#classic guitar bench

[iihih]

Guitar Furniture Created In Harmony by Yamaha and MEXARTS

Two very different but equally beautiful ways to store (and play) your guitar have been produced for sale by Yamaha and MEXARTS after receiving honors and awards for their concept and design as far back as 2010. Yamaha MEXARTS Guitar Furniture The Classic prototype at the Yamaha Design Exhibition The “classic” and “solo” are furniture for guitarists that are commercialized versions of models…

[cumikering]

Guitarist Gaz x reader

2k | fluff, teenage crush, late 90s You were in a band with Gaz

“You’re pulling my leg,” Kyle deadpanned.

“Really. My mum said I should be studying for my A-levels.” Jack hung his head as he tried to smear off the crusty mud from the side of his sole.

“But the gig is this weekend!”

“’m sorry, Gaz. She’s holding my guitar hostage. Said she’s going to sell it if I’m not home right away after classes.”

“You know we can’t do with only three members,” he said exasperatedly.

“There’s still a few days, I’ll help you find someone.”

After band practice sans Jack “mum-said-I-can’t” Wilshire, Kyle hopped onto the local forum with a grumble.

This was stupid. It would take a miracle for him to find a replacement for Jack in mere days. Regardless, he punched the words into his keyboard.

Sixth Form alt band looking for a stand-in guitarist for a birthday gig this Saturday

Later that night, his PC pinged with a notification.

Hiya, I’m interested in the gig. Where do you practice? I can meet tomorrow to see if I’m a good fit.

He breathed a sigh of relief. There was still hope. He didn’t have to cancel and embarrass himself.

Sweet. Here’s my college. See ya at the bus stop at 2 mate

The next day after classes, Kyle and his two bandmates waited at the bus stop.

“Gaz, how do you know he’s not a no-show?” Tim sat on the bench, twirling his drumsticks.

With his foot, Owen toyed with the overgrown grass under the bus stop sign. “We’ve been waiting forever.”

“Come on, lads. We need him, yeah?” He turned to them, trying to cheer up his mates. ”Let’s just hope he’s decent.”

Across the street, a bus alighted with a screech and a loud hiss. A few seconds later, it departed, revealing you behind it. You wore your college’s uniform, hair lightly tousled from the weather, your gig bag on your back.

“It’s a she?” Owen straightened up.

“Well, I assumed-“

Tim stood up, slipping his drum sticks in his back pocket as he walked over with a smile.

“No,” Kyle stood in front of him, trying to bite down his smile. “She talked to me. I go.” He marched towards you, ignoring Owen’s ‘or we could wait for her to cross the street’.

“Kyle?”

“Hiya.” He smiled, the most charming one he could muster. “Thought you were a bloke.”

You cocked your brow. “I thought the handle was obvious.”

Was it? He was too focused on the fact that he got a candidate (the only one so far).

He rubbed the back of his neck. “Okay, well let’s go meet the lads.”

You followed as he made his way towards his mates.

“This is Owen, our bassist.”  He pointed at the tall bloke with the blond buzzcut. “And this is Tim, our drummer.”

He nodded at you, his dark fringe bobbing in the air.

“And me, I’m the vocalist and lead guitarist. You’re going to be Jack’s stand-in as the rhythm guitarist. Is it okay if you play us something here? Apparently, we’re not allowed to bring non-students onto the campus.”

“Yeah, no worries.” You sat on the bench and took your guitar out. “Anything specific?”

“Nope, whatever you’re comfortable with.”

The familiar intro of Wonderwall wafted in the air. You were a little quiet at first but encouraged by the approving nods and smiles of the lads, you opened up. Kyle watched the way you strummed, fingers expertly dancing across the fretboard, chords held precisely. Your clean notes did the classic justice. They all sang the last verse together.

“Wow, that was real sweet.” Owen said.

“Watch out, Gaz, you might be the stand-in by the end of this.”

He gave Tim the side eye before smiling at you. “Should we start practicing today?”

Practice was at Tim’s the days leading up to the gig, as it always was. His spacious room was cosy and soundproof, plus his mum baked the best cookies.

How obvious was it that Kyle always wanted to sit next to you on the bus? Or let his mates walk ahead of the both of you, so he could have a little moment with you to chat?

But it was the next day that he only dared to make his move.

“It’s getting late. Would you like me to walk you home?”

You looked up as you zipped your gig bag close.

“I live closer to you than her and you never offer to walk me home,” Owen chided, making Tim cackle from the other end of the room.

He pretended not hear anything, his eyebrow rose instead as he rapidly lost his cool.

You stifled a laugh. “Okay,” you said.

Kyle beamed, flipping Owen the bird before he shut the door on his way out. He left his guitar because ‘we’ll be back tomorrow anyway’ and helped you carry yours instead.

“You hungry? That chippy is good.” He pointed at a busy shop on your way to the bus stop.

“I am, actually.” Your steps slowed.

After a bit of queuing, the both of you sat in the cramped corner of the shop.

You took small bites of your piping hot chips. “What are you doing after Sixth Form?”

“I’m enlisting in the army,” he said with pride.

You smiled. “Your parents must be so proud.”

“They are. I’ve always wanted to do this and I’m glad they’re supportive.”

“I wish you the very best, Kyle. I think you’d be a wonderful soldier.”

He beamed. “Thank you.”

The conversation continued to what you were going to study in uni, and how the both of you got into music. He told you all about his heroes and seeing how you lit up in recognition of the names made him gooey. You get me.

After the meal, you waited at the deserted bus stop, pedestrians passing occasionally.

“Can I play?” He gestured at your guitar.

You nodded and he took it out of the bag, skilfully picking the strings to Iris. You smiled in recognition of the song and couldn’t help singing along. Engrossed in the little concert, none of you registered the bus was approaching.

His hands slowed, and you turned behind you.

“Oh, need to go, need to go!” You laughed, grabbing the bag beside him, scrambling to the edge of the pavement.

He smiled behind you as you boarded. The bus had no empty seats left, and the both of you stood there facing each other as he held your guitar, resting it on his shoe.

You didn’t seem to want to meet his eyes, but he found it cute. You had a sweet smile and an even sweeter laugh. He appreciated your openness to spontaneity, loving the twinkle in your eye as you sang with him just a minute ago. You were a breath of fresh air.

The next day, Kyle offered to walk you home after dinner again. You let him, even had his hand brush against yours a few times. The next, since he finished his classes early, he asked if he could pick you up in front of your college.

He waited at the bus stop, head on a swivel, worried that he’d miss you among the sea of students. But you soon approached with your friends who giggled as they eyed him.

He smiled at the refreshing sight of you, hands pulled out of his pockets. “Hiya,” he breathed, barely glancing at your friends.

You stood in front of him as you chewed on your lip, smiling but not meeting his eyes. “Hi,” you mumbled.

One of the girls nudged you with a teasing smile before walking along.

“Oh, uh, see you on Monday, babes!” you called out to them.

“Good luck for your gig!” the blonde said.

“I hope I’m up to par for tomorrow,” you said to yourself.

“You are, trust me. We don’t need Jack anymore.”

You laughed.

“Here, let me just…” he grabbed the strap of your gig bag.

“You’re the sweetest, Kyle.”

He smiled, pulling the straps over his shoulders. I’m trying! “I got you this.” He pulled out a packet of gummy bears from his pocket.

“Thank you so much!” You tore the packet open, popping a bear into your mouth, before offering him some.

At the bus stop, he sat next to you just a little closer than a friend would.

“Oh, one of my girls let me borrow Jagged Little Pill for the weekend.” You grabbed your Discman from your bag, handing an earphone to him. “I wanted to listen to it with you.”

How did you not expect him to melt at that? When each of you had an earphone on, you hit play and he wouldn’t be mad if the bus never came. With you, this was the perfect afternoon.

He should have got more gummy bears.

You and the band played through the setlist flawlessly as the party went on. It was the most fun Kyle had had at a gig that he didn’t realise the hour was up. When Owen and Tim went off to grab food, without missing a beat, he strummed More than Words.

Kyle barely took his eyes off you as you sat across him with your guitar throughout the gig, a sweet smile on your face. If he kept playing, this would never have to end, right?

Your arms paused in the air as you took your guitar off before setting the strap back and smiling in recognition. You sat back down, your foot tapping to the gentle rhythm before joining him in singing. The crowd gathered and sang together, and you both couldn’t help dueting a few more mellow songs as Owen and Tim cheered on.

By the end of the night, Kyle was holding your hand. It was nice to not be insecure of his calloused fingers. Yours were too, like a shared secret. As you neared home, his arm grew stiff. Was this his last time walking you home?

“We don’t have anything else coming up, but you’re always welcome to swing by anytime.” He handed you your guitar. He insisted to help you with it even when he had his too. “We can just jam together.”

“What’s going to happen to Jack?”

“Like I said, we don’t need him anymore.”

You laughed. “Yeah? I should probably study for my A-Levels too.”

He scratched the back of his neck. “We can always meet at your college if you want. Or somewhere else. Wherever you want really.” I just want to keep seeing you.

You smiled. “I’d love that.”

Since then, he picked you up after classes almost every day. If not to jam at Tim’s, it was to study at your dining table. He caught the teasing looks your mum shot you that made you look away with a shy smile. He didn’t mean to, but his grades were better than ever, baffling his mates, including Jack.

Thinking of the distance that was to stretch between you was like looking up a mountain too tall to see its peak. It was irresponsible of him to ask for more as he was leaving for the army. With a heavy heart, he allowed himself to enjoy the last weeks he had with you, forced to be content with the fleeting touches and bashful gazes before they, eventually, fizzled out with time.

At the park, he played Lovefool, one of your favourites. You sat facing him, knees pulled to your chest wearing his hat he plopped down on you when you squinted at the sun earlier.

“Love me, love me, say that you love me…” He looked up from the fretboard to your pretty smile as you hummed along, hair swaying in the wind-

His strumming screeched to a stop as his heart lodged in his throat. “D- do…”

Bloody hell, Gaz, why are you stuttering like that!

You blinked. “You alright?”

“Doyouwanttobemine?”

Your smile brightened.

Oh, he was going to serenade you every chance he got, even when he was a thousand miles away from you. He hoped you didn’t mind.

