#especially after Antoine's comment

[shikai-the-storyteller]

Emotionally, I still haven't recovered from Antoine being very touched that Fit remembered Kameto, and Antoine describing Kameto as "the best of us."

[mountsmason]

Conflicting Emotions; Part 2

➪ read part one here

summary: you finally meet your boyfriend after the match, and despite the overwhelming emotions of everything, you two manage to find a way to sort it out. things also take an unexpected turn as you realise your boyfriend was jealous of mason.

pairing: antoine griezmann x reader, slightly mason mount x reader

warnings: badly written smut

a/n: almost 1k notes on part 1 is insane, thank you for all the feedback!! also my intention for this part was to be fluff, but it ended up with a bit of smut. If you're not comfortable reading it, you can skip it as it doesn't add much to the plot.

You heard Mason apologise moments before walking away. But you paid him no attention; if you went back to him, you feared you would say something you later regretted.

Antoine glances over at where he thought you were, with Mason. But instead he catches you walking up the stairs, and based on Mason shouting after you, he realises something is wrong. Tearing himself away from the celebrations, he rushes towards the area of the stadium where you were. Without thinking, he effortlessly jumps over the barrier and darts past Mason as he tries to catch up to you. You’re too far away to hear him calling out your name, so he gives up and simply follows you.

Mason’s words replayed in your mind as you grew more and more furious by the second. Unable to contain your blinding tears, you opened the first door on your right, which was conveniently unlocked. You assumed it belonged to the caretaker, as there were cleaning supplies scattered around the room. After dropping your handbag on one of the shelves, you leaned against the wall, letting hot tears fall freely down your cheeks.

It wasn't long before you were interrupted by the door opening swiftly. Your teary eyes met your boyfriend's concerned gaze.

"Y/N, what’s wrong?" He hurried towards you, his eyes softening at the sight of you.

"Nothing," you answered quickly over the sound of your rapid heartbeat, pointlessly wiping away your tears that he had clearly already seen.

"Your tears tell me otherwise, talk to me," with both his hands, Antoine cups your face and tilts it up slightly. He glides his thumbs across your cheeks to brush away your tears, which continued to fall despite your efforts to stop them.

Your mind was racing, searching for an answer it couldn’t find. From England losing to your boyfriend winning and Mason’s comments from earlier, you didn’t know where to begin.

"I don’t know what to tell you because I don’t know how I’m feeling myself," you admitted, leaning into his touch as you were overcome by a mixture of confusing emotions. "I don’t even know why I’m crying," you sarcastically chuckled at how ridiculous you sound.

You were never any good at expressing your emotions. It simply didn't come to you as easy as it did for others. Antoine was well aware of this, as you've had this conversation with him before, so he didn't pressure you into giving an answer. Instead, he tries to help you navigate your feelings.

"Was it the match? Are you angry at me?" A guilty expression crept across his face.

"What? Of course not! Earlier today, I promised you that my feelings for you wouldn’t change, regardless of what happened on the pitch today. And I fully stand by that.” You tried to reassure him of it.

"So you still love me?" His hands trailed down your body to rest on your hips, lightly pressing his body into yours.

“It’s hard not to,” you gave Antoine a soft smile as your arms wrapped around the back of his neck, pulling him in for the kiss you longed for. His lips were soft and delicate against yours. It was a short but intimate kiss that both of you needed in that moment. To reassure and confirm that truly nothing has changed between you two.

"I should have said this sooner, but congratulations baby. I’m really proud of you, especially after seeing you out there today. People always doubted you and your abilities, but look at you proving them wrong," you told Antoine, gently running your fingers through his hair.

“I couldn't have done it without you,” he presses a tender kiss to your forehead.

“Me? I didn't do anything,” you furrowed your brows in confusion.

"You were always there for me whenever I had a bad day. I don't know how, but you have this way of making me feel better without even trying. When the media found some way to criticise me or split us up, you never believed them, and that kind of trust is rare; I've never had that in any of my other relationships. I even considered quitting football, but I didn't because I had you. The one person who has always been by my side and the reason I've gotten this far. Everything I do is for you,” he spoke in sheer admiration, a smile growing on his lips as he saw your cheeks flush pink.

You listened intently to every word and grinned as you gazed into his eyes. Undoubtedly, he was giving you way more credit than you deserved, as you know how talented he was to begin with, and that combined with his dedication, is how he got this far. You began to wonder how you had become so lucky to have such a perfect boyfriend. One that does everything for you even though you never asked him to.

But then you recalled the match where your team lost against his.

“How is beating England 'for me?' ” You questioned cheekily, curious to see how he was going to explain this one.

“Let me rephrase myself, everything I do, except winning against England, is for you,” he winked at you in an attempt to soften the blow.

Your mouth fell open, a fake gasp escaping your lips. “I never knew you were so selfish,” you joked, playfully hitting his chest. A comfortable silence filled the air as you shared a smile with Antoine. The warmth of his endearing grin quickened your heartbeat.

“Are you ready to tell me why you were crying earlier?” He asked in a lowered tone.

You thought about it for a minute. This time, you had better luck articulating your thoughts since your mind wasn't racing erratically anymore.

“I guess I felt guilty for not sharing your happiness and celebrating with you,” you muttered, averting your gaze as you studied your hands, suddenly finding them interesting.

“We knew from the start it was going to be complicated, but I understand Y/N, I really do. The emotions involved in it all can be overwhelming, and I would never force you to pick a side. You're too loyal for your own good,” he laughs, playfully rolling his eyes, “and I respect that. At the end of the day, all that matters to me is that we’re okay,” you nodded in agreement, your mouth curving into an unconscious smile at how understanding he is.

"And that was it, you’re sure there’s nothing else bothering you?" You shook your head decisively, as your boyfriend continued to speak, "for a second I thought something had happened with Mason."

You froze at the mention of your ex-boyfriend.

"What do you mean?" You tried to swallow down an empty gulp.

"I saw the two of you together."

"He was upset after the match, so I was consoling him, that's all." You got a strange feeling in the pit of your stomach, wondering what he must have thought seeing you with Mason like that.

"As long as you didn’t console him in the same way you console me, we’re good," you knew exactly what he was implying with that suggestive tone.

"Oh no, that is reserved specifically for you only," his eyes darted between your lips and eyes as he leant in for another kiss. But before he could connect his lips with yours, you pulled away.

“Wait, were you jealous of Mason?” You eyed him suspiciously.

“As if,” he denied too quickly, his jaw visibly tensing.

“You were, I knew it!”

“I wasn’t jealous, so don't ever say that again,” he warned in a low, firm voice as his gaze darkened.

“Or else what?” Your eyes lit up with a hint of mischief before he erased the distance between your bodies by pressing you against the wall and pushing his leg between yours.

“Don't test me Y/N, I may have been running around the pitch for 90 minutes, but you should know better than anyone that I still have plenty of energy after that,” His hands had caged you in, as they were pinned on either side of your head.

“I didn't know you were the jealous type.”

“I don't get jealous cause you already know you're mine,” his breath was hot against your ear.

“I am?” You raised your eyebrows, pretending this was news to you as your fingertips skimmed along his jaw line.

“It looks like you need reminding.” He pushes his thigh against your core, a breathy moan slipping from your lips. Your eyes fluttered shut as you felt his lips ghosting yours. Breathing lightly, your lips part with a burning desire, an aching need to kiss him, but he doesn’t let you.  He flexes his thigh beneath you, applying pressure to your core and notices your body instantly react to him. “You realise I can feel that,” he smirked, feeling a throbbing sensation on his thigh.

“Then do something, please,” you begged with desperation in your voice. It was embarrassing how easily your body reacted to his touch. With the World Cup happening, the two of you barely had time for yourselves, so you were extra sensitive to his touch.

“You’re not going to get what you want. Not until you tell me what I want to hear,” you chose to ignore the heat building in between your own thighs.

“I really hate you,” you panted over your pounding heartbeat.

“That’s not it,” your response seemed to amuse him as he let out a light chuckle. You mentally debated whether you should carry on teasing him or give up and tell him what he wants to hear. “I'm not going to ask you again,” he begins to remove his leg from between yours, but you quickly clench your legs around his thigh.

“I’m y-yours, all yours,” your words were breathless as you chose the latter option. The prolonged anticipation became unbearable as your body grew impatient.

“That's right baby, you're mine — no one else's,” satisfied with your answer, he plants a series of harsh kisses on your neck, pressing his thigh harder against your core.

“I need to you to do something now, I've missed your touch,” you slowly start to roll your hips into his thigh as his muscles tense against your aching core. Even though you were fully clothed, you knew that the flood of wetness from your core would be enough to soak through the material and leave a patch on his shorts. But you didn’t care. The pleasure was building in your stomach, but before anything else happened, you were interrupted by the sound of keys turning in the door.

“Perfect timing,” he said in a hushed tone before he pulled his leg away from your wet core. You whined in response to the loss of contact. You weren't finished. That's when it hit you — this was his plan all along.

“You didn’t think I was going to let you get away with all this teasing, right?” You glared at him while trying to catch your breath before the door opened.

You grabbed your handbag from the shelf as you approached a confused-looking caretaker. Giving him an awkward smile, you left the room with your boyfriend following closely behind.

“I’ve never seen you squirm so much,” he spoke with a sense of accomplishment. You sent him daggers once again for leaving you all hot and bothered. “That was all your doing, all you had to say was you're mine, but you were too busy teasing me,” he held his hands up in defence.

“Mason would never do that to me,” you wish you hadn't said the words the moment you saw the expression on Antoine's face harden.

You had seriously fucked up.

“I'm sorry, I took it too far that time, I didn't mean it,” you unintentionally struck a nerve as he looked genuinely hurt. “It's you that I want, it's you who I'm with and it's you I love,” you frantically searched his eyes for any indication that he believed you.

“I love you, you know that right?” You took his hands in yours.

“Yeah I know, I've just got to get back since I've been gone a while, and everyone will begin to wonder where I am,”

“Okay,” your voice was barely a whisper. He pressed a gentle kiss on the top of your head before walking away.

“Make sure you message me when you get to your hotel," he reminded you as he turned around. A smile touched your lips for a brief second as you nodded.

Antoine might not have responded to your “I love you” directly, but making sure you reach safely is his unspoken way of expressing his love for you.

[bitcell]

i'm just going to say a few words about what happened because i see some misunderstanding and while i don't agree with people sending hate to anyone ever, i think there are some points that explain why things took such a turn yesterday after the debate

first of all, all the hate towards baghera is unjustified. nothing can explain that, she's a candidate and she was on the debate to argue with the other candidates. period.

now, about why some brazilians are really upset with aypierre and i think this is justified is because he made some comments like:

compared q!mike to h1tler and joked about it.

made jokes about forever being arrested on his flight to france for drug trafficking.

complained (jokingly) about the brazilians being too loud.

he already apologized and everything is fine now, but i hope this makes you understand why brazilians are (rightfully) upset at the stereotypes that were being shared by him (and antoine, if i'm not wrong). i don't want to bring any negativity because i do believe everything is fine now, but i don't like how people are just pointing fingers at the brazilian fandom when they do have some reason to be upset.

especially after the conversation quackity had a few weeks ago on the qsmp, about how he felt like his culture was constantly mocked and underappreciated under the disguise of jokes by other people.

i don't think aything can explain making jokes about h1tler at any circumstance, but maybe it's a cultural difference.

the second point is that latinos + drug trafficking... okay, what's next, asking if we have internet? it's just blatantly disgusting (and something that happened a lot to quackity on the dsmp). both forever and cellbit have talked about how, although they can join in on the fun and the jokes about drugs, they think this is a sensitive topic.

and the last one, once again, another stereotype. yesterday when cellbit was talking to aypierre or antoine (idr which one of them) at the favela, they made a comment about cellbit being loud and he immediately rushed to check his mic settings and when he asked if his mic was scuffed like forever's, they were like "ah, it's just a brazilian thing."

although there may not be a intent to upset, a cultural difference, a "different type of humor" or reinforce stereotypes, i just wanted to make sure everyone understood why brazilians were acting the way they were yesterday.

[thankskenpenders]

I've been catching up on the BumbleKast after getting behind so here are some interesting tidbits from various September 2022 episodes. Lots of behind the scenes info, discussions of canonicity, hints of what may be coming in the future, and also just random fun stuff

1. I'll put the most intriguing one up front:

"Is there any chance the IDW comics will connect themselves to future games?" Ian: "Mmmmmmmmaybe." Kyle: "Is there any chance that the IDW comics have already connected themselves to any future games?" Ian: "...Not in the direction of comic into game."

Ian's wording is intentionally vague here, and I'm not sure if the phrasing of "comic [connecting] into game" would mean he's ruling out the comic connecting itself to the game or the comic being referenced in the game. He's already outright said Tangle isn't in Frontiers or anything like that, so don't expect something THAT big, but previews have also said that Sonic will occasionally make surprising references to characters from past games while exploring the islands. Maybe the IDW comics will get a nod like this? Or maybe he means it the other way around, and we'll see some Frontiers stuff in the comics next year?

Regardless, you KNOW I'll be reporting back on this when Frontiers is out

2. Ian very strongly hints that Silver will be relevant in 2023's comics. This isn't exactly a surprise, given his story in the Annual and the fact that Evan's lead writer. (She's shown immense restraint not shoehorning Silver into every arc lol.) But it's nice to know that setup will pay off before long!

3. In general he's been saying that how the Classic era games fit together is being discussed behind the scenes, especially now that it's considered the past of the Modern series again. Things like Chaotix being non-canon may no longer be true. It's probably best not to think too hard about these things (Sega didn't care about "canon" in the '90s), but he reiterates that the version of events depicted in Origin is what Sega considers the definitive start of the series

4. Ian was very pleasantly surprised (and jealous) when the Scrapnik Island team was allowed to use Mecha Sonic and other Classic elements. He's holding off on commenting further on why Sega might have allowed this

5. Ian gave his ideas for what he could do in a crossover between Sonic and Homestar Runner complete with impressions

6. He also described how a TF2 match on 2Fort between the IDW Sonic cast would go

7. The question of whether or not Nicole could still be a lynx if she came back in future media has come up on here a lot, and sadly Ian seems to think the answer is a definitive "no." If the Freedom Fighters were to ever return, ALL Archie-original elements would likely be gone, starting back at square one with only SatAM (and, technically, their Spinball cameo) as inspiration. Nicole would not be a holo-lynx, Antoine may not be able to use a sword, etc.

