#he has enough pressure already being in the top 4 teams

[aaron04jpg]

He has a name

[queenvidal]

Welcome To The Sanctuary

Negan x Reader (Rick’s Daughter)

Chapter 1: Something Eerie

Chapter Summary: It was supposed to be just another pickup day - not a nightmare. Rick is ready to strike against Negan, but all war efforts come to a complete stop, when the life of the woman both men care about the most is on the line.

Wordcount: 2157

Era: Season 7

- Part 5 of the The One And Only Series -

Chapter Index: Chapter 1 / Chapter 2 / Chapter 3 / Chapter 4 / Chapter 5 - COMING SOON!

Masterlist / Negan x Rick's Daughter Series

It’s late in the morning, when a small convoy of trucks makes its way down the deserted roads. 

The Saviors are heading to their bosses favorite community. Negan is almost mindlessly driving behind one of the trucks, watching the all too familiar suburb passing by his windows. Today is pickup day for Alexandria and he can’t wait to see what Prick’s people got him this time. It better be good after all the trouble his son caused last week. 

It probably won't be much, he muses. Not that he cares too much about it but the town is now short of three more people. It certainly has to put their scavengers under even more pressure. But then again, Rick and especially his Sweet-Thing had to deal with even worse conditions in the past, when coordinating their teams and if anyone can get shit done, it’s her.

After the events of last week's pickup, Negan had to think of her constantly. She must have known about Spencer's plans or at least had to have a suspicion, given how stressed she was, when he first approached them. What a slimy asshole and a coward on top. There is no doubt in his mind his Sunshine would have killed him for what he tried to do. Luckily she didn’t have to lift a finger, she is already close enough to getting exiled as it is and also Negan was more than willing to lend a hand in that matter. 

As much as he can't stand Rick, he's got to admit that he's doing a good job - that is keeping his people alive and scavenging good stuff. Also he is well experienced from his years outside of that town and kept so many people alive during that time. That knowledge is priceless in times like this and Negan actually respects him for it. That Spencer really thought he'd not just be as good but even better than Rick as a leader is not only astonishing but also downright pathetic. That asshole got what he deserved. 

Still, there is one thing from this whole ordeal that’s still leaving a bitter taste in Negan's mouth and that is the death of the fat woman. He disliked her and was never subtle about it but he knew she was somewhat close to his Sunshine and although it was Arat’s decision to take her out, he still feels sorry for Y/N. 

He can’t forget that burning anger in her eyes, when she glared at that bitch that tried to shoot him. He'd be lying if he said he wasn’t at least a little bit turned on by the sight of it, as out of place as it was. After all his Sweet-Thing is hot as hell when she’s pissed and she’s been seething. 

Negan can’t help but smile at that memory. He’s so excited to see her again. It surprised him how much he actually enjoyed their little game of hide and seek. It made the whole affair even more enticing. Still he’s glad people somehow found out eventually. Hopefully this will result in more time with her than rushed quickies every now and then. Given the new circumstances, Negan decided to retire his RV for the time being and left it in The Sanctuary. There is no need for it anymore and her bedroom will do just fine. He really can’t wait to take his time with her.

Finally the high walls of Alexandria are slowly coming into view and the head of the Saviors  focuses back onto the road ahead of him. Slowly the gate opens up, making way for the convoy. Negan scans the guards standing on the wall but his Sunshine is nowhere to be seen. She’s not on duty right now it seems. 

The trucks drive through the gate onto the parking lot and Negan stops his car right on top of the convoy. The Saviors gather around their vehicles, ready to go through today's pickup. Negan jumps out of his car, shutting the door shut. 

Uncomfortableness is creeping up his spine immediately - Something is wrong. 

Somehow he has the feeling that something is off but Negan just can’t put his finger on it and it's making him feel quite uneasy. Suddenly on high alert, he's looking around the area. Usually around this time Alexandrians would roam the street, watching the activities but the streets are empty. 

Except for one person. 

“Ah, Rick!” Negan calls the approaching man with a bright smile that quickly dies again. The closer Rick gets, the more his sorry state becomes visible. The man looks like he’s seen a ghost. His skin is pale, only accentuating the redness of his sunken eyes. The hell happened to him?

Once he’s reached the Saviors, Rick greets them with a weak nod of his head. “Negan. Your stuff’s at the pantry.” 

A frown settles on Negan's face. Rick’s not meeting his eyes and while that’s nothing out of the ordinary, in fact it’s quite welcome, it still seems off. The other man’s not avoiding his gaze like he used to but is just staring into the void. What the hell is going on here? After another quick glance around the area, still not seeing his Sweet-Thing, Negan asks, “Where’s Y/N?”

Rick swallows hard. After a moment, he states. “She’s out scouting.”

This statement only adds to the distressing feeling in Negan’s gut. Rick is so obviously lying. She would never go out scouting with a different car than her stupid Mini. The Mini that is clearly sitting in the far corner of the parking lot. 

Negan takes one step closer to Rick, his eyes narrowing. But before he can confront Rick about his observations, he sees a woman appearing in the corner of his eye. She’s stepping out of the infirmary. That’s one of Sunshine’s team, he realizes. The woman is crying and wiping her tears. Blood is dripping from her hands.

Negan’s eyes switch between her and Rick. Something is going on. After one final glance at the other man who’s still not meeting his eyes, Negan gets moving. He pushes himself past Rick without a word, heading for the infirmary. Rick’s about to say something but when he sees Sasha standing on the porch, he keeps his mouth shut, following Negan with his head down.

Knots tighten in Negan's chest. The air feels tense, almost eerie. There is not a single person in sight and the whole town is silent. Only the sound of boots moving over the gravel can be heard. It’s quite goosebumps inducing. The head of the Saviors tries to calm himself down, he can’t have his nerves get the better of him. 

When they reach the porch, Sasha moves out of their way to the side. She looks at Rick, even more tears are running down her cheeks when she slowly shakes her head at him. Negan can’t see Rick's reaction but at the moment he doesn’t care. All he wants is to find out what’s going on. With the unpleasant feeling in his gut quickly growing, he opens the door and moves inside.

Once through the door, the man is being hit with the pungent smell of blood. His nose crinkles to its own accord and he is met with another puffy red eye. Rick's boy is sitting on a chair next to a cot, looking up at him with a tear stained face, holding the hand of the person lying there. 

When Negan's eyes eventually wander to the cot, he stops dead in his tracks. Sunshine. Negan almost forgot how to breathe. There is so much blood. 

"It's been an accident." Rick's small voice sounds behind the boss, but he barely registers the other man. Negan moves forward, coming to stand right next to Carl. The boy doesn’t say a word, only holding the hand of his sister in silence.

Negan’s eyes roam over her. His Sunshine is almost unrecognizable, the way she's lying there, completely still, unconscious. Her skin is so pale, almost gray. Bandages are wrapped around her exposed middle but there is still so much blood on her, the cot, the equipment. A rusty metal rod on the cart catches Negan's attention briefly but he quickly moves his eyes back to the big crimson red spot on her belly.

"It happened so fast." Rick tries to explain, "We couldn't-"

"Got a doc or something?" Negan cuts him off immediately, his eyes not leaving her.

Rick’s just looking at his daughter. "She's… she’s our medic.”

Negan’s clenching his jaw. A quiet fuck is leaving his lips as he’s running his ungloved hand through his hair, still taking all of this in. 

She’s dying. 

Once that thought passes his mind, Negan snaps back from his spinning mind. He moves his attention back to her father, “Prepare her for transport. I’m taking her with us.”

“No-” Rick is about to argue, but there is no room nor time for a debate right now.

“I see you still don't understand what your daughter means to me, Rick.” Negan states in a serious tone, towering over the other man. “I’ve got a doc and a clinic. She’s coming with me.” 

“I'm coming with you.” Surprised, both men look at the boy. “So she won't be alone.” 

After a short moment of consideration, Negan agrees and nods at him. “Fine. Pack her some things.” Carl carefully places his sister's hand on the cot again, before quickly rushing out of the room. Negan turns his head back towards Rick again. “You get her ready,” he orders, before brushing past him, getting his car.

Rick watches him leave before moving his attention back to his daughter again. Slowly he comes closer, taking her hand in his. His eyes well up again as he looks at her. He raises her hand to his lips, praying to any God who cares to listen, to make her stay, to not take her away. “I love you so much,” he whispers against her skin. It pains him so much to see her like that.

After a new wave of tears are threatening to stream down his face, Rick realizes he has to get going. With as much care as he can muster, he puts a blanket around his daughter, wrapping her up into a cocoon before slowly lifting her up into his arms. Cautiously he hugs her against his chest. “Please don't leave us, Y/N.”

Eventually Rick starts moving, bringing his daughter outside. Sasha is sitting on the railing, still fighting the tears, trying to take a breath and calm down. She offers to help him but Rick doesn't seem to notice her as he’s passing her by without a word. Negan parked his car right in front of the house, Carl is already waiting next to it with a duffel bag in his hand. 

Rick walks down the steps attentively, going towards the car. Negan, who just finished instructing Simon to carry on with the pickup, comes closer, ready to take over but Rick moves past him. Carl quickly opens the door before helping his father to slowly and carefully lay his sister down onto the back seat of the car. Rick tugs her in one more time, whispering to her to keep fighting, to please wake up again, before he has to reluctantly let go of her.

As much as he hates Negan and as much as he distrusts him with every fiber of his being, if that man can save her, he will swallow all his hatred up. He’d do everything in and beyond his power for her. All he wants is for his daughter to open her eyes again.

Negan comes to stand next to Rick, looking at him with something close to compassion in his features, “Whatever happens, either way, I’ll let you know.” He's reaching out his hand, offering the other man a two-way radio.

Rick only nods silently, taking it. After one final look at his daughter, he's moving away. Negan lets out a sharp whistle, gaining Carl's attention. “Jump in.” The boy does as he’s been told, hopping into the passenger seat while Negan hurries onto his. 

The engine roars to life as they quickly take off and hit the road. Rick watches them drive out of the gate. His heart is shattering into a million pieces. This feels way too much like a last goodbye.

Sasha’s slowly approaching him. She puts her hand on his shoulder in a comforting gesture, but there is nothing that can console him. 

Negan is racing down the streets as fast as he can. Adrenaline is rushing through his veins. Please, let it not be too late. It’s dead silent in the car. Now more than ever is he afraid of noises. 

Dreading to hear the tell-tale sound of quiet groaning. 

Chapter Index: Chapter 1 / Chapter 2 / Chapter 3 / Chapter 4 / Chapter 5 - COMING SOON!

Masterlist / Negan x Rick's Daughter Series

Taglist: @starry-night-20 / @joceymoo / @srhxpci / @ladykxxx08 / @sunneeflower / @frombloodandflesh / @aleeeesa /@lanamiller / @fanfic-n-tabulous / @noirfan12 / @abbiesxox / @elinafresk / @obsessiveformiyatwins / @kokushibosgirl / @syrma-sensei / @oceandolores

[thesimmermo]

SEASON 1 EPISODE 21

The Talk

Morgan gets home from picking Daze, Decklin, and Dallas up from school. DJ is at Computer Team practice. She finds Dirk in the dining room waiting on her. She sits down and stares at him.

Dirk: Hey, how was the traffic? Morgan: Not too bad. Dirk: How are you feeling? Morgan: The same.

Dirk: What does that mean? Morgan: Big. Overwhelmed. Exhausted. Dirk: It's almost the half-way mark. Morgan: Then what? I get pregnant again?

Dirk: Morgan, I didn't know that this was such a big deal. We have 4 other kids. What's the problem now? Morgan: You're kidding right? Dirk: No. I'm serious. I don't understand. Morgan: Dirk.

Dirk: Help me to understand. Morgan: I had a C-section with Decklin... almost died. I was in the hospital for a week. I had an early labor with Dallas, c-section, ALMOST DIED AGAIN. I was in the hospital and he was in the hospital for a month. I am scared. There's two babies this time. What happens if I actually do... Dirk: Don't say that!

Dirk: I don't know what I would do... This pregnancy won't be like those. You- Morgan: You heard Dr. Carter just like me. They're giving me a c-section in 2 months! I have scar tissue that's blocking my birth canal & putting pressure on my uterus so it isn’t getting enough blood flow... and the twins are small. What do you mean?! This is worse.

Morgan: I told you so many times after Decklin then again after Dallas that I didn't want to be pregnant again. That the boys were enough for me.

Dirk: No you didn't! You knew how I felt, I told you from the jump I wanted a big family. Morgan: I DID! AND WE ALREADY DO! THERE ARE SIX OF US! HOW MANY MORE DO YOU WANT? Do you wanna be the Duggars?! Dirk: You should have said something if you didn't want more kids!

Morgan: I DID! Dirk: WHEN?!

Morgan: I told you after we had Decklin, when my body wouldn't stop bleeding! I talked to you and then you told me, you wanted one more... So we had Dallas... We almost lost him, I told you again then! I told you when I said I wanted to start birth control, and you bitched about that. I told you when I wanted to get my tubes tied and you bitched about that. I told you when I wanted you to wear protection and you bitched about that. I ALWAYS TOLD YOU!

Dirk: That is.... Morgan: The truth and you know it. I never complained once. I love those 4 boys and I know I'll love these 2 too but for once, did you ever think about me? Did you ever think about the strain that is going on in my body?! Did that matter to you?

Morgan: I know that one of you greatest accomplishments is being a dad. You are a damn good one but you... you're one of my greatest accomplishments. I love being Mrs. Dreamer. I love knowing that I have a husband that loves me but for once.... did you ever think about me as your wife and not just the mother of your children?

Dirk: I am so sorry for being so selfish Morgan. I didn't realize that was the full extent. Morgan: But you did Dirky... You just didn't care. You wanted what you wanted..

Dirk looks up at her defeated face and sighs. She wipes away tears and looks away from him.

Dirk: I am so sorry Morgan. I should have listened... Morgan: I honestly, don't want to hear it Dirk. I'm... *voice cracks* I'm over it. Dirk: What can I do? Morgan: Go help the boys with their homework... Decklin is listening at the top of the stairs.

Footsteps scurry away above them. Morgan puts her head on the table and wipes away bitter tears. She feels like a load has been lifted off of her but she can't help but feel the immense sadness fill her heart as she hears Dirk walk away in defeat.

They’re whispering not to alert their parents.

Dallas: What happened? Decklin: Mommy and Daddy just had a fight. I think Mommy hates him. Daze: Mommy doesn't hate them. They just had a disagreement Deck. Decklin: They never fight. Dallas: Deck is right, Dazey. They never fight. Daze: It'll be okay. They'll be happy again soon. Mommy is probably just stressed because of the babies. Decklin: *begins to cry* Daze: Don't cry bro. It will be okay.

DJ gets home from school and Decklin sprints outside still upset to tell him what happened. DJ walks inside and finds his mom cooking but she doesn't say a word. He reaches out and gives her a hug. Morgan uses all her strength not to burst into tears in his arms.

Morgan: I love you. DJ: Love you too, Mommy.

Morgan: How was programming?

DJ: I love it. I had so much fun. I can’t wait to learn more.

Morgan smiles gently at him. As she turns to finish cooking, DJ finds his dad in the living room.

DJ: Decklin told me what happened. Is everything okay? Dirk: Yeah son. Everything is fine. It was just a misunderstanding. DJ: You don't have to lie to me pops. You and ma never get into fights so it must be serious.

Dirk: She's just scared about this pregnancy. DJ: Decklin scared or Dallas scared? Dirk: *sucks his teeth* So everyone can see it but me. I guess a mixture. DJ: Dad you see it. You just deal with it a different way. Deep down, I know you're scared too. You just tryna be a "man" and not cause mom to be even more nervous. Dirk: You're right. I just don't know how to show it. DJ: Or say it.