@tiredmetalenthusiast @shadofireshinobi @keegansshark @two-gh0sts

@rowanyaboats @mangoguy

[gravehags]

the papas and the ghoulettes/ghouls at disneyland

nihil - grumpy old shit that his sons deposit on a bench on main street and abandon for the day. complains loudly to no one how he wishes seestor was there (she refused to come). somehow manages to end up with an enormous waffle cone and makes a kid cry.

primo - loves, loves, loves the people watching. is content to sit on a bench of his own (far, far away from nihil) soaking in the vibes. spends the rest of the day ambling around the park appreciating the variety of plants that are on display. loves the fantasyland dark rides.

secondo - loves the thrill rides in both parks but is especially fond of space mountain. wears a simple pair of black mickey ears all day and commands quite a presence at the carthay circle bar in california adventure (he loves good liquor and a good meal). has several tourists coming up to him for pictures because they mistake him for pitbull.

terzo - adores the energy of the place and like primo, loves to people watch. charms his way into club 33 and texts ridiculous and smug pictures of himself hanging out there to an outraged secondo all day. flirts heavily with the princesses in the most over the top romantic displays. can frequently be found vibing in the enchanted tiki room.

copia - this man is riding haunted mansion on repeat and loving every second of it. loves a good dole whip or a churro (anything sweet really) and will always laugh outrageously at all the skipper’s jokes on jungle cruise. manages to make multiple babies smile and laugh throughout the day, to the utter delight of their families. cries at the fireworks, always.

cumulus - she loves fantasyland - the dark rides, the music, the fairy tale vibes. can commonly be found riding the carousel looking stunning and singing along with the songs. cries openly at it’s a small world while dew and sunshine laugh affectionately. like copia, has a sweet tooth and will never say no to cotton candy. insists on the pack staying to watch the fireworks every night.

cirrus - easily the coolest person in the park, always at cumulus’ side. loves tomorrowland and galaxy’s edge - anything with a space theme really makes her smile. compiles a professional team to conquer smuggler’s run made up of mountain, rain, sunshine, and herself. will sip happily on a blue milk and definitely ends up buying a lightsaber.

sunshine - this girl is a toontown girl!! she loves the fun architecture and delights in meeting the characters (collects autographs too). she and swiss could ride runaway railway all day and the two of them love to annoy their fellow pack members by singing the song from the ride on repeat. will fucking demolish several tigger tails and spends the rest of the evening complaining about her upset tummy.

aurora - the pack princess? you know she’s hunting down her fellow princesses throughout the park - when she finds the other princess aurora she’s beside herself with glee and insists swiss and aether act as her personal photographers. her favorite ride is soarin’ and will absolutely be the kind of person to swing her legs while she’s flying through the air.

swiss - this ghoul insists on the pack all getting classic mickey ears with their names stitched on them and makes mountain take several group selfies with them all wearing them. incredibly competitive (and good) at the carnival games on pixar pier and passes out his stuffed animal trophies to the crowd of kids that comes to watch him.

dewdrop - like copia is a huge fan of the haunted mansion. will ride with a different pack member every time and point out different goofy ghosts while telling them “that’s you”. he learns how to play grim grinning ghosts on his guitar when they get home which delights phantom to no end. loves a good candy apple. will spin the teacup so hard on mad tea party with sunshine they makes phantom puke.

rain - he loves pirates of the caribbean, loves the damp air and the darkness and will happily ride it all afternoon. most likely to make friends with random cast members throughout the park which baffles mountain who asks “how do they all know you?” is a fun little beverage connoisseur but his favorite is the non alcoholic mint juleps they serve in new orleans square.

mountain - wears the oswald ears to make himself look even taller and can frequently be found looming over children and smiling benevolently at them. is the first to offer aurora a piggy back ride when her cute impractical shoes hurt her. loves grizzly river run and the entire grizzly peak area of california adventure (redwoods enjoy redwoods, naturally). his favorite ride is guardians of the galaxy: mission breakout.

aether - the organizer of the pack he has absolutely considered getting those leash backpacks for several of them. big man loves indiana jones and the temple of the forbidden eye and definitely ends up buying an indiana jones fedora. his favorite ride though is big thunder mountain and will always insist on sitting in the back (the best seats, naturally).

phantom - yet another haunted mansion super fan and gleefully drags aurora and dew into the shops to buy all the merch. loves his jack skellington mickey ears and the little magnetic zero he got to sit on his shoulder at all times. like sunshine, collects character autographs in a book and his favorites are dr. facilier and cinderella. gets really into pin collecting and trading.

[ghosts-bandwagon]

I’ve recently picked up the guitar again and OWIE my fingies!!! I’ve lost my callouses and now I gotta build them up again and wowie owie they hurt… so here’s the 141 + König with an s/o that plays an instrument!

Simon ‘Ghost’ Riley:

He’s mesmerized, he’s watching your fingers as they move up and down the keyboard, hypnotized by how graceful they are

(Bonus points if you’re on the task force with him, he’s in awe that something so beautiful is made by those hands that have killed before)

He loves hearing you play, even if it’s just practice, those warm up scales are like music to his hears, he’s instantly flooded with warmth as soon as he hears them, he knows beautiful music will soon follow

Whether you were classically trained, picked it up as a hobby, or you’ve made a career out of it, it’s all the same to him, you are amazing and the music you play sounds gorgeous coming from your hands

John ‘Soap’ MacTavish:

He loves hearing you play, as soon as you grab your guitar he knows he’s in for a treat

He drops what he’s doing and goes wherever you’re sitting just to be in the same room

Even if you’re just strumming to warm up, it’s the most beautiful thing he’s ever heard, he’s holding his breath when you start playing and if you sing??? Man’s gonna be window shopping for an engagement ring

It’s so magical hearing you play, he’s definitely gonna request a song or two, always cracks up when you say “anyway here’s wonderwall” and then you actually play it??? Incredible

John Price:

He’s so in love with you, it’s not even funny. He loves hearing the music carrying through the house, it’s so fucking beautiful to him

The living room is furnished around the piano, his favorite chair is positioned so that he’s able to watch you play

Sometimes he likes to sit on the bench with you and lean on you as you play, his eyes never leaving the way your fingers gracefully glide over the ivory keys

Whether you’re playing your favorite Chopin song, a song from your favorite video game or movie, or a pop song you heard on the radio, it all sounds so gorgeous to him, bonus points if it’s a song he knows, he’ll be humming along

Might even nod off on the sofa while he’s listening to you practice

Kyle ‘Gaz’ Gerrick:

Oh god he’s obsessed

Every time he hears a song he likes he sends it to you like, “[link] 👀🎶?” He has every ounce of confidence in your musical skills, whether you’re a novice or a professional

If you play more than one instrument? Rip. He wants the guitar version and the piano version of the same song smh so demanding

And when you’re able to pull it off? He’s hype man number one, he’s applauding like a mad man, like his life depends on cheering you on

Low key has recorded one of your practice sessions, he loves letting it play when he’s overseas and in his room, he feels so much closer to you, it’s like you’re right there with him and he feels so at peace

König:

He’s rooted in his seat as soon as he sees you grab your acoustic guitar, he immediately gets comfortable

Even if you’re just practicing and running through the same verse over and over again, he loves watching and hearing you

He watches your fingers as they pluck the strings and glide along the fretboard, he’s watching the way your tongue pokes out when you’re really focused, he chuckles quietly when you hit a sour note and groan

He’s every bit as excited as you are when you call him over to hear the finished song, he’s watching you with stars in his eyes as all the hours you spent practicing comes together

As soon as you’ve finished playing the new song, he’s got your face in his hands, peppering kisses all over you, he’s so proud of you!!!

(funny story that no one asked for bc I love over sharing: playing the piano is what made my husband want to date me when we first met 🤭)

[invisiblequeen]

Anyway, here are my two submissions for the @spacecadet-sims BC that i definitely have not had ready for days prior:

For Atticus: Viana Walton:

Name: Viana Walton Age: Young Adult Gender: Woman Pronouns: She/Her Sexuality: Bisexual Occupation: Vet Likes: Blue, White, Black, Orange, Comedy, Guitar, Horse Riding, Painting, Photography, Polished Fashion, Basics Fashion, Outdoorsy Fashion Dislikes: Red, Gray, Easy Listening Music, DJ Booth, Music, Fishing, Programming, Snowboarding, Media Production, Rocker Fashion, Boho Fashion Favorites: World Music, Spooky Music, Pop Music, Latin Music, spicy foods and most importantly, graham crackers. Traits: Early bird, Hyper, Foodie Aspiration: Dr. Doolittle Family/Important Friends/Pets?: Parents in Chestnut Ridge, Twin sister named Dyana(dee-anh-nah) in San Myshuno. Distant cousin in a sim named Eldon Ervin who visits sometimes. Short Bio: Simply put, Viana Walton is one with the animals. Happily stationed in Brindleton Bay with the top spot in the vet clinic, she spends her time walking with the stray cats and dogs around town, decorating and redecorating her home, and sometimes visiting her family in chestnut ridge to free-ride their horses. She hadn't really thought about a spouse for the future, since most of the guys her friend Supriya Delgato (townie) sets her up with are turned off by how animated she gets about her passions. But Dyana, her twin, got wind of this BC and encouraged her to enter. She's dubious, but Viana is willing to give it a shot. And if it doesn't work out, well, at least she has her occasional sneaky link Catarina Linx. 👀 Misc. Info: She loves denim. LOVES denim. Her mom is tomorangi and her dad is Chestnut-Ridgian, so she visits both places often. She thinks the lighthouse is haunted. And--sit down for this--Mayor Whiskers is her least favorite cat in the area.

For Imogen: Eldon Ervin

Name: Eldon Ervin Age: Young Adult Gender: Man Pronouns: He/Him Sexuality: Heterosexual Occupation: Composer Likes: Brown, Orange, Black, White, PIano, Pipe Organ, Singing, Writing, Preppy Fashion, Polished Fashion Dislikes: Island Music, METAL MUSIC, Pop Music, Yellow, Blue, Harp, Guitar, Cooking, Hipster Fashion, Rocker Fashion Favorites (music, food, etc): Classical Music, Singer-Songwriter Music, Spooky Music, Jazz Music, soup, soup, and more soup. Traits: Lyricist, Outgoing, Unappeasable Aspiration: Musical Genius Family/Important Friends/Pets?: Most of his family is in Glimmerbrook, he's friends with all the townie DJ's in Windenburg, and got on Judith Ward's good side ever since he composed music for her post-peak drama film a few years ago. No siblings, no pets, and if he wants to be around cute animals, he'll visit his distant cousin Viana in Brindleton Bay. Short Bio: You've heard of Mozart and Beethoven, but have you heard of Eldon Ervin? Well, if you watched Judith Ward's last big film, you'd know he was the driving force behind the movie's composition and theme song that catapulted him into stardom. An overachieving genius in every sense of the word, Eldon is looking to release the kind of legendary pieces his idols have in the past. He's noticed that the most heart-wrenching sonatas or concertos were inspired by love. So maybe this BC will bring him the muse he needs. Misc. Info: He likes sitting on benches near ponds and write poems in the rain. His parents are both spellcaster and somehow he came out with no magic at all. We don't talk about that. His favorite animal is a DUCK.