8. On the subject of Mega Man, Ian picks up the homoerotic vibes fans always read between X and Zero and wonders if it was intentional lmao. Ian's a real one

9. Ian gave a loose summary of what would have happened in the unreleased third issue of Archie's Sonic: Mega Drive. The story would have opened with the team working together to hunt for the Emeralds in the Special Zone, which wouldn't quite be 1:1 with any specific previous version

10. Several ideas have apparently been pitched for using the Warp Topaz again, since Sega requested they leave it intact at the end of the Metal Virus Saga so it could be used again, although no idea has stuck just yet

11. Ian does not want to admit that Starline is already a Tumblr Sexyman

I was going to add more to this post as I continued getting through the backlog, but this is already long enough

[pommunist]

Very unsure if you saw what was happening with Baghera and the mistranslation that spread with her, Antoine and a few other FR CCs (I don’t remember who else was in the convo, I think Mythos was there, but very very unsure my apologies :(( ). But after viewing the clip and revisiting the topic several times on my own, the “joke”/“comment” to add a translator to TDLSMP if they revamp the server wasn’t supposed to be in a negative light and was most likely a positive call back to the translator feature of QSMP. Which, ngl, would be awesome to see happen cause I (and probably many others) would love to view more French content become widely accessible with translation plugins.

People heavily took it out of context due to the english updates fan account for Bagz due to the admins of the account only clipping that section of the conversation and adding “/j” to Baghera’s comment about a translator, which was in bad taste, especially since there was no context added nor explanation as to what they were actually referring to in the clipped section. And due to the mass hate and/or confusion of many viewers, the updates account ultimately removed it (I went back several times to verify if it was in the account and if they had added context but saw that it was just scrapped and removed with no further explanation).

After the events of the mistranslation from the updates account, plus Baghera even coming onto twitter to explain herself, many French fans took their time to explain what happened properly (I gratefully thank them for this cause it actually helped many who were confused about the mistranslation from the updates account) and a space was even made by Spanish speaking fans to further explain the error that was created from the mistranslation with the help of a French viewer named Dune, and the host of the space even tried to mellow out any angry listeners with the saying "All the CCs are friends, stop assuming the worst and any issues that they have with each other is sorted behind closed doors. We don't know them, they know each other better than we as viewers do because they are friends." [Rough translation of what the host said but hopefully I stated it clearly]

All-in-all, unfortunate circumstances occurred thanks to mistranslation, but a majority of the community is trying to be better and actually hear each other out, but sadly the minority that is full of blind hate is the loudest and puts down the worst image for the rest. :( -Anon 💫

OH YES I SAW THAT AND I SURE WISH I DIDNT 😭

I couldn’t believe people were upset about that, even if it had been a joke it’s not even like it was anything bad or negative ?

Just a full on hate train on Baghera for saying it would be great to have a translator if they ever brought their smp back. Don’t even wanna discuss what was said about her and other french ccs because it’s just disgusting. The fact that french qsmptwt users had to go around trying to explain to everyone that it wasn’t anything bad and that people shouldn’t harass baghera for it, especially when you have no context/don’t know the language…. I wouldn’t have that kind of patience 🫡

Only good thing is that it gave me the opportunity to feed my blocklist /hj

And that once again seeing the great Frasil alliance in action made me so happy 🇧🇷🫂🇫🇷

Isn’t it nice to see that when the admins situation isn’t enough to drive away all ccs and fans alike, the Quackity fans will make sure to make the qsmp space inhabitable for anyone who stayed ! /sarc Between this and the bullying of Sunny’s admin two days ago they sure are on a run lately.

Note : If anyone is confused about what TDLsmp is, it’s the name fans came up with to talk about a minecraft server Antoine, Baghera, Etoiles and others french ccs played on for a little while I think two years ago ?

TDL means Team du Lundi aka Monday Team, and it refers to their friend group who stream every monday together on different multiplayer games (Lethal Company, Worms, Golf Gang, and many many more).

The server was vanilla and just a way to play Minecraft together, nothing special really, but it was very very fun to watch ! And so yesterday they talked about the possibility of it returning, but modded this time, and maybe with a translator so their international viewers can watch and understand it !

If you’re interested :

Baghera’s vods :

Antoine’s best of (if you wanna catch up quickly by watching only the best moments) :

Etoiles’ vods :

[ocean-sailor]

Taylor Swift: several Covid clusters reported since her visit to Paris

"An exceptional show. From May 9 to 12, Taylor Swift provided four concerts as part of her European tour The Eras Tour, on the stage of La Paris Défense Arena. While the spectators present on site were delighted to see their idol in the flesh, others were somewhat disillusioned after the performance. And for good reason, on the following days, several hundred of them would have experienced symptoms related to Covid-19, as Le Parisien reported on Friday, May 17. Some have indeed carried out a test that turned out to be positive: "I caught Covid at the N3 (the 3rd of the four concerts)", "I got tested today and I have Covid (I was at the N3 and I've been sick since Monday)" or "Be careful it's Covid, I tested positive yesterday and a girlfriend too, we were at the Thursday concert (the N1)," we read, according to comments that the daily echoed.

Quickly, clusters were formed. "All the people I know and who went there too have fallen ill, whether it was Covid or not," says Camille, a 27-year-old teacher, to Le Parisien. If the two self-tests she performed were negative, Marine, another "Swiftie", wants to remain cautious: "We no longer heard too much about Covid but, in hindsight, we think it's logical since we were in a closed place, with 45,000 people per night... If a virus circulates, it goes very fast." And epidemiologist Antoine Flahault confirmed: "People shout, sing, are very close to each other, it's crowded... It's very conducive to super clusters."

On its official website, La Paris Défense Arena assures that "the room has been designed to manage air treatment, by guaranteeing spectators a welcome in optimal sanitary, safety and comfort conditions." It is also "equipped with 15 air treatment plants associated with seven extractors, making it possible to renew the atmosphere of the entire room in two hours."

Covid Risk Assessment:

Covid is not over and to be even remotely safe indoors, the air needs to be exchanged with fresh outdoor air/MERV13 filtered air 6+ times/hour, not once every 2 hours 🙄.

Currently 1 in 50 people have Covid. So in a venue that holds 40k people, you're sharing the air with 800 people that have Covid. And since it's an airborne virus, well... it's going to spread and there will be super clusters which will cause even more spread.

This can be mitigated by decreasing your risk of exposure. If you're going to a show, your best protection is to wear a well fitting respirator mask - an N-95, or an N-99/100 which is equivalent to an FFP2 or FFP3 in the EU. If you have the option, you can further decrease your risk by going to an outdoor show in the fresh air.

Also, ensure your Covid vaccination is within the last 6 months, ideally 3 months, as immunity starts to wane. It takes ~ 14 days from the injection date to mount a full immune response so plan accordingly. If you're going to be in a crowded area, it's better to have stronger protection. In many places, you can receive a booster 3 months after your last one, especially if you or a family member are more vulnerable.

Please protect yourself and everyone around you.

[sanguine-law]

@melancoliefatale | blood on the carpet

What a grueling walk to get to this man house ,Especially when encountering lovelies werewolves in the way. And so close to him for his comfort that he needed to resort to blade and pure magic to put them down, luckily he wasn’t injured by the fight. So, after cleaning himself up he did get to the manor a thrall opened the door for him and guide him to the corridor. his eyes sometimes fell on the paintings, sculptures and other singular objects exposed in the hallway. Finally the servant opened the door the living room where the vampire was waiting leg crossed and drinking a glass of wine or maybe blood ? Not looking at him still before ordering the thrall to leave them alone. and it was much after the thrall go that Joseph made this comment at him while looking at him. Antoine was taken aback at first as he checked before going to be cleaned…but he begin to feel the deafening pain on his forearms before looking at it. oh yes his scars opened. It happened when using magic, oh cursed body- « My apologies. » Antoine said before taking a step back and with his other hand cast a spell to clean the mess before pressing his hand against his forearmto not let the blood spill. « what if you tell me what you want ? Your letters did tell me that it was important. »

He couldn't help but chuckle at Antoine's apology. Joseph waved the idea off with a playful, "Oh please," as he lowered his glass, half sitting half laying against the arm of the couch. "Unless you have something debilitating, it's not a concern of mine. I mean, it's not like it'll stain. After all, you're hardly the first to get blood on these carpets."

Joseph had chosen red for a reason where he had carpeting and plush furniture.

Not everyone felt comfortable coming to the master's room when it was their turn for drinking. Nor did Joseph always want to wait to be in his room.

He swirled his cup, mixing the blood and wine within further. "So at least one of them reached you." A little more seriously, "I've called you up for two reasons. The first, there's been a lot of 'listed sightings' of a vampire and other 'undesirable magic beasts' off to the east."

Joseph leaned in a little. "Thought you should know, it's better you either move or lie low for a time. I've heard the branch against magic beings is none to kind when judging them. And very few can ever escape if they are brought to trial instead of murdered."

His eyes darkened. "You won't get a warning if they do decide to do something about any vampires in the area. And they won't be pathetic, normal civilians. They'll send well proper hunters and exorcists, trained against any spells and potions with years of experience killing beasts like us. Armed with silver and holy weaponry."

Then he took a sip of his drink. He smiled as he swallowed. "The second," he practically sang now, "is that the old vampire count in the country is hosting another banquet soon. The Tome might appear there. And if you aren't interested in that old magic artifact, I'm sure there will be plenty of other old and powerful creatures of the night there for you to learn from.

"And if that doesn't interest you-" Joseph closed his eyes and gestured toward the ceiling. "I've heard he has quite the library. Full of rare and old books."

[mrs-gauche]

At last, the synopsis of volume 4 of "The Missing" is out (the final volume!) and I have a few thoughts! (Do NOT read further if you haven't read the preview of volume 1 yet and don't want to get spoiled! 🙂)

(Here's my comment/speculations on the previous three synopses btw, of which a lot has actually already been answered/debunked by the first five pages of the first volume. lol)

Ok so, first things first: Hey, looks like Solas is apparently NOT at the White Spire after all! 😂 So much for people's speculations. lol What's kinda funny to me though, is how Varric and Harding, instead of (what we suspected) going further east, seem to go all way back to Tevinter now, to get to the capital. lol Let's hope the long journey wasn't completely for naught then. Though what's up with this seemingly never ending "cat-and-mouse" game here? 😂 You think that maybe Solas knows about them searching for him and has been purposefully leading them astray this whole time? lol

"After many close encounters and more signs of a Venatori stalking them (...)"

So, for anyone who has read the preview of volume 1, were you also instantly reminded of the shadowy person seen in the last panel? Especially with how it mentions "many close encounters", I think it's very likely that this could refer to whoever was already watching them while walking the Deep Roads? Hmm..

"This time, it seems they're hot on his heels"

(See, it's funny because Solas doesn't like wearing shoes lol)

So, after Varric and Harding couldn't track down Solas in neither the Deep Roads, Vyrantium OR the Arlathan Forest, he has now apparently hit the big city.

Remember how we kept joking about Solas just going to Tevinter and walking the streets of Minrathous completely unrecognized, when most of Tevinter doesn't actually know what he looks like (as far as we know)? lmao Well, joke’s on us? 😂 So, who in Minrathous, aside from maybe Dorian, would even be able to "spot" him then? lol Watch Solas pull another "Bard" on us and disguising himself as the most ridiculous Venatori Lord Anus McEvilus. lol So, what's Solas doing there? And who is this "trusted informant"? I think the most obvious answer here would be Dorian? Perhaps even Mae (we know her and Varric are super close! 👀👀)?

"The duo find they have a tough decision to make - and they'll need to make the right call fast."

Alright, so why the urgency now? And what does this "tough decision" entail? Seeing as this is the final volume of this comic that has been marketed to directly tie into the plot of DA4, what's interesting to note here is that, with Antoine and Evka now making an appearance in volume 1, it seems as though every faction shown in the 2020 teaser trailer and the concept art will feature in each volume now, meaning the Wardens (Evka and Antoine) in volume 1, the Crows (Teia and Viago?) in volume 2, the "Veil Jumpers" (Irelin and Strife?) in volume 3 and now, back in Minrathous, a Tevinter... Siccari in volume 4 then? Or maybe one of the guys in this short story? Seeing as the short stories from DA Day 2020 also all happen to perfectly line up with the four factions in the comic/teaser/concept art? 👀

It definitely raises the chances for these four factions to be potential "career paths" for our new protagonist and maybe the "tough decision" involves Varric having to choose which of these factions to contact in order to further pursue Solas or something (or what if that decision is then left to the players at the start of DA4 and we get to choose which of those four factions will be part of our "origin story"?)

And btw, can I just mention how my initial speculation over a year ago or so, was that one of those four factions would be part of an infiltration mission at the start of the game for our next protagonist (who is actually a Lord of Fortune) hired by Varric in order to obtain vital information about the red lyrium idol? 😂 If this turns out to be the case somehow, I'll eat my hat. lmao

Anyway, while I have read the preview of volume 1 (and I already have a ton of thoughts on this as well!), I would like to wait for the full volume to come out on the 25th to post a comment and cover the whole thing. That being said, I can't wait to read all of it, seems very promising so far! 😁

[cringecentralhq]

A blue hedgehog lies down on the warm, soft grass, soaking in the rays that the sun has so graciously bestowed upon him. He had a content smile placed on his face, which was taken away from him immediately, by a gritting voice, he was too familiar with.

"Ahha! As expected, you're slacking, as per usual." Stated a particularly peaved coyote, who gave a most disapproving stare at the hedgehog. Said hedgehog was none pluse himself, not caring to hear another lecture, especially from this dork. Before the coyote could continue, the hedgehog snip at him, " Listen, Twan, I just love the sound of your voice, but can you kindly beat it so I can get back to my work. I'm very busy, as you can see."

The coyote, who name was Antoine, simply looked appalled by the rudeness and lazy attitude, "working?! By the Walkers, you are the most lazy creature, that I have the dishonor of meeting," shouted Antoine.

Sonic, said hedgehog who was being shouted at, was about to give his rebuttal, before getting interrupted by a annoyed sounding female voice. "boys, you're on the same side, so can you attempt to get along, at the very least for the image of the kingdom?"

The speaker was Princess Sally Acorn, heiress of the kingdom of Acorn, and currently giving both boys a wearly gaze, like this was a too familiar conversation. While Antoine looked simply positively embarrassed, the hedgehog simply chuckled underneath his breath, "don't be such a party pooper, Princess, me and Twan over here were just jerking each others chains, right Twan?"

Said a now smiling Sonic, who patted his fellow soldier on the back, an action that didn't amused the coyote one bit, but he accepted it as to not annoye his liege any further. This definitely pleased the Princess, who gave a approvingly nod, "perfect! Now then, may we return to the training field? After all, Sonic, the faster you're done, the faster you'll get your precious chili dogs." Said the princess, who proceeded to walk off contently, her comment got the hedgehog to be genuinely happy to go back there, so he followed his majesty.

