#his name is gatsby and he is my son

[rorystr]

all of you look at my kitty right now.

[praisetheaxolotl]

The Arsonist Theory, Part 2: We Get It, The Billboard Was A Metaphor

Part 1: Mandibles!

First off, I want to say thank you all for giving the first part of my theory such love! I appreciate each and every one of you and I'm so happy that you all like my theories so much!

For those who are new here, the Arsonist Theory proposes that Bill wasn't alone in destroying his dimension- rather, he was used by a third party. This is part two of four, with the remaining two parts coming out very, very soon.

Also, same as before:

MAJOR SPOILERS FOR THE BOOK OF BILL, INCLUDING SOLUTIONS TO CIPHERS

Let's get into it, shall we?

In The Great Gatsby, certain motifs have more than one symbolic meani-- no, really, stay with me here!!

...Okay, fine. Let's back up.

In the Book Of Bill, you'll find a webpage called thisisnotawebsitedotcom.com. Go there, and you'll be prompted to enter a password. Go back to the Book of Bill, and hidden in a stretched-text section, you'll see the phrase NEED A PASSWORD? FINE, I'LL TALK / IT'S THE NAME OF THE EYEBALL DOC.

"The eyeball doc" is from the excerpts of The Great Gatsby further back in the book-- T.J. Eckleburg.

(Honestly, this explanation is moreso that context doesn't get lost to time.)

So... Gatsby. T.J. Eckleburg.

Hirsch could have chosen any number of public domain novels for that gag in the book... so why this one? Why tie it in by making it the password?

I believe it has some significance to the greater plot. Furthermore, eye doctors in general are a large point of Bill's early life in Euclidia. Take the silly straws- the red one has a numeric cipher, while the other three use a Caesar cipher.

In the order of RGBY, they read as follows:

TWISTED OUT OF SHAPE AFTER THE KILL / THE GHOSTS OF HIS FAMILY ARE HAUNTING HIM STILL Eye doctor of a different kind / Who wants to make his patients blind The doctor says / Three sips a day / Will make the visions / Go away Fussy eater / Baby Billy / Wouldn't drink / Unless it's silly

These ciphers refer to a certain couple of tidbits Bill tells us about his home.

One- He could see the third dimension. A rare mutation.

Two- Talking about it at all was illegal.

So, what were his parents to do when their son started talking about nonsense that was illegal to even mention? Well, if your child started acting strange and seeing things that weren't there... you would take them to the doctor.

It's clear to me that Bill's parents were concerned about the "visions" their son was experiencing, and took him to the doctor to cure them- an eye doctor that wants to make his patients blind. The blue straw explains how the medicine is supposed to work. The yellow straw explains why Bill has such a fondness for silly straws- he was a picky little kid, and hated his medicine, so his parents got him silly straws to drink it out of.

I wonder if that's why he collects them- because they remind him of home, of his mother urging him to take his medicine, of his life before all of this happened.

But never mind all that.

The thing is, an eye doctor is crucial to Bill's past, which of course brings me back to T.J. Eckleburg.

In The Great Gatsby, certain motifs have more than one symbolic meaning, and the eyes of T.J. Eckleburg are no exception.

(Okay full disclosure, I have not actually read Gatsby and I'm Sparknotes-ing this shit. But, so did all of you when you were assigned this in high school, so we're even.)

They appear on a billboard in a place called the Valley Of Ashes, and at first, they seem to symbolize God. But as the scenes continue, they take on a different meaning.

See, our POV character, Nick, is going on this journey to meet the mistress of his friend. Nick is aware that this is an immoral action, yet does it anyway. Now, the eyes of Eckleburg cast judgement... along with issue a warning.

They now take on a new meaning-- a foreboding omen about the tragedy that lies in wait, inching ever closer. The tragedy in Gatsby being the death of Myrtle, the mistress, and subsequent string of deaths that follow it-- and, curiously, Nick states that the eyes of Eckleburg almost supernaturally draw him someplace... which ends up being where Myrtle is.

Both a higher being, and a warning of a horrible tragedy that ends in death upon death upon death... curious!

What's more curious is when Bill is admonishing the story and Un-Gatsby-ing us, he says this:

The billboard is a metaphor? Why mention that? Out of all the symbolism in this book, why the billboard? Is it because it was mentioned in the preceding pages? Then why mention the theme of the American Dream being a myth? That wasn't on those pages! If you had to mention symbolism, the green light would have been the most iconic example of it from the book.

So why the billboard?

Is, perhaps, the image of some sort of higher power watching you, admonishing you of the tragedy you will have a hand in causing, supernaturally pulling you to someone that will be the catalyst for it all.... relevant somehow, to Bill?

(And, as a sidenote- the theme of the American Dream being hollow could also apply here, as Bill got what he wanted- freedom into the third dimension, Weirdmageddon, all of it. But he's still not happy and still wracked with guilt over Euclidia, ultimately an interloper in a place he doesn't belong in, just as Nick says at the end of the novel that he is a Midwesterner unsuited to life in the East Coast city.)

Let's talk about Flatland.

It's interesting to note that in the original novel, A. Square does have help witnessing the third dimension-- a Sphere contacts him, and tells him about the third dimension, intending to use the Square as a conduit to educating the rest of Flatland.

This, of course, leads to mass imprisonments and executions, one of said imprisonments being of the Square's own brother, with the Square being imprisoned himself at the end of the book.

Point being... in the original story of Flatland, the two-dimensional outsider was visited by a higher being, one that used him to alter Flatland and only ended up causing chaos and ruining lives.

All I'm saying is, the Book of Bill and Bill's story in general draws parallels to two existing books-- Flatland, and now The Great Gatsby. It would be foolish to write this off as a random occurrence when the game of Gravity Falls has always been analyzing the smallest of details. I believe the choice in book was on purpose, and moreso, that it was specifically used to hint that maybe Bill wasn't alone in all this. There was some kind of higher being that influenced him, just as the Square was influenced. That looked down upon him with impossibly wide eyes, pulling him closer and closer to ruin.

Oh, by the way-- Bill up there mentions being touchy about his weaknesses ever since... something. This is clearly his death, but... is that all he means? But that's gonna be in part four.

Next time, it's all about the many cycles and the distinct breaking of them present in Gravity Falls itself, and what that means for Bill as the villain and foil to them.

Part 3: Journey To The Vicious Spiral Nebula

Part 4: Blame The Arson, Not The Fire

[lesbiansandco]

My opinions on The Great Gatsby characters compared to Bill and especially young Ford

Gatsby and Bill are copies of each other, no doubt about it. A lot of people, myself included, have put Ford into the role of Daisy. However, Daisy and Ford are only alike in the sense that they are the object of Gatsby's/Bill's devotion. I think Ford is really a lot more like Nick.

Bill and Gatsby both build magnificent lives for themselves out of dirt and pine after lovers they will never get back (The comparison between Gatsby and Bill deserves its own long post, but this is mainly about Ford). Gatsby pines after Daisy, and Bill pines after Ford, but that's the only thing Daisy and Ford have in common, is their role in the story. And even then, Ford plays parts of Nick's role as well.

Perhaps most obviously, Nick and Ford are both writers. Nick narrates the fateful summer he knew Gatsby, and Ford writes the Journals, narrating his life and experiences in both Gravity Falls and the multiverse.

Nick claims to be one of the few honest person he's ever known, but his writing is littered with bias towards people he admires, namely Gatsby. He admires Gatsby in a way that causes Nick to write long and poetically about him, leaving less room for other characters that are arguably just as important (notably, leaving out many details about his supposed relationship with Jordan). There is also reasonable evidence that Nick's writing about Gatsby has queer undertones.

Who mirrors this? Ford. Pre-betrayal, he writes about Bill much more favorably than his good friend Fiddleford or his brother Stanley. Ford clearly admires Bill, calling him his "Muse," and Ford even takes it a step further from admiration and worships Bill like a god. Fiddleford and Stanley are definitely important characters to the story - Fiddleford leaves his wife and son to help Ford with the portal, and Ford hasn't seen Stanley in years while Stanley wishes to reconnect - yet Ford chooses to focus on Bill's impact in his life in his writing. Very similarly to Nick, there is reasonable evidence of queer undertones in Ford's writing about Bill.

Nick (and the rest of New York) sees Gatsby as a mysterious entity, with a surely fascinating past that has to be guessed at and puzzled together. Ford also sees Bill as a mysterious entity, an anomaly that has come to inspire him in his work. Ford can't help but be curious about his muse and the divine insight Bill gives him.

Nick is drawn in by the mystery that is Gatsby himself, and Gatsby feeds him fantastic lies on their car ride up to New York for lunch with Wolfshiem. Bill lies to Ford about being a "Muse" and makes extravagant claims to earn Ford's trust and build up his ego.

Nick only learned the truth about Gatsby after everything came crashing down the day they all decided to go into the city. Ford only started to learn the truth about Bill when Bill's true plans for the portal were revealed.

I think there's more than sufficient evidence that Ford is the character that represents Nick in every aspect except for his one parallel to Daisy. And there really is only one parallel between them; they both have a crazy, devoted, blinded-by-desire ex-lover who can't seem to let it go. In every other way, they are different.

Daisy is careless and overly emotional; she romanticizes the past and can't help but worry about the future. She only wants what she thinks is the best for those she cares about (one good example being her daughter. She wants her daughter to be foolish and happy in a world where Daisy is a pessimist after everything she's seen and done). Meanwhile, Ford takes time to plan things out and is generally very stoic. He doesn't like to think about the past and would rather manifest a glorious future for himself. And while he cares about who he loves deep down, on the surface he can come across as cold and uncaring - towards his assistant who suffered a lot of trauma during the time it took to build the portal, to his brother who he only reached out to for a favor and not to reconnect after many years - which makes him seem very selfish (which he can be).

Daisy is trapped in a romantic relationship with a her husband, and while she still has some feelings for Gatsby, she doesn't wish to be in a relationship or run away with him. On the other hand, Ford isn't tried down to any romantic relationship, and he doesn't seem to have any feelings for Bill post-betrayal.

That's all. I know this got long, but with all of this comparison, it makes sense to me to view Ford as a very Nick-like character rather than Daisy. And of course, Bill is the magnificent Gatsby.

[theegreatgatsby]

ೃ⁀➷ ❜ ...~ I HAVE WAITED FIVE YEARS... AND TODAY IS THE DAY ~ ... ❛

Oh, hello there! It seems like you managed to find me in one of these little get togethers I throw, hm? Well...

I'm Jay... Jay Gatsby. I'm sure you've heard of me... Hopefully good things? Ha. ...Let's see... I'm 32, male. I don't particularly use labels. I don't enjoy them.

...Apologies, I don't particularly have the opportunity to talk about myself so... Freely. So I'm keeping it brief. ...Hm... I'm the son of some wealthy folks in the middle-west—all dead now. I was also educated in Oxford, most of my ancestors went there after all.

...I suppose that might be it. Feel free to ask other things.

Well well well! Quite Fancy seeing you back here! Yet ANOTHER BLOG?!?!??! THIS TIME FOR JAY GATSBY??? RELA????! Wowie!

Hi! Sit down fella, this will take a bit... Learn a bit, see some tags behind this wonderful super duper cool page, yakknow how it is!

The name's Dew! Dewey if you wanna be fancy, but nah, I'm just a guy on the internet here to write for his funny sad 1920s man... My pronouns are HE/SHE! I'm Genderfluid and Gay!

Right, right... Tags...

|🥂| ~ 𝑴𝑶𝑫 𝑻𝑨𝑳𝑲𝑺! - This is me talking!! :3 |🥂| ~ 𝑱𝑨𝒀'𝑺 𝑨𝑵𝑺𝑾𝑬𝑹𝑺! - Replies to asks, you know how it is. |🥂| ~ 𝑱𝑨𝒀'𝑺 𝑷𝑨𝑹𝑻𝑰𝑬𝑺! - The little guy talking to people! Yay! |🥂| ~ 𝑮𝑨𝑻𝑺𝑩𝒀'𝑺 𝑻𝑯𝑶𝑼𝑮𝑯𝑻𝑺! - Random yapping he does, reblogs... etc. |🥂| ~ 𝑶𝑳𝑫 𝑺𝑷𝑶𝑹𝑻𝑺! - We'll see, maybe a call for interactions?

ok i think that's it... until I decide to go bonkers again. thanks for reading if you got this far! smooches ur forehead /p

[starrybouquet]

Tag Game: First 10 Lines Challenge

Rules: Share the first line of your last ten published works or as many as you are able to and see if there are any patterns!

Tagged by @curator-on-ao3 - thank you so much!!

I have not been posting much recently so my last 10 fics span years (yes, years).

Caitlin Todd woke in an uncomfortable bed in a cold room.

Somewhere Beyond the Sea, NCIS, Kate/Gibbs, T

2. The United Airlines flight back from Fresno was long, boring, and cramped.

Mac stared out the window in a trance as the plane descended toward Dulles. The sun had long since set, and the entire city looked like a giant miniature train set, tiny cars moving down the roads as if controlled by some giant invisible hand.

this could be the end, JAG, Harm/Mac, T

3. Harm almost murdered Diane’s killer on a Friday.

He spent most of Saturday staring at the wall, trying to shove down the writhing mass of rope that seemed to have taken up residence in his stomach.