WHAT DO WE THINK?

[vixfern]

I submitted this to FrownyAlfred already, but I’d love to see Bruce playing piano, and or snippets of him teaching each of the kids and bonding with them over it. Extra kudos if it ends up focusing on him and Damian, and/or Damian absolutely LOVING piano/music

I cranked this out in one night because I LOVE this so much!! I myself play the piano and it has always been a love of mine.

I hope this is what you wanted and I had so much fun writing this. Please let me know if you enjoy!!

Ever since he was young, Bruce loved the piano. He would listen to his father dance his fingers along the ivory keys, playing melodies that his mother would sing along to. His mother would occasionally play, but only on rare occasions, and she’d play slow, classical tunes that would carry though the manor like a bird singing its song through the air.

He was entranced with the instrument. It held all his good memories and made him remember why he still pushes on. He played along with his mother every spare chance he could get. After his parents passed, he stopped. He hated it. He hated the sound of it and the look of it. He couldn’t stand to go to restaurants where they had live piano performances and he never listened to music with piano.

It became a curse. It followed him around everywhere. He couldn’t escape. It suffocated him.

Until one night when he had a particularly rough patrol. A child was trapped in an alleyway, her parents nowhere to be found. The look in her eyes terrified him, it shook him to his core because he knew that look. He wore it himself once before.

She had better luck than he did, with her parents frantically searching for her, in hysterics. Once she was safe with her loved ones, he turned without letting them give a simple thanks. He couldn’t bear it. He went back home and started up to his room before pausing in front of a doorway. One he hasn’t even glanced at for years.

The grand piano stood, gleaming in the trickling moonlight. His mind rushed to the thought of that little girl and he went and sat at the bench. All he did was stare at it, not bearing to put his hands on it to tarnish the lasting memories that were made on this instrument.

Inevitably he did, his fingers trembling with every note and chord he played. But it was beautiful. He was so entranced with his music he didn’t even notice his butler and long time friend standing outside the door, wiping tears from his eyes.

He played throughout the night, putting every single emotion he ever felt into his song. Hurt. Betrayal. Sadness. Fear. Love. It flew through his fingertips into the keys and a feeling of a weight being lifted off of him surged through.

He played every night after that. Every aching patrol, mediocre day, or wonderful experience was shown through his music. He tried teaching all of the children he took in over the years, but most of them liked to listen more than play.

Dick was really good, but preferred to hum along to whatever song Bruce played. Jason preferred to stay away from it, but Bruce could hear him plucking away when he thought no one could hear. Stephanie just never got the hang of it, too frustrated that she just liked to hang out while he played. Tim didn’t even want to try. He would much rather just talk with Bruce or play the drums. Duke was more of a guitar kind of kid, preferring to strum along to the tunes. Cass liked it, but ultimately took up the violin.

He was disappointed, but understood it wasn’t what everyone would like. He just wanted to share his personal feelings and experiences through art and to try to have some sort of intimate connection with his kids.

When Damian came into his life, the small child was a ball of fury. He didn’t even attempt to show or teach him the piano. But after all that time for Damian to calm down and become the boy he is, he asked Bruce about the piano. He had seen it before while wandering through the halls, and wondered why it was there.

It was then that Bruce took him to the grand piano and sat him down. He showed him the notes and played songs for him. They would go and practice every day and Damian was in love with it. The times Damian spent at the piano were some of the only times Bruce would see him calm and carefree.

After months of practicing, Damian started playing on his own, finding pieces and playing all day to master them. After he finished his first piece he called Bruce in and played it for him. Bruce was paralyzed in place. A tear rolled down his cheek as the song went on, and could only look at his son with admiration and adoration. As Damian finished the song, he let the notes ring and turned to his father. Bruce paused before whispering to him.

“You play just like my mother.”

[mybodyfails]

han - recap 2023

(tumblr user @mybodyfails' ramblings under the read more)

jan

230120 manila: stay with bench - fanmeet

blue jeans, dress shirt AND beret?! we're off to a great start.

he was hitting the dougie too. of course.

feb

230213 skz-record: volcano

definitely my soty! when the drums come in and the song explodes? literally erupting like a volcano? 🫠

honorary mention:

230226 chan's room ep. 199

i keep coming back to this stream whenever i feel down, they were just so hyper and giggly!

mar

230311 manila: maniac world tour - day 1

the one where he had to sit out bc he was sick. who knew you could slay a performance like that. in the end all of us were seated i think.

also gave us this beautiful moment: beethoven who

april

230401&230402 los angeles: maniac world tour encore

toddling around in his gigantic dungarees and adorable hat, han quokka clipped to him. all i need tbh.

may

230523 bbl: life advice

tape the blanket to yourself and you won't catch a cold, apparently.

but also, not a specific month - but i'm putting this on behalf of all the mini concerts he did for us on bubble, taking suggestions for covers or writing songs on the fly 🥰

june

release: topline mv feat. tiger jk

aka the day where jisung got adopted but was too shy to get his number. 🥺 LOOK AT HIM! elated hamster! fanning himself w his fake money!

jul

230701&230702 3rd fanmeeting pilot for 5star

the life-size skzoos and their interactions were such a cute surprise 😭 rmbr when he kept gently smoothing down han quokka's velvety fur 😭

230722 paris: lollapalooza

he was on fire that day. HOTTER THAN HOT.

aug

230816 fukuoka: 5star dome tour begins

and with it came his 'don't say' solo stage and him playing the fucking guitar. wasn't just me, we all lost our marbles over this.. right?

honorary mention:

august was also the month were han didn't open an individual ig account 😸

sep

230924 new york: global citizen festival

they were five members short but 3racha gave it their all. i am a big fan of the hoop earrings, personally.

oct

231013 lil durk release: all my life (skz remix)

they took that song and gave it a very distinct flavour, especially jisung.

231015 skz-record: want so bad

minsung and their gay little song, didn't expect anything less from thems two.

nov

231111 mbc show! music core & mini fanmeeting

life-altering duality, wearing that CROPTOP on stage and turning into the sweetest babushka right before our very eyes immediately after..

dec

231214 manila: asia artist awards

what's with jisung and his best moments happening in the philippines?! that's the third time this year! petition for skz to move there. 🙏

3racha winning the best creator award was already a highlight, but hannie en route to the bathroom.. running back.. having to hold his pee for the acceptance speech - a classic.

now please come to me and tell me your fave jisung/your bias/skz moments of 2023!

[bunisher]

a burning flame

Before, it was just passing fascination from the way his hands created something so melodic. It was just Matt being another New Yorker who appreciated music, being an animal lover who couldn’t leave his dog out when it sat patiently next to its owner, but things have changed. The mysterious guitarist has a name and Max is his companion.

Frank Castle is an entire person to him now—his client—and Matt is no less fascinated.

pairing: frank castle/matt murdock

rating: E

status: WIP (1/3)

tags: alternate universe – no powers, divorced frank castle/maria castle, parent frank castle, lawyer matt murdock, guitarist frank castle, slow burn, eventual smut, angst with a happy ending

warnings: minor violence, implied/reference homophobia, implied/referenced child abuse

current word count: 17.8k

author: redswhiskey

Damp air kisses Matt’s cheek as Foggy shuts the door behind the three of them, the keys in his best friend’s hand a sharp jingle piercing the noise of the street until he shoves them into his pocket. He steps off onto the ground, does a precautionary sweep of his cane, and feels the irriguous cement beneath his shoes.

His city envelops him like a hug. There’s a group of men laughing down the street and as he turns, a woman passes them by, on the phone and telling someone she’ll be home soon. An engine sputters, a radio blasting along with it while a helicopter veers overhead, and out of it all, a familiar sound of a guitar.

“Ready?” Karen asks beside him. Her heels clack a few times as she walks forward, but then hesitates. “Foggy?”

No response.

“Fogs?”

Foggy hums this time in acknowledgement, fingers typing away on his phone with the telltale click click sound of the keyboard on. His fingers continue tapping, only pausing when he almost falls off the bottom step, loafers skidding against the slick concrete.

“Yeah, sorry.” He sighs. “My phone is now in my pocket. Marci asked me to pick up some eggs on the way home, so don’t let me forget.”

“Of course, we don’t want a repeat of last time,” Matt tells him over the squeal of a car’s breaks while they head down the sidewalk. “What was she going to make, again?”

“Quiche,” Foggy answers, a groan punctuating his words. Matt can’t see him, but he knows he’s looking up at the sky because then his arms flop down next to his body with a smack. Karen giggles beside him. “She was going to make quiche and I still haven’t gotten the opportunity.” 

“We got you this time, don’t worry.” Karen says lightheartedly as he grumbles.

Matt chuckles from his place in between the two—he’s never had quiche, maybe he should try it—and lets himself fall a few steps behind as a familiar tune gets closer. A guilty pleasure of his is that when he’s alone, he walks as slow as possible without it seeming too obvious when he hears it. Allows the rhythmic tap of his cane to intertwine with the melodic strums as if he has any musical bone in his body. 

He fishes out a few crumpled bills from his pocket and a small, bone shaped treat that he keeps a bag of in his office for this specific purpose. The snores and pants of the dog draw nearer while Foggy and Karen’s conversation shifts to the background with some classic rock guitar cover overlaying it. 

The music reaches its peak, the blurry shadow of the guitarist drawing nearer, and Matt holds out the money with the dog treat folded inside.

A small squeak from the guitar happens before, “Thanks, Red,” comes from the man on the bench and it’s taken from his hand, fingertips barely ghosting his own.

“Of course, have a nice night.” He chuckles as he walks away. 

The music starts again. “You too!”

(click here to continue reading)

[blee-bleep]

Randiom Anime recs that hopefully me and others did not send before!