Dirk: I try to stay positive because I can't imagaine what I would do if I lost her. *voice cracks* I love her so much. DJ: You don't got to tell me that. I know. You'd starve, have dirty clothes, a filthy house, your beard would be uneven, your kids would be out of control and you be ho-- Dirk: Okay DJ! I get it. Shit. I need me and her to be on the same page. DJ: *laughs* Now you just gotta tell her that.

Dirk: I can't believe my 16 year old is giving me advice. DJ: Thanks to mom, I'm very smooth with the ladies. So talking is my speciality. Dirk: Well Mr. Suave, how do I let her know I understand her and that I want her to be happy too? DJ: The same way that you asked her to marry you.

Dirk frowns.

DJ: Open your big mouth and tell her. Do something nice for her. I'll watch the terrifying trio. Dirk: You don't have to do that. It's not your job. DJ: Oh but I do. I can't have my parents fighting in front of Decklin. You know he's a water balloon waiting to be popped.

Dirk throws a pillow at DJ and they share a loud laugh. Little do they know, that Morgan was listening in the kitchen.

Dirk: Thanks son. DJ: Anytime Pops. I love you. Dirk: I love you too. Now come on, let me help you with this computer project that you left open on my computer last night. Your coding is ass. DJ: That's cold, man.

[callsigns-haze]

Pretty like a crime

Chapter 10

Pairing: Agent Jake 'Hangman' Seresin x Singlemom! Agent Y/n 'Cobra' Y/l/n

Summary: Cobra is finally back on the agency and is finally back in the job. With Kai at home she has to jumble being a mother and a agent. She's sent to her first U.C mission but never thought that she would meet a blonde, green eyed Texan...

Warning: Mentions of gun use, ptsd, mentions of death, mentions of shooting, flirting, mentions of abuse, description of dead body, death, blood, undercover work, alcohol use, smut, kissing

Prologue/ Part 1/ Part 2/Part 3/ Part 4/ Part 5/ Part 6/ Part 7/ Part 8/ Part 9

"Joris is dead! MY BROTHER IS DEAD!" Matthews voice, pierced through with pain and anger. You finally stand up and walk over to him and wrap your arms around him. Matthew never lost his composure to not lose his dignity but now he doesn't have a brother and that's a million times worse.

You wrap your arms around him and pull his head down so he could rest it on your shoulder. He obeys and you wrap your fingers in his hair. With your other hand you rub up and down his back softly, as a comfort mechanism, for him to know that you're there.

He lets out sobs and sighs into you. You've never seen the man so wrecked, it crushed you in a way. You didn't want to see him in no pain, no suffer but there he just lost his brother and his father was in hospital, and arrested.

The world fell down on you all.

-----------

"This is unbelievable!" Bradley exclaimed angrily after hearing the in view of Maverick opinion. This really was nonsense. You all just experienced the loss of Phoenix and Bob and a severe murder attempt on Fanboy and Payback.

Someone wired their car so when they turned on the engine, it would explode, and it did exactly that. The two of them were not quick enough to respond but now lay in hospital in a critical state.

It's been less than a week and someone was trying to get rid of all of you. They attempted to kill four already and we're probably going to progress soon, and who knows what would be next.

Maverick was a messenger in this situation. The mission force, alongside of your father, order the daggers all of duty, due to the murders. They believed that this is a whole group murder attempt and nobody knew who next would be the victim of any possible type of murder.

Bradley was furious. He wanted to receive the right to find the murder of his friends and the attempt of murder if fanboy and payback. Jake sat beside you in silence,.his arm was wrapped around you as he pulls you in close to his body. He lays a delicate kiss on the crown of your head and pulls you in deeper.

Nobody knew who next would be attacked…

"Bradley! Maverick has a point! Four of us are already dead there's nothing else we can do about it!" Coyote, shouted at the infuriated man. You guys were done for next and this stupid little game will not go well under this pressure. Everyone kept arguing but you sure have misheard something, it didn't add up and you finally break your ever long silence.

"Javy. What do you mean four?" Everyone looks at you, due to it being the first thing you have said all day and you stare deeply into coyote's eyes, requesting for an answer.

"Fanboy and Payback didn't make it." They were dead. Another bunch of people who suffer the effect if being at the wrong place at the wrong time, around the wrong people. That only left you, Bradley, Javy and Jake.

Jake. Someone could be going to track him down right now and take him from you like the cruel creatures have been doing with the rest of the team.

At this point you couldn't contain it. Everything just keeps topping onto you and at this point you're carrying mountains on your shoulders and couldn't bear it anymore. You walk out while they're still arguing. You can't do this. Everyone around you is slowly getting whipped out. It felt like a nightmare that goes on.

You walk down the halls of the base, quickly trying to get as far away as possible from the meeting room. You needed a space where you could possibly think this whole horrible situation through and make some sense out of it but all you've managed to get is blank spots in your mind.

You're storming around at this point, your legs never carried you so quickly out of the room. You slowly begin to gain thoughts. Trying to figure out how each situation occurred and how you could get a sense of security interlined in it.

You turn left, then once again your legs carry you to a corridor on the left and then you take a right but you smash bodies with the person going the opposite direction. It causes you to stumble, having to take some set backs as they look at you.

Matthew.

"What do y-" You were about to start off with the cruel and cold answer but his french accent caught you off and simply said. "Look, I'm sorry for the loss this week." Hee knows about the deaths.

Truly everyone at this point knows but the difference is that Matthew is saying his condolences and that's got you a tiny bit stunned. Ok…that tiny but is approximately the size of a big black hole in space but we skip that fact.

You look him up and down, about to thank him for his words of sorrow but he simply continued his sentence. "…but truly they should've seen it coming…a snake always slithers."

He walks on, leaving you there standing all stunned and in total shock to his comment and you were overwhelmed previously. Your breaths began to get heavier and your lungs began to close up. Panic went over you. Matthew knew something you don't.

----

"So you gonna run now?" You ask Olivia, or should you say Emma. She did what she wanted. She ruined the family, but didn't exactly kill them. She trusted you for some reason you didn't know off, that's the reason she didn't try and kill you.

"What choice do I have?" Valid point. She didn't manage to kill Chevalier but putting him behind bars meant he could still get revenge, through colleagues and his sons, which only could be done by Matthew.

She packs her last bag, slipping the hoodie in before carefully closing the suitcase over after adjusting the elastics. She zipped the zipper to its max and placed the suitcase down.

"What are you going to do?" She asked you out of pure interest where your roads will lead you now. Your work wasn't done, your chapter here wasn't finished all you needed to do is figure out what is left.

"Well, it'll take Matthew a long time to recover but hey…a wife has to stay with her husband" She simply nods to that before walking over to you and stopping with the smallest inches in between you. "What about your baby?"

You looked at her comment in shock and in fear. You hadn't a clue what she was on about and I say your facial expression showed that, "What baby?"

"Anyone can tell, honey. It's been getting quite obvious."

----

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[lewisinho]

the recency bias around verstappen is crazy though. bro he was called crashstappen when he started f1, he was behind ricciardo for 2 seasons and only ahead of him in 2018 after ricciardo announced he was leaving rbr and coincidentally had 9352762 mechanical dnfs. He lacked the single seater experinece and genuinely showed in his early seasons, it took 3-4 years for him to mature (it is still debatable if he matured or not bc he usually gets away with it lol). the point is even if toto wants to create the next verstappen, he needs years for that lol

this is long so under the cut:

the writing was on the wall for ricciardo from the beginning to be fair. red bull was becoming max’s team, but it all comes down to a very simple reason: he was just faster. i am not saying ricciardo was not holding his own, of course he was, but a nineteen-year-old max verstappen was on par with him pace-wise and eventually surpassed him.

but back to your point, it’s far too early for antonelli. it was too early for max as well. i am not saying max didn’t have the pace, or that kimi won’t…it’s just that pace isn’t everything in this sport, especially when you are bringing a literal child into it. it’s an absolute nightmare from the media side, the pressure of public perception…this is not the type of scrutiny a mere child should ever be under. it was not okay then, and it is not okay now. what max had back then, was protection from red bull. he also undoubtedly knew the world of f1 very well before he even reached the sport himself (from his own father). he was confident from the get-go and sure of his abilities. he never had to worry about his seat. and fair enough, he proved himself and he was faster than all of his teammates. but that’s the thing, you can have all the pace in the world, but you won’t have the maturity neither inside nor outside of the car. we can say a lot about max’s attitude, but the thing is at the end of the day, if he’s growing in an environment that doesn’t hold him accountable…he was never going to learn in the first place (not an excuse by the way, merely an observation as to how red bull treated him); and that’s the thing, max made mistakes, a lot of them, because he was still very much on a learning curve. but red bull let him make those mistakes, let him have the time to hone his craft. was their approach appropriate or successful? we can very much argue that it wasn’t and say that to this day, the lack of accountability is still present and his attitude is still shitty (also yeah, regarding your point, has he matured? doubt it.)

what max’s example proves (and in fact every rookie for that matter), is that these kids need time. you can throw a 17 year old child in a torro rosso, and they can be fast af, but they will still require a lot of time and nurturing. and f1 these days doesn’t give you that proper nurturing environment that is absolutely necessary for these kids to properly develop. it’s sink or swim. they can kick you out after half a season, never mind that you only had three days of testing to get to grips with a formula one car. that’s why going through the junior formulas, step by step, is just so important. hone your craft slowly, get your fucking media training and your gcse’s first. these junior formulas are there for a reason. f1 is also a nightmare environment to grow up and mature in. never mind how old you are when you come in, your rookie season is scary and stressful. these days it is also probably the worst time to be a rookie, considering how proper preparation is virtually non-existent. imagine also being a fucking kid on top of that.

the mental side is only worse, and this is what frightens me the most about kimi’s situation. it’s not even the pressure the media have already put him under as ‘hamilton’s replacement’, already expecting him to win the f2 championship, it’s the pressure toto is putting him under. why is he saying that he is considering putting kimi in the merc in 2025 to replace lewis publicly? as i’ve said before, it’s not good for a child to be under this type of scrutiny and it’s just unfair on kimi. give the kid time, it will only be for the better.

i genuinely do not understand what toto is playing at. he’s still apparently sour about not managing to sign max when he had the chance. the fact that he doesn’t realise how wrong it is just worries me. and i agree with you wholeheartedly, if he wants to create the next verstappen, it will take years, why? because it did.

[nick--knack]

Top 5 tanks?

Oh boy.

If there is one thing that I absolutely love, it is tanks that look goofy. Tanks that are, in the words of @the-history-chap, a bit of a fucked up creature. There are a bunch which I could think of and it was a little hard putting together this list, choosing only the best of the best without this list running on forever, but I hope it was worth the wait.

5. the Antonov A-40

When dropping a tank from the sky, while doable at a very low altitude there are several inconveniences such as the vehicle needing to be in a certain gear lest it break and the crew needing to be dropped separately which burns time for deployment. As such, there have been several attempts to create a flying tank - one of which being the USSR's own Antonov A-40. Designed by a man named Oleg Antonov, the Antonov A-40 is built to glide from the air onto the battlefield with the crew already inside of it which would reduce the deployment into war by mere minutes

The Antonov A-40 is essentially just a T-60 but with wings attached to it. The wings are detachable and built to fall off once it hit the ground and in order to be light enough for air use, its armament, ammunition, headlights, and almost all of its fuel is removed. Some sources say that even the turret is removed aswell. A test flight which involved it being towed by a TB-3 bomber was conducted in 1942 but even with all its modifications, the A-40 shown itself to be far too heavy leaving the project to be abandoned.

Regardless of whether or not the tank could fly, the A-40 still has its issues. The deployment of the tank could take extra time due to having to shed its wings and since the fuel and munitions are taken out of the tank those things would have to be airdropped separately. In trying to invent a tank that would deploy quickly, Anton ended up creating one which would likely take the same amount of time if not more with more inconveniences. Apparently the T-60 itself isn't that good of a tank either, though I don't really know anything about that one so I don't have anything to say about it.

I totally understand why someone would create a tank like this but at the same time, there is something inherently funny to me about a tank with wings. The Japanese also tried to make a flying tank called the Maeda Ku-6 (So-Ra) however not only did that tank also look ridiculous but it too was a failure. Regardless of that, I would love to see a tank that can not only fly but work efficiently.

4. the Tsar Tank

The early years leading up to and during WW1 were the most fun in terms of coming up with new and wacky designs for tanks but the Tsar Tank really takes the cake in terms of weird and wacky. Designed by a small team, this massive hunk of machinery is an entire 30ft in height and requires a crew of 10 people to operate. According to the memoirs of Lebedenko, one of the engineers, the inspiration for this machine came about from Turkic carts which he noticed were able to easily traverse bumps and ditches thanks to their large wheels.

In January 1915, Lebedenko presented a wooden model of the tank to Nicholas II and the two of them played around with it a little. The tsar was enamoured with how easily it was able to roll across the carpet and over books, so much so that he personally funded the project with over 210,000 roubles and kept the wooden model.

Only 1 was built and it didn't take many tests before the tank proved itself to be unusable. The biggest issue with the tank is that, with the balance of weight being very important in these machines, the Tsar Tank puts all its weight onto 3 small pressure plates thus making it very easy for the tank to get stuck in soft ground and mud. And it did get stuck almost immediately at the start of its first test run. Not even having the most powerful engines at the time - two Maybach engines - were enough to pull it back out. Time and time again, it would go through failed test after failed test until September 1915 when the project was cancelled and any attempt to pull the tank out of the test area weren't successful. The tank was guarded in its test site until it was abandoned due to the outbreak of the Russian Revolution, then dismantled for scrap in 1923.

I love this thing it looks so absurd. I'm sure if I was some poor German bastard on the eastern front and I saw this massive hunk of machinery slowly rolling towards me I would shit myself. Why in gods name is it built like that? Ohhhhhhh it is so shape. I absolutely love it. I wish that the original wasn't disassembled because I would kill to see this thing in real life in all its absurd glory.

3. the Renault FT

While there were many different tank designs sprouting up with the idea of armoured warfare spreading across Europe, there are very few whose designs would prove to be revolutionary and be used as a reference for tank designs in the future. One of those tanks was the light tank Renault FT, with its configuration (crew at the front, engine at the back, and fully revolving turret) becoming the standard tank layout.

The Renault FT is a French tank designed by a man named Louis Renault, who began working on the idea in the late December of 1915. Whereas the previous tanks at the time were designed to be large and heavy, the engineer behind the design of this vehicle wanted to create a small and light tank that could maneuver better, be harder to hit, and could be fielded in large numbers. Of course, thousands of these tanks were ordered but most were not finished until after the war and as a result these tanks ended up being exported all over the world. The Renault FT was in service all the way till the Soviet-Afghan War.

The first time that the Renault FT was deployed was on May 31 1918, only 6 months before the end of WW1. It was used by French forces and the American Expeditionary Forces (AEF) and played a central role in the offensives of 1918, giving it the name "Victory Tank".

I like the Renault FT because it is very cute :). I really wish I had more to say about it, though, and I actually made one awhile ago. 10/10 tank, would ride.

2. the toaster tank A7V

After the first British tanks appeared on the Western Front in September 1918, the Germans were quick to invent something of their own much like it. Something big. Something metal. This is when the A7V came into existence and let me tell you, this tank was very bad.

