#even though you barley have any screen time

[zerothisnero]

I love my baby girl princess

He's my little kitten my meow meow

[hollandsangel]

move over | m. sturniolo

okAY here we go this is my first sturniolo fic please be nice to me i am afraid

ps if you’d like to be tagged in any (possible) future fics comment 🍜

summary: matt needs a bigger bed

wc: 1k

warnings: matt x fem!reader, cursing, nightmares? no description really, just funny and fluffy 🫡 all the triplets are in it but reader is dating matt!

..does anyone remember that one video where matt said chris never sleeps in his own bed? well…

gif by @mattsturnioloarchive !

you feel yourself slipping back into consciousness, and you can tell from the soft, pale blue light of matt’s bedroom that it’s morning. matt’s fast asleep behind you, resting on his stomach with you tucked up into his side, his right arm slung over your waist. you’re already upset that you have to pee, the idea of crawling out of the sleep-warm bed and leaving your boyfriend’s cozy embrace is not an appealing one, but the nagging in your bladder won’t go away.

with a sleepy sigh you stretch your arm out just enough to the tap the screen of your phone, the numbers 8:23 glaring back you. you still don’t have to be up for another hour and a half, which you think is an acceptable amount of time left to lay in matt’s arms and snooze a bit more, even if you don’t really need anymore sleep.

it’s a bit tricky to clamber out of bed without waking the sleeping boy next to you. trying to keep from dragging the duvet with you when you slide out. you tuck matt back in properly before you wander off to his bathroom. softly, you click the door shut, and it, along with your sleep-hazy mind, muffles any sounds coming from outside the bathroom.

for once, chris slept in his own bed, knowing you’d be sleeping over and nick was editing the video meant to go up later this afternoon early into the morning. it’s too early for him to be waking up on his own but something stirs him into wakefulness, his heart beating a little faster than it should be.

matt had woken up for a mere second when you slipped out of bed and hasn’t fallen back into the depth of his sleep, waiting for you to come back. he’s just barley alert enough to hear shuffling from down the hall, getting louder until the person responsible is standing at the crack in the door.

“matt?” chris whispers, peeking into the bedroom.

matt groans and rolls over just until he can see his brother over his shoulder, “what, chris?”

“i had a fucked up dream, dude,” chris says, padding further into the room, “where’s y/n?”

matt turns a little closer to his brother, facing him now, “bathroom,” he mumbles, “what was it about?”

chris is still standing in the middle of the room, phone held loosely in his hand, “you got into a fuckin’ car accident, a really bad one” he admits, feeling a bit foolish and juvenile for running to his brother after a bad dream, “can i sleep in here?”

matt’s face softens and he rubs his eye, “yeah, ‘course.” he says, watching chris slowly walk towards the bed, “that’s her side,” he says though when chris tries to lay where you had been.

chris fakes a scowl and matt makes a face back, sleep still tugging at his mind. the two of them lay back down, back to back, tugging the covers over their shoulders.

you finish washing your hands and shut off the bathroom light. rubbing at your eyes, you make your way back to matt’s room, looking forward to sleeping a bit longer. upon wandering in you’re met with more than one body under the blankets, making you stop in your tracks.

“chris?” you wonder outloud, stopped in the door way.

matt answers before his brother can, “he had a bad dream,” he explains to you, face smushed into the pillow, leaving the words all muffled and extra groggy.

“sure,” you say, as if chris sleeping in matt’s bed doesn’t surprise you (it doesn’t). dragging your feet over to your side of the bed to matt, where he’s taking up a bit too much room. “move over,” you tell him when he peels the blankets back for you. he shuffles back with a little too much effort and you climb back into bed.

once you’re settled matt scoots a little bit closer to you to make more room for the three people now in his queen sized bed, but also because he never passes up an excuse to hold you a little tighter.

you doze in and out, matt’s soft breath against your neck keeping you a little bit dazed but not quite enough to lull you back to sleep fully. it must be nearing 10 am now, more bright sun spilling in from the cracks in the curtains above the bed. you think chris is awake too, hearing breathy little chuckles every now and then. you reach for your phone, deciding on a mindless scroll through instagram.

after a few minutes it sounds like nick has also woken up, his footsteps audible in the bedroom above. you hear him coming down the stairs, and you think he stops in the kitchen until his voice fills the quiet halls.

“chris?” he asks, standing in his brother’s empty bedroom, confused as to why he’s not in bed.

“in here,” chris speaks up, waiting for nick to press the door open.

he does, standing at arms length with a skeptical look on his face, almost afraid of what he might find. “um…hello, what are you doing in here?” nick asks, finally crossing the threshold.

“he had a bad dream,” matt says into your shoulder, startling you. you didn’t know he was awake.

“i had a bad dwream,” chris says in that stupid pouty voice that drives all of you insane, no doubt looking at nick with puppy dog eyes.

“oh…kay,” nick says and you laugh at the suspicion still evident in his tone.

“did you see the tik tok i sent you?” chris is laughing but stops abruptly when matt kicks him in the calf, which makes you giggle into your boyfriend’s arm.

“yeah, but i’m a bit more preoccupied with the absurdity of the three of you in matt’s bed right now,” nick says in his distinct deadpan drawl, which only makes you smile more.

“c’mon nick you might as well join us,” you say, earning a loud, over exaggerated groan from matt, his arms tightening around your waist.

you think nick must oblige because he doesn’t say anything for a second, coming closer to the bed.

“move over, dummy fuck,” he says to chris, who laughs out loud and scoots closer to matt.

“i hate them,” matt whispers in your ear.

tags! @mattsturnioloarchive @averysbestyears

[dangerousartisanwerewolf]

To all the Americans on tumblr rn...

I am not American, nor am I old enough to vote yet as I missed being the legal voting age for my province by only about a week- curse my extremely late birthday.

(which weirdly enough has also had such an incredibly tight election that they are still counting the votes right now even though it happened 2 weeks ago because the two parties are basically tied. }

but I am also very worried for you guys way down south. Hopefully America will put the right person into power this time and everything ends up being ok for you all. Not to be too cliché but I am sending thoughts and prayers and I hope you guys all stay safe down there. I honestly can't even imagine how you guys fell- I don't even live there and I've been feeling increasingly nauseous as the hours go by and I have had to offline for the most of the day.

Remember:

To take care of yourselves. Just in general, in whatever way you see fit

You absolutely do not have to live stream the election polling/results thing on TV, doom scroll election content the whole day long, watch the news, or consume any other election related content. As horrible as it feels to say this; the results will be the same regardless of whether or not you are watching it. Sometimes it is just better for you and your mental health to just log off of sm/screens for the night

If it all does feel like its getting too much for you, please log off/take a sm/screentime break

Most importantly, if you haven't already, please vote!!!! I am not American and am barley old enough to be considered a legal voter (Missed my own countries election *tears*) so I can't really help in terms of providing resources but I am sure there are all sorts that can help you I'm sure. I know that its getting late at night; some polls have closed already but not as many as you would think. I found out that most are actually open way later than I thought. As it turns out, some are even open til 1! You learn something new every day I guess!

Just Please, Please, Please go out and cast your ballot and make your voice known, with how close this is quite literally every voice matters!!! GO VOTE!!!

Poll closing times in case you need it (I only included ones that close 8pm and upwards because it is 7:30 at the time of writing this)

8 p.m. ET

Alabama

Connecticut

Delaware

District of Columbia

Florida (Polls in Eastern time zone close at 7 p.m. ET; part of Panhandle are in Central time zone)

Illinois

Maine

Maryland

Massachusetts

Mississippi

Missouri

New Hampshire (Polling hours vary by municipality and are listed by location here)

New Jersey

Oklahoma

Pennsylvania

Rhode Island

Tennessee

8:30 p.m. ET

Arkansas

9 p.m. ET

Arizona

Colorado

Iowa

Kansas (Polling locations close at 8 p.m. ET in all except four counties in the west)

Louisiana

Michigan (Polling locations close at 8 p.m. ET in all except four counties)

Minnesota

Nebraska

New Mexico

New York

North Dakota (Polls close at 8 p.m. ET in all but eight counties)

South Dakota (Polls close at 8 p.m. ET in the east)

Texas (Polls close at 8 p.m. ET for most of the state except three counties in the west)

Wisconsin

Wyoming

10 p.m. ET

Montana

Nevada (The polling location at City Hall in West Wendover closes at 9 p.m. ET)

Utah

11 p.m. ET

California

Idaho (Polling locations in the south close at 10 p.m. ET)

Oregon (Polling locations in Malheur County close at 10 p.m. ET)

Washington

12 a.m. ET

Hawaii

1 a.m. ET

Alaska (Polling locations close at 12 a.m. with the exception of Adak)

I'm not really sure what other useful info I could put as I don't know much about America or it's electoral system but I hope that helps.

A lot of people I have seen have been posting about how they feel sick to their stomach's and that they can't get off the news and how they just feel terrible so...

Things you can do to distract yourself for the rest of the night (And possibly the next few days, idk how long it takes to count votes)

Have an early bedtime/take a late nap (Only go to bed after 9 at least though, otherwise you'll mess up your sleep schedule and make you feel worse.) Just sleep your way througb it if you cant help it.

To add on to point one I often use asmr if I can't fall asleep right away/to distract myself. My favorites are: Jaden Aliana Asmr, Oceans Asmr, Kaitlynn Reha asmr, and my absolute favorite Goodnight Moon ASMR (Check out her babble brook, 1920's, or valley girl series')

Listen to a podcast (I like Rotten Mango- informative true crime, Buzzfeed unsolved- funny true crime/ghost hunting, Look behind you- also true crime, and Chris Chan; a comprehensive history)

Never too late for some cleaning! Clean your house, bathroom, bedroom, closet, do a deep clean.

If your a student like me- do your schoolwork! I know you have some studying or homework that needs to be done! Get on it!! I use the pomodoro method if that does anything

Have a self care night- do an everything shower or fancy bath, make facemasks, mani pedi's ect.