Sending cause I think you may have fun

bocchi the rock and anxious teen who all her life wanted friends learns guitar in the hope of getting into a band and get a ton of fans and friends

And actually somehow getting recruited to join a band without doing anything much more than standing around with a guitar that was her plan and it somehow worked

And there is a Sucy looking charecter who is always drunk

(Mc is a disaster with social anxiety and we love her + creative and cool animation)

Also canon gay charecter

Diy (yeah thats actually the name) a clumsy mc who is stuck in her own daydreaming joins a diy club by stumbling upon the room by accident because she wanted to build a bench cause she thinks it will fix the friendship with her tsundere bestie

Totally ship metirial

Its the classic cute in need of more ppl and money to make the club keep existing

(cute animation and fun charecters with interesting personalities wich makes the show girls with power tools)

The magical revolution of the Reincarnated Princess and the Genius Young Lady

Diakko but if Akko was willing to commit bloody acts of violence and unhinged magic science to get magic and fly

Who also kidnapped her brother fiance because 🎶 I can be a better boyfriend than him 🎶

Also the girls are canonically together in show not just the creators said so

+there is defenetly what I would call a sucy charecter not just look wise!

(Breathtaking animation especially the magic felt amazing like WOW also gay rainbow magic)

And would make an amazing lwa au putting it into the world in hopes

AAAAAAAAA THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THE RECOMMENDATIONS!!! I gotta have more patience and energy to watch these cuz I can't finish ANYTHING but two of these have been on my radar for such a long time and I don't know where to start

(also I'm having my finals week and I'm getting fucked in the ass by 100-item exams and on-the-spot essays)

[devox2564]

In Your Heart: Chapter 5

Jake Kizka x fem reader

Warnings: tw for a slight narcissistic ex, other than that it’s a super cute fluffy Jake chapter

Chapter 5: Friends for Now

It's a little after 11am when you leave the relative comfort of your bed. Through the gap in your curtains, rain tap tap taps against the glass of the window. You dress quickly, throwing on jeans and a loose top. You pull on your boots and glance at yourself in the mirror. Should you put on makeup? You feel oddly self conscious, viewing yourself reluctantly through Jake's eyes. After last night you aren't sure how to feel. You've always liked Jake in a friendly way, and he's objectively attractive, but you've known him for years. The two of you have been closer now for a few months, but that doesn't mean that he's attracted to you.

You've never had to deal with this before. All the men you've seen or dated in adulthood have been explicitly romantically interested. There was no friendship there. No silly flirting, no tension, no prior knowledge of one another. This is uncharted territory for you. As you study your appearance, you decide that there's no reason to make a special effort over a crush. You've been to the studio looking normal loads of times. Your hair falls around your shoulders in its natural wave, and although your eyes are ringed with dark circles they are a bit brighter than they've been in a while. It's a bit startling to realize that you've been dead behind the eyes for weeks.

Making your way to the front door, you grab your guitar case and head out. The air is chilly, but the rain has ebbed just enough for you to make the walk down to your favorite cafe. A few minutes later with two steaming coffees in hand, you slide into the drivers seat of your car and pull away. The car was a recent purchase. A purchase made necessary by the now frequent trips back and forth to the studio that couldn't be made on foot.

....

You set the coffee cups down on a table in the corner of the room and settle onto the bench in front of the large grand piano. No one else is here yet. You pull your phone out and shoot a quick text.

Y/n: I'm at the studio, no rush :)

You find yourself eager for a reply, but you put your phone down on the bench next to you deliberately screen down. Raising your hands and resting them on the keys, you softly begin to play a few chords. It's been a while since you had the opportunity to play. Your mother paid for years of lessons before you'd ever picked up a guitar. She'd loved the sound of you practicing. Just before she'd died, you would sit in her living room and play for hours. For about a year afterwards, you hadn't touched the keys. Playing again had been an effort, but it roused happy memories of her. While the guitar roiled your blood and made you feel alive, the piano had informed your love of music and allowed you to channel your grief. The keys brought you immense comfort almost four years later.

Her favorite song had been "Merry Go Round of Life" by Joe Hisaishi. Of all the grand traditional classical pieces you'd learned, it had prevailed. You'd first learned it for your 6th grade recital, and she always said it reminded her of when you were still little. It was silly, but every time you sat down at a piano it was the song that you played.  Now, your hands softly move across the keys. The sound floats into the empty room and a soft smile plays across your lips. Your breath settles into a rhythm with the keys. You become so entranced in your playing that you don't hear Jake enter. Behind you, he leans against the doorframe to listen.

"That was beautiful." he says from behind you as you finish the song and you jump.

"Jesus Christ, don't fucking sneak up on me like that." you laugh a little and clutch your chest.

He just laughs and crosses over to the piano. "I'm serious, I didn't even know you played. You'll give Sam a run for his money."

"I have since I was a kid. That was my mother's favorite song." you reply

"She's got good taste." he takes a seat next to you on the bench.

"She did. She passed about 4 years ago, I played it for her nearly every day." You reply with a sad smile

"Ahh I'm sorry, I didn't know.." he trails off a bit.

"What did you need to show me?" you ask, changing the subject and offering up a smile that said 'it's alright'.

"Right, right." he says and reaches into his pocket. He fumbles around for a moment and pulls out a plain looking car key attached to an enamel guitar key chain.

You pause for a moment, trying to figure out what he's up to before you ask, "and what is this for?"

"It's a key."

"Yeah I deduced that thanks, what does the key open?"

"It's your very own tour bus key." he replies and you look at him confused.

"What do you mean Jake?"

"Well, you already know that we set the dates for our next tour.." he speaks slowly now, as if he's nervous?

"Yeah?"

"And we all decided that we want Wolfsbane to tour with us. Open for a few months and see how it goes." he's looking at you with a big smile.

The both of you are still sitting on the piano's bench when what he's saying hits you and you fling your arms around his neck without thinking, pulling him into a hug that almost tips the bench. His arms wrap around you in response and he says "So I guess you have no problem with that?"

"Holy shit are you kidding?" you're smiling as you pull away from him.

"I'm glad you're amenable to it." he replies and pushes the key into your hand.

Like last night, when you touch you can feel your heart jump in your chest. The air around you seems to thicken and it's like you can't breathe. Just as he pulls his hand away, his eyes flick to yours and you sense that maybe, just maybe he's also experiencing the same thing. You don't know what to say. You hold his gaze for just a moment, his eyes seemingly looking straight through to the deepest part of you. He casually (as if this is a totally natural) reaches forward and tucks a loose strand of hair behind your ear, lingering a bit in the movement.

You smile nervously, and feeling a little bit awkward, you scooch off the bench and scoop up a coffee cup. "So have you told the others yet?" you ask, breaking the silence.

He runs his hand through his hair, the grin still plastered on his face. "The guys told them last night after you left. I wanted to tell you myself."

"Awww how sweet." you tease.

"You know, I thought that maybe, if you wanted-" he starts and is sharply interrupted by your phone.

The ringtone blares as the phone vibrates on the bench. He hands it to you and you see a number you don't recognize lights up the screen. "Give me just a second, I don't know this number." you say.

You plop down in a chair and hit the answer button. "Hello?"

"Y/n?" you hear a familiar voice.

"David." you say, no question in your voice. You give Jake a 'wtf' look, and his expression is curious.

"Look, can we please meet up and talk?" he asks.

"I made it pretty clear that I didn't want to hear from you." your tone is pure ice.

"I know that, but I love you and I know we can make it through this. Me and Jen are through for good. I just want to talk." his voice is soft and soothing. The way he always sounded after a fight.

"No David. We're done. I don't owe you anything."

"I've been through alot, I've been working on being a better person. I think you do owe me a chance to explain myself." you can feel the tension in his voice growing under the guise.

"You cheated on me. I'm not having a discourse about this." a proper stonewall.

"Fuck you!" the act drops and he's shouting now "I fucking love you, and you know that. I can't believe you won't even hear me out!"

"Don't call me again David." you say and hang up.

You look up at Jake, drained of all feeling. He moves toward you and you rise. You allow his arms to wrap you up and you lean your head against his chest. Neither of you say a word.

.....

Shortly after that lovely phone call, the rest of the girls had arrived and the excitement about the tour had cheered you up. Jake hadn't said much, just sitting by as you rehearsed and hashed out the details of a new set. Now, you were on your way back to your apartment. The rain had started up again, bashing against your windshield. You dash back into your building and across the lobby.

Reaching your front door, you pull out your phone and text Jake.

Y/n: Come over? I'm ordering pizza.

You barely get your door open before he replies.

Jake: Don't worry about it, I'll pick one up on the way :P

You toss your phone onto the couch and trudge to your bedroom to change. After a shower and a pair of sweatpants, you've cemented a spot on the couch. You're frustrated with yourself for wanting to cry. You're frustrated with yourself for not being able to power through on your own. The tears fall, hot and angry. They burn rivers on your cheeks as you sit in silence. You feel guilty for dragging Jake into this mess. You miss your mother and you wish she were here. She would know the right things to say and do.

Jake's knock sounds through the apartment. You swipe at your eyes, knowing your face is splotchy and red. Opening the door, you see him see you in all your fucked up glory. He moves inside to set the pizza box on the kitchen counter and then returns to you. He folds you up and strokes your hair softly.

"You know.." he begins

"What?" You say, devoid of any real feeling. Your face is smushed against his shoulder.

"I was going to ask you out today. Like on a real date. But I don't think that's appropriate timing. Might make me look like an ass while you're all sad." He pulls away and smiles down at you, his eyes soft and understanding.

This comment makes you laugh, a real laugh. Not a cynical one like you're used to emitting when he picks at you.

"Hey what's so funny? I'm serious." He pulls an exaggerated frown.

"Just shut up and bring the pizza in the living room." you're still giggling, and your voice is stuffy from crying.

.....

A few hours later after some pizza and a lot of garbage tv (you're working your way through the latest season of the bachelor) you're feeling a bit better. You're annoyed that the excitement for the tour is being overshadowed by an ex that isn't even worth a thought, but hey you're working through it.

You're both laughing at a clip of a blonde getting sprayed by a bottle of champagne when he turns the volume down and turns to you again.

"Not that I want to interrupt this very important viewing right now-"

"But you are so go ahead." You say still laughing.

He rolls his eyes, stifling another bout of laughter "I was serious earlier. About us going out I mean."

"Look Jake, I'm not saying no, but can we just wait a while?" you ask him, looking into his eyes for any hint of anger or frustration.

"Like a while as in a few hours or a while as in a few years?" His continued teasing reassures you.

"Let's just make it through this tour and see where we stand. I don't want to put any pressure on us. I like the way we are now. Friends." you say, hoping he understands where you're coming from.

You'd like to be much more than friends, but you can't risk losing him right now. You're still unsure about how the dynamic might change between you.

"I can wait till then I suppose, it's only a few months." He grins mischievously "but do you mind if I test out a theory first?"