He felt guilty, he realized.

in case i need it when i'm older, JAG, Harm/Mac, G

4.

Say it was the right time To walk away When dreaming takes you nowhere It's time to play

—Playing with the Boys, Kenny Loggins

Maverick raps on the door sharply. When there’s no immediate reply, she shoves her hands in her pockets, where they curl into fists.

This is the most insane plan Penelope “Maverick” Mitchell has ever come up with, and that's saying something.

in for a penny, in for a pound, Top Gun, Ice/fem!Mav, T

5. Carter was perfectly professional all the way back to the tel'tak. She threw him a brief smile as they walked, and he felt his Carter senses light up, like the leaves of a plant on the first day of spring. But her face had stayed completely serious as they maneuvered Maybourne into the tel’tak and she helped him pack up the gear scattered across the campsite (it was laundry day, okay. They should be grateful he wasn’t going commando).

i won't let go 'til the end, Stargate SG-1, Sam/Jack, G

6. It's the kind of summer night that clings to the skin, like the darkness has absorbed the heat of day and is breathing it out onto the world.

a thousand deliciously ill-advised ways, Top Gun, Gen (Maverick and Rooster's father/son relationship), G

7. Tess leans on the side of the register. Wednesdays are always slow, for some reason. Not many people at a supermarket looking to buy balloons for a party or flowers for a date on Wednesday, she supposes. Last week on Wednesday, she'd snuck The Great Gatsby out of her bag and skimmed it while she was waiting for customers. This week, though, she isn't feeling quite as productive. So she people-watches instead.

Rearview Mirror, Stargate SG-1, Sam/Jack, T

8. “What do you want on your gravestone?”

Dearly Loved, Stargate SG-1, Sam/Jack, G

9. Daniel walks into the SGC wearing a jacket labeled O'Neill, causing guards to stare. More guards stare when someone comments and he glances down, "Oh, I must have grabbed the wrong jacket."

Musical Jackets, Stargate SG-1, Gen, G

10. Jack was in the middle of reading a Sky and Telescope article on the latest electronic telescopes when he heard the telltale hum of Carter's engine.

Tensing, he set the magazine aside and waited for the knock he knew was coming. He tried not to think of the blue shine of his ring on her hand. He failed.

A Vein to the Heart, Stargate SG-1, Sam/Jack, G

Apparently, I don't start with dialogue. Which amuses me because dialogue is easiest for me, and most of my stories start off as nothing but dialogue.

I write snappy, action-based beginnings, where a character is *doing* something. Which makes sense because that's what I like to read!

Clearly I need to stop starting the first sentence of a fic with a character's name, because seeing them all lined up like this makes me cringe.

No pressure tagging @sententiousandbellicose @sluttyhenley @redbelles @lannisterdaddyissues @doodledrawreblogs @tommyjop @geneeste and anyone else who sees this and wants to try their hand! <3

[ruthplaysthesims]

List 5 facts about a favorite sim of yours, and send this to simblrs whose sims you adore

Ah anon! Sure thing. For this one, we're gonna go with my favorite boy <3333

Before Gatsby took him in as a Secret Agent, he was a pianist at Tartosa's prestigious lounge. He would also be occasionally hired to play at the Laurent's wedding venue.

He has a younger sister. Her name is Carla.

In his teenage years, he was romantically involved with Greta Laurent, but because of his poor background, she left him for a socialite's son that visited Tartosa for a vacation (Fuck you, Greta!)

Gatsby nicknamed Carlos his "killing machine" as he was able to take down one of San Myshuno's most wanted criminal, by beheading him with a katana he found while undercover. Which also happened to be the mission that put him in the hall of fame of secret agents. As much of a douche Gatsby is, he has grown very fond of Carlos and sees him as a son.

He suffers from insomnia disorder and tends to rely on sleeping pills to get sleep. When he doesn't sleep, he either gets a book to read, or sits with a gun by his side, wanting to be prepared in case someone were to attack him.

Additional fun fact: There is an agent who is head over heels "in love" with him... and it's not Kaori (at least not yet)

And between me and y'all (>.>) (<.<) I don't like her....

Okay I'm done lol!

Poses: @natalia-auditore @maylilysims

Cc: @johnnysimmer @simandy @nucrests @northernsiberiawinds @caio-cc @sentate @golyhawhaw

Props: @natalia-auditore

Car: @sims4cars-breezemotors

[ohyoufool]

I love supporting journalism but NYT is paywalled and we all need some GOOD NEW QUEER COMICS so posting the full article under the read more!

Original Article

By George Gene Gustines

June 9, 2023

‘The Dog Knight’

Frankie Jude Bryant is a nonbinary middle school student who is dealing with identity, the usual academic challenges and, oh yes, trying to become the Dog Knight, a champion for humans and canines. Despite the presence of magical talking pooches, this journey of heroism and self-discovery feels grounded thanks to captions that get into the head of Frankie, who prefers they/them pronouns. On the first page, they think, “Do you ever feel like you don’t make sense?” Later, Frankie muses about their frenemy Dallas, who misgenders them: “She gets it wrong on purpose just to make a big deal about correcting it.” And when Frankie finds their tribe, “For the first time in a long time, I look in the mirror and I don’t feel a pain in the pit of my stomach.” Written by Jeremy Whitley, drawn by Bre Indigo and colored by Melissa Capriglione.

‘Marry Me a Little: A Graphic Memoir’

The cartoonist Rob Kirby chronicles his 2013 march down the aisle in Minnesota with his longtime partner, John Capecci. The story highlights where gay marriage stood at the time (each state was making its own rules before same-sex unions became the law of the land in 2015) and looks back at Jack Baker and Michael McConnell, who somehow were able to obtain a marriage license in Minneapolis in 1971. The personal recollections are powerful and honest: Rob remembers when he first casually used the word “husband,” which felt like “a small but genuine political act.” He also acknowledges the white, middle-class privilege that allowed him ambivalence about getting married. His ultimate conclusion: “Marriage does not define a relationship. Unless you want it to.”

‘Gatsby’

The messages of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s “The Great Gatsby” — about social status, love and chasing dreams — are revisited in the present with a racially and sexually diverse set of characters in their 20s. Gatsby is a Black tech millionaire looking for a love who got away, and Lu Zhao, the stand-in for Nick Carraway, is visiting from Singapore and summering on Long Island (where a $5,000-plus afternoon shopping spree highlights the casual wealth). The main characters are refreshingly blasé about their sexuality: Lu’s girlfriend, Alexis, asks, “How do you identify?” But Lu’s answer does not really matter as Alexis says, “I love being on this journey with you. I’m here for you no matter what.” Written by Jeremy Holt, drawn by Felipe Cunha and colored by Dearbhla Kelly. 

‘Hex Americana’

The cartoonist Bree Wolf spins a tale about auto racing, teen romance, monsters and ghosts. Flesh-and-blood Ken forms an unlikely alliance with Dante, who died in a previous race and haunts his car as a ghost. A successful partnership will allow Ken to compete in the annual Grand Prix and help Dante move on to the afterlife. The more than 300-page story packs in a lot of character growth, action, flashbacks and drama. The relationship between Ken and Karen, his mother, is particularly nuanced. Karen is supportive of her son, who is gay, but she struggles with how to correct her overbearing friend James when he makes thoughtless jokes about Ken. (Iron Circus Comics. Aug. 30.)

‘Death Drop: Drag Assassin’

The Gayborhood, as it is called in this five-part series, has seen better days. Thugs feel empowered to assault young gay men, and a drag queen named Lunaira has gone missing from the club Posterior Delusions. Residents have little faith in the local police. Enter Death Drop, a former hit man and current drag queen, who is pushed by Mother Henny, the hostess of the club, to find Lunaira. “She’s a queen of color who has been missing for more than two days,” Mother Henny says. “You do the math.” It helps that Death Drop and Mother Henny used to date. Let the investigation begin. Written by David Hazan and drawn and colored by Alex Moore. (Scout Comics. June 14.)

‘Turtle Bread’

Kim-Joy, a British baker and cookbook writer, teams up with the artist Alti Firmansyah for this story about Yan, who is struggling with low self-esteem and social anxiety. When Yan finds a local baking club, she is plagued by doubts about whether she will fit in or be liked, but she soon learns that everyone struggles in different ways. Yan eventually becomes confident enough to rally the club members to seek out and support one of their fellow bakers who needs it. Yan would qualify as an ally, but there are characters with significant roles in the story who are gay and lesbian. And there are recipes, including one that gives this story its title. (Comixology Originals. Available now.)

Original article

[elxctrics]

"here's a glow at the face of the canyon and a sound blowing 'round says you're nowhere you've ever been before. take a plunge into the colorado river where you feel yourself for the very first time, i knew you'd be a friend of mine."

(—) ★ spotted!! PRESLEY ST. JAMES on the cover of this week’s most recent tabloid! many say that the 45 year old looks like MILO VENTIMIGLIA, but i don’t really see it. while the ARTIST/PHOTOGRAPHER/MUSICIAN is known for being INTUITIVE my inside sources say that they have a tendency to be BROODY i swear, every time i think of them, i hear the song CLARIE AND EDDIE by KINGS OF LEON { he/him / cismale }

  ˗ˏˋ ＊ ‣ 𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐤𝐬    :  

connections || musings || instagram || headcanons

𝓼𝓽𝓪𝓽𝓲𝓼𝓽𝓲𝓬𝓼

name: presley st. james

age: forty five

nicknames: none

date of birth: may 13th, 1978

astrological sign: taurus

place of birth: ouray, colorado

occupation: artist / photographer / musician

voice claim: caleb followill from kings of leon

label: the brooder

positive traits: creative, artistic, deep, talented

negative traits: broody, reclusive, grumpy a perfectionist, 

characters/celebrities she’s like: caleb followill, luke danes from gilmore girls, keith scott from one tree hill, alaric saltzman from the vampire diaries, rufus humphrey from gossip girl, nick carraway from the great gatsby, noah callhoun from the notebook

𝓫𝓲𝓸𝓰𝓻𝓪𝓹𝓱𝔂

born and raised in mountain town, ouray colorado, presley was raised as the only son of claire and eddie st. james. 

claire was a singer in a local bar, the leon, and eddie was the owner of said bar and the two had a ‘love at first sight’ kind of love, however their relationship was an incredibly toxic one - filled with jealousy and booze and rage, although they did their best to shield young presley from it.

presley had always been a lone wolf, much too quiet for his own good and never had or kept many friends. he preferred being alone and could often be found painting in his school’s art room or learning instruments in his father’s bar before they opened for the evening.

while he wasn’t the best student, he excelled in the arts and for his thirteenth birthday, his parents got him his first camera and living in such a picturesque little town, he fell in love with capturing it’s beauty and went on to win many photography awards throughout high school.

he loved writing music and singing, too, but after attempting to perform at the school’s talent show and getting all choked up on stage, he realized he was far too shy for that kind of spotlight and preferred to be behind the camera.

when college came around, he got accepted into parson’s school of the arts in new york city and double majored in fine art and photography.

there, he got in with the artsy scene in new york and it wasn’t long before his paintings and photography were hanging in galleries across the city and eventually, the globe.

he was on a high, but art was fleeting, and people were always looking for the next best thing, so it wasn’t long until he had to do what most had to do and sell his soul to hollywood.

he became a world renounced photographer for the rich and famous, shooting vogue covers and the most high profile fashion campaigns and became incredibly sought after in the industry.

however, he felt like it was sucking the life out of him and he hated it, causing him to become rather grumpy and recluse and thus, he turned to drinking, just as his parents did years prior.

while in the heart of his creative slump just last year, he lost both of his parents within six months of one another and truly hit rock bottom, feeling as though life meant nothing and turned to writing to get him out of it.

after getting a little too drunk at a bar one night with his friends, he drunkly performed one of the songs he had written in the presence of all of his industry friends and after hearing his deep, raspy unique voice, they pushed him to start taking music seriously, which he did, since had nothing left to lose. 

he got a group of his buddies together and formed the band ‘kings of leon’ - named after the leon bar that his father owned in their small town.

now,  after the release of his debut album ‘only by the night’  and riding on the high of the success of his singles ‘sex on fire’ and ‘use somebody’, he’s in a better headspace and has a newfound confidence in himself that he didn’t before.

he still works on photography projects on the side, since that’s where his heart is, and still very much spends late night hours in his studio trying to paint something great again.

[hightealowsociety]

Tom Wambsgans' American Dream

"Angry, and half in love [...], and tremendously sorry, I turned away." - F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby

Last Sunday, the fourth and final season of HBO's "Succession" premiered to critical acclaim. Many have waited with bated breath to learn the fate of Tom Wambsgans, the wimpy but cunning social climber, and his wife Siobhan "Shiv" Roy, the stubborn and hypocritical daughter of media magnate Logan Roy - who also happens to be Tom's boss and ally at the beginning of season 4. More specifically, many viewers - myself very much included - have been endlessly speculating about the future of their marriage since before the season even premiered. At the end of season 3, Tom backstabbed Shiv as she (along with her brothers Kendall and Roman) were on her way to stop their father from selling out Waystar Royco, the "family" media corporation that he built and that one of his four children was expected to inherit.