Watch a movie or marathon t.v shows you love/that are comfort shows (Some of my comfort shows are; Bobs burgers, Gravity falls, the moomins 1990, the office, what we do in the shadows, black books, derry girls, moone boy, and all creatures great and small and M.A.S.H. Some of my comfort movies are; Little women, the cornetto trilogy, Emma, Legally blonde, Pride and Prejudice)

Never too late for some cooking! One of my favorite hobbies is cooking and baking (Mostly baking) Make some chocolate chip and snickerdoodle cookies, muffins, cupcakes or try a fun cake.

Go for a night walk! Just make sure you bring a buddy and some flashlights of you're in total darkness like I am right now. (Love me a Canadian fall! Already snow where I am so of course that means everyone now needs to immediately put up Christmas decorations lol. At least the lights are nice at night)

Spend time with loved ones. Call or text a friend, spend time with your family, roommates, whoever. If your on campus at a uni see if there's literally any activities or clubs open at this hour you can go to

Read. I know you have a tbr you keep meaning to get to

Go on a research rabbit hole about something interesting. Try to learn something new. Some topics to get you started relating to where I live cause why not; Try to learn about : The Animals of Canada, Indigenous cultures and peoples of Canada- ex: try to learn some Cree or Halqemeylem phrases, try to memorize all of our provinces and territories.

Get through any chores you still have to do

Make/do something creative: Play an instrument, record a song, make a collage, paint, draw

Play some music, listen to your favorite songs on loop (Spotify's still collecting data for wrapped!)

Download a videogame on your phone- just one to pass the time even if its total addictive trash. Some ones I like: Moomin town- Idle, relaxing, town building, slowpaced, free, Miriam webster quizitative- free, wordgames, has an end to it, Toca boca hair salon- not free, hair salon game, endless, Toca boca town- not free but there are dupes, dollhouse game, bird bnb- townbuilding, slowpaced, as well theres all sorts of cute isle cat games; I like the grocery store and cafe ones

Make sure to:

Drink water

Eat at regular intervals

take breaks from screens (It'll hurt ya eyes)

get some sleep at some point

Don't sleep all day (Try to get up at a normal time)

if you feel like you need- put screen time limits on your phone. Or as well, turn down the brightness if you feel you have to doom scroll.

That's all for now. Hope you guys are doing ok and that the results are what we are all hoping for. Just know that you are in pretty much everyone's minds and we are all thinking of you (Even if we don't live in America). Stay safe and take care of yourself and your mental health.

Love, thoughts, prayers, and support from Canada/Tumblr and have a good night.

Congrats if you managed to get through this absolute brick of text. I commend you. I'll probably check back in tomorrow.

[autistichalsin]

Where was the info on Halsin having a past with addiction? Usually I just skip reading the letters/books and stuff because the text is so small I can't read it without getting way too close to the screen. (Please let me know if there are any mods that fix this. I know the settings in the game let you change the size of dialogue text, but that doesn't apply to text on the map or letters/books, and I Suffer.)

So there's two parts to it, mainly, though there's a few circumstantial others as well.

One is the Tiefling party, where he declines to join you: he says he can't handle his liquor well and refuses to drink anymore unless it's a very special occasion. Worth noting is that there's a lot of things Halsin says he doesn't like about drinking that all tie into control: declaring love to the first person he meets, accidentally wildshaping, etc.

The other is this party banter with Wyll:

Halsin: The scent of hops and barley is most persistent here, even after all this time.

Wyll: Enough to make me thirsty, even. I've always preferred wine to whiskey and ale, but I certainly wouldn't turn away a full flagon right about now.

Halsin: After the shadow curse, I became overly fond of honey mead and melancholy evenings by myself. Now I rarely imbibe - only on the most special of occasions.

Wyll: I say we put an end to your dry spell. Once Ketheric falls, the first round's on me.

He became "overly fond" of honey mead and was drinking on his own; a lot of alcoholics won't drink around others, just on their own.

It's not 100% definitive concrete proof, but it does seem really likely when you tie in Halsin's control issues, the fact that rape victims are likelier to develop substance abuse issues, etc.

[youlikefanficdontyousquidward]

Colonel's orders!

Summary: Quaritch contends with his crush on Lyle's partner. Meanwhile they struggle with their work load.

Gn!reader x Quaritch, Gn!reader x lyle

No warnings yet, though there will likely be some in future chapters.

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Exhausted was an understatement. You were beyond that now. As far as you were concerned it had been 72 hours since you'd last slept. The brief nap the day prior barley counted, you slept for less then an hour. You'd been overworked before but this was a whole new level of stress. Without the constant stream of broken equipment you'd have passed out where you stood.

Currently you found yourself staring blankly at a broken data pad. Hardware was more your specialty but you were available so it fell to you. The irritated scientist hovered close by. Talking angrily about the importance of their work. Like it was somehow your fault they'd broken the damn thing.

To your relief Lyle popped his head in. His imposing wall of muscle cast a shadow over the scientist. They swallowed thickly before scuttling off, mumbling about getting the pad back soon.

"Aw buttercup, you're working too hard. Take a break with me." He smiled down at you. You tried to return the smile but your mouth just twitched. You groaned, suppressing a yawn as you gazed up at him. He shone in the artificial lighting, a fluorescent halo.

You'd been jittery, dropping tools and getting confused all afternoon. You'd been glad to do a more screen based task at first but now the numbers shifted and danced on the screen. Your body refusing to sit still kept flinching and kicking.

"Promise, I'm almost done. I'll come find you when I'm free." You managed to smile properly this time. Lyle looked skeptical but agreed. Leaving you with a kiss on the cheek before he strode out, causing the scientist to flinch out of his path.

More hours passed and you found yourself needed on several more jobs. Currently you were under the link unit, pulling out wires and circuit boards. Something was catastrophically wrong and you'd need to remove and reinstall the lot to even begin to solve the problem.

Dr Augestine had requested, well more demanded that you be the one to fix it. She didn't have much faith in anyone else and you'd proven reliable so it had to be you. The scientists had cleared out since you'd arrived. You think your irritable attitude had sent them scurrying off.

Though you found yourself floating outside your body now. Unable to feel the exhaustion or anger of before. You watched your hands fumble to complete the task on autopilot. You remained that way until you heard someone calling your name. You moved to pop up but misjudged the distance. Your head whacking the machine with a loud thud.

"Y/n?" Miles rounded the side, looking down at you with a frown.

"Sir?" You weakly saluted, struggling to focus on him. He tripled in your vision, wobbling and blurring. It honestly made you rather queasy.

"Lyle says you've not called up. Or back to the dorms for that matter." He looked at you, expecting some kind of answer you supposed. You didn't catch a question however so you just continued to stare blankly at him.

He sighed heavily before squatting down to your level. You'd forgotten how handsome he was up close. Sun kissed skin, icy blue eyes and all muscle. His hard features set in a worried line as he stared back at you. Your eyes could hardly keep focus on him, any of the hims for that matter.

"When was the last time you slept?" He looked deep into your eyes. You could only imagine how puffy and ringed they'd look now. They certainly felt heavy, it took so much effort to just keep open.

"Yesterday." You responded after a long hesitation. It was technically true, you'd had that 'nap'.

He scoffed at that, shaking his head lightly.

"Liar." You gaped, opening your mouth to object. He held his hand up to you, silencing your outrage. You snapped your mouth closed as he looked back to you. A playful expression crossed his face.

"Alright then, you'll do fine at my little game then." He smirked. Your furrowed your brows in confusion. A game?

"I want you to close your eyes, for a whole minute." He grinned.

"That's stupid." You responded, frowning back to him.

"Then should be easy. Close your eyes, that's an order." The humour left his face then. He held the stern expression. You sighed, rolling your eyes but followed his instruction.

You sat there slumped against the machinery, eyes closed as he counted. He'd barely made it to 15 before Miles noticed you'd nodded off. He knew you would, though maybe you'd be stubborn enough to hold off longer.

You looked so peaceful now. Eyes still puffy and almost bruised looking. Your expression was serene though. Miles hadn't thought the next part through however. He'd gotten you sleeping but what was he to do with you now.

Augestine wouldn't be a problem. He outranked her on pretty much everything these days. Her attitude with Parker had seen to that. So it'd been easy to move you off her order and onto his and he'd ordered you off duty. From his system he could tell how long it'd been since you'd actually slept.

He couldn't leave you slumped on the lab floor, no matter how content you looked. You'd be rather sore once you'd awaken and if the scientists returned and woke you before you'd fully rested? Well he wasn't going to let them find put what he'd do.

Only option left seemed to be removing you himself. You barely stirred as he leaned forward. Gently maneuvering your legs over one arm and pulling you close to his chest. In one quick motion he stood, cradling you to him.

He paused a moment but your breathing remained steady. You were so deep in sleep now, even his steps didn't cause you to stir. He wouldn't deny it to himself, he was enjoying this. Your form pressed up against him, hand splayed on his chest. You were so warm and soft, he felt like he was short circuiting.

He wanted to avoid people, scared the noise would wake you. Although seeing people eyeing the two of you did amuse him. They were so blatant in their stares, although they scattered when he looked. You looked like his like this and the idea that they'd think that made him giddy. Though the reality of things soured his mood. You weren't his, you were Lyle's and he'd likely not enjoy the rumors that were bound to spread.

He passed by the windows, bright beams of light shone through as dusk approached. It was beautiful and soon the stars would be out. Miles thoughts were back to your 'date'. God he wished he'd just kissed you, claimed you then before Wainfleet had the chance.

The last weeks he'd seen the two of you together were torturous. His arms wrapped around you, pulling you in. Playful kisses shared whenever you both had time. Hell he'd had the misfortune of coming into the mess hall when you were sat in Lyle's lap infront of your friends. He'd deliberately been changing Wainfleet's schedule since then. It was petty and it didn't work well anyway but he'd felt vindicated.