But he got stopped by Antoine, who wanted to give him one last comment, "now, listen here, hedgehog. The princess may be a little bit more willing to forgive your attitude, but it will not fly past me or our superiors. Sooner or later, your repeated offensives will catch up to you, and I'll be sure to laugh when you finally face the consequences of your actions," said Antoine.

Sonic simply gave a unimpressed look, and didn't hesitant to fire back, "look, it's pretty funny that you think I care about what you think, but you ain't scary in the least bit Twan, especially seeing as your afraid of your own shadow. Considering I've been able to get away this far, I think I'm fine, now, kindly let go so we can get this over with," said Sonic.

Antoine gave one last annoyed glare, but decided to relent, and both ticked off boys finally followed Sally.

All three teens got to their destination, which had some adults and teenagers in uniforms, with the teens looking ready for the obstacle course that was set up.

A two tail fox came to the three teens, looking especially happy to see Sally and Sonic, "Aunt Sally, Sonic! I'm finally glad you're here! I thought you three weren't gonna make it, which would be pretty weird for you Sonic." Said the fox, who name was unsurprisingly Tails.

"Pfftt! You swat too much, little dude, I was just... getting my head in the game! Yeah, that's it, hahaha," chuckled Sonic lightly. Antoine snorted, "more like getting his head in the clouds" said Antoine, sarcastically, which got him a glare from Sonic and a light elbow push from Sally.

While Tails looked a little disappointed that Sonic nearly skipped out on the course, he's just happy that he made it anyway, seeing Sonic in action was always a treat.

Just as the quartet were going to continue conversing, a bell rang, signifying for the participants to get to their starting positions.

As Sonic and Antoine where beginning to walk off to their places, Antoine stop to give a bow to the princess while Sonic stopped to wave Tails and Sally off, only to be force to bow to Sally by a annoyed Antoine, which promptly got the coyote a shoulder punch from Sonic.

Sally and Tails sighed, and wave both boys off, everyone took their spots, with Sonic and Antoine taking spots next to each other.

One adult in a uniform began the countdown, "3!" Antoine gave a steely gaze to the hedgehog, which actually got Sonic's attention, who decided to give his signature, cocky smirk, " something the matter, Twan" said Sonic. "2!" "I simply wish to tell you , that's today is going to be the day you lose to me" stated a most serious Antoine.

Sonic kept his smirk, "we'll see about that, Twan," "1, go!" The competitors took off, with Sonic having the slight lead, while Antoine came second.

The first few obstacles, jumping over tires and crawling through mud, were fairly trivial. Where it really started to get difficult, was with the tight rope walking and climbing on the cliffs.

The tight rope requires good balance, while the cliffs needed good endurance, Sonic had only a slight difficult time but wasn't doing bad, while the others were beginning to slow down.

Antoine especially was making mistakes, mostly due to him hesitating a bit too much, which gave some of the others time to catch up with him, some even slightly surpassing him.

The most scary obstacles of all, however, were the swinging ropes over the mud. Even with the mud cushioning a fall, it wasn't a pleasant feeling for the faller.

This, this is what caused the most hesitation for Antoine, which allowed Sonic to have a further lead and some others to catch up.

As Antoine stood there frightened, he looked at his princess for some support, only to see her eyes mostly layed upon Sonic, fixated on the hedgehog.

This, and the idea of disappointing his father, is what gave a sudden burst of speed and determination to the coyote, causing him to surpass the others and catch up to Sonic.

While Sonic was somewhat daydreaming, he heard Tails shouting something at him, "Sonic! Watch out for Antoine!" "Antoine? But wasn't he standing stiff at that..." but his thoughts were quickly interrupted by the coyote nipping at feet, which immediately caught Sonic's attention.

The two were neck and neck now, both not letting up for a second, and giving each other matching stern gazes. "It's like I said Sonic, today is the day of your defeat" said a mildly tired Antoine, Sonic smiled , however.

"Don't be sure of it Twan. You did real good, and this has been genuinely fun, but it's time to get serious" said Sonic.

As to prove his point, Sonic smile faded, and gain a sudden burst of speed, outpacing Antoine and leaving him in shock.

Sonic immediately went past the finish line, creating a sudden burst of wind that blew back some of the competitors and audience.

Everyone were just as shocked, before bursting in thunderous applause and cheers for the winner.

Sonic took it in for a couple seconds, before returning to Sally and Tails, who gave their congratulations to Sonic, "way to go Sonic! I knew you could do it! I was worried for second when Antoine caught up." Said a excited Tails.

Sally gave Sonic a sassy look, "so, aren't you glad you came here. Wasn't as much a waste of time that you originally thought, huh," said Sally.

Sonic simply blushed at this comment, "yeah, well, it's not like you knew Twan was gonna pull ahead like that," said Sonic.

Speaking of which, the three went to the coyote, who looked severely disappointed. "After all that training, I still came up short, I'm such a failure" said Antoine.

He got a hand placed on his shoulder, which got him to look at Sonic, originally expecting mocking, he was surprised by the words coming out the hedgehog's mouth.

"Nah, you did real good Twan, don't beat yourself over it. Who knows, you might actually beat me next time," said Sonic.

Antoine looked shocked at first, before accepting the praise and talking back, "well, you are a worthy opponent yourself. I suppose, there is no shame to losing to a person such as yourself," said Antoine.

This got the other three off guard, before they laughed it off, causing Antoine to look annoyed.

"What? I am being graceful in the face of defeat, no," said Antoine.

Sally gave a reassuring smile, and calmed Antoine down, "yes, you are being graceful. You really did a excellent job out there," Sally said.

Antoine blushed at the praise from the princess, "oh, of course. Tha-thank you, your majesty," said Antoine.

Sonic, looking please with how things ended, decided it can end even better with food, "now then, time for some chili dogs!"

The others weren't surprised in the slightest, "well, I could go for a bite, oh, why not?" Sally stated, with Tails joining along, "yeah, it's always nice seeing Uncle Chuck!" The only one left was Antoine, who looked unsure.

"I'm not sure... I mean, chili dogs are so messy! And... oh fine, if her majesty is going, so shall I," said a somewhat annoyed Antoine. With that, everyone left to Uncle Chuck's dinner for some good eating.

[melancoliefatale]

" you're getting blood on the carpet. " he said dryly, as the carpet was already red (sanguine-law)

What a grueling walk to get to this man house ,Especially when encountering lovelies werewolves in the way. And so close to him for his comfort that he needed to resort to blade and pure magic to put them down, luckily he wasn’t injured by the fight. So, after cleaning himself up he did get to the manor a thrall opened the door for him and guide him to the corridor.

his eyes sometimes fell on the paintings, sculptures and other singular objects exposed in the hallway. Finally the servant opened the door the living room where the vampire was waiting leg crossed and drinking a glass of wine or maybe blood ? Not looking at him still before ordering the thrall to leave them alone.

and it was much after the thrall go that Joseph made this comment at him while looking at him.

Antoine was taken aback at first as he checked before going to be cleaned…but he begin to feel the deafening pain on his forearms before looking at it.

oh yes his scars opened. It happened when using magic, oh cursed body- « My apologies. » Antoine said before taking a step back and with his other hand cast a spell to clean the mess before pressing his hand against his forearmto not let the blood spill. « what if you tell me what you want ? Your letters did tell me that it was important. »

[petit-papillion]

I need to go rewatch parts of his vlog including the salon scene! As if I need to br more obsessed with him 🥵🙈. But omg. So sweet! His maman still talks to him a bit like he’s her little middle child. Im sure everyone is entitled to privacy especially living in such a small country and city buttttt I can’t help but want more!

Well, he's up to 993,000 views on this blog (after 1 week), so I'm sure you're not the only one rewatching it. 😜

As for privacy, he chose to share this with us. This is his YouTube channel, and he determines the (final) content of these vlogs. He asked his followers what they wanted to see. And top comments were asking for "Day in the life", his routine on pre-race days, what he eats, workout routine. And he's pretty much shown us all this with the 3 vlogs published so far. He can determine how much he is willing to share (like whether or not to include his girlfriend or not, or his bedoom in his apartment, or footage of him in the sauna or in a cryotherapy chamber, etc.).

Personally I think he could put out a 5-minute vlog every week just showing him doing something mundane and I'd watch it, but he actually is having Antoine and team make quality vlogs with really high production value. So it will probably be at least another 6-7 months before we get another one...

[multiland]

strawberry flavored basorexia - k.jw.

(noun.) the overwhelming desire to kiss

summary: you’ve been feeling some kind of way towards your friend, who’s always been insanely gorgeous in your eyes... but fuck, those lips look so nice, and you just want to kiss him until they’re red and swollen.

pairing: Jungwoo x female reader

genre: friends to lovers, smut.

warnings: Jungwoo has the habit of chewing strawberry gum, Haechan is an annoying bestie, Jungwoo is really sweet but also really hot, reader has a wet dream, an insane amount of kissing, teasing, slight fingering, unprotected sex.

word count: 7.6k

a/n: I hope you like it everyone! please remember feedback is very very very much appreciated! 💖

The evening arrives in a blink of an eye after doing the chores, cooking and cleaning around the house. You get into the shower not long after, freshening up before your friends arrive.

The warm water welcomes your skin and provokes a sigh to fall from your lips. As you start washing up, and as if your brain didn’t have anything better to do, memories from the dream you had last night start flooding your mind.

Your eyes press shut, flashbacks of the intense makeout sending shivers down your spine.

The story is simple. You’re a heavy sleeper for the most part, but for some reason, your mind decided it’d be a good idea to put one of your friends in a dream to kiss you heatedly. This friend is named Jungwoo; a tall guy with curious doe eyes, fluffy hair and a gentle smile from art’s school you met a couple of years ago, when Donghyuck introduced him to the group because turns out, they were sharing a class together and your friends being the way they are, ended up adopting him into the circle. He started spending lunch with all of you almost every day, going out to the same parties, and even joining you in the library in some of your failed study sessions.

He was visibly tense at first, he seemed to be shy around new people, especially you despite having a queue of girls swooning over him. Truthfully so handsome for his own good with his gentle voice and chivalry, model-like walks and dazzling smiles while running his fingers through his hair were enough to drive a large number of the female students into their own doom. He didn’t seem to be aware of his attractiveness in the beginning, but that quickly changed after spending too much time with Haechan, who would continuously boost his ego by complimenting his looks.

One particular hard week of exams, when all of your group of friends were losing their mental stability and you had to go to the library and bury your face in chemistry books to try and save the semester, the two of you met in one of the aisles, as he was casually looking for some books himself. You were on your tiptoes, cursing under your breath at your short height as you tried to reach the book your teacher had recommended for you to study. A sudden presence was felt behind you and an arm reached for the object you needed. Turning around, you were met with Jungwoo, who kindly smiled at you.

“Here.” He said, handing you the thick book. Your lips curled up in a smile as you brought the book to press it against your chest.

“Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.” He responded then, eyes averting to the title of the book in your hands before lifting his hand and pointing at it. “Organic chemistry?”

You looked down at the book and then met his eyes again, sighing.

“Yeah. It’s beating my ass and if I don’t pass the exam I’ll fail the semester.”

As you gnawed the inside of your cheek, Jungwoo grimaced.

“Dang. Need some help with it?”

Your brows furrowed together at the question, tilting your head.

“Are you good at it?”

He let out a breathy chuckle, shrugging.

“Kind of. I’m not Antoine Lavoisier, but I can try to help you out.”

You couldn’t help the smile that formed on your lips, impressed by his comment although you wouldn’t admit it out loud, but also relieved to see some hope for you after all.

“That’d be nice of you.” You said. “But don’t you have your own stuff to work on?”

Jungwoo kept that soft smile on his face, shaking his head.

“No, it’s okay. Plus I guarantee you’ll learn quickly so we won’t take too much time on it anyway.”

After convincing you, the two of you walked to one of the empty tables and got to work. Book opened in front of you and he was sitting next to you, reading out loud the exercises as he followed the letters with his pencil. He scooted closer to get a better view, your heads almost bumping together and the smell of his cologne filling your nostrils in a very unexpected, yet pleasant way.

“Hold on, I think I have some notes in my old notebook.”

He opened his backpack and pulled out what you assumed was said notes. He turned the pages one by one, eyes glued to the paper as he absentmindedly tucked his hand in his pocket to take out a silver wrapper that he just discarded between his fingers to bring a piece of chewing gum to his mouth.

You had noticed a few times he had the habit of chewing gum very often, probably to calm his anxiety or perhaps just because he enjoyed the taste of strawberry way too much. 

As your eyes remained fixed on the movements of his jaw, his eyes traveled to you and he laughed, the tip of his ears turning red.

“Sorry. At this point I just do it on autopilot.” He smiled, licking his lips. “Do you want some?”

You smiled and shook your head.

“No thanks, it’s okay.” You had said, forgetting about the curiosity behind the reason for his habit before he nodded and went back to explaining the subject. 

You still don’t know if the topic was really that easy or he was a great teacher, but nonetheless, you passed the exam thanks to him.

When you broke the news to him, he was excited for you to the point where he patted your head and said he was proud of you. And you wouldn’t admit the way that made your stomach flip, either.

You started spending more time together, mostly the two of you when the rest of your friends were busy with their own schedules. 

Another night, you met at a party. He was friends with the host and you didn’t notice he was there for most part of the night, too busy dancing with either Hyuck or Taeyong, drinking and letting loose until you met him in the kitchen as you went from another drink.

It was kind of a shock, the way he looked I mean, almost unrecognizable from his usual appearance. He would usually wear oversized sweaters, hoodies, jeans or even a plain button up shirt. Not that he looked bad, cause that was basically impossible for him, but that night he truly overcame himself.

Or maybe it was just you, but the black turtle neck, tight jeans, boots and leather jacket surely took you by surprise. You almost froze as you saw him leaning against a counter, drink in hand as he chatted with another guy. His hand in his pocket, silver necklace glistening under the light and visible piercing on his ears.

You felt stunned to the point of wondering if it was really him, as he finished downing his drink, placed the cup next to him and again, brought another packet of gum out to slip one piece into his mouth.

He probably felt your stare on him, eyes finding your figure at the entrance as a bright grin formed on his lips. He lifted his hand to wave and you nervously returned the gesture before he leaned to whisper something in the other guy’s ear, who just nodded and walked away. You gulped and looked away, trying to find the cooler to put some ice into your plastic cup. Your hands were shaking as he approached, and a sudden shiver ran down your spine when he called out your name from behind. That cologne again swept you off your feet.

