze drifted to the corner of the room, where there was a newly-built shrine with lightened incense and fresh tangerines. “A-Ling.” He said instead, tone weary and sad and did her older brother aged more than the years that passed through him? “Let’s just sleep, okay?” He looked down on her, offering her a tired smile. “It’s been a long day.”

For him, Xialing couldn’t help but to think, intrusive thoughts rebutting so quickly she was surprised herself. On her end, days blur to weeks on end, making her feel smaller every single time she wakes up unseen, unheard, unspoken.

“…okay.” She said, after mulling about it in a long silence. “Gege sleeps with me?”

This time, Gege’s smile was a little bit more genuine. “Sure, Meimei.” He said, ruffling her head. “You sleep on my right side, okay? My left side… hurts.” He winced just mentioning it, free hand tracing his torso.

Nodding, Xialing snuggled closer as they walked away from the living room, Gege’s longer hands barely able to reach the lightswitch to turn it off. Xialing herself had to use a chair just to get it every time. He paused as they were finally out in the hallway, turning to slowly close the sliding door.

“Gege.”

“Hm?”

“When…” Xialing hesitated. “When do you think we’ll play at family game night again?”

Her older brother paused, hands still holding the door handles. “…maybe not for a while.” He said, finally, back still facing her.

“Oh.” Xialing’s hopeful face fell. “Okay.”

Gege led her off, away from the living room, but he didn’t shut the sliding door completely, and from the gap Xialing could see mama’s shrine, lightened by the moonlight from the window.

She swore mama’s gaze looked so sad.

(The day after, Baba locked the Living Room.

A week later, they moved into the mountains.)

***

“Aiya, these beggars!”

Xialing arrived at Macau after three days of truck hopping and self-smuggling herself into unbelievable vehicles. It helped that she was on the smaller side and had nothing with her—but it also meant that she arrived with no destination and no place to live.

She arrived at a packed apartment complex in Iau Hon, paying the receptionist with some of the money she acquired from selling another bracelet of hers earlier in the Mainland, only to be told that there were no longer rooms for the night and she had to queue on the waiting list just to get a piss-poor excuse of a housing.

“Give my money back, then!” She protested, face red with anger.

The receptionist counted the bills, unblinking. “Sorry, no refund.”

She growled, “wáng bā dàn.”

The receptionist paused, glaring at Xialing. She knew she could take him out on a fight right then and there if he tested her further. “Careful with your words, now, girl—a child your age shouldn’t be cussing to their kind elders.”

“Fucker,” she muttered under her breath in English as she walked away, out of the complex. It was the last of her cash, too, after a series of expenses involving buying food, paying the smuggler who helped her through immigration, and compensating the truck drivers she rode with openly upfront and hidden on the back. She had to find another pawnshop to trade her remaining jewels if she wanted to acquire more money to survive. But it was nearing midnight, and all of the shops were closed.

So on her first night in, she lumped herself out with people on the back alleys, away from the main streets. There were homeless people there, huddled up together in worn carpets and makeshift tent. Macau was cold at night, and Xialing’s clothes were worn, too thin to block out the wind.

That night, she rolled out the DDR mat and slept on it; curled up like a cat because she was growing taller than the mat’s length, staving away the cold. She put herself at the back corner, near the trash can, so she wouldn’t be seen.

(Because she could not be seen—Xialing told herself that she needed to blend in, to disappear into the crowd, because Baba must be sending men out there, snooping, searching; he must be looking for her, the only child he had left, the last child he let slip through his fingers.

Baba must be looking for her.

Right?)

The tacky design of the mat was her only company, and she fell asleep tracing the arrows—left, left, right, up, down, left again—while humming on a long-forgotten song. She fell asleep trying to remember a warmer night and a warmer night. She fell asleep yearning to wake up to warm laughter.

“Mama, Gege,” she muttered, barely conscious, “Baba.”

The cold wind blew her hair, gentle and mournful.

***

“Mama.” Xialing said, fifteen and sitting at the shrine Baba had built in their new home, head leaning onto the altar. “I hate you so much.”

The smell of jasmine incense surrounded the room, and Xialing buried herself further into her own arms, warm in all the way except what mattered. She knew silence would greet her, and yet still she paused, hoping for some of the magic mama used to tell her back then would come back, would make their family whole again.

“I hate Gege too for leaving.” She said, one eye peeking into the picture of her mother, smiling behind the glass, forever immortalized on paper. “And I hate Baba for—“

She paused, unsure on what word should she use to describe that living husk of a man, more than eager to track down the lowly goons of his enemies but barely willing to look her in the eye during dinner. She shook her head, letting the silence complete the sentence.

“But I hate you for dying the most.” She whispered, a quiet confession. “I hate you because now Gege’s gone, and Baba’s never around, and I feel like—“ she choked up, clutching her chest as she gulped. “I feel like one of these days I��m gonna disappear too, with the way nobody here acknowledges my existence.”

The smoke from the incense danced, and Xialing sobbed, not for the first time and not for the last, a desperate attempt to be acknowledged by someone, by anyone—even the dead.

“Why didn’t you just hide in the room with us?” She asked, voice thick. “Why did you have to fucking fight those goons like a goddamn hero? Why didn’t you—I don’t know—wait for Baba to come home?”

Again, silence greeted her, and Xialing sighed out of frustration. “If you were still here, I’d still go to my old school and actually have friends and—and family game night would still exist.” She chuckled, darkly. “Gege wouldn’t leave me, and,” She said, “Baba would still look at me.”

The way he used to, when they were a heap of exhausted laughter after a particularly hard song to dance at. The way he used to, when Xialing whined because he kept repeating old opera songs none of them knew for the karaoke. The way he used to, when Saturday dinner was served and she and Gege fought over the last piece of guotie.

“My tutors said I should dream big,” She lamented to herself, “But how can I do that when I feel far smaller now than when I was four?”

The silence was suffocating her now, but it was better here than anywhere else in the house.

“Tell me what to do, mama.” She said, voice faltering and tired. “Please tell me what to do.”

The smoke from the incense rose up, up, up, carried by the wind into the windows, drifting away into the night, freed from the five walls surrounding the shrine.

***

Jiang Er-Gege—“Just Jon-Jon, please. Or Mister Manager,” he insisted for the umpteenth time, unrelenting in this clearly losing battle, “and am I not older than your actual brother?” But Xialing is nothing if not stubborn—whistled at her new apartment.

“Sweet!” He said, grinning, hair bobbing around as he turned at Xialing’s direction, who was still unwrapping her hand from the bindings, wincing a bit every once in a while due to the aftermath sting from tonight’s fights. “You got yourself a pretty nice crib, A-Ling!”

“Thanks.” She said, giving him a small smile as she discarded the wrappings to the waste bin and took off her shoes, finally coming in. “Not that bad, isn’t it?”

“For a seventeen-year-old street fighter? Psh. Not bad at all.” Er-Gege waved a hand, his hair—currently blue now, which reminded Xialing of the Sonic the Hedgehog poster hanging at her Gege’s old bedroom door, well, before—flowing and flailing with each of his enthusiastic movements. “Did it come fully furnished?”

“Yes.” She said, throwing herself to the sofa, closing her eyes. Dawn was breaking, and most people would rise from their beds, starting their day—but Xialing wasn’t most people, and all she wanted to do was curl up in her bed and sleep. She was sure that if she insisted on taking a shower, she’d fall asleep under the streaming water, and that would just be wasteful.

(“And we can’t have that, Baobei,” a deep, gentle voice softly told her, as larger hands guided her on how to soap all the wet plates together first. “Water is scarce in many places in the world in this day and age, and we must show our gratitude by not wasting it so easily.” Xialing felt a light pat on her hair, a slight ruffle, “can you do that?”

She nodded, enthusiastic as she scrubbed the grimes a little harder, trying to detach the remnants of oil and spices from the porcelains so that the water would rinse the objects more thoroughly. “Mmhm!” She hummed, offering a bright toothy grin up, “Lingling will do as Ba—“)

“—Ling?”

She snapped awake, blinking rapidly to regain full consciousness. “Sorry, I was pretty out of it.” She said groggily as she straightened herself up—fix your posture, Baobei, don’t slouch—looking at Er-Gege with slowly focusing eyes. “You were saying?”