He hated overhearing the other marines talking about you. Zdog and Ja were especially egregious. Constantly teasing him about his pretty new partner. Making lewd remarks about your appearance or sexual jokes. Hell even ever stoic Mansk had got in on it.

It was only made worse when you actually met them. You'd come up to meet him and the whole squad had been there. You'd greeted Miles first, smiling so sweetly it made him ache. Then off you strutted to Lyle's side. He'd had the audacity to kiss you right there. Plastering you onto his body while he lent against the table. You'd flushed hearing his friends whistle, burying yourself in his bicep as you two left.

You wriggled in Miles arms, pulling him back to the moment. Grumbling you shifted, nuzzling your face deeper into his chest. The light rays made your skin glow. He relished the feeling, you pressing yourself in closer to him.

All too soon you were at your dorm room. He knocked but your roommate was out. Miles let himself in and carried you over the threshold to your messy bed. Crouching low to lay you down as gently as he could. You groaned again at the loss of heat, he could sympathize, not wanting to let you go yet himself. You tugged the arm still over you down and to your own chest. Your arms wrapped round his thick bicep. pinning him there.

Miles wanted to stay, to let you cuddle up to him. God just imaging you curled up on his chest was too much. It was wrong, you were spoken for and he was your boss, not to mention how much older he was. This wasn't just disrespectful to Lyle, it was disrespectful to you. If you had your senses you'd never have let him do this much. He had to leave before he made things any worse.

Untangling himself from your grip proved a struggle. Your eyes fluttering open a little as he finally managed to pull away.

"Miles?" Your spoke dreamily. Not quite awake as you looked dazed up at him.

"Shh, back to sleep." He whispered down to you, taking the last chance to tuck hair off your face.

"mmm... yes sir..." Your murmured, burying deeper into your pillows and tugging a pillow into a hug.

The heat rushed to Quaritch's face. He was jealous of a god damn bit of fabric. His heart quickened at your words though, he liked hearing you call him that.

[rockermybuddie]

In This Life

Eddie x Buck

Sequal to my Tevan story, In Another Life

Tw: talks about suicide and almost losing to someone yo suicide

Summary: Eddie has been giving Tommy and Buck space ever since he found out the Buck tried to kill himself on the call to the perfume factory. He has been checking in with Buck at least three times a week though.

Its been killing Eddie not seeing Buck in person and hes been holding off not wanting to be a burden while Buck gets better.

Tommy invited Eddie over for dinner thinking it’ll be good for Buck to socialize with someone other than himself and who better than his best friend, Eddie?

But the dinner doesn’t go as planned when Eddie spills his feelings all over the table.

Now theres a mess to clean up.

—————

Eddie sat on his couch in his empty house, Chris still living with his grandparents and Buck has Tommy now. Eddie is alone.

He doesn’t show it though, at work hes him normal self. He doesn’t want anyone feeling sorry for him other than himself. Hes the one who got himself in this position so why should anyone feel sorry for him?

He picked up his phone off of the coffee table and stared at the picture of Christopher on his lock screen before hitting Bucks name in his contacts.

“Hey Buck.” Eddie says into the phone. Buck picked up his phone after the first ring. Thats Buck for you.

The two talked on the phone for only ten minutes but that was enough to let Eddie know that Buck is doing a little better.

Eddie is still trying to understand why Buck wanted to take his own life, he thought that just wasnt Buck but you never really know what is going on in someones mind. The happiest person could take their own life and no one would have expected it.

Thats the sad part about suicide and depression.

Eddie took a swig of his beer trying not to imagine a world without Buck in it.

The two havent hung out together by themselves in awhile. Eddie with his relationship issues and Buck fiinding himself with Tommy there was never really anytime. They only got to hang out at work.

Eddie turns on his xbox to play a video game to try and get his mind off of Buck but its not helping when he can see Bucks avatar in the corner.

His phone lit up with a text from Bobby asking him about some new tech gadget for the firehouse. Eddie responded a quick reply, placing his phone back down on the couch.

His thumb had accidentally opened his camera roll and he looked down at it. The first picture that caught his eye was Buck.

He picked up his phone and tapped on the photo so it filled the whole screen.

The picture was of Buck, Chim, and Eddie at the firehouse when they set up a prank in Bobbys office.

Eddie smiled at the picture remembering the day and hearing Buck yap about how excited he was to prank Bobby.

Eddie zoomed into Bucks face and found himself smiling at his phone admiring Buck. His smile bright, soft pink lips with perfect white teeth. His dimples big, the crinkles by his eyes, and the sparkle in his blue eyes from the sunlight shining through the window.

Eddie let out a cough/laugh when he caught himself thinking about Buck in a way he never has before. He quickly hit the power button on his phone tossing it the other side of the couch.

He stood up real quick to adjust his shorts but saw that he had gotten a erection. He was glad no one was around to see it but he also questioned how he got one.

Was it the picture of Buck? No way, right? He liked women. But havent had any luck with any since Shannon. Barley even her.

Eddie let out a heavy sigh and sat back down on the couch.

Theres no way he got hard while looking at a picture of Buck, theres no way.

———-

“Evan, its time for your medicine.” Tommy says handing Evan his small cup of pills and a glass of water.

Evan lifts his head from the arm of the couch and takes the medicine.

“Now open.” Tommy says. Evan rolls his eyes but does what is told. Tommy checks the crevices of Evans mouth to make sure he took his medication.

“If you didnt hide your pills that one time i wouldnt have to check.” Tommy raises his eyebrows at Evan as he sets the glass of water on the table and takes a seat next to him.

Tommy pulled Evan into his lap kissing the top of his head as he lays it in his lap. Rubbing his soft curls with one of his hands as the other interlopers with Evans hand by his stomach the two watch whatever was on the Tv.

Tommys been making sure Evan his going to therapy and going for walks. He makes sure he eats and takes his medicine along with taking showers and getting enough sleep.

Tommy still worried that Evan might try something else so he always makes sure he knows the medicine is hidden and anything sharp is hidden as well.

He wakes up every hour of the night checking on Evan. He knows it not healthy for him or even the relationship if Evan knew but he’s been afraid of loosing him ever since the first.

———

Buck sat at the table as Tommy cooked dinner, Tommy made small talk but he was really just talking to himself. Buck didnt reply to anything he said.

Tommy stepped away for a few moments and called Eddie asking him if he wanted to come over for dinner. Thinking having someone different come over might help Buck talk more.

Eddie hesitated for a few moments but ended up giving in. Its just dinner with his two best friends, it cant be that hard, right?

Besides it’ll be good for Eddie to socialize with his friends outside of work.

Twenty minutes later Eddie knocks on Bucks apartment door. He has a key but since Tommy is here he doesn’t want to use it.

“Hey Eddie!” Tommy says with a smile opening the door. “Hey Tommy.” Eddie steps into the apartment and looks around before looking at Buck sitting at the table.

“Hey Buck.” Eddie says, he trys to push what happened earlier out of his mind. Buck picked his hand up from his lap and gave Eddie a small wave.

“Someone forgot how to use their voice. Maybe you can help with that?” Tommy says looking at Evan then at Eddie before going back to the stove top.

Eddie asked if Tommy needed any help but when he said no, Eddie took a seat next to Buck at the table.

“So when do you think you’ll be back at work Buck?” Eddie asks trying to start a conversation, he didnt know what else to ask.

Buck shrugged his shoulders.

Eddie cant help but notice how empty Buck looks. No expression on his face, hes not going on about some random fact he read about the other day, and hes not asking about christopher.

It made Eddie sad that his best friend was hurting in a way he didnt know how to help.

Tommy brought over the soup he made and dished it out to everyone. He then took his seat next to Buck across from Eddie as they began to eat.

Tommy and Eddie made small talk trying to weave Buck into the conversation but he wasnt having it.

All of a sudden Buck scoots his chair back getting up. “Evan, where are you going?” Tommy asks. Eddie watches Buck with his eyes walk into the kitchen to the refrigerator grabbing a beer.

Tommy notices Eddie watching Evan the whole time but tries not to think too much of it. Eddies straight and if he wanted Buck before he could of had him when he had the chance.

When Buck sat back down at the table there was a new tension in the air and everyone felt it. Buck looked between Tommy and Eddie but couldn’t figure out what changed.

“So Eddie, you find anyone of interest yet?” Tommy asks him. “Oh, um, not yet.” Eddie says taking a drink of his water, the question caught him off guard. He could go for a beer but he doesn’t want to get up from the table.

“Well when you do me and Evan would love to go on a double date. Wouldn’t we babe?” Tommy looks over at Evan placing his hand on his forearm. Evan shakes his head slowly still trying to figure out what is going on.

Eddie looks at Tommys hand on Bucks arm and can feel his cheeks getting flustered. He shouldn’t be jealous of that, Tommy is Bucks boyfriend.

“What is the problem here?” Buck finally spoke, he couldn’t stand the awkward heavy unknowing silence going on around him anymore.

“What are you talking about Evan?”

“I like you Buck.” Tommy and Eddie said at the same exact time.

Tommy let out a deep chuckle and made a questionable face towards Eddie.

Eddie visibly gulped and kept his eyes on Buck.

Buck moved his eyes between Tommy and Eddie as it was silent.

“I-i-i-i know you two are together a-a-and i dont want to break you two apart. I just urm…” Eddie runs a stressed hand through his hair.

“Buck how did you know you liked guys?” Eddie asks pleading Buck to talk with his eyes. “Tommy kissed me.” Buck answers. Not helpful but okay, Eddie thought.

“Tommy?” Eddie looks at Tommy basically waiting for his response to same question he asked Buck.

“When i never found actual happiness with a woman.” Tommy replies but quickly realizes that Eddie isnt finding happiness with women either.