His marriage to Shiv has been fraught from the start, with Shiv cheating on Tom before asking for an open marriage on their wedding night, and Tom gaining control of the conservative news company that has been targeting Shiv's boss, Democratic presidential candidate Gil Eavis, for months. Another point of contention is their unequal footing in life, in part due to their unbelievably different upbringings. Shiv is the daughter of a British noblewoman and a multi-billionaire - Tom is the son of a lawyer from Saint Paul, Minnesota. Tom is a transplant to Shiv's native New York City, having moved there after studying at Cornell. He's spent his entire career trying to impress people and gain social capital, to both significant successes and failures. Tom uses his relationship with the beautiful, intelligent, and most importantly, wealthy, Shiv to gain leverage in the cutthroat upper echelon society that she was raised in. But, ultimately, his love for Shiv runs deep - and her various infidelities (both in the marital sense and in the business world once Shiv throws her unqualified hat in the ring for Waystar's CEO, a position Tom has been grasping for for years) wound him even deeper.

As the series has unfolded, I have been fascinated by Tom. He's not my favorite character, as that title belongs to Greg, the awkward cousin of the Roy family who has been stumbling upward into oblivion with the help of Tom for the past four seasons. He's not even my second or third favorite - that's Shiv and Kendall respectively. He barely makes it into the top five (Gerri, one of Logan's top and most ruthless advisors, cuts him out for fourth). But, he's my favorite to write about. I think the reason for that is how he embodies the prototypical American Dream in the modern age. He is a 21st-century Jay Gatsby without the charm, but with the grit to claw his way into high society.

The Great Gatsby is one of my favorite novels of all time, for precisely the same reason that Tom is my favorite character to write about - I am fascinated with the idea that, with enough determination and work behind you, you can become anything. Jay Gatsby, much like Tom, plays the game of life with a false air of confidence and disposable income trailing behind him like a cheap dupe of an expensive French cologne. Gatsby sees Daisy Buchanan, his longtime love interest, as both the love of his life and as a prize to be won to cement his place in NYC society and gain legitimacy in the Old Money world that Daisy and her husband (also named Tom!) reside. T. Wambsgans' underhanded business practices - namely the covering-up of massive scale corporate crimes - and emotional bribery is also mirrored in Gatsby's illegitimate means of monetary gain. Ultimately, Gatsby cannot overcome his history. He's a puffed-up fraud, as the closest thing he has to a friend (Daisy's cousin and the ultimate unreliable narrator, Nick Carraway) discovers towards the end of Gatsby's life. Gatsby's entire backstory was fabricated, down to his name - he was not Jay Gatsby, born to mysterious luxury; he was James Gatz of North Dakota.

It's easy to see parallels between Wambsgans and Gatsby. Both come from less fortunate circumstances (to varying degrees) than their love interests. Both of their love interests doubly represent their career goals. Both are undaunted in the face of competition, so long as they get what they want out of it. Will both ultimately fail, having spent their lives in pursuit of the women, respect, and social status that they'll never get? Only time will tell when - or whether - Tom Wambsgans will wake up from his own American Dream.

“So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past.” - F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby

[rxscss]

“𝓉𝒽𝑒𝓇𝑒'𝓈 𝒶 𝑔𝓁𝑜𝓌 𝒶𝓉 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝒻𝒶𝒸𝑒 𝑜𝒻 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝒸𝒶𝓃𝓎𝑜𝓃 𝒶𝓃𝒹 𝒶 𝓈𝑜𝓊𝓃𝒹 𝒷𝓁𝑜𝓌𝒾𝓃𝑔 '𝓇𝑜𝓊𝓃𝒹 𝓈𝒶𝓎𝓈 𝓎𝑜𝓊'𝓇𝑒 𝓃𝑜𝓌𝒽𝑒𝓇𝑒 𝓎𝑜𝓊'𝓋𝑒 𝑒𝓋𝑒𝓇 𝒷𝑒𝑒𝓃 𝒷𝑒𝒻𝑜𝓇𝑒. 𝓉𝒶𝓀𝑒 𝒶 𝓅𝓁𝓊𝓃𝑔𝑒 𝒾𝓃𝓉𝑜 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝒸𝑜𝓁𝑜𝓇𝒶𝒹𝑜 𝓇𝒾𝓋𝑒𝓇, 𝓌𝒽𝑒𝓇𝑒 𝓎𝑜𝓊 𝒻𝑒𝑒𝓁 𝓎𝑜𝓊𝓇𝓈𝑒𝓁𝒻 𝒻𝑜𝓇 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝓋𝑒𝓇𝓎 𝒻𝒾𝓇𝓈𝓉 𝓉𝒾𝓂𝑒, 𝒾 𝓀𝓃𝑒𝓌 𝓎𝑜𝓊'𝒹 𝒷𝑒 𝒶 𝒻𝓇𝒾𝑒𝓃𝒹 𝑜𝒻 𝓂𝒾𝓃𝑒. 𝑜𝒽, 𝒻𝒾𝓇𝑒'𝓈 𝑔𝑜𝓃𝓃𝒶 𝓇𝒶𝑔𝑒 𝒾𝒻 𝓅𝑒𝑜𝓅𝓁𝑒 𝒹𝑜𝓃'𝓉 𝒸𝒽𝒶𝓃𝑔𝑒. 𝑜𝒽, 𝒶 𝓈𝓉𝑜𝓇𝓎 𝓈𝑜 𝑜𝓁𝒹 𝒷𝓊𝓉 𝓈𝓉𝒾𝓁𝓁 𝓈𝑜 𝑜𝓇𝒾𝑔𝒾𝓃𝒶𝓁”

(—) ★ spotted!! maverick ‘rick’ ledger on the cover of this week’s most recent tabloid! many say that the 40 year old looks like charlie hunnam but i don’t really see it. while  the artist/photographer/musician is known for being creative my inside sources say that they have a tendency to be broody i swear, every time i think of them, i hear the song claire and eddy by kings of leon { he/him cismale } - penned by candice, 25, cisfemale, she/her

𝓵𝓲𝓷𝓴𝓼

wanted connections + connections || musings || pinterest || instagram || headcanons

𝓼𝓽𝓪𝓽𝓲𝓼𝓽𝓲𝓬𝓼

name: maverick colton ledger

age: forty

nicknames: rick, ricky

date of birth: may, 13th, 1983

astrological sign: taurus

place of birth: ouray, colorado

occupation: artist/photographer/musician

voice claim: caleb followill from kings of leon

label: the brooder

positive traits: creative, artistic, deep, talented

negative traits: broody, reclusive, grumpy a perfectionist, 

characters/celebrities he’s like: caleb followill, luke danes from gilmore girls, keith scott from one tree hill, alaric saltzman from the vampire diaries, rufus humphrey from gossip girl, nick carraway from the great gatsby, noah callhoun from the notebook

𝓫𝓲𝓸𝓰𝓻𝓪𝓹𝓱𝔂

born and raised in mountain town, ouray colorado, maverick was raised as the only son of claire and eddy ledger. 

claire was a singer in a local bar, the leon, and eddy was the owner of said bar and the two had a ‘love at first sight’ kind of love, however their relationship was an incredibly toxic one - filled with jealousy and booze and rage, although they did their best to shield young maverick from it.

maverick had always been a lone wolf, much too quiet for his own good and never had or kept many friends. he preferred being alone and could often be found painting in his school’s art room or learning instruments in his father’s bar before they opened for the evening.

while he wasn’t the best student, he excelled in the arts and for his thirteenth birthday, his parents got him his first camera and living in such a picturesque little town, he fell in love with capturing it’s beauty and went on to win many photography awards throughout high school.

he loved writing music and singing, too, but after attempting to perform at the school’s talent show and getting all choked up on stage, he realized he was far too shy for that kind of spotlight and preferred to be behind the camera.

when college came around, he got accepted into parson’s school of the arts in new york city and double majored in fine art and photography.

there, he got in with the artsy scene in new york and it wasn’t long before his paintings and photography were hanging in galleries across the city and eventually, the globe.

he was on a high, but art was fleeting, and people were always looking for the next best thing, so it wasn’t long until he had to do what most had to do and sell his soul to hollywood.

he became a world renounced photographer for the rich and famous, shooting vogue covers and the most high profile fashion campaigns and became incredibly sought after in the industry.

however, he felt like it was sucking the life out of him and he hated it, causing him to become rather grumpy and recluse and thus, he turned to drinking, just as his parents did years prior.

while in the heart of his creative slump just last year, he lost both of his parents within six months of one another and truly hit rock bottom, feeling as though life meant nothing and turned to writing to get him out of it.

after getting a little too drunk at a bar one night with his friends, he drunkly performed one of the songs he had written in the presence of all of his industry friends and after hearing his deep, raspy unique voice, they pushed him to start taking music seriously, which he did, since had nothing left to lose. 

he got a group of his buddies together and formed the band ‘kings of leon’ - named after the leon bar that his father owned in their small town.

now,  after the release of his debut album ‘only by the night’  and riding on the high of the success of his singles ‘sex on fire’ and ‘use somebody’, he’s in a better headspace and has a newfound confidence in himself that he didn’t before.

he still works on photography projects on the side, since that’s where his heart is, and still very much spends late night hours in his studio trying to paint something great again.

[livingfictionsystem]

Frequent Fronters Survey!

Full name? Xanthe Crow Lutece Zeitstück.

Gender/Pronouns? Androgyne. They and it, but 'it' is moreso preferred!

Orientation? Very pansexual. As in, gender has never factored into my attraction at all.

Role in the System? Cohost/social protector, everyone's collective OC, Cult Smasher 5000.

Star sign? Scorpio Sun, Leo Moon, Virgo Rising.

Favorite films? V for Vendetta, 2013 Great Gatsby, Grand Budapest Hotel.

Favorite TV series? Peaky Blinders and Shadow and Bone!

Favorite book? The Picture of Dorian Gray, the Diviners series, and the Six of Crows duology.

Favorite music? Shayfer James, Charming Disaster, Sarah and the Safe Word, Starset.

Favorite video games? Saints Row 2 and the entirety of the Bioshock series.

Characters you relate to? If Captain Jack Sparrow, Magnus Bane, and Howl Pendragon had a queer child, it would just be me.

Who’s your inner-system circle? Kaspar, Phisoxa, Aberle, Sumire, Koji, Prosper, sometimes the Harveys and, when it's Really a party, Oscar Wilde.

What do you look like in the inworld? Not too different than the outerworld! My skin is darker and my eyes are wider, rounder, and lighter. My mouth is wider and I'm a bit shorter-- about 5"5. My hair is split blonde and black, but in the inworld, I have a blonde streak on the black side and a dark blue streak on the blonde side.

What’s your aesthetic? I think y'all know. No, I'm a Victorian fop with a love of jewel tones, especially blue and gold. Sometimes I go more pirate, sometimes more vampire, sometimes a constellation-clad library goblin. But yes, I love neo-Victorian, ouji, fancy pirate, etc.

What’s your internal origin story? I was essentially an OC Phisoxa created to entertain his adoptive son. In the story he created, I was an androgynous AFAB German who moved to London and lived in a clocktower, before discovering I was actually dead the whole time. Then I was rekilled for being queer and "masquerading as a boy." (I reworked Phisoxa's original story because, no offense, but I'm the better writer. It's for sale!) Then Phisoxa decided that she wanted to bring her OC to life, and collected bits of souls, includling her own, to create my personality. Once Phisoxa had like, the rough draft of me, he stuck it into a clockwork crow, then a blue and gold pocket watch, with the idea that someone would find a body to fling me into. Phisoxa made me to have a creation with pieces of his own soul and to also have someone that will "break the cycle." See, there's a curse involving how we always end up with abusive people, in the inworld. Which has really OBVIOUS applications in the outerworld, when I look at it. (Phisoxa uses she and he, if you're confused.)

What’s your day-to-day life internally? Anywhere from brilliantly fun to insanely stressful. Sometimes, I'm in a castle and drinking cocktails and watching two centuries-old vampires banter about petty shit, sometimes I'm trying to talk someone out of committing suicide via magical/possessed means, sometimes I'm fighting for my life and actively feeling everything, sometimes I'm flying as a crow to the abandoned European building. It seems like it's always me involved in setting fires or putting them out. I live an old inn in Prague and work there for room and board. I also spend a lot of time in dimensional rifts and timelocked places since some of my favourite people are actually dead/ghosts in modern times.

What’s your day-to-day life externally? Taking selfies, writing, reading, promoting my work. I love exploring Rochester and taking walks, especially past anywhere that has a "no trespassing" sign. I love working at the bar and bantering with my hotel friends. I eat and breathe literature and love to rewatch some of my favourite shows. I do have good friends around here but we're all chronically under-spooned groundhogs that just lift up flags that say "I SUPPORT YOU' when none of us have the energy to text back. More often, I'll lock myself into my study and have a controlled breakdown about what's happened to me and suddenly a masterpiece comes out of my fingertips.

What do you wish more people knew about you?

