#chidi ariana grande

[angelholme]

V, V, V — Day 19 : Cave

There is a fair chance you will have realised by now that I don’t have a lot of time for “professional” philosophers. Or, quite honestly, for “amateur” philosophers.

I am, for the most part, with Tom Lehrer on the topic of philosophers — that they spend most of their time giving helpful advice to people who are happier than they are.

And, after watching “The Good Place”, my feelings were somewhat re-enforced, because Chidi Anna Kendrick, for all that he is a good person, really is only a good person by the end and at the start he is an annoying twat who you just want to repeatedly punch with a chainsaw. (He is a professor of moral philosophy, just in case you were wondering).

I like the ideas of philosophies, and so I suppose (indirectly) the “classic philosophers” (Kant, Locke and so on — The Good Place taught me a lot about philosophies but I can’t entirely remember much about the men who created them. Although apparently I can remember they were all men) but mostly it is the philosophies that I remember.

And like most people (I would imagine) my philosophy for life has been derived from a great deal of other philosophies. Some of which I can put names to (utilitarianism, deontology and so on) and some that I probably can’t put names to (although they probably are based on existing ideas. I am not saying I am not a genius the likes of which the world has never seen, but I suspect I probably haven’t come up with a whole new theory of philosophy).

Everyone — whether they realise it or not — has a philosophy in life. Whether it is “seize the day” (terrible advice — just look at what happens when Willow does it, when Buffy does it, when Xander does it….. it ends badly every single time. Do not ever seize the day — you will get attacked by a demon who wants to bring the world to an end), “live every day like it is your last” (better, but it does mean you will almost certainly be wrong every day of your life), “be excellent to one another” (truly outstanding advice) or “life is a bitch and then you die” (maybe the only real advice you will ever get), everyone has a philosophy.

But what about how you approach day to day life? How do you believe in “The Greater Good”? (Which is a version of utilitarianism) Or do you believe that no matter what is at stake, you have to do what is right? (Which I think is deontology, but I might have misunderstood it) If you make a promise to someone do you keep it? Or can you break a promise if you need to?

And just how detailed is your philosophy — if you have hard and fast rules do you have exceptions to them?

I just wonder about these things sometimes — do people who say they live their lives by “a strict set of rules” specifically keep to those rules all the time? Or do they break their rules as they see fit and just don’t tell anyone?

As I said — I get curious about it.

Me?

My philosophy is kind of simple when you get down to it, and despite watching all of the episodes of The Good Place, and taking in everything that Chidi Ariana Grande said in, the entire basis of it comes from an episode of Angel that aired twenty two years ago.

The more detailed version takes bits from certain other theories, but mostly I think that we are very small people in a very big world, so nothing we do matters. And because nothing we do matters, all that matters is what we do. If there is no bigger meaning — if we can’t change anything, and I really believe we can’t — then all we can do is make the world better through small acts of kindness.

And the only other rule I have (and this is where it gets kind of self-referential) is that I don’t have any rules that I am not willing to break if circumstances required them to be broken. (I know — it is like saying “Only the Sith deal in absolutes” which is one of the most ridiculous statements you will ever hear).

If you are curious as to how this relates to cave, it is partly in relation to the dog of darkness, but also in relation to perceptions of reality.

But more of that later.

(Well — maybe, but probably not).

[wavehq]

enjoy limitless possibilities here in celestire islands, chidi anagonye ( the good place ), where you can start the new life you've always longed for. make sure you read the checklist, as we'll be sending the discord link through ims! enjoy your new dream, venus!

( the good place, dupes not allowed. william jackson harper, he/him, cis male. ) ——- hey, is that ( chidi anagonye ) hanging around ( celestire university )? i wonder what life is like for them, balancing working as a ( thirty - four ) year old ( professor of ethics and moral philosophy ) and ( obsessing over every single decision he has to make )? they’re notorious for being ( altruistic ) yet ( neurotic ), and i always seem to hear ( break free ) by ( ariana grande ) playing whenever they walk past. they’re known around the islands for ( having a mental break during one of his classes ), and they’re associated with ( sweater vests and button ups tailored to perfection, a deep-seated anxiety lasting beyond ||death||, & the inherent desire to be good ). last we spoke, they were telling me about a vision they had… something about their biggest regret being ( only realizing how miserable his life truly was after ||dying|| ), but it must have just been a bad dream. // — [ venus ! ]

[cottagecorefroggyfairy]

My greatest accomplishment is this Chidi ArianaGrande Pinterest’s board.

