#cold email campaigns

[leadzennnnnaiiii]

10 Real-Life Examples of Effective Cold Email Campaigns

Cold emailing remains a powerful tool for businesses aiming to generate leads, build relationships, and drive sales. When executed correctly, a cold email campaign can yield impressive results, whether it’s targeting prospects for lead generation, networking, or partnerships. However, with the sheer volume of emails sent daily, crafting a successful cold email that captures attention and elicits a response can be a challenge. In this article, we will explore 10 real-life examples of cold email campaigns that have not only gained attention but also led to meaningful outcomes. These examples will provide valuable insights into what makes a cold email campaign effective and offer actionable strategies that businesses can adopt.

1. AirAsia: "Catch the Flight of Your Dreams"

AirAsia, a low-cost airline, implemented a cold email campaign targeting travelers who had abandoned their flight bookings. The email featured a personalized subject line, reminding recipients of their abandoned cart and encouraging them to complete the booking. AirAsia's email was simple yet effective, offering limited-time discounts and highlighting the urgency with a clear call to action.

What Worked:

Personalization: The email was customized based on the recipient's previous activity on the website.

Urgency: AirAsia leveraged limited-time discounts to encourage quick action.

Clear Call to Action (CTA): The email had a clear and actionable next step—completing the flight booking.

Lesson Learned: Personalized cold emails that tap into previous behavior or engagement tend to perform better, especially when urgency is introduced.

2. Mixpanel: "Book a Free Analytics Consultation"

Mixpanel, a data analytics platform, used a cold email campaign to offer a free consultation for potential customers. The email was personalized with the recipient’s company name and included a specific offer related to the recipient's industry. Mixpanel’s sales team made it clear that they understood the prospect's pain points and were offering tailored solutions to address them.

What Worked:

Segmentation: The email was tailored to the prospect’s industry, making it more relevant.

Value Proposition: The free consultation provided immediate value, offering prospects an opportunity to learn how the platform could improve their analytics.

Personalization: The use of the recipient's company name helped establish rapport.

Lesson Learned: Offering personalized solutions or consultations in a cold email can drive higher engagement by addressing the specific needs of the recipient.

3. Groove: "Hey [Name], Can I Help?"

Groove, a customer service platform, used a straightforward and casual cold email approach that focused on the recipient’s pain points. The email was short, to the point, and used a conversational tone. The CTA was simple: a request for a brief call to discuss how Groove could solve the recipient's specific challenges.

What Worked:

Casual and Friendly Tone: The email didn’t come across as overly sales-driven, which helped it stand out in a crowded inbox.

Clear Value Proposition: The email was clear about what Groove could offer, without overwhelming the recipient.

Call to Action: The CTA was low-pressure, asking for a quick chat rather than a hard sell.

Lesson Learned: Sometimes, the most effective cold emails are those that are simple, personal, and offer something useful without pushing too hard.

4. Shopify: "Grow Your Business with Shopify"

Shopify, an e-commerce platform, targeted small businesses and entrepreneurs with a cold email campaign promoting their services. The email featured a limited-time promotion, a link to a free trial, and a compelling case study showcasing how Shopify helped other businesses grow.

What Worked:

Social Proof: Including a case study helped build credibility by showing how other businesses benefited from the platform.

Free Trial: Offering a risk-free trial allowed recipients to test out the platform without commitment.

Urgency: The limited-time offer created a sense of urgency.

Lesson Learned: Combining social proof with a time-sensitive offer and a risk-free trial can significantly boost the success of a cold email campaign.

5. LinkedIn Sales Navigator: "Let’s Connect!"

LinkedIn Sales Navigator used a cold email campaign that targeted decision-makers in businesses, encouraging them to connect and use the platform to improve their lead-generation efforts. The email was highly personalized, mentioning the recipient’s position and the potential benefits of using LinkedIn Sales Navigator.

What Worked:

Personalization: Mentioning the recipient’s job title and company showed that the email was not a generic blast.

CTA: The email asked for a quick LinkedIn connection, which is an easy ask compared to more formal requests.

Clear Benefit: The email emphasized the value of using LinkedIn for lead generation.

Lesson Learned: A cold email campaign that starts with a simple and non-intrusive request can lead to a strong relationship, especially when it highlights clear benefits.

6. Buzzsumo: "Get a Free Trial of Buzzsumo"

Buzzsumo, a tool that analyzes content performance, used cold emails to offer free trials to businesses interested in improving their content marketing strategy. The email was direct and included a straightforward CTA to start a free trial, backed by compelling statistics about the success businesses could expect with the tool.

What Worked:

Clear Offer: The offer of a free trial was the centerpiece of the email.

Social Proof: Buzzsumo included statistics about successful users to reinforce the effectiveness of the tool.

Compelling CTA: The CTA was simple and clear, directing recipients to sign up for the free trial.

Lesson Learned: Make the value proposition clear and direct, and remove barriers to entry, such as requiring a free trial sign-up.

7. Proposify: "Try Proposify for Free"

Proposify, a proposal software company, used a cold email to target sales teams and decision-makers with an offer to try Proposify for free. The email highlighted how the platform could help speed up the proposal process, save time, and improve proposal quality.

What Worked:

Personalized Subject Line: The subject line was personalized to the recipient’s industry.

Emphasis on Time-Saving: Time is a significant pain point for decision-makers, and the email emphasized how Proposify could save time.

Risk-Free Offer: A free trial removed the commitment barrier, giving prospects a chance to experience the product firsthand.

Lesson Learned: Highlighting a pain point (such as time savings) in a cold email, along with a risk-free offer, can grab the prospect’s attention and encourage them to take action.

8. Drift: "Let’s Chat"

Drift, a conversational marketing platform, uses a highly personalized cold email campaign that encourages recipients to schedule a brief conversation with a member of their sales team. The email is short, with a conversational tone that aligns with Drift’s product, inviting recipients to engage through a simple reply.

What Worked:

Casual and Conversational Tone: Drift’s tone matched the nature of their product, making the email feel authentic.

Easy Engagement: The CTA was simple—just respond to the email to schedule a chat.

Personalization: The email was personalized to reflect the recipient’s company and industry.

Lesson Learned: Matching the tone of your cold email to your product or service can create a more authentic, relatable message, increasing engagement.

9. Uber for Business: "Simplify Your Corporate Travel"

Uber for Business used cold emails to target businesses with a proposal to simplify corporate travel by integrating Uber into their employee travel programs. The email included a clear breakdown of the benefits, such as cost savings, ease of use, and convenience.

What Worked:

Clear Value Proposition: The email communicated the direct benefits of using Uber for Business.

Targeted Messaging: The email was tailored to businesses, making it more relevant to the recipient.

Strong CTA: The CTA offered to schedule a meeting to discuss the solution further.

Lesson Learned: When targeting businesses, make sure your cold email clearly communicates how your product or service solves a specific problem or pain point.

10. Grammarly: "Boost Your Writing with Grammarly"

Grammarly used a cold email campaign targeting business professionals, offering them a free trial of their grammar-checking tool. The email was simple but highlighted how Grammarly could improve writing quality and productivity for busy professionals.

What Worked:

Personalized Subject Line: The subject line addressed the recipient directly, increasing the chances of the email being opened.