Designed by Joseph Vollmer, this giant hunk of metal requires at least 18 crew members to operate but often times they were sent into battle with as many as 25 on board. The engine of the tank is situated right at the centre of it, giving off noise and toxic fumes and the amount of ammunition that it carried only further reduced the space inside. The driver had very poor vision. The "body" of the tank sitting so low to the ground and the overhang at the front makes it difficult to cross bumpy and muddy terrain, leaving the tank to mostly ride over flat terrains and roads where it at least there it can be used to its fullest potential. I guess that the powerful engine and 6 machine guns peeking out of it on all sides made it a real force to be a reckoned with but with all these limitations it has and its ridiculous appearance I just can't imagine it that way. No wonder Germany didn't consider this tank a success.

Even though the A7V is generally considered better designed due to its British counterparts, the goal of building 100 of these tanks was impossible to reach due to its complexity and cost. As a result only 20 were built, each with their own unique little features as they were built by hand and with great quality. The British gave this tank the title "moving fortress" for its appearance, being big and boxy and yet surprisingly fast. Ultimately, with having such a little impact on the battlefield, the A7V was more of a propaganda tool than an actual machine of war.

This tank fucking sucked, but it sucked in a funny way which is why I like it. I will give the Germans some slack, though, because it was made during a time where people were still trying to figure out how to build tanks but when your tank requires 18 people to operate I think you should start reconsidering some things. I also like calling it the toaster tank because of that one tweet which I redrew. I love the A7V. Very funny.

1. the Burstyn-Motorgeschütz

I'm sure you saw this coming. It's on my banner after all and I even wrote an essay on it once in the past, though that was a very long time ago so I shall write a second one. My #1 favourite tank of all time is none other than the Austro-Hungarian Burstyn-Motorgeschütz.

The idea for the Motorgeschütz first arose when an inventor named Günther Burstyn went on a torpedo boat trip with his brother whom was a marine officer. Burstyn was impressed by the ships speed, power, and protection and began to think of the idea of a land vehicle with the same qualities which could be used for warfare. It should be armoured, capable of off-road maneuvers, and be able to cross trenches. This idea crossed his mind once more as he went to an exhibition in Vienna and witnessed the Austro-Daimler Panzerautomobil, being one of the first armoured cars in history. He saw the potential, but at the same time thought that the four small wheels were a big limitation as it wouldn't be able to cross rough and muddy terrain - something that was essential to be able to navigate in a battlefield. Burstyn then moved one last time, travelling to Trento where he would witness heavy guns equipped with caterpillar chains to reduce ground pressure. All of these experiences combined would lead him to create what we now know as the Motorgeschütz, designed in Austria in 1911.

The design of the Motorgeschütz is very simple, and the reason for that is because its blueprint actually lacked a lot of detail. Due to this, the only thing that Burstyn was allowed to patent were the arms as those were the only detailed parts of the Motorgeschütz. From what we can gather, though, the design of the Motorgeschütz is surprisingly sleek and "modern-looking". Inside the turret two gunners would sit with their backs to each other as a third, the driver, would sit in a compartment behind the turret and pass on rounds of ammunition to the gunners. In that area is also storage for fuel, oil, and the ammunition.

The most distinct part of the design is, of course, the two arms on each side of the tank. These arms are movable and would help the vehicle overcome various obstacles, the front arms being operated by the front gunner while the back arms are operated by the crew member in the rear compartment. Unfortunately, the way that the levers are installed would make them hard to reach with the turret in certain positions. Whether or not the arms would even help the vehicle cross obstacles in the first place is a question that still remains as balancing the weight of a tank is a very important thing and lifting it in such a way would mean that the weight would be transferred to one side, causing the tank to sink into soft or muddy ground.

This project of Burstyn's never became popular, first taking it up to the Austrian War Ministry only to hear back from them 3 months later that they didn't want to fund it as they had very little faith in the design. If Burstyn wanted the vehicle to be built, he would have to pay out of his own wallet and, of course, he did not have the money to do that. Burstyn then went to the German War Ministry, but they turned down the design aswell. Both war ministries were stuck in their conservatism when it comes to warfare but they also didn't like how vague the blueprints were and how there were no specifications for things such as the engine or guns. In one last attempt to get his project to gain traction, Burstyn went to the press but as expected, nothing came of it.

As a result, the Austro-Hungarian army went to war without a single armoured vehicle. They had some armoured vehicles but there were no tanks and as Burstyn considered taking up his offer to the War Ministry one last time, he felt that he would only be rejected and so he didn't.

I fucking LOVE the Burstyn-Motorgeschütz so much and I always will. It is my son. My special little boy. My baby. The simplistic and sleek design makes it look very charming and the little arms on the front and back give it a special flair which adds to its originality. Additionally, it's from Austria-Hungary, one of my favourite historical countries which just makes it even more special to me. I actually have a model Motorgeschütz, though I haven't started building it yet because I'm worried that I'm going to assemble it wrong due to it being a much older model than what I'm used to but I'm sure I'll get to it one day.

Honourable Mentions

Bob Semple tank - A tank designed in New Zealand by a man of the same name during WW2. It had no formal plans or blueprints, numerous design flaws, practical difficulties, and was never once put into production or used in combat... but none of that matters because believe me, the Bob Semple tank is the epitome of tank design. It is covered in impenetrable corrugated iron attached to its tractor base and even has a mattress inside that the gunners can lay on. Now that is a luxury. Do you know of any other tank that has a mattress that you can lie on? I didn't think so. None of these tanks have ever been lost in combat because its just that unstoppable and the Japanese were so pants-pissingly afraid of this machine that they didn't dare step a foot on New Zealand's soil lest they be utterly eviscerated by its sheer power. It doesn't even need a main cannon like so many other tanks do, instead only needing 6 light machine guns to effortlessly mow down its enemies in the blink of an eye. You may hear people say "Nooo the tiger is much cooler" or "Wahhh the panzer is the better tank" but what is a silly little cat to a GOD? Every single tank built after the creation of the Bob Semple had been naught but a weak attempt to capture even a fraction of the majesty of this magnificent metal beast. Ok but really though, the Bob Semple tank holds a special place in my heart as it's the very first tank that I ever took a liking to. It's so hilariously awful and atrociously bad, being a literal armoured tractor, but that's what makes it perfect. My favourite part about this tank is that, even while it was being ridiculed by the public, its inventor stood by his design and said something like "Well I don't see anyone else coming up with any better ideas so whatever."

Landkreuzer P.1000 Rattte - This tank is massive, weighing a hefty 1000-tons which makes it heavier than five Panzer VIII Maus. Its a staggering 36ft in height with a width of 46ft and a length of 115ft if we're only measuring up to the hull. It's insane to me how someone could unironically design such a massive tank, let alone approve of the project attached to it, and yet Adolf Hitler did. Of course, the project was cancelled by Albert Speer in early 1943 but if not then it could've been the biggest tank that Nazi Germany had ever built by far. Of course the flaws of this thing would be obvious, given that its so large that it would be vulnerable to air and artillery attacks and destroy everything in its path including roads and bridges, but I think it would be even funnier if it was built only to simply not work at all setting Nazi Germany back even further with that massive waste of resources and thus making them lose the war even harder. Hell, this thing is so absurd that some historians straight believe that the P.1000 Ratte is just a hoax or sketch made by a bored engineer for their own amusement. It's so ridiculous but thats why I love it.

Medium Mark A Whippet - It was actually @spoopi-natural who introduced me to this tank through a past ask and I immediately fell in love with the design, thinking it looked very silly. The whippet is a British tank which was designed to speed through enemy lines and exploiting any breaks in them and although it looks more modern than the Mark series of British tanks, its directly based off Little Willie - the very first completed tank prototype in all of history. The Whippet first rolled out into the battlefield in March of 1918 and proved itself to be very useful in combat due to its speed. It wasn't without its downsides though, as driving the tank had proven to be hard if not outright dangerous and machine guns would often jam. Still, a very nice tank.

If you got this far, thank you so much for reading. I had a lot of fun answering this question even if it took me a long time to get around to doing. Also, if you find a funny tank that you think I'd like PLEASE show me it, I would love to see it.

[packernet]

New Post has been published on https://www.packernet.com/blog/2024/02/07/twists-and-turns-the-packers-defensive-coordinator-search/

Twists and Turns: The Packers' Defensive Coordinator Search

When the Green Bay Packers began their search for a new defensive coordinator, they quickly identified Ejiro Evero from the Carolina Panthers as a top candidate. Evero had previously worked with the Packers in 2016 and had even interviewed for the same position in 2021, showing mutual interest. It seemed likely that he would be chosen to replace the departed Joe Barry. However, due to his existing contract, the Panthers prevented the Packers from interviewing Evero. With this key option off the table, Green Bay had to explore other possibilities.

In North Carolina, sports betting on the Panthers has gained popularity since North Carolina sports betting apps were introduced. Now fans can easily place bets on Panthers games and player performances using their phones. This increased engagement has made watching Panthers games even more thrilling for local fans. Additionally, it offers more opportunities for analysis and discussions about how well the Panthers defense performs each week.

No stone unturned

According to a report, initially, the team offered Baltimore Ravens linebackers coach Zach Orr an opportunity with Green Bay. Despite being regarded as a rising defensive talent in the league, Orr declined this offer. This was an early setback for the Packers as they highly valued Orr’s experience both as a player and coach of linebackers. His decision to stay with Baltimore forced Green Bay to reevaluate their options.

After ruling out Evero and facing Orr’s lack of interest, the Packers shifted their focus to the college ranks and conducted interviews with several talented defensive minds. Eventually, they settled on Jeff Hafley, former head coach of Boston College. Hafley brings with him a solid defensive background from both the collegiate and NFL levels. He has previously excelled in coordinating defenses at Ohio State and with the San Francisco 49ers. His proven ability to elevate defense played a significant role in his selection for the job.

Defense must improve

Hafley faces pressure to quickly revamp the Packers defense, which ranked 27th in yards allowed last season. The team struggled notably against the run and was unable to generate enough turnovers. However, Hafley’s versatile scheme provides flexibility in countering opposing offenses while making use of dynamic pass rushers like Rashan Gary. Additionally, with Jaire Alexander, an elite cornerback returning from injury, Hafley inherits valuable pieces that can contribute to significant improvement.

The search for a defensive coordinator by the Packers revealed the intricate dynamics involved in hiring coaches within the NFL. Contractual limitations prevented them from securing their top choice in Evero, who likely would have accepted had it not been for Carolina’s interference. An initial offer made to Orr also fell through before identifying Hafley as another promising option worth considering. Although he wasn’t initially their first choice, Hafley now has an opportunity to reshape the Packers defense into an exceptional unit.

The involvement of head coach Matt LaFleur in the hiring process, rather than GM Brian Gutekunst, shows a strong collaboration within the Packers leadership to find the right fit for an important position. This indicates that the organization is dedicated to aligning its vision.

4-3 defense coming to Green Bay

Hafley’s success depends on his ability to swiftly implement his strategies and make the most of the talented players already in Green Bay. He may choose to retain certain assistants, like experienced defensive line coach Jerry Montgomery, to facilitate a smooth transition. Additionally, Hafley needs to establish a connection with his star players in order to gain their support. Their skills as playmakers are crucial for executing his game plans.

In general, Green Bay faced obstacles along the way when appointing their new defensive leader. If Hafley can fulfill his considerable potential, despite these challenges, it will be considered a successful search. One that helped elevate the Packers defense back to championship caliber. With Aaron Rodgers still performing at his best, there is a sense of urgency for Hafley’s strategies and play-calling to yield fast results. Only time will reveal if this promising coordinator can deliver on that promise in his first NFL role leading a defense.

There is significant pressure on Hafley and the defensive unit to make rapid progress this season.

Packers supporters are well aware that even slight enhancements to their defense could propel Green Bay into the ranks of legitimate Super Bowl contenders once more. With a history of stumbling in championship games, a capable defense might finally be the key that propels this talented roster towards securing another Lombardi Trophy.

[footyfanforum]

Potential Replacements for Jurgen Klopp at Liverpool

Liverpool fans were stunned when Jurgen Klopp, the club's beloved manager, announced his decision to step down at the end of the 2023/24 season. Klopp's tenure at Liverpool has been nothing short of extraordinary, as he transformed the Reds into a dominant force both domestically and internationally. With numerous trophies under his belt, including the Premier League title and the Champions League, finding a suitable replacement for Klopp is crucial for Liverpool's future success.

In this article, we will explore several potential candidates who could take over the reins at Anfield and continue Klopp's legacy. From former Liverpool players to rising managerial stars, let's delve into the top contenders for the Liverpool managerial position.

1. Xabi Alonso

One name that immediately comes to mind when discussing potential replacements for Klopp is Xabi Alonso. The former Liverpool player has been making waves as the manager of Bayer Leverkusen in the Bundesliga. Alonso's team currently sits at the top of the league table, showcasing his tactical acumen and ability to motivate his players.

Alonso's connection to Liverpool is undeniable, as he played a pivotal role in the club's success during his time as a player. His deep understanding of Liverpool's playing style and values would make him a natural fit for the managerial position. Additionally, Alonso's high-intensity attacking football aligns with Klopp's philosophy, ensuring a seamless transition for the team.

2. Roberto De Zerbi

Brighton coach Roberto De Zerbi has been gaining recognition for his impressive work in the Premier League. Despite taking over a team that was already performing well under Graham Potter, De Zerbi has taken Brighton to new heights with his brand of football. The Italian manager has shown his ability to develop young talents and get the best out of his players.

Liverpool, with its talented squad, could benefit greatly from De Zerbi's coaching style. His emphasis on possession-based football and attacking play would resonate with Liverpool's attacking prowess. While there may be a level of risk involved in appointing a manager of De Zerbi's stature, Liverpool has a history of taking calculated risks that have paid off handsomely.

3. Julian Nagelsmann

Julian Nagelsmann is no stranger to being linked with top managerial positions in world football. While his recent stint at Bayern Munich had its ups and downs, Nagelsmann's reputation as a young and innovative coach remains intact. Klopp's departure and Nagelsmann's availability could create an interesting opportunity for a swap between Liverpool and Bayern Munich.

However, it is worth noting that Klopp has expressed a desire to take a break from club management after leaving Liverpool. This leaves the door open for Nagelsmann to potentially take charge at Anfield in the future. As the current coach of the German national team, Nagelsmann could fulfill his ambition of coaching Germany while Liverpool secures a highly talented and promising manager.

4. Steven Gerrard

When discussing potential replacements for Klopp, it's impossible to ignore the sentimental choice of Steven Gerrard. The Liverpool legend has long been touted as Klopp's successor, especially after his successful stint at Rangers. However, his reputation has taken a hit in recent years due to a disappointing spell at Aston Villa.

While Gerrard's managerial career has had its ups and downs, there's no denying his passion for the game and his deep connection to Liverpool. The romantic notion of Gerrard coaching the club he loves may appeal to some fans. However, it remains to be seen if his managerial credentials are strong enough to take on the immense pressure and expectations that come with managing Liverpool.

5. Zinedine Zidane

Zinedine Zidane, the former Real Madrid manager, is a name that commands respect in the football world. Known for his charisma and impressive managerial achievements, Zidane has been linked with several top clubs since leaving Real Madrid in 2021. Liverpool could be the perfect stage for Zidane to showcase his coaching prowess once again.

Having won multiple La Liga and Champions League titles with Real Madrid, Zidane's track record speaks for itself. His ability to manage a star-studded squad and deliver silverware would be a valuable asset for Liverpool. While Zidane's next move remains uncertain, Anfield could be the ideal opportunity he has been patiently waiting for.

6. Ruben Amorim

Ruben Amorim's progress as the manager of Sporting CP has been nothing short of remarkable. The Portuguese coach led Sporting to their first league title in 19 years during the 2020/21 season and has continued to impress with his tactical acumen. Despite limited resources, Amorim has developed a strong and competitive team at Sporting.