“I think you need to leave Eddie.” Tommy suggests. Buck looks over at Tommy with furrowed brows and a disgusted expression.

“This isnt your house Tommy. You cant kick out our guest. You’re the one who invited him over!” Buck raised his voice.

Tommy and Eddie both shocked at his response.

“Its okay Buck. I shouldn’t of came.” Eddie says getting up from the table. “Eddie.” Buck says standing up from his seat.

Eddie stopped and turned around, Buck stood at his spot at the end of the table farthest from the door unable to talk or move.

Tommy stood next to him anxiously waiting to see what happens.

When there was no movement after a minute Eddie opened the door and left. Buck slammed his fist on the table.

“Evan.” Tommy says putting a hand on his shoulder. Buck couldn’t even look over at him he was too angry with him for kicking Eddie out.

Buck snatched away his shoulder from Tommy and heavy footed his way up the stairs so Tommy knew he was mad.

Tommy cleaned up the mess downstairs of the dishes, not of the other mess that got spilled. He tried thinking other of it but seeing Bucks reaction there might not be any cleaning of it.

———

Tommy gave Buck space to cool down after a few hours it was late now, way past bedtime.

Tommy walked upstairs to the bed and sat down as Buck laid opposite wishing Tommy would just leave. He doesnt want to hurt Tommy but after hearing that Eddie likes him new feelings has rushed over him.

“He told you his feelings for you during a very vulnerable time in your life Evan.” Tommy says. “He might not even mean it. Has he even mentioned liking men to you?”

“I didnt know i liked men intill you kissed me.” Evan says. “I can control my feelings. You have been controlling everything else in my life. Let me have my feelings.”

Evan and Tommy went back and forth about Eddie and Tommy being controlling all of a sudden.

“Just get out Tommy!” Buck yells. “And dont come back!”

“Evan, its time for your medicine. You don’t-” Tommy begins

“TOMMY I SAID GET OUT!” Buck screams on top of his lungs.

“I’m not coming back then.” Tommy says in deep controlled voice.

“Good.” Buck heaved out.

Tommy snatched his jacket and keys with anger as he slammed Bucks apartment door shut behind him.

——-

Eddie finished off another beer and added it to the empty pile.

He couldn’t believe he had said that at dinner, what was wrong with him?

Seeing Buck in person just brought out all these unknown feelings and he didnt know how to mask his feelings anymore.

Eddie opened another beer, hes lost count on how many hes drank but it doesn’t matter. He’ll drink as many as it takes to get him out of his thoughts.

As he goes to take a drink theres a knock at his door. Who could that be? He gets up from the couch and peeks out the window.

“Buck? What are you doing here?” He asks when he opens the door. “Tommy and i broke up.” Buck says walking into Eddies house. His voice sounded scratchy.

“Buck im sorry.” Eddie beings to say, he knows hes the reason they broke up. “I didnt mean to say what i said.” But he finds himself staring at Bucks mouth again, his trembling lips.

“So you dont like me?” Buck asks. “Buck….. i-i-i dont know.” Eddie stutters out rubbing a hand down his face.

Buck takes a few steps towards Eddie now standing directly in front of him. “Eddie when you said you liked me at dinner you opened a lot feelings i didnt know i had. And now you’re saying you dont like me?” Bucks voice had a hint of sarcasm in it as he spoke and it sent shivers down Eddies spine.

Buck is so close he can smell his scent and feel the bkdy heat radiating off of him. Eddie keeps his hands to his side even though his body is telling him to feel Bucks pounding chest.

“I said i dont know Buck.” Eddie grinned his teeth his eyes locked in on Bucks.

Buck pushes Eddie back against the door his fingers lift Eddies chin up just a little bit and he tilts his head up placing a soft kiss on Eddies mouth.

“Did you like that?” Buck asks pulling away.

In shock Eddie didnt respond right away, he actually didnt know how to respond to that. He wasnt sure if he liked it.

When Eddie didnt say or do anything Buck rubbed his chin shaking his head. “Guess Tommy was right.” He mumbles.

Instead of asking Eddie to move away from the front door, since he hasnt moved a muscle since the kiss Buck turned and walked into the kitchen to leave out the back.

“Buck wait.” Eddie calls out chasing after him. Bucks hand was on the door knob when he just turned his head a little to listen to whatever Eddie was going to say.

“Please dont leave.” Eddie asks. Buck moves his eyes up to Eddies face and his deep brown eyes and pouty lips looking back at him.

“I-i-i i liked the kiss. Shit. I loved the kiss Buck. I just, i didnt know what to do or say. I’ve never kissed a man or-” Eddie rambled on but when Buck pressed his lips against his again it shut him up.

Buck pulled away and rested his forehead against Eddies looking into his deep brown eyes.

“Dont stop.” Eddie breathed out pulling Bucks head back down to his mouth.

Buck backed Eddie up to the table as the back of his thighs hit the table. Buck gripped the back of Eddies head as he laid him down deeping the kiss.

Eddie smooshed between the hard table and Buck he felt himself in the heat of the moment like he did when he was looking at the picture on his phone.

Out of habit and turned on Buck found himself grinding his hips against Eddies. “Sorry.” Buck apologized getting off of Eddie.

He felt bad about it because this is the first time Eddie has ever even kissed a man he doesn’t want to overstep.

Tommy let Buck take his time, he needs to let Eddie take his time as well.

“Its okay Buck. Its just me.” Eddie says, a little sad that Buck had stopped.

“I’m going to take you on an actual date before we get in bed Eddie.” Buck says.

Eddie blushed but he understood.

The two sat on the couch and talked about the sudden feelings for each other.

Eddie made sure that Buck knew he wasnt trying to cause bad blood between him and Tommy. That seeing him almost die again made him worry about actually losing him and not being able to tell him his feelings.

———-

A/n: i think i got a little side tracked but hopefully this story wasnt too bad. I love Tevan so writing a breakup was kind of sad. But i had unintentionally set up a Buddie scenario in my Tevan story that writting this just made sense.

I had wrote a story didnt like it, deleted it and wrote this one.

[theladyofdeath]

Sooo currently it's exam period in my country at my uni. Which means I need a lot of motivation, something I lack atm. I use my time wisely catching up on fics instead of studying. So I kindly ask you for some motivation, preferably in the form of Elorcan. Preferably them also needing motivation or stress release. I mean I don't really have a preference as long you like writing a little Elorcan. With maybe Elide still studying for her last exam and Lorcan coming home from work and helping her out or something? Idk? I'm bad at prompts? I know it's not summerish but it's sunny outside and hot and I have to study? So that also summerish? Anyways enjoy your free time and have a wonderful day!!

I am always here for fluffy Elorcan! Good luck on exams! x

Everything on Elide's screen had gone blurry. She'd been staring at it for so long that nothing made sense and letters officially were beginning to look like ancient symbols that had yet to be discovered. She knew that she needed a break, but her last exam of the semester was in fifteen hours and if she wanted to get any sleep tonight, there was no room for breaks.

Even if she desperately wanted one.

Just as she threw her head back with a groan, the front door opened and Lorcan trudged inside. With one look at his fiance, he lifted a brow. "How long has it been since you last moved?"

Elide didn't even know. "An hour...maybe five."

He snorted as he kicked off his shoes and walked across the living room to where she sat on the couch, her laptop on her blanket-covered lap. He leaned down and kissed her, slowly. At the touch of his lips, the tension faded from Elide's body.

"Hi."

"Hi," she whispered, and kissed him again. "How was your day?"

"Better than yours, it seems," he mumbled, plopping down on the couch beside her. "You look stressed."

"I am." She had been stressed all week, it was nothing new. Tomorrow was her last final, the final final she would ever take as a student. After tomorrow, she would be finished, and in the matter of a couple of weeks, she would be a graduate of the University of Perranth with a degree in psychology.

"Why don't you take a break?"

"There's no time for a break."

He blinked, surely thinking that answer was ridiculous but Elide didn't care. This was important to her. "Okay, well, can I do anything for you? Help you study? Bring you wine? Strip tease?"

"You were a horrible student, so I can't say that your help in studying is very tempting," Elide chuckled. "The wine and your nudity, however, are pretty tempting, but both are too distracting for my current state of mind."

Lorcan clicked his tongue and sighed. "How about I go pick up dinner and feed you while you cram, then?"

Elide swore she had never been more in love with him than in that moment. There was a little bistro across the street that had soup made by the gods, and in half an hour, Lorcan was back with a giant container of chicken barley soup that had Elide's mouth watering, and a couple of paninis.

She couldn't help but be distracted by Lorcan as he made his way into the kitchen and took out a couple of bowls and plates to fill them with food. He didn't even notice her watching him - he never seemed to - and Elide had always found that charming.

Five minutes later, the coffee table that Elide had been lovingly using as a footstool was covered in food and drinks - wine included, and even though Lorcan claimed both glasses of wine were for him, she knew better.

"You're trying to get me too tipsy to study," Elide muttered, keeping her laptop up and running while she ate.

"No, I'm not," Lorcan said, mouth full. "I'm just trying to give you enough to take the edge off. You're obviously stressed as hell, and if you won't take my cock for twenty minutes, I'm pouring you wine."

Elide lifted a brow. "Twenty minutes?"

Lorcan just narrowed his eyes and took another massive bite of his sandwich. After he swallowed, he said, "Fine. Fifteen."

Elide continued to stare at him.

Lorcan pursed his lips and took a sip of wine. "No need to be rude, damn."

Despite herself, Elide laughed, and out of the corner of her eye she saw Lorcan's lips twitched. He was always trying to make her smile, even when it didn't seem like it.

It was one of the many reasons that she so desperately wanted to marry him. He always made her smile, always made her laugh. It was a side of him that only she saw - well, she and his closest friends. Lorcan wasn't the warmest of men. In fact, he was rather broody, but for her...he made her whole world a hell of a light brighter.