Turning around, you smiled.

“Hey.”

“Hey. Didn’t know you were coming.” He said, watching your every move as you tried to open a bottle with your clumsily shaky hands. Why the hell were you nervous? Still a mystery. However, he just choked and moved his hands to the head of the bottle, warm fingers brushing with yours as he decided to help and your eyes followed. Long, slender fingers adorned with rings and making you feel some type of way, encasing your smaller ones as he spoke,  “Let me.”

You pulled your hands away, your heartbeat increasing in speed as he opened the bottle and poured the liquid into your cup.

“Thanks.” You said, almost in a whisper. “Seems like I can’t do stuff on my own anymore.” You joked.

Jungwoo chuckled, handing you the cup before turning his body to face you. You looked up to meet his eyes, almost as if you hadn’t noticed the obvious height difference before, and what the fuck, he looked even more gorgeous from up close that night. Lips slightly tinted in red, sharp jawline and piercing gaze. 

“Nah, come on. I just like to help you.” He responded, pulling you out of your own thoughts.

“My hero.” You teased, and he just laughed. “I’m with Hyuck and Taeyong, if you wanna join us?”

“Ah, sure. Shall we get going?”

You nodded, turning on your heels as the two of you made your way back to the living room. Talking about trivial stuff before he suddenly called your name and you stopped, turning to look at him.

“Yeah?”

He smiled, leaning down to whisper in your ear. There it was, that strawberry scent coming from his lips as he said:

“You look pretty.”

And you would never admit out loud the way you weren’t able to stop smiling after that comment.

Admittedly, you two get along very well, and you consider him a friend after all the times he’s been there to either save you or make you laugh when you’re having a bad day, even with the glares thrown at you whenever the two of you spend time together walking through the corridors. He even, more often than not, smacks Donghyuck in the head when he notices you’re getting annoyed or upset by his silly jokes. However, and although he isn’t close enough to attend all of your Friday’s get-togethers, the two of you are still close enough for you to be completely embarrassed by the sole idea of having a wet dream about him. And yeah, you’re probably very aware of his beauty, the plumpiness of his lips, and the smell of his cologne, but you never thought of him that way at all.

At least, not that you had noticed, until now.

The fact that the dream felt so real and caused some slick to pool between your legs doesn’t help at all. You were agitated, craving for some touch as soon as you opened your eyes, and since then, it’s been almost impossible for you to stop replaying the scene in your head.

The memory of you laying on your back on the couch, his tall figure hovering over you on a plaid shirt with the first buttons undone, full plump lips against yours molding deviously, and making your head spin. One of your hands buried in his blonde locks and the other one running over the skin of his chest. His tongue slipping past your mouth, and large hands holding onto your waist. Breath ragged, skins burning, and heartbeats racing. You nibbling on the delicious thickness of his lip, already swollen from your kiss, and him groaning. You yearning for more, pulse like a sledgehammer echoing in your ears, him grinding down on you and you mewling in response, throwing your head back as his hand lowers to the waistband of your panties, he’s getting there, so close to where you’re needing him the most, you could almost taste it, the way you’re going to lose your mind, needing it, wanting it.

But before something else happened, the buzzing of your phone against your bedside table forced you out of your sinful dream. Your breath was still uneven, your body was still heated, and you cursed, because what the fuck was that.

You blink and come back to reality, slightly shaking your head in a failed try to stop reviving said fantasy. You finish washing up, as you continue praying for this night with your friends to help you out somehow.

A small get together with your closest friends one Friday of each month is a normal occurrence, something more of a tradition that’s gotten place for the last 4 years. Normally, the host would be changing each time; Two months ago, it was Doyoung, a night where the weather was cold and rainy, which was the perfect excuse for some of the boys to make you all watch horror movies. Spread across the living room with pillows, blankets and shared snacks in front of the tv that would surely make Doyoung lose his mind when having to vacuum the carpet to get rid of all the crumbs. Donghyuck wouldn’t stop teasing you whenever a jumpscare popped on the movie, karma biting him in the ass not long after when power was out because of the storm and he ended clinging onto Mark in the verge of tears.

Last month it was Donghyuck’s turn to host, which he thought alcohol and VR games would be a great mix. You spent that weekend with him going chandelier shopping when Mark accidentally let go of the remote and shattered the thing with his flailing arms falling to his virtual death. Now that it is your turn to host, you are filling your best friend in on the safer and more alcohol-friendly option you'd come up with. Rummaging through your kitchen cabinets, you balance the phone between your ear and shoulder, hunting for enough snacks that wouldn't be devoured in fifteen minutes by all your friends. 

"Yeah, I only have like, a packet of popcorn. Just buy whatever you want."

He groans.

"What are you in the mood for? Sweet or salty?"

"Hyuck, you know I can't make these kinds of decisions. All of the above?"

Donghyuck mocks your words. "What is it with girls and never knowing what they want? At least pick a movie out for tonight."

You roll your eyes, leaning your back against the countertop.

"If by pick one, you mean Russian Roulette on Netflix, then you got it. And besides, it's not like any of you will actually watch the movie. You just come to eat, drink, and make dirty jokes."

Your best friend scoffs, and you can easily picture the glare he'd be throwing in your direction if you were together. He couldn't deny it, and he couldn't help it– they were a bunch of twenty year old boys that might not have been laid in god knows how long. 

"Okay, old maid. Don't forget your nun veil as you get ready."

"Bold of you to assume I'm getting ready for any of you. I just got out of the shower and got into the first pair of sweatpants I found." The ones you hadn't been wearing for the past 2 days straight.

"Dress code, sweatpants. Heard. See ya later. Mark keeps making gestures for me to hurry up and it's getting embarrassing."

With another chuckle and a shake of your head, you say.

"Cool. See ya."

You hang up the phone and toss it on the dining table, making your way to the living room to set everything up.

Around thirty minutes later, you hear a knock on the door. Hearing Donghyuck’s loud laugh on the other side, you toss the remote controller onto the couch and sigh, walking towards the entrance and swinging it open. As soon as you meet with your best friend’s beaming smile, you're quick to turn on your heels and make your way to the kitchen without sparing the rest of your friends a single glance.

All of their voices are mixed enough for you to not set them apart from just the sound, except for Donghyuck and Mark’s giggles, assuming Doyoung and Taeyong are speaking just as loud in a try to get the younger ones to listen.

“Awe babe, thanks for the welcome. I missed you too.” Donghyuck says sarcastically, throwing his arms around your frame from behind and squeezing you against his chest.

“We literally saw each other yesterday, get off of me, you brat.” You whine, moving his hands away before grabbing a towel to wipe the dining table. “Make yourself home or whatever. I made some space in the refrigerator in case you want to place the drinks and–” You continue as you turn around, words getting stuck in your throat when your eyes land on the boy walking into the room and placing some plastic bags on top of the table.

He smiles sweetly at you when your eyes meet and you can’t help but freeze on the spot because, what the fuck is he doing here? Not that you don’t like it when he visits… But this time, you clearly weren’t expecting him.

“Jungwoo?” His name rolls off your tongue, stating the obvious. His eyes move from the things he’s getting out of the bags to you, back and forth, his smile glued to his features. You can’t help but take a glance down at yourself, certainly not in your most graceful outfit.

“Hey, I hope you don’t mind that I came.” He says, eyes setting on you with a hint of curiosity, waiting for your answer.

You clear your throat and a not-so-subtle nervous laugh erupts from your mouth.

“No, of course not.” You smile, realization hitting you after drinking his look in. Soft blonde hair, sweatshirt and a pair of blue jeans, a necklace and rings on his fingers. As your eyes remain fixed on him, your stomach starts spinning, suddenly noticing how gorgeous he actually is, almost as if last night’s dream had switched something within you and now is making you see him in a different light. You look down at yourself once again, in nothing but your old sweatpants, socks, and a messy bun. Fucking hell. “I just– If I had known you were coming I would’ve dressed more properly.” 

Jungwoo chuckles, shaking his head.

“Don’t be silly, come on. This is your house, you don’t need to dress up, much less for me.” He says, wiping the palm of his hands, now wet with the melted ice of the previously cold beverages in his pants, rolling the sleeves of his sweatshirt up his elbows and exposing a wristwatch and some bracelets. His arms look strong and veiny, and you gulp because how you wish he didn’t look so good doing something so simple. “You look so cute and comfy anyway.” He adds, sending a teasing wink your way.

Your cheeks heat up, which doesn’t usually happen, but you’re finding yourself feeling shy and small in front of him. Your mouth opens to speak before Donghyuck walks again into the kitchen and interrupts you.

“I told him he could come.” He says, smirking at you in a teasing manner. Almost as if his true intention was to embarrass you, but why would he? It’s not like he knows about the dream you had. “We were in the same class and he was going to be bored after, so I thought it’d be a good idea.”

“No. It’s okay.” You repeat. “You could’ve told me, though.” You say almost inaudibly, wishing you could just wrap your hands around his neck and squeeze until he begs for forgiveness.

Excusing yourself, you walk to the living room to meet your other three friends, not without kicking Donghyuck in the process.

The first one to greet you is Doyoung, who opens his arms widely and hugs you, followed by Taeyong and Mark.

“Did you pick a movie already?” Taeyong asks, sitting on the couch and grabbing the remote to navigate through the app. You take a seat right next to him.

“Not really.” 

“I was looking for something that looked interesting, but nothing gained my interest.” Mark speaks, sitting on the floor with his back against the couch and a pillow between his arms. 

“So, russian roulette?” Doyoung asks from the loveseat at the side, eyes in your direction.

“Sounds good to me.”

Not long after, Donghyuck and Jungwoo join the three of you with all the snacks and drinks. You expect Hyuck to sit next to you, but he proves you wrong when he decides to sit next to Mark instead, which makes Jungwoo be the one to sandwich you between him and Taeyong.

You turn your head and look up at him, with a straw between his lips as he drinks. He looks back at you and smiles, and you weakly return the gesture, with your hands curling into the inner sleeves of your hoodie.

They decide to play a random movie that doesn’t look good judging by the thumbnail, and everything was quiet for the first twenty minutes, until it started getting way too lame and the guys couldn’t help but start making jokes about it.

You would chuckle along with them, sometimes getting lost whenever your eyes landed on Jungwoo’s side profile dimly illuminated by the tv screen. You wonder how someone can look like that and be real, with that perfect nose, those big lips and that jaw that seems to be chiseled by the gods. He also smells so good, and the warmth of his body is driving you nuts. What has gotten into you? Somehow you’re now hyper aware of every single detail in Jungwoo, and it’s making you feel things you’re surely not supposed to feel for a friend.

Jungwoo turns his head slightly, catching you in the act, and you just turn your head back to the front and pretend like nothing happened. Jungwoo’s lips curl upwards, amused by the way he’s been noticing your eyes on him many times already.

Suddenly, the two main characters start having a heated scene. Kissing, touching and undressing themselves. You press your thighs together and bite your lip, this can’t be happening, not right now that you’re apparently so needy.

“What the fuck? How come she’s now hooking up with that guy? After kidnapping her? He’s a criminal!” Donghyuck speaks loudly, mouth full of popcorn as he points at the screen.

“Come on, the dude knows how to get his way with her. Just a couple of words and he’s getting his dick wet.” Mark reasons.

“This movie makes no sense.” Adds Doyoung, throwing his head back and groaning.

You would’ve agreed if only you could be able to know the context, which you don’t, because you’ve been too busy trying not to panic for having Jungwoo so close to you, smelling so nice and having his shoulder brushing against yours.

The guys debate whether or not they should just stop watching the movie, but end up letting it finish instead so they can talk about how bad it is at the end more properly.

As soon as it ends, Donghyuck stands up and turns the lights on, stretching his limbs.

“That movie was so bad, dude.” Mark comments. “I lost two hours of my time I’m not getting back.”

“Not like you’re getting back the hours you spend playing League of Legends, anyway.” Doyoung says, standing up from his seat.

“What does that mean?” Mark asks, standing up as well.

“It absolutely does not mean you’re throwing away your youth, Mark.” Doyoung responds, walking into the kitchen.

“Hey, at least League of Legends is fun.” Donghyuck interjects. “I’m gonna go to the bathroom.” He adds, making his way upstairs.

“If it’s so fun, why are you always enraged and punching on the desk?” Taeyong asks, following Mark and Doyoung into the kitchen.

Jungwoo gets up and turns to look at you.

“You coming?” He asks, pulling a packet of strawberry gum out of his pocket and grabbing a piece, unwrapping it before sliding it past his lips. You gulp, forcing a smile.

“Uh, yeah, sure.”

He smiles and turns around to join the rest, and so do you, cursing at yourself mentally for acting so obviously weird tonight.

You order takeout a bit later, all of you eating peacefully until your bellies threaten to explode. You stand up and get all the cups into the sink, Taeyong helping you by washing the dishes and Doyoung by throwing the trash out. Jungwoo, Donghyuck and Mark continue seated on the dining table, and you decide to sit there as well, barely listening to the so-called anecdotes your best friend is rambling about that you have heard about a million times.

You watch Jungwoo get another piece of strawberry gum into his mouth and you watch him carefully. As if everything was in slow motion, from the moment of it making contact with his lips, to the slow flexing of the muscles of his jaw. The sweet scent can be smelled subtly, and you really think he must be obsessed with chewing gum.

Your eyes are trained on him as he smiles at Hyuck’s story. His lips are glistening because he continues running his tongue over them and you wonder if they taste like strawberries too. If you kiss him, would the scent settle into your mouth? Would the taste linger on your tongue?

His lips, now that you pay close attention to them you notice how kissable they actually are. So thick, looking so smooth and inviting, you wonder how it’d feel to kiss him, is he a good kisser? Because just by the look of them you think you could kiss him for hours without getting tired. He probably knows how to use them, and you’d really, really enjoy biting o–

“Hey, y/n. Take a picture, it lasts longer.”

Donghyuck’s voice brings you back to earth, followed by the other guys chuckling. Jungwoo looks at you and you wish the ground would swallow you whole. Your cheeks burn in utter embarrassment at the realization of Hyuck catching you staring and even worse, exposing you. You snap your head towards him, both embarrassed and angry, not noticing the way Jungwoo clearly enjoys the fact that you’ve continued checking him out.

“The fuck are you talking about? I was zoning out.”

“Lies, you were staring at Jungwoo like a creep!” He says, standing up and pointing at you in accusation. “Just kiss him if you want to do it so badly.”

Doyoung rolls his eyes and pushes Haechan down by his shoulders, forcing him to sit back down.