Liverpool could benefit from Amorim's ability to work with limited budgets and still achieve success. His track record of nurturing young talents and implementing effective tactical strategies could take Liverpool to new heights. While Amorim's future at Sporting is uncertain, his potential appointment at Liverpool could be a game-changer for both the club and the manager.

As Jurgen Klopp prepares to bid farewell to Liverpool, the search for his successor is of utmost importance. Several candidates stand out as potential replacements, each with their own unique strengths and qualities. From Xabi Alonso's deep connection to the club to Roberto De Zerbi's impressive work in the Premier League, Liverpool has a range of options to choose from.

Ultimately, the decision lies with Liverpool's hierarchy, who must carefully evaluate each candidate's managerial prowess and their ability to build upon Klopp's success. Whether they choose to appoint a former player, a rising star, or a seasoned manager, the new Liverpool manager will have big shoes to fill. Only time will tell who will take on the challenge and lead Liverpool into a new era of success.

[slapshotsandscones]

Jack comes out to his parents as transmasc at 13 years old. His parents are so supportive. Alicia immediately takes her son shopping, because "If you're going to wear men's fashion, you're going to do it right." Sadly, that doesn't really stick, and Jack still has the horrible fashion taste of a white jock, but he does get clothes that work for him.

At that point, Jack was playing coed hockey. But a few years later, Jack's reaching the age that he has to join a gendered team if he wants to play competitively. And Bad Bob knows his son, and his drive, so he sits him down for a talk. He essentially tells him "If you want to play hockey seriously and competitively, it's going to be hard, I won't lie to you. But you absolutely have the drive and skill, and I will support you every step of the way. No hockey club is going to want to be the place that denied Bad Bob's son the chance to play, and I know you might hate that, but I absolutely will use it against homophobes."

And so Jack continues playing hockey on mens teams, with the support of his parents. And it does suck sometimes, because people aren't nice to those different than them. But Jack loves hockey enough that it doesn't matter, so he powers through.

Then the Q happens. Jack may be closer with his father, but the pressure of being a trans athlete adds to his anxiety, along with the whole thing with Kent. The overdose still happens, and Jack still quits hockey for a while.

But eventually, he comes back to sport he loves so much. He starts off by teaching. This is how he finds out that his dad has been working on a charity for queer kids to learn to play hockey in an inclusive environment. He becomes a coach for the organization, and relearns how to love hockey without all the transphobia and pressure that made him quit in the first place.

Then Samwell happens, and honestly its really refreshing for Jack and Bad Bob both for Jack to be playing competitively in an inclusive environment - the Samwell hockey team takes the "maybe more" part of the "1 in 4, maybe more" slogan a bit too seriously. It does take the rest of the team an embarrassingly long time to realize Jack is trans though, outside from Lardo. He's had top-surgery at this point, and you can see the scars: the team is just oblivious.

And then suddenly college is over. And Jack thinks that hockey is probably over for him, because the NHL isn't that inclusive. But then he gets a call from George Martin, who's seen how he plays, and thinks its time for Hockey to modernize. And Bad Bob immediately jumps right back into the fight for his son. After all, you don't tell hockey royalty that his son can't play when he's good enough to be scouted. (George and Bad Bob become fast friends - Jack is mildly terrified.)

And so Jack becomes the first trans player in the NHL, thanks to an incredibly supportive dad and a very dedicated GM. He and Bitty still have their mid-ice kiss, which still garners a lot of attention because it's two men kissing at center ice, even if everyone already knows Jack is queer.

And slowly but steadily, the NHL becomes more inclusive, all because Bad Bob Zimmerman loved his son enough to fight for him.

[magdasabs]

"I'm glad they're playing a game but this just feels like they left it way too late to organise and all the opponents around their level were already busy. I hope it helps them anyway because it's crazy their last game was in march, more than 4 months before the world cup, but they've said themselves before playing lower ranked teams doesn't teach them much"

Different nonny here. They've been talking about trying to arrange a friendly on location in NZ for a very long time, maybe since the world cup draw or beginning of this year. Peter has definitely mentioned it while when he answered questions from journalists at squad announcements or at camps in this respect, that there wouldn't be many camps to prepare before the world cup starts.

Also keep in mind there's a limited number of teams to choose from. It's not possible to arrange a friendly with the teams that play their group games in Australia. And it has to be fairly close to Sweden's base camp in Wellington to decrease the travelling for the players.

While it's true Sweden aren't challenged much by teams outside top 20 and don't get to develop those specific parts there are still things they as a team against weaker opposition can and need to practice before a major championship:

1 The attack build up play and finishing. 2 To keep the (passing) tempo up by themselves when they don't get help from the team on the other side of the pitch with that. 3 The decision making especially in the final third. 4 Time for players who haven't played much together to build the on pitch relationships and for the team to gel when they aren't being pressed and stressed by a team stronger or of equal strength. 5 Time for the individual players to in peace unlearn how they've played in their club teams and get used to the tactic of the national team plus get used to play in a potential new role or position. They don't get enough time to think on the pitch for this when they get put under pressure the millisecond they're about to receive a pass.

In the past the US team used to play weaker teams to get their goal scoring going before a world cup or olympics for example.

These aren't bad points but Sweden themselves have spoken about how games against 'weaker' opponents don't help them much, both players and staff. Playing on location is fine but they also could've added a game in Europe before travelling, the way a lot of the teams are doing. And don't get me started on how shitty I think it is they only announced Norway was the last home game before the world cup IN THE STADIUM DURING THE GAME. This team who is realistically fighting for medals deserves better

[ryouverua]

Saimota is a fantastic ship that only improves with age and their respective maturity. Right from the get-go we see this in canon, too! They have a tumultuous first clash at the end of chapter 1 which is immediately turned on its head, and the subsequent growth and development of their in-game relationship really stands out that much more because of it.

This is a long one, so strap in!

Kaito realizes his mistake in his approach after punching him the night before and rectifies it immediately the next morning when he notices Shuichi hasn’t come to breakfast, rightly guessing that he’s stewing in his own grief and misery. And then, being the emotionally intelligent guy he is, he follows up that night and drags him out to exercise (which, y’know, releases endorphins and is scientifically proven to help with mood boosts and even depression) - a move which Shuichi says in chapter 5 saved his life.

A couple days pass and a body drops. Kaito supports him through the investigation knowing that Kaede had been with him last time and that there’s a danger of him relapsing. In the trial, too, Kaito makes every effort to let Shuichi know that he isn’t alone and someone does have his back if he fumbles. This is the real moment that Shuichi chooses to depend on Kaito and is rewarded for it, and while Kaito does get plenty of ego-feed out of it, he believes in Shuichi and his talent wholeheartedly (enough so that it’ll come back to bite him later). But despite it being framed as a ‘hero and sidekick’ relationship, it’s not just for Kaito’s self-worth - it’s to take some of the mental load off of Shuichi, who really, really doesn’t want the pressure of everyone’s lives solely on his shoulders, and is now dealing with the guilt of two cases where uncovering the guilty party hurt him.

(quick chapter 2 interlude! while this is where a lot of the big hero-worship begins for Shuichi and happens to be where I also did his first FTE and got to witness this:

this is also the chapter when these moments happen, post-breakfast and post-casino scene respectively:

and this happens in the very next FTE:

mmm yes, the duality of man. Suffice it to say, while Shuichi has definite rose-coloured glasses on for a lot of the game, Kaito is definitely not an invincible, untouchable hero in his eyes)

Interestingly enough, despite Shuichi still very much leaning into their friendship (and vice versa), they don’t spend a lot of time together in Chapter 3 after he brings Maki out to training that first night! While Chapter 4 is their real ‘break’, Kaito spends a lot of time in his room in the second half while Shuichi gets to know Maki better. And while Maki is a much, uh, meaner investigation partner (love you girl, but that tongue is sharp), they make a great team. Shuichi also starts poking at Kaito’s reason for holing up in his room, incorrectly guess that it’s just related to the occult being brought up. Most importantly, Shuichi is able to do an investigation on his own independent of Kaito just a week after the end of Chapter 1.

Chapter 4 and its immediate aftermath in 5 is great because it showcases Kaito’s flaws and insecurity, and what conflict between the two of them look like. It’s because Kaito respects Shuichi so much that cracks in his own confidence start appearing - and while Shuichi can be obtuse and awkward at times, he shows signs of wanting to broach some more sensitive topics with Kaito; if you do FTEs with Kaito in Ch 4, he even has an inner narrative in which he notes that Kaito had said his stomach hurt before.

He’s not so self-absorbed as to not worry about his friend (but narratively we gotta save that juicy plot point and subsequent reveal for the end of the trial) but hey, Kaito wants to chill and just shoot the shit - so why not have some downtime with his friend in the murder school. Btw, their FTE availability ends here - so if Shuichi has completed them with Kaito, he’s already had his canon-saimota thoughts at this point. While I have given Shuichi the side-eye for his ‘I can rely on Kaito for anything’ spiel, he is fully able and willing to stand up to Kaito in the Chapter 4 trial despite his canon feelings for him at that point. By the way, it’s been a week and a half since the end of Chapter 1 at this point. Shuichi and Kaito have had an arc together where they become fast friends in a pressure-cooker situation and bonding over shared grief for Kaede (even if Kaito’s is less obvious), Shuichi starts as dependent on Kaito’s emotional support but learns to stand on his own two feet, and Kaito is forced to confront his own weakness and hero persona, all while classmates are dropping (including Kaito’s own ex-hero figure, a stark reminder that ‘heroes’ do have flaws).

So the beginning of Chapter 5 is wild to me because of how it’s so often misinterpreted as Kaito immaturely giving Shuichi the silent treatment despite the entirety of the game preceding it explicitly showing that Kaito will tell you, loudly, when he’s angry at you, and that’s purely because we’re in Shuichi’s perspective and he thinks that’s what’s going on - but that’s a bit of a tangent. What I like about it is how we get to see what happens when Kaito (as sick as he is at that point) feels badly and embarrassed with someone he is close to; he withdraws as opposed to lashing out. And while Shuichi is really, really bad at reaching out too without an inciting incident (tunnel escape), he does try and broach the topic when push comes to shove. He’s not lost in hero worship, not even close - he is rightfully upset that the person he’s closest to at the school is upset while still maintaining to himself and the others that his actions were correct. He doesn’t waver on this, despite his attempt to offer an olive branch at the window of the hangar’s bathroom. He truly stands by his own choices in the last class trial and know he won't back down on that if push comes to shove, and that's important - he won't yield the point just to appease Kaito. Shuichi then manages the investigation on his own, leads the trial on his own, faces off with Maki (and who he thinks is Kokichi) on his own, because he has *reached* a point where he can be independent. And to bring it back to how we get a look at ‘saimota in conflict’, Shuichi and Kaito both make amends with each other by the end of the chapter. Even if it’s spurred by it being their final goodbye, Shuichi gets to say his piece, Kaito lays out one of his own vulnerabilities so he can make peace with Shuichi - and even if I’d love to have had them delve into all of Kaito's various issues, there is a very murderous robobear overseeing this which makes time a factor - and I firmly believe that if they had more time, they could’ve resolved even more of the issues that would come up for Saimota. The groundwork wasn’t just there; there was already half the structure in place. And that’s what makes saimota even more appealing to me, tbh. We get to see them build a relationship, run into a big issue, struggle through it and resolve it by the end of the game - and it means that there’s precedent for them to do it again as more interpersonal challenges come up! It’s a goldmine of ship exploration, and they care about each other enough to work through it.

… By the way, at this point they are 2 weeks past the end of Chapter 1.

Imagine if they had more time. Imagine if Shuichi, who is absolutely dogged in pursuing an issue once he catches wind of it (despite how he can get wrapped up in his own head), who cares a lot for other people, who doesn’t just find runaways as part of his detective talent, but follows up with them after because he cares about more than just finishing the job, had the chance to spend years with Kaito and realize he uses his hero persona to protect a much more fragile sense of self. Imagine Shuichi forming that initial friendship with Kaito without the albatross of Kaede’s death hanging around his neck; about how he’ll still look up to Kaito and his fantastic positivity, passion and excellence in his chosen field, and that would only be matched by Kaito’s own admiration of Shuichi’s skills as a detective. Imagine if Kaito, who repeatedly shows the ability to reflect and change his mind when presented with evidence against his viewpoint and was able to express his own insecurity and jealousy to Shuichi in the end, was given the breathing room and space to get more comfortable with doing so. Imagine how difficult and emotionally mature they were to navigate as well as they did in a life-or-death situation that took place over a couple of weeks tops, and how much more they could grow if given the time and space for it.

... And this was nearly going to be where I ended the post, until Ira reminded me of TDP and sent me this wonderful Saimota event (which takes place before the final graduation/training trio event):

Oh hey, Shuichi picked up his catchphrase! It's quite cute how he's finishing Kaito's sentence here - he's spent a couple of years being friends with Kaito at this point, and has even taken up exercising on his own for stress relief. I wonder whose influence that was?

Anyway -

Shuichi has figured out at this point that he does need to firmly extend that helping hand to Kaito rather than worry and keep it to himself. On the other side, Kaito has learned that it is okay to accept that outstretched hand, even if he doesn't need it right now - that he can admit that some day, he might. He's being blase, sure, but it is a far cry from his in-game 'I don't/won't need help'. Good for you, Kaito - you've grown a lot! And that's the most important thing their TDPs show - their capacity for growth not just as individuals, but in a relationship. Of course there will be bumps along the way - it’s very rare that any relationship won’t have them! - but they've proven that they can work these problems in the worst of circumstances. This is by far one of the strongest ships with canon foundation in the entire series, and my goodness do I still love it years later.

[hotchnerxo]

Our Past Life : Chapter 4

Masterlist

Pairing: Aaron hotchner x gn!reader

Summary: Reader is being questioned by the date night by their friends, BAU solves another case and heads home after 2 days. Something scary is taking place (I'm sorry) Hotch is excited to come see you in your hotel room after the case.

Words: 2.9k

Content: In the story, Mentions of anxiety, abuse and self-harm. Sad boy Hotch. Not much on this chapter.

Since the moment you left the apartment, you have been feeling very unreal in a way. Taking a ride back to your hotel went by so fast as you were trying to think back to the night's events. Seeing your friend for the first time in a long time, catching up, hearing his voice, feeling your hands on him. It all felt intoxicating.

You’ve been laying in bed, just thinking of everything and nothing at the same time. Going over your and your best friend's lives. Everything that's led up to this point. Your travels, your now million dollar company, Top Priority. Your carreers as entertainers, making fools of yourselves on the internet, trying out dumb stuff and whatever you and your crew can think of. You love every moment of it. You love being able to work with your best friend, that was always your goal. And you've been friends for decades. But you couldn't help but think, what if things had gone differently? Would you have stayed with Aaron? Would things be different?

You want to believe so. But you also know, that might not be the case. The world wasn't ready. And worst of all, you weren't ready back then. You had no idea what you wanted to do with your life at that point. You went to law school, just because of the pressure from your family, two generations of lawyers before you. And you can still see the disappointment in your mother’s face, when you announced that you’re not going to continue on that path. And he was the opposite. He knew what he wanted, he knew the way to get away from his home, and grow to be anything but like his father. He wanted to help people.

You’ve been following his career, first as a lawyer and prosecutor and climb his way up the FBI ladder, studying psychology and now having his own team on the Behavioral Analysis Unit or whatever the fancy name of the place was. A team he is visibly proud of, a job that he seems to love, but a job that has caused a lot of sleepless nights, you’re sure. You could see it on his face. His eyes. His whiskey colored eyes, they're so kind but filled with the weight of the world. He’s always been like that, disappearing on the background but doing anything in his power to help others. But there was more to him than that. He’s funny but not everyone gets it. He’s very caring and warm. Sensitive and respectful to everyone that deserves it. But he will not stand down when standing up is needed, for himself or for anyone else.