While they ate, Lorcan kept quiet, but when he was done, he pulled Elide's feet onto his lap and rubbed them through her fluffy socks while she scrolled and read and reviewed her notes...and tried her best not to doze off.

She had no idea how much time had passed before his fingers grew weaker, then slowed, then stopped altogether. She glanced over at him and chuckled.

Her future husband had his head thrown back against the couch cushion and his mouth hanging open. His eyes were closed and he was snoring softly.

"Lor."

Nothing, not even a twitch.

"Lor." She nudged his lap with her toes.

He shot up, his fingers resuming their rubbing. Elide laughed, quietly. "Go to bed. I'll be there soon."

"No, you won't," he said, running his hands up her shins. "You'll be here all night. Which isn't healthy, by the way. In fact, you should take breaks while studying or else the information won't fully stick in your brain. Trust me. Your brain needs time to process."

Elide rolled her eyes.

"Hey, I got my degree. I passed my exams. I know what I'm talking about," he defended. "At least take a few minutes. Take a shower. Or a bubble bath. Pee, for the gods' sake."

Elide groaned, closing her eyes, just now realizing how much they ached. "Alright. Fine. Ten minutes and not a second more."

She wanted to finish out her senior year strong and allowing herself to become distracted wouldn't help her do it. Even if she had been studying all day.

All fucking day.

The second Elide shut her laptop, she felt guilty. But, Lorcan was there, taking her hands into his and pulling her onto his lap.

She nuzzled into his shoulder and took a deep breath as he wrapped his arms around her.

"You know that I'm so proud of you, right?"

His voice was quiet, hardly more than a whisper. Elide leaned back. There was nothing but pure adoration and support in his eyes.

"I know," she said, and kissed him, softly. "Thank you."

He nodded and twisted a strand of her long, dark hair around his finger. "I know it hasn't been easy for you to get here, but you..." he shook his head and huffed a laugh. The genuine affection in his gaze had her tearing up. "You made it, El. No matter how tomorrow goes - and it's going to go great, because you've been studying your ass off - but, no matter how it goes, I hope you're proud of yourself. You're going to be a college graduate. Have a degree from one of the best universities in the country. That's amazing."

Elide nodded because she didn't trust herself to speak. She would be the first in her family to get a college education as far as she knew. Her parents died young, but her uncle, who she had lived with after their deaths, hadn't gone to college. No, he had just been a lazy, drunk asshole that Elide tried to ignore as much as possible until she turned eighteen and got the hell out of there.

"I love you," he said, once it was clear that she was getting nothing out. He kissed her forehead. "Pee. Take a quick shower." When she raised a brow, he held his hands up in surrender. "I promise to stay out and not try to steal your innocence."

There was no point in saying that he had "stolen" her innocence at least a million times.

Elide snorted.

"When you come back out, I'll have all this shit cleaned up and I'll let you study the night away."

There was no point in denying his wishes. She did have to pee horribly and knew that her hair needed a good washing. She did it quickly, though, and fifteen minutes later, she was walking back towards her spot on the couch.

Lorcan was in the kitchen, washing dishes, and although the coffee table had been cleared of their dinner, there was a newly filled glass of wine and a full glass of ice water sitting on the glass. She suppressed a smile, checked out Lorcan's ass while he dried a plate and put it in the cabinet, then snuggled back up on the couch to boot up her laptop, yet again.

Once Lorcan was done, he plopped back down on the couch. Elide's eyes left her screen and found his. "Not going to bed?"

Lorcan shook his head as he fought a yawn. "I'm here to keep you company and support you until your beautiful brain can't hold anymore information." He pulled her feet back onto his lap. "Study away. Let me know when you're ready for me to quiz you."

The fact that he was obviously exhausted and was too stubborn to leave her to study alone made her love him all the more. She was truly lucky to have found someone so...so....right. He was different from anyone she had ever known.

He was everything.

Soon, she would be a graduate of the University of Perranth.

Then, she would be Lorcan Salvaterre's wife.

[xx-alice-in-wonderland-xx]

Aoi Ryugoku and Shiromi Torayoshi Ship Headcannons x

I got back into yandere simulator recently (I do not support yandere dev though), and I found some shops and thought this one is the cutest so I have made some headcannons about them. Honestly I thought there would be more content for them but there’s barley any, idk if the ship is unpopular or the game is cuz of yandere dev or in general, but we NEED more Ryugoshi/Aoi x Shiromi/Aoiromi content. Defo. Anyway, hope you enjoy!!

Aoi is the dominant one in the relationship - Shiromi tries to be dominant and a brat but fails miserably

No one, not even Megami, but Shiromi has seen Aoi without her eyepatch

they never bring up how aoi lost her eye, but shiromi does know how it happened

shiromi likes pda but aoi is not a big fan of it, the minimum for aoi is holding hands or slightly leaning on eachother, but infront if the other council members or when they’re alone they’re complete lovebirds

aoi gets mad when someone looks at shiromi for too long

Aoi spends more time at shiromis house than her own

aois Lock Screen is shiromi falling asleep in the council room, and shiromi is Aoi smiling menacingly while watching a horror movie

shiromi is pan, and Aoi is lesbian

Aoi calls Shiromi ‘Romi, White Tiger, kitty cat, baby girl and treasure’ (cuz she’s the treasure of the student council isn’t she?)

When they’re alone in the council room they’ll sit on the floor or if the others are there they’ll go behind a bookshelf - anytime they cuddle aoi is always sat down with her legs straight and shiromi behind her with her legs wrapped around her waist and arms around her neck

shiromi is TINY, which means Aoi can pick her up with no problem

they skip class sometimes and just stay in the bathroom or in the council room then go to class and say they where in a meeting - Akane and Kuroko (who are dating) do the same with them to suspicion

no one expect for the council knows they’re dating, but there are rumours that they are

aoi can only be calm downed by shiromi - the most common ways are stroking her hair, hugging her, hiding with her, ect

shiromi has a weird habit of sitting under the table, so sometimes aoi will sit on the floor outside of the table and look at shiromi

shiromi confessed first

they flirt by insulting eachother - like they’ll call eachother bitch, bastard, slut, etc, as a joke tho

aois love language is quality time, while shiromis is physical touch

Aoi likes rap and heavy metal, where as shiromi likes grunge (such as nirvana) and edm

aoi is an only child, where as shiromi has 2 older brothers

[chainoftalent]

Im currently half way done with the draft but like.. It's a madoka magica crossover with kokichi barley having any lines idk why i did this to myself but next time imma do normal headcannons💔

Practice practice practice! No one's expecting your first fic in a genre to be perfect keqing, it sure sounds interesting though! My advice for making sure the character shows up more? Hmmm, well if you're writing an actual story you could either frame it from their pov which inherently forces them to be a focal point.

Really its hard to point out what you could improve without seeing it myself. For general advise, keep practicing and that even if kokichi isn't currently on screen, that doesn't mean he isn't having an effect on the plot, you can have him off screen but still having him in the characters minds and thoughts by having his moves butterfly effect out.

Hmm I guess I could put it like ...

If it's short, center it either on kokichis pov or keep it contained to a specific few scenes, and if it's long make sure that even if he doesn't get a lot of ACTUAL screen time, that his presence is still felt by things that happen around the pov character.

A character having less lines is a powerful tool as well, show don't tell after all. Kokichi doesn't need to actually say a single word if you can get down having his presence in a story. Not every story needs to be like that of course, but if you're struggling to write him lines, maybe try a story with more of a focus on atmosphere?

So I guess I'm assigning homework (lighthearted you don't have to do this I just think it'd be a useful writing exercise) Your mission if you choose to accept is to write something at least 3 paragraphs long and have kokichi either never speak at all, or speak only at the very end. See if you can still make his presence prominent without him speaking or speaking very little.

Even if you can't do it this could be really good practice of when to show vs when to tell, because despite how the saying goes, you do actually need to know when the proper time is for to describe something and when you just need to go "they flicked the light switch" and move on

[onward-magic-princess-barista]

How do you think Barley’s and Ian’s relationship with Colt has changed since the events of the movie? I felt that there wasn’t any on-screen closure for that.

I think it’s canonically proven towards the end that Ian has grown a lot closer in his relationship with Colt but Barley ,on the other hand, even though he’s gotten used to the idea of Colt being in a relationship with his mom after the closure between him and his dad he might have taken some time getting used to the idea of himself growing closer towards the relationship between himself and Colt due to the conflicting notion between the two when it comes to his protesting and reckless driving however I do think Colt took the time and effort on his part in taking an interest towards Barley’s interests in Quests of Yore and history to try to grow closer in his relationship towards Barley

[jackienautism]

I’m so happy to find someone who actually talks about Kaylee and Caleb and Silas and what not 😭 people don’t really care for them since they barley have any screen time so I’m glad ^^

of course!!!! :D i owe pretty much everything to @jeyfeather1234 though tbh, im sure you've seen their stuff already but theyre really cool and have good opinions abt the characters and is also writing a fic rn abt the 3 of them !!!! i totally recommend checking it out if you havent already :]

but yeah ): ive said this a million times before but they deserve sooo much better, esp being the catalyst to the game's main conflict yk? plus theres just so much you can do w/ them. and dont even get me started on how SHIT theyre treated, from a game's perspective esp. its just really sad. but yeah! glad i could make you happy through talking abt them! dont think ill ever stop as long as im in the TQ fandom. hope you have a good day!!!

[fetchmearum420]

My thoughts watching 1776 every time, and I have very unhinged thoughts:

1. Ima open my window up just to calm these ass holes down.

2. Why does Morris look like a toad in a wig.

3. I want John Hancock to say unholy things in my ear.

4. Same with Thomson.

5. I want to punch Rutledge even though he’s hot as hell.

6. I want to give Abby pins :(

7. I imagine Benji doing the whip every time he’s on screen.

8. Dickinson actually makes some valid points.

9. Same with Chase.

10. “Oh for Heaven’s sake let me get through it once” is something I quote daily.