Offer and CTA: The email included an easy-to-follow CTA for a free trial.

Clear Benefit: Grammarly clearly communicated how it could benefit the recipient in their professional life.

Lesson Learned: Cold emails should have a clear, specific offer and communicate the benefits upfront, making it easy for recipients to understand what they’ll gain by taking action.

Conclusion

Effective cold email campaigns can significantly boost lead generation and sales when executed with strategy, creativity, and personalization. The key to success lies in crafting emails that are personalized, provide clear value, and encourage easy action. By analyzing the above examples, businesses can implement best practices and create cold email campaigns that resonate with their target audience, driving better engagement and conversion rates.

[bidetspray]

Tips to Produce Top-Notch Cold Email Campaigns In 2024

In 2024, mastering the art of cold email campaigns remains essential for businesses seeking to expand their reach and drive meaningful engagement. To ensure your efforts stand out in an increasingly competitive digital landscape, consider these top-notch tips:

[sendcrux]

Boost Your Outreach with the Best Cold Email Automation Tool in the USA

In today’s competitive business landscape, effective communication is key to building relationships and driving sales. One powerful method for achieving this is through cold email automation. By leveraging advanced tools, businesses can streamline their outreach efforts, save time, and improve response rates.

Why Cold Email Automation?

Cold email automation is essential for scaling outreach efforts. Instead of manually sending emails to prospects, automation tools handle this task efficiently, allowing you to focus on crafting compelling messages and targeting the right audience. This not only boosts productivity but also ensures that your emails reach a wider audience.

Choosing the Best Cold Email Automation Tool

When selecting a cold email automation tool in the USA, consider the following features:

User-Friendly Interface: The tool should be easy to use, with a clear dashboard and intuitive features.

Customization Options: Look for tools that allow you to personalize your emails, which is crucial for engagement.

Analytics and Reporting: Comprehensive analytics help you track open rates, click-through rates, and responses, enabling you to refine your strategy.

Integration Capabilities: Ensure the tool can integrate with your existing CRM and other marketing platforms.

Best SMTP for Cold Email

To maximize the effectiveness of your cold email campaigns, it’s crucial to use the best SMTP (Simple Mail Transfer Protocol) for cold email. A reliable SMTP service ensures your emails are delivered promptly and securely, reducing the risk of your messages ending up in spam folders. This enhances deliverability and ensures your outreach efforts are not wasted.

Benefits of Using an Email Marketing Platform

An email marketing platform that includes cold email automation and the best SMTP for cold email provides several benefits:

Efficiency: Automate repetitive tasks and manage large-scale email campaigns with ease.

Personalization: Tailor your messages to individual recipients, increasing the likelihood of engagement.

Scalability: Handle a growing list of contacts without compromising on quality or performance.

Conclusion

In conclusion, boosting your outreach with the best cold email automation tool in the USA is a smart strategy for any business looking to expand its reach and drive sales. By leveraging the right tools, including a reliable SMTP service and a comprehensive email marketing platform, you can enhance your email campaigns and achieve better results. Start automating your cold emails today and watch your outreach efforts soar.

Visit: www.sendcrux.com

[rizwan-akib1]

[myfandomrealitea]

Just a reminder that:

Joey Batey has actively combated scenes, information, plots, details and lore being cut from the show by including it in his songs.

Joey Batey has been the lead songwriter and composer for all of Jaskier's music since the start of the show. That's three whole seasons worth of music so far. That's six years of writing and producing music.

Joey Batey has embodied Jaskier as bisexual since day one, and actively admitted to having to write over 7,000 words across multiple emails (excluding phone calls and in-person meetings) to fight against the choices the writers and runners were proposing for the 'reveal' scene(s) and future scenes.

Joey was one of the first people during the video interviews to praise Henry after the DeuxMoi smear campaign and has displayed nothing but respectful support for him amidst the chaos. He also did his best to imply that Henry hadn't been fired, despite the active rumors otherwise and the blanket ban on addressing actual details.

Joey filmed the Rience torture scene for over twelve consecutive hours despite being in pain and feeling nauseated and experiencing significant mental distress and being in freezing cold temperatures, outside, in the middle of winter.

Has, without fail, always supported his female co-stars and had nothing but good things to say about them. Has never sexualised them once or behaved inappropriately, and always ensures they get equal press coverage when doing group or duo events.

Read the books, played the games and asked Henry to help him prepare for and portray Jaskier as an accurate representation of Dandelion and Dandelion's personality and characteristics despite the show's shoddy writing.

[qqueenofhades]

I think the Aaron Sorkin fic people are writing about the convention to be extremely silly. It's going to be Biden. And if Biden's health takes a downturn and he feels the need to step down its going tk be Harris. This fantasy where we skip over her to whip up two random white guys(or like maaaybe Witmer) and somehow cruise to victory instead of fragmenting the party months before the election is simply not going to happen.

Look, I'm just saying, I got an email from the Biden campaign this morning where they seemed pretty darn happy with the actual (i.e. not-bloviating media) results of the debate: $38 million raised in 4 days ($30 million from individual small-dollar donors), 10K new volunteers in a week, 3x surge in campaign volunteers for battleground states, essentially no change or even a modest boost in the polls. So I think at this point, we can cautiously conclude the following things:

The debate looked bad for Biden, perhaps, but doesn't seem to have hurt him nearly as much the incredibly bad-faith BIDEN NEEDS TO STEP DOWN NOW takes being pumped out by the NYT and its other compatriots would suggest. Especially when these same media outlets have been gleefully sabotaging Biden at every turn for years already and whose fake-sanctimonious hand-wringing "for the good of the nation" pieces honestly should get them dropped into Superhell for Bad Journalists;

Biden went to Raleigh NC right after the debate and gave a fiery rally speech that was very well received. Now, I don't know why we didn't have that Biden at the debate, but it was the same night and there clearly was not any "cOgnItiVe dEcLinE" happening there (also Biden has a stutter and has for literally his entire life, and had a cold on debate night, so it was just an unfortunate confluence of factors)

There are very few actually undecided voters in this election (once again: HOW???) and those who tuned into the debate were largely already convinced of which candidate they were voting for and this didn't do much to change their minds. Just like, you know, pretty much every other debate in the history of presidential elections.

Ordinary voters, and not mainstream media outlets with BIDEN IZ BAD goggles clamped over their eyes, were able to see Trump's insane Gish gallops, lies, and full-blown dementia; this isn't going to get any better for him when he's already lost 20%-25% of GOP voters in every state primary and still is going to be sentenced in his criminal trial;

The D.C. political elite screaming about how Biden should step down (FOUR MONTHS BEFORE THE ELECTION) and leave the Democrats to start from scratch with some Star Chamber-selected candidate with no money and no incumbency record and no organization apparatus and a divided party are either fucking weapons grade morons or working secretly for Trump, because that IS in fact the best way to lose the election;

Such speculation seems to fall chiefly on Gavin Newsom, who (to his credit) has shut down any and all suggestion that he should try to step in and take the place of an incumbent who has won every state primary with 90% or more, because he's remotely sane and understands that this year is too important to fuck around with;

I've somehow never seen any suggestion that Biden should step aside for the duly elected (brown, female) Vice President, because everyone seems to think some Young Miraculous White Guy is coming and/or should step in;

All this while SCOTUS is clearly so confident of Trump getting back in that it's willing to grant him Absolute God King status pre- and post-emptively;

Yes, Biden needs to up his game before the next debate (though that's on Fox News iirc, blargh), but I think it's far enough post-debate that we can say it was bad but did not sink him, and if anything, reinforced the fact to many ordinary, non-brainwormed voters that Biden is old (which has been the number one chief theme of news coverage for four years and is no surprise to anyone) but is a decent and principled man doing a good job, while Trump is an absolute gibbering insane orange shitmonger fascist. I don't think he did himself any favors in that regard.