You turn on your right side, picking up your phone and noticing it was 4 minutes past 6am already. Which meant, you’ve been in bed, thinking about things over and over again in your head for over 4 hours. You opened your phone and decided to text Hotch. Maybe he'd be up already. You barely had time to put your phone down when you got an answer from the man you were thinking about.

Apparently the man hadn't gotten much sleep either. It both made you happy and a little worried as you knew the man was getting ready for work at the moment. With a little smile, you leaned back to your pillow and without you noticing had drifted off to sleep.

After what felt like seconds, you woke up to a bang on your door. It scares you and you jump sitting up. The room was bright from the light coming through the curtains, making you blink a few times to get used to it. You rub your eyes briefly and get out of bed. You’re wearing shorts and a t-shirt, so you feel decent enough to open the door. The moment you turn the knob, you almost get hit by the door as a skinny, blond haired man enters your room. He’s wearing a quirky button up shirt and blue jeans and his favourite sneakers and his hair was messy in a way that was his trademark.

“Finally! What took you so long?” Charlie began. He entered the room quickly and hopped on the bed as he felt totally at home. He took a look at the bed that was unmade and looked at you “You two didn’t screw here, did you?” A corner of his lip was drawn upwards, but you could tell he was partly nervous to get his clothes dirty.

You laugh “No, don’t worry. There or anywhere else” you assure and go to pick up your phone. You check the time and for your surprise it was almost 10am.

The blond looks disappointed “Aww, (Y/N), don’t tell me that! I was so excited for you to have your booty call” You just now notice him holding a cup of coffee in his hands and the smell of it is heavenly for your tired brain. “Too bad it didn’t work out that well for you. Oh well, let’s get going, we have so much to see and I’m sure it will cheer you up too!” He took a sip of his coffee and turned on the tv, waiting for you to get ready.

You go through your suitcase, trying to figure out what to wear. You were going to go see a couple of studio options in New York, and see some sights while you’re here. “Who said anything about it not going well?” You decide that your blue sweater would be good enough, and with white jeans, it would be a good match. You look in the mirror and decide to leave your hair as it is, it’s not too bad to go out with. Charlie was now curious to hear what you meant. “It went great. Better than I could have imagined. And it’s not a booty call, thank you very much. He’s much more than that. We’ve barely seen each other in years, it’s complicated. But we went for a drink and talked and he took me to his apartment. We catched up.”

“Ah, complicated. What wouldn’t be? But he took you in his apartment? Are you sure he wasn’t just trying to get in your pants? I mean, he is a man after all” Charlie shrugged. He’s seen you date some guys here and there, but none of them last for more than a year. He’d come to a conclusion that maybe dating wasn’t your thing. It’s not for all, maybe you’re one of those. You haven’t shown much interest towards men in a long time, nor women for that matter.

You roll your eyes. “Absolutely not. I mean, he looked absolutely gorgeous, he looks so different, yet the same. For sure handsome. But like I said, things are complicated” You get dressed in the bathroom, but the door’s not all the way closed, just so you two can continue your conversation. As you’re happy with the outfit, you put on your sneakers and get ready to leave. “Where’s Anna?” You change the subject, you feel a yawn coming, and raise your forearm to cover it.

“She was getting ready to leave as well and will meet us downstairs.”

“I hope she has coffee for me, too” You mentioned, once your yawn died down. You two leave the room while Charlie keeps interrogating you about the evening, you lock the door and walk down that hall. Anna was in fact waiting for you two in the reception and like an angel that she is, handed a cup of fresh, warm coffee in your hand. Splash of creamer, just the way you like it.

Couple of days pass quickly. You and your business partners have had so much to do and so much to see. New york seems like a beautiful city, so many different areas, all of them so different in their own way. Central park is gorgeous this time of year, seeing the statue of liberty seemed somehow magical. You would have loved to go to the Botanic garden in Brooklyn, but you haven’t yet had a chance to go. You went to see a musical on Broadway last night, you think it was a bit ironic to go watch the show Chicago in New York. You took a lot of pictures and made sure to send them to Hotch in the evening, as he was out of town for a case. He checked on you every evening, asking how your day had been. It made you happy to see his name pop up on your screen here and there. He was thinking of you, the same way you were thinking of him all the time.

The case was solved in a bit under two days, but unfortunately took one more victim. As they made it to Boston, the team separated. Hotch and Rossi came to the station, JJ and Morgan went to the morgue. Prentiss and Reid joined officer Kennedy at the latest crime scene. It turned out that there was some DNA found in the victims' burn marks. Tha dna didn't find a match from any database, but later on is a good evidence for court. Many cups of coffee and a lot of brainstorming later, they found Chester Penny, 32 year old bartender. They come from abusive home and was burnt by his aunt whenever they were babysitting Chester as a kid. They have untreated bipolar and all in all a lot of issues. Unfortunately, as the team was about to go get their unsub, they had abducted another man, who later on died on the way to the hospital.

The team was finally in their jet, on their way home. The flight wasn't long, a bit less than two hours, but everyone had settled down to take a breather after the case. Even though it was solved in about two days, it's always exhausting. Everyone had settled down, except for the team leader, who was sitting in one of the corner chairs, files in front of him and laptop open at the edge of the table. He had promised to look over some files his boss had sent him earlier. And if the man is something, he is a man of his words. When he promises something, he will do whatever is in his power to keep it. The file was big, apparently it was an inside operation of sorts that only a handful of people knew about, Hotchner now being one of them. Apparently, one undercover agent had gone missing a week earlier, and the search crew's got nothing so far. He was asked to look over some pictures and files with a fresh set of eyes. But they were meant for his eyes only. The undercover operation was highly classified, and would remain that way. For this reason, it hasn't been made a proper case for the team to work on.

Reading a stack of notes and reports, the flight went by fast. As they were about to land, Hotchner gathered everything together and put them in his briefcase, to wait for another time. As he raised his head, he immediately met eyes with his blonde colleague, who shot him a tired smile.

The jet landed smoothly and the team gathered their stuff, getting ready to leave. A small chatter filled the air, everyone was exhausted, but coming back home was always such a cheerful moment. As they walked in the bureau, everyone spreaded to their desks, making sure everything was done before going home. As Aaron was on his way up the stairs, he picked up his phone, to check if there was anything he'd missed. His mind was quickly on you when he'd seen you in his office a few days back, and it made him feel warm inside. Aaron was glad you two had messaged back and forth a couple of times during his time away. You had sent him a picture of the three of you at dinner in one fancy restaurant. All three of you smiling, holding a glass of wine on hand. You were the only one drinking white wine, and he smirked at himself Some things never change. He opened that picture again, after staring at it a long time the previous night. He'd met Charlie and Anna a couple of times before, they both seemed like a very lovely people and the way the two of you feel so comfortable with each other’s company, like a family. You looked good together. All of you smiling and clearly enjoying your time out and free.

He closed the picture, but remained in the chat with you.

"Hey there. We just landed. Finishing a couple of thing, dinner in an hour?" Hotch texted. He put his phone on the desk and as he sat down, with his left hand he loosened his blue tie around his neck. He had taken his suit jacket off and put it on the back of his chair. He thought he'd answer a couple of emails before going home, letting the search team know what he was thinking about the situation, and that he'll look into it more tomorrow morning. A quiet *ding* made him look back at his phone that was laying down on the desk.

Sounds good. Meet me in Hampton Inn, room 211. Hurry up, I'm hungry and will order without you if you take too long ;)

Fair enough, Hotch thought and turned back to his laptop. The hotel was about 20 minutes ride away, so he'd have some time to finish things up.

"Please tell me you're not staying" a voice made his gaze jump towards his office door. It was Prentiss, bringing him her finished case report. Her dark hair was about shoulder length and her black blazer was open, with a rich blue tank top underneath. She walked closer to the desk to hand over the file. Hotch took it, looked quickly through it, and set it aside.

"No, I'm not staying for long. I'm gonna reply to a few emails and head home myself as well." He assured the raven haired agent.

She was pleased with that answer, wished him a good night and walked out, heading home. She was excited to go home to Sergio. One after another, the agents brought their reports to the team leader, one by one getting ready to go home. Aaron was about to do the same, as he heard his phone go off. He thought it was a text from you, so he quickly picked up his phone. Insted, it came from an unknown number.

Their blood is a threat, a warning, a promise. We are not the same, and will never be.

Hair on the back of his neck stood up. He didn't recognize the number. He wrote it down on a post-it note, and put it inside his laptop. He'd ask Garcia to look the number up tomorrow morning, as she no longer was in the building. Just as he was about to sit down again on his chair and see what he could find about this text, you texted him

Hurry up! I'm bored. And hungry. Get your butt in here.

I'll be there in 25. Need anything? Hotch texted back, grabbed his suit jacket and walked out of the bureau to his dark grey Seat SUV in the parking garage. You had requested of him to bring a bottle of wine from the store next to the hotel, so that was now his mission. Trying to think what kind of wine would you like, as all he told him was 'surprise me, G-man'. He quickly forgot about the text he received moments ago, as he was not just thinking about the person he was gonna see in just a few miles. It made him more happy than he realized. He felt like a teenager again, sneaking to see his crush past midnight, butterflies in his stomach. The excitement almost making him feel giddish, yet the same time more present that he'd been in a long time. He listened to the radio, there were few songs here and there and a man and woman duo talking about some strange incident that happened earlier on their way to work. He wasn't paying much attention to it, but it was nice to just hear something. Have something to relax his brains as he drove.

He swiftly parked his car on the side of the road. Bought a bottle of wine, and headed to the hotel. Receptionist greeted him as he walked in and Aaron asked for directions to the right room. He realized how fast his heart was beating, and this time it wasn't because of anxiety, but excitement. Room 211, second floor to the right. That's what the receptionist had said and he repeated it in his head, as he was walking up the stairs. Within seconds, he reached the right door, with 211 written right next to it.

Taglist: @ssahotchsbitch ( mention or message me if you want to be added to the taglist)

[puckbuddies]

4 times Mat was caught simping by his friends and 1 time you caught him.

Mat Barzal x reader 

4375 words 

Thank you to @smiley-svechnikov for helping me with it :)

September 30th

When Anthony walked into Mat’s apartment, he expected to find his teammate on the sofa. What he didn’t expect however, was to find Mat laying on the sofa reading a book. He’d never in their however many years of knowing each other seen Mat read a book for fun. Tito had come over to see if Mat wanted to grab some lunch together on their day off but now his interests had changed.

Mat still hadn’t noticed the presence of his friend, being too concentrated on what he was reading to pay attention to his surroundings. Hearing a cough broke him out of his trance and made him let out a startled noise. Shooting up from his position on his couch, he came eye to eye with the blue eyes of his favorite teammate. If he hadn’t been so caught if guard, he would have noticed the impressed look in them.

“You scared the shit out of me.” was the only thing Mat could think of to say at that moment.

Tito let out a laugh at his reaction.

“How about you scaring me? I come over here to find you reading. Like an actual book, are you okay Barzy?”

Mat knew that Tito was just teasing him but he still rolled his eyes in over dramatic Barzal fashion. He’d read books in the past. Granted they were about hockey, but they were books nonetheless.

“Y/n just finished this one and she’s been talking about it all week. I figured I could just read it so I actually knew what she’s talking about next time. It’s longer than I expected it to be so it’s taking more time that I planned.”

Tito’s eyes widened slightly. Mat said it so casually, as if that was a normal thing to do for someone who was supposedly ‘just a friend’.

Obviously he didn’t believe it when Mat told him that. There was no way you and Mat were just friends. But Anthony wasn’t someone who meddles in others people’s business. Besides, he didn’t want to put any pressure on yours and Mat’s friendship in case the two of you hadn’t figured it out yet. However at this moment he couldn’t help himself.

His scoff confused Mat who didn’t feel like he’d said something strange.  His look of confusing forced Anthony to explain.

“Oh come on, you’re reading a book for her. Don’t act like everything is normal. I can ignore you paying for all her drinks and you giving her your sweatshirts when she’s cold but I can’t ignore this. You have to see it.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

And he really didn’t. Mat was clueless as to what Tito was hinting at.

“You don’t have to tell me anything but just think about it. You are reading a book she likes and she hasn’t even asked you to read it, surely that means something. I came here to ask you if you wanted to get lunch but from the Taco Bell on the table I see you’ve already eaten so I’ll just leave you to it.”

All Mat did was let out a noise of agreement before his teammate was out the door. He stared at his book with a vacant look for a while trying to process what Tito meant with what he said. Suddenly he didn’t feel like reading anymore. Leaving the book on the table next to his empty wrappings from before, he took off to take a shower.

Mat Barzal was simping before he even realized he was.

December 12th

Mat didn’t really think about Tito’s words much longer. They were out of his head as soon as he was out of the shower. That was a couple of weeks ago and nothing had changed in the way he thought about you. He still called you after every game to let out his happiness about winning or to discuss the things he could’ve done better.

Tomorrow however he wouldn’t have to do that anymore seeing as you were flying out to stay in New York for a week. And Mat was fucking excited about it. He hadn’t seen you in person since September when his training camp started and you had college to attend, and that was almost three months ago.

September was always the hardest month to go through. After spending practically the entire off season in Vancouver together, being in different countries was a big change.

Mat could barely contain his excitement driving to the airport. Messages were just not enough anymore when he got to talk to the real you in approximately 20 minutes. Seeing you standing at the airport with your bags waiting for him to pick you up, all he could think about was how it was all worth it.

~

His feelings of excitement continued all throughout the next day as well. He’d never had as much trouble taking his pregame nap as that day.

But getting ready to leave for the arena, he felt good. On the one hand he was nervous because he wanted to play well, but on the other hand having you there calmed him down like nothing else could. He was feeling confident in himself and the team and was sure they were going to pull out a win.

You on the other hand, were shitting it. It had been a while since you had seen Mat play in real life and you really wanted him to win. More than that you wanted him to enjoy himself and winning was a lot more fun than losing. On top of that Mat had insisted you sit with the Wags who you didn’t really know all that well. He’d assured you they were all great and while you believed that, you still felt like you’d be an outsider. It might look like you were his girlfriend -you were wearing his jersey after all- but you certainly weren’t and you weren’t sure if you could handle any questions about your relationship.

You decided you should tell him how you felt in an attempt to calm yourself down. So when you got into the car to drive to the arena the first words out of your mouth were: “Mat I’m nervous.”. You knew you were overreacting and felt a bit silly for being this nervous when Mat was the one who actually had to get on the ice and do something.

Mat however never made you feel stupid about anything, not even something as small as this.

“Why? You just have to go meet some new people and absolutely amaze them with your personality, which by the way comes naturally and takes you no effort because you are amazing, and then I’ll spend the rest of the season answering questions about when I’ll bring you around again.”

His words were teasing but you knew he meant them and it still helped you feel more at ease about the situation you were about to find yourself in.

“How about this, I’ll walk you up to the box so you don’t have to go in there alone.” He continued still sensing your anxiety.

Your heart swelled up at the suggestion. Mat just kept amazing you with what he was willing to do for you.

“Would you not be late if you do that?”

“Nah it’ll be fine, I’ll just have to get dressed a bit faster.” He hesitated after that and turned to you with a smirk on his face. “Or I could just drive a little faster.”

This caused you to panic and slap his arm closest to you. “No you can’t do that! We won’t even make it to the arena.”

Mat let you his typical laugh at that and the last of your worries flooded to the back of your mind.

When you arrived, Mat kept his promise and went with you to meet the Wags for the first time. You might have not noticed the smile on his face after he hugged you and once again whispered in your ear that it would all be fine, but they sure did.

