#charles does a million things during break

[iriily]

Yes my two favorite drivers are Charles F1 driver, musician, model, karting team owner, icecream shop owner, UN road safety ambassador, amateur footballer, ocassional padel player Leclerc and Max F1 driver Verstappen

[thearchercore]

"I could write essays about how charles' relatable silly posts are part of his PR rebrand to create a stronger personal brand outside of ferrari like his PR moves are EXCELLENT"

Are you just going to be a tease and not write the essay? Because I would SIT DOWN for this essay.

he's an insane individual and with each new post on social he blows my mind. i have personal experience in PR and presenting an individual as a brand and let me tell you, the awareness charles has about himself is INSANE.

let's have a look at the subtle changes charles made in 2024 to his instagram:

here's his winter break feed from 2023:

out of all these posts, only one could be considered as "silly" (the pizza eating one, HOWEVER, it was part of a carousel that also featured serious pictures of his training).

now let's look at 2024 winter break feed:

i marked it on the feed itself, but he hasn't posted a single serious pic from his training in the dolomites (and he was on a 24hr skiing trip from italy to austria i may add so that would be a huge flex -- again no post). he chose to post a picture of him falling, a video of being insane and sliding down a mountain, and then eating an icecream in the snow.

now, re: his brand awareness, his lore goes CRAZY. back before christmas he had a Q&A on threads where he said his fave ice cream flavour was vanilla, people judged him. he went on to make a whole photoshoot with a vanilla ice cream. not many people would connect it, but it just shows how aware he is of what he shares with the general public.

he also now features much less ferrari on his IG. also worth noting that to match his feed, he wore exclusively red jacket during his winter training last year to match the other pictures where he wears the ferrari red suit. now, his feed is more neutral, less red for sure. i'm not saying it's him going to a different team. i personally think it's him building his own brand and trying to distance himself from being JUST a ferrari driver.

now, i made a whole post about charles and his relatable posts but just admit, would you be more likely to notice a post where he does something silly, unexpected, authentic, than a perfectly staged professional training photo? exactly.

in fact, his ice cream pics gained 1M likes SO FAST - he posted them around 6pm and reached a million likes before midnight. now it's on 1.6M likes. bear in mind he has "only" 13M followers. that means he manages to activate a huge number of his followers to engage with his posts. to compare, lewis has 35M followers. how many likes do his posts reach? around 700k likes if they aren't racing related. do you see how insane this level of engagement is?

he has a good understanding of the social media environment, and understands that showcasing his personality more rather than a crafted PR image works to his advantage.

he seems then more approachable, stands out in the crowd of other drivers.

also one thing that i noticed is how insanely well his branded posts do. branded posts underperform, that's a fact. but charles' branded reels get millions of views -- 12.8M views for the apm monaco promo, 25M views for his meta promo.

to compare other non-branded content, his piano reel from 22 weeks ago got around 7.7M views. ferrari posts that were co-posted by charles gain around 3-5M views if you look at the usual performance.

the pattern is clear -- charles is outgrowing ferrari and the brand that ferrari offers. the individual brand that he crafted for himself is getting stronger, and him and his team know how to navigate in it and capitalize on it. he no longer is tied to ferrari, or even racing. he can do well enough with a video of him playing a piano than a video of him scoring a pole position.

again, racing is in charles' blood and at his core, he's a racer, but having such a strong individual branding as an internet personality is a huge advantage when it comes to brand deals, sponsors, and the contract negotiations he could be having.

that being said, what you see on social media does not have to be reality. it can be a carefully crafted pr image. HOWEVER, charles also has a great advantage of the thousands of meetings with fans that claim he was incredibly nice. or meetings with partners, that always cannot stop complimenting how approachable and interested he was in person.

that also benefits him, people always want to root for/support people that are genuine in real life, and charles seems to live up to that expectation.

[effervescentdragon]

Charlos, 49

Thank uuuu ♥️

49) …out of necessity.

Human bodies are weird in general, but especially in motion.

He catches himself observing the way people move when they walk, or talk, or fuck, or exercise, or eat, or a million other little things during the day. His favourite thing to watch is when people dance, though. If he's had something to drink, or something stronger, he finds it fascinating, almost as much as driving always is.

Charles is awkward in movement always, except when he's driving. He moves like someone who wants to take up all the space but has been told he shouldn't, and the lesson never stuck. Carlos knows it's a problem he has, the amount of time he spends just looking at Charles. He knows it, and he ignores it steadily, and he allows himself the cover of the strobe lights and darkness of the club and the haziness of substance abuse as he watches Charles dance.

He is awful at dancing. He is also adorable. Carlos allows himself to think only of the first one.

The girl he's dancing with is almost definitely a professional dancer. She isn't happy with Charles' level of skill. It is obvious, Carlos sees her frown and her flinches when Charles steps on her open-toed sandals and crushes her feet, but she bears it all with a smile that is definitely at least half fake. Charles doesn't notice, but Carlos does. Another aspiring wag on a hunt, Carlos thinks unkindly and takes another sip of his Red Bull-vodka.

The girl is rubbing herself over Charles insistently, putting her face too close to Charles', obviously aiming for a kiss. Carlos should walk away. He should go and find a girl of his own. He should at least look away.

He doesn't, and that means he sees Charles put his hands on the girl's hips and push her away, giving her a wide smile. He sees Charles lean down to say something to her, and then leave her on the dancefloor and make his way straight to Carlos.

Carlos doesn't look away as Charles crosses the floor, evading people and climbing into the dark booth Carlos is in. He has teasing remarks on the tip of his tongue, bit he can't remember to say any one of them when Charles throws himself half across Carlos' lap with a sigh and reaches for his drink.

He knows they are safe in this club, as much as they can be given who they are. He knows people here had to sign NDA's as tight as that American torture prison before they were even let in, and that they can let loose. His heart still beats too fast when Charles grimaces at the vodka, or probably more accurately, at the Red Bull, and turns to Carlos.

His eyes shine like cat's in the dark of the club, and Carlos is a dog person. "I'm tired," Charles says, and Carlos reads the words off his lips more than he hears them. Charles leans his head on Carlos' shoulder, and he smells like sweat and gasoline and Armani Code, and when he looks up into Carlos' face and licks his lips, it's somehow the most natural thing to lean down just as Charles reaches up and to let their lips meet.

The kiss isn't long, or deep; just a press of their lips, a slow, graceless movement of their mouths one against the other. Charles' breaks the kiss first.

"I needed that," he says, eyes open and clear. Carlos can taste the wetness of Charles' lips on his own. "I'm tired."

Carlos nods. He's tired, too, suddenly. His head is starting to hurt.

When Charles moves away, pulling his phone out to call Andrea, he moves with ease and elegance. When Carlos brings his glass to his lips, it's already empty.

[saintmeghanmarkle]

SARAH VINE: Harry and Meghan are casting themselves as refugees from a repressive regime

Could this be the duplicitous duo’s new MO? So much snark but such a well-written article in the DM from Sarah Vine, who doesn’t mince words. Link and full article below:

DailyMail

When I saw the pictures of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex at the premiere of the Bob Marley movie in Kingston, Jamaica, the first thing that sprang to mind was how thoroughly refreshed they both looked.

Indeed, I had to do a double-take to make sure it really was the duchess that Prince Harry was escorting and not some dewy, doe-eyed lookalike.

Perhaps it was just a trick of the light, but she certainly seems to have upped her skincare routine since we last saw her.

The prince, meanwhile, looked remarkably unfurrowed for a man who looks likely to have to pay three quarters of a million pounds in legal costs accrued by his failed libel action against the Mail on Sunday. I don’t know what they put in the water out there in Montecito, but it’s definitely working.

Still, all that gloss doesn’t hide the ugly fact that the pair - normally so vocal when it comes to informing the world of their heartfelt sentiments - have yet to say a single word in public on the subject of Harry’s father, the King, and his health issues.

Given how much the Prince likes to use his platform for good, you might have thought he would have seized this opportunity to remind other men of the importance of getting their prostate checked.

As for the duchess, normally such a strong advocate for women’s health, it does seem rather unsisterly not to wish the Princess of Wales a speedy recovery from her abdominal surgery.

That they should have chosen this particular occasion to break cover is also intriguing. Jamaica is not exactly a friend of the British monarchy - indeed, the country’s prime minister, Andrew Holness, who joined the Sussexes at the premiere with his wife Juliet, has expressed his hope that his people will cut ties with Britain when they vote in a referendum on the question later this year.

Anti-monarchist sentiment has been building ever since the death of Elizabeth II, who enjoyed the affection and respect of many Jamaicans. Sadly, those sentiments don’t seem to have been transferred to King Charles, with one ardent anti-monarchist, Hugh Small QC, telling the Guardian newspaper last year that he ‘can’t stand’ the thought of the King being head of state of Jamaica.

But there is something else driving Jamaica’s disdain for the Crown: the perceived notion that the British Royal Family is inherently racist and the Duchess of Sussex was a victim of prejudice during her time at the Palace.

This idea was, of course, vehemently denied while the Queen was still alive but recently resurrected by the Sussexes’ mouthpiece, Omid Scobie, in his most recent hagiography Endgame, in which he ‘accidentally’ named the alleged ‘royal racists’ as King Charles and the Princess of Wales.

These allegations will no doubt have caused a great deal of distress to both the King and the Princess.

Effectively being cancelled by your own son must take its toll on a man, and I can only imagine how stressful it must be for the Princess of Wales to not only have to pick up the slack left behind by the Duchess of Sussex’s departure but to have to do so with a smile on her face while being kicked repeatedly in the teeth by the latter’s cheerleaders.

I doubt whether that notion will have occurred to the Duke and Duchess, who have - in the past - shown themselves to be entirely immune to any suffering their pronouncements might cause.

Indeed, they did not hold back while Prince Philip was dying, nor when the Queen was in her final months. The idea that they should give two hoots about what the folks back home are going through is, very sadly, for the birds.

By choosing to break cover in such vehemently anti-monarchist company, the Duke and Duchess appear to be sending a very clear signal to the Palace. It appears to me that they intend to use their royal connection to undermine both the individual reputations of members of the Royal Family and that of the institution as a whole. I hope that I am wrong.

By casting themselves as refugees from a regressive and repressive regime, they are tapping into the divisive culture wars that dominate so much of our public debate these days and helping to fuel anti-royalist sentiment throughout the Commonwealth and elsewhere.

The late Queen, who loved the Commonwealth and used her position to foster forgiveness and understanding, would be heartbroken. As for King Charles, I can see only one course of action: he should give them what they claim to want and set them free of their royal shackles by stripping them, finally, of all titles.

post link

author: u/ducklingdynasty

submitted: January 25, 2024 at 05:15PM via SaintMeghanMarkle on Reddit

[tooxmanyxships]

can you do 'When you and I are alone, I've never felt so at home.' for galex please?

Of course Nonnie! I hope you'll like it!

Singapore. It could have gone so great, but it just turned into a disaster. At least for George it did.

He was so close....so fucking close to getting a place on the podium. And then --- then he hit the wall.

He didn't want to be there in the paddock anymore. Just wanted to disappear. Bur he was forced to do at least one interview, which he tried to get through as best as he could.

Once he was done with the whole media circus, he tried to make himself smaller than he was and slipped away.

He wasn't going to the Mercedes garage, nor the hospitality, instead he went to the Williams one. They still let him in. One look at him said enough and they just let him go through. He was a former Williams driver too. Also, they knew what happened. They knew snooping around was the last thing on George's mind right now.

None of them even batted an eye when they saw him disappear into Alex's driver's room.

~~**~~

Alex was worried about George. He knew he got out okay, physically, but mentally --- It would be so hard on him. The disappointment. The anger at himself.

He tried looking for him, but it seemed like George was trying to hide from everyone.

He tried asking Charles and Lando. Lando told him he saw him during an interview, but only very shortly. Lando looked a little worried too.

It seemed like George had disappeared after that. Which was even more worrisome to Alex.

He even went and Asked Lewis if he knew where his teammate was, but Lewis seemed none the wiser either. Lewis looked into George's driver's room but he wasn't there.

He'd called George about a million times now, but all futile attempts.

Maybe..... Maybe he'd just gone back to his hotel room.

Finally admitting defeat, reluctantly, Alex went back to the Williams garage and over to his driver's room.

Opening his door, he nearly jumped out of his skin.

"Jesus!" He blinked, trying to make out the figure curled up on the makeshift bed. "George?!"

"What am I, Alex?" George's voice was barely above a whisper. "Am I still just a stupid little rookie?"

Alex's heart sank a little as he quietly closed the door behind himself.

"No, George. You just made a mistake. Lando hit the wall too you know."

"But he didn't crash. I did." George buried his face even more between his knees. "I'm such an idiot."

Alex stepped forward, one hand resting on George's knee, the other hand's fingers gently running through his hair.

"No one thinks you're an idiot. You were stressed out. Trying to get past Lando, Lewis right behind you as well. It was an easy mistake to make."

George doesn't say anything, but he doesn't have to.

"I'm just glad you're okay."

George does lift up his head at that, Alex's hand sliding down from his head and going to cup his cheek instead.

"You are?"

Alex wants to smack him in the face, because how dare he question that?!