What you see is what you get. I'm not as bad as whatever ex you're flashing back to, I'm not as good as you want me to be. I'm a selfish, aggrandizing, pun-wielding drunk with my head in the clouds, but I do my best not to be a hypocrite and not hurt the people I care about. You're not going to save me and I'm not going to save you, but we can at least trade jokes hunt for the art and romance in this fetid reality.

-Xanthe 🪶

[thelovelybitten]

vera's first watch of south park -- season 4 (part 1)

bc i know this is about to be so very long

EPISODE 1: SEGA DREAMCAST Y'ALL KNOW WHAT IS UP no I FORBID Y'ALL USUING KENNY'S TEEF TIMMEHHHH aww he's so cute NO NOT KENNY'S TEETH DFDSBKGBKSD :'(((( y'all rly stripped my son nakey... SHAME ON U i chuckled at cartman being the tooth fairy kyle is MAD MAD i was mad when i found out santa wasn't real stan kinda slayed w his plan omg MAFIA TOOTH FAIRY THIS IS SO GOOD WHAT "tits" cartman REALLY DEBATING NKDGKNJGFDJKN main four mafia gang WENDY IN FRAME I LOVE HER no bc if stan showed up in a spiffy suit working for the tooth fairy brigade at 8 years old, i don't know why wendy WOULDN'T BE WHIPPED KENNY'S HAT kyle is in his delusional arc, cartman, leave him be wtf... kyle y'all rly left kenny in the river ihy EPISODE 2:

AWWW A LITTLE SLED RACE ON THE TINY HILL

Tolkien slayed get him

please Wendy be in the select four

hc little Stan and little wendy are extremely competitive at sled racing and make it their whole personalities when the gangs hang out for the annual sled racing every year. they still got their little crush on each other but when they break up the first time OH THEY OUT FOR BLOOD.

Tolkien still ate and Cartman is a piece of shit

HATE CRIME ???? Ngl get ur Justice king

this is actually. so good I love when cartman gets what he deserves

Bebe and Kyle in the same frame it must be so

KENNY TAKE ME TO MEXICO

Kenny did not deserve that slap BYE

SJKDNSLCJXK THIS CHASE HAHA

Kyle: what the fuck is happening

the girls gaslighting, girlbossing and gatekeeping AS THEY SHOULD

juvenile hall is. Sumth.

OH THIS BOY ABT TO FUCK ERIC UPPPP

butters: I think Clyde is the next fattest kid SIR THE DISRESPECT ON MY SONS NAME FROM MY OTHER SON ITS PAINFUL. So hard to have multiple children out here

Girls are SLAYIN idc

AYO YALL GET OFF CLYDE I HAVE BEEF WITH CLYDE HATE

Clyde is literally a perfect size wtf y’all on ABT

“Oh my god we killed Kenny”

“We killed Kenny?”

“We killed Kenny, we’re bastards”

STYLE SO TRUE

Y’all hyping up cartmans ass LMAO

Bebe slayed

YALL CANT BREAK HIM OUTTA JAIL THATS ILLEGAL

THE PIG LATIN LMAOOOOOOO THEY DEVOURED

CARTMAN GROSS

KYLE THATS FUNNY LMAO

EW

this is so gross I hate it here

Not HIM FLUSHING THE CIGS

Tolkien rich as fuck

aAND THEY GET HISTORY LESSON LETS GO

WHAT THE FUCK CARTMAN

cartman in his gaslight era AGAIN

Jesus he’s so manipulative but it’s kinda iconic

THE THREE BOYS EPIC

OH THIS PRESENTATION IS WELL DONE MY BOYS WELL DONE

Lmao cartman is so heartless HAHA

CLYDE GET THEM

Bebe on the gals team let’s goooo

Clyde is CRYING LMAOOO

CARTMAN HAHAHAHAHAHA

YO NOT YALL HURTING THE GWORLS JAIL TIME

WHAT IS HAPPENING

okay. That was. An episode. Haha.

EPISODE 3

Kyle being up until 2:00 am UGH

WENDY AND KYLE MY SMART KIDS <3

MR GARRISON THUMBS DOWN DONT PICK ON TIMMY >:(

Timmy doesn’t have ADD but oh my lord I’d die if I had to listen to an audio book of the great gatsby

mackey and victoria asleep REAL OF THEM

STENDYLE ON THE COUCH TOGETHER AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

specifically stendy as their heads lean on one another 🥹🥹🥹

KENNY DONT BONK UR HEAD U DESERVE BETTER

TIMMY SINGER ERAAAAAAA <3 u get em

everyone hyping up Timmy as they should !!! Wendy, Clyde and Tolkien my babies

POGS TIMMY IS A SLAY

Kenny and Cartman WHACKED OUT ON STIMULANTS

DAMN THEY ARE SO BORINGGGG LMAOOO ITS SO FUNNY

the kids: 😐😐😐

I hate this portrayal of Timmy’s disorder 😩

NOT THE PAN TO THE FACE POOR KENNY

NO DONT BEAT UR KIDS PARENTS

“AHHH ITS CHRISTINA AGULIERA” HAHA

Stan ate that speech

INTERESTING EP LOL

EPISODE 4

EVERYONE LOOKS SO CUTE DRESSED UP AWWWWW

KENNY *slams fists* THATS MY BOIIIIII

stan so unbothered by this clown

CARTMAN IS DEADASS ASLEEP ME TOO

contorting girlies got GAME

omg not them trying to do the same show LMAO

KENNY DKCMFHDHDJKCHD THIS COSTUME

not the boys naked PLEASE

Kenny reading on how to sing JSJFBDJSKD WHOLESOME

he's so cute u guys that's my fucking son

the oldies getting frisky EWWWWWWWWWWWW

wait she's dead????

NOOONOT THE GIRLS :(((((((

Kenny side quest I love it

HEMADE IT YAAAAAA

lil Romania girlies getting a slice of America

Stans HOUSE HOLY SHIT

not the girliessss

KENNY POPPING AWFFFFF

Kenny bffr come home

THEY SLAYED ATE THE BOYS UP

THE ENDING NOOOOO

note: Kenny can SING

EPISODE 5

domestic core 4 board game time

not AIDS Cartman bffr

OH KENNY’S GETTING A SIBLING?

CARTMAN NO

GET UR ASS OFF THE COMPUTER RIGHT THIS INSTANT

oh my god I'm actually scared for cartman for once

HE DOESNT DESERVE THIS FATE

STOP TOUCHING HIMMMMM

Kenny being worried abt this baby

Play catch! Cute

OH SHIT KENNY WHAT A FAST BALL

trying to stop him from having sex GENIUS

STAN AND KYLE ON THE WINDOWS JDHSHCJDKXKX THEY’RE MY BESTEST BOYS

Jesus cartman I'm so sorry don't know yet

HUH. NAMBLA IS FUCKED UP

GARRISON COMING OUT KING

MEPHESTO NOOOOOO

THE THREE OF THEM AT THE WINDOW AGAIN I LOVE THEM SO

OH SHES PREGGO SORRY KENNY

KENNY IS RLY TRYING TO KILL THIS KID ITS SO SAD

OH SHIT NOT THE DAD DRINKING IT DHDHCJSJBXHDBDDJDN

NASTY BRO

cartman nooooo

Kenny’s dad is going thru it

KENNYS DREAM OH MY LORD

Kyle NO TAKE IT BACK TAKE IT BACK

these men need jail time JAIL TIME

Don't LAY A GOD DAMN FINGER ON BUTTERS U FREAK OF NATURE

NOT TIMMY ANYONE BUT TIMMY

THIS IS SO FUCKED UP

NO I CANT NOT MY KIDS

RUN KIDS RUN

CARTMAN. YOU CANT BE SERIOUS

NO NOT BUTTERS

The actual trauma NO

I CANNOT BELIEVE THIS CARTMAN I HATE YOU

NO BUTTERS NO NO NO

thank god he's okay

But kennys dad i’m so sorry

Oh KENNYS NEW SIBLING

wait it's kenny PLEASE

[more-than-tender-curiosity]

Hi unfortunately this is my only solace in the world!

So basically consider you are trying to be the ��Perfect American Man”. What do you need for that?

White picket fence + wife + kids.

Jay got the money to have the white picket fence. Daisy will be the wife, kids might come after but he hasn’t thought that far yet. But she’s his last hope in regards to forcing himself into a shape of someone he thinks he needs to be (compulsory heterosexuality)

Unfortunately for Jay’s best laid plans, someone shows up and apparently shows him that there is another way. Someone shows up and is kind to him, believes in him, hands him the world and asks for nothing in return. Won’t even accept a job or money, won’t even let him pay for lunch. Suddenly a weight is taken off of his shoulders.

And why does Nick do this? Even though he claims over and over again “these rich people drag me into everything against my will” when he’s doing all of this (handing him the keys to his future) for Literally Nothing?

You know, Nick, the guy who fled the midwest because he was starting to feel entirely incompatible with the enforced traditions? Who couldn’t even hold onto Jordan for a full summer, despite claiming he was half in love with her?

There is something there between Jay and Nick that they themselves cannot confront because if they did, Nick’s ties to the rigid form of his father’s son melt away entirely, when he still relies on his father’s approval for everything (don’t forget who’s funding this extended vacation to Long Island). Jay has to admit that chasing Daisy was a pointless endeavor because who he really is will not change once he has her.

There are so many moments where they are almost able to admit it, too. To the point where Nick seems to want us to believe even he is unaware of how dedicated he is to Gatsby, to the idea of him, and to his own failure in the preservation of that idea.

After all, people don’t typically name their memoirs after other people.

For further reading I would recommend Absolution by F. Scott Fitzgerald (it’s a short story that was originally Jay’s backstory but scott changed the names and published it elsewhere for a quick buck) as it sort of displays that Jay may very well have realized somewhere around puberty (when tons of people hit their Not Straight awakening) that something was “wrong” with him.

Also, what I call “The Garden Scene” from the Princeton Draft of the great gatsby. It’s on my blog under #the garden scene, and it displays fully how Jay’s commitment to the bit, so to speak, has deteriorated since he met Nick. Jay all but gets on his knees begging Nick to give him a reason to give Daisy up and accept himself but Nick, ever the hypocrite, ever his father’s moralist son, spends most of that time deluding himself into believing Daisy was right for Jay and that Jay should suck it up and pursue her harder and whatever admission he had for Jay—perhaps that he loved him, too—died without ever living.

All of this makes more sense if you understand tgg to be a revisionist retelling of what happened that summer, and Nick’s doing everything in his power to obscure his guilt over what happened at the end (no spoilers). After all, for better or for worse, he touched that man’s life.

I’m reading the great gatsby and Im trying to figure out how people ship nick and gatsby because for one gatsby is the straightest man I’ve ever read, and two there’s absolutely no chemistry I’m sorry 😭

[havecourage-darling]

Teenage Dirtbag

Pairing: Eddie Munson x short, plus-sized, girly-ish, female reader.

WC: ~9K

Warnings: cursing, eddie being a lil bit of a horndog, unrequited but not unrequited love

A/N: This song screamed Eddie Munson to me and I had to write it, I don't know what to say for myself lmao I thought it was going to be 1K at most. Welp.

Masterlist || AO3

Eddie Munson knew he wasn’t the smartest person in town. He was far from the dumbest, Jason Carver took that title by a landslide.

In fact, Eddie would dare to say he was actually pretty intelligent. He wasn’t book smart, not with subjects he didn’t give a shit about, but he had common sense. Which, clearly, wasn’t so common – especially in Hawkins.

However, even Eddie had to admit that he was the dumbest son of a bitch on this planet sometimes.

The primary example was when he managed to fall in love with you, his English tutor. 

After Eddie had bombed the first major test – on his second go at his senior year – his teacher had assigned him a mandatory tutor.

“I know you think I don’t like you,” Ms. O'Donnell said, her sharp eyes softening when Eddie snorted, “but I want you to succeed. You’re smarter than you let on and I can see that.”

“Don’t feel bad. All teachers hate me,” Eddie joked, a thread of truth to it.

“Well not me,” she said, “and to prove it to you – I’m going to assign you a tutor.”

What? “Aw, come on,” Eddie groaned, “I’ll do better on the next one!”

Ms. O’Donnell rolled her eyes. “That’s what you said all last year. I was the one who signed off on you using my classroom for Hellfire Club you know. It’s been four years and I’ve seen some of the things you come up with. You’re good at writing, Mr. Munson. You just need to apply yourself.”

Wait, she knew about some of his campaigns? “Which I’ll do from now on!” The comical expression on her face indicated that Eddie was not getting through to her.

“Trust me,” she said, “she took my advanced placement course as a sophomore. She’s a senior, like you, and she’s willing to do it as a favor to me.”

“Is this mandatory?” Eddie winced when his teacher’s sharp gaze returned.

“Yes,” she said, her expression softening when Eddie slumped. “I’ll make you a deal, just let her tutor you for the next quiz. If you get higher than a C, with genuine effort, you can opt out.”

“Deal,” Eddie sighed.

And now here he was, four months later and definitely more than one aced quiz later, with you in your first sundress of the season. Eddie had been waiting for you at the library, the same table in the back – hidden behind the cookbook shelves – when you walked in. The thin straps drew his attention first, his eyes trailing down to the neckline which exposed the swell of your breasts in a way that had Eddie shifting nervously in his seat.