“I wasn’t staring at him, you idiot. And what is that? Sounds like jealousy, is it because that time we kissed on a dare has been the only kiss you’ve gotten from me before me having to reject all of the others you’ve begged me to kiss you again?”

Donghyuck's mouth falls open, and everyone, especially Mark, tease him and laugh out loud.

“That was low.” He pouts, and you roll your eyes before standing up.

“Whatever. I’ll go to the bathroom.”

You can hear a loud smack when you exit the room, and although you can’t see where it came from, the next thing you hear is Donghyuck whining. “But she was staring at you!” You smile to yourself, knowing it was Jungwoo once again standing up for you.

When you’re done in the bathroom, you look at yourself in the mirror and sigh. You’re still way too embarrassed and still have to deal with them and face Jungwoo for probably a few hours. Truthfully, the Hyuck and you kissing thing doesn’t really bother you, you could even admit it was a good kiss. You rejected him not wanting to ruin the friendship the two of you have shared for several years, and you wouldn’t have used the fact that he, indeed, tried many times for it to happen again against him if he hadn’t made you so embarrassed.

You open the door and find the menace with the name of Lee Donghyuck leaning against the doorframe, startling you. You roll your eyes and turn the light off before walking out.

“What are you doing here?” You ask nonchalantly, walking past him until he grabs your wrist and stops you. So you sigh, and turn around to face him.

“Listen, I’m sorry if I made you embarrassed. I was just playing.” He says, and his tone is enough for you to know he’s being sincere. You arch a brow at him.

“Why would you say something like that?”

“I just thought it’d be funny.” He shrugs. “Didn’t think I’d actually hit a nerve.”

“It wasn’t funny. And you did not hit a nerve.”

Hyuck releases the grip on your wrist and crosses his arms over his chest.

“For sure I did not. Why’d you get so angry then?”

“Because it was embarrassing.”

“Or because you actually want to kiss Jungwoo hyung?”

“Hyuck, I swear to god.” You groan. He chuckles.

“Hey, it’s okay. I was just joking, but if you actually want to kiss him, then that’s okay too. He’s handsome. No one would blame you for that. Have you seen how many girls are fawning over him?”

“Yeah, well, I’m not one of them.”

He rolls his eyes.

“Okay, whatever you say.” He lifts his arms in surrender. “Do you forgive me? You hurt my pride as well.”

He makes puppy eyes at you and you smile, nodding your head.

“Yeah, we’re good.”

He grins and wraps you in a tight hug that you instantly reciprocate, burying your face in his chest.

“Does this mean we can kiss again?”

You push him away and smack his chest, making him laugh loudly.

The two of you make your way downstairs again, ready to continue with your night.

It’s half past midnight now, Mark and Donghyuck are asleep on the floor, Doyoung sleeping on the loveseat and Taeyong had to leave because his mom needed him for something you’re not quite sure about.

After making amends with Hyuck, you played video games until your body was sore for playing too much just dance. You’re now cuddled against the armrest of the couch, with Jungwoo sitting on the other edge with his phone in hand. Your eyes are a bit heavy, not able to pay attention to whatever episode of a show is playing in the background. Your eyes travel to Jungwoo, who’s too focused scrolling through his social media and chewing on his beloved gum to notice. Something in your chest feels heavy, not knowing why you suddenly have the urge to scoot closer to him and lean against his shoulder.

You shake your head and sit up, thinking it must be the tiredness playing tricks on you because you don’t like Jungwoo that way. Clearing your throat, you stand up from the sofa and stretch your limbs, gaining his attention.

“I’ll go upstairs to look for some duvets so you can sleep more comfortably.”

He smiles.

“Need some help?”

“No, don’t worry. I’ll be right back.”

Jungwoo stays silent, doe eyes looking at you while nodding. You smile back at him and make your way upstairs, trying your best not to make any sound so you won’t wake the guys up.

You open your closet and search for whatever is needed, placing the duvets on top of your bed as you look for some extra pillows.

Once you get everything, you go back downstairs and Jungwoo stands up as you cover the sleeping guys. Once you turn around, you’re met with him, who smiles down at you.

“I’m not that tired yet.” He admits.

“Oh, do you want to do something else?”

He tilts his head in thought.

“Like what?”

You think about it for a moment, proceeding to shrug.

“Want me to show you around? I think it’s the first time you’ve been here.”

“Sure.”

With that, the two of you walk upstairs, and you show him where everything is. He asks about the picture frames on your walls, about the paintings, praising your taste in decoration and making you slightly embarrassed. When you two make it to your bedroom, his eyes travel everywhere, like a curious kitten, like a kid who visits a new place.

“And this is my room. There’s nothing much to see here other than my old books and messy girly things.” You chuckle, leaning against the wall next to the door. He hums, eyeing your bookshelves.

He continues chewing on his gum, suddenly grinning as he grabs one of the books.

“Delta of Venus? Interesting choice.” He says, almost in amusement as he looks at the pages. You feel embarrassed instantly, heart racing and cheeks hot. He tucks his hand in his pocket and pulls a tissue out, discarding the chewing gum and throwing it on the bin next to your bed. Eyes still glued to the book in his hand.

Out of all the books, he had to find the erotic one.

You hurriedly walk towards him, snatching the book from his hands.

“I– Um it’s a good book.” You say, pressing it against your chest. Jungwoo looks down at you and smirks at your flustered state. “My mom had it in her storage and I got curious.” You continue, trying to excuse yourself. “It’s actually very graphic, but I mean, It’s–”

“Why so flustered? I’m not judging.” He says softly, and you chuckle nervously. “I think it’s nice.”

You nervously place the book back on your shelf.

“I mean, I thought you– I, I mean it’s embarrassing.”

“What is? The sexual content? Reading it?” He asks, finally leaning down to meet your gaze. “The fact that I discovered you like erotic novels?”

His sudden closeness makes you nervous, so nervous you try to step back but actually bump into the edge of the bookshelf, and he steps forward and cages you, not breaking eye contact once.

“I–” You stutter, feeling your throat tightening and your heart thumping. His strawberry scented breath is now fanning against your face. “I guess, um, the fact that you found out.”

Jungwoo chuckles.

“No need to feel embarrassed because of that.” He reassures, tucking a strand of hair behind your ear. “It’s fascinating.” He says, lips forming yet another smirk. “Just like all the times I found you staring at my lips.”

Your soul almost leaves your body. Eyes opening wide.

“W–What?” You ask in panic. “Is it because of what Hyuck said? It wasn’t true, I–”

“I didn’t need him to say anything to notice.” He confesses. “You’ve been staring at me the whole night.”

You press your eyes shut, completely flustered by getting caught red-handed.

“I’m sorry.”

“What for? Come on, look at me.” You open your eyes and meet his. His teeth sink in his lower lip, almost as if trying to trigger you. “What is it that’s making you so curious, hm? The chewing gum habit?” He asks and you shake your head. He hums. “Then what is it, babe?” He continues teasing, and you never thought he’d be this kind of man, but you must admit, it’s freaking hot. 

Your wisdom seems clouded, hypnotized by him being so close and taunting. As arousal pools in your underwear, your mouth blabbers on autopilot, because yeah, maybe you like him more than you imagined.

“I wonder what they taste like.” You admit. “How they feel.”

His gaze travels to your lips and back to your eyes, and once again, yours is glued to his pretty lips. “Is that so? Then Hyuck was right after all. Do you really want to kiss me?” He asks again, as his pointer finger runs along your jaw and your lower lip. You nod as he leans in, getting even closer if that’s possible, enough for his nose to brush against yours. “Maybe I want to kiss you, too. Why don’t you find out?”

At this point, you can’t handle it anymore. You’re craving for him so much you will go crazy if you don’t break this tension and do something about it, now.

So you curl your fingers in the fabric of his sweatshirt and pull him into a kiss. Electric shocks travel throughout your body at the feeling of his plump lips against yours, kissing you back right away. He lets out a small groan, as one of his hands sneak around your waist and presses your body into his, while the other one cups your jaw. His tongue meets yours soon and it makes you weak in the knees, clinging onto him.

Just like you imagined it would be, the strawberry taste on his tongue is deliriously strong and delicious, and it makes you wild, hungry for him as he takes a deep breath through his nose before he tilts his head to deepen the kiss even more. Your arms wrap around his neck and your fingers bury in his hair, devouring every inch of his lips as you start pushing him towards your bed.

Breaking the kiss briefly, you push him on his back against your mattress, straddling his body with both legs at the sides of his hips before diving back into his mouth.

His hands land on your waist, pressing you against the growing length inside his pants. He grunts against your mouth when you grind on him, losing all of your senses as you gently suck on his lips.

His tongue presses against yours and the temperature is rising mercilessly, not caring about the lack of oxygen and just having the urge to die in his mouth. You nibble on his pillowy lower lip, tug on it and make him groan before releasing it to go back to kiss him. Your hands cup his jaw and you’re nothing short of mesmerized by the way the muscles of his face flex under your touch, gently sliding downwards to touch his neck and shoulders. You continue nipping at his lip, tracing the reddened flesh with your tongue as small pants slip past his mouth at the action. It's addictive, so soft between your teeth, sweet, tasty. You could do this all day.

He’s such a great kisser, making your head spin and your stomach flip. It feels greater than whatever your dreams could’ve made you believe, and you just want more, and more.

With one particular roll of your hips, he parts from your mouth and lets out the most melodic moan you could’ve dreamed about. In one swift motion, he flips you to lay underneath him, grabbing your cheeks between his thumb and pointer finger, forcing you to look at him and chuckling when you chase for his lips.

“So? Did my lips meet your expectations?” He asks with a smirk, your eyes glued to his now red and swollen mouth. “Are you satisfied now? Do you want to stop?”

You shake your head quickly, cupping his jaw with your hands. You sit up and kiss him again, lips moving slowly and sensually together.

“Not even close.” You say against his mouth. “I don’t think I’ll ever be. Your lips exceeded any possible expectation.”

You feel him smile into the kiss, as he gently pushes you down again.

“Good, cause I wasn’t planning on stopping any time soon.” He kisses your mouth again. “You’ll feel my lips all over your body.”

And that’s what he does. He kisses every inch of your skin, making it burn, and shiver. His lips are soft against you, he’s delicate and sensual, nipping, licking, just touching. 

He kisses you again, and again, and again. He slowly starts undressing you, and you to undress him, throwing pieces of clothing across the room until you’re left bare under him and he’s just in his boxers with a painful, prominent erection. His hand is buried deep between your legs, and you arch your back and mewl against his mouth before he breaks the kiss and says: “Shh, keep quiet. We don’t want to wake the others up, do we?” 

You shake your head as he continues his ministrations, pumping his fingers in and out of you. Slick sounds echoing all over the room, his gaze so dark and piercing staring at you that you’re about to climax just by the sight.

“Jungwoo.” You whimper. “Please, please close the door and touch me more.”

He smirks and pulls his hand away from you, walking towards the door and locking it securely. He turns around and you sit up to look at him as he approaches, and he brings his hand to his mouth to suck on his fingers coated with your juices. He releases them with a pop, and you bite your lip as he licks his own, sliding his digits under the waistband of his boxers before he pulls them down to be in all his naked glory in front of you. Your pupils dilate at the sight of his erection, standing proud and tantalizing to your eyes as arousal subtly leaks in small drops from his slit. You want to touch, make love, taste him. To know the way he feels in deep. His body was probably sculpted, it’s definitely something out of this world, ripped at every edge and making you salivate.

He climbs on the bed above you again, both hands at the sides of your head and lips brushing against yours.

“Are you sure you want to do this?” He mutters against your mouth, and you nod. “I don’t think we can go back to how we were if we cross the line.”

You lace your hands behind his head and softly peck him again.

“We crossed the line the moment I started wanting to kiss you.” You whisper. “I don’t want to go back. I just want you.”

Jungwoo smiles before kissing you again, and gently lay you on your back.

He worships you in the most passionate way. He makes sure to let his hands roam and touch everywhere, caressing, squeezing, digging his fingers into your warm body while kissing you like both of your lives depend on it. He aligns himself and promptly slides inside of you, a broken moan erupting from you as your legs wrap around his waist.

He’s gentle, but firm and hot. His thrusts go deep, expert rolls of his hips reaching every perfect spot inside of you, making you numb, making you sweat, and set aflame.

Fingernails running down his back, low grunts, moans and whimpers raining all over these four walls accompanied by filthy sounds of skin against skin. Jungwoo takes his time with you, slowly getting to know your body and the way you react to every single one of his touches, learning what you like, what makes you shiver, what makes you clench so hard around him almost to the point of milking him dry.

He loves the sounds you make, the fucked out expression on your face and the beauty of the swellness on your lips. This is where he wanted to be, from so long ago without you noticing. He has dreamed of you many times, of you becoming his since the first time he saw you getting flustered by Donghyuck's pranks.

And you, of course, now realize how you’ve always had the biggest crush on him, not really believing he could ever be interested in you. Someone so kind, so well-mannered, fun to be around, smart. He’s nothing short of a prince.

He praises you, over and over again. He tells sweet things to your ear, treats you like porcelain, adores you to no end.

"That's it, love." He coos. "You're so good to me, baby."

So you touch him, and touch, and touch. You roam your hands all over him, you memorize the shape of his body, the heat that emanates from his skin. You drag your fingers across his abs, his collarbones, his biceps and the muscles of his back. You’re worshipping him as much as he worships you. But if you had to pick one part of him you love the most, you’d definitely pick his mouth.

He loses himself in the pleasure, in the urge of taking you to paradise. You get there soon, with the right touches, pinches, kisses. You come around him with chants of his name in between gasps, and Jungwoo is utterly hypnotized by you and the scene in front of him. He is gasping, so close to his own peak as his hand moves to intertwine your fingers together. Squeezing your hand as tightly as your cunt squeezes his girth, still thrusting into you, rocking his hips, he then stares at you and throws his head back momentarily to breathe, or try to, before letting his eyes go back to you.

“You’re so fucking pretty, babe.” He says. “You’ve always been. And you're mine now, all for me.”

You open your eyes and look at him, moving your hand to run your finger over his lower lip. Your gaze is enough to push him to the edge, and he cums inside of you after twitching a few times. His thrusts go sloppy and slow until you’ve milked all of his scent. He collapses next to you, softening length sliding out as you try to catch your breaths, limbs still tangled, skins covered in sweat and the smell of his cologne now lingering on your body.

You turn your head and smile at him, watching as he keeps his eyes pressed shut. You can see the vein of his neck still protruding, his pulse erratic as drops of sweat travel down his temples. His sideburns drenched and stuck to his skin.

He turns his head and finally looks at you, his own smile forming on his lips. He looks ethereal, so beautiful with flushed cheeks and swollen lips. He wraps his arm around you and brings you close to him.