But he sees those watery eyes and the dried tracks of his tears on his face and all he wants to do is hug him with all his might.

"Of course I am. Don't be silly, George."

There's a small, hopeful smile on George's face.

"Thank you." He sighs when he feels his phone buzz for what seems like the umpteenth time. "Since you're here, I'm assuming it's either Lando or Charles who keep calling me, can you tell them I'm okay?"

Alex nods and pulls out his phone, sending a quick text into their group chat that George is with him, then slides the phone back into his pocket.

Alex sits down next to George and lets him rest his head on his shoulder.

It's quiet then, but it's not uncomfortable. It's never uncomfortable with them.

It's Alex who finally breaks the silence. "You know you'll have to face the world again at some point."

"That some point is not now yet."

Alex swallows, "George. Why did you decide to come here. Into my drivers room."

George lifts his head and turns to look at him. The expression on his face is like 'are you stupid?' and maybe Alex is a little stupid for asking this, but - - -

George huffs then, resting his head once again on Alex's shoulder.

"Because when you and I are alone, I've never felt so at home."

And that's what he needed. A sense of home.

No matter where they went or what happened, Alex was home, and he could always find comfort in that.

[disaster-j]

TOL Rewatch Week One

Just rewatched episode one with beloved mutual @magicaldreamfox1 and AAAAAAAA this show really does so many things to me

I have like a million and one thoughts but two main ones-

I am still so fucking pissed about Khai being made into a genuine asshole for drama reasons in the show instead of just being a dumb slut (affectionate) who thought his feelings for Third were Extra Special Friendship Feelings as if all friends dream about building a life with their bestie and get anxiety over the idea of said bestie not being by their side always.... yeah Khai is so much gayer in the novel y'all don't understand I will never shut up about this particular change. Never ever. HE SHOULD'VE BEEN A SIMP FROM THE GET GO. I get that the drama was important to fill up eps but like they did Khai a grave injustice by erasing so many of the scenes that showed his good side, his scared side, his confused side, his deeply in love with Third side. I will never forgive them for making the show Third biased when the story is supposed to be about Khai's journey.

What would've happened if Two had never intervened. Like I've already written a fic about Third giving up on Khai after overhearing him in That Scene but even then he'd at least tried and like his crush had been acknowledged by people other than him. But what if Two had never found him that night he decided to give up. What if neither Two nor Bone had tried to intervene during that time and Third had pulled away from Khai???? WHY AM I MAKING MYSELF SAD THEY'RE MY FAVOURITE SHIP But like imagine KhaiThird having a friendship break-up imagine Khai losing his fucking mind bc Third was his everything and he just didn't realise it until he'd already lost him imagine them remeeting a few years after they've graduated and Khai desperately trying to get back in Third's good books and Third being his meanest self trying to hide how much he still loves Khai AAAAAAAAA someone write the fic pls i am on my knees begging

Other notable thoughts I had while watching the episode

We should talk more about the fact that Khai went and got his ass beat defending Milk's honour AFTER he found out she was messing with him. Like he just did that huh. And he had no reason to think it would help him get her back or anything he just did it bc he felt like it. My poor lil meow meow my favourite puppy boy I love him.

All the Khai is autistic/nd posts are correct

All the Khai is demiromantic posts (me im making all them posts) are soooo correct

Khai's not nearly as Straight in ep1 as he'd like to believe. To quote Dreamy, why are you as a man "riding" "charles". He's a bottom. I said what I said.

THE WAY KHAI SAYS LOVE YOU TO THIRD STILL KILLS ME APPARENTLY

Third is the og bl exploiter girlboss. He was capitalising on his sexuality and close male friendships before it was cool.

Two and Bone BOTH knew Third liked Khai in ep1. Two definitely noticed Third in the scene where they wrap up filming, tho he's obviously been eyeing him a while. And Bone absolutely Knew when Third walked away while they were teasing Khai about Milk. He literally frowned at Third walking off and then turned pensively to Khai. Maybe this is when he decided to confront Khai about Third's crush?

Fake Protagonist is still undefeated as best bl ost I said what I said.

Two and Bone are the best friends ever. This friend group is perfection like no other BL has executed a friend group this well, where everyone gets appropriate screentime and no one exists just for comic relief or to further the plot, they all have their story arcs, their own motivations and flaws and endearments, and they don't go off on their own after the show ends. And they ALL actually get along well. Not Me could've had this if the writers weren't Black antis.

It will be so fucking hard to watch one episode of tol per week literally itching to go watch more as I type AAAAAAAAA

And yet. We persevere. See y'all next week!

[meanya]

If you missed any or all of the Unus Annus livestream, here's a summary of every hour:

~11 hours out: The channel name could've been Annus Singulos (they decided on Unus Annus at a Buffalo Wildwing)

They always planned on it ending on Friday the 13th NOT the 15th (@ MatPat)

The dude who interrupted the sex toys video was not a mailman, he was just some guy. He did not comment on the sex toy stuff.

~10 hours out: They look at memes. Mark "hook car batteries up to my nipples and I'll say yes every time" Fischbach is NOT a masochist, he just wants to know what it feels like to be hit by a car

Frank!!! Frank!!!!!!!

Ethan is going to marry the microphone clip on his shirt

Dollar Shave Club never got back to them about a sponsorship

The workers including the actress in the escape room actually enjoyed having Mark and Ethan doing their shtick there

~9 hours out: Vincent the editor made a best of his edits throughout the videos, it was beautiful, it was mostly just clips of dying

He also wrote them a WHOLE DAMN ORIGINAL SONG!!! IN A WEEK!! About stopping the clock!!! He rapped!

Marcus the editor did a funny edits-roll as well, it was brilliant

~8 hours out: Rachel shows her edits roll! Some of the funniest clips in the whole series!

A comment they read: Mark can do any of his edgy project ideas now and that's terrifying.

Mark: Just wait til you see my next project.

Their merch manager had to buy a 4th warehouse to produce all the merch that had been ordered

If anyone sees Unus Annus pictures or any reminiscence of it in the future and are asked where it's from we are supposed to respond with "You wouldn't get it 🙄"

~7 hours out: they complain more about enema water gun

They re-watch the Pepper spray video. Mark talked about how he thinks about the pain whenever he sees videos of riotors/protestors getting sprayed. Everyone in chat chanted “BLM” and “ACAB” for a few minutes.

Lixian the editor had his edit reel played (”They make em (the people) pretty in Portugal”)

Mark was salty at Youtube because they claimed they didn’t make billboards for YouTube shows and hence, wouldn’t make a billboard for A Heist With Markiplier, but then later made one for James Charles’ show

Mark presented Amy with a BRAND NEW BUG WATCH 😭

Amy: No nothing on their (Youtube’s) Twitter, they’re not talking about it (Unus Annus)

Mark: Guess it’s not important enough...

Amy: They’re too busy tweeting about “World Kindness Day”

Mark: Oh yeah Friday the 13th 2020 wOrLd KiNdNeSs DaY

~6 hours out: Ethan compares the channel dying to putting down a dog. Things get serious for a beat, people in chat start crying.

They look at fanart for a while, Mark criticizes it like an asshole

They watch Pink Trombone again.

Mark and Ethan guarantee that after the channel is gone they will not forget about it. Mark also permits people to make creations / art after Unus Annus is deleted.

~5 hours out: They re-watch Pee Sauna, dying inside all the way.

DJ Burt Blackarach surprises them with a cake and champagne.

Chat is flooded with “❤🧡💛💚💙💜” messages for a while

Looking at memes again, Mark confirms that the noises that the radio made in SCP Amy were 100% just the radios, not them, making the sounds. They still don’t know why they made those sounds.

Mark and Ethan beg for 1mil like in order to see what’s actually in the Unus Annus casket. They might even lay down in it.

~4 hours out: We find out that in the Children’s Games in Total Darkness video, the weird shot of them both in a trance staring into the phone screen was actually just them trying to adjust their eyes back to normal light and it wound up looking super cool.

Vincent’s highlight reel is played again while everyone takes a break, supposedly there is a “surprise” to be revealed soon.

A tattoo artist named Danielle comes on the set, Ethan says he’s going to get an Unus Annus tattoo live.

~3 hours out: More fanart. Mark admits that after this ends, he’s probably never going to wear his suit ever again, he might bury it. (There’s not much room left in his backyard)

Mark talks Danielle the tattoo artist’s ear off about how wholesome and educational and not cursed the channel was.

Mark and Ethan then do a full 180 and confess to Danielle all their sins; cooking with sex toys, pee sauna, pee life straws, the pee soda idea, drilldo, etc.

Amy: (while Eef’s getting tattooed) “Mark, he’s choosing to spend his last day in pain. And you’re not!”

Mark: (looking at a picture of a tattoo) How long do you think that tattoo would take?

Danielle: Probably 3 hours.

Mark: 3 HOURS?!?! That’s more time than we have to live!!

Alex, Mark’s trainer, made them a euology video. It was like a LORE-filled poem made of secret callbacks to the titles of past videos.

Ethan’s tattoo is done, it is a “ 00:00:00 “ on his left arm.

Stevie who runs the merch shop makes a guest appearance. He self descirbes as “tired and sad and a little tipsy.” He seems both grateful and dead inside. He says he’s going to do a matching tattoo with Ethan.

Mark admits he was planning on not doing merch originally, but he’s glad he changed his mind.

~2 hours out: They talk about behind the scenes of Hee hoo. The reason Mark’s still wearing high socks during this video is because of all the burs so he doesn’t scrape up his legs. Amy wrote the whole end credits story about Ethan meeting Michelle Obama and dying a tyrant.

Mark never got to watch Ethan kidnaps Mark, so they watch it.

They watch The Truth about Unus Annus, Amy surprises Mark with a white tophat. #Mark’sNewHat (it’s an extra large)

Mark and Eef make their last tweets as Unus and Annus

Mark got cool Unus Annus custom pocket watches for Ethan and Amy

~1 hour out: Things get serious. Mark and Ethan private the Unus Annus Instagram (so that no one else can take the Unus Annus handle) and delete all the posts.

Mark proposes that Amy be the one to hit the delete button at the end of the channel. They agree to do it together.

They hit 1 million likes. They open the coffin. There’s nothing in the coffin, but the inside is very pretty, split-colors silk. They take turns laying in it for the first time with the door shut. It’s comfy. Even Amy tries laying in it.

Mark says a short eulogy for Eef as Eef does for Mark. They both say a eulogy for Amy. They all get choked up. The coffin is now called the Cry Box.

They delete the Unus Annus Twitter. They set the Subreddit to private. Apparently there were no mods on that subreddit except Mark.

Mark finally confessed to Amy that he punched a hole in the wall. Amy was there when it was being patched up, but she forgives him anyway.

They play The Barrel and sing along. They thank their team. They thank the audience.

Amy comes down. They all put their hands on the computer. “Unus Annus."

Mark: "See you on the other side."

Ethan: "See you on the other side."

they click delete. The channel is gone forever. Memento mori.

[honeykaes]

𝐂𝐚𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐨 𝐀𝐔: 𝐕𝐨𝐢𝐜𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬 𝐈

tw. mention of drugs (weed), mention of alcohol

minors do not interact

𝐇𝐨𝐭𝐞𝐥 𝐎𝐰𝐧𝐞𝐫!𝐙𝐡𝐨𝐧𝐠𝐥𝐢

𝐀𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐆𝐨𝐥𝐝𝐞𝐧 𝐂𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐞: I hope you are enjoying your stay here. It took a few years before it could be properly built but I am proud of that palace now staying in its place. New things must grow if one does not want to stay in the same routine over and over agan.

𝐀𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐎𝐬𝐭𝐡𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐮𝐬 𝐖𝐢𝐧𝐞: Oh this? I have this stocked at Angel Share specifically when I feel nostalgic. I used to share a glass with my old business partners. It’s a shame they couldn’t be here today.

𝐀𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐎𝐥𝐝 𝐁𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐏𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐬: Yes…Guizhong and Osial. Guizhong was my…previous wife. She was a very kind person before her death. She always complained that I worked too much. I’ve tried to change my life honoring those wishes to the best of my ability. …Osial? I prefer not to discuss him.

𝐀𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐆𝐨𝐥𝐝𝐞𝐧 𝐂𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐞 𝐈𝐈: I wanted the theme to reflect the pinnacle of wealth in the heavens. I tried incorporating aspects in multiple cultures such as my own and Western influences to try to achieve this. I wanted a person to walk into here and feel like the God of Wealth himself.

𝐀𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 (𝐘/𝐧): Ah yes, my dear (Y/n). Their presence is really soothing for me. They seem to always have a new perspective I’ve never thought of before. I want to learn more about them.

𝐀𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 (𝐘/𝐧) 𝐈𝐈: The other men? I don’t mind them at all. I think of them moreso as their playthings to pass the time as I am in meetings or working on other things. I know in their heart I am the one they truly care about. Why focus on such trifling matters, hm?

𝐀𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐂𝐡𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐞: Ah…yes my dear friend. We did business with each other when I was working in Shanghai. He funded one of my projects and actually invested quite a bit to this establishment himself. He’s an interesting fellow though. I just hope he isn’t stressing (Y/n) out to much. I heard he has a bit of a…sadistic streak.

