#i actually didn't watch the halftime show

[imaginespazzi]

Another game down, another step closer to March (it's literally tomorrow guys) and like always, I have thoughts :)

Paige Bueckers: is insane

22 points on 90% NINETY PERCENT, NINE-ZERO PERCENT like y'all I don't think we even realize we're watching a once in a lifetime kind of efficient player. She's just- yeah she's just insane. Not a flash of passive P tonight AND she got to sit for a whole quarter? Yeah, this is HER season and everyone else is just along for the ride.

YEE FUCKING HAW ASH LET'S GO! I was actually a little concerned that first half because a) no one was helping P and b) Ash just looked like she was doing cardio out there but there's no energy like the energy a halftime buzzer beater can inject you. AND THE STEALS! Girlie been working on that defense and you love to see it.

My NFOY had a "quiet" 17 points which speaks to Sarah's maturity and her ability to just get a bucket. And the IQ is just so beyond her years; it's wonderful to see. That 3-ball isn't falling yet but TRUST it's going to and it's gonna be something special.

Ice finally gave me something. I still wanna see more but she was pretty god today. More than anything, I just loved seeing her hustle for those points. She boxed out well, made smarter decisions than usual. I see the progress and she's gonna get there (off the bench), I see the vision

Kaitlyn did what Kaitlyn does. I think we could use a little more from her but I think her presence is really solid. She made some questionable decisions tonight but I do think the Storrs environment which is unlike anything she's used to maybe played a factor.

Speaking of questionable decisions, KK made a fair few of them and reminded me of her freshman self. However, she also reminded me of the really great stuff she did her freshman year with a couple defense and offensive plays.

Jana didn't get as much playing time as I'd have liked her to get but the minutes she did get? Effective as hell and I can't wait for her to geting into the starting-lineup.

Morgan's a SHOOTER. And boy did we need shooting because 3's? Not our thing at all tonight.

Allie wasn't really a factor tonight but she also didn't feel like a burden so you really can't complain because her main job is to go out there, not be a liability, maybe make some things shake so that the starters can get their much needed rest.

Overall I don't think was a particularly great game. The first half was practically a Paige carry-job which is great for the agressive!P agenda but it's USF and I don't love that we were so dependent on her. The third quarter was pretty good (made up for the last one agianst BU) and the fourth quarter showed that we're still learning how to navigate without Paige. Again, its really early and the fact that we won by so much just shows how much talent we have and how high our floor is, which means out ceiling is waaaay higher.

Free. Throws. We don't get as many as we should as it is so please, please, please, make them.

Three point defense needs a fair amount of work.

Caroline is still wearing earplugs and I just wanna give the girl a hug.

Paige and Azzi finally got to sit to next to each other and immediately started yapping as if they don't do that all day?

[itsclydebitches]

I need more time to put my thoughts in order about tonight's episode, but my initial reaction is that I'm surprised by others' disappointment? I mean, I'm actually not that surprised because coming out stories are intensely personal with viewers all looking for/needing vastly different things from their media, but it just feels like a lot of what (I thought) Ted Lasso was trying to do has gotten lost under specific expectations.

Ted goes off on a long, ridiculous, borderline disgusting story at the worst possible moment? Yes, that's the point. For all my fun TedTrent theories, Ted is (currently) serving the role of the well-meaning, but often ignorant straight man. His function is to both provide the insight and warmth that he's known for - "Actually it does matter to us" - while simultaneously showing how this intensely heteronormative culture would react to a player coming out. AKA messily. If we got a perfect scenario where everyone was accepting and said exactly the right thing, that would undermine the problems the show is trying to acknowledge in the first place. The focus on Isaac's complicated anger and Ted's foot-in-mouth syndrome is just as important to this whole scenario as the club's overall acceptance and the fact that Ted immediately realizes that he fucked up: "I regret that." Ted Lasso is a feel-good comedy, so it's all couched in over-the-top humor, but I thought that was an important acknowledgement: your allies - straight or not, out or not - are likely going to react in cringe-worthy, imperfect ways and the important takeaway there is not that they're irredeemable people who don't love you, but that they're trying and you should gently correct them (as Colin does) and allow them to grow (as Ted does). Despite being an absurd fiction, Ted Lasso is working to write about this in a semi-realistic sense. Instead of a Perfect Coming Out Moment that makes all the queer fans (myself included!) squeal at how ~wonderful~ our beloved cast is for being oh so perfect, we get that realistic awkwardness, misplaced anger, and regret.