Er-Gege raised his eyebrows, but he shrugged and waved a hand at the direction of the TV. “That DDR Carpet looks a little… out, compared to your other furnitures.”

Xialing snorted, throwing Er-Gege a ‘tell-me-what-I-don’t-know’ look. “That’s vintage.” She said, cupping her face with her hands, leaning over to the coffee table.

“To whom?”

Sighing in annoyance, Xialing couldn’t help but to feel a little defensive about the old mat; it might be ragged and old, it might be worn and torn at its sides, nibbled by the sneaky rat at Xialing’s old loft, but, “It’s the thing I slept on, my first night here.” She said, “It’s a reminder.”

Er-Gege’s judgy expression softened, as he fully turned at her with his arms crossed. “A reminder?” he echoed, curiously inquiring. There was no malice in his tone, only an invitation to open up in a way that eerily reminded her of Gege, “of what?”

Xialing looked at the worn arrows and recalled laughter; scanned the tacky colors and remembered warmth; eyed the frayed edges and missed three pairs of eyes, looking at her like she was someone, her own person, not a walking remnant of someone else, not a ghost before she even died—

“Of good times.” She smiled, small and bitter and yearning.

Er-Gege nodded, glancing at her one last time before moving on, letting it go. He made a comment about her kitchen counter, how it was too Americanized and needed a revamp, but Xialing was very sleepy, suddenly.

(Baobei—

Meimei—)

She sighed, laying herself to the armrests of the sofa, and closed her eyes, dreaming of nothing.

When she woke up, it was noon, there was a steaming porridge on her coffee table, and there was Er-Gege, fumbling over her TV. “What—” she stretched, cracked her joints. “What time is it?”

Turning at her in surprise, Er-Gege grinned almost immediately. “Look who finally woke up.” He said, tone light and teasing. “I bought the porridge from that Auntie’s restaurant you like so much—go eat it first.”

Xialing straightened herself, gingerly taking her first spoonful, letting the warmth of the meal melt away the weariness in her bones. “Thanks,” she said, smiling at the bowl, feeling like she was truly her age for the first time in a very long while. “And what are you doing to my TV?”

“Oh, this?” he jabbed a finger to the screen, which was displaying the HDMI menu. “I’m plugging in a PS2.” he said, shrugging before he dove again, lifting a black bulku box that looked just like the one they used to have at home. “I got this baby at a second-hand electronic shop, and they apparently sold old DDR game disks!” He grinned, before returning the device and returned to his work, this time to the mat’s underside, seemingly searching for its wirings.

Xialing blinked, spoon suspended mid-way to her mouth, warm meals suddenly forgotten. “...why?” She asked, something simultaneously familiar and foreign slowly easing their way into her chest, squeezing it with something sharp but not painful.

Er-Gege watched her oddly, like she was asking something stupid. “To play, of course.” he said, as if the answer itself was obvious. “This bad boy seemed like it hadn’t been used to its purpose for years, and I’ve never seen you dance before.” He grinned mischievously.

Her throat constricted into something tight and heavy, and Xialing looked further down. “I—” she mumbled, “I don’t really remember how to.”

She heard a snort and looked up, nearly fearfully, to see Er-Gege looking at her with something akin to mirth. “So what? We can always re-learn!” He said, waving a hand at the carpet, “it literally has arrows to tell you where to go; if you can kick people’s ass ordinately, you can definitely play this.” He grinned.

It was true, but something about the familiarity of all this made Xialing feel like she should run away, like she should protect herself because what if she was happy and then it was taken from her again— “I don’t think we should,” she said, voice still so uncharacteristically small and vulnerable and fuck she missed Gege’s uncoordinated legs stepping into her and mama and she missed Baba cheating to win and she missed mama, she missed mama so much it hurt—

“Hey, Xu Xialing,” Er-Gege’s voice snapped her out of her spiral, softer tone breaking her reverie. “You said it reminds you of good times.” he rose from his squat, hand reaching out to touch her hair—always a perfect bob—and ruffle it lightly. “Far as I know, good times should be experienced, not just reminisced.”

She blinked, and for a split second she saw two other faces, grinning at her in a smile she’d yearned to see for so long.

“Okay.” She said, nodding slowly, “Okay.”

They ended up missing the night’s match, and the manager of the ring-fight yelled at Er-Gege for not bringing his best Champion to the arena, but as they laughed late into the night, teasing each other’s stiff moves and calling out their horrible attempts at cheating against each other, Xialing felt like she was home for the first in a very long time.

***

“Baba?”

She peeped at the door, loose hair falling, curtaining over her face. She was eleven now, spending her birthday with an array of nannies and tutors, gifted jewelleries and served the best dishes on an empty dinner table, singing happy birthday to herself.

Baba’s work room was always dark, only luminized by the reading lamps, and sometimes those damned rings. He didn’t look up from his papers, but Xialing had trained herself in reading the miniscule when she realized that she would never be given something visible again, and she saw how his shoulders stiffened, how his eyes blinked rapidly, how his ears perked, slightly.

He said nothing to acknowledge her existence, but he also didn’t shoo her away, so Xialing took what she could get. “It’s my birthday today.” She said, voice small, always feeling small, too small in this big room, this big house, “and I was wondering if—if we could spend it together? Just—” she shrugged, helplessly, already compromising her own wishes if it meant a nod from Baba, an affirmation, anything, “I don’t know, watch a movie or something…”

Her eyes glanced at their new living room behind her, barely inspiring those inside it to live; it was cold and spartan, so unlike the Living Room back Home, where everything was warm and alive. In her old home, everything was strewn haphazardly, dance mats kicked several meters away from the front of the TV and karaoke mics on the couch. Here, the TV was never on, and all the mics and mats and cassettes were locked into the top shelf, the unspoken instructions clear; do not touch. Do not take. Do not open.

Do not Relive.

Baba moved, straightening himself, and in the silence that passed Xialing blinked, letting her hopes go up—

“I’m quite busy right now, Xialing.” He said, tone detached and performative, not even looking up to her as he spoke. “Maybe later.”

Definitely never.

“Oh.” Xialing deflated, looking down, slowly retreating. “Okay.” she whispered, mostly to herself as she pulled the door close once more. “Goodnight, Baba.”

She was replied with only a hum, and she dared not to look up lest she saw him still focused on that damn paper, refusing to look at her, to see her even when it was her birthday because in his eyes she was not A-Ling anymore, not Baobei, not Meimei, just some personification of his fucking dead wife and—

Xialing fell asleep waiting for him on the couch anyway, despite everything, waiting for that later despite knowing that it was a lie.

She woke up in her room, alone, always alone.

It had been like this for a long while, now, but with Gege not returning home and her being the only child he had left in the compound, she had hoped—

Well. she had hoped.

That was her first mistake.

***

“You know, for a compound this big, I thought your dad would have more stuff.” Said Katy as the three of them cleaned up the main house. With Baba cremated and his ashes placed on the same altar as Mama, they only needed to clean his place.

Which apparently didn’t require that much effort, given how little of him existed there.

Somewhere deep within her, she recognized that it was heartbreaking to live like this, but that part was buried layers below anger and pettiness at how that exact way of life had sacrificed her.

“He’s so… spartan.” Commented Gege as he observed the high shelves, trying to find a more personal belonging to salvage. “There’s barely anything here.”

“You can use big words? Shocking.” Replied Xialing, tone flat and sarcastic as she took what she thought was valuable; the Lucky Cat figurine they brought from their old Home, family photos that were pushed into the far back, some sick-looking swords… “I thought the US’ horrible education system had stripped out all of your intelligence.”

“I liked you better when you were smaller and less sarcastic.” Grumbled Gege as he threw her a look. Xialing snorted.

“And I liked you better when you were smaller and not abandoning me,” jabbed Xialing, to which Gege replied by pinching her on her arm, not much to hurt so she knew it was in good nature. “Besides, you only do not like me because I’m cooler than you.”

“Now on that front, she’s definitely right.” Katy piped up, and Gege groaned, grumbling something about all the women in his life ganging up against him. “Face it, Shaun, you’re a little lame compared to the rest of your family.”

“I was laying low!” He protested to Katy, to which Xialing snorted. “And besides, you’re working in the same field as I am, receiving the same pay. If I’m lame, you’re lame too.”