 December 13th

When you woke up the next day, you felt a little bit of a headache coming up. The Isles did manage to pull out a win the night before and Tito practically forced you and Mat to go out and celebrate with the rest of the team. While you really liked the other Wags, you were still a bit uncomfortable holding a conversation with them so you had decided to drink just enough to take the edge off.

You thanked your past self for being responsible and for not trying to keep up with Mat, who drank a lot more than you did. You still didn’t understand how that boy could drink so much and still be able to walk. Thinking back to last night, you felt it was a good idea to go check up on him and see how he was doing. Making the short trip to the other side of the hallway didn’t take much time even if you did stop at the bathroom to check your reflection. When you reached your destination, you were surprised to not see Mats face staring back at you from his bed.

Checking up on the kitchen and living room, you still couldn’t find Mat and you were starting to get a little worried. He hadn’t left the apartment after you went to sleep had he? Pulling your phone out to send a quick message to Tito asking if he’d seen Mat, an unread message from the boy in question caught your attention.

“Getting breakfast, be back in 20.”

received 18 minutes ago

Okay, so you were worried for no reason. At least you knew where he was now.

You settled down at the kitchen island and entertained yourself with your phone until Mat came back about ten minutes later.

“You’re about six minutes late Barzal. Any excuses?” was what you opened with once you saw him come into the kitchen.

“You know, funny story because you said that to mock me but I do actually have an excuse.”

You looked at him expectantly and he looked back with a playful expression on his face. When he doesn’t say anything else for a few moments you notice he has his hands behind his back. Looking back up at him, you raise an eyebrow to signal for him to continue.

Your whole face lit up when he pulls breakfast from behind his back along with a small bouquet of flowers.

“Oh my god you got me flowers? Why would you do that?”

“Apparently there’s a new flower shop next to the place I always get my breakfast and these were in the windowsill. I know they’re your favorite so I couldn’t not buy them.”

The last of his words were muffled as you jumped up to give him the biggest hug possible, thank yous coming out of your mouth for the next minute. As you finally settled down to eat together after a while, you couldn’t stop smiling. You still couldn’t believe Mat got you flowers.

After cleaning up the dishes you took to Instagram to post the beautiful bouquet on your story. And when Mat got a phone call from one of your mutual friends that night to taunt him about the flowers, he began to understand why people always called him out on his actions.

 June 2nd

You knew going out the day before was a bad idea. Mat had invited you to the lake with him and a couple of his friends and because you couldn’t say no to him, you went. And you got sunburned. It wasn’t your fault really, you had applied sunscreen at least three times but it happened to be exceptionally hot that day. Besides that, being out on the water for four hours didn’t make the situation any better.

It was mostly your back that was hurting and it prevented you from finding a comfortable position in your bed. After another painful turn you decided that you needed to go find a bottle of after-sun asap. Turning on the bathroom light you came into contact with your reflection for the first time that day. Your face and arms were slightly red but your back somehow looked even worse than it felt. Silently cursing Mat for convincing you to go out and yourself for not putting up more of a fight you opened the cabinet door in search of the bottle that would relieve you of your pain.

Except you couldn’t find it, neither in that cabinet or the next. It occurred to you that you might’ve left it at your friend’s house when you last went swimming. Concluding that you weren’t going to find it in your room, you went to your parents bathroom. Alas, the universe had apparently decided that today wasn’t your day as you couldn’t find anything. Your luck got even better as you remembered your parents were out with friends and had taken the car so that you couldn’t even go to the store to buy a new bottle.

Going back to your room to find your phone, you saw that it was only half past eight. Part of you felt guilty having to call Mat at such an early time to help you out somehow. The other part of you felt like it was at least a little justified as it was him you asked you to stay out in the sun. You sent him a text anyway asking if he was awake yet. It took a while for Mat to reply but when he did you took no time to call him figuring it would be easier to beg him that way.

“Hello?”

His voice wasn’t as deep as it usually was in the mornings. It even sounded like he was a little out of breath. Deciding to not waste any more time you got straight to the point.

“What are you doing right now?”

The reason why Mat was out of breath was because he was training with Tyson that morning. Looking back it hadn’t been his smartest decision to agree to an early morning workout after not having slept a lot the night before.

“I’m training with Tys today. Why? Is something wrong?”

“Oh no I’m fine, I’m just dying a slow and painful death at this moment.”

Mat’s first instinct was to panic at your words until he realized that you had to be fine if you had the option to be that over dramatic. Before he could respond though, Tyson called for his attention.

“Are we running or what?”

Waving him off with his hand Mat turned to speak to you again.

“I’m kind of busy right now but I’ll call you back after if you want me to?”

“No please I actually need your help.” Your response came very quickly and it peaked his interest.  “I am really fucking sunburned and I’ve searched my entire house but I can’t find any after-sun. On top of that my parent apparently enjoy to see me suffer because they’ve taken the car so I can’t go to the store. I guess my question is if you would maybe perhaps please go to the store and pick up a bottle for me?”

Your voice had gotten higher as you came to the end of your little speech clearly indicating that you needed something from him. Even though Mat couldn’t see your face, he knew that you were putting on your best puppy eyes.

“ I’ll go to the store after I’m done here.”

“But that’s still so long.” You whined dragging out your last word. “I’m actually in a lot of pain and you are my only hope right now. Please Mat.”

He could argue all he wanted, but deep down Mat knew that he’d made his decision already. He couldn’t say no to you even if he tried. He sighed and at that moment you knew you’d won.

“Thank you, thank you, thank you!” you sang happily through the phone.

“Yeah yeah only this one time though.”

His words had no truth behind them. And now he had to explain to Tyson why he had to quit their workout after only forty minutes.

When Mat turned around, he found Tyson already looking at him with a smirk that Mat had become quite familiar with in the last year or so and it was reserved specifically for these types of situations.

“So I actually have to go right now, y/n needs my help.”

This caused Tyson to burst out laughing.

“Barzy you are so incredibly whipped.”

Mat only rolled his eyes in response knowing it was useless to try and change Tyson’s mind. He packed up his things and made an effort to avoid eye contact as he left the field.

 + 1.  Driving past the city lights made all the tension in your shoulders disappear. This has been just what you needed, only now realizing the stress of trying to find a job was really getting to you. The two-month break after finishing university was a well needed rest after four years of hard work but you were well aware that it couldn’t last forever. You had to start living your life now. Getting an apartment in Vancouver was far from cheap and finding a job was proving to be harder that you’d thought.

Sighing contently and resting your head on the window you turn to Mat. He looks ridiculously good driving his car under streetlights. If it wasn’t for the fact that you were so deep in the friendzone you could stare at him forever. But Mat being Mat had to ruin the peaceful atmosphere by belting out the lyrics to whatever song had just come on the radio.  

“Jesus Christ Mat, if I wanted to listen to off key singing I would just record myself.”

“Oh don’t do me like that y/n, you know I have the voice of an angel.”

“One that’s getting his wings ripped out maybe.”

Mat gave you an offended look.

‘Okay rude. Don’t forget who’s driving an hour to bring you to go stargazing in the fricking middle of the night. Don’t be ungrateful”

It was your turn to be offended now.

“Which was your idea must I remind you. But you are right, I appreciate it very much.”

He looked happy with your response as he went back to quietly singing along to the radio. It wouldn’t take too long for you to arrive at your destination. You recognized the signs by the side of the road.

Excitement filled your stomach. You hadn’t been at the lookout in a couple of months and while you knew Mat was joking about you needing to thank him, you were really grateful for him taking you. This specific lookout had been your happy place ever since you first discovered it when you were fifteen. And now being twenty-two, it still had an effect on you. Mats voice broke you out of your thoughts once again.

“So, you can tell me how much you love me when we get out of the car and under the sky. Unless your plan is to just sit in the car and look out the window.”

“Yeah no that is actually what I wanted to do, I’m so glad we’re on the same wavelength.”

Your statement was followed by a challenging smile that you regretted as soon as he sent you one of his own in return. You knew Mat was stubborn, annoyingly so. And now your stupid comment meant that he would not be getting out of his car until you took it back. In a different situation you would have sat like this for hours but on this specific night you really needed to see the stars to calm the doubts that seemed to follow you around.

“Just get out of the car.” You sighed while opening up the door on your side.

Walking to the picnic bench in the middle of the grass you could hear his laughter even before he got out of the car.

“How do you always know exactly how to get on my nerves Barzal?”

You didn’t have to wait long on his response.

“Because I know you. I have known you. For about ten years now. You might think you’re mysterious but you’re far from it.”

You chuckle at that, choosing to close your eyes and lay your head down on the bench. A moment of silence comes over both of you. Turning to face Mat you see he’s already looking at you.

“Tell me.”

Your reaction draws a small smile from him and you feel the sudden urge to run your fingers over his cheeks to try and capture it in your hands.

“I know that you did not want to come say hello when you moved into the house next to mine. I know that your dad forced you to and that you thanked him for it a year later because you met me.”

You almost pushed him off the bench for that but the smile on your face told Mat that you weren’t really annoyed at him. He stopped talking for a while after he heard it. Crazy how you could make him lose his train of thought by doing something so easy. He realized after a while that he should probably continue talking, more for his sake than yours.

“I know that your least favorite color is purple but that you don’t like saying that because it makes you feel bad. I know that you don’t like to put your hair in a ponytail because it gives you a headache. I know that your favorite book is the song of Achilles and that you get sunburned by being in the sun for like thirty minutes and that despite that you’re always out of after-sun.”  

His face turned serious after that.

“I know that coming here and watching the stars is your favorite way to calm down but that you’ve not asked me to bring you because you don’t want to bother me. I know that you’ve been extremely stressed thinking now that you’ve finished school you have a deadline to do all the adult things you feel like you’ve missed out on until now. I know that thinking about the future freaks you out and that all you want to do right now is just lay here and not go back home.”

You don’t speak after Mat finished his little monologue, trying to process what he had just said.

“But I know that you’ll be fine.”

This causes you to scoff. The fact that he was trying to reassure you was sweet really, but you knew that he couldn’t possibly be sure of that. Mat was great at pretty much everything he did, but no one could predict the future.

“Y/n I know that you don’t believe me but everything will turn out alright.”

“And how do you know that Mat? I appreciate you being here for me but the things I’m dealing with are slightly out of your field of expertise. I’m terrified that I’ve spend my entire life studying for something that I’m completely unprepared for. I have no idea what direction I want to go in with my professional career and I don’t have time to think about it because I need to find an apartment in like three months unless I want to live with my parents for the rest of my young adulthood. I can’t afford to wait much longer.”

“Move in with me then.”

Everything paused for a second. You almost asked him to repeat himself but the look in his eyes told you that you’d heard him right the first time. You took the time that it took you to slowly sit up from your position on the bench to collect your thoughts. Still you couldn’t come up with much more than “You don’t mean that.”

“I get that you’re stressed about everything right now, but you don’t have to be. I can help you figure it out.”

“Mat you’re not serious” you interrupted him. “I can’t ask you to babysit me, you have your own things to deal with.”

“You’re not asking me to. And I’m not babysitting you, I want you in New York with me as much you need an apartment.”

Your head was spinning even more than at the start of the evening. Moving in with Mat. It would be everything you’ve ever wanted. But it wasn’t like that. He wanted you there to take care of you as a friend. As much as it hurt you to say no to him, you knew that you couldn’t do it like that.

“Mat I can’t ask you to put your life on pause for me. I-”

“Y/n I love you. I have no idea how you haven’t figured it out by now because my friends have reassured me that I’ve been very obvious, but I. Love. You. I’ve wanted to ask you to move with me for an entire year now. I want you with me not to take care of you but to hold you and kiss you and reassure you. I want to give you the future you want. And I can give it to you.”

At this point Mat was furiously running his fingers through his hair and you were staring at him open-mouthed.

“I’ve probably fucked everything up by saying this but I can’t let you believe that you don’t deserve everything good the world had to offer.”

You couldn’t think. It was like your body was moving on auto-pilot. So it surprised you just as much as it did Mat when you jumped up to press your lips against his. You pulled back quickly though to start your own rant.

“Mat I want that. I want you, in Vancouver and in New York and everywhere you’ll take me.”

You didn’t need a reply. The way he kissed you told you that he was on board with anything you said. And you were so exited about it.

[lanland04moure]

미안해 •| ᶜʰᵒᶤ ʸᵉᵒⁿʲᵘⁿ |• [ ᵖᵃʳᵗ ⁵ ] αlтєяηαтινє ƒιηαl

Very long text, the end of a series

1 2 3 4

we тaĸe ιт ғroм нere;

The door burst open giving way to the rushing sounds caused by the boys entering the room. I took a seat on the bed and they were all there.

Taehyun was the first to speak.

—They've found them. They've been put to safety.— He paused unnecessarily, should I celebrate? You were safe now.

—Yeonjun was not with them.— Soobin's words broke my heart again.

•×���

I woke up, not sure what was going on, without moving I managed to look around, the building collapsed on top of us. Could we die here, would they find us?

I have no idea how much time has passed or if they are even looking for us. I try to stand up. But a great pain in my left shoulder stops me.

It hurts a lot.

I don't remember where I am in the building and it's killing me that I left those girls alone and now we are in this situation. I try again, this time slower. Pain travels up and down my back but this time I don't stop.

I glance around again and remember that it was just that that got me into this mess.

A column. A column was what kept me from being crushed to death. I see no way out, everything is collapsed, I'm trapped.

I need to get out, I need to get out of here, I need you.

I move around the place looking for a way out. There must be a way, there must be a way out.

Please wait, I'm on my way to you.

•×•

We left the apartment immersed in a silence that was not normal for us. Especially the guys.

We were all willing to check on our own if it was true that you were not among those who were rescued.

Because if it was true, if you were not there, where were you? Where did you go?

I needed to convince the rescuers to look some more.

Please hang in there!

The rescue teams are already leaving the site by the time we arrive. It's over for them. They found most of the victims, that's all that matters to them.

For them the testimonies of these girls who claim that you saved them were not enough. I see them crying, I see them begging you to continue the search. They cry for you, they are worried about you. And that's enough for me to take their word for it.

But they don't really care.

They insist, they claim that you are there, they claim that it was you who saved their lives.

Where are you Choi Yeonjun?

I don't want to give you up for lost. I don't want to think that I have lost you. I don't want to get the idea that I lost you.

If they don't look for you, I will. I'm going to get you out of there.

I made sure that no one was watching me, that everyone was distracted so I could sneak through the concrete debris. Not far from where I was entering, the television stations were interviewing the rescued women.

A group of trainees and stylists from the agency.

They asked them the same questions, made them repeat their story over and over again. But they still didn't believe a word of it.

But I do, I really believe them.

My heart knows they are not lying. Whatever happens I will rescue you.

"He was there, I can swear it. He was the one who saved our lives".

"He saved us, he was willing to give his life for ours."

"I owe him my life, that's why I refuse to end the search. He is out there somewhere."

Once upstairs I heard my name being called. I didn't turn around though. Nothing would stop me. I would get to you.

But Kai's screams were getting louder and louder. Which would draw attention. I had to be quick, I had to keep them from reaching me.

—Noona what are you doing? Noona you're going to hurt yourself!— Seeing that I wasn't going to stop Heuning carefully climbed up after me. All the while wailing.—My hyungs are going to be upset.—

—Noona is going to get hurt, but she doesn't care.—

—Soobin Hyung is going to lose his mind when he notices Noona is gone.— Lost in his words we made it to the top of that huge concrete mountain, there were so many places to start looking.

You could be anywhere. They swear you helped them so we have to find you.

We can't give up.

We split up and started moving and searching through the rocks. We will find you, don't worry.