....anyway. The point is, do not be fucking insane people, Biden is not going to step down and frankly shouldn't, don't read the NYT (as noted, they've openly admitted to sabotaging him for personal ego reasons so I don't know why the hell anyone would listen to what they have to say about him), this is still an eminently winnable election, and let's go get those motherfucking fascists. I want Trump in jail and all of SCOTUS and the MAGAGOP fucking crying over it because they fucking suck. Let's go.

[gaza-giving-tree]

The Gaza Giving Tree: A Lifeline of Hope in the Making

This holiday season, I’m working on an initiative to make a real, tangible difference for families suffering in Gaza. The Gaza Giving Tree is currently in its planning stages, and I need your help to bring this vision to life! Together, we can bring hope and survival to those who need it most!

What is the Gaza Giving Tree?

This project will connect compassionate donors directly with verified individuals and families in Gaza who need it most. Each ornament on our virtual tree will represent a real person or family in need, linking donors directly to their campaigns. The money won't go through us—100% of donations will go directly to the people in need.

Here’s Where You Come In:

I’m currently:

1. Seeking Individuals and Families with Verified Campaigns: Do you know of families impacted by the conflict who need urgent assistance? Send me their verified campaigns or fundraisers, and I will feature them on a virtual ornament on our tree. (I'm hoping to have the tree up online within the week, either on Tumblr or on an actual website.) I'm going to start combing through lists of already vetted campaigns and making ornaments that way, but I still want people to submit all the verified campaigns they can find!! Let's make sure NO ONE is overlooked if we can help it!!

2. Looking for Volunteers: Are you creative, organized, or simply passionate about making a difference? Join me to help with designing ornaments, spreading the word, or organizing outreach!!

Why This Matters

The need in Gaza is urgent:

Astronomical Inflation: Families are struggling to afford basic necessities like bread and water.

Freezing Winter Temperatures: Displaced families face the cold without proper shelter or clothing.

Desperate Escapes: Many are raising money to leave the region in search of safety.

This project aims to shine a light of hope in the darkness and show that compassion knows no borders.

How to Get Involved

If you’d like to help or know of a family in need, please contact me:

My main Tumblr: @gardenofinkandstarlight

Email: gazagivingtree@yahoo.com

I know it's a bit last second, but we can make The Gaza Giving Tree a reality and turn this season into one of giving and hope for those who need it most!!

[vilecrocodile]

if ur dont live in the US its hard to explain the sheer amount of election spam you get every season. especially in a swing state lmfao. literally every day 5-6 fucking flyers in the mailbox, random numbers cold-calling you, text messages, people on the street asking you if you voted, relentless emails, not to mention the social media ads, campaign commercials, the glut is literally endless, and theyre always asking for 5 dollars. some of the richest most powerful ppl in the world holding their hand out like broke bitches. they get your email phone number and address from your voting registration and if you block/cancel one source theres two more the next day. please we need 5 dollars. its literally fucking endless. and youre annoyed bc people being actively starved and bombed and shot at are sending you tumblr messages. so that they can afford basic necessities. its astounding. donate to the gfms, especially the unvetted ones, cause if youve given money to a presidential campaign then youve already been scammed

[rassicas]

Hello, I hope you are well 🌹❤️

I am Muhammad Ibrahim from Gaza City 🇵🇸. I am a father of three children. After my house was severely damaged due to the violent bombing, I was displaced to the south of the Gaza Strip since the beginning of the war more than seven times, during which we moved from one area to another under fire in search of safety. We lived in a small tent that did not protect against the heat. Summer, nor the cold of winter, and I lost my job because of the war. My children are living in a state of despair and loss. They have lost their education and their childhood. How bad it feels to be unable to restore... Smile for your children 😞 I ran a fundraising campaign to provide food and water and to collect the coordination price to leave Gaza and start a new life. I hope you will help me by donating even a little 🙏

. Publish my campaign 🙏

. Spread my campaign via email or other social media sites.🙏❤️

My campaign is documented by 1-el-shab-hussein and its number is 240

2- go-ghosthttps://www.gofundme.com/f/95gn2-urgent-relief-help-my-family-evacuate🇵🇸💔🍉

[tabitha-martin]

Tabitha’s skin was tan and her heart was full. She was glowing as she practically floated her way into the office. Calvin had kissed her nearly senseless out front after insisting on not only making her breakfast and packing her lunch for her first day back after the holiday’s. Insisted on taking the tube in with her, too. Then walked her from the stop all the way to the door’s of her building, neither of them quite ready to end their nonstop time together. She was in a daze, still daydreaming about the King’s private island and family estate in Manchester, as she settled into her office with a brand new plaque on the door. Tabitha Martin - Senior Marketing Director A dream come true.

Opening her email, it took her nearly an hour to sort through all her emails and create her to-do list, which ended up being nearly a page long. Reality had finally sunk in as she locked in and started on her first task. Tabitha opened the OneDrive shared document to prepare for their 2025 Kick Off Meeting that afternoon. The third topic down was where her first tag was. The header read “New Campaign Launches” and there was a link to another document. Clicking it, she opened it and nearly screamed at the image that loaded on her screen. Tabitha’s heart began to beat wildly in her chest, so fast it felt like it had started to make its way up into her throat. The blood roared in her ears and her hands began to shake, palms going clammy as they soaked in a cold sweat. This couldn’t be real. She scrolled past the author’s stoic black and white image, staring into her soul as those dark eyes had countless times over, and began reading. We are pleased to announce the next publication from Professor Henry Jones in his series on Psychology through the lens of Business. In support of our client’s great achievement, we are proud to assign Tabitha Martin as the head of the campaign to promote both the book tour and speaking engagements. We believe this collaboration to be an ideal scenario to ensure optimal success as Ms. Martin came to us highly recommended from her time at Cambridge as a student of Professor Jones. We look forward to seeing the creative proposals at our kickoff meeting on January 14th. Meeting maker forthcoming.

She was going to be sick. She was going to vomit all over her computer and have to call IT and explain. Tabitha inhaled sharply through her nose and slowly through her mouth. She repeated the process until she managed to quell the rapid rising panic that threatened to cause her to hyperventilate. Blaire. She needed Blaire. Snatching her phone off her desk she immediately rang her best friend. Voicemail. Of course. It was as big of a day for her best friend as it was for her. The first day of her promotion and the first day of Blaire’s final semester in law school. She inhaled through her nose and exhaled through her mouth again as she hung up, the panic rising once more. After the last time she had to call Fisher with a Henry meltdown he had finally had enough. His patience with her on the matter had spanned years but who else knew. No one. Despite everything she had gone through, everything she had endured with Henry she hadn’t told anyone else. She kept her promise to him on keeping their affair a secret. For a while it had been to protect him and for a long time after that it had been for shame. Until...until she had told someone else. Only recently. But could the fragility of their past and the fresh start of their new relationship endure this? Or would this assignment become the second and third terrible things in a string of three? Tabitha, ready or not, was about to find out. With still shaking hands, she called Calvin.

