#done for cringetober day 15: Song Lyrics!

[minmocat]

DON'T GIVE IT TO HER, YOU'VE GOTTA GIVE IT TO ME!

[the-parentheticals]

"it can't be helped," from the scum who can't be helped

Warnings: mugging, brief thoughts about s/a but none actually happens

Summary: Koemi doesn't want to see her brother again. She never has. She never will.

Note: For @badthingshappenbingo, Banished / Cringetober day 15, song lyrics. Yes, this is based on The Purge March.

read on ao3

It's almost a blessing when Kiyoshi Nishimoto disappears the week before his eighteenth birthday.

She doesn't like him. She hasn't liked him in years. She hasn't liked anyone in this household for years, really, except for perhaps the goldfish.

Koemi's not an idiot. She knows what he was doing, despite their parents' best attempts to pretend otherwise. The jewelry that isn't their mother's, the late nights sneaking in, the discreet calls. Honestly, it's better that he left instead of disgracing their family that way when it inevitably came out.

"Good morning, everyone! It's the beginning of another wonderful day!"

Their parents had freaked out. Spewed the vulgarity that they had always warned her against. Her brother had it coming. She hoped he was dead.

"I know that this situation is a tragedy, but we have to stay strong for my dear brother's sake!"

Koemi doesn't quite believe in this one, but it's her duty to say the words anyway.

"We can't let our sadness control us! We have to move on and always remember him!"

As a terrible example, that is.

Her brother does not deserve her forgiveness. She knows what he was really like--not the hero he thought he was, not the good kid her parents thought he was. No, he was nothing less than scum.

---

Three years later, she's seventeen, and she's only further confirmed her belief that everyone else in this family was rotten.

It's not that Kiyoshi's disappearance had done her any favours when starting at high school. They mostly just thought she was weird. Or cursed.

That's the only reason she's walking home alone this late at night. The only one.

She doesn't even move when she feels the knife against her neck. She's grown up to be very pretty, if she says so herself, and she's not even surprised someone's taken an interest.

"You know the drill." The voice is deep and raspy, and she freezes for just a moment. It's a put-on. "Your wallet."

"Or what?"

The knife digs slightly deeper into her skin as answer. Not enough to draw blood, just to make a point.

"As if you could ever lay a finger on your little sister."

The knife pulls a bit, just long enough for a strand of blonde hair to be snipped off. It lies flat against her white sweater for just a moment, before he jerks his arm away and the strand falls to the ground.

She doesn't care for the face of the person in front of her very much, but she supposes she can't stare at her personal belongings forever.

"We're not siblings anymore."

"Of course we are. Unless you kill me now, I suppose, but like I said." She gives a self-assured smile. "You won't."

Kiyoshi looks at her with a characteristic coldness. He's a bit taller now, or maybe it's just his shoes. Not that it really makes a difference, with how short she always has been.

His clothes are surprisingly put-together for someone who's been living who-knows-where. He's still got his suit jacket, vest, and yellow shirt, dirty in a way that their parents would have hated but barely pings on her radar. His hair is messier and covers his right eye just enough that...oh.

"How is your eye?" Koemi smiles. If he won't talk, she'll just have to keep talking. "I suppose whoever caused it is dead now?"

"Why is that your first assumption?"

"I know you, that's why." She clasps her hands together and gives a little hum. He doesn't bother her anymore. Not the way anyone else would. "Pity they didn't take out both."

"My turn to ask the questions. How are our parents, then? Still holding you back?

"You don't know what they've done in three years. For all you know, they've become just like you, and my life's a living hell."

Kiyoshi raises an eyebrow in the way that suggests that he thinks his sister is an utter idiot but doesn't want to admit it just yet.

"They've been doing this for longer than we were alive. You were already in a living hell. But you can--"

"Pity they didn't take out your tongue too." Koemi's smile does not waver, 

Kiyoshi ignores her. "You think your rules will keep you safe from the rest of this world. Our parents, double standards..."

"It's worked, hasn't it?"

"You're just as rotten as the rest of us."

"How?"

"You think I'm scum, don't you?"

Koemi nods.

"Then do something about it."

"I could never." Koemi wrenches her arm away. In another universe, it would actually hurt. "That's the difference between us, brother dear."

"I don't make pitiful excuses for doing what has to be done?"

"I don't make people obey my every whim and call it freedom."

"I don't make them do that. I save them from themselves, Ko. I get them away from all the pain in their lives that results from them holding back against those that really want to hurt them."

"You destroy them from the inside. You make them do all the worst excesses we have good reasons for not doing. You make people live according to your beliefs. You're the worst one here, and you don't even know it. You're doubtlessly, clearly, absolutely, unequivocally, beyond any doubt, categorically, emphatically--" Koemi has to stop, because her face is red, and Mother, Father, would never have believed her if she had said it that way. She breathes in. Breathes out. Next--

"I'm sorry for leaving you with them."

She blinks. It's not true. That's definitely not something Kiyoshi would ever have said.  Her disbelief has to show on her face.

"I am. They shouldn't have been able to influence anyone like that, especially not you."

"You're sorry? I don't care!"

"I know."

"Remember my screams? My cries? My apologies?"

"I know."

"Don't come back to the house. You left me with them. This should be easy for you." She crosses her arms and leans against a lamp post. "And don't even try following me. I'll know."

"You won't. And I won't."