“Oh, I know.” Katy said, not missing a beat. “But my family is a bunch of immigrant workers, not some thousand-year-old warlord and a magical guardian of the mystiques. I have excuses, Shaun—you don’t.”

“I can see why you keep her.” Xialing said, in-between her chuckles. “Keep it up, Jiejie.” She raised a thumb up to Katy with her free hand, and Katy—did Katy blush?

“Okay, back to cleaning up!” Gege’s bellowing voice cut the both of them, only slightly annoyed. “A-Ling, what did you get?” She showed him her reapings, to which ke gestured her to place it on the open suitcase at the couch.

“All these books were dusty, unopened from their wrappings…” Katy said as she scanned the bookshelves, “and is the TV wiring corroded? Shaun, did your father never watch TV?”

Xialing and Gege exchanged glances, shrugging. The image of Baba doing anything fun after mama had died was so … foreign to them. “I guess he’s too consumed by his work.” Gege said, though she knew he doubted his own words as much as she did, for the Ten Rings had barely done anything for the past ten years.

Katy shook her head in disbelief as she scanned more of the cupboards. “Books, jewels, antique swords—what are even these weapons?—oh! Here’s a fun rack!” Her steps stopped, “now there’s more personality; PS2, karaoke mic, a bunch of game discs, and—” she snorted, “A fucking DDR mat? Hey, Shaun, did your dad really play DDR?”

Xialing paused, head turning to Katy abruptly. “A DDR mat?” She echoed, straightening herself and walking to Katy’s side, interest piqued.

“Yeah!” Katy affirmed, pulling the rolled up mat down from the storage, unbinding it with one pull. “Looks old and worn, too.” She snorted, “What I really would give to see your scary dad dancing to this…”

But Xialing wasn’t listening. She felt like everything around her was buzzing.

“...Lingling?” Someone’s hand was on her shoulder, and she snapped, looking up to see Gege looking down on her, frowning as his grip on her tightened. “Meimei, you okay?”

Xialing wanted to say something, anything, because that wasn’t just some mat; she recognized it—had danced to it countless times when she was young, had brought it with her when she ran away, had slept on it on her first night in Macau, had—

“I threw that away.” She said, not quite recognizing her own voice as she reached to the frayed edges. “In Macau, when I moved to a better apartment—I threw that away.”

I had it with me, was unspoken, he wasn’t supposed to—

And suddenly she was reminded on that night in her Club, Baba standing in front of her and Gege, offering them his smile, and she thought she’d been dreaming then, a childish delusion resurfacing after seeing a familiar face for so long, but—

“I always know,” he had smiled, and there was something there, something not quite cold, not the way he usually was after, something akin to the expression Xialing saw at the mirror in the morning when she had a particularly bad day and all she wanted was Baba’s guotie and mama’s soup— “where my children are.”

***

CODA.

Opening her bedroom door with his elbow, Xu Wenwu made soft, careful movements so as to not wake his youngest from his arms.

She was deep in her sleep when he found her sprawled on the couch at the wee hours of midnight, leaning her head on one side of the armchairs. When he lifted her up, she felt like she weighed far lighter than she should have—he frowned, he’d have to talk with the chef about that—and she only grumbled lightly, before snuggling her face to the crook of his neck, seeking comfort.

Gently, he placed her onto the bed, adjusting the pillows and tucking in the blankets. She was eleven years old but she still looked like she was a baby when she was asleep like this—his baby, his Baobei.

Xialing harrumphed when he slowly released her, one hand unconsciously clutching to his white shirt. Wenwu paused, freezing, fearing that he’d got caught.

(Fearing what?

He didn’t know.)

Wenwu let her fingers clutch the fabric until they relaxed on its own, before slowly extricating her grip away from his clothing. He tucked her hand inside the blanket with the rest of her, and swpt her unruly bangs, looking at her face.

Like this, she looked just like Ying Li.

Something caught in his throat, heavy and shuddering, and Wenwu looked away. A thousand years, he thought bitterly, and his undoing is just some little girl’s face.

He shook his head, swallowing the emotions away, letting it be buried deep once more. He knew he had sinned, knew he wronged his children to a fault, but he just—

Not for the first time that night, he wished his wife was still here, telling him what to do, telling him she loved him, telling him how to love.

But she wasn’t, and their daughter was turning eleven, and he was sitting there at the edge of her bed, wishing more than anything for some magic to come and unbreak this broken family the way Ying Li had to his cold, greedy heart all those years ago in the forest.

Xialing—His A-Ling, his Baobei, his child—stirred in her sleep, and Wenwu could see tear tracks on her cheeks, crusty and fading.

He leaned over, forehead to hers, and whispered, softly, “Happy birthday, Baobei.”

Baba is sorry, he thought, hoping the unsaid would reach her anyways, even if he didn’t dare to say it out loud.

The night was clear, the windows closed, but the wind tousled his hair lightly, gentle and mournful.

#shang chi and the ten rings #shang chi #xu shang chi #xu shangqi #xialing #xu xialing #xu wenwu #wenwu #ying li #this movie made me sob two days after i saw it and i'll be DAMNED if i don't do it justice #Xialing deserves better baby!

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twinkleallnight · 4 years ago

Text

A Twisted Tale

Chapter 3

Book: The Royal Romance AU

Word count: 2162

Characters: Liam, Drake, Riley, Olivia.

Disclaimer: All characters belong to pixelberry.

Rating: Mature

Warning: None

A/N: We are participating in @flashfictionfridayofficial prompt: "Main attraction".

Catch up here

An AU of The Royal Romance paving it’s way through mixed emotions of wants, needs and desires, of revenge and regrets, of trust, faith and hope.

A joint venture brought to you with love by @annekebbphotography and @twinkleallnight .

Riley's POV

I look out of the window of this massive room that they say will be mine. Liam has been extremely sweet the whole time and I can’t help but swoon a little. I can see why they say he is the most eligible bachelor King. I don’t care that he is the king. To me, he’s just someone I find attractive and interesting. I want to get to know him, and I will see as I will be working with him.

Now, I don’t know what is going on with Liam and the duchess, but she looked pissed seeing me here. If they have something going on, I won’t get in the way. But if Liam is single, then I am definitely going to try and get to know him on a more personal level.

I start packing my things away still thinking about Liam and how he was so kind and sweet on the plane. And then when we got here, it was as if he couldn’t wait to get rid of me. Guess only time will tell, what is going on.

I start exploring my place.

It has a lounge, bedroom and a bathroom. What more could I need? I’m busy putting my things in my bathroom, when there’s a knock on my door. My heart does a little flip hoping that it’s Liam.

I walk over to the door and open it to find a damn good-looking guy on the other side. I wonder if all the guys around here look like some kind of Greek god.

“Are you done?” He raises his brow at me and I can feel my cheeks burn with embarrassment of being caught staring.

“Sorry, can I help you?” I look down trying to hide my blush.

“You are Riley, right?”

“Last time I checked. And you are?” I bite my bottom lip as I look back at him.

“Drake Walker.” He moves his fingers through his smooth chestnut hair. “Liam wanted me to check if you needed something.”

“Mmmmm, there’s a lot that I need Mr. Walker.” I turn and walk into my room. I look over my shoulder waiting for him to follow me. “Well are you coming in or are you going to be the door?”

He smirks at my comment and steps in. His eyes survey the room. “Have you made a list?”

“A list for what?” I stare at him and he keeps on looking around the room.

“Shopping. A shopping list... list of things you wanna buy.” His eyes focus back to me and when he looks at my puzzled expressions he speaks, “Oh, I forgot to mention. Liam wants me to take you shopping for things you need, like… Like.. office wear and stuff like that. The girlie stuff.”

I burst out laughing as he tries to find the right words, but my laughter dies down immediately when I see his stare. “Sorry...You looked really cute just now.”

“I have heard handsome. But cute?” He gives a puzzled smile, “I will accept that.”

I fiddle with my hair nervously. “I don’t need a list. I will just get what I feel like I would need.”

“So, when do you want to go? Shopping?” He again falters.

I smile at him. “How about now?”

He bows and stretches his arm out for me to lead the way, the smile still plastered on his face, enticing me.

“You’re a real charmer, aren’t you Mr. Walker?”I say as I walk past him. He smirks at me and damn that smirk!

“Only for a beauty like you.” He flirts openly. I feel the blush heat my face at his words.