[galdra-studios]

Hi everyone!

Summer is here and after a slow previous month due to some pesky colds, this month has lots of exciting news we’d like to share. So grab some ice cream and let's get started!^^

We are incredibly thrilled to be part of Humble Bundle’s annual LGBTQ bundle! It’s such an impressive lineup of games, and the money will be donated to the Trevor Project, who does amazing work supporting struggling LGBTQ youth. The bundle is live TODAY, so check it out here!

Next up in exciting news… Our demo is ready for the Kickstarter! It’s been a ton of hard work, but after much bug fixing and adjusting graphics, it’s now fully playable. It’s a really great feeling when you see all the separate parts of development coming together like this, and we’re so stoked to finally show you what Arcadia Fallen II will be all about. Which brings us to the matter of the Kickstarter release date!

Mark your calendars and get ready for the launch of the Arcadia Fallen II Kickstarter! There’ll be merch, there’ll be a demo, and we´re even bringing back the Community Stretch Goals! 

We hope it’ll be a great time for everyone!

Click here to sign up for the Kickstarter pre-launch to get an email when the campaign goes live!

This month Puk is the model for our header image, and they are accompanied by some jazzy tunes you’ll also be able to hear in the Kickstarter demo! Enjoy~

Thank you so much for following our journey! And we’ll see you in just a few days for the Kickstarter campaign! ^^ 

Cheers!

- The Galdra Team

[graciegoeskrazy]

on this night, in this light

george + charli + xcx!r

warnings: nightmares, panic attacks, emotional distress, past trauma, parental absence, I think that's it? honestly not that graphic but it defiantly talks about it.

a/n: HEY FRIENDS. this idea has been in my brain for far too long. and I KNOW a lot of y'all were wanting some more George x xcx!r so here it is. I;ve been writing a lot more for charli? I swear a lot of the knew xcx!r fics are like charli AND George? I don't hate it tho. It's def still madly George dw dw. hope y'all enjoy <3

It was an abnormally normal night for George and Charli. For the first time in months—perhaps even over a year—there were no meetings, concerts, fittings, sessions, or even a peep from their email or texts that were business-related. They had shut everything off, putting aside their careers for the day, to focus solely on you.

Between more songs or DH2, and even the entirety of the Brat campaign, it had been no secret that time spent with all three of you together had been slim. Especially in the past few months with the launch of the Sweat Tour. Today, your Mom and George had vowed that since they had a day off, they would dedicate it entirely to you.

Even with a million things going on for both of them, you had been nothing but patient and kind. Sure, you missed them more than the waking world when they were away, but you understood that they were literally living their dream, and you didn’t want to get in the way of that. Not that they would say you were. In fact, they would probably say you’d been the most supportive during the process.

The day was mainly filled with watching movies, the three of you curled up in their bed, making up for the lost time. They cherished every moment, knowing how rare such days were. They laughed and talked through the films, with your mom occasionally stealing glances at George, a silent agreement passing between them. They were happy and content, basking in the simple pleasure of finally being a family.

Later, as the evening wound down, they sent you to bed. You couldn’t remember the last time you had both of them put you to bed, but Charli swore that you wouldn’t want them to do it forever, so she savored every moment.

Nightmares had been frequent when you were younger. When they were really bad, there were nights when you would wake up screaming or even in a cold sweat. George had heard of how bad they were but had never experienced them firsthand. There would be nights when he had passed by your room or when you were up in the kitchen, and he would ask what was wrong. You would say “bad dream” or something to that extent. Charli had said it was a result of your father and your fear of him coming back. From there, it would escalate into other dreams - darker ones. But as you grew, you grew out of them. That was until recently.

It was an ordinary night, and the house was wrapped in silence when George heard something that jolted him from sleep. At first, he couldn’t make out the noise. It was a distant murmur, something that didn't quite penetrate his half-asleep state. But then, the scream, clear and unmistakable. It was you. George was instantly awake, nudging Charli beside him.

“Charli,” he said, his voice a tense whisper. His hand on her shoulder was enough to make her stir but not fully awake. When the second scream broke through, he nudged her again, this time more urgently. “Charli!”

The house, which had been so still just a moment before, was now filled with a cascade of screams. The two of them sprang out of bed, their hearts racing as they raced toward your room. The darkness of the house seemed to engulf them, causing George to turn on the nightstand lamp as he entered your room, casting a warm, soothing light.

You were screaming in your bed, tears streaming down your cheeks. Your cries were raw, filled with fear and desperation. George sat down next to you, while your Mom took the other side of the bed, her face etched with concern.

“Shhh. Wake up, baby. Wake up,” George said softly, his voice trembling with worry. You wouldn’t budge, still trapped in the nightmare.

George gently held your head, afraid you would hurt yourself against the headboard if you continued to thrash. Charli grasped your hand, brushing the stray hairs from your face in a soothing gesture. “Y/n, wake up, my love.”

After a moment, your tears subsided just for a second, and you shot up in bed. Your eyes were wide, and the feeling of two people beside you, yet not knowing who they were, scared you even more. It was Charli’s calming voice that finally pierced through your fear. “Shhh, it’s okay, it’s okay. It’s just us.” Your eyes met theirs, still filled with fear. Charli continued to speak softly. “You’re okay now.”

Despite her words, you continued to cry. Your breathing was fast and uneven, and soon enough, Charli and George saw a sight they recognized all too well.

George reached out, grabbing your hands as you tried to pull away. “Breathe, Y/n.”

You shook your head vigorously. “I can’t—”

“Yes, you can. Breathe with me.” He led you through the breathing exercise you had practiced together during previous panic attacks. “In through your nose, out through your mouth.”

After a while your panic subsided, and you were left with your tears and sniffles. “A nightmare?” George asked gently.

You nodded frantically, tears still streaking down your face. “Yeah.”

“Do you want to tell us what happened?” Charli asked, her voice soothing.

You thought for a second, then continued, your voice quiet, yet loud enough for them to hear it. “It was really dark,” you said, your voice trembling. “I don’t know where I was. But I found a house, and I went inside. And he was there…”

“Who was there, baby?” Charli asked, his voice a low murmur.

“Him.” The fear in your voice was palpable. “He grabbed me. Once I started yelling, I could hear both of your voices. It was so clear! It felt so real!”

“Shh. I know, I know,” Charli said softly, rubbing your back.

“He wanted to hurt me,” you continued, your voice breaking. “I kept yelling, and your voices kept yelling for me, but you guys never came.”

“It was only a dream, my love,” George said, his voice gentle but firm. “Only a dream.”

“We’re right here with you right now,” Your mom said. “He is so far away from here, and we are so protected that he would hurt himself if he even tried to get to you.”

“You’re safe here,” George added. “You’re safe with us.”

The room was quiet for a moment as you sat back against the headboard, in between your Mom and stepfather.

A thought then crossed Charli’s mind. “How long has this been happening?”