We cut away from Colin coming out? Yes, because he's already come out to us. I understand why fans would be disappointed in that, but I don't think it's fair to characterize the show as not allowing Colin to come out at all. That was the entirety of "Sunflowers." Rather than trying to fit Colin's big moment into a locker room halftime, the writers crafted a whole episode where he could grapple with that fear of being outed, be reassured, have a heart-to-heart with Trent, sit together on the monument, go out later in celebration... Ted Lasso made space for all that and, understandably to my mind, didn't want to rehash many of those same beats three episodes later, especially not when we need time to work through the intersection of Colin's story with everyone else. (Because despite this being a queer story-line about a queer man, the show is about the team. Colin's conflict was always going to expand into the rest of the cast.) No, we don't get to see Colin come out specifically to the others, but we did see him come out - both narratively by kissing a man and to Trent - and we see the team's reaction immediately after the fact. Making space for Issac didn't feel like it was cheating Colin to me, or focusing too much on the straight characters, because Colin's story has been a season in the making (plus some details earlier on). To say nothing of the fact that his hesitance about coming out is specifically because he fears the team's reaction... so why wouldn't we grapple with Isaac's negative reaction? We already know Colin's worries, we know what he wants, we see him seeking advice from Trent, we see him reaching out to Issac, we see that failing, and after all that his queer story-line is functionally at a stand-still until something else gives. Issac's explosion is what finally tips the scales.

Idk I don't think I'm explaining this very well because it's late and I only just watched, but I'm of the opinion that Ted Lasso did a lot of work in previous episodes so that they'd have space in this episode to do different work, which is smart. From a narrative perspective, Ted doesn't need to be the perfect ally because Colin already has a supportive queer mentor. "La Locker Room Aux Folles" doesn't need to try to balance Colin's emotional coming out with Isaac's internalized homophobia because "Sunflowers" already gave the audience so, so much, allowing the writers to both keep things on screen for our benefit and then later cut away for the sake of time. As said, stories like these are always going to be a hit-or-miss depending on what each individual fan wants and needs, but I think it's worth keeping in mind that Colin's story is not this single episode; it's all of them combined. Has Ted Lasso really not treated his journey respectfully... or did it just not try to check every queer story-line box in a single episode?

[frances-baby-houseman]

y'all i'm rewatching the halftime show and I was so stoned last night I don't remember half of this! wow I also tried to talk in a JFK accent at one point. And I was so confused about when usher took off his roller skates and adam was like, 30 seconds ago when he was off camera??

As you may recall I was very annoyed about going to our neighbors' so I got really stoned and that was actually the right call bc they were annoying!! The wife spent like 40 minutes talking about how taylor swift needs to break up with travis kelce bc he's violent (which, up for debate I GUESS but I did not care! just talk about something else! and also she seemed to have literally learned of his existence last night?) and she made us watch the anti antisemitism ad twice and also she kept saying, "this is like justin timberlake but not as good" and I said, SHUT YOUR STUPID MOUTH.

Also Lil John came out and Adam said who is that and I screamed ADAM IT'S LIL JOHN IT'S HAPPENING!!!

Also I ate TOO MANY CHIPS AND ONION DIP and then I had heartburn.

These are my many struggles!

Who likes justin timberlake more than usher??

Anyway I left at the end of the third quarter and my whole family stayed and then I watched it in peace and went to bed and adam put everyone to bed and I didn't have to do anything and it was perfect honestly.