𝐁𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫!𝐃𝐢𝐥𝐮𝐜

𝐀𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐃𝐢𝐥𝐮𝐜: I’m originally from Berlin where most of my bars are well known. Our European guests typically gawk whenever they discover that I’m here at all places. They usually tip better as well…Maybe because they know the truly high-quality service they are getting.

𝐀𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐃𝐢𝐥𝐮𝐜 𝐈𝐈: An accent? No. My father was multilingual and taught me many languages at the same time. If you hear me speak German, I’m sure whatever ‘accent’ you clearly want to hear will be identifiable.

𝐀𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐀𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐥’𝐬 𝐒𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐞: It can get quite wild as much as I detest it. I usually try to work the afternoon shifts. I enjoy the pianist that comes then. It’s a much better atmosphere. By 6, Charles usually takes over as it gets quite crowded. I assist when needed like during Spring Break and the holidays, otherwise, I am in meetings with Mr. Zhongli

𝐀𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐕𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢: That bastard…I caught him one time trying to steal one of my bottles of wine. That brat things just because he’s famous he can do whatever he wants. It’s absolutely annoying. I would have banned him a long time ago but Mr. Zhongli insists he stays for some reason. If he’s there the bar becomes 10 times rowdier.

𝐀𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 (𝐘/𝐧): …Ah, so you know about them too. Yes, they’re a nice breath of fresh air dealing with all these drunken fools at Angel Share. ..Free drinks?! I don’t know what you’re talking about.

𝐀𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐊𝐚𝐞𝐲𝐚: …Selfish. Manipulative. An asshole. That’s all I have to say about him.

𝐀𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐊𝐚𝐞𝐲𝐚 𝐈𝐈: I know (Y/n) is going to get hurt because of him. All he does is see people as little toys for his amusement. Tsk, it’s disgusting. ..No I’m not jealous! I’m worried! You don’t know him like I do.

𝐇𝐢𝐠𝐡-𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫!𝐂𝐡𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐞

𝐀𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐆𝐨𝐥𝐝𝐞𝐧 𝐂𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐞: Ah! My favorite casino in the world! If I want a good time I know to head there. I invested about $1 million U.S. Dollars for this to come into fruition, and Mr. Zhongli wanted even more! Haha. Still, I’m very impressed with this place. You can always find something enjoyable to do.

𝐀𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐙𝐡𝐨𝐧𝐠𝐥𝐢: Yes! Zhongli and I worked on several projects before. He went bankrupt during a particular issue with his old business partner. I suggested doing something new and threw out a casino for him to work on. I can’t believe he actually took it seriously!!

𝐀𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐂𝐡𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐞: Childe? Oh, that’s just a business name. You’ll have to get to know me if you want to know my real name. I actually work under a trader group called Fatui based in Moscow. We have dealings across the globe.

𝐀𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐒𝐜𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐦𝐨𝐮𝐜𝐡𝐞: Scaramouche used to work at the Fatui, he was actually higher in position than me. It’s really odd that he’s here of all places, doing customer service? It’s such a joke! Haha. Still seeing him fake a smile and twitch dealing with annoying guests is quite funny. I can just pull up a seat with a drink and be entertained just from that.

𝐀𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐃𝐢𝐥𝐮𝐜: I really don’t like that guy. The Fatui tried working with him after he inherited Angel Share, but he immediately refused and called us out. It was rude and unnecessary. He just seems so needy to (Y/n) too…Haha! I’m not making a scary face, what are you talking about?

𝐀𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐃𝐢𝐥𝐮𝐜 𝐈𝐈: Hmm, want to hear a rumor going around? It’s said that Diluc’s adoptive brother Kaeya inherited more from his father than Diluc did. Diluc only got a bar? Hehe, sad isn’t it! Even his father preferred Kaeya over him!!

𝐒𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐩𝐩𝐞𝐫!𝐊𝐚𝐞𝐲𝐚

𝐀𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐊𝐚𝐞𝐲𝐚: Frostwind? Aww, you like my stage name? I think it’s pretty nice. People used to tell me how cold my hands were. Now I use it to my advantage. Something is just so thrilling watching someone tremble because of you.

𝐀𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐊𝐚𝐞𝐲𝐚 𝐈𝐈: Yes I grew up in Berlin with…the Ragnvindr’s but I was originally born in Mumbai. Dad—Crepus was a very admirable guy. He taught me what a family should truly look like. He was always working so hard for us. I genuinely miss him.

𝐀𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐃𝐢𝐥𝐮𝐜: …That hypocrite. Spouts on about how we’re family, but gets mad at me when I’m treated as such. If I’m selfish, he should look in the mirror.

𝐀𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐊𝐡𝐚𝐞𝐧𝐫𝐢'𝐚𝐡: My strip club. Yes! Two floors, multiple popular dancers, amazing music, and drinks. Very proud of building her from the very ground up. To think I would be so popular as well, it’s quite flattering.

𝐀𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 (𝐘/𝐧): Absolutely adorable. Seeing them squirm in my hands from even the smallest gestures is very amusing. It’s such a shame others seem to fancy them so much. I wanted my plaything for myself…

𝐀𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐂𝐡𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐞: I wouldn’t be so trusting of him, my friend. He’s a lot shadier than he lets on. Best not to talk about it in the public though.

𝐀𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐕𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢: He comes around here quite a bit, but not recently. We used to be close when I first arrived in Las Vegas. Always getting me into trouble and stealing my weed. I simply just track how much that “DJ” owes me.

[causeiwanttoandican]

Harry, Meghan and me: my truth as a royal reporter

I've covered elections and extremism, but nothing compares to the vitriol I've received since I started writing about the Sussexes

By Camilla Tominey, Associate Editor27 March 2021 • 6:00am

It is probably worth mentioning from the outset that I never, ever, planned to become a royal reporter. I mean, who does? It’s one of those ridiculous jobs most people fall into completely by accident.

I certainly wasn’t coveting the position when I first found out how bonkers the beat could be after covering Charles and Camilla’s wedding in 2005. Desperate for ‘a line’ on what went on at the reception, journalists were reduced to flagging down passing cars in Windsor High Street and interrogating the likes of Stephen Fry about whether they’d had the salmon or the chicken.

Watergate, this wasn’t.

Yet when my former editor called me into his office shortly afterwards and offered me the royal job ‘because you’re called Camilla and you dress nicely’, who was I to refuse?

Having planned to get married myself that summer, and start a family soon afterwards, I looked to the likes of Jennie Bond and Penny Junor and figured it would be a good patch for a working mother as well as being one I could grow old with. Unlike show business, when celebrities are ‘in’ one minute and ‘out’ the next, the royals would stay the same, making it easier to build – and keep – contacts.

So if you’d told me that 16 years later, I would find myself at the centre of a media storm over a royal interview with Oprah Winfrey, I’d have probably laughed in your face. First of all, only royals like Fergie do interviews with Oprah. And since when did journalists become the story?

Yet as I have experienced since the arrival of Meghan Markle on the royal scene in 2016 – a move that roughly coincided with Twitter doubling its 140-character limitation to 280 – royal reporters like me now find themselves in the line of fire like never before.

We are used to the likes of Kate Adie coming under attack in the Middle East, but now it is the correspondents who write up events like Trooping the Colour and the Royal Windsor Horse Show having to take cover from the keyboard warriors supposedly defending the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s ‘truth’.

Accusations of racism have long been levelled against anyone who has dared to write less than undiluted praise of Harry and Meghan. But even I have been taken aback by the vitriol on social media in the wake of the couple’s televised two-hour talk-a-thon, in which they branded both the Royal family and the British press racist while complaining about their ‘almost unsurvivable’ multimillionaire lives at the hands of the evil monarchy. And all while the rest of the UK were losing their loved ones and livelihoods in a global pandemic.

Having covered Brexit, general elections and stories about Islamic extremism, I’ve grown used to being sprayed with viral vomit on a fairly regular basis, but when you’ve got complete strangers trolling your best friend’s Instagram feed by association? That’s Britney Spears levels of toxic.

Having a hind thicker than a rhino’s, it wasn’t the repeated references to my being ‘a total c—’ that particularly bothered me, nor even the suggestion that I should have my three children put up for adoption. At one point someone even said it would be a good idea for me to drink myself to death like my mother, about whose chronic alcoholism I have written extensively.

No, what really got me was the appalling spelling and grammar. I mean, if you’re going to hurl insults, at least have the decency to get my name right.

Yet in order to understand just how it has come to pass that so-called #SussexSquaders think nothing of branding all royal correspondents ‘white supremacists’ regardless of who they write for, or sending hate mail to our email addresses, offices – and in some cases, even our homes – it’s worth briefly going to back to when I first broke the story that Prince Harry was dating an American actor in the Sunday Express on 31 October 2016. Headlined: ‘Royal world exclusive: Harry’s secret romance with TV star’, the splash revealed how the popular prince was ‘secretly dating a stunning US actress, model and human rights campaigner’.

Despite my now apparently being on a par with the Ku Klux Klan for failing to acknowledge Meghan as the next messiah, it was actually not until the fifteenth paragraph of that original article that the ‘confident and intelligent’ Northwestern University graduate was described as ‘the daughter of an African-American mother and a father of Dutch and Irish descent’.

Call me superficial, but I was genuinely far more interested in the fact that Harry ‘I-come-with-baggage’ Wales was dating a former ‘briefcase girl’ from the US version of Deal or No Deal than the colour of her skin. A ginger prince punching well above his weight? This was the stuff of tabloid dreams. Little did I know then that covering the trials and tribulations of these two lovebirds would turn into such a nightmare.

The online hostility began bubbling up about eight days after that first story, when Harry’s then communications secretary Jason Knauf issued an ‘unprecedented’ statement accusing the media of ‘crossing a line’.

‘His girlfriend, Meghan Markle, has been subject to a wave of abuse and harassment’, it read, referencing a ‘smear on the front page of a national newspaper; the racial undertones of comment pieces; and the outright sexism and racism of social media trolls and web article comments’. Meghan’s mother, Doria Ragland, had apparently been besieged by photographers, while bribes had been offered to Meghan’s ex-boyfriend along with ‘the bombardment of nearly every friend, coworker, and loved one in her life’.

Suffice to say, I did feel a bit guilty. Although I hadn’t written anything remotely racist or sexist, I had started the ball rolling for headlines like the MailOnline’s ‘(Almost) straight outta Compton’ (referencing a song by hip-hop group NWA about gang violence and Meghan’s upbringing in the nearby LA district of Crenshaw), along with her ‘exotic’ DNA (which I subsequently called out, including on This Morning in the wake of ‘Megxit’ in January last year).

Omid Scobie, co-author of Finding Freedom, a highly favourable account of the Sussexes’ departure from the Royal family, written with their cooperation last summer, would later insist that the couple knew the story of their relationship was coming out and were well prepared for it.

I can tell you categorically that they weren’t, since I did not even put a call into Kensington Palace before we went to press for fear of it being leaked. (I did later discuss this with Harry, when I covered his trip to the Caribbean in November 2016, and to be fair he was pretty philosophical, agreeing it would have come out sooner or later. But that was before the former Army Captain decided to well and truly shoot the messenger, latterly telling journalists covering the newly-weds’ tax-payer-funded October 2018 tour of Australia and the south Pacific: ‘Thanks for coming, even though you weren’t invited.’)

The royal press pack is the group of dedicated writers who cover all the official engagements and tours on a rota system, in exchange for not bothering the royals as they go about their private business. It was a shame this ragtag bunch, of which I am an associate member, was never personally introduced to Meghan when the couple got engaged in November 2017.

I still have fond memories of a then Kate Middleton, upon her engagement to Prince William in November 2010, showing me her huge sapphire and diamond ring following a press conference at St James’s Palace with the words, ‘It was William’s mother’s so it is very special.’

I replied that she might want to consider buying ‘one of those expanding accordion style file holders’ to organise all her wedding paperwork. (Reader, I had given birth to my second child less than four months earlier and was still lactating.)

Not meeting Meghan did not stop royal commentators like me writing reams about her being ‘a breath of fresh air’ and telling practically every TV show I appeared on that she was the ‘best thing to have happened to the Royal Family in years’.

As the world followed the joyous news of the Windsors’ resident strip billiards star having finally found ‘the one’, the couple enjoyed overwhelmingly positive press culminating in their fairy-tale wedding in May 2018, which we headlined ‘So in love’ above a picture of the bride and groom kissing. I tweeted the wedding front page, along with the original story breaking the news of their relationship with the words, ‘Job done’. Yet, as Meghan would later point out in a glossy Santa Barbara garden, that was by far the end of the story.

According to the Duchess’s testimony before a global audience of millions, the seeds for their royal departure were actually sown by an article I wrote in November 2018 suggesting she made Kate cry during a bridesmaid’s dress fitting for Princess Charlotte.

Claiming the ‘reverse happened’, the former Suits star railed, ‘A few days before the wedding she was upset about something, pertaining to, yes, the issue was correct, about flower-girl dresses, and it made me cry, and it really hurt my feelings.’

She then went on to criticise the palace for failing to correct the story – suggesting that royal aides had hung her out to dry to protect the Duchess of Cambridge.

All of which left me in a bit of a sticky situation. As I told Phillip Schofield on This Morning the following day, ‘I don’t write things I don’t believe to be true and that haven’t been really well sourced.’