You’d apologized, sitting down hastily, your breath coming out in quick pants. Your car hadn’t started this morning so you had to ask Dustin, your neighbor, to borrow his bike to get here.

The image of you biking in that dress was something that he didn’t know he needed.

Like always, you pulled out your battered copy of The Great Gatsby and got to work. Eddie had read the book, you’d been right – he did like it – but spent most of the first hour watching you explain the chapters he’d been assigned.

There was just something about the way your eyes lit up when you started rambling about literary terms and characterization. You tended to speak with your hands, cherry-colored nails flying as you waved a hand in the air.

Oh, you were saying his name. “Are you listening Eddie?” You asked, eyes shooting him a knowing look.

“Shortcake, I always listen to every word you say,” Eddie joked, winking. A flustered expression overtook your face and Eddie watched your fingers come up to your hair, a sure sign that his comment had hit. He hated the rush of serotonin that gave him.

See? Complete dumbass behavior.

“Pay attention, you have a quiz next week and then we start working on your final paper,” you said, tapping his hand softly. The warmth of your skin sent an electric current up his arm and straight to his chest. “Here, I brought an outline of what I thought would be good topics for you to choose from. I’m partial to Shakespeare – oh don’t give me that look – but I listed other options too. Let me see if they finally got that book that I was looking for.”

Eddie nodded and failed to avert his eyes as you walked away. Your hips swayed as the black patterned dress rippled with your movement.

It wasn’t his fault, not really. Eddie glanced at the paper you’d handed him, your handwriting neat and precise. He’d been dreading meeting you when Ms. O’Donnell had mentioned your name. You weren’t a cheerleader but you basically friends with the whole squad. He’d seen you at parties when he was selling, you always seemed nice but Eddie knew from experience that the popular crowd were just vultures waiting for a sign of weakness. Eddie wasn’t going to be stupid enough to expose any.

“Oh, hey, Lucas!” Your voice carried from a few shelves away. Eddie straightened. “I haven’t seen you since the last campaign!”

Eddie couldn’t hear what Lucas answered but your quiet laughter sent the equally stupid butterflies in his ribcage into chaos. Eddie fought a groan and pinched the bridge of his nose. Honestly, he could hardly be at fault when you had the audacity to have a laugh as cute as that.

“Did you look over the outline? Oh, are you okay?” You asked, eyes pinched in concern. Eddie shook his head, his hair settling around his shoulders.

“I’m fine, just a little tired,” he lied. “Was that Sinclair I heard?”

You beamed at him and Eddie swore he felt his heart stop in his chest. Jesus H. Christ, he was going to send you the bill when you sent him to the ER. “It was! I can’t believe he’s taller than me now,” you said, wrinkling your nose when Eddie laughed, “oh shut up. I meant, I used to babysit them. They were all little munchkins a few minutes ago. Now they’re freshman. That’s wild.”

“Calm down there, grandma,” Eddie retorted as you rolled your eyes, “besides, it’s not exactly hard to be taller than you nowadays shortcake.”

Eddie could tell you were trying your best to bite back a grin. “You know, I’m the one who brought your grade up from a F to a B minus, you should be nicer to me.”

“Oh, I’m sorry, did I offend you your highness?” Eddie swooned, hands on chest, as he leaned back in his chair. “How can I ever thank you for saving me?”

“By passing your last quiz of the year,” you said dryly, eyes lighting up, “and maybe picking Macbeth for your final essay.”

Eddie snorted. “Not likely.”

“And that’s how you treat your hero?” You asked him, batting your eyelashes.

Fuck, those should come with a goddamn warning.

“How about I make you a mixtape?” Eddie joked, chewing at the end of his pen and giving your outline another look.

Your face, however, completely lit up. “Deal!”

“What?” Eddie stammered, dropping the pen from his mouth.

“No take-backs Munson!” You laughed, shrinking when the librarian shot you a look. Eddie huffed a laugh at your contrite expression and watched you turn back to him. “You get a passing grade on these last two assignments and you make me a mixtape as a physical form of your eternal gratitude.”

“Shortcake, I don’t think we have the same music tastes,” he said, eyeing the Walkman you’d left at the corner of the table with your bag.

A haughty look cross your face and the stupid butterflies slammed into his small intestine painfully. “How would you know?” You asked. “You barely ask me anything outside of English.” The second part was quieter, almost involuntary and Eddie was suddenly struck by something.

Eddie had never pushed for anything more than you had freely given. He tried not to ask about what you were doing, what you liked, or what your weekend plans were. You’d smile to him in the hallways at school but you had completely different schedules so you rarely saw each other. Besides, Eddie had an ingrained self-preservation intuition and vehemently avoided any contact with the popular crowd.

While Eddie was not a betting man, he took calculated risks. You were – beyond the ability to analyze. But…the way your face had twisted, maybe he’d gotten his signals wrong? Had you wanted him to be your friend? He’d always assumed you were doing this to fulfill some extracurricular activity. Wouldn’t you be…embarrassed to be seen with him?

“Alright sweetheart,” Eddie said eventually, “educate me then.”

You stuck out your tongue, breaking the tension and tucked your Walkman into your bag. “Too late. You snooze you lose Munson,” you said, packing up your stuff. Eddie glanced at his watch and was once again astounded to realize two hours had flown by.

“I’ll see you next week at the same time?” You asked. “Drop your paper outline in my locker and I’ll take a look at it so we have something to cover.”

“Ma’am, yes, ma’am,” Eddie saluted.

“Oh,” you said, hand elbow deep in your bag, “you see Mike tomorrow, right? At Hellfire?”’

Eddie frowned, unsure. “Yeah?”

“Can you give him these?” You asked, dropping a set of die in his hands. “He wanted to borrow my old set.”

Glancing at the well cared for set in his hand, Eddie gaped. “Are these holographic?”

You grinned and pulled your backpack onto your shoulders. “Yeah! Dustin got them for me for my birthday a while ago. They’re custom! He painted them for me.”

Eddie felt his throat dry up and was almost positive he’d floated up into the stratosphere. Seriously, a semitruck could’ve trampled him and he would’ve been less surprised.

“You coming?” You asked, totally unaware of how close Eddie was to offering you his heart on a platter.

Spurred into action, Eddie pocketed the set carefully and grabbed his bag. “Yeah, I- I’m coming.” He took in your carefully stacked bracelets and dainty necklace. Your pink sandals echoed in the hallway as you made your way to the familiar bike chained outside. How did someone like you play dnd?

“Dustin taught me,” you said as you walked the bike next to his van.

“What?”

You laughed, tucking a strand of hair behind your ear and squinting a little at the sun in your eyes. The air in his lungs caught at the sight of your skin in the light. Were you holographic? “Dustin and the other kids I babysat taught me how to play. I’m not very good,” you admitted sheepishly, “that’s why I never told you.”

“Oh,” he said, because his brain still wasn’t totally back from its trip into space.

“I’m an elf rogue,” you said, shrugging, “Will said it suits me since I used to practice archery.”

Eddie bit down on his cheek hard enough to almost draw blood. He fought every nerve in his body to not glare at the sky. Really universe? Really? Was his daily pining not enough?

“You’re a box of surprises, aren’t you, shortcake?” Eddie said, rocking on his heels.

You grinned. “I’m rusty at that too. My aunt lives in Indianapolis and she’s won a few competitions in archery. I’d stay with her over the summer breaks and she taught me. It was fun to run around thinking I was some kind of mini-Hawkeye or something.”

At that, he couldn’t hide his surprise. “Marvel?”

“I told you,” you said, looking incredibly flustered, as your eyes went down to your feet, “I babysat Dustin. For years. Some of it stuck.”

Say something, he urged, voice stuck in his throat.

“Uh, so I’m going to go,” you said, bright smile back on your face.

Eddie scratched the back of his neck. “Do you want a ride?” He asked, gesturing to his van. Great, that’s the best he could come up with?

You turned your smile in his direction and Eddie almost stumbled at the power of it. Jesus, he really needed to get a grip on himself. This couldn’t be healthy.

Nodding, you’d taken a step towards him when a loud honk popped the bubble you both were tucked into. Eddie glanced over your shoulder and felt reality sucker punch him in the throat.

“Hey baby!” Nick shouted, torso almost hanging out that stupid Camaro window. “I’ve been looking for you. Your sister said you’d be here.”

Aaaand that was the second reason he was a complete dumbass.

“Sorry,” you mumbled, looking embarrassed. “Thanks for the offer.”

“Mhmm, see ya,” Eddie said, darting towards his van and completely missing your look.

Eddie started his van and shot out of the parking lot. He risked a glance in his rearview mirror and immediately regretted it. You were tucked into the quarterback’s arms, his face ducking down to yours, and Eddie tightened his hold on the steering wheel.

You had a boyfriend – a jock no less – because of course you did, since when did life ever like to be fair to him? Why would it ever start now? Eddie scrambled for the cigarette carton in his passenger’s seat and lit one up. Nick Jackson had been the one who almost broke Gareth’s nose last year in gym class. Nick Jackson would absolutely kick his ass if he knew how gone he was on his girlfriend.

What type of asshole had two first names anyway? And how the hell had he managed to land someone like you?

He knew the answer, obviously, but he was still in shock despite the fact that Eddie had seen you two together for the past month.

Whatever. Fuck high school. The second he had that diploma in his hands he was driving out of here and not looking back.

Eddie was over school. He’d finally gotten the news that he’d been given the green light to graduate and the first person he wanted to tell was you.

So, to mediate that, he decided to skip his last two classes and gone out to the picnic table in the woods behind the school to smoke. Taking another drag, Eddie leaned back onto the rough wood table and snorted. Who would’ve thought? He’d known ’86 was going to be his year.

Although it was in no small part thanks to you. Eddie had seen you this morning – dressed in a blue ruffled skirt, with a cardigan and a shirt that hid absolutely none of your curves. He’d felt like someone had slammed a locker door in his face, blood rushing to the bottom half of his body.

The sound of a branch snapping had Eddie jumping up, instinctively flinging the joint off towards the trees. He turned towards the sound, excuse on the tip of his tongue, when his throat closed. You stood there, shy smile on your face, hands gripping your bags strap tightly.

“Hey Munson,” you said, motioning to the table. “Can I join you?”

“Uh, yeah shortcake, please,” he gestured grandly to the old, rusted table like it was worth a million bucks. “Welcome to my hide out. Uh, sorry for the smell and the smoke.”

You laughed, eyes wrinkling and mouth turning up like he was hilarious. “I actually wanted to ask if I could buy some off of you,” you scrunched your nose and Eddie felt his heart stop. “Don’t make fun of me.”

“What?” Eddie smacked his hand to his chest exaggeratedly. “Me? Make fun? Of you? I’m insulted.”

“Ah yes, because you’re so friendly,” you joked. “I’ve never smoked before so could you sell me something already rolled?”

Eddie grinned. “You’re in luck shortcake,” he said, patting his denim vest for the bag he knew was keeping for later, “I’ve got some for you right here.”

“How much?” You asked, searching for your wallet.

Waving off your offer, Eddie dropped it onto your bag. “Consider it a thank you for helping me get to graduation.”

You froze, eyes darting up to his and Eddie couldn’t help the grin that grew on his face. “Oh my God, Eddie, don’t joke with me about this.”

“I’m not!” He laughed, opening his arms and throwing his head back. “I’m finally fucking out of here!”

Without warning, you threw your arms around him. Eddie stumbled, more than a little surprised, and stilled for a second. His arms, however, were much smarter and quicker than the rest of him because they settled immediately on the curves of your hips. You squeezed him tightly, your fingers scratching almost subconsciously at his back in soothing circles. “I’m so proud of you! I knew you could do it Eddie, I knew it.”

Eddie leaned back to see that you were beaming, eyes bright and smile so wide it looked like it could crack your face in two. The sun pierced through the shade of the trees, landing on you like a natural spotlight – because of course it did. “Well, it’s mostly thanks to you. I couldn’t have done it without you,” he said. Which, was a hundred percent true.

He watched your eyes drift down his face, and for a millisecond he could’ve sworn they landed on his lips, but before he could confirm – you’d darted away. Hands fluttering down your pink cardigan, you soothed out the non-existent wrinkles and frowned.

“I’m sorry,” you mumbled, “I didn’t mean – I know people hate when I – I’m sorry.”

“When you what?” Eddie furrowed his brows, confused. “Don’t be sorry.”

You wrung your hands together and Eddie hated how small you tried to become. “I – uh, Nick hated when I just hugged him out of nowhere,” you sighed, “I’m sorry.”

Reason number one that jock was a dumbass. If Eddie had the chance, he’d cling to you like a goddamn koala.

“Hey, what’d I say? We’re friends, right?” Eddie asked, ducking to try and catch your eyes.

“Are we?” You said, surprised.

Eddie clutched his heart, looking down at his hands as if there were blood, and blinked at you. “I didn’t know you came here to shoot me straight through the heart.”

A beat of silence echoed in the clearing before you laughed, delighted by his antics. Eddie smiled at your joy; you were one of the only people in his life that never complained about his general over the top flair. “I’m sorry,” you said, tone adorably earnest. “I didn’t mean it like that – I thought, well, I thought you didn’t want to be friends with me.”