I’m not a clown, I’m the whole circus lol

[homunculusalphonse]

i saw the first two eps of The Good Place, here are some thoughts:

Okay, this looks fun!

Michael is a good lad, I like him

Even from memes I knew he was a cinnamon roll

Every single action is measured by math.... oh fuck

It's kinda messed up?? This whole perfect and measured idea of "paradise"? But okay

God, I could learn how to swear from this show - what the FORK shfjfj

Oh

For some reason I didn't expect Eleanor to be technically a bad person in Good Place levels? So I was legit shocked lmao. But I mean, that makes sense

Y'know what, I can kinda see her argument - why isn't there a Neutral Place?

Holy shit, literally everything she does is solidified

THEY EVEN PLAY ARIANA GRANDE. WHERE DOES IT COME FROM. It's like boss music???? But nobody knows who the boss is HMM

Oh boy. This is gonna go wrong

"hey, this is kinda like Brooklyn Nine-Nine- WAIT, IT'S THE SAME CREATOR??"

Hold on. HE ALSO CREATED THE OFFICE AND PARKS AND REC??? HE'S BEHIND ALL OF THEM???? What the hell?!?!

Eleanor is pretty similar to Jake Peralta, now that I think of it

Chidi is so great, too!!

Wow, I think I like all characters for now. Even Eleanor??

Oh Eleanor, no

Nooo

Aw, poor Michael, he doesn't deserve any of this!

HE KICKED A FUCKING DOG TOWARDS THE SUN

Guys, what the fuck

This is so funny

I forgot the silent guy's name... but man, wish I had a friend like him lmao

Hooo, Eleanor's got a weight on her conscience

She's doing something good-! oh wait shfkdnfj

Well. She a little confused, but she got the spirit? I guess

C'mon, she has potential

Thank god they solved the coffee cup problem lol

Yep, no flying for you, Eleanor. That's how life is, though!

Okay, things are going to be fine!

Wait, secret letter-

OH NO

AAAAA

I don't think I've laughed so hard in a while, and these have been only two eps! I'm enjoying it for now!

[forbescaroline]

top five ships, and top five songs atm, if you’re still doing these asks!

top five ships:

oliver/felicity - arrow

scott/allison - teen wolf

mark/lexie - grey’s anatomy

jake/amy - brooklyn nine nine

chidi/eleanor - the good place

top five songs atm:

‘tis the damn season - taylor swift

positions - ariana grande

the 1 - taylor swift

savage remix - megan thee stallion ft. beyonce

the baddest - barclay crenshaw 

[thatludicrousdisplay]

OKAY GUESS WHO’S BACK making a masterpost of all the IT Crowd fics they wanna write but are too lazy to because their phone is updating and they can’t procrastinate on writing c27 of their fic...

yes, it’s me!!

look my dudes, this is mainly for myself so when i finally finish my multi-chapter fic i’m working on at the moment i can come back and get some inspiration. but hey, if you find something in here you want to try then oh my god, feel free!! please tag me in it/send me a link, you know i’d love to read them!!! i will say now that if i end up writing any of these i will put the links in this list. no more faffing, let’s get on with it! i

sickfic (where Moss is sick)

oneshot detailing “the fire incident” and what actually happened

a oneshot inspired by the Back Lives Matter movement (started writing this??? wrote about 4.3k then hit a bit of a snag)

oneshot inspired by the good place (because there’s a fic of moss/chidi and it inspired me) (also started writing this?? it’s been sitting in my tumblr drafts for like a month now)

therapy fic: detailing moss’ therapy sessions with dr mendel 

oneshot detailing how richmond came to be downstairs with them and how he ended up in his little room behind the red door 

highschool au (also started writing this one) (ALSO @dumbfandomdoodles is writing an awesome fic under this premise, and i will link it here: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26371252)

highschool teacher au: yes all of the students ship moss and roy, and yes they try to get them together, and yes the two of them are a chaotic force for good in that shitshow of a school 

be more chill au 

moss and roy in uni together

(a bit of a wacky one but) moss saving roy from jumping off the top of a building (based off the song “say my name” from beetlejuice the musical)