“Tell me about yourself. We have all afternoon.”

“If you keep up the game. I tell you something and you tell me about you too.”

“Mmm, I like the sound of that. First tell me how you know Liam?”

He gives out a guttural laugh. “It’s like asking how I learnt breathing. We are childhood buddies. Don’t remember since when and how.”

As we both walk out to his truck, he says, “I know how you met Liam. So next question please.” His lips curl to tug my heart again.

I give him a gentle smile. “What do you do around here? I know you aren’t a babysitter or a shopping expert. Why did Liam ask you to take me shopping?” I know Liam has his reasons for asking Drake to take me, but I want to hear it from Drake.

“Definitely not a babysitter. There ain’t no babies here yet. Shopping expert? Maybe. You will soon know. Why me? Cause I am his best friend, and he prefers leaving things in my safe hands if he can’t be there.” He opens the truck door for me and curtsies. “Your knight in shining truck is here for you. “

If he left me in Drake’s hands, that must mean that I am special to him. “Trust me, you don’t look like the shopping type.” I smirk a little, feeling satisfied with myself.

“ I can fit well. Try me. “ He gets behind the wheels next and speaks while he buckles his seatbelt.

“ I work with the security wing of the royal palace.”

“That sounds interesting. Do tell me more.”

He gives me a side glance as we drive to the market. “You know you are not following the rules of the game very well. That’s the fifth question in a row for me.”

I know he is smart. He politely evaded giving me details of security and his role in it.

I shrug as I look out the window before turning back to him. “You had your chance and didn’t take it. You could have asked me anything five questions ago. Now stop stalling and tell me. Do you have a…..” I stop talking before I say too much.

“Smart. I like that. Let me ask you back. Do you have a….? Cause I have none. I have a heart. But it’s reserved for the one who deserves.”

“Well I don’t. But I have my eye on someone.” I smirk and see him lick his lips.

“I hope that someone is here in Cordonia, and close to you.” He measures the distance between us with his eyes

“Mmm. He is definitely in Cordonia, and maybe close to me…. I haven’t decided yet.”

He nods and parks the truck in a lane. He jumps down and comes around to open the door on my side. “We are here, my lady. Where do you want to start from? Dresses, shoes, accessories?”

He extends a hand and almost pulls me out of the truck. Suddenly we are very close to each other and I can smell his musk cologne. He is looking into my eyes and I forget to answer him.

“I can continue staring without blinking, you know. I am good at that game.” He teases me.

I break out of my trance and push him away. “You caught me off guard. I want to start with dresses, then shoes.” I walk towards the mall and he stares at me dumbfounded.

“Are you coming or are you going to stare at my ass the whole time?”

He stifles a laugh, rubbing the back of his neck. He walks to me and says, “you should appreciate the eyes of the beholder, beautiful!”

I giggle and walk off with him, following me. He does small things the whole time like touching me or giving me a wink here and there.

After some time we are in a shop and I step out of the dressing room in a pink form fitting dress. I see Drake gawking at me.

“Do you think this will do?” I ask as I do a little twirl.

Drake adjusts himself and he nods. “That looks amazing on you. But for lunch with me. Not office wear. Definitely not for work with Liam. NO.”

“I was hoping for lunch with Liam….” I stop when I realize what he said. “Why not ‘for work’ with Liam?”

“ Won’t you be having an official lunch with him with other people around? Why do you want pink? Choose a nude or black.” He fumbles over his words trying to explain. “That colour brings a different side of you. It may bring you unnecessary attention… I mean prying eyes… You know what I mean. A lighter shade will be better.” He wipes the unseen sweat on his forehead.

I raise my brow at him. “Pink is perfect for me. I am not changing it.”

He looks away, I feel I saw his jaw clench but the next moment he gives a weak smile. “Sure, let’s go ahead with Pink.”

“I was going to go with pink anyway.” I walk back into the dressing room.

We do the rest of the shopping but it is, as if Drake has changed. He doesn’t talk much anymore and doesn’t comment on my clothes. There is something off but I can’t put my finger on it.

I walk a bit and then look at Drake. “What’s your favourite drink?”

“You are buying me one?”

“What? No, I am making conversation. Are you seriously pissed cause I took pink and not black or nude? “ I huff as I walk a little faster.

His firm hand grasps my wrist to stagger my speed. “Hey Yorkie!” He comes to stand in front of me, apologetically looking into my eyes. “ I am sorry if you didn’t like that. It was just .. just that.. “ he hangs his head low. “Never mind. Let’s have a drink together.” He tries to give a meek smile “Coffee?”

“Sure, I could use a coffee and a cronut or something.” I wonder what that was all about.

He stands pondering…”Croooo… Nuuuuut?” His fingers playing on his lips.

After thinking for a while he beams with a fresh confidence and says, “Now you talk like an American.” He is suddenly happy to catch on the American part. “Okay. I know where we can go.”

We drive to this cute little bakery near the beach and I can’t help but admire the beautiful shoreline.

“This place is amazing.” I smile as Drake leads me into the shop.

“I can get you here some other day. When you are not loaded with shopping bags full of dresses. Rather on a day when you plan to get rid of the only one you are wearing.” His eyes move ravenously over my body making a shiver run down my spine. “And walk barefoot with me on that sand” he points out at the shore.

I am pretty sure he understands I ignored his looks when I bubble up to look like a little kid before Christmas. “I can’t wait. I want to see the beautiful ocean. Liam showed it to me just as we flew over it.”

“Liam won’t have time or the luxury to walk it through with you. I can. I will. We can. If you come.” He speaks in broken sentences.

“That sounds fun…. Will have to see if Liam gives me a day off.”

He seems annoyed. “You are not a machine. You are human and you deserve breaks. He cannot take that away from you.”

He stands up wiping the cream of coffee from his lips and my knees go jelly. “I will make sure you get your day off and we are coming to this beach together.” He says with quite a firm tone.

My eyes flicker between the softness of his lips and the heat in his eyes.

“Thank you Drake. I am sure Liam won’t be unreasonable. But it’s nice to know I have someone in my corner.” I stand up and give him a kiss on the cheek.

His fingers rest on the place I kissed him and he mellows down again. “If I am going to get such sweet treats I can make this corner my home.”

I giggle a little as we walk out of the coffee shop together. “So what are we doing now?” I yawn a bit and feel embarrassed. “Sorry, guess I am a bit tired after the long flight.

He gives me his killing smile “Maybe I am carrying you to your quarters, in that case.”

In a swift motion, he sweeps me off my feet and holds me bridal style walking to his truck.

“Drake! Put me down. I can walk just fine.” I swat his arm as he puts me in his truck.

“Enjoy the Cordonian hospitality Yorkie!”

We buckle up and drive back.

I stare at the window as we drive off. How can I be in this country and have two sweet men by my side. Liam has been amazing even though he disappeared on me and now Drake is treating me like I am the only one he sees. This might just get interesting.

***********

Tags: @alj4890 @anjanettexcordonia @bascmve01 @charlotteg234 @choicesficwriterscreations @cordonia-gothqueen @drakewalker04 @eadanga @gkittylove99 @krsnlove @hopefulmoonobject @iam-the-kind-and-thoughtful @idontknowwhysblog @indiacater @jessiembruno @kingliam2019 @lisha1valecha @mom2000aggie @neotericthemis @ntoraplayschoices @princess-geek @princessleac1 @secretaryunpaid @sirbeepsalot @speedyoperarascalparty @queenrileyrose @texaskitten30 @txemrn @sfb123 @sweatyrysconnoisseur @theroyalheirshadowhunter @aestheticartsx @yourmajesty09 @efecom @grsarco-blog @lovelyladyk88

#pixelberry #playchoices #the royal romance #trr #trr fandom #twinkleallnight #drake walker #riley brooks #king liam

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skinsharpenedteeth · 4 years ago

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Coming Up Easy - First Sightings

I am *SO* sorry this is so hella late this week. It's been... a fucking week. CW: One mention of a homophobic slur.

You can also read this on AO3!