After about 20 minutes a distant scream caught my attention.

They were calling me, was it you? I stood still with the intention of listening clearly. But it wasn't you and it wasn't just me they were looking for.

The boys had already noticed our absence.

I tried to ignore them, tried to silence them in my mind. But I found it impossible the boys were insistent and I knew Kai wouldn't ignore them.

—Min where are you?—

—Heuningkai where did you go?—

—Hyuka!!!—

—Min!!!—

I still continued my search. If the rescuers quit, we wouldn't. At least I haven't

—Huyng!!! Hyung!!!—

—Heuning damn it! What are you doing up there?—Beomgyu's shout echoed through the place.

—I went up following Noona.—

—What?!!! MIN IS UP THERE?!!!—The unmistakable voice of Soobin reached my ears. After his shout all was silence again.

I continued my search, the concrete pieces were heavy, too heavy to tell the truth. But it didn't matter because I just wanted to get to your side.

I felt in my heart something that told me we were close. We were close to you. I leaned down again to move another rock when something abruptly brought me back to my full height.

—Are you crazy? What do you think you can do up here alone? You're only going to hurt yourself!—he was clearly angry and about to lose his mind.

•×•

I was worried about you, how ironic isn't it? I'm the one at risk of being buried to death, but I still can't be selfish, I can't think only of myself. Every minute here I was flooded with worry about how you were doing.

The more time passed, the more it became a torture to keep my eyes open for long periods of time. I was resigned to the fact that I would never get out of here.

Time seemed to move so slowly that it made me think about the probability that maybe I was already dead, but it was not possible, how did I know?

Because of the pain. I once heard that it was pain that made us human or something like that. Because of that and the immense pain that spread through my body I knew I was still alive.

But what I wasn't sure yet was if I would still be alive to remind you how much I love you.

What did we do to deserve this, is it some kind of lesson to make you value what you have and those who are with you, is it some kind of punishment? Thousands of questions come to me in the moment, but so does your image.

Your smile.

It was your smile that made me fix my eyes on you, did I ever tell you that?

Your smile was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen and of course it still is. That was the first time I saw you.

It was right after our debut.

Soobin was very tired and looked sick, but he wouldn't admit it. One day just like that you appeared in our practice room, carrying some lunch boxes with you.

Beomgyu immediately stood up to help you and Soobin pulled you to him in a tight embrace. His face and yours glowed with happiness as you were in each other's arms.    And something stirred inside me.

It turned out that you brought some snacks for everyone, soobin bragged that you were the best cook. I can't deny it, your food was delicious.

Remembering that day I had an immense craving for that rich food that was your favorite, something typical of your city. Some time later it became mine too.

  •×•

One by one each of the boys came up behind us.

Soobin was still upset, but I knew he would help us, he would support us. We would find you, we would.

We basically split into groups so we could move the rocks. About 20 minutes passed and there was definitely no trace of you.

Come on Jun, you can't do this to us.

Time went by and little by little more people joined our search. The girls you rescued, agency staff. Even MOA was coming from different parts of the city to help us find you, we all wanted you back.

The authorities were completely opposed to what we were doing, because there was a possibility that someone would suffer some kind of injury. But we didn't care.

More MOA's slowly arrived to help. Girls who had taken a train, or taken a plane ride to help find their idol. I would love for you to see the love everyone is showing you right now.

Why wouldn't we let you, wouldn't we.

The newsreels were all about filming us. They were broadcasting us for hours, broadcasting as much as they could of our search work.

In the headline you could clearly read ;

THEY ARE THOSE WHO STILL HAVE HOPE

And boy, did we have hope.

No one was giving up. We are fighting for you. Hours went by, endless hours in the sun. And now I was really losing hope. We had moved tons of debris and nothing to show for it.

Should we resign ourselves?

I took a moment. A moment to admire all these people who took the risk of joining our search. What will happen will happen. Whether we found you or not, I was going to be eternally grateful for it. Maybe it was time to take a break. Or maybe it was time to give up and stop.

The sun was killing me.

The heat was intense and the glint of something was burning in my eyes. I covered them for a moment, it was bugging me.

Where was it coming from?

I slowly withdrew my hand and looked around for it. I couldn't believe it. It had to be. It had to be. It was your watch.

Your watch was barely peeking through the rubble.

—It's here, it's here."—

•×•

The more time passed the stronger the pressure I felt.

My heart ached so much, I ached so much from how much I missed you and the fear I felt about leaving you alone. I was desperate to get out. To come back to you.

My body slowly stopped responding, maybe because I was tired. Maybe because of the hunger I felt or maybe because of how damaged and hurt it was.

And just now that he was so close to freedom. It was a matter of minutes, a matter of moving a few more rocks. But it was impossible, I reached my limit. I saw the light, I saw the light of my freedom but everything went black.

I wish I could turn back time and not fight with you. Or failing that take Soobin's advice and stay with you the whole day.

•×•

Taehyun ran beside me as soon as he heard my screams.

We had finally found you!

In a matter of seconds there were dozens of hands moving and throwing the rocks in the area where you were. All treading cautiously but in a hurry to get you out of there as soon as possible.

I'm not going to lie to you. I was praying to God that you would be okay, that he wouldn't take you away from me. When we finally managed to get you out of that place, the paramedics snatched you from our arms.

They did not allow us to see you, they immediately transferred you to the nearest hospital, they had to make sure you were okay, that you were not hurt in any way.

I don't know how long we spent in the waiting room of that hospital, they didn't allow us to see you, they didn't want to give us any report.

We didn't know anything.

Was it so serious?

Doctors came in and out of your room non-stop, but they kept ignoring our pleas for information, it got to the point where they forbade the nurses to come near us.

And just like that, one day when we were still waiting for some details about your health condition, this girl came up to us.

It was a nurse, she asked me to accompany her, without hesitation I went after her.

She would take me to you.

You had woken up, after a week, you had woken up and the first thing you did was to ask for me.

•×•

I woke up once again.

I was alone and without further ado I began to remember everything I had experienced being trapped in the building.

A nurse came into the room, not once did she look at me.

—Park Min, I need to see Park Min.— The nurse left the room without giving me a word or even a small glance. Time marched on, but nothing was happening.

Or so I thought, because within seconds after my thought the door to the room opened again.

But this time it showed me someone totally different. This time it was your beautiful eyes peering out from the other side of that door.

You crept in. Neither of us uttered a word. Then you threw yourself weakly onto the gurney crying and with what little strength I had I clung to you even tighter.

I was afraid that we would be separated again. And now we would not be able to find our way back like this time.

—All the time I was so worried about you.—

—Why? It was you who was stuck in that place, you should have left that for us. I was so scared I'd never see you again, that we'd get separated like that after that stupid fight.—

—I was worried about getting to leave you alone, I knew you'd be scared and I was so mad at me for turning down that dinner the other night.—

—That's in the past, let's try to forget about it. We're here together now.—

—Please never forget how much I love you.—

[anika-ann]

Hell Froze Over - Pt.1

The Good (and Fast) Samaritan

Type: mini-series to a series (part 1 & part 2 & part 3 & part 4),  Avenger!reader AU.

Pairing: Steve Rogers x reader       Word count: 2750

Summary: There’s a new enhanced on a scene, showing up at places of the Avengers’ fights. She’s fast. Really, really fast. And Wanda can’t read her mind.

So far, she has been helping. But surely it’s only a matter of time before she switches switch sides – otherwise she would have approached you instead of speeding away.

You had a problem. And you needed a solution.

Warnings: violence and blood, mention of multiple characters’ death (the Snap), a bit of inuendo and language… oh and extreme fluff

A/N: This part of Melting Hearts’ verse follows after everyone was brought after the Snap. The majority of the story was written after A:IW, soooo, there are no references to Endgame and there’s canon divergence. They somehow saved them all, without building a damn time machine and all that. Just run with it ;)

Previous part of the series II Story masterlist

────── ·❆· ──────  

Aliens. 

Why was it always aliens?

And extremely annoying ones on top of that.

They had freaking tentacles – or multiple limbs, whatever they called it. The thing was, they had four ‘arms’, which made them incredibly handful, pun definitely intended. And what was making it worse? Once you cut off one limb, two grew in its place.

More than once during the fight, in which New Yorkers were being terrorized again, you wondered if these particular creatures, aka Tentacles, had been on Earth before, possibly meeting Hydra. You couldn’t imagine the Nazis’ organization getting the inspiration for their motto anywhere else, Greek myths be damned.

Apparently, these aliens loved going after Captain America too. Then again, they generally didn’t seem to be fond of the group of superhumans standing in their way of invading this planet, so perhaps Steve was not special in that respect.

Pinning two Tentacles to a wall by spray of thick icicles, you allowed yourself to breathe in after a long time. If you were being honest, you wouldn’t mind if Tentacles were the ones whose population would stay with the half of them erased from existence by Thanos. Seriously. They were obviously dickheads.

Taking few more breaths, indulging the feeling of having time to do so, you scanned your surroundings; the fight was definitely going your way, the aliens falling one after another, but the damage to the area was immense. It was a miracle no building had collapsed yet, but you had a hunch it wouldn’t take long. Wanda was helping with removing the civilians out of the harm’s way with her mental powers, but several blocks had been hit. You hadn’t had your eyes on her for a while now.

Hearing a roar by your right, you were immediately back to the highest alert. Tentacle no.39 was not coming your way though; it went after Natasha. You sent an icicle right through the creature’s belly, killing it at instant. Nat just nodded your way and threw herself back into the fight. You did the same.

Your whole body hurt, burning with exhaustion, but you knew you had to keep going. Even when a warning pinch bit the base of your spine; you were getting really fed up with this whole fail-safe trigger, because in moments like this, you simply couldn’t allow yourself to stop fighting in order to be fine. You were supposed to push yourself to your very limits, because lives were at stake.

Unfortunately, you didn’t have a choice.

You slowed down a little, trying to stay closer to Steve who was the nearest. He must have caught up on you pulling back, because he stated fighting with more ferocity – one you weren’t sure where he got from.

You noticed he didn’t have his helmet anymore and it made you bite the bullet and throw yourself back into the fight despite knowing the pain would only grow with time and at one point, it would paralyze you. But Steve had lost his fucking helmet again and he had the armour for reason goddammit!

And then, all of sudden, the battle was over. Car alarms blared all around you, smoke rising to the sky, flames licking anything they reached; you did your best to put the fire out. It was why you didn’t notice it at first – the loud creak of metal tens feet away, but then the concrete started screaming, just like the people.

You snapped your head that way, only to see a restaurant collapsing onto itself.

With people still in it.

You acted on instinct, sending the thickest layer of ice you could summon to slow down the falling debris, seeing a flush of red energy heading the same way. You felt the crushing weight of the building almost on your shoulders.

And the very same moment, you could also see that in a blink, there were no people underneath it.

They were gone; more specifically, several feet nearby, staring as incredulously as you were. Feeling unbearable sting in your back, you allowed yourself to let go, Wanda following your example.

Unlike the civilians, you knew all too well what happened. But your eyelids felt too heavy and you were too tired to be annoyed; in fact, you were grateful, because you didn’t know how long you would have been able to hold the improvised barrier.

You mentally thanked the girl who got all the people out in what seemed like a split second.

Dark spots danced in front of your eyes, your knees getting wobbly. The world threated to sway out of its place and you knew you were about to fold like a house of cards, only to wake up seconds later. It wouldn’t be the first time.

But you didn’t hit the ground. Strong arms enwrapped you securely, pulling you to your Captain’s chest, supporting you as much as you needed. You closed your eyes and breathed through the dizziness.

“Hey, it’s okay, I got you. It’s over, you can rest. But stay with me, alright?” Steve’s voice reached you from a terrible distance, slowly getting closer as you were gradually regaining your strength. The vibrations of his words caressed your own torso and you blinked your eyes open. “There you go, Snowflake. Let’s wrap it up here, okay?”

You just nodded, looking up to his face gratefully. He gave you a small smile in acknowledgement of your wordless ‘thank you for not letting me fall’.

“She was here again,” you mumbled and Steve grimaced as he cautiously let you off his embrace.

“Yeah. I know.”

────── ·❆· ──────  

You all entered the conference room slowly, some of you barely standing on your feet. It was a miracle you didn’t have to drag each other in here. After a long time of scrunching your nose at it, you reached for the energizing drink specially designed for you just like everyone else.

While no one had suffered a serious injury – serious on the Avengers’ scale, things like the cut on Steve’s forehead didn’t count –, you were all ready to just have a shower and go to bed. But no. Being an Avenger meant you couldn’t. It meant that if the work wasn’t finished, you couldn’t get rest.

You dropped into one of the comfy chairs, Steve’s body making a muffled thud as he chose the one next to you. If even Captain America was dead on his feet, things were bad.

You pushed yourself up, sitting up straight to inspect the gash on his smooth skin. It was already healing and you knew he had it treated (by you, at least), but the drying bloody line on his head just wouldn’t let you relax.

Your fingertips carefully brushed alongside it, wary of not applying any pressure. Steve smiled at you faintly.

“Snowflake, it’s okay.”

His hand caught your wrist tenderly, pulling it away.

“How did you manage to get it anyway? How did you lose your helmet again?” you questioned. He bit his lip and looked almost apologetically. Naturally, that had you frowning. “Steve-“

“He was getting too close to--- to them, alright? I admit I didn’t quite see the other three coming-“

You gritted your teeth, torn between admiring his heroics as he defended the civilians and clipping round his ear for having a tunnel-like vision and not looking around properly before jumping to the rescue.

In the end, you just huffed, letting your hand slip from his grasp.

You carefully eyed the rest of the team, glad you found Wanda mothering Vision and Bruce checking Natasha once again, while Tony, Sam and Clint were on the phone. It put a smile on your face as you saw Bucky fumbling with his phone as well – you knew he had started seeing a woman from accounting here and now he was probably wondering if he should let her know he was fine.

“We make a good team. Taking minor risks is worth it,” Steve whispered, straightening in his chair in favour of dropping a kiss to your forehead. You closed your eyes contentedly at the pure and innocent display of affection.

When his lips lingered, his hand brushing your jaw and he inhaled the smell of your shampoo – if there was any smell left after the fight and debris flying around –, his breath faltering, a realization dawned to you.

He hadn’t lost his helmet when defending some civilians, had he?

Steve wouldn’t let himself to be distracted enough to be jumped when protecting civilians. Never. He only lost his focus when protecting the people he loved. Mainly the ones he had lost before, in the Snap or otherwise; if he could help it, his gaze never left you on the battlefield, simply too scared you would disappear in a blink of an eye. He might be getting less anxious about it lately, but it was always in the back of his mind; having your loved ones wiped off by a snap of fingers and seeing them fall to ashes did that to a person.

Not that you would know – you were among the ones who disappeared.

But Steve knew. He saw it happen to you, Bucky, Sam…. And he could only watch. Nothing he could do stop it. You still remembered the burn of in the base of your spine as your powers fought to freeze the process of your body disintegrating, watching in horror as many of your friends did – and that you were about to meet the same fate. Just as helpless as Steve was.

“…I’m just stalling, Steve. I know it and you know it too. I should— I should let go-“

“No! No, Snowflake, you stay and fight-“ he practically growled, gripping your wrists with enough strength to bruise them.  

“I love you, Steve,” you whispered in response, feeling your whole body trembling in both exertion and fear. You didn’t want to leave. You didn’t want this to be your end.

The wild haunted look in Steve’s eye only made you shudder further, a painful twist to your gut.

“No-“

“Please, say it back,” you pleaded, swallowing your tears and the scream that was threatening to erupt from your throat. The burn, fuck, the burn… you couldn’t hold it any longer.

“NO! You fight this!”