“Did you mean it?”  You ask before you can register, mind filled with insecurities speaking out loud.

“Mean what, love?”

“That I’m pretty?”

Jungwoo chuckles at your question, finding it adorable especially when your lips turn into a pout.

“Of course.” He responds, cupping your face. You smile at him.

“Even when I’m all messy wearing nothing but sweatpants and a hoodie?”

He laughs, but nods.

“Especially when you’re wearing nothing but sweatpants and a hoodie.” He responds, kissing your forehead. “The real you is the prettiest one.”

“Then, if you feel that way...” You speak again. “What does this make us?”

Jungwoo thinks for a moment quietly, as his thumb caresses your cheek. Then, he responds.

“I’m not sure, but I would like to take you out on a date, if you let me.” He smiles, biting his lower lip. “I don’t want this to be a one time thing, especially with you. Though I don’t think I can be just friends anymore, your wish will be my command.”

You grin widely, propping on your elbow and cupping his face before you kiss him slowly and sensually.

He pulls back for a moment.

“Is that a yes?”

You chuckle, nodding.

“But I might become obsessed with kissing you. At all times, every day.”

Jungwoo laughs, pressing his lips on yours.

“I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

The two of you start kissing again, lost in each other until you hear loud knocks on the door that force you to break apart.

“If you’re done fucking, can you please hand me my charger?” You hear Donghyuck from the other side. “I had to listen to both your sounds and Mark’s snores because my fucking phone is dead!”

Jungwoo and you burst into laughter. He stands up from your bed and gets back into his pants. You hurry and walk into the bathroom before Jungwoo grabs the charger. He turns his head and stops you.

“Hey, I wanted to clean you up! I’m supposed to do the aftercare.” He pouts, and you giggle. Walking towards him, you stand on your tiptoes and press a kiss to his lips.

“I’ll take a shower, you can join me after giving him his charger.” You wink, and he bites his lip with a smirk.

“Gross! Give me my stupid charger!” Hyuck says again, hitting the door.

And you laugh as you get in the bathroom.

Donghyuck won’t let you live this down, but it’s totally worth it.

[str4y-c4t-strut]

The Little Prince Theory (Deltarune)

So, after hearing some comparisons of Ralsei to the story of The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint Exupery, and The Little Prince himself I feel that the course of Deltarune is following a similar pattern of narrative development. So, I don’t think Ralsei is inherently evil or good, I believe he’s a neutral party and that our next Dark World bosses (not the secret ones) will follow the course of The Little Prince.

Ralsei is introduced to us under the title of the ‘Lonely Prince’ who ‘has no subjects’ and appears to live in Castle Town completely alone. He tells Kris that “I've been waiting alone here... Um... My whole life for you two to arrive.” Ralsei superficially resembles The Little Prince with both of them being mainly dressed in green, and most interestingly a line from the novel states "Once upon a time there was a little prince who lived on a planet that was scarcely any bigger than himself, and who had need of a sheep . . ." Ralsei lives in the supply closet of the school, a very small area objectively, and resembles a goat which is similar to a sheep in appearance. More importantly, keep in mind that the prince’s planet was hardly any bigger than himself (the planet was himself, he was his own home) and Ralsei was living alone (he is his own home in an empty world). 

Now I’m going to transition to something wildly different. The Little Prince travels through seven different worlds, the seventh being a desert upon earth. Deltarune has seven chapters in total, implying possibly six different Dark Worlds, and the final being The Roaring. Each world has an adult inhabiting it that the prince talks to. On the first world he meets a king who says he rules over everything but in reality he rules over no one and nothing. Similarly, the Fun Gang meets the ruler of the Card Castle, King. King has fired all his puzzle makers, and the guards he employs hate their jobs, his only willing servant is Rouxls Kaard, a card that never participates in the game, thus is literally ruling over nothing. King has an extremely weak force of command that is immediately shattered when in True Pacifist all his subjects rebel and overthrow him, protecting the Fun Gang because they dislike their ruler. 

On the second world, The Little Prince meets a conceited individual who only sees himself. “But the conceited man did not hear him. Conceited people never hear anything but praise.” We see both Ralsei and Kris are the most unacknowledged characters in the presence of Queen in Chapter 2. Queen, although her drinking tendencies are glaring, has another much more broad issue. She is obsessed with herself. Vases have her image on them, the Mona Lisa has her face pasted overtop, there’s a giant robot version of her in the centre of her mansion, there are cleaning posters with her endorsing the product pasted around the Trash Zone, shops have images of her modeling, the very entrance to her mansion is in the shape of her face. Queen only sees what benefits her or praise that claims she’s entertaining. 

So far, in Chapter 1 and 2, the Fun Gang have met two adults of Dark Worlds that are selfish, immature and poor role models. This is a smaller aspect of my theory that leads me to believe that the next major antagonist of Chapter 3 will have the same issues the third adult The Little Prince meets does. The third adult is a drunkard who is full of shame and has no self-respect. Note that: “This was a very short visit, but it plunged the little prince into deep dejection.” In post-Undertale, it is known that Toriel has a penchant for drinking to the point of getting drunk, especially out of despair. We also know that Flowey took care of her during, from what we know of, at least one of those binges. Toriel, being in the vicinity of this Dark Fountain, is likely going to get sucked in with Kris and Susie. From the observations of how Kris interacted with Queen, especially during the “Toast” ACT, where they made their own toast and Susie comments in surprise “(Why did they make it so emotional?)”. Likely Kris helps their mom with her drinking binges in Deltarune, and perhaps if Deltarune continues to follow The Little Prince route, our next antagonist may end up being Kris’ own mom and her drinking habits, resulting in Kris plunging into a deep dejection over it. Now why did I equate Kris to The Little Prince’s reaction in this third world when I first compared The Little Prince to Ralsei? Well, here’s why.

I believe that Ralsei is a projection of Kris. Toriel mentions that Kris used to wear a red headband with horns all the time as a child before it went missing. Kris before that would always ask when their horns would grow in, thinking they were the same species as their parents. As Kris grew up in Hometown, I have no doubt that as a kid they played in the school, probably in the old classroom and entered the supply closet where they lost their headband playing pretend or daring others to go in because it was spooky and dark. That headband was the culmination of what Kris thought they would become, the culmination of belonging. Ralsei, a lonely prince, reflects Kris’ own loneliness in Hometown where their brother outshines them and they are the only human as well as ‘the weird kid’, likely a product of feeling alienated and alone. Ralsei in the acid tunnel reflects that he’s not quite sure what being ‘Ralsei-like’ even is. Ralsei has a lack of identity or understanding of himself other than his purpose to serve Lightners. Ralsei likely has this servitude mindset because if Ralsei is the headband, then his whole purpose was to serve as a piece of Kris’ identity, although confused in what being ‘Kris-like’ even means when Kris is a human, not a monster. Kris, at the point of time where the headband was lost, likely had the same confusion over their identity. 

Ralsei seems to be the personification of what Kris thought they were when they were younger and what they desired to become. However, Ralsei also holds the lack of self-realization that Kris still holds, with an empty bedroom, social outcast life, no desire to be religious like their parents (and maybe Asriel) – Kris has hobbies but they are either chided by their mother over them (eg. making bath bombs and doing weird experiments) or ignored and overshadowed by Asriel’s hobbies. Notice Kris, when they examine Asriel’s side of the bedroom, list all of their brother’s interests but none of their own, we learn their interests through Queen’s personalized search history room and the hospital piano as well as other characters. Ralsei giving Kris in Castle Town the side of the bedroom that resembles Asriel’s is likely a reflection of what Kris at the time of losing the headband wanted to become (looking up to their golden child of a brother) and perhaps in a way still desires. 

By extension, I also believe that Ralsei is acting as the guide to Kris’ coming of age in Deltarune, and that Kris and Ralsei are two sides to The Little Prince coin. Undyne, when Kris tells her about the Dark World, laughs them off like it is just child fantasies. When left without a project partner their mom babies them, saying that she can help with the project, leading Kris by the hand into the school like a lost child. "The grown-ups are certainly very, very odd," he said to himself, as he continued on his journey.” This line in The Little Prince sums up how I believe Kris feels about the adults in their life. Ralsei takes Kris through these Dark Worlds with various adult caricatures to help them learn about love, friendship, mercy and compassion. Kris thus processes the oddities of the real world through this fantasy and comes to form their own sense of autonomy and identity.  

This is another aspect to my theory that is not explained through The Little Prince, but rather how Toby Fox may extend and complicate that narrative through his inclusion of the secret bosses. I believe that if the major bosses reflect immature adult aspects Kris’ encounters in the external world that they come to process in the Dark World - an internalization of their character development - then the secret bosses represent Kris’ reactions to those external adult aspects. 

Jevil is the polar opposite to King in that King believes he has total control and Jevil relinquishes the idea of control in favor of the idea of chaos and rebellion. We see that Kris, when out of the Player’s control, often does things contrary to what is expected of them. Instead of being Asriel-like with track and field, awards, a broad social network and community participation Kris opts for having no extracurriculars, satisfied with their average third-place in class, essentially had no friends and mostly acquaintances, only attends church for the juice and routinely makes experiments their mom disapproves of. They are known to be mischievous just like Jevil, scaring Noelle with cryptid tales and the like or spreading rumors about the bunker. Hell, chaos bombs, bath bombs stuffed down the toilet - results are the same with destroying something for kicks. 

Spamton, on the other hand, is a little more difficult to explain in his core opposition to the Queen because on the surface they both seem obsessed with themselves. However, what I think a lot of people miss that is integral to Spamton’s identity (or lack thereof) is that he is a puppet - he is almost a carbon copy of the Addison mannequin we see in the blue dress. A mannequin, or puppet, is a projection of other people’s desires. They have no identity of their own and are not supposed to as they are manipulated by external forces into what is desired for the purpose of their existence. I have a theory I posted a while back that Spamton was never a white Addison, but rather a regular Addison downloaded into a mannequin for ease of control and desirability. Spamton, as a mannequin manipulated by Mike and the ‘mysterious person on the phone’, comes to represent an inherent lack of self. He is a projection of what others expect him to be - a salesman and an ad. Where the Queen is full of herself, Spamton completely lacks understanding of his own desires. He only wants what was expected of him, to make lots of money, sell lots of stuff, influence (manipulate) others through ads and constantly aspire to be a ‘big shot’ in order to reproduce the means to do the previous things listed. A ‘big shot’ has the influence and money to sell more stuff. Spamton has been a doll, a plaything for others, to the point that he is only obsessed with expectations of him rather than what he actually is - thus his egomania is less born out of his own self-obsession, but rather the programmed expectations he has been forced into for a majority of his existence (ie. be a ‘big shot’ to make that money through that influence of popularity and reputation). Spamton’s predicament resonates so deeply with Kris because they are both literally puppets on a string, performing actions not on their own account but solely to exercise another person’s desires, as well as Kris being constantly compared and held to the expectations of their brother. Kris is used to having a lack of identity, wearing the red headband is the epitome of them trying to fit into the role they are inherently not - they aren’t a monster. Kris is constantly, subtly surrounded by expectations of them being just like their ‘big shot’ of a brother. Spamton and Kris both seek freedom from this predicament. 

Kris both rejects the ultimate control of adults and feels forced to pretend to be something they are not, resulting in deep identity issues. These internal conflicts show in-game why the secret bosses are so much harder to beat since they are essentially Kris fighting against themself and being forced to recognize their own reactions in an uncomfortable act of self-realization. It’s easier to recognize others’ problematic actions, but it’s much harder to recognize your own and overcome them. And this is where I believe Toby Fox furthers the narrative of The Little Prince where Kris doesn’t only see the odd actions of immature adults, but also comes to see the odd actions of their own and develops accordingly. 

Ultimately, I believe the existence of the Dark Worlds is a reflection of Kris dealing with internal and external conflicts in their life through an exercise of imagination in order to develop as a person. As The Angel’s Heaven comes about in the legend, with three heroes appearing at the edge of a desert strongly resembles the final planet the Little Prince visits - Earth. He lands in the Sahara desert and believes Earth to be devoid of existence except for four creatures he stumbles upon - a snake, a fox, a flower and the narrator (a pilot who crashed their plane in the desert). The narrator, through hearing the Little Prince’s tales, comes to realize their own childlike imagination as a gift and that the practical, material aspects of the world that adults are supposed to be obsessed with are meaningless and immature. There are some strong parallels between Deltarune and The Little Prince that I cannot put together coherently:

The Little Prince’s rose and their rejection then final reconciliation that their rose loved them and they did not understand that (also that they protected their rose with a glass) vs. Asgore’s collection of SOUL coloured flowers and the roses he gives to Rudy in the hospital and that all those flowers are protected with a glass covering (Rudy also mentions a short joke relating to Beauty and the Beast  and the roses - having love connotations)

The Little Prince dying at the end of the novel after being bitten by the snake and falling down soundlessly as his body was too heavy to carry to his planet, with the final pictures being him dying under a star and then a lone star in the night sky as it shines over the desert vs. the Darkners turning into stars when reverting to items or falling from Kris’ pockets as stars in Castle Town

Who the snake, the fox, the flower and the narrator could represent in Deltarune, if Toby Fox chooses to incorporate those ideas

Anyways, I hope you enjoyed the long post and if you have any additions or ideas please feel free to share!

[punkranger]

Say hello to the night

Fallen Hero, flystep (implied chargeflystep)

Word count: 1.8 k

Once again it's Antoine and Danny hanging out in a questionable place and talking about stuff. This time we've got uuh, smoking, some hints of Daniel's backstory that I'm making up based on scraps and favourite movies. Also, set in a hypothetical future where Daniel and Ortega work with Antoine after the villain reveal.

Blue-black sky. Just a bit of it behind clouds tinted a dull orange from too many city lights. Even those are mostly hidden by the crumbling outline of the tall buildings around you.

A smaller, matching orange suddenly glows next to you, in this part of the city the faint light from the street lamps isn't much competition. Antoine, perched on a rusty steel railing, looks up at you from lighting his cigarette with a look of sudden epiphany.

He reaches into the pocket of his battered, orange leather jacket and takes out the pack of cigarettes he had just put away.

Holding it out to you, he asks, “Want one?”

Your eyebrows go up. It’s not that you exactly mind smoking, in general, but you wouldn’t say you’ve encouraged his habit. You’ve certainly never indicated that you wanted to smoke, at least you don’t think so, you’ve never given much thought to it since you wouldn’t be allowed to anyway - it’s not just your diet that gets monitored.

“Why?” Is all you can think to ask, because you don’t know the answer to his question and you’re genuinely curious about why he’s suddenly asking.