Having seemingly been completely bowled over by Meghan’s version of events, Schofe then went for the jugular: ‘I have to say, though, that’s all addressed in that interview, isn’t it, because she [Meghan] couldn’t understand why nobody stood up for her?’

Yet someone had stood up for her, on that very same This Morning sofa: me.

As I told Phil and Holly on 14 January 2019, as more reports of ‘Duchess Difficult’ started to emerge, ‘I think she [Meghan] is doing really well, she looks amazing, she speaks well. She has played a blinder.’

So you’ll forgive me if I can’t quite understand why Meghan didn’t feel the need to correct this supposedly glaring error once she had her own dedicated head of communications from March 2019 – or indeed when she ‘collaborated’ with Scobie, who concluded in his bestselling hagiography that ‘no one cried’?

Moreover, how did the Duchess know a postnatal Kate wasn’t ‘left in tears’? And if she doesn’t know, what hope has the average troll observing events through the prism of their own deep-rooted insecurities?

It appears the actual truth ceases to matter once sides have been taken in the unedifying Team Meghan versus Team Kate battle that has divided the internet.

Make no mistake, there are abject morons at both extremes spewing the sort of bile that, ironically, makes most of the media coverage of Harry and Meghan look like a 1970s edition of Jackie magazine.

It perhaps didn’t help my case that the day before the interview was aired in the US, I had written a lengthy piece carefully weighing up the evidence behind allegations of ‘outrageous bullying’ that had been levelled against Meghan during what proved to be a miserable 20 months in the Royal family for all concerned.

The messages – to my Twitter feed, my email, my website and official Facebook page – ranged from the threatening, to the typical tropes about media ‘scum’ and the downright bizarre. Some accused me of being in cahoots with Carole Middleton, with whom I have never interacted, unless you count a last-minute Party Pieces purchase in a desperate moment of poor parental planning.

Another frequent barb was questioning why the press wasn’t writing about that ‘pedo’ [sic] Prince Andrew instead – seemingly oblivious to the fact that no one would know about the Duke of York’s links to Jeffrey Epstein if it wasn’t for the acres of coverage devoted to the story by us royal hacks over recent years.

It didn’t matter that I had repeatedly torn the Queen’s second, and, some say, favourite son to pieces for everything from his propensity to take his golf clubs on foreign tours to that disastrous Newsnight interview.

Contrary to the ‘invisible contract’ Harry claims the palace has with the press, royal coverage works roughly like this: good royal deeds = good publicity. Bad royal deeds = bad publicity. We effectively act as a critical friend, working on behalf of a public that rightly expects the royals to take the work – but not themselves – seriously.

So when a royal couple preaches about climate change before taking four private jets in 11 days, it is par for the course for a royal scribe to point out the inconsistency of that message. None of it is ever personal, as evidenced by the fact that practically every member of the monarchy has come in for flak over the years.

If Oprah wasn’t willing to point out the discrepancies in Harry and Meghan’s testimony, surely it is beholden on royal reporters to question how the Duchess had managed to undertake four foreign holidays in the six months after her wedding, in addition to official tours to Italy, Canada, and Amsterdam, as well as embarking on a lengthy honeymoon, if she had ‘turned over’ her passport?

While no one would wish to undermine the extent of her mental health problems, could it really be true that she only left the house twice in four months when she managed to cram in 73 days’ worth of engagements, according to the Court Circular, in the 17 months between her wedding and the couple’s departure to Canada?

And what of the ‘racist’ headlines flashed up during the interview purporting to be from the British press, when more than a third were actually taken from independent blogs and the foreign media? The UK media abides by the Independent Press Standards Organisation’s Code of Conduct ‘to avoid prejudicial or pejorative reference to an individual’s race’, as well as by rigorous defamation laws. And rightly so – the British press doesn’t always get it right. But social media is the Wild West by comparison, publishing vile slurs on a daily basis with impunity.

Some therefore find it strange that such a litigious couple would claim to have been ‘silenced’ when they have made so many complaints, including resorting to legal action, over stories they claim not to have even read. There is something similarly contradictory about a couple accusing the tabloids of lacking self-reflection while refusing to take any blame at all – for anything.

In any normal world, informed writing on such matters would be classed as fair comment, but not, seemingly, on Twitter where those completely lacking any objectivity whatsoever are only too willing to virtue signal and manoeuvre.

As the trolling reached fever pitch in the aftermath of the interview, veteran royal reporter Robert Jobson of the Evening Standard called me. ‘Don’t respond to these freaks,’ he advised. ‘It’s getting nasty out there. Watch your back!’

Yet despite my general sense of bewilderment at the menacing Megbots, I can’t say it didn’t appal me to discover a close friend had received online abuse, purely by dint of being my mate. After discussing the lengths the troll must have gone to to track her down, she asked me, ‘Do you ever worry someone might do something awful to you?’ Er, not until now, no.

Of course it’s upsetting, even for a cynical old-timer like me. Worse still are people who actually know me casting aspersions on my profession on social media. Often these are the same charlatans who would think nothing of sidling up to me for the latest gossip on the Royal family, while publicly pretending that reading any such coverage is completely beneath them.

Most pernicious of all though – not least after Piers Morgan’s departure from Good Morning Britain following a complaint to ITV and Ofcom from the Duchess – is the corrosive effect this whole hullabaloo is having on freedom of speech. When you’ve got a former actor effectively editing a British breakfast show from an £11 million Montecito mansion, what next?

I cannot help but think we are in danger of setting race relations back 30 years if people are seriously suggesting that any criticism of Meghan is racially motivated. It’s the hypocrisy that gets me. When Priti Patel was accused of bullying, the very same people who willingly hung the Home Secretary out to dry are now the ones defending Meghan against such claims, saying they have been levelled at her simply because she is ‘a strong woman of colour’.

Of course journalists should take responsibility for everything they report and be held to account for it – but Harry and Meghan do not have a monopoly on the truth simply because the close friend and neighbour who interviewed them in return for £7 million from CBS took what they said as gospel.

If she isn’t willing to probe the disparity between Meghan saying someone questioned the colour of Archie’s skin when she was pregnant, and Harry suggesting it happened before they were even married, then someone must. There’s a name for such scrutiny. It’s called journalism.

The public reserves the right to make up its own mind – with the help of the watchful eye of a free and fair press. But that press can never be free or fair if journalists do not feel they can report without fear or favour. I’m lucky that a lot of the criticism I face is more than balanced out by hugely supportive members of the public and online community who either agree – or respect the right to disagree. Along with the hate mail, I have had many thoughtful and eloquent missives, including those that good naturedly challenge what I have written in the paper or said on TV, which have genuinely given me pause for thought.

I am more than happy to enter into constructive discourse with these correspondents, who are frankly sometimes the only people who keep me on Twitter. I mean, let’s face it, I wouldn’t be anywhere near the bloody thing if this wasn’t my day job.

With the National Union of Journalists this month declaring that harassment and abuse had ‘become normalised’ within the industry, never have members of Britain’s press needed more courage. As Winston Churchill famously said, ‘You have enemies? Good. That means you’ve stood up for something, sometime in your life.’

Who would have thought that the preservation of the fundamental freedoms that we hold so dear should partially rest on the shoulders of those who follow around a 94-year-old woman and her family for a living?

If I’d known then what I know now, would I still have written the bridesmaid’s dress story?

Yes – doubtlessly reflecting sisterly sobs all round. But after two decades in this business, I am clear-eyed enough to know this for certain: whatever I had written, it would still have ended in tears.

[tetralea]

Just had an idea and i just need to ramble about it🙈

Remember when (push rewind) from Chris Wallace gives me ideas for lestappen. I used to love that song and i remembered it yesterday and almost cried while listening to it.

Lestappen as childhood friends to lovers (they're like 14). They were so happy and even thought they would get married some day. Well fate (or Jos) happens and they have to break up (but they don't want to obviously) and one moves away. They meet again years later (they're now in their early 20s or something) and both have new partners but never forgot the other. They quickly become friends again and are so obviously in love. At first they are really oblivious, but they maybe share a drunk kiss and that made them realize and they break up with their significant others. They get together again and are happy again.

Hiii!

Omg, this is so beautiful! I’m sorry I couldn’t respond earlier but I just had so many thoughts about this! (And I’m recovering from covid) and I got carried away, ok? Sorry hehe

Thank you so much for sending it, it gave me life with this stupid sickness.

I can totally see them being really really young maybe even younger than 14 and so in love even before they know what that means, and they plan the whole wedding because that is what two people in love does right? Get married. And they snuggle and hug so much, and Charles exclaiming ‘I’m gonna kiss you’ and kisses Max on the cheek, and they are really happy with the other one.

Then Max’s family moves away, and Charles is devastated he refuses to eat he walks back to the place where they lived hoping they would come back. But eventually he has to give up.

They grow up completely apart and Charles is working for a firm where he gets a summer intern who is Max. Charles takes him to lunch and barely can contain his excitement so they go out after work. Where they learn that both of them has a partner which seems normal, don’t think about it a lot. So they work together every day, talk a lot every day Charles helps Max navigate in the company, and it feels so natural like they never missed a day in their friendship.

None of them really notices the way they flirt with each other, and Max convinces himself that it is just the way Charles is nothing to overthink even tho he definitely feels his stomach tighten and his breath stopping when he see Charles in those suites and ties and all.

So it goes on until a charity event, they go together as mentor and mentee, and it’s so obvious how Charles subconsciously is trying to woo and seduce Max.

Realisation hits Max like a freight train that he does want to kiss Charles so bad, he wants back what they had, he wants to snuggle under the covers and just talk al night, and sleeping tangled together, and doing other things tangled together. And he can’t breathe because he has a partner but now he is thinking of Charles in ways he really shouldn’t. So in 2010 Emo style he flees the scene sits at a park outside. Charles finds him. Ofc. They have a small conversation about what they were back then, something they completely avoided during the summer and how Max never realised Charles was his first boyfriend, and how he was never interested in anyone in his school years when everyone was having crushes. And Charles listens and smiles so fondly with dimples and all, and leans really really close and whispers: I’m gonna kiss you.

And he does but now not on the cheeks, but for real and after all those years of wondering how Max’s lips would feel on his own he knows, and if it’s not the best feeling ever he doesn’t know what is. It’s slow and gentle, and long, so long because God, they waited years for this. But then Max pulls away and he is conflicted and confused because he really did think it seriously with his partner, but now Charles is kissing him and he never wants to let go.

So Charles apologies and gets up and walks away, because this is really the way it feels when your heart breaks into million pieces? He doesn’t get too far, just out of the small park, he leans to the brick wall and tries to breathe and tries to wrap his head around it because he knew this could happen and he knew Max was serious with his person. He can hear the hurried footsteps and Max is there, looking at him, with the same heartbroken expression. He steps closer and kisses Charles, and it’s wet and salty because of the brunette’s tears, but much more heated. Max asks for some time to figure it out. Charles understands and nods while he is pulling Max close saying he will break up with his partner because it’s not right for them, because he loves Max, he always loved him and always will. And seals every sentence with a kiss.

So a few weeks later, while Charles did not stop trying to woo Max but turned down the flirting a bit, Max walks into his office and he is nervous but smiling so much, and says: can you help me with the printer?

So Charles is yes ofc, and they practically run to the printer room, and Max shuts the door closed and pushes Charles against it, and kissing him silly, because fuck he could never feel like this for anyone else.

[writingbywatson]

Kaeya, Diluc and Xiao comforting you

So, I made this because a lot has happened to me the past few days and I just wanted some comfort stuff, you know? I'm doing a lot better now! Haven't edit this again, I lack the will the someone send me Xiao or Diluc

Kaeya

You can’t tell me that Kaeya isn’t the type of boyfriend that doesn’t tease his s/o

Never gets tired of teasing you since usually, you can handle it well

But today was a little too much, stuff has been going worse at your house and you were on the brink of exploding

You should have told Kaeya but you didn’t want to since you know he has his plates full already

He teased you a little bit but you told him you weren’t in the mood

Playful Kaeya would think it's one of those “I told you to stop but not really moments”

So when he teases you again, you just couldn’t take it anymore and you slap his hand away when he was trying to reach for you

“Hey what–“ Kaeya would not finish his sentence because he sees that you were already had tears streaming down your face

You would immediately leave and Kaeya would be too stunned to follow you

Diluc who was there to witness the whole thing would probably throw one jab at his brother “nice job”

Kaeya would feel so bad because he would think it was his fault

Kaeya would think for a while because he honestly thinks it's his fault

Would ask you to meet with him in his office so he can apologize

“I’m sorry for what I did, I didn’t–“

“It’s not your fault,” you would interject and you would explain what happened

Kaeya feels extremely shitty now since he didn’t pick up that you were having a problem

“Sorry if I made you worry and lashing out at you” - you

Kaeya would feel extremely relieved that he even has to take a seat for a moment but at the same time he feels extremely bad still because he should have been there for you

“Come here” - Kaeya smiling as he raised his arms to the side asking for a hug

You cannot tell me that Kaeya does not give incredible and warm hugs

His the type of hugger that would hum and continuously rub your back as you cry into his arms

“Next time, tell me about your problems okay?”