CUE - First Sightings

Unpacking boxes was not one of Alex’s favorite activities. He hadn’t had many when he’d moved because he hadn’t wanted to rent a truck or deal with shipping things, so the twelve boxes he’d been able to load into the late nineties Ford Explorer encompassed all his worldly possessions. He’d finally gotten a chance to start unpacking the miscellaneous boxes after a trip to Ikea for bookshelves, a bed, and a couch. Furthermore, he’d promised himself he’d explore his new city more and find second-hand shops for other household furniture and accessories, but the bookshelves would be enough to finally clear away the last of his unpacked boxes.

Alex opened the last box and looked inside. His heart softened a little as he saw the small shoebox of photographs he kept. Promising himself he’d look through it later, he unpacked the few other knick-knacks out of the box and took them to the bookshelves to start placing them. The box didn’t reenter his mind until after dinner when he found himself lounging across his new sofa with a cold beer in his hand. The box stared at him from the floor where he’d left it. Setting down his beer on the floor, he quickly got up and grabbed the box, and brought it back over to the couch. He flipped open the top and gingerly picked up the pile closest to him.

Michael and him in the desert with guitars. Liz, Max, Michael, and him at a church car wash. Michael, Kyle, and him all leaning against a bathroom wall in various stages of being phenomenally sick from drinking too much. Him and Michael hanging out at the UFO Emporium. Him and Michael eating pizza and playing video games at Max and Isobel’s. Him and Michael in college at a frat party. Him and Michael. Him and Michael. Him and Michael…

It hit Alex quite suddenly that basically since he and Michael had become friends they’d been fairly inseparable. They’d dated other people and had friends that the other didn’t like, but as a rule, it was always the two of them against the world and it had been since they were fifteen. He picked up his phone and snapped a photo of the photograph he held in his hand where they were sixteen, pimply, awkward, and bent over laughing outside the high school band room.

Me 8:46 p.m.>> Who the fuck are these dorks? <<Picture sent at 8:46 p.m.>> <<Michael 8:50 p.m.>> Holy shit, look at those nerds!! <<Michael 8:51 p.m.>> Though I gotta say, the emo one is pretty hot. If I were sixteen, I’d definitely have a crush on him. Me 8:52 p.m.>> You did not have a crush on me at 16! I was so tragic! <<Michael 8:53 p.m.>> You were not. You were fucking feral. You took exactly zero percent shit from anyone. It was hot as fuck. Me 8:55 p.m.>> You are definitely misremembering the amount of bullshit I put up with. <<Michael 9:00 p.m.>> Do you know what you were doing the first time I saw you?

Alex cast back in his memory. He remembered the first time he was aware of Michael, but not necessarily the first time Michael was aware of him. He always assumed it was at the same time.

Me 9:02 p.m.>> Uh? Scribbling emo song lyrics on my bio lab notebook? <<Michael 9:03 p.m.>> Nope. <<Michael 9:03 p.m.>> You were having a fight with Kyle during gym because he tagged your gym shirt with the word “faggot” in pink sharpie.

“Mr. Manes, you cannot wear shirts with inappropriate text on them. This is the gym. White shirts only,” Coach Heim called at Alex as soon as he walked out of the locker room and started towards where the rest of the class was lounging in the middle of the basketball court. Alex could see Kyle elbowing his football buddies and smirking, barely containing their laughter. Alex felt his face grow hot with embarrassment and fury. He kept walking towards the group.

“MR. MANES! GO CHANGE YOUR SHIRT!” the coach yelled, putting more authority into his deep baritone. He was a fit, balding adult who generally was an alright guy, but Alex was swelling with indignation. He stopped a few feet away from the group so he didn’t have to yell to be heard.

“I don’t have another shirt, sir. This is my gym shirt,” Alex explained through clenched teeth. As the rest of the class got a good look at the words emblazoned across his chest and stomach, he heard them begin to snicker and giggle quietly.

“Well, you can’t wear that one. You’re smarter than this, Alex, why would you wear this out of the locker room?” the coach asked, not sounding unkind. He shot the gathered students a dirty look and they quieted their laughter.

“Because it’s all I had to wear and it’s not my fault it was defaced. Some pink-fingered fucking COWARD of a football player must’ve thought it’d be REAL FUNNY to break into my locker and--” Alex started, voice growing louder as he let the heat behind his cheeks infuse his voice.

“I did no such thing!” Kyle yelled, cutting in on Alex. Coach Heim looked over at him, eyes narrowed. He opened his mouth to say something, maybe to tell Kyle to sit down, but as soon as Kyle stepped forward away from his buddies, Alex pounced. He landed the first hit on Kyle’s cheek, the meaty smack of their skin satisfying to him. Kyle shook it off and came at him. Before he knew it, they were rolling on the ground hitting each other as hard as they could in anyplace visible. The pain was nothing new for Alex and he kept his head clear as he tried to aim for spots that would hurt long after he was pulled off.

Too soon, arms were wrapped around his chest and a much bigger body than his was pulling him back and off of where he’d pinned Valenti to the ground. He couldn’t hear what they were saying, his ears still ringing with rage, but he could see the thin trickle of blood from Kyle’s split lip and he felt himself smile at the shock on everyone else’s face as they watched him get dragged back. He would not take Kyle’s shit this year. He would not take anyone’s shit.

Alex rubbed his fingers across his eyebrows and sighed deeply. He had been so ready to cause someone else pain by then. His dad had only gotten worse towards him when Kyle started to pull away because it meant that his “unnaturalness” was evident to everyone. His fight then and the fights in the following year always had more to do with his dad than with him being ashamed of being gay. He put the photos down in the box and went to grab a bottle of water from the fridge. His phone chimed as he unscrewed the top and after a deep drink, he checked the message.

<<Michael 9:13 p.m.>> Uh oh, you’ve left me on read. You okay? Me 9:14 p.m.>> I’m fine. Sorry. Just got wrapped up in my head for a minute. Me 9:15 p.m.>> How did you see that? You weren’t in my gym class? <<Michael 9:16 p.m.>> I was hiding under the bleachers skipping english. Me 9:17 p.m.>> THAT WAS THE FIRST DAY! <<Michael 9:17 p.m.>> Right? Nothing to do anyway. It was fine. It’s in the past. I graduated high school, didn’t I? No harm, no foul.

Alex laughed quietly to himself, staring at the message screen. He went back to the couch and flopped back down across the cushions with a sigh.

Me 9:20 p.m.>> You did. Even graduated college. I guess you’re right. <<Michael 9:21 p.m.>> When do you remember seeing me for the first time? Me 9: 23 p.m.>> I feel like it was biology when we were lab partners. I was supposed to be with Max, remember? <<Michael 9:24 p.m.>> Yeah, I was with Liz. Max had no chill back then. How the fuck did it take Liz until senior year to notice that he liked her? Me 9:35 p.m.>> Had no chill? *Has* no chill.

“Michael! MI-CHAEL!” Max hissed loudly from his seat next to Alex two rows behind where Liz was sitting. The class period was just getting started and everyone was still milling around trying to find their assigned seats. Michael looked over his shoulder at Max who was looking desperately at him. Michael mouthed ‘what?!’ and gave Max an irritated glare.

“Switch with me!” Max whisper screamed. Alex was smirking into his notebook as he watched the exchange through the side of his eye. He hadn’t really noticed the curly-haired boy before, but the eye roll he gave Max was epic. He started to turn back to the front when Max whispered again. “I’ll pay you!”

Michael turned back around abruptly and narrowed his eyes.

“How much?” Michael asked, not whispering but keeping his voice low enough not to carry to the teacher who was about to start taking roll. Max looked desperately towards the front of the class at Liz’s back where she was ignoring what was happening beside her in favor of actually paying attention. She was about the only one.

“Fifty,” Max called out.

“Seventy-five and you buy my lunch for a week,” Michael countered. Alex was highly amused. Max darted his eyes over to Liz’s back again and nodded. Michael grabbed his stuff and moved quickly towards the back of the classroom while Max grabbed his stuff to go forward.

“Sorry!” Max called out to Alex softly before he left. Alex watched him slide into the seat next to Liz smoothly and take out his notebook. She looked over and smiled at him in confusion, turning to look back at where Michael was now taking his seat next to Alex. Alex looked over at him and was struck full in the face with his mischievous grin.