You pause for a second, processing the question. Before you can reply, he's pulled you in. Your face is cradled in his hands and he kisses you. Softly at first, as if testing to see how far he can go. The kiss deepens. His lips move against yours, tongue barely swiping the curve of your bottom lip. His thumb brushes across your cheekbone and he pulls away. It's over well before you're ready as much as you hate to admit it.

"I knew that was going to be good." He's smiling.

You give his chest a soft push and you laugh "Asshole."

"Friends for now?" He asks.

"Friends for now." You say and lean into him on the couch, pressing the button to turn the television volume back up.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

We finally got a kiss guys 😮‍💨. This was a fun one to put together. Let me know what you think in the comments.

Tune in next Friday for the new chapter! If you’re interested in being added to a tag list, message me and I’ll get one started! Thanks for reading!

-E

[aprincessnotaqueen]

PART 3.

A continuation of this snippet

The music room had not changed. Same hard, plastic chairs; same streaked whiteboard; same third-hand instruments. Courtney stood at the threshold, taking in the familiar site of her second home with butterflies in her stomach.

“It’s not the same, is it?” Came a voice behind her. She didn’t have to turn around to know who had snuck up on her moment.

“We’re not the same, you mean,” she replied, unable to face him.

His chuckled response was all the confirmation Courtney needed; Duncan felt it too, the shift between them and the room they had lived in their whole freshman year of high school.

Things had seemed so much simpler then; the inside jokes and stolen kisses. Music was their sole interest, before things got complicated. Before they got complicated.

Courtney knew better now. Business and pleasure do not mix, and she still could not meet Duncan’s eyes as she thought back to fond memories.

The first time she had sang piano in front of the boys they had stared at her in awe, unaware she was the missing piece to the band they were clinging to.

The first time she had played a piece of music that wasn’t classical, that was different to every recital she had practiced for, and how alive it had made her feel.

The first time Duncan had taught her to play his guitar, carefully showing her each note until she mastered it, until she was able to write music to it.

Finding her voice in her high school music room was the high Courtney had been chasing ever since, and so far nothing else had compared.

“I assume you’ve already planned our set list,” Duncan commented, taking a seat on the piano bench.

Courtney fought the urge not to watch him, a battle she had lost many times before. But he sat in her space at the piano, looking so much bigger than the last time she had seen him do so.

The last few years had been kind to him; his muscled flexing under the long sleeves of his shirt as he reached for the keys. Stubble graced his face, carving out his jaw. He wore a well-worn gray beanie, but Courtney knew he still had his signature green Mohawk tucked away.

Courtney had spent a lengthy amount of time covering the bags under her eyes with make up that morning before pulling on her comfiest capris and sweater. She hoped she looked as put together as she wanted the boys to see.

“Chris had some suggestions,” Courtney told him. “We’ve been emailing.”

Duncan chuckled again, the sound giving Courtney a twitch.

She thought four years apart would make it easier, but here she was staring at him across the room like she was sixteen years old again. The sight of him turned her stomach like it always had, but Courtney was still yet to figure out if that was a good or bad sign.

“The boys are late,” Courtney said, turning to the clock above the door.

Duncan chucked for a third time and Courtney resisted the urge to throw her shoe at him.

“You never change,” he mused, turning his blue eyes towards her, catching the glint off the yellow classroom lights.

Courtney hid her shiver, choosing to frown at him instead.

Time for a quick authors note, I think!

These are just snippets, not a whole story, so there are time jumps. I have not written the whole story out, I am writing these snippets as scenes come to mind and posting them immediately, so should I ever actually write the full story there may be some tweaks as we go.

They are written in my notes app and uploaded from my phone so I apologise for any weird formatting!

The first snippet got a lot of love and I’m so grateful to everyone who reblogged and favourited and left comments.

But I wanna give a specific shoutout to @the-type-a @xwhatababex @lotsofloveish for your continued support in everything I post, I haven’t shared my love for you as much as I should but I am so so grateful to all of you 💕

[pirates-and-coffee]

Hi. I made a thing.

A Gorillaz OC, precisely.

Here we go.

Name: Sage Blackwood

Age: 27

Pronouns: They/them

Sexuality: Pan

Occupation: Student and researcher

About:

• Literature student- yep. Still studying. That's the only thing they're actually good at.- and sort of a writer, way too curious for their own good. Constantly reading and learning random -and probably useless, at least for them- stuff

• Crossed paths with Murdoc Niccals while giving crumbs to some ravens in a park and started talking to him after noticing he'd been standing there for a while, laughing at how hard they were trying to befriend the birds

• "C'mon, they're so majestic! Did you know they can remember faces? They've got episodic memory!"

• Started sharing interesting facts

• Murdoc just kept laughing and sat next to them, "Yeah, yeah, I know all'at already"

• Then he told them about Cortez

• And, well, that's how they bonded. Talking about birds.

• Later on, Murdoc noticed they were always at that park, every fucking day

• And he knew that because he'd started to be sure to walk through it more, just to see what the hell they were up to

• One day it was reading, the other laying on the bench with headphones on and humming songs, sometimes they rambled about some stressful classes they had to take or a new recipe they'd tried at home

• "The hell are ya doing always here?"

"It's peaceful. Not so many people come and the few that do are always quiet. I like it."

• Once they showed up with a fucking guitar

• Said they had seen an ad of guitar lessons and since their dad used to play it but never taught them, it was a chance to give it a go

• They'd bought a very pretty classic guitar, of a cherry colour, and wanted to show it to him

• Murdoc became suddenly way too interested, but because of a single particular: they didn't asked HIM to teach them.

• He was dramatically offended

• "Who's that? Is he a professional? Bet he's not. Is he in a band?"

"I think he's just a guy."

"A GUY. Well, you don't know him."

• They went like this for a while, until Sage shoved the guitar against Murdoc and said "Go on, then! You do it!"

• He grabbed it and glared at them, "I'll do it and I'll show ya the difference between an amateur and a fucking master!"

• They let out a laugh, "Yeah, whatever, master."

• And so that's how they started to hang out more frequently.

[blueberryjam1201]

Unexpected

Chapter 4

Genre: Drama, Romance

Summary: How the one week in separation will change their life?

This story wasn't suppose to be sweet and heartwarming from the first place...

Dear reader, are you ready for a new ark filled with sadness? But remember, after every rain the sun is shining. Will Kyungsoo find his sunshine in this storm?

"Was I always this vulnerable?

Was you my only strength?

Sharing with you my desires,

Telling you about my misery,

Like you are the best medicine,

...

Does it have a side effect?

Or Did I overdose?

The season has changed...

Why I'm still here?"

Kyungsoo breathed heavily while leaning on a desk in his office room at home. All the books were scattered under the shelves. Ripped pages next to them. The abandoned guitar's unfortunate place under the wall on the right side of the room was telling stories about the hysteria from a not long time ago. There was this unbearable lament bouncing off the walls...

In silence...

Chapter under the cut❤️

It was a sunny morning, past 6 a.m. This airport was living its own life like it was Saturday afternoon in the city center. Many flights landed. The light brown color of the floor tiles reflected the sunlight, jumping inside the building by the glass walls from the exit side. Kyungsoo was sitting on one of the bench seats inside. 

He wore a light brown jacket and black trousers. While holding a mobile phone in his hand he smiled gently. It was YiSeul messaging about having fun the next couple of days without her.

"It's a work trip, how can it be fun?" He thought, and the phone started ringing. 

- Chanyeol-ah! - Kyungsoo answered while looking around.

- Kyungsoo-yah!- laughed while imitating his friend - I'll be there in a second, just going to the toilet and grabbing a coffee, you're ok? You can wait near the entrance, I'll find you - 

- Ok, hurry up - said Kyungsoo, and hung up. He then grabbed a grey backpack, wore it on his arms, and bucked his waist-belt. After that grabbed a large, black suitcase on wheels and casually proceeded to the exit. 

Outside were small (compared to inside) crowds of arrived travelers. This was a street where many cars were parked to collect those travelers, and opposite the exit, a little further down, was a small park with trees and benches. He looked up in the sky. Even the noise around couldn't disturb his peaceful mind. "..ah...it's only one week...I hope she won't be bored alone....". These thoughts were swirling around his head, how great is to have her by his side...

Suddenly, he jumped to the side, barely staying on his feet, and raised his head to see who just pushed him so hard.... realizing he unconsciously caught this person, so she didn't fall on the ground...

It was a young woman. He thought: "Maybe 25, maybe 28, it's difficult to predict as girls these days are using many amazing cosmetics and ..."

She jumped back from his hands, waking him up from his internal analysis. Panicked, brushed her long dark brown hair with her fingers, shouted "Apologies!", grabbed her large, black suitcase, and ran away leaving him speechless. It was a long few seconds when he was watching her disappear. 

- Kyungsoo! - Chanyeol jumped on him, scaring him slightly, so he swung clenched fist at his friend's stomach, but just touched to scare Chanyeol back in revenge.  

- You done? - asked

- Yeah, let's go. Your coffee - Chanyeol handed the warm drink to KyungSoo and they headed to the nearest taxi. 

The hotel where KyungSoo and Chanyeol were staying was in a classic 1970s style. Although the windows were modern, and looked a little bit out of context, in general, the view was pleasant, and looking at the interest in this place, none of the guests probably minded the mix of styles. 

They checked-in in reception and hurried to their booked rooms to change clothes and prepare for a meeting. 

Kyungsoo entered his room which was studio apartment size. From the small anteroom, he could enter all the rest of rooms which was: the toilet on the left, the kitchen opposite, and the bedroom on the right. Funny how the bedroom was connected to the kitchen from the inside. "This could have been just one room, what is the point in those walls separating the anteroom?" He smirked, after creating a reconstruction plan in his head. His mind is always absorbed by analyzing new experiences and places like it would change anything. But he can't fight with this part of his personality.  

He went to the bedroom first and placed his backpack on the small brown bedside cabinet under the white wall. All the walls were white, and the carpet covered the floor on every inch, excluding the toilet where the white tiles were placed. 

Then he put his suitcase on the bed and opened it to take some stuff important for the meeting...

"What is that...?" He stiffened and all the waters in his body started to boil from shock, out of fright, or all kinds of panic emotions you can feel at this kind of moment. His mind went blank. He tried to remember what happened before he arrived at the hotel..." That girl..." he whispered with a pale face. Hopefully, his laptop was in the backpack together with all the documents. He tried to calm down, took a deep breath a few times, sat on the bed and after long seconds of consideration he created a plan for a meeting. That was the most important now. 