[anothershorthuman]

Songs That Remind Me Of You: Prologue

A series in which Jihoon realizes that he loves you a little too late.

pairings: fem!reader x jihoon, hints at fem!reader x seungcheol

word count: 2.1k

genre: angst? unrequited love, high school au to eventual college au, slice of life

chpt summary: the origins of your friendship with jihoon and the origin of his feelings for you

track 0 - Falling For U by Peachy! ft. mxmtoon

♫♪♩♫♪♩

I was hangin' with you and then I realized

I didn't think it was true, I was surprised

When I found out I've fallen for you

♫♪♩♫♪♩

I didn't wanna believe my feelings for you

I didn't wanna believe that I could lose you

If I told you just how I felt

When Jihoon first met you, he thought you were annoying. You were paired together in a chemistry class your sophomore year of high school. Working on this lab with you was torture, you’d always skip a step of the instructions or left a solution over a buntsen burner for too long. More often than not, Jihoon found himself fixing your mistakes. 

He complained to his friends about how much of a clutz you were and how he hated the teacher for pairing together. It was only a day later that you changed his mind. You were nearly late for class, rushing into your seat next to his at the last second. You slid a stack of papers stapled together across the table in his direction and his eyes nearly bulged out of his head when he realized that it was your lab report. 

“We were supposed to work on this together over the weekend. How’d you manage to write 10 pages on your own in one night?” He quickly scans multiple pages, all of your work was spot on. 

You pick at your nails, avoiding eye contact, “I thought I’d make up for messing up the experiment so many times. Didn’t want you to feel like you were doing all the work.”

After that, the chem teacher kept pairing the two of you together for labs, saying something about the two of you working well together. Jihoon helped you get better at staying on task and getting an experiment done while you helped him write a better conclusion to a lab. 

With time, Jihoon realized that he actually liked being around you. You never overstepped any boundaries and were hardworking. You were kind but not a push-over. And most importantly, you were the most non judgemental person he had ever met in his life.

Whenever he would tell you about the latest anime episode he had watched, you asked him questions about the lore of the show. If he complained about the band teacher wanting to give his clarinet solo to someone else, you would get annoyed too. You really were the most loyal of his friends. 

During junior year, the two of you settled in the same friend group after being put in nearly all the same classes. It wasn’t a big group of friends, there were five of you: Soonyoung (a trumpet player Jihoon met in band), Sana (your friend from middle school), Changkyun (a boy that coincidentally sat near the four of you in your calculus class), Jihoon and you.

The five of you remained a friend group during the rest of your time in high school. You all went to homecoming together, squished into Changkyun’s car. Sana, Changkyun, and you would go to every football game your team had. Not to support the football team, but to watch Jihoon and Soonyoung march during halftime. You would all go see Sana’s dance recitals. Your basement became the go-to location for any get together, any movie night or half-assed birthday parties. Once, when your parents left the state for a wedding, the five of you got drunk together for the first time, drinking a jungle juice made by Changkyuns older brother.

The point was, you were spending a lot of time with each other. And it was one of those nights, in the middle of your hangouts, that he realized he liked you a little bit more than just platonically. Or, well, your friends realized it for him.

You stood up from your seat on the couch and said that you’d be back, your parents needed help with bringing in groceries from the car. They offered to pause the movie and you said you had already seen the movie before so it didn’t matter. They paused it anyway. You disappeared after going up the stairwell.

“What are we gonna do for her birthday?” Sana asked. Your birthday was three weeks from then. Hm, what should Jihoon get you? Last year he hadn’t known you well enough to get you a present but he definitely should this year. And it had to be a good gift, something you would actually use, something that every time you looked at it, you’d think of him.

Soonyoung nudged him, “What are you getting her?” 

“I don’t really know yet.”

“Really?” Changkyun asked. “I thought you’d already have everything planned.”

Jihoon’s confused, “Why would I already have everything planned?” 

He’s taking a sip of his coke when Changkyun answers, “Well, you have a crush on her.”

Instantly, Jihoon is launched into a coughing fit, having nearly choked on his drink. He clumsily places his drink down and doubles over coughing. Soonyoung and Changkyun are falling over too, but from laughing at him.

“Come on, dude.” Sana chuckles and pats him on the back to try to help him with his coughing. “You’re so obvious about it, you didn’t really think we wouldn’t notice, did you.”