You didn’t respond immediately. Your eyes looked anywhere but at your mom, and you bowed your head, embarrassment creeping in. “Y/n Daniel…” Charli’s voice was gentle but insistent.

“...About two months?” you mumbled, your voice barely audible.

“The whole time we’ve been gone!?” Charli’s voice was filled with concern and disbelief.

“It got better!” you insisted. “On the nights when you both were here, it wouldn’t happen! It just… did tonight, I guess.”

“You should’ve told us, baby,” Charli said, gently caressing the sides of your face, her voice softening with concern.

“I didn’t want to bother you both,” you said, your voice breaking.

“How many times do we have to tell you?” George said, his tone tender yet firm. “You’re not bothering us! It’s literally our job to be here for you.”

“Still, I didn’t want you guys to worry about me,” you said, wiping away a tear.

“Oh, my love,” Charli said, her voice breaking slightly. “That’s all we ever do. There’s not a second that goes by where you are not on my mind. Doesn’t matter where I am. I could be on the other side of the world, performing on a huge stage, and I start wondering, ‘Did Y/n do her homework tonight? Did she eat dinner? Did Mum make sure to feed her?’”

The comment brought a small smile to your face, which was a win in their book.

“If something like this happens again,” George said gently, “you tell us. If nothing like this happens, still, you tell us. If you have a mundane detail about your day, still, you tell us.”

“That’s what we’re here for,” Charli added. “Understand?”

“I’m sorry I woke you guys up,” you said, your voice filled with regret.

“There’s no need to apologize, my love,” George said, squeezing your hands. “Plus, you only woke me up, not your mother. You know how much of a heavy sleeper she is.”

“Well, maybe if you didn’t snore so loudly, I would be able to get up a little sooner to help my child, huh?” Charli said, her voice playful.

“I don’t snore,” George said.

“Yes, you do,” You said with a smirk.

“Excuse me?” George said, raising an eyebrow.

“I can hear it through the walls,” You said, your tone light.

George shook his head. “I’ll have you know that I am perfectly quiet.”

“Oh, please,” Charli said, her smile widening. “I’ve heard you through the walls. And it’s not exactly a whisper.”

You couldn’t help but chuckle at their playful banter. It was a welcome distraction from the fear that had gripped you only moments before.

As the laughter died down, Charli brushed a stray hair from your face. “We love you, Y/n. Always remember that. No matter what, we’re here for you.”

George nodded in agreement, pulling you into a comforting embrace. “We’re not going anywhere. Not tonight, not ever.”

With their reassuring presence surrounding you, the fear and anxiety of the nightmare slowly ebbed away. You snuggled closer to them, feeling safe and loved.

They stayed with you on that bed until your breathing evened out. Even then they didn’t want to leave. Especially Charli - George could see that look in her eyes.

“She’ll be alright.” he said, reassuring her.

She took a deep sigh, “Of course she will,” She grabbed his hand. “She has us.”

[mariacallous]

On May 16, the gaming and entertainment news site Dexerto tweeted an image from the forthcoming game Assassin’s Creed Shadows featuring one of its protagonists, the Black samurai Yasuke, in a fighting pose. Across scores of replies, some voiced optimism, others fatigue with Assassin’s Creed’s now 14-game-long run, and a very vocal few expressed frustration and anger that a Black person was at the center of the narrative.

“Gonna pass on the DEI games,” wrote one blue-check X user, referencing the acronym for diversity, equity, and inclusion. “Why Wokeism?” asked another. Comments full of racist and sexist language filled the thread.

A more articulate undercurrent of these reactionaries, across many online forums, had a more specific set of complaints. Some alleged the race of the real Yasuke was never known, others that he wasn’t a samurai but a retainer, and another claimed he was never in combat.

These were all fairly elaborate conclusions to draw about a guy from 1581 who’s been depicted as a samurai in Japanese media many times, including in the 2017 video game Nioh and Samurai Warriors 5 in 2021, as well as his own animated series on Netflix.

They also may have been the last bit of armchair history we got on Yasuke if the conversation hadn’t been sustained by a set of accounts looking to build yet another front in the online culture war, fueling what some have been calling Gamergate 2.0. Whereas the Gamergate of 2014 focused on trying to drown out feminist voices, and the voices of women of color, in gaming culture, this second incarnation seems focused on pushing back against diversity in games of all kinds. Yasuke just stepped in their path.

The resurgence of the Gamergate moniker came earlier this year in reaction to the work of Sweet Baby. Staff at the small consultancy received a wave of harassment this spring stemming from misinformation and conspiracy theories claiming the company was a BlackRock-backed outfit trying to force diversity into games. (It’s not affiliated with BlackRock and merely advises on characters and storylines.) As the controversy around Assassin’s Creed Shadows intensified, several posts mentioned Sweet Baby, even though company CEO Kim Belair says the firm didn’t work on the game.

“I think it just comes with the post-Gamergate (late-Gamergate?) territory,” Belair wrote in an email to WIRED. “To a certain kind of person, largely trolls, we're synonymous with their idea of ‘wokeness in games’ or a vague idea of ‘DEI,’ but it's ultimately reflective of the overall misinformation that fuels this campaign.”

Gamergate was not the first harassment campaign conceived in the bowels of 4chan and its affiliate websites, but it was perhaps their crowning achievement. The attacks against developers Zoë Quinn and Brianna Wu and media critic Anita Sarkeesian, among others, ranged from doxing to rape and death threats. Its tenets and tactics eventually proved valuable in bringing people into the burgeoning alt-right movement. Even Pizzagate and QAnon can, in some ways, be traced back to what was happening with gamers online in 2014.

“Gamergate was a recruiting ground, a pipeline to leverage the loneliness, discontentment, and alienation of young men—often white young men—into alt-right politics, extremist misogyny, and outright white supremacy and Nazism,” Thirsty Suitors narrative lead Meghna Jayanth told WIRED.

If the early days of social media incubated a cultural cold war, Gamergate turned it hot. Frustrated that they were no longer the sole demographic being catered to, Gamergaters saw “the growing visibility of women, not to mention their incomprehensible insistence that games cater to their perspectives as well, as an unwelcome intrusion in a space that does not belong to them,” Laura Hudson wrote in WIRED at the time. As a result, they wanted more than debate, they wanted blood—and nothing really stopped them from going after it.

Ten years later, aggrieved gamers are focusing on other forms of diversity and inclusion, which is how Assassin’s Creed Shadows’ Yasuke has become the latest point of contention.

While only so much can be truly known when it comes to history, accounts suggest Yasuke (the real one, not the video game character) was a man presumed to be from west Africa who served the Italian missionary Alessandro Valignano. He accompanied Valignano to Japan where he served Oda Nobunaga at the daimyo’s demand. Yasuke was presented with the trappings of a samurai: a house, servants, a sword. He would go on to be with Nobunaga, or near him, at the time of his death, before seeking his heir Nobutada and joining him in battling those responsible for Nobunga’s death, though unsuccessfully.

While Yasuke’s history is fascinating and mysterious, much of the fuss over him has concerned whether he was officially a samurai, a depiction that has shown up in media several times in and outside of Japan. Some insist that he may have instead been a retainer, page, squire, or sword-bearer. Others decrying his inclusion in Shadows said he looked gay.