[browzerhistory]

cringetober days 14 & 15: candy gore + song lyrics (gore and eyestrain below the cut)

[id: a digital drawing of a person laying on their back with their arms spread out, which cuts off at the waist and just below their eyes. their chest is split open to reveal bright, saturated gummy organs in rainbow colors. their mouth is visible, with bright pink "blood" dripping from it. they have light skin, dark, fluffy hair, and top surgery scars. superimposed on the drawing are the words "A VIVISECTION OF ME" in the top left corner and "DONE BY GOD FOR ALL TO SEE" in the bottom right. end id.]

DON'T REMEMBER IT DON'T RETURN TO IT

i'm going to be out of town tomorrow so i wanted to kill two birds with one stone for this one. in case it wasn't obvious, i can't really draw candy or gore, so this prompt was fun. the song referenced is "honey i'm home" by ghost.

[velcrow101]

All things considered i think i'm done with Cringetober for the time being.

PROMPT REVIEW:

HETEROCHROMIA: I've. I've done heterochromias before. this isn't that much of a challenge.

SELF INSERT: I am still very scared of putting an unadulterated version of myself into any sort of fiction, fan or non. so I intentionally skipped this one.

UNECESSICARILY COMPLEX FIT: Still not entirely sure of the Complexity on this one but i'm still satisfied :3

ANGEL X DEMON: Mark my words that these two will get better art in the future.

MS PAINT: Still mad that windows 11's paint program got so screwed up that i had to move entirely to paint.net

NEKO: Considering I'm a Furry, this is far from a challenge.

PINTEREST ART BASE: I had an idea for this. But then I couldn't find a good base to use. I instead appropriated Day 15 to complete on this day.

TUMBLR SEXYMAN: Still not a Onceling. But Onceler felt like the obvious choice this day.

CROSSOVER SHIP/RAREPAIR: I'm still dipping my toes into the fandom scene, so in my frantic scrambling, I shipped the first think that came to mind.

FURSONA: Again, Not yet confident in having a fursona yet. Unless you count December.

YANDERE: Felt like a bit of a departure from what I felt my usual style is or should be. But I still completed it!

NICHE INTEREST: ??? ??? ???

CREEPYPASTA: I think I was too busy making the thing for Della Delightful to figure out which classic creepypasta to draw.

CANDYGORE: This was said Della Delightful thing. I accidentally took the prompt a little too literally to properly repost on the main acc, but i think there's still a noticable amount of lore that can be gathered here.

SONG LYRICS: I Knew Pocketing those Penelope Scott Lyrics was a good idea!

FAKE ANIME SCREENSHOT: I would waste way too much time on this prompt in the service of making it "perfect".

OLD ART REDRAW: Good luck finding any of my old drawings 'cause none of it was posted online and/or are most likely mostly gone for good. I physically could not complete this prompt to my satisfaction.

DOLLS/PUPPETS/ETC: I Tried to base Chloe's Clothing off of the 2012 Holiday Barbie's Dress. But then I just kinda. didn't.

HANAHAKI DISEASE: I Couldn't figure out the scenario let alone pull it off with how sucky i was feeling at that time.

100% SATURATION: Funny Oversaturated Colours :3

MAID DRESS / SAILOR UNIFORM: I was planning on fusing them both. But unfortunately the mood forced me to get a "once every other day" schedule and this unfortunately fell out of the proper parity.

MEME(S): It was just one meme. But I was happy to draw Soho Again.

MLP: Again, Parity Problems.

GIJINKA: It was Divine Inspiration, the choice to Gijinka Dusty. And then i think it ran out before I could manage to figure out what she'd wear for a top so I just sorta made her wear a bikini top and shorts i'm sorry-

ALL EDGE NO POINT: I am Diametrically opposed to edge. So I was going to skip this either way.

BABYGIRL POSE: Couldn't manage to figure out which character to draw before the day came and went. I Asked a couple friends which babygirl i should draw and neither of them were any help.

ALT FASHION: This and onwards I'm skipping. I am sorry.

HOT VILLAIN: I was honestly waiting for divine inspiration to strike to let me determine who to draw, because I never considered any of the villains I know of to be attractive to me. Yes, even the Onceler. Man's basically CEO Incarnate.

VIDEO GAME: by god this prompt is vague. it'd be tough finding a videogame that's both cringe and not entirely problematic.

HALLOWEEN: Probably gonna do this for Della anyways ngl i can't pass up this chance

15/31 seems like a nice run.

Shoutouts to:

close friends @hamstersquid and @kitwiings (for reblogging and liking a lot of the prompts) @iridescentwhite (for reminding me to do it) @crying-over-cassettes @icryink (for the original 2023 cringetober which i used for 2024 because i missed out the last time)

Thank you for all the support!

WELCOME TO CRINGETOBER!

I wanted to post the prompt list a month in advance so people have time to work on it :)

There are no hard rules; it's just a fun art exercise to draw things that are considered "cringe" by popular culture. Don't stress if you miss a day!!

Even if you don't participate, it would mean the world to me if you just shared the prompt list because it took me a while to make it lol.

I hope you have fun with it!!!

[cavity-collector]

the day 15 cringetober prompt (song lyrics) is gonna take longer than expected, so im gonna post todays prompt (day 16) rn and just post the other one once its done. its turned into a huge ordeal bcz i am too enthusiastic.