“You already have so much on your plate right now”

“That doesn’t mean that your concerns are less important than mine, I always have time for you y/n, no matter what.”

Jean would probably open the door into his office and see the two of you as this is a recurring event (ahemMAKINGOUTINHISOFFICEahem) she was about to scream

But Kaeya managed to shake his head at her before she could and the acting grandmaster immediately knew base on how worried he looked

Would spoil you once you let all your emotions out and would probably lay low with his teasing for a bit

Diluc

Diluc would always wonder how he managed to get you since you are considered as one of the nicest people in Monstad

You were also a knight and he respects that about you since he can see that you were doing your best to help everyone

Very proud but also would like it if you would leave the knights LMAO

With that being said, he never saw you with a dark expression on your face

And that speaks volumes considering that you were always there with him every day

Often at his bar, you just smiling at him while he mixes drinks

But today was a little different though and he noticed it right away

You were more quiet than usual, you would speak now and then but something in your voice doesn’t sit right with him but he can’t pinpoint it out

He also noticed that despite it being very late in the evening you were still there usually you would leave after about 5 hours at most

“It’s getting late, aren’t you going to go home?” Diluc would ask taking the empty glass in front of you

He would notice the shift in your posture and this is becoming a big concern for him “are you alright?”

You’ll smile and wave it off saying that, it was just a hard day at work

“You are right, I should go home”

When you left, Diluc took a mental note to tell Jean to lighten your workload

He was preparing to change shifts with Charles when the older male approached him as soon as he entered his bar

“Master Diluc, why is y/n sleeping at one of the benches in front of the Cathedral?”

“What?”

Would speed walk to the cathedral just a million things racing through his head

Would see you immediately and would walk towards you, he would sigh in relief because nothing bad has happened to you

Diluc would squat down and hold you hand, contemplating whether to wake you up or would he just let you sleep because he thinks that your workload is too much and your extremely tired that you end up sleeping on the bench

But you’ll end up opening your eyes and he saw the shock on your face when you see him

“What are you doing here?” - you

“I should be the one asking you that question, what are you doing here? The knights are overworking you aren’t they? Those incompe-”

“- I didn’t want to go home.”

Diluc would blink at you, “why?”

“My parents they-”

You’ll end up telling him and gradually your tears would just show and all the while he will wipe your tears away

Parents are a complicated topic for Diluc but he is smart and Diluc knows that all kids deserve loving parents but not all parents should have kids

He also feels bad since didn’t notice right away

“Would you like to stay over at my place? It’s safer than sleeping out here”

He would ask the maids to prepare you a bath and some clothes

He would of course join you at his room when he's done bathing himself as well (wha’cha thinking there?)

He isn’t the best when it comes to words, so he makes up for it with actions

Would cuddle with you and gives the best cuddles especially if his tired as well

If you aren’t facing him during your cuddle session, one of his hands is sure to be holding yours

If you are facing each other, he would have caged around his arms and his nose would be buried on top of your head

Xiao

Xiao is so used to your presence that when you don’t greet him or talk to him, his day is completely ruined

So imagine his mood when two days went by and you weren’t there

On the third day, you were there but Xiao decided to be petty and not greet you back because how dare you not greet him or acknowledge him for two days?

This would go on for the morning, you greeting him and him ignoring you

That was until after lunch, “Xiao, I have to go on a mission” you would say to the adeptus

He will nod in response

“See ya”

Did? Voice? Just? Break?

Xiao would immediately feel bad and boi, the speed that he reacted to catch your arm so he can apologize was the fasted state he has ever been in

When he sees that your eyes are glaze over by tears, he’s going to start apologizing not in a panic way but slowly like his trying to find the best words to say to you

When you cry even harder, he is left confused so he’ll stop talking and you’ll end up hugging him

Poor Xiao is so confused he doesn’t know what to do

He’ll just let you cry

However, when stop crying he also notices that your body has become limp and before you could even hit the ground he will catch you

He would check your body for bruises or if you were sick

Verr would rush to where Xiao is often seen and ask what was happening, she would try to reach to you but Xiao would unconsciously hold you together as a result

Verr would notice this and would not attempt to check on you, “I’ll prepare a bed for y/n, it might be due to exhaustion since they looked tired the past two days”

Xiao would now feel extremely bad

Would lay you down on the bed and would not leave your side, if anyone tries to come near you his growling

“Oh right, y/n has a mission today, what should we do?” - Verr

Xiao despite not liking people at all would end up going to Katheryne, I’m not saying that he threats so that they’ll give your mission to someone else but there might be a chance

When you wake up Xiao is at your bedside and is holding your hand

Even before you can say anything he's the one who is going to apologize first

You’ll feel bad because why was Xiao blaming himself for what happened to you? It wasn’t his fault!

You’ll stop him and explain that your parents have been fighting lately and the reason why you were exhausted this past few days was that you kept on thinking about that issue

You’ll apologize for neglecting him and Xiao feels bad still

Reassure this angry cat that it’s not his fault, please

He’ll bring you a plate of almond tofu to bed and you will realize your mission

Xiao would stop you and say that’s already taken care of

“Oh, you did my mission for me?”

“No.”

“Then how did you- you used violence didn’t you?”

“No, just some light threat. Anyway, get some more sleep.” -Xiao as he ‘gracefully’ avoids the issue

Would keep an eye on you as you rest all the while never letting go of your hand

[dayscrazed]

Chain of Iron “Table Read”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xLkmUgnZ8w4&feature=youtu.be

Cordelia is looking over at her brother. Alastair looked expressionless, or he would to someone who didn’t know him. Cordelia knew by his posture- he was nearly sliding down the pilar- and his tightly fisted hands, he was quite upset. 

“I know you read mundane papers too. I  wondered if you’d noticed the recent murder in the east end. It’s the sort of thing that seems as if it shouldn’t interest us, but on closer examination-”

Cordelia stepped up to Alastair, blinking demurely. She knew people were watching. She wanted to give them no reason to talk. “Charles, I believe you agreed to stay away from my brother.”

Charles raised a superior eyebrow. “Cordelia, dear, men have disagreements among themselves sometimes. It’s best to leave them be to sort it out.”

Cordelia looked at Alastair.  “Do you wish to converse with Charles?”

“No.”

Charles flushed. “Alastair, only a coward needs to be rescued by his little sister.”

Alastair’s expressive eyebrows flickered. “And only an ass puts people into situations in which they need to be rescued at all.”

Charles took a deep breath as if he were about to shout. Cordelia moved swiftly between him and her brother. Her smile was beginning to make her face ache. “Charles, go away now. Or I will tell everyone how your aunt and uncle must go rushing off to Paris to rescue the Clave from your blunder.”

Charles’ eyes narrowed. And somehow in that moment Cordelia saw Matthew in him. She could not imagine why. There could have been two more different people. If only Charles was more kinder,  understanding and perhaps Matthew would not- 

Cordelia blinked. Charles had said something, undoubtedly something cutting, and stomped off. As he did, she noticed they were indeed being watched by Thomas. He was gazing at them from across the room, seemingly arrested in mid-motion. Behind him James had rejoined his friends and was chatting with them, one hand lightly on Matthew’s shoulder. 

Several things happened at once. Thomas, seeing Cordelia looking at him, blushed and turned away. The music ended and the dancers began to stream off the floor. And Grace left Toby without a word and came up to James. Matthew and Christopher had been laughing together. Matthew, stopped, staring as Grace said something to James and the two of them stepped a bit apart from the others. James was shaking his head, the silver bracelet glimmered on his wrist as he gestured. 

“Want me to go over and break James’ legs?”

“He can hardly run away screaming if Grace approaches him. He must be polite.”

“As you were polite to Charles?” Don’t take it the wrong way, Layla, I’m grateful, but you don’t need to-”

Out of the corner of her eye, Cordelia saw James break away from Grace. He came toward her. He was white as a sheet, but otherwise his mask was firmly in place. “Alastair, good to see you. Are your parents well?”

Alastair had told her she didn’t need to be polite. But politeness had its uses. James wore his manners like a suit of armor. A suit to match his mask. 

“Well enough. The Silent Brothers recommended my mother rest at home given her condition. My father didn’t want to leave her.” Some of this was doubtless true, and some of it wasn’t. Cordelia didn’t have the heart for investigation. She no longer had the heart for the party at all. James hadn’t betrayed their agreement, but it was clear that it caused him pain to be in the same room as Grace. The worst part was she could sympathize. She knew what it was like to be near the person you loved but feel like you were a million miles away. 

“James I find I have a rather desire to play chess.”

That brought a smile from James, but only a slight one. “Of course, we shall depart at once.”

“Play chess, how thrilling.”

Cordelia kissed Alastair on the cheek as James went to offer the necessary excuses to their hosts. They collected their things in silence and soon found themselves on the front steps of the Wentworth’s house, waiting for their carriage to be brought around. It was a lovely night. 

Grace had watched them go, a thoughtful expression on her face. Cordelia could not help wonder how much she concealed. It was not like her to approach James. Perhaps she had felt desperate. Cordelia could not blame her if she did. But she could not ask James because they were not alone on the steps. 

Tessa and Will were there. Tessa was smiling up at Will as she tucked her hands into fur-lined gloves. He bent to brush her hair from her forehead. James cleared his throat loudly. “Otherwise they’d start kissing. Believe me, I know.” 

Tessa seemed delighted to see them. She beamed at Cordelia. “Don’t you look lovely. Dreadful we have to leave the party so early. Fortunately, Miss Highsmith has offered poor Filomena the use of her carriage later. But we’re meant to portal to Paris early tomorrow morning.” She did not, Cordelia noted, mention Charles. 

“We tried to approach you inside but were cut off by Rosamund chasing Toby around because their ice sculpture had mented. What does it mean for the youth of today that they don’t know that ice melts. What are we teaching them in the schoolrooms?”

“Is this another youth-of-today speech?” He dropped his voice into a passable imitation of Will’s. “Running about, no morals, using ridiculous words like ‘barmie’ and ‘brinkets’!”

“Even I know ‘brinkets’ is not a word.” He and James bantered back and forth as the Institute’s carriage rolled around the corner and stopped at the foot of the steps driven by a skinny footman in silver and ivory. Cordelia could not help but think how different James’ relationship with his father was from Alastair’s with Elias. She wondered sometimes what Elias would say if he knew about Alastair and Charles. She wanted to think he wouldn’t care. Months ago she was sure of it, now she was sure of nothing. 

Her reverie was broken by a sudden shout. The skinny footman had leapt to his feet, looking about wild-eyed. “Demon! Demon!” Cordelia starred. Something that looked like a spinning wheel covered in wet red mouths shot from under the carriage and rolled about in a circle. She reached for Cortana and flinched, her palm stinging. Had she cut herself on it somehow? That couldn’t be possible. 

James laid a hand on Cordelia’s shoulder. “It’s alright, there’s no need.”

Will was looking at Tessa, his blue eyes wide. “Can I?” 

Tessa smiled indulgingly as if Will had asked for a second helping of cake. “Oh, go ahead.” Will made a whooping sound. As Cordelia starred in puzzlement, he leaped down the stairs and raced off chasing the wheel demon. Tessa and James were both smiling. 

“Should we help him?”

“No. That demon and my father are old friends. Or rather old enemies, but it amounts to the same thing. It likes to chase him around after parties.”

“That is very peculiar. I see that I have agreed to marry into a very peculiar family.” 

“Don’t pretend you didn’t know that already.” 

Cordelia laughed. It was all so ridiculous and so very much the way James’ family always was. She felt as if things were almost normal again by the time their carriage came around and they clamored into it. As they rolled off into the night, they passed Will brandishing a seraph blade as he happily chased the wheel demon through the Wentworth’s rose garden. 

-----------------

Let’s Discuss!

1. Cordelia & James aren’t married yet, but they are still engaged.

2. Elias is home and with Sona who seems to be on bedrest during her pregnancy. 

3. The two above points suggest that James and Cordelia’s wedding was postponed (the released first chapters reveal that they take place the night before the wedding when Elias has not arrived yet)

4. Charles made a “blunder” in Paris and so Will and Tessa are portaling there presumably to fix it.

5. James and Cordelia have some sort of an agreement that he will stay away from Grace.

6. Charles is being an ass. (After sending Alastair multiple unanswered letters, he’s still trying to strike up conversations, so he clearly is in denial/not moving on)

7. Thomastair crumbs.

8. Will Herondale being Will Herondale. 

[hraishin]

hello syd prompt time,,, charles is upset because he fucked something up (umm charles says the absolute worst thing he could possibly say?) and erik is there for him and they're just soft boyfriends

WELL IT WAS SURELY GOOD TO WRITE SOMETHING SOFT FOR ONCE kjashdjhadsj Thank you for the prompt kai, it was good to write them being soft boyfriends and some very light hurt/comfort ;-; Hope you like this!

-

Erik had seen Charles nervous before, of course, especially because Charles had a talent for being nervous about almost everything whenever he stopped to overthink stuff, and Erik had said a million times that it was Charles’ special talent, but Erik hadn’t seen Charles as nervous as he was that day - at least he didn’t remember ever seeing him like that.