“There is no easy way to separate the many threads of what we are seeing within the Yasuke backlash,” says Paula Curtis, a postdoctoral fellow at UCLA’s Terasaki Center for Japanese Studies. “There are legitimate complaints about the developers’ decisions regarding representation and historical engagement … There are also many discriminatory responses to the game that have been anti-Black, misogynistic, and politically motivated.” It’s important to note, Curtis adds, that Shadows’ fans and commentators, and the issues they’re raising, aren’t uniform.

When Japanese historian Yu Hirayama tweeted there was “no doubt” as to Yasuke’s samurai status, he was treated to a tirade of abusive replies in English, including one claiming he brought “dishonor to [his] family and Japanese history.”

Amid the backlash to Yasuke’s inclusion in the game—and specifically to his role as a samurai—Ubisoft, the game’s developer, issued a statement saying that while the company “extensively collaborated with external consultants, historians, researchers, and internal teams at Ubisoft Japan” on the game, “some elements in our promotional materials have caused concern within the Japanese community.”

Without saying specifically which aspects caused concern, the company added that it was taking this “constructive criticism” into account as it prepared for the game’s November launch, and apologized. (Ubisoft did not respond to a request for comment on this story.)

Jayanth believes the apology was a case of misplaced appeasement.

“The alt-right's fundamental drive is hatred of the ‘other,’” she says. “Even if we cleansed our games of women, non-white people, queer people—which is their ask, and one we absolutely should not give in to—they would turn to insufficiently ‘masculine’ depictions of white men. This movement exists only in opposition to some polluting ‘other,’ an enemy that must be manufactured if a real enemy cannot be found.”

Revisionist approaches to history have seen a rise in recent years, especially in the interest of enshrining an idealist sense of a traditionalist past as an ahistorically conservative utopia.

“You see this in the false assertion of a purely white Middle Ages or the denial of war atrocities in World War II,” Curtis says. “Bad-faith actors may cherry-pick historical sources in order to craft specific narratives, completely ignore sources that do not support their views, or appropriate historical symbols as rallying cries to their causes.”

The proponents of Gamergate 2.0 have veiled their scorn for Assassin’s Creed Shadows’ inclusion of Yasuke within concerns for historical accuracy. Much Like the Gamergaters of old, who insisted they were defending ethics in gaming journalism and not harassing women they felt needed to be put in their place.

Gamergate then, and Gamergate now, are both ultimately about the sensitivities around who saw representation and how, made disproportionately important by how disempowered and alienated modern people feel. As games have made room for a wider array of characters, the gamers at the center of the backlash have seen this progress as a form of persecution. Games are changing, and as much as those upset over Yasuke’s inclusion in Shadows want to push back, they may not be able to stop that.

“It's certainly been strange to see us tied to a ton of games we've never worked on simply because people perceive ‘wokeness’ or progressive ideas in them,” Sweet Baby’s Belair says, “but maybe it's indicative of a greater truth that Gamergaters miss: No external consultancy is forcing studios to make their products more diverse or more progressive. The change, whatever you think of it, is coming from inside the house.”

[sendcrux]

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[historicfailure]

Chapter 9: The change within

Working so closely with Kakashi, you begin to notice a slow, but gradual change in him.

~ X ~

After a direction for the campaign was set and a slogan was now found which could be used as a foundation to go forward with other procedures, you found yourself more and more entrenched in the work. And now, with Kakashi fully on board, work was easier. Easier because, well, he obviously didn’t have the time to bully you any longer. The apologies also helped, of course. That reassurance was all you needed to go all in with your work, even if it meant to work longer than everybody else or harder than anybody else on the team. Even though your job was not much more than collecting data and evaluating said data, you also found yourself doing more than that; taking part in the creative process. Work you had to cast aside in the previous firm you worked at, knowing you would indulge too much, but it was needed right here and now. 

And not only that was needed of you. 

“When will this be done? Do you have a timeline on this?”

You were only half-aware of Kakashi inquiring about something from Iruka. Your mind was in too deep with the next set of slideshows to present to the committee of Akatsuki next week. Painstakingly dragging one slide in Photoshop into a corner, making sure it was perfectly aligned, then adding and erasing the same effect a moment later. It didn’t add anything to the presentation, just unnecessary flourish which didn’t make any sense. In the larger scheme, of course.

“I just wanted to know-!”

“All the details you need are in the mail I sent you.”

A low sigh escaped you. This presentation was crucial, it needed to be finished by the end of the week, and half of the stuff in the presentation wasn’t even ready to be shown yet, thanks to the late start. It all had to be finished this week, and everyone tasked to handle the Akatsuki marketing campaign was working their asses off. Still, Kakashi and you were usually the last ones to leave the office. Absent-mindedly, you went through the motions of creating another slide for the presentation, before a sharp and louder than usual voice made you look up from your screen. 

To your surprise, Iruka stood up from his chair in front of Minato’s office to face off with Kakashi. The smaller, yet broader man snarled up into Kakashi’s face, the tanned skin of his face blushing from frustration and anger; two emotions you were all too familiar with when it came to dealing with the prick of a guy. 

“What is your problem?” Iruka reached up to tighten his high ponytail with a sharp gesture. “You have all the information you need in the email-!”

Kakashi interjected, his tone cold and just as sharp as Iruka’s gesture had been. “I’m not sure if you understand. I said that the deadline isn’t in the mail, I checked twice.”

“The deadline is in the mail, right in the second paragraph!”

“It’s. Not. In. There. How many times do I have to repeat myself, Umino?”

Both of your eyebrows shot up. What the hell was going on? Sure, Kakashi was an asshole sometimes, but you still had never seen him raise his voice like this. Especially not to someone like Iruka. Sweet, gentle Iruka, who was always friendly and ready to help out in the full capacity of his capability.  Which was extensive: despite being the same age as you, his parents apparently had built an extensive network and introduced Iruka to the world of marketing the day he was born. If Iruka didn’t know someone, they weren’t important, simple as that. Plus, he had worked as a teacher before. His scoldings were truly one of a kind. No one, in this entire firm, was willing to anger him, besides Anko. And Anko didn’t truly count, she was insane anyway.

Your hands continued to half-heartedly move the mouse and ghost over the keyboard, pretending to work, while your ears fixated more and more on the sharp conversation just a few desks over. 

“It’s right there! Check your eyes, Hatake.”

“Checked two times. There is nothing!”

“And I checked three times that the most important info you needed is in the mail!”

“Well, it isn’t. Just send me the info when you fucking have it.”

“You have all the info you need!” Just in time, you turned your head the tiniest bit to see how Iruka stormed around his desk to check the mail in question personally. Everyone close by seemed to hold their breaths in the next moments, only disturbed by the furious clicks of his mouse. Then, a triumphant snort, and Iruka jerked upright, glaring at Kakashi. “Check it yourself. And maybe get your eyes checked as well, while you’re at it.”

Iruka pointed at his screen. Kakashi clicked his tongue, but followed suit and walked around the desk to check the other man’s screen. A few seconds passed, then Kakashi, without another word, turned and walked away.