“That sucker, I would’ve done it for twenty-five,” Michael shared with Alex conspiratorially, leaning closer to him while he spoke so his voice wouldn’t reach Max’s ears. Alex felt himself blushing a little at the somewhat flirtatious smirk Michael was giving him. He’d been aware of Michael, but hadn’t really ever paid him any mind. Now he was near him, he could see the interesting light brown of his eyes somewhere between gold and green. He also smelled a little like lake water and the woodsy, spicy deodorant Alex had smelled on Mr. Valenti. It was weirdly comforting.

“So he has a thing for Liz or is he that afraid of failing bio that badly? I’m not stupid,” Alex asked, clearing his throat and trying not to seem offended by Max’s desperation to switch partners.

“Oh, he has a major thing for Liz. It’s gross. Like, she’s pretty, don’t get me wrong. But he’s been writing Mr. and Mrs. Ortecho-Evans in his notebook since third grade or some shit like that,” Michael revealed, taking out his own bio notebook from his bag and setting in on the lab table in front of him. Alex took in what he was saying and nodded.

“So it’s not cause everyone says I’m gay?” Alex asked, voice low and a little nervous to see Michael’s reaction. Michael looked over at him, eyebrows drawn together and something like sympathy passing over his expression before he responded.

“No, man. Max doesn’t give a shit about that and neither do I. You weren’t planning on trying to date him, were you?” Michael asked, shooting him a grin. Alex grinned back, relieved to hear that someone in the school who was so upstanding and obviously straight like Max wasn’t a complete jerk. Michael didn’t seem too bad either.

“Nah. He’s not my type. I like musicians,” Alex joked, shooting Michael a side-grin.

“You don’t say? Do you play?” Michael asked, eyes forward now in a semblance of paying attention to the teacher. Alex glanced up towards the board, but continued slouching over his lyrics notebook.

“Guitar,” he replied shortly as the teacher started explaining their first lab assignment.

“Cool. Me too,” Michael said. Alex could see him studying him out of the corner of his eye. “We should jam sometime.”

“Yeah, maybe.”

And they did jam together eventually. A week later they’d gotten together and Alex had learned that Michael did not know one end of a guitar from the other. He’d let Michael borrow his brother Greg’s guitar and then taught him everything he knew over the course of the next three months.

Me 9:40 p.m.>> Man. Who knew we’d still be friends this long after. <<Michael 9:45 p.m.>> I did. Once you taught me to play guitar, you were stuck with me for life. There’s an unbreakable bond built when one dude teaches another dude how to finger... Me 9:46 p.m.>> Jesus Christ. That was terrible. <<Michael 9:47 p.m.>> Bet you’re laughing though. Me 9:48 p.m.>> I plead the fifth. Also, I gotta get to bed. Early day tomorrow. <<Michael 9:50 p.m.>> That’s some responsible adult behavior right there. Gross. Me 9:51 p.m.>> You’re gross. <<Michael 9:52 p.m.>> I am gross. I’m going to take a shower and change that, however. When will you be young and fun again? Me 9:53 p.m. >> Shut up. Go take your shower. <<Michael 9:53 p.m.>> Fine. Go to bed. Think about me in bed. Me 9:54 p.m.>> *You* think about me in bed. <<Michael 9:55 p.m.>> Always do. Night Me 9:56 p.m.>> Night.

Alex heaved himself off the couch and went to his room. The apartment always seemed so dark and lonely when he finished talking with Michael. He needed to work on making friends. That would help him not miss him so much.

#coming up easy #malex wip #malex #coming up easy update #michael guerin #alex manes #fwb malex

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hakuluv · 4 years ago

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♡︎𝐇𝐚𝐤𝐮 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐑𝐞𝐝 𝐕𝐞𝐥𝐯𝐞𝐭♡︎

✩ 𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐥 ✩

Haku is the second youngest and everyone can notice it, the way that the oldest make fun of him is so obvious. But despite of the age, he's always taking care of the others and enjoy cooking for the members. Haku has a lovely aura that can calm everyone.

He consider himself as a positive person and very loyal. Coming from Japan alone was so difficult, and the way that the girls open her arms when he was alone without knowing anything.. they're his family after all :-(

✩ 𝐈𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐞 ✩

Haku always rescue Irene when mens comes closer so he keeps near. Savage actions and bad looks to anyone who make Irene or other member uncomfortable. this little fearless guy...

Irene seems to be kind of mean, but i swear that she loves him sm. Haku is one more child to the garden anyway

I know that Irene is always teasing him with other idols backstages, they're just gay lmaoo

No matter what, Haku's is always making her laugh. National jealousy? maybe

but despite of the sassy attitude that Irene have, he knows all the effort she puts in the group and the discrete sweatiness way to take care of him.

Irene's #2 fan (the first is Seulgi ofc), the ice princess is so cool. He doesn't know how she can be comfortable with him.. Haku is such a sweetheart bye:-(

Irene in a few words: dedicated, serious but sweet and scolding, i know I'm a mess but irene noona is so strict ㅠㅠ I'm going to do my best so I'll can tease her too

✩ 𝐒𝐞𝐮𝐥𝐠𝐢 ✩

Haku's first friend in the company, introduce him to Irene cause he was so afraid of her

This boy was really amazed at her dancing skills when their met, Haku really wanted to be good as her. So when seulgi teach him he was really nervous, their passion for dance really connect them.

seulgi x irene shipper since the beginning, he's the founder actually

Have you seen the instagram of those two?? aesthetic af (actually haku's is a real mess, but a nice mess), and seulgi is always commenting

dance queen and king, Haku always forcing her to play Just dance. At this point Seulgi knows every choreo and even has her own favourites, but no more until just dance 2022

Anytime Haku is having a bad time, he naturally go to her. Seulgi can understand really well and has the best councils, Haku isn't a sad person actually, but his breakdowns are hard to trait

they have a shared playlist and spend the time watching movies or anime until 3 am

she's like the only one who don't treat him like a child with Yeri, everytime Joy or irene are laughing he just go behind her :-(

seulgi in a few words: inspiring, talented and caring, she's the only that don't make fun of me so maybe seulgi is my favourite.. sorry Irene noona hehe

✩ 𝐖𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐲 ✩

at first it was so awkward, they don't know why, but through the time they turn comfortable with eachothers!!

Wendy likes to be with Haku cause she thinks about him as a fresh person with enthusiasm to make new things.

always talking in english so members are ?? they have a million of intern jokes about everything. In variety shows, Wendy usually cheer Haku to talk more cause his english is so cute

ultimate gossips grandmothers, they know everything about idols

loves to make english covers on vlive, they have one for Christmas, birthday and a million dedicates to reveluvs

she loves haku so much, he made a lot of food and go to see her regularly. Haku was really happy when Wendy was for the first time on the stage shinning like always

wendy and Joy are Haku's nightmare, he feels so shy but actually it isn't that bad. Unless he make something dumb like all the time

wendy in a few words: funny, super teasing and supportive, she's always helping me and cheer me but I'm too shy, please have mercy ㅠㅠ

✩ 𝐉𝐨𝐲 ✩

haku talked at first cause she was so nervous but here's the plot twist: haku was more shy than she thought.

Joy bring him to shopping together cause she says that Haku dress so simple and he can look so much better if he don't wear the same clothes as always. Since then haku has to pass the Joy's fashion code or they don't go out

they're always hanging out to new places or visiting thematic cafeterias, he took almost all the photos of joy's ig and she took his too

haku's seronotine, she's always happy around him and making Haku flustered. Litteraly his Joy, what more can i say? she just wants Haku to be more confident and convince him that he's a very talented and sweet person.

Joy is really like his older sister, she treat him like a baby and makes him get mad. He say that grew up, mm yea as if

their stage presence? chef kiss, please another collaboration sir sm please!