It was supposed to be date night that Friday for them and, since it was Erik’s turn to choose, they had planned to go to Charles’ dorm, watch a movie, and get some takeout food and snacks - something calm and that would allow Erik to hold Charles more often than what an outing would allow him. They had done that, had ordered the food and Erik had arrived at Charles’ dorm with a bag of the cheapest snacks he could find and that he and Charles loved, although, the whole time, Erik noticed just how off Charles seemed to be.

“Are you okay, Schatz?” Erik had asked earlier that night when he helped Charles sort their snacks, seeing a small smile appear on Charles’ lips at the pet name. “You seem worried about something.”

“It’s nothing, don’t worry.” Charles had answered with a wave of his hand and a sigh. “Stressful day, that’s all.”

Erik realized only much later that he had used “it’s nothing” to dismiss Erik’s question and hadn't explained the situation properly, which was always a red flag considering he only didn't talk when it was something. They had been together for a whole year now, Erik knew at that point that, if something bothered Charles, his mind turned into a turmoil of thoughts even if he wouldn’t say anything about it. The difference that night, Erik noticed, was that the turmoil was affecting him enough for his façade to break. Charles was usually good at hiding when he was upset.

It was only after they were halfway through Mary Poppins and there were empty food cartons on the ground next to them that Erik really started to get worried.

Charles had a strict rule of no phones during their date nights, unless it was needed or urgent, so they could enjoy each other's presences without it. It wasn’t a hard rule to follow considering Erik focused too much on his boyfriend whenever they were together - and he had been really impressed when Charles didn't get scared on their first weeks of dating when Erik revealed he already knew small things about Charles' behavior just by looking that only him had ever noticed -, but, that night, Charles had picked up his phone multiple times during the movie and stared at the lit screen before putting it away without actually doing anything other than that. It wasn’t hard as well to notice how he wasn’t really paying attention to the movie, and Erik decided that the “it’s nothing” clearly was something.

“Someone’s forgetting their own rules.” Erik tried joking, smiling lightly as he looked at Charles, his blue eyes turning to look at Erik with some confusion. Erik pointed at the phone on Charles’ hand for a moment. “You’ve been using your phone the whole night.”

Erik’s expression turned into a frown when, instead of smiling and teasing Erik back like he normally would, Charles looked extremely guilty, putting the phone down again and pressing his lips into a tight line.

“I’m sorry, love.” Charles quickly said, his voice weak like it would get whenever he thought he did something wrong. Uh oh. “Won’t look again. I got a little distracted.”

“Alright,” Erik paused the movie immediately, Charles’ expression turning into a frown now as he looked at Erik again. Erik, in return, turned a bit to sit facing Charles, a serious look in his eyes. “What’s going on? There’s something bothering you.”

When Charles opened his mouth quickly to reply - too quickly for it to be the truth -, Erik quickly added, “And I know for a fact it isn’t nothing.”

He watched as Charles' face changed a few times as he tried to find a good answer, probably ready to omit why he was so off the whole night again, but Erik just waited, eyes never leaving Charles'. At some point, Charles clearly gave up on lying, sighing heavily as his shoulders fell a little, eyes going down as well. 

"Sorry, I'm just not really my best today…" he confessed, pouting slightly as he talked. "I had a fight with Raven again and she hasn't answered me ever since this morning… I'm worried I upset her too much this time."

"Is this why you keep checking your phone?" Charles nodded, taking the device again only to purse his lips at the lack of new texts there. "You know she never stays angry at you for long, Charles."

"Yes, but this time she seemed really angry. I tried apologizing but she hasn't even read my texts and it's eating me alive." 

"But you apologized, didn't you? She'll see it when she comes back and it'll be fine." Erik scooted closer to Charles, pulling him into a half-hug, Charles going to him willingly. "Maybe she's just busy, you know how taxing college is being on her, and she just forgets her phone sometimes to focus on it." 

"I don't like when you're the logical one…" Charles mumbled, resting his head on Erik's shoulder. 

"One of us has to be when the other is being stupid." that earned Erik a harsh poke to his ribs, making him chuckle before he pressed a kiss to Charles' head, his soft hair tickling his nose for a moment. "But it's gonna be okay, Schatz."

"I know. Thank you. I'm sorry I didn't really focus on you tonight."

"I'm not mad or annoyed at you, if it helps me saying it."

"It does, actually." Charles said, raising his head to give him a gentle smile, a kiss being pressed to his lips moments after. "I guess I just got a bad case of the blues today."

"Well, there's still the snacks on your desk." Erik raised his eyebrows as he made the offer, seeing Charles smile a little wider. "I did bring those chips you like and that will probably kill you faster."

"Oh, perfect for the moment." Charles joked, already getting up from the ground to get to the desk. "You know me so well, love…"

"One day I'll get you to stop eating those."

"I'll end you where you stand if you try to keep me away from my chips."

Erik chuckled, watching as Charles went to the other side of the room with less of a tense air about him now, probably hanging onto Erik's words to calm himself down. As he did it, he heard a quiet ding by his side, his eyes darting over Charles' phone on the ground to see the phone screen lit up with a new text, Raven's name there with her text right underneath it.

> Sorry, I've been busy the whole day. And it's alright, dumb-dumb, I wasn't that mad <3

[a-libra-writes]

are you still doing that kiss prompt thingy?? if you are, how's about '50. In Secret kiss' with Micah Bell? ((if youre not then dont worry!)) pleases and thank yous :0)

hECK YEAH (sorry i took ten million years yall aggghhh). i went rlly fluffy with this bc my self indulgence is always at MAX

The shot brushed the bottom of the empty whiskey bottle. It shook from the force, but didn’t fall over or break. Micah had seen the mark it left on the glass, but he didn’t have time to look twice. Another shot rang out, and the glass shattered.

“Well, it looks like that peashooter can get the job done,” He said to Y/N. As he anticipated, she gave him that look, then gestured to the four hares she’d tied to her horse.

“I recall you used mine to get that doe.” Micah inclined his head to the doe strapped on top. He missed the shot on that one - a rarity in itself - and Y/N took his rifle, downing the animal before it could run away. By the way the corners of her lips were twitching, she was remembering that.

It was hard to care about his wounded pride when she almost-smiled, because he knew it was more than anyone got out of her in the two … no, was it three years she’d been with the gang? “That one’s Y/N, she doesn’t say much. Leave her be.” Dutch had said to Micah during his first week. There was an odd protectiveness in the man’s voice, one Micah hadn’t heard given to others, besides maybe Jack and Tilly.

‘Not saying much’ was a great understatement. Y/N never spoke. She didn’t laugh or smile, or furrow her brows or cry. The camp acted as though she wasn’t there, with some exceptions. Tilly would chatter beside her as they did chores, she and Mary-Beth traded books, little Jack would trail after her if Abigail was busy, Hosea would bring her along for this or that job. There seemed to be a divide between those who worked with her silence, and those who were unnerved by it.

Micah didn’t want to admit he was in the latter camp. The first time he finally said something to her, he was drunk, and it came out stupid. Completely stupid. He remembered waiting for the usual reaction: Disgust, maybe a slap, storming off angrily. Some women shrieked when a rat scurried across the floor, some reached for an iron skillet. Y/N only looked at him with those sharp eyes, the shadows of the campfire bouncing off her face. 

She walked away, and he breathed out, not realizing how nervous the whole interaction made him. Never in his life had a woman made him shiver like that.

It was sunny now, not a cloud in the sky, and it was hard to believe this sunshined-kissed face was the same one that unnerved him months ago. Y/N took aim, and the next shot sent a glass bottle flying off the rock. She lowered the gun and clapped happily.

Shit. It was so endearing. Micah stood up from where he was sitting - on a goddamned blanket she spread out, because after hunting all morning and afternoon they were both tired, and she wanted to sit with him and rest. Then he suggested the game, and she wanted to play. Who was he to refuse?

Y/N walked up to the bottles and picked up the skinniest one. She walked several feet away and placed it, then ran back. When she pointed at it, Micah squinted.

“What, you gonna shoot that?”

She shook her head and pointed to him.

Micah scoffed. He retrieved his revolver, the right one. “Darlin’, I can do a lot better than that.”

He lifted his gun, put the bottle in his sights, and almost squeezed the trigger. He stopped, although he could already hear the sounds of the glass breaking.

“You try it,” He said suddenly. “With a proper gun, not that old thing.”

Micah was too anxious to look at her, or wait for a refusal. He all but shoved the revolver in her hands. Y/N blinked at it, then held it properly. He watched her fingers curl around it, how easily they fit into place. The gun wasn’t made for her hands, but it looked right. A swell of excitement went up his spine when she touched the barrel and noticed the engraving.

He cleared his throat, coughed a bit and stood behind her. “You shot one of these before, right?”

Y/N turned back to face him, giving him an ‘obviously’ sort of glance. He placed his larger hands around her’s, trying to fight the urge to pull away immediately. It was like her skin was fire, and his chest was hurting. He moved her smaller fingers into a better grip, so the recoil wouldn’t be as hard, and let her lift it to her line of sight.

“It’ll kick,” Micah said. “Every revolver got a different kick.”

Y/N didn’t squirm out of his arms, or look uncomfortable, so he selfishly stayed put. She was concentrating on the shot.

And she took it. She had flinched, but the glass shattered.

He couldn’t hide his grin. His next words spilled out. “Next time there’s a job, I’ll get you a better gun, an’ take you with me.”

Y/N smiled, and he had a sudden sensation of being both punched in the gut and choked out. He stepped away and cleared his throat. Micah felt something tugging at his side, and realized she was putting the revolver back in its holster. He immediately thought of her hands being somewhere else.

To distract himself, he looked at the sky. He was surprised at the late hour, and pulled out his pocketwatch to confirm it. Had they really spent most of the day in this forest? The discomfort growing in his gut was getting worse, and in an attempt to control it, Micah almost offered that they ride Baylock together. To his disappointment, Y/N had already swung up on her horse. He comforted himself with the fact she probably wouldn’t have agreed, anyway. It was a sheer dumb miracle she’d gone along with the hunting and shooting, given how she normally was.

“You better not be bothering that girl, Mr. Bell,” He could hear Grimshaw’s voice echoing off in his head. It was the first or second week he arrived, and her voice was low and dangerous. He’d just been looking at Y/N, and the old bitch was on him at once. “She’s don’t need the likes of you distracting her.”

He had a few choice words for the woman now, but Y/N clicked her tongue to get his attention. She was waiting on him, probably wondering what he was spacing out for. On the ride back, he wondered what Grimshaw, or anyone, would say if they noticed them coming back together.

No one said anything. It was still early in the evening, and there wasn’t much of the gang around. Micah could’ve split off and left to town if he wanted; he almost never came back this early. To his dismay, Y/N returned to that passive face he’d seen so many times before. He felt like something had slipped out of his grasp.

He could at least help her dismount, even if she didn’t need it. It felt stupid to offer his hand, like he was some goddamned storybook prince, but she took it. He relished that brief contact as he helped her down, wondering when it’d come again… if it ever would. This day seemed like one of those that was too good to be true.

“You come get me if ya need help, with the uh, the huntin’,” Micah mumbled. The words sounded stupid again, but they were far better than the first ones he said to her. “Or shootin’. Ya got a good eye.”

Y/N didn’t let go. She looked at him with those big eyes, now not so passive, and the old gunman had to will himself not to look away. He couldn’t, feeling rooted to the ground with both her gaze and her touch.

Then she kissed him. It was on the cheek, but he froze. From how close she was, he could smell the forest, the dirt, the gunpowder.

“Sure.”

He could have missed it with how his heart was beating, how the horses around them nickered and the distant gramophone crooned. She squeezed his fingers and smiled. The sun had set now, but she was so, so bright. 

Y/N turned away and led her horse to Pearson’s wagon. That simple word ran across his mind at least a dozen times by the time she was too far away to call to without drawing attention, and then Mary-Beth ran up to her, and then Charles offered to help with the doe. She nodded and gestured and pointed, the language she used with everyone.

Micah wondered if they’d heard anything she said, if she ever shared that smile. Something told him - something hoped - that wasn’t the case. He watched her until that gut-punching and throat-squeezing became too much, and he swung up on Baylock to head to town. Maybe come morning, he’d find a gun, a smaller one with not much recoil. Maybe he’d hear more words after that.

[heavyarethecrowns]

As Kate re-emerges more tanned and confident, a new Middleton girl takes a bow - May 2007

Amid the clatter of small talk and social niceties, it was a well-meaning attempt to rally a young girl's spirits: "Keep your chin up. Don't let them get you down. You'll be fine."

But when Tara Palmer-Tompkinson delivered these words of wisdom to Kate Middleton at a fashionable book launch, what was striking was not the kindness of the older woman's words but how superfluous they appeared.

For, since splitting from Prince William, Kate Middleton seems to have had very little trouble in keeping either her chin, or her profile, high.

ndeed it has become a much remarked oddity of Kate and Prince William's break-up that, in the weeks since her apparent heartbreak, she has never looked better...or happier.

Far from appearing shattered by the very public end of a romance that many - including Kate herself - predicted would end in marriage, Kate sans William is cutting a frankly far sexier figure.

Her hair is shinier, her skin more tanned and her dress sense more youthful than during her tweedy William days.