“You’re welcome!” Iruka called after him, only to shake his head. “What a fucking prick…”

What the fuck just happened? You surely weren’t the only one left flabbergasted at what just happened right in front of the entire office, right? With Kakashi being blatantly wrong and not coming out on top somehow. Even though you weren’t a fan of his anymore, you at least could see that this wasn’t his usual behavior. So far, you experienced him as sometimes mean-spirited or socially inclined, maybe cold and nonchalant, but never openly heated. This fight was strange and not typical for the man.

~ X ~

“I noticed your little altercation with Iruka today.”

“Mhm.” Kakashi only hummed, refusing to elaborate further. Understandably so. Deep into the evening, with the open office once again empty, you had felt secure enough to start a conversation with him. 

“What was that one about?” You leaned over the desk, arms crossed and eyes transfixed on the man, who was trying to busy himself with typing up a fitting proposal for the upcoming presentation. “Something about a deadline?”

“Yeah”, he sighed. For another long moment, he stayed silent, eyes glaring at the screen like he would find the answer to your question there, but then his look cleared. His fingers quickly flew over the keyboard once more, like they had never stopped in the first place. “I ordered some print materials for the presentation next week. Didn’t get any info so far if they were able to finish them on time or not, so I tried to get an inquiry on the timeline.”

“And…?”

Suddenly, Kakashi pushed his chair away from the table. Both of his hands rose to scrub wildly through his hair, to the point the motions looked almost painful. “Iruka sent them in that godforsaken email, and I misread it. I thought he forgot to include the date, but it was in there.”

“Oh. Okay.” 

It wasn’t Kakashi’s style to escalate a situation like this; with angry voices, sharp tones and tense nerves. Over the last few weeks, he had been stressed for sure, and yet you didn’t think he was someone to get easily angry over an honest mistake like Iruka could have potentially made. And for Kakashi to be so tardy to misread a line and completely miss the information he desperately waited for? No, that also wouldn’t be like him. Something else was amiss here. 

Your mouth already opened to comment on his behavior, but your brain shut it again before you could get any words out. Kakashi knew he fucked up. He obviously did, and blamed himself for it. You didn’t have to tell him. The most sensible thing you could do was help him out a bit. Of course, for the sake of hopefully restoring some peace in the office and making sure Iruka wouldn’t rightfully take gruesome revenge on Kakashi. 

“Iruka likes the Ichiraku instant cup noodles.”

For the first time, Kakashi looked properly at you. His eyes flickered upwards, dancing over your entire face. Your words didn’t seem to properly register for a few seconds. After a few more moments of blind staring, a light seemed to go off above his head. “You mean…”

“Buying him some of the XXtra Fire Spicy kind might be a good peace offering”, you said, then gently tabbed against your nose. “You don’t know this from me, though. Anko would kill me if she ever finds out I’m handing out her bribery-info like that.”

A quick grin flashed over his face. “I wouldn’t dare to rat you out. Thanks.”

“You’re welcome.” 

“I have to ask, though.”

“What?”

“Why?” 

“Because…” You breathed in, trying to find the right words. “Because an angry and vengeful Iruka could throw some stones into our way. Because I want to make this work now. Because why not?” You shrugged weakly. “Does there have to be a reason at this point?”

Kakashi shook his head. “But I liked to hear your reasons. They’re all pretty damn good.” His eyes flitted again over your face. Down from your eyes to your nose and further below, lingering there, then up again. He pushed himself even further away from the desk, then sighed again. “Sorry for this mess. I will fix it.”

“All good. Nice to see I’m not the only one who has to suffer under the terrible reign of Kakashi Hatake, entitled egomaniac and incredibly conceited on top of that.”

That made him at least chuckle. “Egomaniac and conceited? Hard to beat.”

“I could have added self-absorbed and thoughtless, but hey. No need to be cruel.”

You watched how the new creases and wrinkles around Kakashi’s eyes deepened with his tired grin. The little dip in your stomach at the sight was promptly ignored and pushed aside, into a forgotten corner, where your admiration for the man rested after discovering how much of an asshole he could be. 

~ X ~

Seeing your face today made coming to work worth it. 

Keep it up!

~ X ~

“Kakashi, could we speak for a moment?” 

Of course, he expected Minato to come to him. Not after this fucking colossal mishap of a social interact he had with Iruka. 

I can’t be burned out. I feel fine enough. I just need to get through this campaign, then it will be alright. 

It’s my fault the campaign takes so long. It’s my fault, I have to keep the team here for overtime almost every night. It’s my fault Minato and Kushina have to beg for extensions on the deadlines for the campaign, because I took so damn long to get one single fucking idea.

I can’t let them all down. When this is all over, I can rest again, or even think about the off-chance of being…

He didn’t want to think about it, didn’t even name the sickness in his thoughts. Naming it gave it power, made it real, made it terrifying enough to shy away from it. Minato asking such questions in the first place said all Kakashi needed to know. The quality of his work had diminished, worsened noticeably over the last few months. Had others noticed as well? Were they looking at him, trying to see if he was failing? 

 ~ X ~

With the weather turning against, the sky turning bleak and cloudy every so often, and with the long hours of work filling your days, it was no miracle you felt more tired than usual. Sometimes, right after lunch, your eyelids began to drop, and the afternoon always turned into gum with how long it seemed to stretch out. But it was necessary, so you dutifully noted down all of your overtime, gritted your teeth and brewed extra strong coffee with the new machine in the break room. 

You could see the toll also in Kakashi. Apart from his ever-present eyebags, more often than not he was yawning, one hand lazily covering his mouth. His posture was even more slumped than usual, shoulders dropping and spine slouching to the point you wanted to ask him if he was suffering from some spinal injury. Sometimes, especially late in the night, when him and you were the only people left in the office, he would space out. 

“Hey, I looked over the time schedule Itachi sent, and Akatsuki wants to reschedule the next appointment for an update on the campaign.”

After a few moments of absolute silence, you looked up. It took a bit for your eyes to adjust, going from the brightly lit screen of your laptop to the dim surroundings of the office. By now, it was customary to move closer with your laptop to Kakashi’s desk, as he was insistent on working at his own desk, “where everything is where it’s supposed to be and I can find everything”. 

There was no one at the desk. You strained your eyes, peering through the curtain of tiredness hanging over your mind. Strange. Kakashi hadn’t gotten up, right? You would have noticed. With a twinge in your stomach, you got up. And instantly spotted him.

He was sleeping. Kakashi was sleeping, upper body draped across the desk, face squashed against his arm, which was protectively laid out over a bunch of paper, the pencil still loosely held up by his fingers. Only illuminated by the screens in front of him, where flickering lights showed off the latest Akatsuki-promotion videos they produced in house and Itachi sent over as a directional tool, he seemed so…

Young. 

Younger than you had ever expected him to be. Carefully as to not wake the man, you leaned in, trying to figure out what was now so different. Maybe it was because the wrinkles around his eyes had softened. Or because his mouth was slightly open, mumbling weakly but without any coherent wording. Or because for the first time, there were no pretenses for Kakashi to hide behind. 

Your heart fluttered weakly when he mumbled again, pretty lips opening and closing, before a sigh drifted past his mouth. Up so close and without any defenses, it was so easy to forget all the reasons why you should stay away. Kakashi was all light; silvery mysterious moonlight, only disturbed by the small dot of a dimple right below his mouth. 

Stop this. It’s creepy as fuck.

With a shake of your head, you stepped fully around the desk. He had to wake up, and even more so, get out of this office.