(get ready for a few of these) songfic based off “this is how a heart breaks” by andy grammar 

songfic based off “somebody that i used to know” by gotye and kimbra 

songfic based off “break my heart” by dua lipa

songfic based off “here with me” by mashmello and CHVRCHES

songfic based off “one week” by barenaked ladies

songfic based off “oh cecilia (breaking my heart)” by the vamps (or the original “cecilia” by simon and garfunkle, if you’d prefer)

roy-centric songfic based off “the wall in my head” from everybody’s talking about jamie the musical

quarantine fic: possible songfic based off “stuck with u” by ariana grande and justin bieber 

songfic based off “troublemaker” by olly murs and flo rida

songfic based off “rewrite the stars” by zac efron and zendaya (would work well with a first meeting as teenagers fic)

songfic based off “payphone” by maroon 5 

angsty songfic based off “dancing on my own” by calum scott

single dad au (ie both moss and roy are single dads who meet through their kids and gradually fall in love, i once read a good omens fic where it was crowley inheriting adam and stumbling into aziraphale’s library where he’s working in a panic as a single dad and it was the best)

summer camp au 

crazy accident in richmond’s room causes moss and roy to become three-year-olds and jen has to look after them (yes would be a vaguely crack-ish oneshot and i am super tempted to write it now)

oneshot where roy learns (well, tries to learn) sign language to support moss when he goes non-verbal (already made a post on this and is tied into one of my personal all-round headcanons for moss)

foster home au 

oneshot detailing what the fuck happened in amsterdam 

oneshot dealing with the events of s4e3 ‘something happened’ and how moss helps roy recover (i wrote a literal fucking essay on this, it’s on here somewhere but idk where, but i was mad that they made fun of what can be/is a really serious issue)

fake dating au (well, the oldies are the goodies, as they say)

oneshot where the power goes out and they get trapped in the basement (work on the stairs or summat, idk okay!?!?!) and they have to try and entertain themselves until they can get out (yes this also would have utterly chaotic and vaguely crack-ish energy)

serious injury/serious illness for one of the boys and the other has to take care of them (whump, elongated sickfic and quite a bit of angst, but also fluff too)

last friends au based off the book “they both die at the end” (read it if you haven’t. it’s incredible. i cried)

one of them being trans (because fuck you graham linehan, trans rights rule) (also with this one i shall direct you to a fic i read ages ago that is incredible and that i also ended up writing my own ending for: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13153989)

university au (yes this is different to the other uni one, that’s more of a backstory thing whereas this is the whole gang being there)

one of the gang suffering from a mental illness and the others helping them through it

online friendship-to-relationship au (this for me would specifically be for moss and roy, but you can do it with anyone really)

one of them finding the other’s lost wallet/phone and returning it to them, and that forming a friendship which blossoms into a relationship (again apply to any pairing)

i will add to the post every time i think of more. if you guys ever want me to write one drop an ask in my inbox and i’ll be happy to give it a go or give you a snippet of what the full fic would be for the multi-chaps. so yeah, i hope you appreciate this little master post!!!

[yvesapphic]

TAGGED BY: @invczn (a sweetheart)

RULES: Answer some question’s and tag some bloggers you want to know better.

NAME: Maria Luiza (ikr?)

NICKNAMES: Malu, May, Luly

GENDER: Cis Female

SEXUALITY: Bisexual

HEIGHT: 5’7.

LANGUAGES: Portuguese is my native language and as you guys know I try some English lol

NATIONALITY: Brazilian!