11. I imagine TJ’s dick being as tall as he is.

12. I want to draw a picture of Rutledge burning in hell.

13. McKean and Hopkins are so unhinged, I love them.

14. RUM.

15. Read is a pussy.

16. I want to hug Wilson :(

17. I imagine Hancock swatting Thomson with his dick every night like how he swats flies.

18. Hall and Rutledge definitely had sex.

19. Livingston’s eyebrows deserve their own movie.

20. The whole Congress should have just sat around shirtless for a session.

21. Franklin definitely puts whoopee cushions under Hancocks seat once in a while.

22. Thomson beat McNair up with Hancocks fly swatter after one too many “Sweet Jesus!”

23. Hancock would have beat Morris up if he didn’t have more self control.

24. Rodney tells everybody juicy tea when Congress is on a break.

25. I can just imagine.

26. The fact that G*d was mentioned in the declaration twice but Witherspoon had the audacity to say “nowhere do you mention the supreme being”. Dumb ass.

27. If Witherspoon had witnessed the Dickinson and Adams fight, he definitely would have bashed a table over Dickinson’s head.

28. Wilson secretly being for independence the whole time is such clever writing.

29. Lee barley having any lines after LOOV is a crime.

30. The ending. That’s it.

[niwatorinikki]

Dear Lisa,

I am writing to you from a very expensive hotel in North Dublin. I am writing to you from the second of the two days per year in which I wear a tie. We are currently on a lunch break from an awards ceremony, and I am avoiding the food half out of my food allergies and half out of not wanting to explain my food allergies to a well-meaning waitress who won’t take no for an answer. Wheat, rice, oats, corn, barley, milk, nuts, potatoes, onions, garlic, peppers, chilli... I’m sure there are more than that, but even that is too many allergies for one guy. I can never name them all. They all react in varying degrees, and I have encountered one too many cocky chefs who think they can make something simple, only for it to backfire horribly. I just don’t bother trying anymore. 

EXCEPT when I was in Osaka recently. A friend of mine, half-American and half-Japanese, took me out to eat at a yakitori place. I was skeptical. I had heard this pitch before. Minimal ingredients, good ratings, etc, etc. As I always do, I was prepared to sit there, drink a coffee or a water, and accompany him while he enjoyed his meal. But it was something our mutual friend Stefania once said to me, which was that you can get yakitori with just salt as an option. Such simplicity! Who would have thought! I mean, yeah, okay, obviously the Japanese, but still. After watching the chef prepare another customer’s order over an open flame right at the restaurant counter, I decided to give it a go. When in Rome... 

And so this past month was the first time I ate in a restaurant in over 12 years. I mean a restaurant of any kind. Grilled chicken with salt. So good I could have cried right there. It’s hard to explain sometimes my relationship with food. Out of necessity, it has evolved into not really being about enjoyment for me. I eat chicken and carrots for probably 90 percent of my meals. People ask me if I get bored of it, if I get bored of always eating the same thing every day no matter where I am in the world or what I’m doing. The only thing I have thought to ask them in response is if they get bored of showering in the same bathroom all the time. Because that’s kind of how my brain has been rewired to think about food. My body tells me it needs something, I address that requirement, I move on. I know it is a source of great joy for many, but for me, eating is more of a daily task than it is a source of entertainment or enjoyability. 

And so right now I am perched at an empty reception desk in the dark and telling hotel staff that I’m in an online meeting anytime they walk past and look confused as to why suddenly a random guy who doesn’t work here is manning a desk in a closed part of the hotel. The rest of the company I work for, and the many hundreds in attendance for the awards, are in the event hall slurping down roasted butternut squash soup, or perhaps have even moved on to their main course whose details I didn’t catch. 

So I am rather thankful to have the ability to type away furiously at a screen right now as it provides a wonderful cover for my absence from the table during food service. “You’ll have to excuse me, I have an online meeting…” and “Sorry, is it okay to sit here? Cool, thanks. It’s just that I have a meeting, you see, and I’m trying to find somewhere quiet…”

I can tell you that I am sorry to hear about your migraines. From one sufferer to the next, I feel you. Two complete days in Fukuoka were a write-off because of an ongoing migraine whose origin I couldn’t explain but whose fate I decided to simply accept. 

I wonder also about the in-line replies. I love this aspect too, and often fear that longer letters seem disjointed from the origin of the subject. It’s as though we are having five conversations at once, and I mean, this is true of our communication through social media too, but I wonder if there is some rule or formatting we could put in place for linking our responses better. Let me think on it for a while. I’m sure there’s something. But please don’t worry about overlooking something I’m saying. I talk too much, even for my own mind, so to know someone will simply move past certain things is actually rather freeing for me. 

For your three dedicated response periods per day, how does that work for you? Do you actually stick to it? We both know the rest of the world would find it impossible to accept such boundaries, but in a perfect scenario, do you respect them for yourself? I find that would be the hardest part for me. 

And it brings me on to the idea of the correct, or rather, polite time for responses. I know you have a husband (a seemingly wonderful a man whom I’ve never met but hope to someday) but your discussion of appropriate reply times left out one thing, which is something I struggle with a lot. Dating apps. There is literally no correct or standard time frame for which you should respond. It depends entirely on each individual person, which results in a lot of guesswork. Do I send long messages or multiple short ones? How fast is too fast? If I am busy and can’t respond for one day, does that mean that all chance of ever meeting has evaporated? 

Without trying to seem too cocky or arrogant, I would consider myself to be a person who is comfortable talking to women. I was 31 years old when I first experienced what it was like to go on dates. My first relationship from college lasted right through my twenties and then the first year of the pandemic took away year No. 30. Despite attending all-boys schools throughout my entire standard education, I had a lot of female friends through the years, and I think it just demystified the whole process. Don’t get me wrong, if I find someone beautiful, I can still be a mumbly-bumbling idiot, but at least I won’t commit some obnoxious faux pas that renders me unfit for society.

To answer one of your questions directly, no, I never had a penpal as a child. I think this is actually the closest I’ve ever come to such a thing. I have written letters to many people, but never in a prescribed formula which required a response in a back-and-forth fashion. It would have been nice. 

But I do recall the essay questions. That much I can relate to. Furiously scribbling away at the page, pressing hard on my pencil and not so much writing my words on a page as scratching them into the paper, the colour of the deposit left from the pencil merely a convenient byproduct for legibility. In my Leaving Certificate English exam (the final exam at the end of school in Ireland, before you begin college), I remember hand-writing 22 full pages in three hours. Plenty of scribbles I’m sure, but also just a value placed on volume. I know of at least one school in Dublin whose students were taught to learn off full creative writing essays word-for-word in order to best help them get through these exams without the need of thought for editing. 

And to write in Japanese, now that’s a weakness of mine you’ve fully exposed, often forgetful of even the shape of basic hiragana at times. I cannot fathom a composition in the language, at least not in the same way I would in English. There would be so much preoccupation with form to ever concentrate on actually writing something that was worth the time for a person to pass their eyes over. No, I’ll stick to the keypad and its trusty suggestions, thank you very much. 

To your last question, yes, there are a few photos which stand out in my mind; A salaryman in Kobe, gravestones in Kumamoto, Kagoshima backstreets. But I think the ones which I am most excited about are from a small town in Osaka called Imazato. It’s one of those in-between towns, not really close to anything, full of elderly folk and shuttered shopfronts. By chance, I stayed there in 2019. It was my first solo-holiday ever. It hadn’t intended to be that. In fact, two plane tickets were purchased -- the other as an anniversary present for the aforementioned ex-girlfriend who spanned my 20s -- but the relationship ended suddenly, and so I decided to go by myself. Shōgatsu in Imazato. I distinctly remember walking through the main street from Imazato Station at midnight and seeing people celebrating while thinking “2020... This will be a good year...”

Of course, wow, I was spectacularly wrong in just about every way except for the fact that in the space of one year, almost everything I was scared about happening in my life... it happened... and I was fine. The photos I took in that town formed the basis for my book, ‘Wide Awake In Imazato’, which doesn’t translate perfectly into Japanese, so it’s 「今里で冴えてる」in 日本語 which I guess is a bit closer to “Feeling clear in Imazato”. I don’t think separately either language communicates the idea correctly, but when combined, they do.

I had toyed with the idea of revisiting that town last year when I was in Osaka but ultimately decided against it. It couldn’t possibly be as charming as I remembered. I went back this year, three nights to close out the trip, and I mostly just spent my time rephotographing the things which I enjoyed seeing back the first time. I don’t know if the photos themselves are any good, but I believe they will have personal value. I’ve never had another home than Ireland. I don’t know if this is what that feels like. But I bet it’s pretty close. 

2023/12/04 - The hotel staff have accepted me as one of their own, and I will remain here among them until the next time a formal sit-down meal is required, when I will be forced once again to go on the run to avoid a simple conversation. 

[azvolrien]

Ireland - Day 5

Another sunny day, and a little quieter than the last few. I didn’t bother setting an alarm this time as I wasn’t in any particular hurry, but the curtains aren’t lightproof enough to keep the sun out altogether so I still woke up at about 8.30.

I got back on the Luas and took it a little further today out towards St James’s Hospital, where I disembarked for the Guinness Storehouse. I’m finding the Dublin trams to be frequent and efficient; no idea if their installation was as much of a clusterfuck as Edinburgh’s was.

Anyway, Guinness. I don’t drink, but I do find the process interesting and they’ve set up a great exhibition across multiple floors of the old brewery building. It starts out with the raw ingredients of barley, water, hops and yeast and moves on through the whole system of roasting the barley, fermentation with yeast, the art of coopering and even a brief section on transportation before you get to the Tasting Rooms halfway through, where they hand out small samples to try in cute little glasses and a tasting expert talks through things like the various notes and aromas before advising you to glug it rather than sip. The Storehouse ticket included a free pint at the end and I wouldn’t have wanted it to go to waste if I ended up not liking it, so in the spirit of the occasion I decided to give the little tasting sample a try.