“Hey…” Gently, you reached out, poking your index finger into his shoulder. Once, then twice. “Kakashi? Wake up.”

A weak grumble erupted from him, but nothing else. Again, you poked him, this time a bit more forcefully. “Hey. Wake up. You can go home.”

“Mhmm…” Kakashi pulled a face, eyes still closed. One of his hands came up to shield his face from any light, sound or your contact. “Five more…”

“Alright. Don’t blame me though when you have a stiff neck in the end.” You backed up, already trying to forget how Kakashi looked like when his face was crumpled by a good nap, when the man shot upright. 

“What-?” He yawned widely, eyes quickly blinking away the last bits of sleep. “Where am I?”

“Still in the office. Had a good nap?”

“Unfortunately, one of the better ones I had lately.” 

“Trouble falling asleep, ah. Can’t say I’m unfamiliar.” And you meant it. 

Kakashi shrugged. “Or staying asleep. And yet…” He fell silent, eyes glazing over and staring emptily at the blue-lit screens in front of him. You nearly expected to see a string of drool dribbling down his chin, but then, he seemed to wake up from his weird trance. “Sorry for keeping you here. You can go, it’s already…” 

“I’m not going,” you said, while Kakashi tried to check the time with bleary eyes, “before you have gotten out of your chair and come with me.”

“But…”

“I’m not up to argue this point right now.” 

For a very long second, Kakashi seemed to actually want to argue. The sharp crease around his mouth deepened, gnawing at his inner cheek. You sharpened the look you gave him; just a bit more edge and bite in your eyes, then he nodded in defeat. 

“Sure. Let me just grab my laptop and-!”

“You’re leaving the laptop here as well.”

That, however, got you a stronger reaction than you thought. 

“I can’t”, Kakashi shook his head, “I can’t leave the laptop here.”

“Yes. You can. There’s literally no reason why you couldn’t.”

“But there’s so much work to do!”

The realization of what exactly was happening wasn’t a sudden one. No, you had suspected in the back of your mind what was exactly going on with Kakashi. His uncharacteristic snappiness towards other people, the mistakes and sloppiness, him falling asleep yet panicking, all of those were hints leading toward the real problem. And now these familiar lines. Lines you had said yourself a while back, with a pounding heart in your throat and bile gathering in your stomach. These fucking lines, all too familiar and still numbing your self all the same. 

You paused, mouth slightly open as you tried to find the right words. Words you had needed to hear from someone. But it was still Kakashi Hatake.

You and him weren’t close. Not that close, in fact. And you suspected that no one else, but his parents were close enough to say them, and you also suspected they hadn’t noticed anything uncommon with their son yet. 

“Kakashi”, you started slowly, “if you continue on this campaign in your state, you will regret it later. It is of no use to anyone if you force yourself to be creative like this.”

“We have no time, we still have so many things to do, and we’re behind because-!”

“We’re not so far behind anymore. We did so much work during the last weeks. Kakashi…”

He shook his head, all sharp, jerky movements. “No. No, it’s because of me. I have to… I need to make this right.”

“You already did. Listen.”

The man still shook his head. Caught in a loop, created by his state and exhaustion. Probably also due to sleeping troubles. “I can’t, there’s still some color schemes left to talk over, I need to adjust the…” His voice trailed off, drifting away like a sigh swept away by a sudden gust of wind. 

“Kakashi.” You reached over, fingers touching and tugging at the soft fabric of his comfy, oversized sweater. “Listen to me. You did enough for today. Tomorrow, we can do more stuff. Tonight, you take a shower, you get yourself a nice meal, and try to have some sleep. It is okay.”

But he wasn’t listening. His eyes were bearing down on your hand, intently following the movements of your gentle tugging, before sliding right up your arm and further up to the curve of your shoulder, the dip of your neck, and right up to your face. 

“Kakashi”, you tried again, “You can go home. It’s fine.”

“Why do you care if I leave or not? It’s not like you particularly like me.”

“I came to tolerate you. Besides, I still need you.”

“For what? For not having any ideas? For not being creative enough? For making shitty, stupid mistakes and holding everyone up?” His voice rose, the tone frustrated like you had never heard him before. Like a dam was broken, the water breaking free and ripping away all of his inhibitions and usual restraints. “I’m trying so hard to make things right because I know that I fucked up by not having an idea for ages, then for being indecisive, and now everything is too much! I’m fucking drowning over here, and I know I shouldn’t ask for help because I do not deserve to feel that way!”

For a moment, Kakashi looked like he wanted to continue his tirade, but then he deflated like one of these balloons parents get for their kids on a holiday; one moment filled to the brim with helium and the next, slowly releasing said gas into the stratosphere while flattening with every passing second. “I just…” He shrugged, voice meek and flat and so tired, “don’t know anymore.”

“Kakashi, I…” You sighed. Fuck, this situation was a whole-ass mess. How were you supposed to handle this? Of course, you had a pretty educated guess what was happening to Kakashi, and you were pretty sure he was thinking of the same thing already. But you weren’t really in a place where you could just tell him that, right? Because thinking and actually speaking the condition into existence were two completely different things.

“Kakashi”, you started again, all the while still reaching out and gesturing to him to step out from behind the desk, “I understand what you’re going through right now. Better than you might think. But I’m not going to have this conversation right now with you, when you should really be on your way home. Go home. Rest. And tomorrow, we can speak about it in depth, okay?”

“For sure?” 

“Yes. But go home, please.”

For another, horrifyingly long moment, he just stood there. Motionless, with only his eyes scanning your entire body up and down, before he nodded. Slowly, but he did. “Okay. I go home now. Happy?”

“Cut the moody teenager shit with me, Kakashi.”

“Sorry. I just…” His eyes scrunched close, groaning as he did so. “Fuck. I’m an ass.”

“Good. We’re agreeing on one thing.” As you watched how the man packed his things up — he left his laptop on the desk, you noted — you were already trying to puzzle together what to say tomorrow.

Because how could you possibly explain to Kakashi Hatake that he was probably suffering from Burn out? 

[128alteregos]

Hello, I hope you are well 🌹❤️

I am Muhammad Ibrahim from Gaza City 🇵🇸. I am a father of three children. After my house was severely damaged due to the violent bombing, I was displaced to the south of the Gaza Strip since the beginning of the war more than seven times, during which we moved from one area to another under fire in search of safety. We lived in a small tent that did not protect against the heat. Summer, nor the cold of winter, and I lost my job because of the war. My children are living in a state of despair and loss. They have lost their education and their childhood. How bad it feels to be unable to restore... Smile for your children 😞 I ran a fundraising campaign to provide food and water and to collect the coordination price to leave Gaza and start a new life. I hope you will help me by donating even a little 🙏

. Publish my campaign 🙏

. Spread my campaign via email or other social media sites.🙏❤️

My campaign is documented by

➡️ el-shab-hussien number is 240

➡️ go-ghost

🇵🇸🍉💔🇵🇸 https://www.gofundme.com/f/95gn2-urgent-relief-help-my-family-evacuate

Verified by @/gaza-evacuation-funds, shared by @/90-ghost, shared by @/el-shab-hussein and it’s listed as number 240 on the list created by @/nabulsi and @/el-shab-hussein.

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