CURRENT TIME: 5:14pm

FAVORITE SEASON: Spring bc it’s not cold or hot

FAVORITE FLOWER: sunflowers! calla lily

FAVORITE SCENT: hmmmm the scent of rain??? idk

FAVORITE COLOR: yellow and red

FAVORITE ANIMAL: dogs! it’s actually my dream to have a dog! and turtles

FAVORITE FICTIONAL CHARACTER: Cedric Diggory, Draco Malfoy (Harry Potter), Bucky Barnes, MJ, Peter Parker, Miles Morales, Wanda Maximoff, Shuri, Killmonger (MCU), Mikkel Nielsen, Elizabeth Doppler, Agnes Nielsen, Franziska Doppler, Regina Kohler (Dark Netflix), Tahani, Chidi, Jason, Eleanor, Janet (The Good Place), Klaus Hargreeves, Ben Hargreeves and Allison Hargreeves (The Umbrella Academy)

AVERAGE HOURS OF SLEEP: I don’t have idea lol, maybe 8

COFFEE, TEA or HOT CHOCOLATE: Chocolate, but not hot

NUMBERS OF BLANKETS YOU SLEEP WITH: Two.

DOG OR CAT: Dog.

DREAM TRIP: I want to know all the places in my own country (Brazil) specially Porto de Galinhas. Then, I want to go to Amsterdam

DREAM JOB: Working on a publishing house or be a librarian 

FOLLOWERS: 528

BLOG ESTABLISHED: January 28, 2020

REASON FOR MY URL: Greedy by Ariana Grande and Yerin from Gfriend lol

RANDOM FACT: I used to be a support teacher on my high school days and I love kids, but I don’t want to give birth, only addoption

TAGGING: Tagging my sweethearts @owljungeun​ @inadequacyofwords​

[chrishemswroth]

tag games that I should’ve done a while ago - part ii

Thank you so much to everyone that tags me in these!!! 

I was tagged by: @peteparkrrs​

ONE /  name / alias. anelle TWO  /  birthday. september 26 THREE  /  zodiac sign. libra FOUR  /  height. 5′4″ (and a half) FIVE  /  hobbies. skating, drawing, reading, binging youtube videos asjhdkajsh SIX  /  favourite colors. perwinkle, tiffany blue, forest green, burgundy SEVEN /  favourite books. the martian by andy weir, five people you meet in heaven by mitch albom, tuesday’s with morrie by mitch albom EIGHT  /  last song listened to.  i don’t care by ed sheeran + justin bieber NINE  /  last film watched. avengers TEN  /  inspiration for muse. music?? ELEVEN  /  dream job.  design + media, i think being an actress would be really cool but i can’t rlly act sdhajd  TWELVE /  meaning behind your url. I rlly enjoyed sm:ffh lmao

***

I was tagged by: @jamesbvck & @ffhspiderman

honey and lemon or milk and sugar // musicals or plays // lemonade or iced tea // strawberries or raspberries // winter or summer // beaches or forests // diners or cafés // unicorns or dragons // gemstones or crystals // hummingbirds or owls // fireworks or sparklers // brunch or happy hour // sweet or sour // rome or amsterdam // classic or modern art // sushi or ramen// sun or moon // polka dots or stripes // macaroons or croissants // glitter or matte // degas or seurat // aquariums or planetariums // road trip or camping trip // colouring books or water colour // fairy lights or candles

***

I was tagged by: @baizencarter

rules: list ur top 15 artists. (can be any, from ur top listened to on spotify or ur top 15 favs whatever.) bold the ones u matched w the person who tagged u (just has to be artist not rank.) tag some more people idc how many. do it. ps: I used this link to paste in my top spotify artists (long term)!!

pentatonix

ariana grande

panic! at the disco

fall out boy

twenty one pilots 

ed sheeran

shawn mendes

superfruit

the 1975

charlie puth

5 seconds of summer

khalid

bruno mars

troye sivan

lauv

***

I was tagged by: @starkparker + @jamesbvck + @laureharrier + @spidermacn

name 10 favourites from 10 different pieces of media

1. marvel - tony stark 2. parks + rec - leslie knope 3. the office - jim halpert 4. b99 - captain holt 5. the good place - chidi anagonye 6. queer eye - tan france 7. disney - belle 8. crazy rich asians - astrid leong 9. dc - diana prince/wonder woman 10. stranger things - steve harrington

*** 

TAGGING: @delmars @mrstarrk @peterbparkerr @goosedanvers @stark-tony @natashasromanofff @peterparker @farfromhoes + anyone else who read this far and wants to do em lol say i tagged you (again, if you want to do any of these, pick your fav/one you haven’t done - but def no pressure, you don’t have to! and sorry if you’ve already been tagged a million times)!