Lips trembling, you understood you wouldn’t get the last love declaration you craved. You closed your eyes.

“Goodbye, Steve.”

“NO!” he yelled, pulling you to him, bodies aligned as he wrapped an arm around you, holding you impossibly close. “You--- sweetheart, please. I love you. I can’t-“

“Thank you,” you sobbed, breathing in his scent, feeling the coarse material of his worn uniform, revelling in the warmth of his touch… and you let go.

The last thing you heard was him, choking on a desperate shriek of your name.

The memory and the sheer wonder about what it must have been like for him almost brought tears into your eyes. Again.

Could you really be mad at him for being reckless?

“Thank you for saving me,” you whispered, hearing his breath hitch. You opened your eyes, only to see his resigned ones as he guesses you figured out the truth.

“No ‘you idiot’, huh?”

“No. Not this time. I can see you’re fine. You’re allowed to look out for me as long as you walk away relatively unharmed.”

“Lucky me,” he murmured and kissed you lightly on your lips, tasting after the sickeningly sweet energy drink. You couldn’t say you minded.

“I love you, Steve. I care for you too. Nothing wrong with that,” you hummed lovingly, gazing into his eyes, the rest of the world be damned. “So yeah. Thank you.”

His blues got their vivid spark back, the corners of his lips rising inconspicuously. “Always. And I love you too.”

“You two are sickening,” Bucky noted close to your ear and you honest to god yelped, almost falling off your chair.

Bucky receded with silent laugh and while you clutched at your chest, your heart too frantic in your ribcage, you noticed Steve rolled his eyes at his friend fondly.

“Lefty here has a point,” Tony hummed, making you huff and turn to the big screen as it lit up with news feed.

There were already so many images and videos on the internet that it was scary. Why people hunted down good shots instead of running away?

Unsurprisingly, Tony froze the frame in which a blur of dark blue could be seen. Hint: it was neither you nor Steve in his stealth suit.

No. It was the enhanced girl. The fast one. The one you knew too little about to your comfort.

“Hate to say it, but things could have got ugly without the Rush-girl rushing in,” Tony announced and you scoffed, mainly because you felt like he was nudging your conscience.

It felt like he was blaming you, seeing you wouldn’t have been able to hold the falling debris for long enough. You were sure Tony wouldn’t blame you, since he knew all too well you simply couldn’t beat it; after all he had been the one to install your fail-safe, preventing you hurting yourself. But you also knew he didn’t like the thought of anyone else getting hurt because of it either.

The thing was it always went like this with this enhanced girl. She would show up, help the Avengers and then puff, she was gone. No trace. Except for the people she saved. The ones you might have failed to save unless she had come.

You forced yourself to drift away from the dark thoughts.

“Tony, your nicknames are getting more ridiculous with each try,” you remarked, earning a few hums in agreement from around the table.

“I can go back to naming you if you want… Popsicle. I bet Cap here got the memo and he loves to lick and s-”

“Stark!” Steve lashed out at him, his cheeks getting an unhealthy shade of red. You choked on your own spit.

You were pretty happy with Tony somewhat reconciling with Steve (and you and others), okay, but his jokes were sometimes too much. He really was pushing it.

“Go to hell, Metalbrain,” you muttered under your breath, feeling your ears burning.

Also, yes. Yes, Steve got the memo. So did you. But you didn’t need to talk about it in front of everyone, thank you very much.

“Cute blush you have here. I hit the nail on the head, eh?” Tony continued, earning a murderous glare from Steve, who certainly was sporting a remarkable blush.

“Tony!” you called out, not less horrified than your significant other.

“Trust the advice of the elder – biologically older anyway. Hate to break it to you, but that’s not how you make a kid. Then again maybe that’s the point-“

“Tony, shut your metal mouth or I swear to god I will tell Pepper you’re being a pervert.”

A look of pure horror appeared on his face and you couldn’t help but smile smugly. This always worked.

The thing was Tony would know how to get a girl pregnant; Pepper Potts lived to tell the tale. She was in her twenty-seventh week, after all; and her hormones were misbehaving. Big time. Her emotions were like on a roller-coaster lately and no one with a shred of brain wanted to be on her bad side, ever, let alone now.

Needless to mention Pepper Potts was a strong woman, capable of handling herself, being in control. She wasn’t quite in control of herself now and what was even worse, she always had been the more rational part of the Stark and Potts-Stark duo, keeping Tony’s impulsiveness in check. Once again, not now. And it was driving her insane.

So yeah, threatening Tony with snitching him to Pepper always worked these days. It was even mean of you. Then again, Tony was being extremely pervert today, venting his frustration on you and you did not like it at all.

“Ouch. Low blow, Popsicle, low blow,” Tony said darkly, before his expression turned gleeful again. “See what I did there with the blow--- never mind, I have a place to be. Bye, kids!”

Tony took his abrupt escape, disappearing from the room, and you sighed heavily. You massaged the bridge of your nose, feeling your face burning with embarrassment. The rest of the team pretended not to watch you highly amused.

“He’s an actual infant— no, he’s worse,” you stated, your voice a little too high-pitched.

“That’s hardly any news. Now, can we pay attention to the actual problem?” Natasha interjected, switching back to professional mood.

“Sure. Let’s talk more about the Rush-girl,” Clint hummed, a smirk on his lips.

A collective groan was the answer, but you did start working.

────── ·❆· ──────  

Part 2

────── ·❆· ──────  

There we go! 

The first chapter of the last part of Melting Hearts. Hopefully, I will make it worth it your attention ;)

Thank you for reading! Happy Sunday :-*

[hajimewhore]

Body Swap 👫 (Iwaizumi Hajime/Reader) ➸Rated T, fem!Reader, 1.8k words   ➷Humor, awkwardness, lots of swearing, more d*ck talk but mild mild nothing goes on, just very uncomfy, the secondhand embarrassment is real in there (like every part honestly)   ➷ Masterlist, Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, ✈Part 4, Part 5

“Uh, this… isn’t what it looks like?” 

Come’s your kneejerk response to Tooru’s exaggeratedly disgusted expression, you can tell he’s about 0.2 seconds away from throwing a fit.

“I went out of my way to wait for you, because I’m that good of a friend, you’re welcome. But you were taking so long, I figured I’d come in and drag you guys out. So. can someone please explain,” he shoots you (Hajime in his perception) a hard look, “What the hell is this?!”

Tooru is flushed in the face, and though his stellar performance and comical gestures were entertaining, you balk a bit at his outburst.

It’s a bit intense, and you feel a nervous sweat down your back. You can seldom say you’ve been on the receiving end of Tooru’s anger, and your struggling to come up with the right words to save face.

“I can explain?”

And what you came up with turned out to be excruciatingly underwhelming, and the baffled look Hajime sends you tells you that he also found your response pathetic.

Being in Hajime’s body with your hands clutched at his skirt, pulling away as if the garment was crafted using hot coals the second Tooru made an entrance, You’ll admit... it looked highly incriminating, and you’re going have some painful explaining to do.

“Well it looks like you’ve got your dirty hands on my bestfriend,” Tooru opts to refer to your actual self as his bestfriend, “What, Iwa-chan, can’t get any action? Trying to cop a feel before school? I didn’t think you were like that!”

He finishes the first segment of his rant with a huff. Under normal circumstances, you’d be appreciative of the rank up on his bestfriend list. Currently though, Tooru is getting under your skin, and as young man, you’re a little offended that he’s talking to you like that.

Tooru takes two strides (curse his long legs) across the threshold of your house, eyes narrowing in on you.

You glances to Hajime to ease the situation, he’s the only one that can say anything to help alleviate the situation.

Tooru follows your gaze, eyeing skeptically for an explanation. Hajime clears his throat, and you think you just might be saved. He’s always been quick to resolve altercations, whether its verbally or physically.

“....Hajime wanted me to wear my skirt shorter, but I said it was against school dress code.”

Hajime states as a matter of fact, and you gasp, what the fuck Hajime, but Tooru’s absolutely scandalized gasp overshadows your own.

“You asshole, that’s not—” 

Tooru is quick to interrupt you,

“You absolute heathen Iwa-chan! Who knew you’d turn out to be such a dog!”

Tooru snags your collar with a tight fist, and you instinctively wrap your hand around his.

Uh... you’re not gonna have to fight Tooru, are you? It’s Hajime’s body, so you’d gladly let him get bruised up as retribution for that comment, but you’re not too keen on getting punched in the face by Tooru protecting your own dignity.

“It’s not like that!”

You scramble for a way to dig yourself out of this one. Tooru’s locked his glare on you, exuding pressure.

“Then what is it like Iwa-chan?”

You glance from Tooru’s scowl to see Hajime’s smug expression behind him, your brow ticks at the sight of it. 

‘That little...’

Weren’t you just saying last night how excellent of an actress you were? Time to put that to the test.

You forcefully remove Tooru’s fist from your collar, adjusting your tie. Tooru allows you to gather yourself for a moment, scorn still etched across his features.

Averting your eyes to the side with a serious, contemplative gaze, you muster all the dramatics you can to pull off your next line. Internally, you think smugly that you must appear picture perfect for a drama noir film. If only it were raining too, that would set the atmosphere ideally. But an actress must work with what she’s got. 

Tooru seems decently invested in your dramatics, and Hajime is looking at you with contempt, as if he drank sour milk. Now that a pregnant pause has settled in and you’ve garnered the crowd’s interest, you sigh, long and wistfully,

“She never wears her skirt like that... I thought she might be struggling with her self confidence, so I was just trying to make her feel comfortable with herself. I’m such a brute though, I guess I got carried away.”

You cast your gaze sheepishly to Tooru, rapping your knuckles lightly against the top of your head to emphasize your point.

Tooru blinks at the explanation, takes in the information, considers the evidence in his mind.

His eyes begin to water, as expected, tears brimming at his long lashes as he spins around to pull Hajime (AKA you) into a bone crushing hug. He’s got a suffocating grip on him, all the while crying about ‘Hajime’s’ reasoning.

“I didn’t even notice! Forgive your stupid bestfriend, I should’ve said something too! How did I miss that?!” his dramatics always seem to up yours, Tooru is currently stealing best-in-show from you, “Waaaah, I’m sorry, you’re perfect the way you are!”

He cries into what he thinks is your shoulder, no doubt using the fabric to wipe his face, much to Hajime’s disdain. Meanwhile, Hajime is glaring hard and venomously at you for that bullshit display.

‘Are you fucking kidding me?’

He mouths, and you stick your tongue out, giving him the cheekiest expression he’d never want to see on his own face.

“Whew, alright,” Tooru straightens, clearing his throat and flicking his last tear off with the swipe of a hand, “Now we really have to go. Hike that skirt up and let’s get on with our day.”

He’s back to picture perfect Oikawa Tooru, no evidence of his outburst to be seen (asides from the wet spot on Hajime’s shoulder).

You try to grunt in agreement as casual and Hajime-like as you can.

For the sake of getting to school on time without any further incidents, Hajime pulls the uniform skirt up a tad higher, vowing to lower it when you fucking nuisances are out of the picture.

Your final class is almost over, and you’re feeling.... extremely uncomfortable.

Not because the school day went bad, no, you found it easy to converse with his classmates and teachers. Notetaking was relatively simple, you’re learning the same material as Hajime anyways.

You’re physically uncomfortable, and the pressure of your bladder about to burst is driving you crazy.

‘I can’t take it any more!’

You shoot your hand up, and your teacher gives you an odd look before you excuse yourself to the restroom.

You head to the furthest end of the building, the women’s restroom is generally vacant so the men’s should be the same, yeah? And you definitely don’t want to be caught in the women’s, despite how empty it could possibly be. So with a heavy sense of shame, you waddle into the men’s room.

If someone’s in there, it’ll be fine. Just be in, and out. No big deal.

Oh. 

Oh fuck no.

“Iwaizumi, hey.”

Matsukawa fucking Issei glances up to the door you just waltzed through. Matsukawa Issei, middle for the Seijou men’s team, tall and messy haired flirt, the same Matsukawa Issei that helps you with your blocks and techniques, friend of Tooru and Hajime... and he’s staring straight at you with a casual nod of his head. 

You try to return it as casually as possible, despite your bones and every being shaking in you. 

‘Fuck, I forgot men I actually know use the men’s room.’

“...Mattsu–” nope not Mattsun (so much for being casual, you almost fucked up the way Hajime refers to Matsukawa), “–kawa.”

He raises an eyebrow for the briefest second, before returning his attention to the urinal, unzipping his pants. Un. Zipping. His. Pants.

He doesn’t give you much time to dwell on the slip up, already entering conversation about how your day is, to which you give short response to, trying not to shuffle your feet to the urinal. You really don’t want him to catch on to your discomfort.

You heavily contemplate just going into a stall, but you think that might be weird for guys to do. Now that you think about it, isn’t it weird to piss in the urinal directly next to the other guy? If you chose one spaced out would he get offended? Goddamnit, you never learned men’s room etiquette. Screw this whole situation, and screw Matsukawa Issei for needing to relieve himself at this exact time. 

Well, it’s too late now, you’re already standing at the one directly next to Mattsun. You can’t exactly take your sweet time picking another urinal and shuffling about while Mattsun is here engaging you in conversation about his fucking math class.

If it was weird to choose the spot beside him, Mattsun doesn’t say anything about it, going about his business. 

Thankfully, if you could even be thankful for a situation like this, you’re so overwhelmed by Mattsun’s unexpected presence that it’s keeping your mind off the having-Hajime’s-dick thing. The discomfort is still there, but you have to pee so badly, you’re not too bothered by it at the moment. You’re also intently focusing on not blushing, willing the blood flow to your cheeks to cooperate with you for once.

Simultaneously, you’re concentrating on not looking at Matsukawa fucking Issei’s junk. You’re getting good at multitasking.

But apparently, not good enough. Your willpower wasn’t as strong as you thought, and your focus slips for a moment as you gaze down and–was someone going to tell you that Matsukawa fucking Issei was HUNG?

“Is there something wrong with my dick?”

You shoot your eyes back up to Mattsun, who’s tilting his head with a thick brow raised. 

‘Hajime, if you hear about this, I am so sorry.’

“Nope, it’s perfectly fine,” you respond curtly, before coming to the realization that Hajime probably wouldn’t like you telling his friends that their dicks are ‘perfectly fine’, “I mean, no. It’s seriously ugly.”

You cringe at your save, if you could call it that, and Mattsun (finally) zips up. He casts a momentarily offended look at you.

“I think you mean ‘seriously huge’.” 

He laughs deeply, heading to the sink. You completely agree with that sentiment, and you’re glad he knows he’s well endowed, but it’s best to keep those thoughts to yourself.

You follow suit, laughing as sarcastically as you can without letting your voice crack. 

“Whatever, man.”

You proceed to have awkward sink talk with Mattsun, and upon exiting the restroom you thank the gods when you see his class is the opposite way to yours. 

“See you at practice.”

He waves, and when Mattsun is out of sight, you sigh in immense relief. 

Just how many dicks are you going to see before you swap back? You sob internally, returning to your class.

But that does bring up a point, Men’s Volleyball Practice. 

You’re marginally grateful for that encounter with Mattsun, because now you’re acutely aware of the locker room changing time before and after practice. 

You bury your face in your arms, taking note to sprint like hell and get to practice early. You’ll be damned if you have to spend any amount of time struggling to avoid eye contact with your friends’ abs, as well as Hajime’s other teammates'.

A/N: AHAHA the CHAOS. Anyways, we all know Matsukawa got that horsec*ck. Thanks for tuning in for this week’s episode of y/n’s awkward panic. Iwaizumi Is So Done. 

taglist: @cybergovl​ @thatoneoddgirl8 @keijikunn 

Masterlist, Part 5