He couldn’t help it, he really couldn’t but he let out an unattractive laugh and shot you a look. “Shortcake, if anyone was embarrassed to be seen with the other it’s definitely not me.”

An indignant sort of expression settled in your entire body. Eddie watched you, fascinated. He’d never seen you be anything but a human personification of a sunbeam.

“I’m not embarrassed to be seen with you,” you huffed, crossing your arms and Eddie’s eyes darted to the top of your head. Jesus Christ. He was not going to stare at your chest like a fucking pervert. He was not. Completely oblivious to his plight, you continued huffing. “I’ve tried to say hi to you like three times since I started tutoring you. You always looked like I was a lion who’d caught a mouse.”

“Because popular kids don’t talk to the outcasts, sweetheart. Don’t take it personally,” he sighed, “it’s a self-preservation tactic.”

You blinked at him. Eddie cringed internally – of course he fucked this up not even two minutes in. He scrambled to think of a way to rectify it when you sighed.

“Nick said he didn’t want me tutoring you anymore,” you said quietly.

Eddie didn’t know he could hear a heart shatter but he was positive that his just fell to the floor beneath him. That asshole. Didn’t he have enough? Thanks a lot universe.

“He said it wasn’t becoming of me to keep doing this so he wanted me to stop. I knew it was because he didn’t like you though,” you admitted.

Sighing, Eddie sat back down onto the table and pulled out another joint. Lighting it up he took a drag and blew the smoke towards his left. “So, I guess this is goodbye?”

A bird nearby sang, as if knowing he needed a soundtrack for this car crash waiting to happen. “No, you idiot,” you snapped, “I broke up with him.”

Everything tilted sideways and Eddie was sure someone had smacked him in the head with something. Maybe his hearing was off? “I’m sorry, I think I had a small seizure. Did you say you broke up with him?”

You nodded, coming over to sit across from him. “I never really liked him that much anyway. Chrissy thought we’d be cute together but I’m pretty sure I’m not his ideal type.”

“What, why is perfect too intimidating for him?” Eddie asked, the words out of his mouth before he could stop them. Jesus fucking – just take him out. Universe? You can take me out now! He screamed internally.

“Shut up,” you mumbled, ducking your head. Eddie saw the pleased smile on your face before you hid it away and it sent a stupidly happy pang through his body. “I meant, well – you know.”

“I really don’t.”

Sighing, you motioned to your body. “You know, someone skinny enough to be a flier on the cheerleading team.”

Eddie felt his spine solidify. “Did he…did he say that to you?” He asked, his vision darkening. “That absolute fucking shithead.” What an asshole. Not only did he have the hottest girl in the entire fucking town but he was taking jabs at you? Eddie wanted to punch something.

“Wait!” Your cool hand wrapped around his wrist and Eddie hadn’t even realized he’d stood and walked in the direction of the school. “Munson! It’s okay – he didn’t say it out loud! Holy shit you’re a lot stronger than you look.”

Eddie felt you wrap your torso around his arm in an attempt to stop him. Your chest pressed against his bicep and Eddie had to close his eyes and think of his great-aunt. A soft poke to his cheek had him looking down at you, amused. You looked like a squirrel clinging to a tree. With a slow nod, he let you walk him to the bench.

“Was that a dig at my body?” He asked. “Do I look weak?”

A mortified expression settled on your face and you immediately shook your head. “That’s not what I meant at all! I just – I meant, I’m – oh, you’re teasing me,” you said, exhaling a loud breath. “I hate you.”

Smiling, Eddie bumped your shoulder with his. “No, you don’t.”

“There’s no hurt feelings, I promise,” you told him, referring to Nick, “I wasn’t what he wanted and he wasn’t what I wanted.”

“Yeah?” Eddie took another drag of his discarded joint. “What’s your type? Swim team? Basketball team? Wait, soccer player.”

You rolled your eyes and bumped his shoulder again. “No,” you said, crossly. “I don’t know. For starters maybe someone who doesn’t think Metallica is just random noise.”

Eddie sighed. He looked up at the sky, a common occurrence at this point, and wondered if whoever was up there was having fun torturing him. You played dnd and you liked Metallica. Sure. Why not? He hoped Mother Nature or God, or whoever, was having a great laugh at his expense.

“I had you pinned for a Madonna girl,” he said eventually, reeling in the affection that seemed to be pouring off him in waves.

“I am, I like a ton of music,” you said, “I’m not condescending with my music tastes.”

Gaping, Eddie shot you a look and fought his smile at your mischievous look. You were going to be the death of him.

“Hi Wayne!” Your voice floated through the front door. Eddie straightened, eyes darting around the room to make sure anything embarrassing was hidden away.

“Hi honey. You know you don’t have to bring me something every time you come over,” he said, sounding pleased. Eddie rolled his eyes. In the past two months, you and Eddie had become fast friends. In fact, Eddie didn’t know how he’d gone almost the entire second half of the school year without bombarding you with questions.

He wanted to know everything about you – he’d take any crumble you’d give him. You’d shown up to Hellfire a few times, went to movies together, and religiously showed up to the Hideout to see him play. Eddie wasn’t sure he remembered his life before you. So, obviously, like nephew like uncle and Wayne had instantly loved you the way Eddie had.

“Munson, you better be decent,” you said, not waiting for an answer and kicking the door down.

“If you really want to see me in a state of undress so badly, all you have to do is ask shortcake,” he said, loving the flustered expression he could draw out of you so quickly.

“I hate you,” you said, daintily sitting on his bed and handing him a napkin full of cookies. You’d made it a habit of baking on the days you were coming over and while Eddie definitely appreciated it – he knew you were bringing them to Wayne. Who, like Eddie, completely fell for your sincerity.

“Whatever you need to tell yourself to get to sleep at night is fine with me,” Eddie said, eagerly throwing half the cookie into his mouth. “Denial isn’t healthy though.” He winked.

“Jesus, does this have an off button?” You grumbled, flopping down onto his bed.

Eddie gave himself five seconds to appreciate the way your skirt hitched up higher on your thighs as you laid down, the bright purple material easily the most colorful thing in his room. He felt his eyes glaze over a little, imagining his teeth sinking into the meaty part of your inner thigh, the noises you’d made. Suddenly, you shot up, and Eddie tried his best to look like he wasn’t just being a goddamn pervert.

“Oh, I love this song!” You said, eyes lighting up.

His heart tripped over itself at the sight but he tilted his head and realized he’d left his stereo on as he was stitching a new patch, one you’d gotten him last week onto his vest.

When you know that your time is close at hand

Maybe then you'll begin to understand

Life down here is just a strange illusion

“That’s Iron Maiden,” Eddie said, stupidly.

You rolled your eyes. “I know, shithead,” you joked and Eddie blinked – he didn’t know why the way you cursed like a sailor was still so strange to him. Someone who wore pastels, bright colors, was in track to be valedictorian, and had a smile that rivaled the sun wasn’t someone who he’d thought would be ready to swing at the first sight of conflict. “We’ve been over your music superiority complex already, remember? I’m a woman of many interests.”

Eddie grumbled. You were right – you’d been the one who had bought him Metallica’s new album at the record store downtown when it’d just released. He thought he’d have to fight his way into getting his hands on it but, like always, you were there.

“So, do you remember how much you love me?” You asked, teasing. Eddie’s pathetic heart thumped against his ribcage and he glanced up at you.

“Why does that sound like the prelude to something I’m going to hate?”

You smiled, batting your eyelashes, and pressing your folded hands under your chin. “I need someone to go to the mall with me on Saturday. Pretty, pretty, please? I’ll do anything you want!”

Eddie’s brain short circuited for brief moment, imagining the list of things he’d both dreamed and would trade his soul to be able to do to you before he realized you were waiting for an answer. “Shortcake, I treasure our friendship but there are some things my fading sanity can’t take.”

You quirked a brow and Eddie had to fight not to visible react to your pout. He often wondered how it’d feel if he bit down on it. “Eddie?”

“Sorry, what?” He shook his head, returning back to the present.

“I said, and the mall would zap the last bit of sanity you had?”

Eddie nodded emphatically. “I’m not that strong.”

“Well, despite your complete betrayal,” Eddie rolled his eyes, “Nancy said she’d go with me and helped me find a dress. I just wanted to see if you’d come with.”

“A dress?” Eddie asked. “You going somewhere fancy?”

Laughing, you shot him an incredulous look. “Wait, are you serious?”

“Yeah, where are you going?”

“Prom, Eddie,” you said with a weird look on your face, “aren’t you going?”

At that, Eddie snorted. “Me? At prom?”

“I mean, I’ll be there – so will Robin and Nancy. Gareth and Jeff told me they’re going too,” you mumbled.

“I – do you want me to go?” Eddie asked, confused. “I can drop you off and pick you up if you want. My chariot is your chariot.”

Something flashed across your face but it was gone before Eddie could decipher it.

“Oh, no, thanks. I think Robin’s getting a ride from Harrington and they’ll give me a lift,” you said.

Eddie hated how well you and Steve got along. He shouldn’t have been surprised, considering he ran in the circle you did, but when he introduced you to his friends, he hadn’t expected how quickly you bonded. It’d taken him four and half months to hurl himself out of the acquaintance zone and Steve did it in five minutes.

“Sure,” Eddie said, going back to sewing a new patch onto his vest and trying not to stab himself.

“Would you go if I asked?” You said after a beat of silence.

He was almost sure he’d snapped something important in his neck with the speed in which he turned to you. At his expression, you straightened. “I mean, like would you go to prom and hang out with us? You don’t need to go with me.”

Deflating, Eddie tried not to let it show. Of course, you hadn’t asked him to go with you. You probably had a date or at the very least someone interested. Even then, he didn’t want to lie to you.

“Yeah, shortcake, I’d go if you asked me to.”

The smile on your face was small and grew gradually into something blinding. His heart flipped, the butterflies yawned awake, and Eddie sighed. He was pathetic.

Eddie knew his strengths and weaknesses. Thanks to Wayne, he was pretty decent at fixing cars. He knew more about music than most people he’d come across. And when it came to guitar? He wasn’t humble enough to deny how good he was. However, he was blatantly aware that math and science were subjects from the depth of hell. His driving had been criticized once or twice, and, he wasn’t that great at sounding particularly eloquent.

He'd never been more aware of that than in this exact moment. Eddie was leaning against Steve’s car. His red BMW was recently cleaned and Steve was hanging out the driver’s window, telling him about his most recent date. The tie around his neck felt like it was choking him but he wasn’t entirely sure it wasn’t due to the anticipation.

Wheeler and Byers stood by their car, fumbling with her corsage and his tie. Robin’s front door opened and she came bounding out, her suit a bright blue that fit her perfectly. Her hair had been curled and she only seemed to wobble once on her heels as she made her way to the car.

“Man, if I don’t break my ankle before the end of the night,” she muttered, leaning on Eddie for support. He helped her catch her balance and smiled when she flushed at the compliments from everyone.

“You look good Buckley,” he told her, nudging her with his elbow.

Robin beamed. “You clean up well too,” she said, pulling at the suit he’d borrowed from Wayne. It was a little too big but Nancy had assured him no one would be able to tell. “I see you couldn’t resist,” she said bumping his converse with her pointy heel. “Why do you get to wear comfy shoes? She wouldn’t let me go in mine!”

“Because it ruins the look, Rob!” Your voice said from the front steps. Eddie glanced up and immediately felt the world freeze. Your dress was…molded onto your body. It was a long, lavender, flowy thing. It dipped low in the back and Eddie sighed. If the neckline was enough to give him a stroke, the back was going to have him flatlining. Your heels clicked against the stone as you hugged Robin’s parents goodbye.

“For fuck’s sake,” Eddie said under his breath, “that’s just not fair.”

Robin and Harrington, clearly heard him, snorted. “Careful there Munson, you’ll drop too much of a hint of how deeply in love with her you are if you keep that up.”

Eddie’s jaw snapped and he turned to glare at Robin. “What?” She said after Harrington snorted. “It’s true. They’re idiots.”

“Let them figure it out themselves,” Steve said. “We promised.”

“It’s infuriating,” Robin said, narrowing her eyes. “You’re both infuriating.”

“Alright, I’m all set,” you said, leaning forward to squeeze Steve’s hand. “Thanks for the ride, Steve.”

“No problem, you wanna ride with me or Byers?” Steve asked, settling into the seat.

Turning to him, he saw the question in your eyes and he cleared his throat. “Uh, wherever you want to,” he croaked.

Robin snickered and headed towards the passenger seat. Eddie shot her a glare but was interrupted by your hand on his arm. “You look great,” you said quietly as you waved to Jonathan. They honked at you as they took off down the street. “Thank you for coming.”

“For you? Anything,” he said, his tone a little too sincere than what he meant it to be. The blinding smile on your face after though, made it worth it. “You look…incredible,” he finished lamely. He heard hushed laughter from the car and fought the urge to scratch the back of his neck.

“Thanks,” you said, picking up the bottom of your dress in one hand. “I was worried I’d look dumb but Nancy was adamant this was my dress.”