[katebihshop]

chidi ariana grande

[miriammaisel]

playlist tag!

rules: put your entire song library on shuffle & list the first 10 songs & then choose 10 others

i was tagged by @antonkhudobby. thank you!!!

one. let me love you (ft. lil wayne) - ariana grande

two. almost love - sabrina carpenter

three. why - shawn mendes

four. power - bastille

five. not today - alessia cara

six. sunday morning - maroon 5

seven. i guess i just feel like - john mayer

eight. i know - aly & aj

nine. on my way - prettymuch

ten. runaway - ed sheeran

i tag: @midge-maisel @mikewheeler @stevesharington @wsetallen @marvelscaptainss @blossomingintheshadows @milevens @chidis-eleanor @archiesbetty @janesvilanueva you really don’t have to do this lol okay bye

[favatrice]

2018 year in review 

Rules: answer the questions about 2018 and tag some people!

Tagged by: @pillowprincesslexa & @hedadebnamcarey 💕

Top 5 films you watched in 2018:

oh boi i have the worst memory so i wouldnt even remember what i watched the day before, how do i know what i watched all year. I might even think a 2016 movie was this year djfk

1. Tomb Raider

2. Avengers: Infinity War

3. Müslüm (Turkish movie)

4. Hichki (Indian movie)

5. A Simple Favor

Top 5 TV shows in 2018:

1. Chilling Adventures of Sabrina

2. The Haunting of Hill House

3. Supergirl

4. She-Ra

5. Legacies

Top 5 songs of 2018:

im sorry im so bad with music and also i listen to a lot of music in different languages so i'll try to pick only the english ones;

1. Girls Like You - Maroon 5 & Cardi B

2. thank u, next - Ariana Grande

3. God is a woman - Ariana Grande

4. Wanna Be Missed - Hayley Kiyoko

5. Stronger Than Ever - Raleigh Ritchie

Top 5 Books you Read in 2018:

i havent read any books this year.. i think. Well i tried. I read the first few pages of 2 seperate Turkish books, so I'll leave m out fhjsl

Five Good/Positive things that happened to you in 2018

1. i managed to get over a heartbreak and actually learned to put myself first, which helps me not to take shit from people again

2. last month i finally finished all projects i didnt get to finish last year because of a bad time period, already passed 3 out of 4, still awaiting that last assessment

3. i flew to turkey by myself for 2 weeks without telling anyone and surprised my fam over there and it was a beautiful time

4. i managed to keep a job longer than a month for the first time 👀

5. still waiting for the 5th good thing this year.. theres still a few days left

(now before i start tagging, i agree with Kim and want a top 5 games part so im adding it under here. Feel free to delete this part or continue using it:)

Top 5 video games of 2018:

1. Shadow of the Tomb Raider

2. Detroit: Become Human

3. Uncharted: The Lost Legacy

4. Ultimate Ninja Storm 4

5. Life is Strange: Before the Storm

(theres a few games i dont have yet that would definitely be on the list if i had them)

Tagging: @dixiechicksserious @hedaalicia @that00show @bisexquality @asslan-19 @wahad-itnayn-tisah @clarkegriffintitties @kendrickhier @whenyouplayme @wlw-mess @aurorscully @breathingharmonies @bibecamitchell @eleanor-chidi @goluckydanny and whomever else wants to do this

[susiephone]

Eleanor: *steals shrimp, insults Tahani, gets Chidi's name wrong*

Michael: this is so sad Janet play "break free" by Ariana Grande

[montygreen]

2, 5, 12 & 18

2. Favorite ships this year All my Mike Schur sitcom ships: Jim and Pam, Ben and Leslie, Jake and Amy, and Chidi and Eleanor

5. Favorite song, album, or artist to listen to this year I really enjoyed all of Ariana Grande’s new stuff in 2018. Sweetener was awesome, Thank U, Next is such a great song, and Imagine is amazing too!