His hand falls to his lap, but he doesn’t put the cigarettes away immediately. Instead, scarred fingers drum restlessly on the package.

“Dunno,” he says after a long pause, not looking at you, “thought you might want to have something to do while waiting. Or maybe I just wanted the company.”

The last part is quiet, said almost under his breath. Maybe that’s why you take him up on the offer.

“Alright, let me have one then.” He looks a little surprised, but hands you a cigarette without comment. Then he jumps down from his perch, stepping closer to you.

He holds up his lighter for you, the light of the flame enclosed between you.

The first drag sends you into a coughing fit, which you pretty much expected. You manage to get it under control relatively quickly though, and after wiping your eyes you straighten up to look at Antoine. You manage a sheepish smile, but you don't really feel embarrassed.

He doesn’t laugh at you either, but his eyes have a teasing glint in them.

“First time?” He asks, lips half-curled up in a smirk. You shake your head, your own smile dropping slightly.

“My brother had me try it, once.” You stop and look up at the sky again, watching the smoke curling up. Memories invading your head despite the door you closed on them.

Your brother had asked you to join him on a walk. He’d acted so casual about it you immediately knew something was up. It made you excited and apprehensive at the same time - knowing Joshua, you knew he could get up to some pretty reckless things. Usually those things didn’t involve you, however, which made this feel like a special occasion.

It hadn't been that interesting at the time, standing in a secluded street corner, similar to now but the surroundings had been much neater - all pretty facades to hide the rot inside. Sneaking around had been the thrilling part, even if you had imagined you were hunting villains rather than choking on smoke. But with the filter of time it seemed like a good memory. Especially compared to others. You quickly shut that door.

Feeling Antoine's questioning gaze on you, you shake your head slightly, trying to bring your focus back to the present.

A quick smile sent his way, an apology, disappearing when you remember that you shouldn't. Don't have to. Apologize. Smiling when you don't really want to.

He takes your hand, his thumb stroking the back of it quickly before letting go and leaning back against the fence next to you.

"You know…" He says slowly, lips curling in a slightly ironic smile. "This does feel a bit like being a teen, at least like how the movies portray it."

You can't help but laugh. Of course you should know by now that he can literally read your mind. You also notice the subject he chooses to bring up is tactfully impersonal.

Though you're also surprised that he actually chose to bring up that particular subject, considering…

"Daniel, yes. I do watch cliché teen movies," Antoine interrupts your thoughts, words a bit too hurried to be entirely casual, "I don't know why you're surprised, but really the soundtracks make it worth it."

He's deflecting, not unusual. Since you didn't say your thoughts out loud he's got the opportunity to pick and choose among them. This is why you prefer to be direct, usually. Right now, however, you don't mind the distraction. Especially when he's clearly trying to be tactful, which is not a common occurrence.

"Really?" You snort, attempting to bring yourself back to the conversation again. His hand is a comforting anchor point. "You like the music in cliché teen movies?"

"Okay, I just like the Lost Boys." Antoine admits, leaning back on a railing, still smiling faintly. Encouraging, like when he sees you follow through with a move correctly during training.

"Does that count? Anyway, the soundtrack isn't even good!" You protest, falling into the familiar banter. Like water, it's followed a similar path long enough to carve a groove in the earth.

It's never boring, though. Just a pattern you can now follow without feeling like you're balancing on a precipice. Not that you can feel even a thrill at that any more. You're more likely to float away in the wrong direction, without a goal or anything to pull you back.

Antoine fake gasps and puts a hand to his chest. "I can't believe you're insulting my favourite movie!"

"It's not your favourite movie." You roll your eyes, but can't help smiling at his theatrics, as usual he manages to pull you back down.

"How do you know? It could be, I'm not ashamed to admit it!"

"You told me last week your favourite movie was the Marshal and the Menace."

Antoine waves a hand dismissively. "That was just to annoy Ortega."

"He wasn't exactly annoyed…" You almost blush, remembering Ricardo had instead suggested a re-enactment of a certain scene that you’re pretty sure didn’t end like that, except in certain unofficial versions of the movie.

"Heh, right…" Antoine replies, smug smile on his face. "Well it was a win-win situation for me anyway." The look and smirk he sends your way lets you know he followed your thoughts, memories of that night…

Antoine…” you push down the rising heat and clear your throat and your mind, trying to not let him distract you. “...You don't have to treat everything like a competition you know - you are allowed to just receive good things."

He raises an eyebrow and tilts his head.

"I know that. I don't need you to say it." His voice is casual, convincing if you didn't know him, noticing the hint of defensiveness behind the words.

"But," he continues, a smile slowly spreading on his face, "if you think I should receive good things, why don't you give me some."

He points, unsubtly, at his lips. Wiggles his brows for emphasis.

You're technically here to stand watch, so you really should be keeping a low profile… but you can't help it, you burst into laughter. Even if you’re aware of the distraction.

"Wow, what a rude rejection, I'm heartbroken you know." Antoine isn't even trying to sound offended, he's grinning and you’re all too happy to have let him distract you.

Still, you wouldn’t mind following through on his first suggestion. Because you want to. Another thing you've learned from him; doing what you want to do - even if you, once again, are supposed to be on lookout.

You take a few steps to stand in front of him, put your hands on his shoulders. What's life without a little risk?

He's still leaning back, just watching you, or your lips mostly. You do the same, seeing the smile drop, pink tongue flickering over dark lips.

His eyes flicker up to meet yours just before you crash into him, drawn down as if tied to a rock dropped into the ocean.

You feel his hands on the back of your neck, in your hair, pulling you ever closer. Further into the depths.

The cigarettes are long forgotten, just an aftertaste remains. In a way they served their purpose. Of distraction, company.

Suddenly you hear the crunch of gravel against asphalt behind you and both of you tense up and part at the same time. Before you have time to completely turn around you hear Antoine let out a breathless laugh at the same time as a voice behind you calls out.

"Is this how you guys treat guard duty? Anyone could have sneaked past you and noticed me!"

Ricardo walks casually out of the alley, and despite his words he's smiling.

"You know I don't have to see to notice people, right?" Antoine replies.

"It's not fool-proof, I know that."

"Right, but that's why Danny's here, to keep track of the fools." Antoine slaps your back with a laugh.

"I don't know about you two, but I can at least keep track of the people who want to kill us." You say, smirking at Ricardo's offended expression.

"Did he just call us fools?"

"To be fair I also implied that you're a fool." Antoine says, putting a hand on the nape of your neck. "Me, however? Not a fool, or what do you say Danny?"

His fingers start crawling along your neck, making you squirm away from the ticklish feeling.

"I don't think we should hang around here longer than necessary." You say with a short laugh, escaping from his reach by hovering. When you look back you see Antoine pouting and hear Ricardo trying to cover a snort.

"You’re right." Ricardo says. "We can continue this conversation at home."

"You all done then?" Antoine asks, suddenly serious again. This was all to help him after all.

Ricardo just nods.

You meet Antoine's gaze and he smiles again, before turning around and hurrying off to his motorcycle, yelling, "Last person home has to cook!"

"You're still not allowed in the kitchen!" Ricardo yells back without hesitation, moving just as swiftly to his own bike.

You just shake your head, wincing slightly and calling out more softly, "Did you two forget we're not supposed to be here? I'll make dinner if-"

Antoine loudly revs up his motorcycle, Ricardo a second after, drowning what you were saying. They give you a wave as they take off.

You shake your head and also make yourself scarce, hoping no one heard all that racket, flying over the roofs and circling once to make sure no one's around to see the three of you leave.

Then you make your way home.

[plenaurum]

What Love Is: Pt 2/2

Might be an epilogue after this. I just wanted to get this out. Sorry it’s so long. Antoine Dawson. Word count: 3k. Part 1 here. Enjoy! Feedback appreciated but not required.

It has been over a week since she cut him loose. Throughout the week, she has had to dodge phone calls, FaceTime requests, text messages, direct messages, even comments under her Instagram posts from Antoine.

Funny how he gives a damn now.

Refusing to entertain him any longer, she avoided reading any of his messages, cutting her eyes away from words like “Y/N, I’m so—”, “I love—“, “Please can we ta—“, before she could get too far and let him pull her in too deep. Again.

So she blocked him. On everything. She unmatched him on Lovelink, blocked his phone number, his e-mail, all of his socials, even going as far as to private her social media accounts. She didn’t want to give him any wiggle room to slide back into her life.

And she refused to let the pain of having to let him go, of not being able to talk to him again, to see his face again, to hear his voice affectionately call her name in a way only he can, get in the way of her anger. Because she is angry. And heartbroken.

She would weather any internal storm if it meant not having to go through heartbreak like that again.

So she persisted.

“Are you sure you’re gonna be ok?” Jake asks.

They have just finished up a movie night with their friends Grace and Jasmin. They insisted that they have one because “you can’t spend your life wallowing over a fucker that couldn’t appreciate a bad bitch when he had one,” Jasmin said.

They’ve been pretty damn upset with Antoine, and make their disdain known whenever his name is brought up. Jasmin especially.

“This too shall pass,” Grace said ominously, curled up on the floor with a cup of toffee ice-cream.

“Is that Shakespear?” Jasmin looked over at her curiously, licking the remnants of the popcorn from her fingertips.

“It’s from the Bible!” Jake exclaimed. He was sitting on the floor next to Y/N’s legs, head leaning against her lap like a cat. Y/N let out a chuckle, a grin pulling at her lips as appreciation for her friends welled up in her chest.

It’s been about 20 minutes since Grace and Jasmin took off, Grace having to work on her thesis and Jasmin having a meeting with her model agency in the morning. They each departed with a huge hug and a kiss on the cheek. Jake stayed behind, however.

“I’ll be fine, Jake.” Shaking off the memory, Y/N gathers the rest of the dishes into the sink. “You don’t have to babysit me.”

Jake leans against the counter next to her, a friendly warmth radiating from him. “It’s not babysitting when it’s your friend, Y/N.” He begins to help her with the dishes, their arms occasionally brushing against each other as they move in-sync. Y/N felt a rush of affection at him for being so kind.

Jake. Always such a softy.

“Besides, I don’t have my date for another hour, so I don’t have to leave just yet.” Jake turns his head and quirks a smile at her, eyebrows dancing playfully. “I could always kick your ass in another round of Uno.”

Y/N can’t help but laugh. “You know damn well it’ll be the other way around, Romeo.” Jake shrugs, a triumphant grin still on his face. He doesn’t really care about winning so much as he does about making that sad look on her face go away.

“Besides, shouldn’t you be preparing for your Juliet?” She says teasingly.

Putting away the last dish, Jake avoids her eyes, a blush dancing on his cheeks. “They’re not Juliet. They’re just helping me film.” He mutters.

Another giggle bursts out of her chest. “You mean they’re not Juliet yet.” He rolls his eyes, a bashful grin breaking through.

“How is it going with them by the way?” She asks.

He perks up adoringly, jumps to sit on top of the counter, eyes shining. “It’s going so well!” He says excitedly. He goes on to talk about the person he met from Lovelink, ironically the same site that she met Antoine on. She listens to him talk, feeling the heaviness from her chest lighten up a little at how happy he is, how utterly smitten he is.

At least one of them can have their happy ending. She smiles softly, a little sad. “I’m really happy for you Jake.” She says sincerely. “You deserve this.”

He stops talking and just looks at her, a soft look on his face at her tone. “You deserve it too, you know.” She just smiles at him, a faraway look in her eyes.

“I’ll get there eventually.” She affirms. He slides off the counter and pulls her into his arms. She didn’t know how much she needed a hug until now. Burying her face into his neck, she sighs, the heaviness in her chest lifts significantly.

“I know you will,” He whispers.

They stay like that for a few moments until they hear a knock at the door. They pull away from each other, looking at it quizzically. “Are you expecting anyone?” He asks.

“No. It was just you guys.” Besides, it’s almost 9pm. There’s another knock at the door, this one more persistent. Jake furrows his brow. “Are you gonna get it or should I?”

“No, I got it.”

Letting go of his hand, she goes for the door, and opens it without even looking through the keyhole, curiosity getting the better of her. “What can I do fo--” Her eyes lock with Antoine’s icy blues.

An icy feeling shoots it’s way through her body. She’s frozen, staring at him, heart beating out of her chest. She can’t breathe.

Then she feels a presence at her back and Jake’s hand on her shoulder. She lets the warmth of his hand spread through her body, soothing her. He knows who it is, if the pictures are anything to go by.

She watches Antoine’s eyes shoot to where Jake is touching her.

Everybody’s frozen, waiting for someone to make the first move. Then Antoine clears his throat, shifting on his feet. “Um,” he stammers, face reddening. “Is this a bad time?”

Jake stiffens, face hardening a bit. He shoots a look at Y/N, who turns around to look at him. They seem to have a silent conversation, his eyes saying are you sure about this? To which she replies I’ll be fine. I got this. He nods.

“No. I’ll see you later Y/N,” She hears him say, still staring at Antoine. He meets her eyes, his own unreadable. She nods at Jake, turning to give him a weak smile. He returns it, then parts with a quick peck on her cheek. He shoots a sly look at Antoine, and says, “See ya.” Then, brushing past Antoine’s tense body, he’s off.

Taking a deep calming breath, she pulls herself together enough to say “Do you wanna come in?” He gives her a smile and nods. Stepping aside, she lets him in, making sure to press herself against the open door to prevent any contact between them.

Closing the door, she turns to look at him to see that his eyes have been on her the entire time, seemingly drinking her in. Ignoring the tingles that spread through her body, she crosses her arms and fixes him with a hard look.

“What are you doing here, Antoine?” She thought he was in Nepal. Probably chasing some baby animal and getting himself stuck in a cave, she thinks bitterly.

“I wanted to see you,” he replies. Giving her another once over, he smiles softly at her. “How are you? How have you been?”

“Fine. Good.” She says sharply, ignoring his flinch. “What do you need?” She repeats.

Hands shoved into his pockets, biting his lip, he looks toward his feet, obviously unsure. “I deserve that,” he mutters to himself.

Deciding to cut him some slack and be a good host to an otherwise unwelcome guest, she clenches her jaw and bites out “Do you want a drink?”

His shoulders fall away from his ears, hope all over his face. “Please.”

She says nothing else and instead, giving him a wide berth, walks to the kitchen. It must be obvious that she wants her space, because Antoine keeps a careful distance between them, following her lead. He doesn’t want to set her off and kick him out when he misses her so much.

Yanking out two glasses, she pours a glass of one for each of them, ignoring his watchful eyes, filling her own cup to the brim. She passes the other to Antoine, his fingers brushing against hers when he takes it, almost as if he can’t help himself. She yanks her hand back and takes a long sip.