Far too dignified to accept the vast sums on offer for a royal 'kiss and tell,' she has, The Mail on Sunday has learned, drawn on the support and advice of a trusted few.

And, in the process, one figure has emerged above all as key among the newly single Kate's loyal coterie: her younger sister Pippa.

At 22, Pippa is three years junior to - and 4in shorter than - her more famous sibling but she has had an enormous impact on the emergence of this increasingly sleek and confident Kate.

She is, according to those who know her best, more sassy than Kate, more direct and, tantalisingly, less discreet.

And though these days she may pass largely unrecognised she is unlikely to do so for long.

After all, it was Pippa who joined Kate at the launch of Simon Sebag Montefiore's book on Stalin at Asprey's, Pippa whose hand Kate held as she left trendy London nightclub Boujis at three in the morning four days later, Pippa who will be at Kate's side when the girls attend the Kuoni World Class Cup Polo at Hurtwood Park, West Sussex - a tournament at which both Prince Harry and Charles have played.

In the weeks since her split from William, Kate has gleaned style advice from an executive at Vogue, discussed strategies for dealing with the media from Tatler editor Geordie Greig and, fascinatingly, turned to Guy Pelly, one of William's best friends, for entrance to some of London's coolest clubs. But it is Pippa who has been her ever present consort.

For where Kate's entree into high society was as the prettier 'add-on' to a powerful partner, her staying power may owe much to establishing herself in another, formidable, double act.

And according to one well placed source: "Kate and Pippa have already been dubbed The Wisteria Sisters - they're highly decorative, terribly fragrant and have a ferocious ability to climb.

"Pippa has just graduated in English from Edinburgh University and while other students are taking advantage of the last weeks of term to lie around in the meadows, have late breakfasts and long lunches and generally do very little, Pippa couldn't wait to get down to Kate and to London.

"She'll go back for the graduation ball at the end of June but it's clear that Kate is the key to unlocking a new social life for Pippa and Pippa is there to support Kate.

"So many doors were opened to Kate when she was with William and she's certainly not going to let them close now."

Certainly Pippa seems more than up to the task of putting a well-shod foot in the way of any door that threatens to shut now that Kate and William are no longer together.

According to one university friend: "As soon as Pippa arrived at Edinburgh, she was assiduous about joining the right social circle.

"At Edinburgh, the aristo crowd are divided into two social sets - one crowd who go to London for the weekend and are really into partying and hard drinking and the other who are more staid and go off to each others' country houses for weekends.

"Pippa joined the country set. She was very charming about it but quite ruthless in cultivating the "right" friends.

"If she found out that someone had impressive social credentials - the right title, standing, connections - she would immediately pay them a lot of attention where before she wouldn't have shown the least interest.

"She would leave notes in the pigeonholes of people she coveted as friends, desperate to arrange a time or date to meet.

"She was always well turned out to the point of being prim, always conscious of projecting the "right" image and, if she heard of other girls' "naughty" behaviour - too much drinking or partying or risque behaviour - she'd pull a face like there was a bad taste in her mouth."

Like Kate, Pippa attended Marlborough and, like Kate, her university ascent into the social elite was rapid. By the end of her university days, she could count Ted Innes-Ker and George Percy as flatmates - the sons of the Dukes of Roxburghe and Northumberland respectively.

And her boyfriend, who graduated two years before her, is JJ Jardine Patterson, an Eton friend of Edward and George and scion of a highly successful Hong Kong banking family.

"She met JJ through the boys," a friend said. "It really wasn't the family millions that attracted her to him but the social cachet."

Someone else who has met Pippa on many occasions recalled her as: "A charming girl who hung out with absolute toffs, most of whom are named after counties.

"She is incredibly well mannered and well-brought up. At dinner she always makes sure to speak to the person seated to her left and right.

"She has a lovely figure, much better than Kate's really. She's a very keen and aggressive tennis player. A mother's dream, in many respects.

"But she makes no secret at all of being very socially ambitious - almost aggressively so. She wants power and money."

Which explains perhaps, in part, the mixed feelings that Pippa has expressed to friends since her big sister split from her famous boyfriend.

According to one: "Pippa absolutely loved the fact that Kate dated William because of the cachet it brought but she's also quite pleased Kate's single again.

"She sometimes felt that her mum and dad tended to put Kate first, above her and her brother James, when she was dating William simply because of the extra responsibilities and practical considerations that went with that.

"And she was a little bit jealous that her sister was dating the future King of England.

"It didn't help that James, who's also at Edinburgh, would go around saying, "My sister's going to be the Queen of England." He can be very indiscreet.

"Also, Pippa's glad to "get her sister back". The two are very close and she never got to spend much time with Kate when she dated William. Kate would always put William first."

Indeed, Kate put William before all other considerations - personal and professional.

It is worth noting that, since their split, she has been promoted from assistant accessories buyer to accessories buyer for High Street store Jigsaw.

Pippa is similarly bright, but she is yet to fall upon a career path of her own. She enjoys travel and writing and has expressed an interest in journalism.

However, such thoughts are not foremost in the girls' minds this summer.

Instead, Pippa has moved into the Chelsea home that the girls' parents Carole and Michael bought for Kate and, according to a friend: "The two of them are enjoying being quite girlie together.

They have a mobile tanner who comes round and does their spray-on tan. They love shopping on the Kings Road.

They get ballet pumps at French Sole and Pippa loves Chloe clothes and has her hair done in Richard Ward's VIP section just like Kate.

"Kate gets sent a lot of free clothes and gifts and Pippa is very keen to get in on the action as far as that's concerned. She's happy to go along to parties and events on Kate's coat-tails."

Certainly there has been no shortage of invitations. On Wednesday, the girls will be at Mahiki - a favourite haunt of Prince William and the site of his infamous I'm Free! 'celebration' following his split from Kate.

The marketing for the club is looked after by Guy Pelly and it is Guy who is believed to have invited Kate and Pippa to Wednesday's Johnny Cash-themed party.

Kate and Pippa have also been invited to Richard Branson's pre-Wimbledon party - and have received invitations to the members' enclosure for the tournament.

They are on the guest list for Royal Ascot - though whether or not they will venture towards the Royal Enclosure remains to be seen - and have been invited to the Cartier Polo at Windsor Great Park on the last Sunday of July.

Ahead of them both lies the tantalising prospect of a summer of sisterly fun - with a social agenda writ large.

One close friend says: "Obviously, Kate and William aren't together any more but they have an ongoing arrangement. They will go to a couple of things together - things that were planned before they split and which William will honour.

It seems a bit of a habit among that set not to entirely sever relationships. There's rarely a clean break."

As we reported last week, William will go to the wedding of Kate's cousin on July 21. It is understood that they will also spend a weekend together in William's cottage in Balmoral in August.

Being in such close proximity to the man she once hoped to marry - and being so as 'just friends' - must be a prospect that Kate regards with profoundly mixed feelings.

However glossy her image and admirable her poise, there are, in the weight she has shed and the cigarettes she has started smoking again, clues to the effort required in presenting a positive face to the world she knows is watching still.

The importance of Pippa's place at Kate's side right now cannot, friends say, be underestimated.

"Pippa and Kate really are very close," says one. "Sure, they have a very like-minded approach to life and if Kate is leaning on Pippa at the moment who can blame her?

"The whole Middleton family were thinking of holidaying in Scotland this year but Kate felt it was too much of a thorny reminder of the last time that they were all together in Scotland, earlier this year, when they rented a great big house in Perthshire and waited for William to show up for New Year and he never did.

"Instead, they're looking at renting some fabulous villa in Tuscany or Umbria for a few weeks in August at the end of the summer.

"And goodness, I'd have thought by the time they reach August, the girls will need a break."

[elsanna-shenanigans]

February Contest Submission #3: Did You Know

words: ca. 3700 setting: Modern AU lemon: No cw: Language

“Did you know that Frost Museum aims to achieve LEED Gold certification within the…”

Anna nods off, her coffee forgotten. Work orientations are the worst. 

A few minutes later, a soft cough from somewhere over her left shoulder stirs her. Anna sits up and blinks, looking around for the source. Her cheeks redden as she realizes she’s been caught falling asleep on her first day of her new job.

“Behind you,” a soft voice says.

Anna turns in her seat, and the flush to her face deepens as she is met by the most gorgeous woman with white-blonde hair and a flawless pale complexion. Dressed in a light gray business suit and blue blouse, Anna surmises that she’s one of the bosses and immediately stands up, ready to beg her to let her keep her new job. She smooths out her own wrinkled black skirt and opens her mouth to grovel when the woman speaks again.

“You, um…” The woman wipes the corner of her mouth with her index finger.

Anna’s brows furrow, and she raises her hand up to her mouth. Finding wetness there, her eyes widen.

“Oh, shi-” She stops herself from further embarrassment as she wipes at her face with the sleeve of her green blouse. Drool is embarrassing enough as it is.

The woman smiles softly and says, “Orientations are never fun. I actually arrived a few minutes late. Don’t tell anyone.“ 

Anna gapes. Of all the things for this woman to say, she did not expect that. “Yeah…” 

“I’m Elsa.” The woman extends her hand and waits for Anna to introduce herself, that soft smile never leaving her face.

It takes Anna a second to stop staring and shake Elsa’s hand. “Anna. It’s nice to meet you, Elsa. So, what’d I miss?”

Elsa giggles, and it’s the most melodious sound Anna has ever heard.

“We’re taking a ten minute break. There are some breakfast items outside if you’d like to join,” Elsa nods to the doors of the plantarium where they’ve spent the last hour learning about Frost Museum, one of Miami’s biggest museums and their new workplace.

“Yeah.” Anna picks up her now-cold coffee cup. “I didn’t have time to eat earlier. I was already afraid I’d sleep through my alarm.”

Elsa giggles again. “ I’m glad one of us didn’t.“ 

Anna smiles easily, happy to have made a new friend on her first day. Not to mention that Elsa is attractive.

“Shall we?”

As Elsa leads her out of the planetarium, Anna can’t help but glance at her backside. This woman is insanely beautiful. Her hips sway as she walks confidently in black stilettos, and all Anna can think about is how she has legs for days.

So caught up in Elsa is she that Anna doesn’t realize they’ve made their way to a table where Elsa is offering to get her another coffee from a disposable coffee container. Elsa tilts her head and lifts an eyebrow curiously.

“Earth to Anna.”

“Hm?” Anna’s eyes focus on Elsa’s cool blue eyes that definitely match her blouse. Anna glances down at it again. Yep, they match. Anna wonders what it’d be like to unbutton that blouse and bites her lip as she imagines the pale skin beneath it.

“I asked if you’d like another coffee. I imagine that one is too cold to drink by now,” Elsa nods her head toward the cup in Anna’s hand.

Anna looks down at the cup. “Oh, yeah. Please,” she smiles and walks to the trash can to dispose of her old cup.

As Elsa pours them both steaming cups of mediocre coffee, Anna tries to think of something more to say.

“This place has money. I’m surprised they can’t spring for something better than a cardboard container of coffee.” Anna mentally slaps herself for saying the first thing that came to her mind.

Elsa hands Anna a cup with a smile before . “Maybe they need a barista on staff.”

“Yes, exactly! All jobs should have baristas on staff. Did you know that Disney has baristas on staff at their animation studios?” Anna grins. Disney is her favorite subject.

“Really?” Elsa smiles back.

Anna takes a sip of her coffee and makes a disgusted face. “Uh huh,” she says as she grabs two packets of sugar to put in her drink. “If you watch the credits at the end of every movie, they mention their names. They’re just baristas, but they have film credits!”

“That’s very cool,” Elsa says. “Do you-”

“Elsa, there you are,” a middle-aged man walks up to them with a jovial smile and crows feet hiding behind thick-rimmed glasses. “Sorry to interrupt,” he says acknowledging Anna. 

Anna nods. She knows this is the CEO of the museum. She met him during her last interview, but she can’t remember his name.

“It’s good to see you again, Frank,” Elsa smiles and shakes his hand. Anna notices that her smile is tighter; it doesn’t reach her eyes like her previous smiles have.

“Likewise. Is orientation almost over? We’re ready to have you upstairs in your new office crunching numbers.”

Elsa blushes and looks embarrassed. “About another hour." 

“Surely we can get you out of it,” Frank chuckles. “After all, no one knows the Frost Museum like the Frost family.”

Anna’s mouth hangs open. Elsa is Elsa Frost? Related to the museum’s Frost family? Her name is literally on the building! Suddenly she feels very out of her league. Elsa is clearly a big deal, whereas she is just a new janitor. What’s more is that her best friend Kristoff got her this job after another guy quit suddenly, so she really wasn’t even a choice. They needed to fill the spot quickly, and Anna was qualified enough. As qualified as a college drop-out needs to be for manual labor. 

Anna realizes she is zoned out when Elsa turns back to her with an apologetic look on her face. 

“Sorry about that, Anna. You were saying?”

“Hm?” Anna looks at her. “Oh, umm… nothing. Never mind. I better go back and grab my seat.” She hurriedly leaves Elsa staring at her back.

Back in her seat, Anna covers her eyes with her hand and leans over. “Shit, shit, shit. Anna, what are you thinking? She’s so clearly out of your league. She’d never be interested in you.” 