I didn’t like it.

From there the tour moves on to look at different marketing Guinness has used over the years, including different ad campaigns – with a surprising number of toucans for some reason – and the subtle evolution of the famous harp logo. There was also a display of concept art from a local animation college for a potential film about the history of Guinness, though as there wasn’t any actual animation I don’t know if it ever got past the concept art stage. Things then finished up at the Gravity Bar on the top floor of the building where they serve the aforementioned free pint. I didn’t bother to claim mine, but the bar has fantastic 360° views out over Dublin so it was still worth seeing.

I left the Storehouse and rode the Luas back in the other direction, past the hotel to George’s Dock where I got off the tram to visit EPIC, the Irish Emigration Museum. Really, I would term it more of an exhibition centre than a museum; it doesn’t have many actual artefacts on show, instead taking visitors through twenty small galleries of short films and interactive panels that look at both the numerous reasons people have had for leaving Ireland over the centuries and what they got up to when they got to wherever they went. It was interesting to see and the displays were neatly laid out, but I feel a museum should have things to look at rather than just screens. Among other reasons, there would still be something to see if the power unexpectedly went out.

I stepped back out onto the riverside walkway for a quick look at the elegant harp-shaped Samuel Beckett Bridge, the Jeanie Johnston ship replica, and the haunting Famine Memorial, then – after pausing at the Custom House to check my bus stop for tomorrow – ambled back along the river to the hotel for a quiet while in my room. I’ve had a pretty full-on time in Dublin and was starting to feel a little burnt out with tourism.

In the evening, I decided to treat myself to something a little fancier for my last night in Dublin and went out for a steak dinner in the restaurant of a nearby considerably posher hotel.

Tomorrow: onwards to Belfast.

[dippydippycritiques]

Fire Emblem Echos: Shadows of Valentia. The Only FE Game I Did Not Have The Strength To Finish.

WAIT! Don't touch your keyboard yet, let me explain first.

When Echos was first announced, I was SUPER excited for it. The trailers were very enticing, I liked the characters designs and the longline for the game. It looked promising! So much so, I bought the limited edition version of the game at my local Gamestop. To say I was excited to see a vastly different story from an older title would be and understatement...

And yet Fire Emblem Echos: Shadows of Valentia is the only Fire Emblem game I have failed to beat.

I have never been so conflicted on a FE game before because the money and talent was clearly there...but man. The things that made me put down the game forever just outweighed everything else that was extraordinary about it. That being said, this is just my opinion of the game, so please take everything I say with a grain of salt.

With that being said, the 3 main issues I have with Echos that made me put it down is as follows.

The main characters (and their believability)

The changes made from Gaiden to Echos

And the gameplay.

(The Alm and Celica Section)

From the moment I picked up the game to the time I dropped it completely during act 4, I never once bought Alm and Celica's relationship. That they even remotely cared about each other or had any type of feelings for each other at all. The main reason as to why is because of how the opening is set up. The writing is suppose to convince us that after 8 (I think) to 10 years. Alm and Celica not only would have the desire to find each other after all that time, but also have some sort of romantic feelings for each other, despite not being together for that long.

That's just...not how relationships work, I'm sorry, and when your seven or eight years old (or younger, I don't really know for sure), you MIGHT have some, or maybe very little understand of what love is, but not to the extent that Alm and Celica portrayed. Maybe it was suppose to be written in a way that felt like Cinderella where the two fell in love the moment they saw each other again...but that time gap just completely destroys that idea, and to make matters worse, all the moments I remember from Alm and Celica were of them fighting.

Since they are barley on screen together, they have very little time to develop, and when they do, it's not in a way where I see them as a loving couple. The point is the development of their relationship didn't sell for me, and that's just one of many problems.

The other issue is, begrudgingly, I found both Alm and Celica to be either hypocrites or completely unlikable. I'll save Alm for last because a lot of his issues has to do with the changes they made to his character from Gaiden to Echos...but Celica and her morals. The way she is written is just unbelievable to me. Every line and action she takes contradicts herself every, single chapter. Celica is a character that detests violence, but always has to resort to it. In fact, because of this hypocrisy, this makes every action Alm takes the "correct" one, which in the end, makes Alm's and Celica's themes unbalanced. If they were balanced correctly, Celica would be trying to spare her enemies, not kill them, and that is something which is never touched upon in Echos. Though I never beat the game past act 4, I DID watch the story on Youtube until the end and...oh boy! When I say Celica makes some REALLY dumb decisions, they are exactly that. Though I find Celica completely unlikable and unrelatable due to these themes...I think Alm has it worse.

(Alm and the Changes Made From Gaiden to Echos)

The first major issue when it comes to Alm is that, in Gaiden, Alms character was meant to be more rash and hot headed. He made mistakes as the game progressed and THAT was suppose to be the contrast to Celica's detest for violence. That side of Alm is not present in Echos, cut scenes, text, or otherwise. I saw in a podcast discussing echos recently that the main reason why this part of Alm was changed was because he would feel too much like Ike. Pretty much IS legacy character at this point and did not want to tread over something they have already done.

Firstly, I'm a Ike fan and I'm calling bullshit on that. Secondly, if I may be cheeky for a moment. Alm's VA (Kyle McCarley) just cannot catch a break when it comes to his characters getting character assassinated. The same VA for Alm also voiced Hyde in BBTAG. A character that was suppose to be half edgy, half awkward/nerdy (his comedic side), and his comedic side was completely ripped out during BBTAG's development other than one or two instances (Aigis and Akasuki comes to mind, and Heart Aino as well.)

The reason why I bring this up is because due to this change. Most of Alm's dialog tonally sounds the same. Other then a handful of scenes at the very end. Alm's VA was probably directed to stay within the same range tonally for most of the game, and because of that. His dialog scenes are very boring to listen to sometimes, and this VA can fricken act and he can be funny, IS just did not give him the right direction or material to achieve this through most of the game. Alm needed to be rash and hot headed so that we can see him get mad and emotional every once in a while, and since that is not present in Echos, Alm just comes off as another generic protagonist and that sucks because the writing could have been so much more.

But the other problem and why I dislike Alm more then any other character...is because of Faye. A character that did not exist prior to Echos, but was put in to add drama that had no right to be there. Because IS did put Faye into the story as a childhood friend for Alm, I ended up finding Alm's relationship with Celica even MORE unbelievable because again A.) That's not how building a relationship works and B). Alm and Faye would be the more reasonable relationship BECAUSE they grew up together and had known each other for YEARS.

So when I saw Alm and Faye's B support and Alm pretty much told her he was never going home TO THE PLACE HE WAS RAISED HIS WHOLE LIFE, while simultaneously telling Faye that if she can't accept that, she can just head home. Like...Alm is a dick. A certified, genuine dick that treated someone he has known his whole life like crap and doesn't acknowledge the feelings Faye may have for him or, you know, talk about them in a sensible way.

If Faye was not put into Echos, I would probably like/dislike Alm and Celica equally...but because of the changes they made to Alm. A lot of the time he comes off as an unlikable asshole and because of that, this became one of the reasons why I put the game down. If I was playing characters that I actually gave a shit about. I might have actually pushed through the bullshit that was the repetitive gameplay, but because I didn't like the majority of the cast, especially the leads. I just...couldn't do it.

Speaking of which.

(The Repetitive Gameplay)

I'll make this short and sweet. Horrible backtracking, horrible respawns that take way too long to deal with. The awful maps on Celica's side that has that one god damn enemy that spawns himself like twelve times, and the developers though it would be "challenging" if they used this one enemy over and over and over again to delay the games run time. No, this is not defined as "challenging" to me. It's "annoying" and "not fun" and makes it a chore to slog through, not a challenge.

These three points are the main reasons why I put down the game at the start of act 4. I physically and mentally could not do it. However, I do want to highlight some of the good things about Echos that definitely deserves some merit.

The voice acting (to me) is hands down the best in the series.

I love the updated character design for many of the new artwork in Echos.

I really liked the cut scenes and, just like Awakening and Fates, I wish there was more of them.

Berkut...you know why.

The music, from what I recall, was very good as well. It wasn't on the levels of I'd Purpose, but it was still a good soundtrack.

So yeah, are my criticisms valid? Am I alone on this, or am I just that one asshole who likes to ruin everyones fun (It's probably the latter.) For me, I just did not enjoy Echos personally and the main points I presented made me not want to play the game anymore. It sucks that it had to be that way, but again, maybe this is just me and my taste in things. It didn't grab me and that's just kind of the end of it.

Don't be afraid to comment! I would love to know what you think about Fire Emblem Echos!

[bellmo15-blog]

Why I Don't Enjoy Going To The Cinemas Anymore

HEAR ME OUT! Please just HEAR ME OUT ON THIS! I swear I have a good reason for thinking this. After all, why would you say something like this and not have a good reason for it or are only saying it to piss people off and get attention. Thank God there’s no one like that in real life ha ha ha ha ha. Ha ha ha ha. HA HA HA HA HA HA….

I really haven’t been enjoying the idea of going to the cinema lately. I have slowly been coming to this realisation more and more recently. Not because there’s nothing on at the cinemas, that’s not true. We are still getting some great movies that are coming out in the theatres. Nor is it even because video games tend to be my preferred form of entertainment. I mean yeah, they are, but I have been in recent years making more of an effort to actually watch new movies and shows… Usually while having Wii Fit running in the background and doing something like Free Jogging. Hey I gotta keep myself in shape SOMEHOW!

No, my reasons for not enjoying going to the cinema lately have been born from a result of bad personal experiences. Not with movies themselves (although granted I have sadly seen bad movies in cinemas like The 5th Wave) but rather the experiences themselves. Some major, some minor, both contribute either way.