Eddie needed to get Wheeler a gift. “Remind me to thank her because, shortcake?” You glanced up at him. “That dress was made for you.”

With a shy and pleased smile, you slid into the backseat and settled close to Eddie. Holy shit, you smelled amazing. Eddie barely managed to keep from dropping his nose to the crook of your neck. He slowly dropped his arm over your shoulders and grinned when you leaned into him.

Grabbing a parking spot near the entrance, Steve pulled into the school. Hopping out, he offered his arm to Robin who took it gladly.

“Are you guys ready for the last night of your high school career?” Steve asked, eyes on the doors.

“Yeah,” Robin said, “fuck this place.”

Eddie bumped her fist and you grinned. “After party at your house, Harrington?” You asked.

He knew you had to have been invited to a few afterparties – Robin had promised to make an appearance at the house of some kid from band. He’d heard you tell Nancy that you’d be going with Robin. Steve had assured him that they’d tag along too.

“More like the after after party when you two are drunk off shitty vodka,” Steve said motioning to Robin, who rolled her eyes and made a silly face.

“It happens one time…”

Nancy waved a hand in the air before disappearing through the doors. “Come on!” She shouted over her shoulder. You huffed a laugh and linked your arm through his.

“Ready?”

“Not really, but I’ll follow you into hell apparently.”

“You say the sweetest things,” you told him, deadpan. He snorted, other hand coming to squeeze the one you were resting on his forearm.

Eddie immediately squinted in the cloak of darkness that was the gym – he had to give it to the committee, he hardly recognized the place. A ridiculous pop song came on just as you waved to a few of your friends. “Look, Nancy found a table. Want to drop off our stuff and dance?” You asked the group. Robin nodded, already making her way towards the table and Eddie had to admit he felt a little out of place.

The itch under his skin yelled at him to run but the happy smile on your face when you patted the empty seat next to you kept him tethered to you – because how could it not? Eddie was sure you could ask for the disco ball and he’d risk his diploma to get it for you. 

“Drinks?” Eddie asked, overwhelmed by the five nodding heads. Byers, with a small smile, got up and offered his help.

While Eddie had grown, no matter how reluctantly, close to Robin and her sidekick Harrington. Jonathan had only recently become a new addition. His family had just moved back and he seemed too quiet to really like the chaos that Eddie knew he tended to attract. His kid brother however, Will, was one of his favorites. Not that he’d ever tell Dustin that. The kid had a jealousy streak a mile long.

They had both just settled into their seats, everyone with a drink in hand, when another pop mess song came on. Robin and you straightened, eyes going to each other before you scrambled to your feet. “I’ll be right back,” you said, dropping a kiss to his cheek that had him stunned for a moment. Robin grabbed your hand and you both ran towards the dance floor.

“It’s their favorite song,” Steve explained, watching them wave over a reluctant Nancy. You both bounced around, heads shaking, and zero care that a few people were shooting you looks. “You gonna ask her to dance tonight?”

Eddie shot Steve a look and hated that Steve felt comfortable enough now to ignore him.

“Don’t give me that look man,” Steve laughed, “you came together! You can’t not ask her to dance.”

“We didn’t come together,” Eddie muttered, taking a sip of the disgustingly sweet punch, “she made that pretty clear.”

“Or you heard what you wanted to,” Nancy said, finally standing with Jonathan’s and in hers. “Because from what I know, she thinks you’re here together.”

“Wait, what?” Eddie shouted at Nancy’s retreating back. He turned to Steve, who looked like he was hiding a laugh, “What the hell does that mean?”

“That you both have your heads stuck in the grass,” Steve sighed. “I promised Dustin that I’d let you two figure this shit out on your own but I’m giving you a needed shove. Come on Munson, we’re going to dance.”

He opened his mouth to protest but Steve put a hand under his arm and all but shoved him in your direction. Robin cheered when she saw him, her head bobbling wildly. You beamed, hands coming up to his and twirling prettily around him. His eyes were drawn to you like magnets, he couldn’t help it. You danced with abandon, graceful but chaotically at the same time. Eddie shouldn’t have been surprised but, he really wasn’t sure how much more in love with you he could get.

“I’m thirsty!” Robin shouted, pointing back to the table. Steve let her take his hand and dragged him off towards the sides.

You turned to Eddie, smile wide, and he watched it falter when the faintly familiar pop song turned slow. His feet froze and he glanced towards Wheeler – finding her arms around Jonathan’s as they swayed slowly. She widened her eyes and looked pointedly towards you.

Alright, he could take a hint. He wasn’t that stupid.

With a flourish, he bowed deeply and outstretched his hand. “Can I have this dance milady?”

Your laugh was muffled by the music but the electricity across his skin crackled as you took his warm hand with your cool one. How were you always so cold? He pulled your hands between his and tried to let some of his heat sink in. You grinned up at him, eyes soft, and he placed his own at your waist. “Okay?” He asked.

“More than,” you said, leaning your head onto his chest. He was worried you’d hear how fast his heart was racing but by the small, happy, sigh you let out – he didn’t think you’d mind.

“If you would’ve told me last year that I’d end up graduating this year, with a grade higher than a C, and that I’d be at prom with you – I would’ve laughed,” Eddie said.

You wrinkled your nose at him. “Am I that bad of a date?”

Date? Holy shit, was Wheeler being honest?

“Shortcake, you’re the best date. I just didn’t think you’d want to hang out with the likes of me,” he clarified, “I’m either invisible or a cult leader. Take your pick.” He tried to play it off as a joke but he knew you’d hear it.

“I’ve always noticed you, Eddie. You’re not invisible to me,” you said quietly, your big eyes looking up at him beneath your lashes. Jesus Christ, how much more of this could he take? For once, you seemed to share his sentiment because you took a step back, out of his arms and excused yourself. He watched you dart across the gym, grab a bewildered Robin, and pulled her into a solitary corner.

Mystified, Eddie walked back to the table and Steve raised one of his brows. “What’s happening? We’ve only been here for like an hour.”

“I have no idea,” Eddie admitted. He started to worry when he saw your purple nails from the distance flailing left and right as Robin’s hands came down on your shoulders. She said something that clearly stunned you. After a beat both of you turned towards him and he darted his eyes away to act like he wasn’t being nosey.

“Uh, that doesn’t look good,” Steve muttered. Eddie glanced back up and watched as you made your way quickly over to him. A determined expression was etched onto your face and Robin followed at a slower pace, a smug look on hers.

Without a word, you grabbed his sleeve and pulled him into the hallway when a teacher had their back turned. “Uh, shortcake?”

“Shh!” You admonished, still leading him down the hall. You don’t stop until you find an empty classroom, the lights were on and door unlocked but it was clearly deserted.

He watched your chest rise and fall quickly, like you’d run a mile, and before Eddie could ask you what was wrong – you all but chucked an envelope at him. He’d almost ducked instinctively but he managed to catch it in his hands. Where the hell had that even come from?

“What’s happening right now?” He asked, holding the envelope in his right hand. “What’s wrong?”

“Open it,” you said, your fingers went up to tug at a lock of your hair – a telltale sign that you were nervous.

“Sweetheart-”

“Eddie, open the envelope,” you stressed.

With a wary glance towards you, Eddie flipped the hastily taped tab and slid out a pair of tickets.

IRON MAIDEN, JULY 1ST INDIANNAPOLIS, IN.

“Holy shit, are these floor tickets?” He squawked, hands shaking. You had Iron Maiden tickets! How the hell had you managed that? “Shortcake, where did you get these? I thought they were all sold out.”

“My dad knows someone,” you said waving a hand like it wasn’t important. Like you hadn’t just handed him a priceless gift. “I got VIP passes too.”

Eddie’s soul was gone. That’s it, it was back up on the moon, throwing a party.

“It’s not my birthday, you know,” he said, barely containing his excitement. He rocked back and forth on his heels. Holy shit, he was going to see Iron Maiden! With you!

“I know,” you said, biting your bottom lip. Eddie’s soul slammed back into his body and he realized you were wringing your hands again.

“Sweetheart, what’s wrong?”

“These are for us,” you said, pointing at the tickets.

“I assumed so,” he joked.

You closed your eyes, shoulders tense. “No, like… a date.”

Eddie snorted and immediately regretted it when he saw your head duck down. Shit, you’d been serious? You couldn’t have been serious. He knew Steve and Robin gave you both shit for it these past few months but there was no way in hell that you’d ever want to go on a date with him. He would’ve noticed. He absolutely would’ve noticed the signs.

“Oh,” you said, you voice incredibly sad, and Eddie wanted to slap himself. Okay, maybe he wouldn’t have noticed.

Eddie scrambled forward; tongue stuck to the roof of his mouth. “No, wait – I didn’t mean it like that,” he said quickly, words jumbling together. “I didn’t realize you were serious. I thought – I thought you were joking.”

You winced. “I get it. I’m not…your type, we’re friends, it’s fine. You can take both tickets and take one of the guys.” The expression on your face was enough to make him want to face plant. You turned on your heel and walked to the door.

Eddie’s heart dropped to his feet and he lurched forward, hands reaching for you. “Wait, wait, that’s not what – please. Shortcake, let me speak. I just need a moment to process.” You tried to wrestle your wrist out his grip but Eddie clung on for his life. You were not just going to turn and run after dropping a bomb like that on him.

“It’s fine, Eddie. I promise I’m not – I’ll get over it.”

“I didn’t even know you liked me!” You shot him a contemptuous look and he refused to cower back. You were scary when cornered but he knew you had a soft, gooey center. Whatever he said now was important. He had to get this right.

“Sweetheart. Look at me,” he said, pulling you away from the door. “I swear, I didn’t think you felt like that towards me.”

Your hardened look softened a little when he ducked down to catch your gaze. Blinking, you frowned a little and straightened. “You’re not joking?”

“I have never in my life been more serious,” he huffed, “and I really mean that.”

Exploding, you waved your animated hands in the air and Eddie jerked back to avoid being smacked by one. “How the hell did you not notice? Everyone noticed! Even the cheer squad knew. I asked you to go with me to prom!”

“What?” Eddie’s voice cracked. “You said not with you – to hang out or something!”

“Yeah, I only said that after you looked like I had smacked you over the head!”

Eddie groaned. “Because I didn’t think you’d ever want to go with me!”

You crossed your arms and rubbed one of your temples. “It’s against school policy to tutor a student for longer than a month or two. It’s not fair to the program so we swap consistently. It’s a way to make sure everyone gets the coverage they need from the different tutors. Didn’t you question why we went from meeting at the school to the public library?”

“Uh, no?”

“Well,” you huffed, looking a little embarrassed, “I liked you from like the first session. You, obviously, looked more interested in watching paint dry so I thought I could win you over. After the month I told Ms. O’Donnell that you just needed some guidance and I’d sign off on your paperwork. I told you that we needed to start meeting at the public library instead.”

“But, what about Nick?” Eddie was so confused. Had he entered an alternate dimension again? He glanced around for any sight of the dust. “You had a boyfriend up until like three months ago!”

“Because I thought it would make you jealous!” You huffed, exasperated.

What.

“Well, it did!” Eddie shouted back, the words falling before he could stop them. “I wanted to punch his goddamn face in.”

You blinked. “But…you didn’t seem all that eager to be my friend. You barely asked me about my weekend plans. I couldn’t have dropped more hints!”

“Shortcake, you’re not only out of my league – you’re in a different dimension. I didn’t want you to feel uncomfortable!”

“Well, you didn’t!”

“Great!”

“Perfect!”

“Amazing.”

“Stupendous.”

“Are you going to keep trying to have the last word?” Eddie snorted.

You rolled your eyes but he saw your hands reach up for your hair. “I know I don’t dress like those girls at the hideout and wear too much yellow and pink and you think I’m popular and that my taste in music is overrated – which really proves my point that you’re pretentious – but –”

Eddie barely heard a word you were saying, his eyes watched your hands dance in the air, and your eyes dimming the more you spoke. How the fuck could you have ever believed that he wouldn’t like you? You still believed that, his mind supplied helpfully, anxiety evident in the rigid set of your shoulders. He knew from experience that if he let you keep going, you’d go on for hours. So, he grabbed your arms and pulled you into his chest. Startled, you stumbled and glared up at him.

“Shortcake?”

“What?”

“Please stop talking,” he said and dropped his lips to yours. Without hesitation, you wrapped your arms the best you could around his neck and pressed your body against his. Your cool fingers tangled themselves in his hair and he shuddered when your nails dragged along his scalp. Eddie, finally, bit down on your bottom lip and the low groan you let out shot straight to his dick.

Shit, even after imagining this moment for months – it really couldn’t compare. You tasted like punch, strawberries, and faintly of candy. He pulled back for air, your breath coming out in quick huffs. Eddie smiled, his heart racing at the sight of your dazed look. He did that. You liked him. He’d shared his life with you and you still liked him. Did shit like this really happen?

“So, you want to go to the concert with me?” You asked lightly, smile twisting your mouth.

Eddie threw his head back and laughed. “I want to go everywhere with you, shortcake.”

“Everywhere is good, I like everywhere,” you babbled, “...well, Steve’s house has a lot of rooms. Maybe everywhere can include that at the end of the night?”