For the rest of the orientation, Anna thinks of all of the fancy parties Elsa must go to on the regular. She imagines Elsa lives in a mansion on Star Island and is probably a VIP at all the best clubs. She probably has a rich boyfriend named Hans or Alfred or maybe Charles Van Buckingham III. And he takes her on trips to London and Paris and Fiji. He gets to see Elsa in a bikini; not Anna. Never Anna.

When the small group of new employees is finally dismissed, Anna does not dare look at Elsa. She leaves the planetarium quickly and practically runs to the engineering department where Kristoff is monitoring the water flow to the aquarium’s tanks.

“Hey, there she is,” he grins. “How was it?”

“Awful,” Anna sits in a chair next to him and takes a look at his computer. “Have you heard of Elsa Frost?”

“Yeah, HR sent an all staff email out letting us know she’d be joining the staff as the new head of finance. She’s apparently super smart and hot as fuck.”

Anna snorts before groaning. “I made a complete fool out of myself in front of her.” She recounts being caught sleeping, nerding out about Disney, and feeling like nothing next to the blonde woman.

“Anna, you’re not nothing,” Kristoff says with a frown.

“I am compared to her, Kris. She’s… she probably has a million college degrees, and I don’t have any.”

“That does not make you nothing.”

Anna sighs and stands. “It doesn’t even matter. She probably has an equally hot as fuck boyfriend, and they live in the lap of luxury.”

“Anna-”

“I gotta go see my new boss. Can you show me where maintenance is? I kinda forgot.” 

Kristoff gets up. “Okay, but don’t put yourself down, Anna. Any woman would be lucky to have you.”

—

The next day, Anna gets a full tour of the facility. Around lunch, she finds herself on the fifth floor cleaning the administrative offices. Poking her head into an empty office, she determines that the coast is clear to empty the trash.

She rounds the desk and searches for a trash can but can’t find one. Pursing her lips, she mutters, “Come out, come out, wherever you are, trash can.” She turns around and faces a wall where multiple diplomas hang. She sucks in air as she realizes whose office she is in.

“Oh, hi, Anna,” Elsa says from the doorway, causing Anna to jump and turn around. 

“Uhh, hi. Sorry, I was just… “ Anna swallows. “I was looking for your trash.”

“Oh, well, I haven’t really made any yet, but if you come back in half an hour, I will.” Elsa smiles that smile that seems to be reserved for Anna as she holds up a container.

“Yeah… I can do that. Enjoy your lunch…” Anna starts to walk out only to come face-to-face with Elsa, who has not left the doorway.

Under the blue-eyed gaze, Anna feels small, and it isn’t just because Elsa is wearing another pair of stilettos. Navy this time, to match a silk navy button-up shirt under a white suit.

“Excuse me,” Anna mumbles to the ground.

“Anna, did I do something yesterday?”

Anna whips her head up to discover that Elsa is biting her bottom lip.

“What? No! No,” Anna shakes her head. “No, you didn’t.”

Elsa can’t look at her now as she lets out a breath. Her shoulders, which Anna realizes were tense, seem to relax. 

“Okay. It felt like I did when you felt suddenly during the break, and then when you left orientation really fast,” Elsa says quietly. “If I did, I’m sorry.”

Anna feels horrible now. “No, Elsa, please. You don’t have anything to be sorry about. I just wanted to go say hi to my friend Kristoff. He works in engineering.”

“Oh,” Elsa says. “Well, in that case…” She closes her eyes for a moment before opening them and looking directly at Anna. “Would you like to go get a coffee one day this week?”

Anna’s mouth drops open. Elsa Frost, who has a business degree and a master’s in finance, wants to get coffee with her? “Coffee? With me?”

“Yes. If you want,” Elsa chews her bottom lip again, and Anna decides that is endearing even if it does seem to stem from Elsa being nervous.

“I want!” Anna says a little too cheerfully. She tells herself to tone it down. “I mean, yes. I would love to.”

—

Anna clocks out and turns to her best friend. “She is so far out of my league, Kristoff.”

“But she wants to get coffee with you. That’s something,” he cocks his head and gives her a haughty look.

“I need to wow her, Kris. I need her to know that I’m smart too.”

“You are smart, Anna. You don’t need to prove that to her or to anyone,” Kristoff says seriously.

“Yeah, but this is Elsa Frost we’re talking about. I need to go into this coffee date ready to dazzle her with everything I know." 

Kristoff sighs. “Anna, just be yourself. I’m sure that’s why she asked you out for coffee anyway.” 

“Maybe, but I still gotta be prepared. But anyway, I gotta go. I’ll see you later,” she grins and walks to her used Toyota Camry. If she’s going to go on a date- is it even a real date?- with Elsa, she needs to start studying up on potential topics.

That evening, Anna watches a National Geographic documentary on Disney+ that succeeds in putting her to sleep half an hour in.

—

Elsa’s work keeps her busy for the rest of the week, but they make a plan to meet at the Starbucks on Biscayne Boulevard on Saturday afternoon.

Rain pours as Anna arrives early with index cards ready. She stayed up Friday night taking notes after doing some googling on Elsa and finding an old college newspaper interview in which she mentioned liking Egyptian history.

She places her order, grabs her coffee when a barista calls out her name, and sits down at a table, waiting nervously.

Less than five minutes pass before Elsa walks in and shakes off the rain. Anna gazes at her as she takes off a long raincoat and brushes her hand through her damp bangs. Then Elsa looks around for her.

She waves and calls out, “Elsa, over here." 

With a grin that could light up the world, Elsa makes her way over to Anna. “Hi,” she says breathlessly.

“Hi,” Anna smiles back. “I already got a coffee, but if you want something, I can get it for you.” 

Elsa shakes her head. “No need. I can grab it. I’m not really in the mood for coffee today. When it rains, that means hot chocolate.”

Anna laughs. “I should have waited for you then. I love hot chocolate.” 

“It’s my favorite,” Elsa grins and drapes her raincoat on the back of her chair. “I’ll be right back. Don’t leave.”

“I won’t.”

When Elsa seemingly makes sure Anna won’t leave, she walks up to the counter, giving Anna time to watch her. 

Elsa’s demeanor changes as she steps up to the barista. Anna remembers when Frank came by to talk to her on their first day. It seems that Elsa isn’t very comfortable in social situations. That much is confirmed when Elsa lets out a deep breath when she is done paying for her drink. And, thinking back on their week, Anna realizes that Elsa only ate lunch in her office. She knows because she picked up Elsa’s trash every afternoon, and there was always an empty container in the bin. Anna wonders how a super brilliant finance lady could be introverted. Don’t you have to do projects and give presentations and stuff in college? Surely, Elsa realizes that she has nothing to worry about with Anna. She’s clearly the more classy, educated one. Anna is the dumb one who has to worry about making a good impression.

When Elsa returns, hot chocolate in hand, Anna shakes herself out of her thoughts. 

“So,” Elsa sits down. “Did you have a good first week?”

“I guess,” Anna replies. “It’s not hard work.”

Elsa tilts her head. “It’s not? I saw you lifting a giant bag of trash into the dumpster. It must have been heavy.”

Anna shrugs.

“Well, I couldn’t do it.” Elsa smiles and lifts up her arm, flexing it. “I’m not exactly the strongest person.”

“It’s not that hard to do,” Anna repeats. “It doesn’t take a brain to do it.” 

Elsa’s face falls slightly at the bitter response. “Oh.”

Anna winces and mentally berates herself for being stupid. “Sorry. I just mean that the work you do is probably more exciting.”

“I suppose,” Elsa smiles briefly. “Numbers make sense to me.”

Seeing an opportunity to turn the conversation around, Anna looks down at her index card quickly. “Did you know that the ancient Egyptians had a decimal system using seven different symbols?”

Elsa looks confused for a minute. “I…”

“And the symbol for 100,000 was a frog or a tadpole,” Anna continues. “That’s kinda funny, isn’t it?”

“It is,” Elsa takes a sip of her hot chocolate. “I used to have a pet frog.”

“That’s cool,” Anna says. “But did you know that the Egyptians’ symbol for 1000 was a lotus plant?”

“Anna-”

“And the symbol for 10,000 was a finger.” Anna holds up her index finger. “How weird is that? You’d think they’d use their fingers for one through ten, but nope. They used strokes for that. So one stroke was for the number one and two strokes was for two, and three stokes for three, an-”

“Anna,” Elsa interrupts with a soft smile. “That’s all fascinating, but I’d really like to get to know you.”

“Oh,” Anna blushes. “What do you want to know?”

“Anything. Did you grow up in Miami?”

Anna shakes her head. “I’m originally from Atlanta. I’m surprised you couldn’t tell. Everyone usually tells me that I have a distinctly Georgian accent.”

Elsa giggles. “I can hear it now; but, honestly, I didn’t pick up on it before." 

“Well, I have lived here for the last ten years. My parents moved here for work. What about you? I mean… you are probably from here, right? Since your uncle and aunt are, ya know, the Frosts.”

 “I did grow up here, but I moved away for college. Decided I needed to experience proper seasons so I went up north to Harvard. What about you? Where did you go to college?”

Anna’s face falls as she shifts in her seat. “I didn’t go.” It isn’t a total lie, but it’s easier to say than “I dropped out after half a semester.” 

Elsa’s eyes widen for a second before she says, “That’s okay. It isn’t for everyone.”

“You don’t have to say that,” Anna says. “I know that’s what educated people say when they meet people like me. You try to make us feel better, but like… it doesn’t.”

“Anna, I’m sorry,” Elsa says softly. “I didn’t mean…”

“You don’t know what it’s like. Employers ask me why I don’t have a degree, and I always have to justify myself.”

Elsa remains silent as Anna continues.

“And then people like you exist.”

“People like me?”

“Super smart, sexy CEOs who have everything and couldn’t possibly see anything in a college drop-out.” Anna replays the sentence in her head and nearly groans at having said “sexy.”

Elsa looks like she’s on the verge of tears as she all but whispers, “Anna, I’m sorry that you think that, but I… I am very interested in you.” Her arms come up and wrap around her abdomen. “I’m sorry I brought school up; I was just trying to get to know you better.”

“Well now you know that I’m not good enough for you,” Anna mutters.

Elsa’s lip quivers, and she shakes her head. “No, I don’t think that." 

“I can’t offer you anything beyond picking up your trash.”

“No, Anna.” A single tear falls down Elsa’s cheek and she quickly wipes it away.

“This was a mistake,” Anna sighs and pushes back her chair. “You deserve more than me.”

Anna hates herself for leaving Elsa at that table in Starbucks, but she knows that Elsa is better off without her.

—

Over the next couple of weeks, Elsa is noticeably gone from her office when Anna arrives to take the trash out. She gets it though. After getting home and thinking about how badly she messed up, Anna feels like she deserves Elsa’s silent treatment. She wouldn’t want to see herself either if she treated herself that poorly.

Even Kristoff told her she was an idiot. In fact, he reminds her daily when she visits him to let him know that she still hasn’t seen Elsa in her office.

“What am I going to do, Kris? How can I fix this?” Anna says into her hands one afternoon as she sits in a chair in the engineering room.

“For starters, you could have a little more self respect, Anna,” he says bluntly. “I know you have confidence and charisma, and you’re brave and blunt. But when it comes to this, you’re so damn afraid that people are going to judge you for not having a college degree. And it sounds like Elsa really didn’t care.”

“I know, but I fucked it up so badly. I let it get to me. I mean, you’ve seen her; you know. She’s pretty and smart, and how can I compare?”

“Jesus Christ, Anna, you’re pretty and smart too,” he says brusquely, as though the tone of his voice will finally drive the point home. “You are very intelligent; you just don’t ever give yourself any credit.” 

“It’s… hard to,” Anna admits. “I feel like not getting my degree is this big weight on my shoulders, and I just feel like I’ll never amount to anything.”

“Amounting to anything isn’t limited to a college degree. I’d say having a loving partner and friends amounts to something. I’d say that loving yourself amounts to something.”

“I know, I know. Easier said than done though. And Elsa… I’ve already fucked things up with her,” Anna sighs.

“Do you really think that?” Kristoff asks, eyeing the newest engineering department guest that stands behind Anna.

“Obviously. I mean, I get it. I made her cry on our first date, if it even was a date. Would you give me a second chance if I made you cry?” 

Kristoff considers his answer for a moment. “I would, provided that you apologized big time and promised to have more faith in yourself.”

Anna rolls her eyes. “Yeah, okay, but it doesn’t matter since I haven’t even seen her since that day.”

A soft cough from behind her causes Anna to freeze in her chair. She turns slowly, and her eyes widen when she comes face to face with Elsa.

Elsa looks slightly terrified and definitely vulnerable as she licks her bottom lip. “Did you know that I don’t care about whether you have a degree? That I saw you that morning and instantly knew I needed to get to know you? Numbers have always been my thing, but I was hoping… am hoping still… that you might be my thing. Sorry that sounded weird, but I’m not good with people normally. I usually talk too fast and don’t make sense, which I would have told you at Starbucks, but I didn’t get a chance. I just… want to get to know you, Anna. Please, let me have the chance.”

Anna opens and closes her mouth for a couple of minutes before she stands up. “I’m sorry, Elsa. For everything. I’d love to get to know you.”