Then he looked into her suitcase and found a name tag, similar to the one that parents are sewing or just hang on their kid's clothes or bags when they go to primary school. 

The message on the tag was as follows:

If found alone

Call Rose

01937xxxx

He was gazing at this tag for a long time in silence. It wasn't certain to him if his messed up state of mind was caused by this situation in general, the fact she swapped the suitcases by mistake or...that she was keeping this tag in her suitcase because it's probably the last thing that adult would think of before going on a trip alone...

He called the number. 

The signal was on but no answer. Then tried again, 4 times to be precise. 

After looking at the time on the phone, he hurried up and started preparing for a meeting. 

The meeting place was a boardroom in one of the JJ ENTERTAINMENTS buildings. This spacious room had only the most important furniture which was a long, polished wood table and 11 stylish spinning chairs for all board members. The walls were in magnolia color, the floor was covered by navy, fluffy carpet. Doors were at the top of the left side, and the wall on the right was made from stone mosaic wall tiles in a light gray color, with the exception in the center where there was a place for a 90" size TV. Also, at the bottom of the wall, under the TV was a small chiller for drinks, filled with only water and a few cans of Coca-Cola, probably ordered by the members beforehand. 

It was 9 a.m. when 11 attendees started gardening, including Manager Kim. Each one of them was in an expensive suit, mostly grey and black. Besides men, 5 women came, also in suits of the same colors. Then Kyungsoo was wearing the same clothes as before, which were a light brown jacket, and Chayeol in a retro-styled hooded jacket. They both sat just at the beginning of the table under the TV. 

The man in his probably 60s sat just at the end of the table and patiently waited till everyone was settled down. He was the CEO of JJ Entertainment.

At some point, he said:

- Good morning, I hope everyone had a comfortable journey. We are here today to discuss the anniversary concert next 3 or 4 weeks. The date still hasn't been settled up, but we will get there eventually....- and waited for any reaction from other members. His facial expression reminded the one of the governor in prison. He smiled like an angel, but his gaze was a thread. He didn't have to say a word, his stare was creating a law that everyone had to obey without discussion. 

- Let's begin, shall we? - and the angelic smile just appeared, bringing insecurity even to prepared for these meeting members....except two friends at the end. Kyungsoo was typing lyrics on his mobile and sending them to his email address while Chanyeol was absorbed by staring at the least favorite board members and laughing quietly at their frightened behavior. 

The meeting was going smoothly. Each one of the employers was sharing their theories or presentations. Kim was sitting quietly until his time came. 

- Woo Shik, what have you prepared for Creams? - the silence appeared in the room. Woo Shik was a young man, age max 30. Black curly hair cut short in the back, but fluffy bangs were almost covering his eyes. Long face, small eyes, and slightly damaged lips from biting. 

-...um...- he started, but had difficulties to construct the sentences - they will be performing 5 songs...so I was thinking, we can choose the most popular 5 ...- he paused for a moment to look at their reactions, which were none so he continued- and...um...we can make the "candy" appearance, fans loves it....- he paused again. This time it looks like he ran out of ideas, so the pause was like a begging for someone else to speak up. Kim slowly looked at Kyungsoo who was still working on his phone hidden under the table. 

- Doh, anything you wish to add? - ...silence. Kyungsoo raised his head and needed a few seconds to understand the situation. Then he leaned on his chair comfortably and said:

- I would use 4 of the most popular songs, 2 from the debut and two from the second album. Then I would give them 5 minutes to interact with the audience announce a new single, and sing the highlight from it. It would build excitement amongst fans. Also...- he looked at Woo Shik - I don't think the "CANDY" theme is the best. First of all, they are not newbies anymore, and together with the last scandals about them dating seems not in place. I would choose FAITH as the 4th song to emphasize that they are no longer children. That would help to make the audience understand that they are also human beings and will calm down the media a little... - he finished. 

The silence in the room was shouting about admiration. Then suddenly, the silent applause could be heard. That was the CEO who was entertained with KyungSoo's speech. 

- Manager Kim, what's your decision? - Kim needed a long second to answer: 

- I'll go with KyungSoo's idea...- it seems his plan to embarrass Kyungsoo has failed. Was it this plan? Or maybe there was a different reason? 

The meeting was carried out as planned till the end, and no one realized that KyungSoo's presentation was mostly created on a mobile phone while going by taxi and during the meeting itself. 

Later in another room, there was a presentation again, this time led by one person for the audience consisting of employees. Large area, fully in white colors, hundreds of chairs, and a scene with a mini cinema screen behind. The presentation was about the stadium where the concert will take place and all the important details in this matter. 

Kyungsoo was sitting with Chanyeol somewhere in the middle of the right side of the audience. 

- How's our naughty YiSeul? - Chanyeol joked after looking at Kyungsoo scrolling the phone. 

- Alright, I think. Stop talking like she's your girlfriend too - 

- I always wanted to ask you this, because sometimes when speaking, she has this weird accent, where is she from? - 

....

KyungSoo's eyes widened in a second.

Time has stopped, why is his mind blank suddenly? Where is she from? He was replaying all his memories in his head like an opened family photobook, like an archive in the basement or the attic. He was in every corner of his memory...where is she from? 

- Oi! - Chanyeol woke him up from his trance - Don't tell me you don't know! - covered his laughing face to not make any loud sound - KyungSoo-yah, that's not good? Ask her, and let me know ok? - 

Kyungsoo was barely hearing his friend as his mind just created another investigation in his head. What does he know about her past? They meet one year ago, he was always telling stories from his life, he complained to her about his dilemmas, she was supportive...was she? She was always there, right? But was he supportive? Has she ever told him about her difficulties? 

This year passed so fast that he wasn't paying attention to many significant points. What does he know about her? 

After another important presentation, the working day was finally over. 

Kyungsoo came back to his room, looked at the phone, and threw it on the bed, then went to take a shower. 

*buzz buzz*

The phone was ringing. 

When he came back from the shower, while drying his hair with a towel, he grabbed the phone and stiffened.... 4 missed calls and one text message. He rushed to open it:

- Do you have my suitcase?! -

He breathed a sigh of relief and started typing:

- Yes, can we meet tomorrow morning? I need the equipment from inside ASAP -

Two seconds passed:

- OK then, tomorrow at 6 am at the airport, same place as today. See you! - 

He opened his round eyes widely but smirked with satisfaction that everything was sorted. Now, only time for a dream after this long day. 

YiSeul hasn't texted him, she's probably busy. "Good night" he typed with a heart emoticon at the end. 

Good night, KyungSoo-yah...

The next day, same time as yesterday, Kyungsoo arrived at the airport. He was waiting at the entrance for women who swapped their identical suitcases. He still couldn't believe this story, but he accepted that, and told himself that many unexpected stories can happen, like his and YiSeul's example. He waited. "I think I came too early," he thought, but after looking at the phone, it was exactly 6 a.m., as agreed. He wore the same jacket, so she would recognize him. All of a sudden, he felt shivers, sometimes you feel this when someone is watching you, so he raised his head to look for the source of this unpleasant feeling. 

Just opposite him was standing a short girl, with dark brown long hair lying on her arms. Her pale skin color and dark, upturned eyes together had something unique, fascinating, Kyungsoo couldn't explain it in words. Maybe it's that red lipstick? She was wearing a blue sweater and a long, white dress, almost hiding her feet. 

Slowly, she came nearer to him while not losing an eye contact. 

- Is that you? Do you have my suitcase? -

KyungSoo's chest flattened as the uncertainty was forcing him to be prepared for any defense if it wasn't her, if he just had long eye contact with a random person who would approach him without any reason. He smirked and said:

- I have no idea how we swapped our suitcases, but hopefully, you had this name tag. Are you always keeping it inside?- he couldn't wait to ask that question which had intrigued him since yesterday. She then grabbed her suitcase and left his next to him. Then she smiled gently, raised her head, and explained:

- I get what you mean, that's unbelievable, right? I can't believe it myself, but what happened is I was late for my meeting, hopefully, I had all the documents on my phone so just printed them off on site. I was running and looking at my phone, so it's my bad, apologies for running into you - the way she spoke made Kyungsoo surprised as she answered all his questions in one go, and for some reason, he was not even bothered anymore. What happened, happened. Hopefully, everything will be back to normal from now on. 

- What's your name? - she was looking at her phone while asking. Kyungsoo, amazed by this question said:

- Doh Kyungsoo, but why are you asking? -

- No reason, I'm Rose. Nice to meet you. Apologies, but I need to check in, my flight is soon - then she moved to the entrance, raised her hand, and waved - See you, maybe someday! - 

- Remove! my num..m..ber...- The last word he whispered slowly as she was gone already. 

For some reason, this situation was fascinating for him and he smiled while turning around and headed to the first taxi. 

He spoke with YiSeul later. She was in the hospital with her mom. Her health was not getting any better, and that made Kyungsoo upset but he needed to focus because today he had another busy day...and all week was the same. He was waking up and going to the JJ ENMT building, planning, writing, arranging, listening, recording, and planning again. He spoke with YiSeul every evening, In the daytime she was absorbed by work and her mom's condition. 

He then arrived in Yeonhui.

"Finally at home," he thought. It was evening, so the skies were covered in dark ink, and because of a rainy time, the clouds were covering all the stars. 

His fence and grass were in the same condition as he left. "She took care of this place". Then he opened the door, not even thinking about taking off his shoes, he just wanted to see her first. 

She was in the kitchen wearing an apron, a little dirty after cooking but that didn't matter. Nothing matters, as far as she's here. Her hair was tied in a top knot. The only makeup on her face was probably mascara. She lifted her soiled in sweet cake icing finger and licked it while raising her eyes to look at him. 

- Hey! - he ran to her and hugged her like he just found his long-lost treasure. 

- How's the flight? - she asked while hugging him back and patting his arm. 

- Easy, it's a short flight so I didn't even realize when we landed. How are things? All ok? How's mom? Sorry, that is the most important, is she feeling better? 

YiSeul looked into his eyes, it seemed she was constructing the best sentence to describe the situation. 

- She's back at home, it seems she just overworked, and her back is not standing this kind of pressure anymore -

Kyungsoo was speechless for a second. 

- So it's not life-threatening? -

- No, she fell down the stairs while doing housework. It's OK now - 

He asked himself, what was the reason for him to create the life-threatening sickness, was it something she said? Or he just added this part by himself, which is hard to accept, but now he can't remember what exactly she said about her mother's condition. Mom - hospital - bad well-being - this generated a story in his mind? Sounds like an absurd. Maybe he is just too sensitive, maybe he was asking for a situation where he can support YiSeul, the same as she was supporting him up until now? If that's the case, that is very selfish of him.But he still couldn't accept this possibily....