Forced 3D Showings

Remember when 3D was like this big new thing movies were trying to implement in almost every movie? You also probably remember that when going to a 3D showing of certain movies they forced you watch those movies with those glasses with the red and blue lenses in them. I actually first remembered this being a thing with Spy Kids 3 where it was advertised as a big part of the movie and they were really in your face with it in the advertising. And it wasn’t long before I started seeing more movies having this. And I hated that! And this isn’t even some “Oh, I loved this as a child” thing either, no! Even as a kid I hated the 3D showings of movies! Because none of them really felt 3D to me.

In fact, anytime I’ve ever seen a movie in 3D it’s felt less like stuff was literally popping out of the screen and more like I was just watching a movie with a red and blue filter on it. I don’t know if this was just a me thing or whatever, but I never experienced any form of true 3D at 3D screenings. And that’s not even taking into account how they make you wear those glasses that you have no idea who’s used them before and might be carrying diseases on them. The only time I ever truly felt real 3D was when I went to Movie World in Queensland as a child and they had a showing of Shrek 4D. THAT actually did feel like real 3D. Or 4D as they were calling it there.

The one movie I remember hating that it was a forced 3D showing the most though was when I went to see The Walk. Some of you might not remember this movie but it’s a film based on a true story about a French high-wire artist who wanted to tightrope across the Twin Towers. At the time this movie came out, late 2015, I had been going to the cinema on my own a fair bit thanks to me having my licence (kinda. I mean I COULD drive without any supervision, but I had a limit to how many passengers I could have in my car and had to have a red P Plate on my window) and was also 18 meaning I could see pretty much everything without needing supervision… And the one show time it was running that was available for me to see was a 3D showing. *Sigh.* I mean, I still liked the movie anyway but the fact that I had to wear one of those stupid glasses for an effect that barley works just got to me hurt the experience for me. And considering I was still in High School at this time meaning I didn’t have a very open schedule to begin with it was either this or not at all!

Getting Sick at Inconvenient Times

Speaking of inconveniences, how about the number of times I’ve had to step out to go to the bathroom? Because it’s sadly happened a fair bit. And sometimes at the most inconvenient times two! How To Train Your Dragon; had to step out right as the climax was starting. Shreak 2; I don’t remember what point I had to step out specifically but I hated that I had to given how much I love this movie. Ferrari; Had to step out not once but TWICE to go to the bathroom. Worst part is that the movie Ferrari was something we took my step farther out to see for his birthday so that fact I couldn’t be present for at least like 20% of the movie sucked.

This is granted a pretty minor issue I know but not being able to pause a movie to go to the bathroom meaning you could miss important plot points or details doesn’t help at all.

The Super Mario Bros Movie

Okay, now we are getting into more specific examples and when I said earlier that my reasons for not enjoying going to the cinema recently came less from the movies themselves and more from the people at those theatres this and one other movie are the major reasons. Because I loved the Super Mario Bros Movie! It was a great movie that had some really fun moments, actually felt like the games it was based on unlike the live action one from the 90’s and the fact that I enjoyed this movie as much as I did is even more amazing considering this film was made by an animation studio that’s notorious for having some of the worst or most bland movies in the industry.

Yeah, I liked this movie. I did not like my experience going to see this movie however! You see, I saw this movie day one when it came out in theatres, even managed to get off work 30 minutes early so I could go home, get changed and make it in time. And all though out this movie there was one loud and obnoxious guy in the theatre who was shouting out at every single reference he saw. “OH MY GOD, KID ICARUS! OOH, PALUNE! YO YOSHIS!” and he even made a reference to the “And then there’s Chunky, he’s dead…” meme at one point. And I hated it. Like he wasn’t even sitting next to me or anything, he was a few rows down and I could still hear him. It’s like dude, I know! I’ve played these games two! Most of us watching this movie have! Now can you please let up enjoy the movie in peace?

You know those react channels on YouTube that love to point the most minor things or easter egg or get all loud and screamy over certain things? Yeah, this was like that but I had to put up with it personally happening a few feet away from me. When this movie came out on Blu Ray a few months later I brought it, got home and was so happy I could watch this movie in peace without having to deal with anyone disturbing that peace.

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse

And then, we get to my experience going to see Across the Spider-Verse. Bit of context for this one. When I went to see this movie my little cousins had come over. They are extremely young, like 10 at most, and usually when they come over my mother usually takes them to see a movie at the theatres offering to take me with them as well since what else am I going to do that afternoon? And they don’t always make the best judgment calls on what to see since while we have taken them to see stuff like the Sonic 2 movie, the last time before this particular visit Puss in Boots The Last Wish was showing at the cinema and what did we go and see? The Mummies! A mediocre movie about ancient mummies ending up in London and the whole thing was basically “Lol, look at these old ass undead beings struggling to adapt to modern society.”

So when they booked tickets to take the kids to go see Across the Spider-Verse of course I’d be excited to see this. Especially as someone who loved the original Into the Spider-Verse and had finally gotten to the play the one Spider-Man game I had always wanted to for over a decade the year prior Shattered Dimensions. You all know where I’m going with this, I loved the movie but the experience going was painful.

-Neither my mother or Step Farther knew it was an animated film until AFTER we got to the cinema despite the fact that they booked these tickets online meaning they HAD to know this beforehand -One of them complained about how the movie was “two long” which is REALLY rich considering they saw Avatar the Way of Water in cinema which was even longer than Across the Spider-Verse at 3 hours and 16 minutes. -One of them admitted they only came for the popcorn. -Another complained the movie was “two confusing” which was their own fault for thinking that considering they fell asleep half way though. -Oh and the cherry on top, they wrote the whole thing of as nothing more than a “kids movie” just because it was animated. Even though the whole plot of this movie is pretty dark and mature since Spider-Man 2099 is basically saying in this movie “Oh yeah and umm, you have to let certain key characters in certain universe die otherwise that universe it wiped out!”

Yeah, there attitude after this movie was finished didn’t exactly put me in a good mood for the rest of the night. And let me just say if THIS is how they act over this movie then I pray to God they never find out about shows like The Owl House or Amphibia, shows that are aimed towards children but also have very mature themes and morals in them! (I mean the final episode of season 2 of Amphibia even opens with a disclaimer it might be disturbing to some viewers.)

So yeah, those are pretty much all the big reasons why I have grown such a sour taste in wanting to go to the cinema willingly. I don’t want to have to run the risk of being forced to watch it in 3D, I don’t want to miss out on key plot points all just because natures call and don’t want to have my experience of a movie I’m otherwise enjoying be soured by the people around me. Compare that to watching movies in the comfort of my own home where I don’t have to put up with other people potentially running my experience, can watch those movies whenever I want, can pause at any time to go to the bathroom or just to simply do something else important for a few minutes. Which actually brings me to one finally point.

I’ve Always Enjoyed Watching Movies at Home A LOT More Than At The Cinemas Anyway

Yeah, I’ve just always preferred this over having to clear out my schedule just to drive to a cinema for an experience I probably could have had a better time with at home. Not just because of the reasons I’ve brought up already but also because it’s a lot more accessible to me in general. Both because of DVD’s/Blu Rays and Streaming services. DVD’s I can literally just buy at my local JB Hi-Fi and that’s it! The movie is mine to keep forever and watch whenever I want. All I have to do is just pop it into my PlayStation 5, PlayStation 3 or PlayStation 2 and just hit play movie! I mean watching movies though physical media like DVD’s or Blu Ray’s aren’t perfect either and do have their own issues. Aside from the fact that not every movie or show is available at my local places not every show or movie is also lucky enough to get a physical release. Some shows that originate on streaming services do, I have a copy of the The Last of Us series to prove it, but for others it’s either get a streaming service or go fuck yourself! And that’s not even bringing up how disks can get scratched or might not work anymore if you don’t take good care of them or some of them have unskipable adds. I mean at the end of the day they are still really minor issues anyway.

Then there is streaming services. For the price of literally a movie ticket, or hell maybe even less if we are comparing the entry fee for most streaming sites to the cinema I’ve had to frequent in the last decade and a half *Screams in Australian money* you get access to a whole host of movies new and old depending on the service to watch on whatever compatible device you have as well as access to a bunch of other great original stuff like The Mandalorian, Inside Job, Invinsable and Guillermo Del Toro’s Pinocchio. I mean Disney + alone has every episode of Futurama on it while Prime Video has The Matrix on it! It’s worth becoming a subscriber for those alone! Oh but don’t think I’m letting Streaming Services off the hook either because they aren’t perfect either. For some services, Netflix in particular, they can actually remove certain movies or shows from there site. And I REALLY don’t get why. Like, it is a legal issue or something? Did there licence for those movies or shows run out? They will give you a warning most of the time when something from your watchlist is about to be taken off but I still wish this wasn’t the case. Oh, and there’s also the fact that you have to constantly be connected to the internet at all times while watching so sorry if yours goes out for whatever reason. Thankfully those services let you download certain movies and shows… on the mobile apps only. Seriously, why it that limited to only the mobile apps and not something I can do on my PS5?

But honestly, given the option I’d rather take watching movies at home though either of these methods than run the risk of having another awful experience at the cinema. So yeah, that’s pretty much why I haven’t had any motivation to actually go to the cinema lately. It has nothing to do with me wanting to do anything stupid like boycotting a movie I have no real interest in seeing anyway (I seriously can not express how stupid I think the concept of boycotting is to begin with) or me being some wired edge lord who thinks he’s cool because he’s a rebel who doesn’t do what everyone else is doing or anything like that. In fact, I think people should still go to the cinema if they want to so that they can support a movie they are interested in. As for me, I think I’m fine with supporting that movie a few months later when it comes out on physical media or streaming.

There, I ended this with a positive conclusion. Now no one who’s new to this page will ever accuse me of having a controversial take!

Genie Bellmo: This coming from the same guy who un-ironically likes Heavy Rain and Detroit Become Human?

……… Shut up!