Joy's favorite food is when haku make Japanese food after a full schedule day, it's just like medicine

Joy in a few words: trusted, posivite and even if i really try, she always make ME flush. she's shameless >:-(

✩ 𝐘𝐞𝐫𝐢 ✩

childish siblings energy

super loud, you really can hear their voices miles away

ig lives when they're bored and Yeri inviting him to Yeri's room, hope the company let him>:-(

Yeri knew he's solitary and bad at social things so a few days of being friends, she took him and introduce haku at almost the entire company. Haku naturally put effort to be more confident, and he's so grateful for that.

the social butterflies, you can tell when they're on stage and a lot of idols gets near to greet or talk. Maybe is because of Yeri but Haku has the power that anyone can be whipped for him. You can expect a few fans crazy about being close of this shiny boy when he is on stage, but Haku really can't notice it and gets shy anyway

Haku is always supporting in everytime she does, Yeri is gonna have her own show? a thousand of gifts in the set, Yeri actress? sending her a truck and flowers. She's very supportive to him too, sharing his photoshoots and dramas. actors siblings who?

they have match things like accessories or phone cases, spending money like kids buying candies

Yeri in a few words: baby, chaotic and bad cause she always let me alone in hallways cause she knows everyone :(

𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐭𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐡𝐨𝐭𝐨𝐬

i hope that u notice the spoilers? about Hakuʕ·ᴥ·ʔ

#idol addition #idol au #idol oc #idol!oc #kpop addition #male addition #oc idol #oc!idol #red velvet #red velvet 6th member #red velvet addition #red velvet oc #kpop idol #oc male #kpop male addition #idol male oc #red velvet male oc #red velvet male addition #red velvet male member

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mycoffeeandstudy · 4 years ago

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Quality Car Stereo Installation Company

Our well-informed specialists, useful sales affiliates and also huge display screen showroom will help you make the ideal choice. If you're comfy taking the front screen of your automobile apart and also purchase a standard cars and truck stereo, you need to be able to carry out the upgrade for around $100. Yet we can produce terrific sounding systems with the understanding of acoustics, basic electronic devices, and the offered items. Nonetheless if you desire greater than just a common CD gamer with some fundamental features, you will end up paying a lot more. Perhaps the integrated radio, CD, car audio installation or MP3 gamer with your auto is all right. Blaupunkt as well as Sony are other well well-known manufacturers of top quality MP3 auto stereos. Today, MP3 cars and truck stereos have SD, USB and also iPod links to give better solutions. They all have a front face size; you have to choose the ideal one. One of the finest means to accomplish this is to adhere to a number of musicians that you truly like from venue to venue (one environment to an additional). That is why several cars and truck sound lovers will certainly tell you that this is a task best delegated pros. Through constant, fantastic solution, One Stop Car Audio & Accessories guarantees experienced installment of all of our services as well as items.

Because 1989, One Stop Car Audio & Accessories has actually been servicing South Jersey's complete lorry needs. Welcome to One Stop Car Audio & Accessories, situated in stunning Northfield outside of Atlantic City. If the getting rid of in your automobile isn't so undoubtedly after that you are most welcome to investigate our youtube channel where you can locate video tutorial concerning hot to eliminate your car radio device! • If you are unable to loosen out the old stereo, take some assistance on the proper way to eliminate it from your dashboard where the new vehicle stereo will certainly suit. Remove the manufacturing facility door panel, loosen a speaker, link the new one, after that screw it in place. If you desire you can also use the manufacturing facility speaker holes and to boost the audio top quality you can build a fiber glass baffle. This process can be actually huge problem because if you don't link it effectively you can make a number of additional issues. This connection cable trouble can be different from auto to automobile version. The greatest problem transpires vehicle stereo installation procedure. What are people claiming regarding Car Stereo Installation services in Colorado?

The manufacturing facility speakers are reasonably regular and also have 6.5-inch woofers and also tweeters in the sail panels. If you do not have this four numbers combination after that eliminate the radio and unlock it via our universal radio code generator. If you have it excellent! For an auto stereo and setup to be a excellent or good system as well as installation, it should go beyond the customer or satisfy's expectations. Individuals anywhere are searching for wonderful rates on these stereos and that is why I created this post regarding getting really great bargains. Power home windows can be set up to replace the taxing as well as unsightly guidebook window systems. As a result they desire to keep the quality of the systems as high as feasible. For the very best referrals to compare to your auto stereo or any various other, experience live music in as various settings as feasible. For the finest stereo installations as well as automobile setup devices, let us show you just how we set bench in our industry. Whether if you desire a new automobile radio mounted, or a bass box and also automobile amplifier installed, our expert vehicle stereo installers do the job right!

You may desire a lot more audio speakers than what the system current has, or you could desire an amplifier to really offer your system some bass as well as power. Assumption of noise is subjective per people, equally as some people might discover black automobiles more appealing than other shade vehicles. You will certainly locate some atmospheres that you like over others, if not a favored. When buying car TELEVISION antennas, stereo installation choose one that features the largest regularity variety you can find. Make your life much easier as well as purchasing a wiring harness. Do not fail to remember all the packages you need as well as from Sony, you can obtain wiring kits for amplifiers, power as well as ground cable, capacitors, car stereo installation near me fuse owners as well as many others. You need to come see us if you desire your whip done up as well as you want it done right. I will compose a condensed version when I'm completed with the several areas I've already begun (see below). After that we will certainly send you the initial guide just for your vehicle! After that we will certainly send you the initial step guide just for your exact vehicle type and also stereo. In the marketplace for a brand-new automobile stereo setup in Colorado?

#Car Stereos #Subwoofers #Car Audio Installation

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kimi-reads-and-writes · 4 years ago

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Car Audio Installation - The Easy Way

His task was the outcome of a "magic dime" being fed to his OEM stereo. The circuitry shots are not really clear so please refer to the Magic Penny video over. You can acquire Stereo Install Dash Kit Ford Taurus 96 97 98 99 -cars and truck radio circuitry installation parts Shops & Purchase Online. Utilize our auto installment finder to see to it that you locate the appropriate car stereo dash kit for your car. From easy line output converters to complete Digital Signal Processors and also Hybrid Units; we have the appropriate item readily available for your application. One has actually also rated the clean appearance as a weakness, as an easy installation "will not aesthetically do it justice". This group of comprehensive and also well-written articles must be really useful for also the advanced installers available. Find out more About Installer Institute. We've been setting up and also servicing top quality car electronics for completely satisfied consumers for even more than 30 years. Conveniently situated in Marlboro, Mega Watt Car Stereo as well as Security supplies mobile electronics to clients throughout the entire Boston city. We equip a considerable variety of cars and truck safety and also remote beginners for your car.

Security & Accessories: All you need to find out about vehicle safety and security and accessories. So when you consider the control panel of your vehicle and you see the stereo handle with all the buttons, car audio installation near me that can be thought about the head device. You can get Stereo Install Dash Kit Ford Taurus 96 97 98 99 -cars and truck radio electrical wiring installment parts here. This "How To" slide show created by Jeffvk clearly shows exactly how to link the 3 electrical wiring harness with each other appropriately. "Stereo Install Dash Kit Ford Taurus 96 97 98 99 -vehicle radio wiring installation components" to buy. The Dash Kit works the Rotary style environment controls. Once you've ended up doing that, protect into the cars and truck by tightening all of the screws and also replace the dash panels. 4. Aim to make sure where the major wires run, which they are there where you require them under the rug or behind panels. As well as I would certainly constantly make sure they accept a sound cost-free setup.

We are also happy to provide an one-year guarantee on every one of our setup job. While parents are often able to remain focused on the road or occupied with a publication, car radio installation it's much a lot more difficult for kids to locate methods to delight themselves in the automobile. Futura Car Audio are specialists in vehicle safety, safety and security, sound as well as home entertainment technology. We desire you to have the most effective sound enjoyment system, which is why at Audio Outlet, we bring a variety of brands that you can rely on. Our specialists can mount every little thing from your brand-new stereo as well as enjoyment systems to keyless access as well as alarm. Do as much study as you can if you wish to undertake a DIY installment. We've been installing stereos in boats since we opened up, however in 2006 we added FULL MARINE ELECTRONICS sales as well as setup, both below as well as offsite. We understand exactly how crucial it is to have terrific sound and secure systems, which's why we go above and beyond to supply fast as well as pleasant solution and the most effective brands in vehicle and house electronics. We are proud to bring the most preferred major brands of stereo electronic devices including Alpine and Pioneer, and we can additionally install receivers for satellite radio service providers Sirius and XM.

It's when your vehicle comes with a satellite radio already manufacturing facility set up does putting a new, car radios aftermarket one become a little even more of a challenge. What is the Average Price of a Car Stereo System Installation? You are looking at an installment of around $40 if you purchased the system in other places. We provide quick setup services by knowledgeable and skilled specialists who are all completely licensed by the district of Ontario. That's a deal you will not obtain with any type of various other installation videos. Consequently, it is a good idea to take the guidance of car sound installation experts like us who can suggest you the best sort of stereo that will ideal satisfy your assumptions. Having actually moved quite a range away given that her initial remote starter installment almost 6 years ago, she still selected to make the trip out to Specialized Car Audio to have actually the job done right. The later Z cars such as mine - from 1977 and also 1978 - have actually increased luggage decks that make a stealth installation also harder.