She decides to take a seat. No use being uncomfortable in your own damn house. She fixes him with another hard look and says: “Sit down.” He obeys, taking the seat across from her at the counter. He hasn’t taken a sip of his drink yet.

A few moments pass in tense silence. She has a lot of questions for him that she refuses to ask out loud, like Why did you insist on keeping me around if you were just gonna keep running from me? Was I not enough for you? Why would you say one thing and then do the complete opposite? Why? Why? Why? But she won’t ask. She’s done looking weak, being weak for him.

She feels him staring at her. Looking toward the ceiling to keep the tears at bay, she takes another long sip of her wine, reveling in the warmth settling in her belly.

“Why are you here, Antoine?” She asks again quietly, looking down at her drink.

“Who was that?” He blurts out instead of answering the question. He looks almost guilty, like he knows he should’ve kept to himself.

“Who was who?” She says cooly.

“That—that guy. Is he—? Are you—?” He’s stammering, tongue not cooperating with him.

She looks at him incredulously. Is he serious?

She’s silent for a moment, wanting to be petty and reply with what’s it to you? We’re not together anymore! I’m not even sure if we were together at all! But instead, allowing herself a moment of weakness and not being able to bear the pain of him thinking that she’s moved on so fast, she just says: “That’s Jake. Remember?” She’s told him about her friends at the beginning stages of their relationship, making it clear that while she and Jake are really close, they’ve never thought about one another that way. Besides, they’re both in love with other people.

The relief he feels is painfully obvious. “Oh.” He says dumbly. “Oh.” He repeats to himself. He lets out a breath, as if he’s been holding it in anticipation of her answer.

She doesn’t say anything back.

He tries to catch her eye again. “Listen, I want to tell you something.” She cuts her eyes back to him. “And I know I’m not in a position to be making any demands right now, but I just need about five minutes, okay? Then I’ll go, no problem.” His eyes are wide, almost pleading for her to listen.

She grinds her teeth, wanting to be difficult, but also wanting all of this to be over already even more. She nods once. He sighs again, nodding to himself.

“I’m sorry.” He says softly. She tries not to scoff, head shaking tiredly. He stays strong, however.

He sets his glass down and leans closer, all of his focus on her as if she’ll disappear at any moment. “I’ve been stupid. And selfish. And an asshole.” He sounds angry with himself. Well, no shit. Good on you for realizing. I guess. She takes another gulp of her wine in response.

“Y/N, I turned it down.” She almost chokes. He shoots up and would have ran to her side if she didn’t put a hand up to let him know that she’s ok.

He sits back down gingerly, still gazing at her worriedly. “And I know what you’re thinking. I didn’t turn it down just to get you back. I mean—it’s part of it. But it’s not the only reason.”

“I love my job. I love what I do. I love being able to see all of these new places, to have all of these new experiences. I do.” Unshed tears well up in his eyes. “But I realized—none of it matters if I don’t have you.” Screwing up her face, she shakes her head in disbelief, trying to stop the tears from falling.

“No. No—”

He shoots up and speeds around the counter to kneel down next to her, looking up at her and taking her hand.

“Please listen.” He goes on further. “When you left me, I was angry at first. Frustrated. But it was with myself for—for hurting you so much. For being so selfish and not seeing what I was doing.”

“I’ve been running from my problems, Y/N. I felt like if I didn’t keep moving, that I’d—I’d spiral. What happened with my grandpa in Alaska really shook me to my core. And I noticed that whenever problems arise, I run away. I avoid them.”

“But at the same time, I met you, and I knew that I wanted you in my life. That you’d be it for me. You are it for me.” His voice shakes, but he runs a thumb over her knuckles, eyes roaming her face reverently. “I want a life with you. I do. More than anything, I want you.”

Her heart slams against her chest.

He sighs. “And I didn’t want to admit it but, that scared the shit outta me.” He sniffs, tightening his hand around hers. “I knew that one look at you and it was over. That I wouldn’t be able to run anymore.”

“Is that why you were so adamant about leaving?” She asks weakly.

He shuts his eyes, squeezing them tight. “Yeah. I—I didn’t know how to deal, Y/N. I wanted to run as far as possible, to keep going and to keep focusing on my career so that I didn’t have to.” He opens his eyes again, tears falling down his cheeks. “That’s why it was so hard for me to fly you out to see me in Columbia.”

“I thought you just didn’t want to see me.” She utters.

He shakes his head frantically, squeezing her hand so tightly it almost hurts. “No. I wanted to see you. More than anything.”

She tries to pull her hand away. “You’re confusing me, Antoine. That was the problem—”

“—Wait! Wait! Please!” He goes for her hand again, and she lets him, though she keeps her grip loose.

“I wanted to see you. But I was genuinely concerned for your safety. I didn’t want you to get hurt.” He grimaces, letting out a hollow laugh. “Hell of a job I did at keeping that from happening, huh?”

“And I didn’t want you to leave again. Because I knew I’d try to follow you. And I almost did. You don’t understand the pull you have on me—I wanted to be with you more than anything, more than I wanted to run. So I pushed back against it. Tried to ignore it. Threw myself into my work so I didn’t have to face it. Because facing you, in my mind, meant facing what I’ve been through.” He tentatively reaches a hand out, gently cups the side of her face, wiping away a tear. She has to keep herself from nuzzling into his hand.

“I can’t run from you. Yet I kept trying. And I was a fucking idiot for it.” He grits his teeth, the anger at himself glaringly clear.

“Because throughout all of this, I never communicated what I was feeling with you. I didn’t try to get over my fears for you. I was only thinking about myself and what I wanted. And you...” He slides his hand under her chin, leaving a trail of fire burning on her skin.

“...You tried to keep me happy. You followed me on my whims, you let me take the lead while I made decisions about us without ever consulting you. And I hate that I made you feel like you had to do that.” She feels her face burn, more tears spilling onto her face. His breath catches at that.

“Baby, can I hold you? Please? I can’t—”

She throws herself into his arms, full on sobbing now. He catches her, tucking her face into his neck, making shushing noises despite him having a few tears of his own, as he holds her tight, stroking her back. She feels him bury his face onto the top of her head. He continues. “I’m so sorry. It took that conversation and being without you for me to realize what an ass I’ve been. I’d love to keep you with me but more than anything I want to keep you happy.”

“I’ve scheduled my first therapy appointment.” He admits. “I’m not just doing it for you but it’s also for me. It’s for us.”

She pulls away, and at first he tightens his hold around her like it pains him to let go, but he eventually lets up. “If we get back together, you better be doing all of this for yourself. I can’t be your—“ she swallows, “—your emotional crutch. Not anymore.”

His eyes are understanding, earnest. “I know that. I don’t want you to be. I’m doing this because honestly…I need it, after what went down. And I want to make you proud. I wanna support you, too. To be here for you.”

She feels her heart swell in her chest despite herself. The last of her walls crumble away, and she’s left looking at him with an admiring, but stern, smile. “I’m not going through that shit again, Dawson.”

“I’ll do everything in my power to make sure I don’t hurt you again,” he promises, holding her hand over the strong, steady beat of his heart. She knows he’s telling the truth.

“Y/N—” She cuts him off with a kiss. He starts, but soon returns it, sitting down and pulling her onto his lap, hands gripping her waist. It’s painful, longing, loving--everything that they feel for one another poured into that kiss. She pulls away, but not too far, leaning her head against his. He shifts so his lips are a whisper away from hers, sneaking in a few more kisses.

“Y/N. I love you.” And she finally believes it. “And I’m done running. Will you be with me? Please?”

Her heart flutters. “I love you too.” She feels his heart speed up where it’s pressed against her chest. He hugs her even closer. She smiles against his lips. “You have me.”

[multimetaverse]

HSMTMTS 2x01 Review

New Year’s Eve was a great way to return to HSMTMTS especially after such a long gap. Let’s dig in!

Vladimir Lenin once said that, ‘’ there are decades where nothing happens; and there are weeks where decades happen". It’s been almost a year and half since S1 ended but this past week has seen revelation after revelation as the fandom has resurrected itself and promotion for S2 kicked into high gear: Joshua Bassett came out, Frankie and Joe confirmed that they are a real life couple, Larry seemingly confirmed that S2 will only have 11 eps rather than the 12 initially ordered, and perhaps most importantly Olivia revealed that she and the main cast are under contract for 4 seasons and made clear that she’s leaving the show as soon as her contract is up.

I really enjoyed this premiere, it felt like picking up right back where we left off. I’m guessing that S2 was originally supposed to premiere around Christmas or New Year’s but the holiday decorations and real Utah snow add a charming aesthetic to the ep. Tim Federle deserves credit for giving HSMTMTS more of an ensemble feel which is no easy feat with a cast as large as this show has. It likely won’t last due to covid restrictions  but at least for tonight we got to see all the characters hanging out together acting like a real group of friends.

The dialogue tonight really reminded me of Glee and I think I mean that as a compliment. Miss Jenn in particular seems to be doing her best April Rhodes impression minus the alcoholism. 

The rini scenes tonight were lovely. Perfect gift was a great song and I loved the rini duet during the music in me as the world faded around them leaving just the two of them. The Harry Styles reference is funny in light of Josh’s coming out interview. Of course, it’s hard now to separate Nini and Ricky and Olivia and Josh. Their chemistry shines through as 2x01, 2x02, and possibly parts of 2x03 were filmed pre Jolivia breakup which seems to have happened around summer 2020. Whether they can keep that same chemistry later on in S2, not to mention future seasons, remains to be seen.

A major theme tonight was communication and clearly Rini need to work on theirs. Poor Ricky had to learn that Nini’s moving to Denver the night before she leaves town which has to remind of him of his mom effectively abandoning him. Ricky saying that he’s never gonna breakup with Nini ever again sure sounds like foreshadowing for a disaster though the odds that this time Nini initiates the breakup are pretty good. 

I’m glad that the show is continuing to delve in the Bowen’s divorce story with their house being sold and Ricky and his dad having to move into an apartment. Divorce is expensive and the division of assets typically leave people less well off. Mike Bowen needs to work on his communication skills but he’s rocking that beard; it takes him from depressed divorced dad to depressed divorced daddy.

Seblos was cute and in a nice change of pace Disney doesn’t seem to be cynically teasing them then cutting their scenes. It was refreshing to see them just being a couple and to hear Carlos casually refer to himself as gay. In that regard tonight’s ep didn’t seem like it was a Disney show at all and it’s major progress that there are now two main gay characters on HSMTMTS. We learn that Carlos is rich which seems likely to be a source of conflict with Seb who comes from a large farming family.

Bet on It was really fun and I liked that Ricky apparently couldn’t stop singing it. The medley of HSM 2 songs was fun but I’ll be real with you wildcats, I never thought HSM 2 or 3 were nearly as good as the first movie so I’m not sad that they’re doing something else this year.

Wild that Big Red’s mom also calls him Big Red. Salt Lake Slices seems poised to be a big part of S2 both as hangout spot and work location for some of the characters. Redlyn are sweet together but sometimes Big Red comes off as a closeted gay guy which isn’t ideal for a het pairing that is supposedly a big part of S2.

Nice to see Gina so excited to have sleepovers with Ashlyn. We know from 2x03 that Gina contends with being single on Valentine’s day and from her glances at Ricky tonight she’s clearly not over him. Tim’s playing with fire and I can only hope he knows what he’s doing. I liked the little detail of Kourtney having AOC on her vision board, it feels true to the character (hopefully AOC gets elected president one day if the USA doesn’t collapse into a fascist dictatorship or civil war before then). EJ’s beard has got to go but I like that he seems committed to being a better version of himself; very doubtful his plan to go straight to Duke like his forefathers doesn’t change by the end of the season. 

Derek Hough did a good job of playing Zach as a subtly condescending man who managed to swiftly undermine Miss Jenn’s confidence, we’ll see what he and North High bring to the table.

Looking Ahead:

Next week are auditions for Beauty and the Beast, we know Ashlyn gets the role of Belle and EJ has conveniently removed himself from the running for Beast which presumably clears the path for Ricky to take the lead. There’s been some controversy over the casting choices and I’ll save my comments about it for the 2x02 review.

We get to see Lily who looks like a meaner version of season 1 Gina, we’ll see how much depth she actually ends up getting. Howie is introduced in 2x03 and Antoine likely shows up later on. Jack likely shows up towards the end of the season.

Howie seems to have a connection with Kourtney though the character synopsis does say he gets close to a wildcat or two which certainly leaves room to slide him into Gina’s plot. We know Antoine is into Ashlyn so that’s another love triangle to look forward to. Jack was described as having wanderlust and most of the cast seems not to have filmed with him so I think it’s likely that he plays a role in convincing EJ to take a gap year rather than head straight to Duke. 

A translation leak on TikTok reveals that in 2x03 Gina is sad that she’s only gotten a Valentine’s Day gift from her mom. A brief clip from the promo shows up her on her porch at night holding a heart shaped box of chocolates. If that’s supposed to be from a secret or semi-secret admirer than it has to be from either EJ, Ricky, or Howie. If it’s a platonic gift then it could be from anyone, we’ll see what Tim has up his sleeves.

Nini moving back to SLC is a question of when not if. It’s going to be very difficult to bring her back in a way that’s justified and also doesn’t leave the time she spends in Denver looking like a total waste. Frankly, I’d rather the show just bite the bullet and bring her back with as little fuss as possible.

We’re possibly around a quarter way through HSMTMTS given that the mains have 4 season contracts and presuming that the show is not cancelled earlier. At the very least the show will be radically different after S4 if they try to continue it as Olivia has made very clear that she’s going to leave asap to pursue her burgeoning music career full time (notably she’s only done the bare minimum of promo for S2). 

Looming over the remaining seasons of HSMTMTS is what the professional relationship between Olivia and Josh looks like especially since in many ways the show is built around Ricky and Nini. Off screen relationships have often caused on screen problems and dating a co-worker is rarely a good idea since even clean breakups leave lingering resentments. Obviously the Jolivia breakup was not clean, Driver’s License, Deja Vu, and Good 4 U (which is a certified bop) were clearly written from a place of hurt and in some ways were written to hurt. It’s no surprise that Joshua has dropped his duet with Sabrina Carpenter from his EP; someone on his team at least is trying to stop the damage to his reputation. There’s a decent chance that Olivia’s songs becoming such hits has irreparably damaged Joshua Bassett’s reputation among the same pool of largely young women that he’s targeting his music towards thereby cutting off his music career at the knees. If nothing else this behind the scenes drama should keep things entertaining for a while.

Until next week Wildcats