12. Favorite main character of the year Probably Leslie on Parks and Rec or Eleanor on The Good Place

18. Fandom that you never expected to get into I definitely didn’t expect to get into Runaways, since I loved the comics as a lot as a kid and pacing of the first season was so slow lol

Fandom Year in Review Asks

[minyunkisgf]

was tagged (singled out and bullied hdkshdjs jks) by lil miss talented herself @buckymcbuttfacebarnes who is the funniest person on this hellsite, all fax no printer !!!!!!! call me bucky barnes baby mama !!!!! hdkshdjska

Rules: Tag 9 people you want to get to know better and answer the questions.

Relationship Status: its complicated heh. but im gonna beat his ass if he keeps playing all these damn games. u heard it here first ladies !!!!!!

Favourite Colour: i want 2 say black like the true emo i am but its changing everyday........today is yellow !!!

Top 3 Ships: zutara, chidi and eleanor, and i shipped toph and sokka at one point dhkshfskjs

Lipstick or Chapstick: luv me a nice chapstick, but i fuck with my pawpaw ointment so hard, so jot that down......

Last Song: better off - ariana grande. a bitch is goin thru it rn !!!!!!

Last Movie: bring it on, the first one aka the superior one aka the only one i acknowledge......i lied bring it on all or nothing goes hard

Currently Reading: sweet life by the legendary @supernovasandcoronas and kill or be killed, james patterson hdkshdkahsks it was a gift

ok im gonna tag (also pls if u dont wanna do it u dont have 2) : @getbuckylucky @supernovasandcoronas @fuzzysebastianstan wow just realised i dont even know 9 ppl on this stale ass site dhsjfhksjska how tragiquè

[ashleysolsen]

@chidi-ariana-grande @heydorothea @addressingtheletters​ @pepper-stark​

hello my best tumblr friends, i need to tell you guys some information. i have passed away. neil gaiman answering my ask is the cause of my unfortunate death. i just thought yall should know.

are mrs spink and forcible a lesbian couple?

Miss Spink and Miss Forcible. They are a couple, yes.

As Stephin Merritt had them sing, in the 2009 musical

"I am Miss Spink--" "And I am Miss Forcible--"

"Elderly thespians fallen from grace--"

"We never married so we're undivorceable--"

"Tripping on clippings all over the place."

[serendipitouscontaminant]

@the-fic-place

Here’s some bitter name-related angst for all of you! 

I.

“It’s Eleanor. Not Ellie.” She always has to clarify this when she gets to a new school. Sixth grade is no different.

“Aw, but Ellie’s such a sweet name!” her teacher says, smiling.

She’s wearing a cashmere cardigan and reeks of old money, and some of her pink lipstick’s rubbed off onto her teeth, but Eleanor’s sure as hell not gonna tell her that.

Eleanor curls her lip and informs Little Miss Teach for America, “I’m not a piece of fucking candy.”

She gets sent to the principal’s office.

No one calls her Ellie.

Say my full name, she tells her boyfriends every time they think that just because she’s fucking them they’re entitled to call her that goddamn name.

“C’mon, Eleanor’s too big a name for someone as small as you,” some guy says one time, smirking.

Eleanor doesn’t feel bad at all when she kicks him out of her bed and then out of her apartment.

“For that? C’mon, it was just a joke!”

“It’s not a joke if it’s not funny.” The words are angry, but Eleanor says them in a disinterested monotone while she checks out her nails. She’s already forgotten his name.

He starts to say something. She slams the door in his face and figures he’ll take the hint.

She should get a manicure.

Eleanor never met another Eleanor Shellstrop when she was alive. She doesn’t even think she met another Eleanor, even though she met plenty of Ellies.

They didn’t count, though.

Eleanor has always been on her own, always been Eleanor Shellstrop, the one and only, and when the good Eleanor walks through the door, she feels her world crack like a mirror, because there she is.