- I'm happy everything is fine now, was worried about your mom - 

YiSeul smiled slightly, took his hand, and led him to the set table, filled with tasty dishes and a big cake in turquoise color. 

- Wait! - he gave an order and ran straight to the shelf just above the sink, grabbed a red wine, and came back to the table with two wine glasses.

- Addition to the delicious food you have prepared - he hasn't tried it yet, obviously, but he missed her, and whatever she prepared he will appreciate. Then he gave her a kiss...going deeper as his deep feeling of longing. She put her hand on his back for a second, then suddenly she cut this precious moment with words: " Let's eat first, shall we? - smiled and sat down. 

"What's that? " he thought while standing still and watching her. "What is this feeling?" 

Why does her lips seems so unfamiliar today?

[lunarfleur]

The Outsider’s music au thoughts

I did this for myself bro

Tagging: @collieflower215 @sophie-i-guess13 @sparklenarniawizard @aint-we-the-hoi-polloi @whyareyouhere66 @juneberrie

Mr. and Mrs. Curtis

The boys’ parents were what sparked their musical inspiration. Their mother played piano and had a lovely voice. Their father played guitar and sung a bit, he had 2 guitars.

Darrel Curtis

Darry uses his musical ability to make money for bills and stuff. He plays guitar and sings, but also knows some basic piano. He goes busking near the town’s busiest areas and plays at bars and restaurants and gets paid that way. Everyone once and a while he makes in some good money and uses it towards making life his brothers a little better.

In case you didn’t know, guitars are expensive. Darry only has one, an old and well loved classical guitar. Because he struggles with money so much, he’s learned the basics of guitar repair. He makes some extra money this way because other musicians with not a lot of money will go to him and get their guitars repaired for a cheap price.

Darry got one of his father’s guitars, the other one unfortunately had to get sold because Darry was having extra problems with money.

Sodapop Curtis

Soda was a mama’s boy. It was common for him to be found next to his mother on the bench of the piano that they have. His mother taught him everything she knew up until her death. Soda still plays. He knows the basics of guitar, a few chords and strumming patterns. But more than anything, he sings. His voice is a bit higher and the way he sings makes it obvious that he’s a theater kid. He sounds like he stars in musicals.

Soda’s a theater kid. Not only does he have a beautiful voice, he’s pretty and a good actor. This, of course, gets him the lead male role in every musical and every play.

The majority of his dreams revolve around theater. He wants to be on broadway. He wants to be famous. He wants his name in lights.

Ponyboy Curtis

Pony is naturally just very talented. He’s great and piano and, even though he doesn’t really want to learn, he’s pretty good at guitar too. His voice, though, is his biggest asset. It’s very beautiful and he has a pretty wide range.

Pony doesn’t really want anything too big for his life. He wants to be a solo musician who’s always heard on the radio. He wants his music to be the music everyone always quiets down for, the music everyone turns up.

Since he’s just a kid, he doesn’t really do anything with his talent except practice alone. He’s got a bit of stage fright, so playing in front of others is hard. But he always plays for his brothers, always. Pony doesn’t see it, but when he sits at that piano, Darry swears he looks like their mother.

Two-Bit Mathews

Some of you might disagree with this, but Two is a jazz musician. Due to his talent in shoplifting, he owns a trumpet and an alto saxophone. Surprisingly, no one knows he stole them.

He can’t sing or dance for shit but is considered the Miles Davis of Tulsa. He’s a huge fan of Louis Armstrong and is always found covering his songs. He also really like Chet Baker, who is my personal favorite jazz musician.

Two plays at a lot of bars. He has some friends back him up while he plays either his trumpet or his sax. He’s a crowd favorite because, not only is he good, he cracks the funniest jokes in between songs. It’s never a dull night when Two-Bit plays.

Steve Randle

Steve’s kind of like the Elvis Presley of the group, if we’re talking about backstory. Before his family found their way to Tulsa, he lived in a small, very poor, predominantly black town. But, despite having little money, it was always thriving with music. All around town you could find women with powerful voices. At least half the houses in every street had someone who could play guitar.

That’s what Steve does, plays guitar. His favorite person in that whole town was this old man who lived a few houses down. He’s always have his guitar and harmonica out and would always play for the kids around. Everyone loved him. They all called him Old Man Robbie, though his real name was Robert Jones. He was a wise man who always told Steve to take his time with life. “You can afford to lose a day or two,” he always said. When Steve asked, Old Man Robbie gladly taught him guitar. The guitar Steve owns belonged to Robbie. It’s what Robbie gave him right before he passed.

Steve doesn’t do much with his talent except do what Old Man Robbie did. He sits around town and plays for kids. Steve swears up and down he doesn’t like children, but no one believes it.

Johnny Cade

Johnny is Pony’s best friend. He spends most of his time helping Pony with his original songs, giving his opinions and helping with alterations.

Johnny wants to play guitar, more than anything. I, personally, headcanon Johnny as black. But despite this, he wasn’t really educated on black musicians. He was also so focused on surviving the night that he never really bothered to learn. But Steve introduced him to some of his favorite musicians and Johnny fell in love.

He wants to be able to play like T-bone Walker. Johnny loves T-bone Walker.

Dallas Winston

Dally grew up in New York. New York, for a long time, has been the home of genres like jazz, rock, soul, R&B, funk, and the blues. Dallas, however, cannot stay away from country. Yeah, you read that right.

Bob Dylan, Johnny Cash, he loves it all. Dallas is a good guitarist and he’s got a solid voice, too. He doesn’t wear cowboy hats or boots, but he’s typically the one people think of when they think of country musicians around Tulsa.

Angela Shepard

Angela is a jazz singer. She’s got that beautiful, raw voice. Think of a mix of Amy Winehouse and Ella Fitzgerald. She’s got a kind of control over her voice you don’t find just lying around somewhere.

Angela can play guitar and piano, and that’s what helps her write her songs, but when she performs at bars someone else does it for her. Angela writes the guitar and/or piano parts for her songs.

Tim Shepard

The Shepard brothers are Angela’s backup. Tim plays bass and does back up vocals.

He picked up bass pretty quickly. Tim got inspired by some various jazz bassists like Paul Chambers. He’s nonchalant about his talent, but he’s always playing it.

His playing style with Angela is much different than what he plays by himself. He writes his own bass lines, but makes sure his bass playing fits Angela’s songs. When he plays by himself though, it’s much more complicated. It’s a bit faster and has quicker note changes.

Curly Shepard

Curly plays guitar. He prefers electric, but never complains when Angela makes him play acoustic because Tim will be on his ass.

Curly’s talented. His strive to be the star is what fuels his practicing. He could go places, make wonderful songs like Go Johnny Go. But he doesn’t want to leave his siblings behind, so he stays as Angela’s backup.

Maybe it’s fear, maybe it’s paranoia. Nonetheless, Curly knows he can’t handle himself without Tim. He has what would happen to him planned out, he’s overthought about it so much. He’d start out good, getting popular and eventually famous, but then it would become too much for him to handle and he’d start doing drugs, most likely shooting up, then die from an overdose young, depressed, and alone.

But Curly likes playing for Angela. Actually, he loves it. Because she loves it. Watching her run to him with a new guitar part she’s written, hearing her sing, it’s a grounding experience for him. No matter what he says or does, Curly loves his sister. Singing makes Angela happy, so it makes Curly happy, too.

[ouriran]

August 3, 2023

12:03 A.M (IRST) It was a long day; The nightfall wasn’t much different. The night sky hadn’t been able to stifle the sun’s oppressing heat. I could hardly breathe by the time we got to Baghe Ferdows (Ferdows Garden). Turns out, binders and 40 degrees Celsius (104°F) heat don’t mesh that well together. The day felt like the world’s slowest suffocation underneath the mandatory covering and hijab when paired with a contraption that’s designed to press against your ribcage with great force. My body in that moment felt like an ode to my story; parts that don’t quite fit together fastened and held in place by various different foreign contraptions. Of course, there was no way of me knowing that; This was the first time I was in Iran as a non-binary person, and not a woman. It wasn’t long before my internal pity party was interrupted.

The park was casted in the shadows of trees dancing in rebellion as they were illuminated by the passing headlights of cars. People had taken to sitting in an empty creek in small groups, as there weren’t any benches around. My friends and I found a small empty section in the creek and nestled our way into the sea of people quietly chattering in the dark and humming to the tunes of a street performer’s guitar that could be heard from the distance. My friends wanted to get closer and I reluctantly followed, not particularly interested in acoustic guitars or loud environments. I didn’t take note of the fact that more people were trickling into the garden to see the performance until the once empty creek was filled; This time with a sea of people around my age. I couldn’t believe my eyes; It was passed midnight and the people still arriving had no place to sit. We couldn’t see the performer anymore from the crowd that had gathered around him, so we decided to join them. I’m not good with numbers but I am certain that there were hundreds of us huddled around a humble guitar. 

It was then that the quiet chattering and humming came to an abrupt stop when the beginning notes of a familiar tune started playing. We immediately turned to each other to exchange emotional looks of disbelief. I felt a reassuring squeeze from a kind hand around my wrist. It was Nika’s song; Nika Shakarami’s song. It used to be an old Persian love song; That was before Nika sang along to it. It had been exactly 11 months since the brutal rape, murder, and dismemberment of 17-year-old girl Nika by the Islamic Regime’s “Morality” police. Her friends had released a video of her singing Aref’s iconic anthem for the classic Iranian film, “Soltane Ghalbha”(the emperor of hearts), from the top of her lungs without a hijab on in a park.

Video description: Aref's song, Soltane Ghalbha, covered by the 17 year old Nika Shakarami

That was the day that Soltane Ghalbha shifted from a love song to a song of rage and injustice. The sudden silence abrupted into a roar as the street performer uttered the first syllables of the song. I couldn’t see the performer anymore from the number of people that had gathered around him, but I didn’t mind; I was in awe of the people around him. We were all singing Nika’s song; We knew who we were all singing to. We knew that this wasn’t an old Persian song anymore, but a song that symbolizes our resistance and grief. This was now a song that symbolized the chant that they'd beat and arrest us for; "Woman, Life, Freedom". I couldn’t help but constantly look over my shoulder to see if the morality police could hear our singing. I was terrified, but it felt immoral to take a single step away from the crowd. There were a few teenage guys goofing off and dancing to the music when I saw one of them turn around to face a girl watching them in envy. Women aren’t allowed to dance or sing in public in Iran. A reassuring smile spread across the boy’s face as he held his hand out. The encouraging cheers from the crowd were deafening. One girl turned to two girls, and before I knew it there was a large group of men and women dancing and twirling each other around to the sound of an acoustic guitar. The men cheered the women on in pride as they took off their hijabs and let their hair dance in the wind. Nika would’ve loved it; I bet she’s proud.