#car radios near me #subwoofers near me #car radios

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rainey-staerie-daize · 4 years ago

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A multi-day journal entry because it’s been a few: 03.10.21

Went for a nice walk around the neighborhood on Saturday because I felt like being outside and not at home. Found out where exactly Xan’s school is and how to get to it because I may or may not have to drop him off if Mom is scheduled extra days this month. Passed lots of houses and found out how all the nearby streets connect. Would've taken artsy pics except I forgot to take a phone with me. Met two or three tiny dogs and two big dogs at two different houses, and they all barked at me as I said hello. Oh, and one guy in a truck with tons of oranges in the back asked me if I wanted to buy some, but I declined. COVID-19, no money on me, and I don’t really like oranges all that much anyway because of the texture. Also passed by a house that was for sale with a kitchen sink that faces the front yard. There was a faucet zip-tied in its box in one side of it, and it’s the same faucet we have: Glacier Something, that detaches as a sprayer.

Getting to Xan’s school was kinda rocky for me because I was wearing my bad, thin-soled flats and I didn’t realize that there was a paved path on the other side of the wash until I got to the end at the school. Partway, I went to take off the mask because nobody was around and I needed all my depth perception, but one side broke as I did, so I spent a few minutes awkwardly standing at the end of the path as I retied my mask. Also tied my flannel shut because it’s too small to button, and it looked just a little odd with my AMBITION shirt and leggings.

Being at the school was kinda nostalgic, even though I never attended that specific one. Enough things were the same though: sun-faded signs, bike cage, playground equipment, fenced in area for the kindergarteners, portables in the back, a huge yellow field, clinking chains on the tetherball poles, and the silence of nobody else there but me.

Except, I wasn’t waiting for a parent to pick me up for once. I was there on my own free will. Other things that didn’t match my childhood include the entrance to the playground being nicely framed by four or so trees, a nice round gathering area painted like the sun around the flag pole, “welcome back” spelled out in blue Solo cups shoved into the bike cage fence, and one of the “no parking” signs by the drop-off area being scribbled out so it said “park here.” It was nice, and I yearn to be ten or younger again.

Partway through my little campus tour, it got a little windy, and I briefly thought about going home, but I ultimately decided to keep walking the same direction and circle my way back home. There’s a big dirt lot right next to the field fenced off, and then I could see the intersection that I’ve walked to the other way around before, so I headed over that way. Came across a shopping center with a bunch of stores, and looked at each one as I passed them. Was able to see inside of a dry cleaner place and look at the machines inside, but after the guy at the counter acknowledged my presence like I was a potential customer, I told him I had never seen inside one before and was just taking a walk, and kinda just... quickly walked away. The shopping center also had a Walmart Neighborhood Market, and I spotted a wild dark-haired Karen with no mask, that I felt was way to close to me. Probably three or four feet away, I don’t know. My depth perception sucks.

Rounding about the other end of the shopping center after looking at Panda Express, Denny’s, and a pizza place, I heard a familiar couple of notes come from one of the vehicles in the parking lot. The beginning notes of She’s a Beauty by The Tubes, which I almost never hear play on the radio or anything because it’s from the early 80s. Despite not being born until 2000, I know a few of their songs because my uncle is the bass player and I’ve been to a few of their concerts when I was younger.

So I started singing a bit as I was walking, and as it started getting more faint, I stopped walking, turned around, and cupped my right ear with my hand to keep listening. Pretty sure one guy looked at me like I was crazy, but I didn’t care. After it ended, or at least, I think it did, I continued on my way, the same route I use when I’m returning home from that street’s bus stop.

When I got home, Mom was out cold on her bed after the facial she did earlier. Skye later told me she never even noticed I left because she went straight to bed for an afternoon nap when she was done, never leaving her room.

I finally reset my sleep schedule enough to wake up at 4 AM on Sunday, which is good enough for me because I used to wake up then in high school anyway. I spent a while just waking up on the toilet, and then decided to do some light cleaning and picking up around the house to surprise Mom when she woke up. She never notices, but I didn’t care about that then.

After tidying up Kare’s hair accessories on the counter and finding her toothbrush still with toothpaste on it from the night before, I decided to rinse out her unicorn wash cloth sitting on the counter, and maybe clean up the toothpaste on the counter with it, but then Mom woke up from the couch. I got scared that she’d be mad I was doing stuff in her bathroom, so I snuck out to the other one. Was a little bored waiting for her to be busy with something so I could finish her counter, so I wiped down the counter of the bathroom I was in.

She tried to come in to get laundry, which startled me because I was right next to the door, and immediately spotted the unicorn cloth. She went off on me for using “something that she uses on her FACE” on the counters of all things. Briefly mentioned wiping the toilet, as if she thought that’s what I did before I walked in.

I didn’t even try explaining myself. Just stood there and let her yell. I know I got a little carried away with cleaning stuff, but like, it was soapy. It’s like Mom complaining that I used the dish sponge with antibacterial dish detergent on Roxie’s food bowls. It doesn’t make sense, but I was too tired and down on myself to care about her seeing my side.

During the visit, Skye and I stayed home and talked in our room, and I looked up that house I saw for sale. Not that nice, and currently off the market, but I found two others that I absolutely love. Kinda wish I’d had a job this entire time. Then maybe I could have enough money to put down a down payment and get one of them. Oh well.

Mom came home while the littles were still at the visit, and Skye and I both pretended to be asleep so we didn’t have to interact with her. Some of her behavior has seemed kinda... sus. I ended up falling asleep for real though, on the carpet, woke up briefly a few times, and finally got up at 1 AM.

Mom was still up, and told me how one of my old friends was trying to contact me but couldn’t because my phone was off, so I turned it back on and we talked for a while. I gave her my Google number in case my actual phone wasn’t working, and wished her a happy birthday, but she fell asleep before she saw the birthday message. Don’t remember much else of the day, except I turned in a Japanese quiz early and cleaned Roxie and her crate. Like always, cleaning took a while because I am very thorough, and because she pooped in the crate when I was washing her bowls. I had to rewash her and the crate floor, which, after last time, I now know slides TF out.

Ended it all with a hot bath for myself, which I fell asleep in. Woke up cold because half the water drained out through the faulty plug, so I ran it again, and fell asleep again. Woke up cold again, refilled it, and finally washed myself. Got out and was relieved to find Roxie and her “room” still clean, and I finished it off with her blankets and one of her beds from the dryer. I tried a new thing with the blanket where I tie one end (two corners) to the crate ceiling to almost make a tent, and she seems to like it.

Not counting the bath naps, I stayed up for over 24 hours, but didn’t realize why I was so damn tired until late Tuesday morning. Ended up falling asleep for a couple hours that afternoon, woke up for a while, and then went back to sleep at a decent time time at night, but I was woken up around 2:30 AM by Mom looking for her keys. She was panicking because March has blackout days and she’s already near her point limit, so being late could literally get her fired. She kept asking where I put them, since her purse and dealer apron were moved off of the crate by me to clean it, but I told her I hadn’t even seen them. I don’t think she believed me, because she still sounded like she was blaming me for not being able to find them.

Not my fault that you said “stop putting things on the dog crate,” and then you kept putting your own stuff on top of the dog crate, and then wanted me to clean it. Where the Hell was I supposed to put her stuff while I was cleaning it?

Skye eventually found her keys in the unlocked car, and she finally left, but was back by 4 AM because she signed the EO list. She tried to prank us when she came in by telling us she was fired, but I didn’t buy it because she wasn’t crying. Trust me, she’d be bawling her eyes out if that had actually happened.

Bringing us to Wednesday, I was a tired mess who’d done Duolingo all morning when I showed us to my Japanese lecture. I only remembered to do it because I heard Mom doing it. She’s apparently gonna learn Spanish.

I still have a few things to make up for that class, but at least I’ve finally organized my worksheets into homework packets. I’ve gone this long before remembering we own a stapler.

#Raine's daize #the tubes

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