Shutting his eyes, he valiantly tried to exercise self-control and not imagine you naked on a bed squirming beneath him. Failing, just a little, he nodded enthusiastically. “Should we go right now? Because I’ll grab Steve if we need to.”

You laughed, the sound warming him even further. “We still need to go with Robin to that afterparty.”

Eddie let his head loll as he groaned. “Conformity is so much work.”

“I’m sure you’ll be okay,” you teased, kissing him again. “Come on, someone’s going to catch us if we stay away too long.” Honestly, Eddie was willing to risk it but he knew you didn’t want to miss this.  

As you both crept back towards the gym, your hand tucked in his, Eddie wondered if he was dreaming. He passed one of the wide windows in the hallway, the gym only a few yards away, and he pulled you to a stop.

“What?” You asked, peeking out through it.

Eddie ducked to look out the glass and caught sight of the dark sky and the full moon. He winked and pointed up at it. “You had me going there for a while, but this makes up for it. We’re even!”

“Who are you talking to?” You asked, glancing around.

“The moon. Or God. Maybe the universe?”

You nodded. “Okay,” you said, shrugging like it was completely normal.

Jesus Christ, he loved you.

The familiar chords of Kiss floated out of the open doors to the gym and Eddie perked up. “Is that…”

Tonight, I want to give it all to you

In the darkness, there's so much I want to do

“Kiss?” You asked, grinning. “Yeah, I promised the DJ half a gram from you if he’d play a few songs you like.”

Yeah, he was gone for you. Totally gone. If he had any dignity or pride left, he’d be a little embarrassed but he really couldn’t work up the energy.

“Come on!” You said, tugging him back into the gym and onto the dance floor. A few jocks looked disgruntled at the change of music but Robin and Nancy were out on the dance floor, so were a few others. You immediately jumped around, eyes bright, hips swaying, and Eddie’s heart felt like it’d jump out his chest at any moment.

“And I can't get enough of you, baby. Can you get enough of me?” You sang, turning to wink at him. Steve and Robin waggled their eyebrows, shooting him knowing looks and he shook his head. Nancy laughed, offering up her fist and Eddie couldn’t help but bump it.

Alright universe, he thought, you win, you totally win. I owe you for the rest of my life.

Eddie wrapped an arm around your waist and beamed when you leaned into his touch. Your lips came up to his jaw and he sighed. Maybe the shit show that was the entirety of high school was worth it if you were waiting for him at the end.

I was made for lovin' you, baby

You were made for lovin' me

[tenjikubaby]

KAEL PLS PLS I NEED YOUR TAKE ON TENJIKU ATTENDING A FILO PROM ‼‼

I LOVE THIS!!! THANK YOU 

(self-indulgent Filipino AU Tenjiku ahead. Filipino terms are explained for non-Filos who want to read this) 

Thanks to @milkkicoffee for helping

TENJIKU AT A FILIPINO PROM

Izana has his own band and Inupi and Shion are his bandmates (bassist and drummer, respectively). Teachers asked him to perform a few songs for the night. If you want a voice reference, listen to “Come Inside of My Heart” and imagine Izana singing. 

Imagine him in an all-black suit with his hair looking like this. (Let’s pretend Filipino schools allow boys to have long hair). 

His band would also perform “Jopay” and the crowd goes crazy with people singing along for the chorus. Please also imagine him singing Buko by Jireh Lim or Misteryoso by Autotelic. People say he holds eye contact with some who stare at him and it almost feels like a Harana (serenade; part of old Filipino courting traditions.)

Izana at school has this quiet, artistic indie boy image so he would likely be a campus crush. This boy is desired. When the band is done, his admirers will be watching him, waiting for him to dance with someone. Most people were too shy to ask him to dance, though there were a few brave souls.

Shion’s mom spritzed (more like showered) him with his dad’s perfume so he smells like an older man. She and his grandma expressed their concern about him putting too much Gatsby Wax in his hair, but he insisted that he knew what he was doing. His mom wanted to take pictures of him too but he hurried to leave. 

Being in Izana’s band, he automatically thinks he's going to receive the attention that Izana and Inupi get from the ladies. That wasn't true. He confidently marches up to girls and asks them to dance, even acting like it’s such a privilege for them to be able to do so. The girls didn’t want to dance with a siga (a show-off, braggy person). This leaves him with no partner, so he ends up joke-dancing with Mocchi instead, who was too chicken to ask anyone to dance. At some point, they get tired of the prom atmosphere (what with all the lovey-dovey couples around!), so they hoard a bunch of food from the buffet and sneak into a classroom. There, they eat and play Mobile Legends. 

You can hear stressed student council member Kokonoi Hajime cursing from afar. “Tangina! Bakit ubos na agad yung fish fillet!” (”Son of a bitch! Why are we already out of fish fillet?”)

It’s not long before the two of them are caught by the principal and thrown out. To make things even worse, two older female teachers take them as partners. So there they were, dancing with old ladies to Gloria Gaynor’s “Can’t Take My Eyes Off You”. Yeah... they got filmed and laughed at. 

Now unlike Shion, Mocchi actually let his mom take a bunch of pictures of him. His mom later posted them on Facebook, saying “bilis nga nmn ng panahon. ky poging binata na ng anak q.” (Time flies. My son has grown into a fine young man.) The pic she chose is Mocchi doing the pogi sign. His aunts, grandparents, and grand-aunts are commenting on how handsome he is too, and how big he’s grown, and asking if he already has a girlfriend. His mom replies that he has a crush on someone and reveals their name. 

When they arrive to the venue, his mom makes him take a picture with each S62 boy and one last one with all of them to also post on Facebook. 

Caption: “mocchi with his friends :)” 

It gets even worse when Mocchi's crush walks by and his mom calls them over to take a picture with him.

Ran went on a whole spa trip before the day of the prom. On the very night, his stylist and his yaya (nanny) are circling him, making the finishing touches on his hair and makeup. , who has already finished getting ready an hour ago, is just sitting there waiting for Ran to finish.

You see, Ran wanted to be the emcee, but the role went to Mitsuya instead.  The teachers thought that Mitsuya's humor matched the students’ better so they would probably connect better to him. Ran was offended at the very idea that someone could be seen as more charimsatic than him.

He doesn’t let that get him down, though. He takes pictures EVERYWHERE. Rindou’s kinda just his unwilling personal photographer. He needs pictures with different angles, different poses, and different types of lighting. He needs a new Facebook DP (which he’ll probably caption with some unrelated quote from a famous person) and none of the pics turn out good enough for him.

After Izana’s band finishes their set, DJ Rindou would be up next. He got in trouble for playing an inappropriate Tagalog song (something like BMW) but he thinks it was worth it because everyone cheered him on. The teachers even found it funny until the principal came in looking pissed, so they had to be responsible teachers and step in.

Despite being one of the richer students, he doesn’t do clique-y behavior. (note: all i can say is that those cliques of mean, rich, classist people you see in fiction are real. sorry. ) He’s friends with everybody and is generally well-liked. So on prom night, Rin is jumping from table to table talking to everyone. He just knows how to vibe with different kinds of people! While Ran is more popular and admired, he feels less “accessible” to people outside his circle. People feel it’s easier to befriend Rindou. 

If Rindou has a date, I think it would be someone unexpected. Like, since he’s popular, he doesn’t take another popular person. It’s probably going to be some quiet person from his class that nobody has heard of (well, now they have). Like I said, he’s friends with everybody. 

Not prom-related but I wanted to add: Ran and Rindou are both conyos, but Rindou’s better at Tagalog than Ran. Ran understands Tagalog but can’t express himself well enough in it. Both their Tagalogs have accents and Ran’s is really thick. He can’t roll his Rs and often stresses the wrong syllables. You find it either cute or annoying depending on how you feel about them. 

*Ran probably doesn’t know what kinse (fifteen) means so he would just give the vendor a hundred-peso bill and leave. 

(Conyo: People who code-switch between English and Tagalog in their speech. Rich kids are stereotyped to speak like this. Knowing conyo’s original Spanish meaning, I think you can already see why they’re called this lol )

Kakucho groans at the idea of prom. He’s kinda dreading it until the actual night where you can see him having fun. He’s hyping up Izana and Rindou when they play music for the crowd. He also dances around no matter how awkward his movements are. At some point, he ends up getting bored and starts rough-housing with other boys. They end up destroying a table. Somehow, they also did something to make the disco ball crash down? 

What if he’s asked to dance? Though he’s a bit shy, he does try his best to socialize with his partner and make them comfortable. The same goes for if he had a date. I do see him asking a close friend to be his date instead of someone he barely knows though.

When Rindou’s off to somewhere, the role of Ran’s Photographer goes to Kakucho. 

*Kakucho also translates for Ran and Rindou when they have Filipino homework, assuming that they do their homework. 

I think Mucho arrives really early so the teachers task him with arranging tables and taking care of technical stuff. (Even in regular school days, teachers love to send him on errands i.e. fetching a projector from another classroom, carrying books into the faculty room). 

Would he get asked to dance? He’s so intimidating that it might never happen. Because of this, he’s another victim of dancing with the older female teachers. Unlike Mocchi and Shion, no one is brave enough to make fun of him. 

Soon enough, he’d feel bored all by himself because Sanzu’s getting attention left and right (The guy has long hair, quiet, mysterious, pretty, always wears a masks. I just know Filo school girls would go crazy over him if he were real) and the other S62 boys are off doing their own things. He goes to a quiet area of the school, maybe the roof, and just... ponders life there or something.

[elxctrics]

(—) ★ spotted!! MAVERICK LEDGER on the cover of this week’s most recent tabloid! many say that the 40 year old looks like CHRIS HEMSWORTH but i don’t really see it. while the MUSICIAN/ARTIST/PHOTOGRAPHER is known for being CREATIVE my inside sources say that they have a tendency to be BROODY i swear, every time i think of them, i hear the song CLAIRE AND EDDY by KINGS OF LEON {HE/HIM, CISMALE}

  ˗ˏˋ ＊ ‣ 𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐤𝐬    :  

connections || musings || instagram || headcanons

𝓼𝓽𝓪𝓽𝓲𝓼𝓽𝓲𝓬𝓼

name: maverick colton ledger

age: forty

nicknames: rick, ricky

date of birth: may, 13th, 1984

astrological sign: taurus

place of birth: ouray, colorado

occupation: artist/photographer/musician

voice claim: caleb followill from kings of leon

label: the enigma

positive traits: creative, artistic, deep, talented

negative traits: broody, reclusive, grumpy a perfectionist, 

characters/celebrities he’s like: caleb followill, luke danes from gilmore girls, keith scott from one tree hill, stefan salvatore from the vampire diaries, nick carraway from the great gatsby, noah callhoun from the notebook

𝓫𝓲𝓸𝓰𝓻𝓪𝓹𝓱𝔂

born and raised in mountain town, ouray colorado, maverick was raised as the only son of claire and eddy ledger. 

claire was a singer in a local bar, the leon, and eddy was the owner of said bar and the two had a ‘love at first sight’ kind of love, however their relationship was an incredibly toxic one - filled with jealousy and booze and rage, although they did their best to shield young maverick from it.

maverick had always been a lone wolf, much too quiet for his own good and never had or kept many friends. he preferred being alone and could often be found painting in his school’s art room or learning instruments in his father’s bar before they opened for the evening.

while he wasn’t the best student, he excelled in the arts and for his thirteenth birthday, his parents got him his first camera and living in such a picturesque little town, he fell in love with capturing it’s beauty and went on to win many photography awards throughout high school.

he loved writing music and singing, too, but after attempting to perform at the school’s talent show and getting all choked up on stage, he realized he was far too shy for that kind of spotlight and preferred to be behind the camera.

when college came around, he got accepted into parson’s school of the arts in new york city and double majored in fine art and photography.

there, he got in with the artsy scene in new york and it wasn’t long before his paintings and photography were hanging in galleries across the city and eventually, the globe.

he was on a high, but art was fleeting, and people were always looking for the next best thing, so it wasn’t long until he had to do what most had to do and sell his soul to hollywood.

he became a world renounced photographer for the rich and famous, shooting vogue covers and the most high profile fashion campaigns and became incredibly sought after in the industry.

however, he felt like it was sucking the life out of him and he hated it, causing him to become rather grumpy and recluse and thus, he turned to drinking, just as his parents did years prior.

while in the heart of his creative slump just last year, he lost both of his parents within six months of one another and truly hit rock bottom, feeling as though life meant nothing and turned to writing to get him out of it.

after getting a little too drunk at a bar one night with his friends, he drunkly performed one of the songs he had written in the presence of all of his industry friends and after hearing his deep, raspy unique voice, they pushed him to start taking music seriously, which he did, since had nothing left to lose. 

he got a group of his buddies together and formed the band ‘kings of leon’ - named after the leon bar that his father owned in their small town.

now,  after the release of his debut album ‘only by the night’  and riding on the high of the success of his singles ‘sex on fire’ and ‘use somebody’, he’s in a better headspace and has a newfound confidence in himself that he didn’t before.

he still works on photography projects on the side, since that’s where his heart is, and still very much spends late night hours in his studio trying to paint something great again.