Video description: a large crowd of all genders and ages gathers around a street performer to sing together passed midnight.

[ezekielbhandarivalleros]

I posted 1,098 times in 2022

75 posts created (7%)

1,023 posts reblogged (93%)

Blogs I reblogged the most:

@princess-geek

@secretaryunpaid

@morningmask27

@icy-moons

I tagged 269 of my posts in 2022

#playchoices - 43 posts

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Longest Tag: 93 characters

#i think until 5th or 6th grade then i started returning to the series in grade 11 for comfort

My Top Posts in 2022:

#5

My Boyfriend the Basketball Player

Characters: Jake Tweneboah (OC), Jackie Varma and Frankie (Jake’s Teammate, Jackie and him have never formally met so his name isn’t mentioned)

Summary: A Story told from Jackie’s Point of View, on how she sees Basketball when her boyfriend Jake plays

Rating - General with a bit of Fluff

Taglist:  @secretaryunpaid @princess-geek @choicesficwriterscreations @ If you’d like to be tagged please DM me or Reblog after reading

Basketball is a dance. Amidst the hectic rush and rudeness, there is something graceful in the arch of a free throw, the bend of a body.

Sneaker squeals and gruff grunts sing counterpoint to the zing-zing-zings of orange rubber. Your eyes trace the action, sister against brother, your mitten-clad hands gripping your steaming cocoa for added warmth. Your butt has started to grow numb, but right now you don't care. Happiness is this, sitting here beneath a bright December sun, watching poetry in action.

Yes. Basketball is a dance. And the way Jane plays basketball demands a soundtrack. The right chords and runs to accent the delicate mix of playfulness and intensity. The idea isn't a new one. You've had many hours to contemplate this over the years. All the times Jake sought comfort or release in the scuff of sneakers on asphalt, the familiar bump and shove within the boundaries of a game he knows, and plays well. He's so at home with himself when moving.

It started months ago, you trying out snip-its of songs in your mind, a running backdrop to Jake's choreography on the court. You tried everything from rock to classical, alternative to country. You expanded your already expansive repertoire in search for that elusive tune. Yet none of them fit quite right. Not one of them captured the essence of your boyfriend playing basketball. You'd almost given it up as hopeless. But now…

Jake ducks a block and shoots – a score – his elated cry puffing white into the chill December air. He turns and dark eyes catch yours between even darker curls, loose from hair. The connection is like a snap of tightened rubber. You feel the vibration in your bones. It sends a thrill down your spine.

You grin into your coffee mug.

Now. Finally, you've reached a consensus.

Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy.

Jake curses on the court, as though she's heard your thought. But you nod, decisive, and think it again, firmly, as though that will set it in stone.

Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy. If the Tran-Siberian Orchestra ever gave it a go, that is.

You compose a bit in your mind, tweak rhythm and insert elements. You like the result. The perfect blend of delicate and rough.

Minor key, to capture the anticipation. Deep base for the dribbles, mirroring escalating heartbeats.

You sip your cocoa, feel the welcome warmth pool in your center, a pleasant contrast to the crisp chill in the air. Eyeing the court, you warm to your subject, settle back against the bench to watch the battle.

Electric guitar for the shoves and fakes. Percussion in the scuffle of shoes, cymbals for the smack talk, back talk. But underneath it all, above it all, a melody so familiar, so comforting, as to render any outward deviance acceptable. Almost…endearing.

You run your finger along the rim of your glass, thoughtful. Your eyes trace the back and forth of the dance, drawn to agile footwork and tensing shoulders. Then details you've seen before without really seeing. Skin warmed pink from exertion and cold. The delicate protrusion of a wrist. The gentle slope where throat meets shoulder. A light sheen of perspiration. That cocky confidence in the jut of a hip.

A flash of a smile – half sass, all Jake – when he scores.

Your breath catches and you almost drop your mug. You blink and pull the beverage in to your chest, as though the familiarity of cocoa will anchor your spiraling thoughts.

Basketball and ballet may be as far removed as Michelangelo, but there is something equally compelling in the art of form and movement. And now you can't shake Jake's symphony from your mind.

Low cello, even and steady for that passionate drive. Dissonance both jarring and enticing. Strings to highlight the stretch and flex of muscle beneath skin on every reach—

You realize you are warming to more than just the subject. In a way that makes your thoughts scatter. It is not unpleasant.

Your mind shifts and shutters, sensing a growing warmth in the vicinity of your heart that has nothing to do with hot chocolate.

"What does the winner get?"

Jake backhands his teammate on the arm before you can respond. "Bragging rights," he says, a warning in his voice. As though it should be obvious.

He squares off with his teammate, you partly behind him.

Jake’s Teammate rubs the offended shoulder and shoves Jake in return. He bumps into you, and behind him back him hands grasp your arm and hip, briefly, as he regains her balance. As though to ensure your own equilibrium.

See the full post

11 notes - Posted July 11, 2022

#4

Other Places, Sinclaire’s Faces

Characters: Ernest Sinclaire, Father Sinclaire, Lydia Sinclaire (Mentioned) Arthur Sinclaire (Non-Canon Brother Mentioned), Ernest’s Bully (Mentioned)

Summary: After getting in trouble at school Ernest and his father have a serious talk about it

M - Mentions of Physical Child Abuse

Taglist:  @secretaryunpaid @princess-geek @missameliep @choicesficwriterscreations 

Ernest didn't say anything on the ride home. He slouched low in his seat, sulking, and his father let him be. He wasn't going to try to talk to the boy until he could do it without shouting. His knee-jerk reaction to a phone call from Woodside was anger and fear. It wasn't fair to keep it bottled up. Mr.Sinclaire would be glad once the boy had graduated and he no longer had to worry about that hell hole of a school.

By the time they arrived at the home, Mr. Sinclaire’s temper had cooled. He waited until they were inside to speak. "Ernest, what were you thinking? You know better than to not start fights at school."

Ernest scowled. "That guy was being a total douche! He deserved to get punched."

"In front of teacher?" The faculty at Woodside might be too willing to look the other way, but even they couldn't ignore a fistfight occurring right in front of them. "Go to your room. I'll be up once I've decided on a punishment."

"Yes sir," Ernest mumbled, and he quickly left the room. Normally it sounded like a stampede whenever the boy went up or down the stairs, but for once he took the stairs quietly.

It just figured that the first time he got in trouble would be when his mother Lydia was out of town. He left a message on her cell phone, but the conference she was at was important, and it was the better part of an hour before she was able to call him back. Mr.Sinclaire filled her in on what had happened and after a few minute's conversation they agreed that, on top of the suspension from school, a week's grounding was more than enough.

With that settled, He came went upstairs to have a talk with Ernest. If it had been Arthur up there, he would have been banging things around and singing, but he hadn't heard anything since he'd sent Ernest upstairs. Burt knocked on the door and opened it to see the boy scrambling to his feet.

"Listen, I'm really sorry," Ernest blurted.

"I'm sure you are, now that you've had time to cool off, but it doesn't change what you did." His Father stepped into the room.

Ernest backed away until he was up against the far wall. "I'm sorry," he said, sounding desperate. "I won't do it again, I promise."

The boy was scared, His father realized. He hadn't looked up from the floor since he had come in. "Ernest? You ok?"

Ernest squeezed his eyes shut. His arms were folded in front of him like he was trying to protect his stomach.

Discipline could wait. Whatever had Ernest so upset was more important. "Hey, it's all right," His father said, keeping his voice even and calm. He wasn't good at this. Even before Arthur had officially come out, he'd never been this scared of his own father.

"I'm really sorry," Ernest mumbled again.

"Don't worry about that right now. Look at me, Ernest." His father placed his hand on his son's shoulder. "What's wrong?"

Ernest opened his eyes, glanced at his father, and quickly looked at the floor again. "Aren't you going to hit me?"

"No," Mr.Sinclaire said, stunned. "Why would you think that?"

Mr Sinclaire's legs folded under him, and he sank to the floor. Burt only hesitated for a moment before sitting down next to him. His knees would hate him for it later, but Ernest needed him.

Ernest didn't say anything. He sat there with his shoulders hunched, as if he was trying to make himself smaller and less noticeable.

"Start talking. Why did you think I was going to hurt you?"

Ernest took a shaky breath. "Mom's last boyfriend used to hit me a lot. That's how he'd punish me when I screwed up. And I couldn't stop screwing up. I was too noisy when he wanted to watch TV. I missed the bus and made him waste time picking me up. I'm clumsy and stupid and I couldn't do anything right, so he had to keep punishing me."

Mr.Sinclaire remembered the way Ernest had practically fled the room when he said the word punishment. He'd been so unusually quiet. Finn had thought Burt was going to beat him, and he'd had an hour alone to dwell on it. No wonder he'd been terrified.

"Your mother never knew about this." It wasn't a question. If Lydia had known she would have dumped the bastard faster than I’d finish a slice of pie.

"She liked him," Ernest said in a small voice, sounding younger than he was. "He made her happy, and I didn't want to ruin it for her. But I was really glad when they broke up."

Mr.Sinclaire knew that getting angry wouldn't help the situation, but it took a lot of effort to stay calm. "Let me make a few things clear for you. When Arthur makes a mistake, there are consequences. I ground him or give him more chores. Maybe I cut the amount of money he can spend on that month." He glanced over at his son, who was still curled in on himself. "Listen up, this next part is important. I've never raised my hand to Arthur, and I'm not going to start with you."

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14 notes - Posted March 25, 2022

#3

Mc Donald's Triangle Meme (HSS/CA Edition)

33 notes - Posted January 12, 2022

#2

The designs the r/bluey Subreddit came up with for r/place for the first few couple of days

The legs started to cut off and we had less space for our design so we changed it into bluey sitting holding into a heart.

The design is nice isn't it.....

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46 notes - Posted April 6, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

The Last few minutes of the Arthur Series Finale, We should have seen the whole cast grown up (Brain, Fern, Carl, Sue Ellen and Ladonna) and they should have made a full hour long episode to dive into the stories of each character

1,710 notes - Posted February 22, 2022

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