Eleanor Shellstrop.

The good one.

The better one.

Here to take away what she has.

Just her luck.

II.

Chidi’s always liked his name. Always liked both his names.

They’re good, they’re his, and he never has to hesitate when he says them, because they’re true.

Sometimes it feels like all Chidi Anagonye can be sure of is that his name is, in fact, Chidi Anagonye.

But at least he always, always is, even when it seems like he’s the only one.

(Sometimes Chidi can’t help but think that the people who can’t seem to ever figure out how to say his name aren’t even trying.)

It’s Chidi’s second week working at the Sorbonne, and he’s at a nice restaurant with several colleagues, pretending he’s happy that he’s being interacted with and not stressed out of his mind.

Another professor asks him where his name is from, what it means.

Chidi doesn’t say anything like, “Well, where is your name from? What does François mean?”

It wouldn’t be polite.

It’s one of the Linguistics professors who answers the question, pulls her long blonde hair out of her face and informs the table that ‘Chidi’ means ‘God exists’. In the Igbo naming tradition, you see, names that begin with the element ‘Chi’ always have to do with God.

Chidi smiles and nods placidly, even though he’d been about to say the exact same thing.

Eleanor isn’t his soulmate, and the thought loops through his head over and over as he hears her try to say his name.

At least she knows his first one, he tries to tell himself, but she’s sure that he’s saying his own name wrong, and he feels his heart fraying, because his soulmate would say his name right the first time, if she were here, but she’s not. Instead, he has…Eleanor.

It’s not fair.

She trips her way through nonsense words that almost sound right, until she gets to, “Ariana Grande,” and gasps. “That’s a name!”

That’s a name.

Yes.

But it’s not his.

III.

Usually when Tahani tells people her name they say it’s so pretty, so lovely, so beautiful, just like she’s so pretty, so lovely, so beautiful, and she agrees, of course, and tells them what it means, revels in the fact that every time someone says her name, they’re complimenting her.

Congratulations, beautiful.

Congratulations.

Tahani really does love her name, just like she loves herself. Sometimes more.

Not that she ever doesn’t love herself, but—

Not the point.

Her name is a celebration.

It’s the best thing her parents ever gave her, even though she has the suspicion that they like the name Kamilah better.

It doesn’t matter.

The name Tahani stopped being theirs the moment they gave it to her.

And Tahani stops being theirs the moment she realizes they forgot it.

Tahani tells Eleanor what her name means and trails off so that Eleanor can fill in, “…Congratulations, beautiful.”

Tahani beams. “Thanks, Eleanor, you big flirt!”

Congratulations, beautiful.

That’s always such a good little icebreaker, she thinks happily as she considers the fact that if she counts every time someone referred to her by name, she probably got more compliments during her life than her sister, Kamilah.

IV.

When Jason’s little, everyone calls him Jamie. They keep calling him Jamie when he tells them to stop, when he tells them he doesn’t like it.

It makes it sound like he’s a little kid.

After a while he stops telling them to stop and pretends it was his choice all along.

That’s something he does a lot.

If people know his name before they see him, they think he’s Mexican.

If they see him before they know his name, they think he’s Chinese. Then Japanese. Then, okay, uh, if you’re not Japanese you’re…Korean?

No one outside the trailer park he lives in knows he’s Filipino, not until he tells them.

Now everyone thinks he’s Taiwanese, and it’s probably the most familiar thing about whatever this place is.

Eleanor asks, and he's finally able to say the truth, say that no, Jianyu isn't his name.

It's Jason Mendoza.

It feels good to clear that up.

Now he gets called Jason again, sometimes, but not even always.

Even when everyone knows the secret of who he is, they still sometimes say Jianyu instead of Jason, like just because that’s who he has to pretend to be, that’s who he is, and Jason doesn’t like hating things, but he totally hates it.

He hates keeping secrets.

He hates how everyone tells him who he is and what to do.

He hates being quiet.

He hates that he doesn’t have anything to say.

And, he thinks every single time he looks in the mirror, he really hates Jianyu.

AO3 link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12747276