Once the burning in his throat has died down, Jihoon takes another sip of his drink, wanting to avoid talking to his teasing friends.

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

Soonyoung snorts, “You mean you don’t look for her from the stands during every game? Or give her heart eyes when you’re in the same room as her? Or turn red when she calls you Jihoonie?”

The three of them are laughing at him again and Jihoon glances at the stairs, making sure you’re not hearing any of this conversation. 

“I'm not even joking, I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

There's a beat of silence as your friends stare at Jihoon, trying to gauge how honest he’s being. A look of disbelief comes over their faces. 

“You mean,” Sana softly says, “We figured out you like her before you did?” 

Jihoon can feel his ears burning, and he rubs them self consciously. He can’t even bring himself to look at them. He’s thinking about you and how your smile makes him feel lighter and how whenever he makes a joke he’ll make sure it made you laugh. It definitely would make sense if Jihoon had a crush on you.

Suddenly, you're flying down the stairs. You fall over onto the couch between Sana and Jihoon, giggling to yourself like a maniac. You sit up turning to Sana, grabbing onto her shoulders and giving her a shake, “You’ll never believe what just happened!”

“What is it, woman?” Sana exclaims, trying to stop you from shaking her. 

“Remember Seungcheol? My neighbor?”

Immediately, the three boys are groaning in protest. Of course they know about Seungcheol, you only talk about him every single time the opportunity presents itself.

Seungcheol is a year older than you, currently the varsity captain of the wrestling team. After he moved into the house next to yours at the beginning of the year, all you ever have to say about him is oh, his muscles are so big. Jihoon, look at his hair, it looks so soft. Oh my god, I think he was looking at me. Jihoon wasn’t sure why he disliked Seungcheol when he actually was a kind person, but now he’s able to realize that it’s due to jealousy. The other boys are just sick of hearing you gush over a guy that doesn’t give you the time of day. Sana is the only one of your friends willing to hear you out on this absurd crush.

“What about Seungcheol?” Sana asks you.

“He pulled up to his house while we were unloading groceries and he came over to help–”  “So he did one nice thing.” Soonyoung interrupts you. 

“Shut up, Soon! He’s always nice, but that isn’t the point.” 

Huh, the pout on your face is sort of cute, Jihoon thinks. 

“Anyways, when we finished, he asked to talk to me outside, and he asked me out!”

You’re squealing in excitement again, oblivious to the looks of terror and sympathy that Jihoons friends are sending him. He feels his heart sink.

Maybe it was better to stay unaware of his feelings, it’s not like he had a chance anyways. Still, he put on a fake smile like the rest of his friends.

“Oh my god!” Sana says. “That's so exciting!”

Soon enough, you’re all finishing up the movie, even if he can’t seem to focus on the screen. Seungcheol was a good guy, he should be happy for you. This was something that you had been wanting for a while and it was finally happening. Jihoon refused to be the person to ruin that for you. When the movie is over and Changkyun is driving everyone else back home, there's a tense silence.

Soonyoung clears his throat, nudging Jihoons foot with his own from the backseat, “They barely know anything about each other, maybe this is just a fling. It’ll pass.”

Changkyun looks at the two from the rearview mirror, “Yea, Seungcheol barely even looked at her before this. It’s kind of weird that he just asked her out.”

“Guys stop,” Sana says. She doesn’t turn to look at the boys in the car, instead looking outside through the passenger window. “I know we feel bad for Jihoon, but that’s not fair to her. She likes Seungcheol a lot, he could be her first boyfriend. It’s a big deal, so let's not ruin it for her.”

Jihoon sighs, “Right. Up until today, I didn’t even realize how much I like her… let's just pretend that conversation didn’t happen.”

The car pulls up in front of his house. He hurriedly unbuckles his seatbelt and leaves the car. He’s sniffling when he makes it to his room, flopping onto his bed. Part of him hopes you realize Seungcheol isn’t what you thought he’d be like and you’ll forget about him, but another part of him feels disgusting for thinking that. 

A week later, you’re telling them all about how amazing your bowling date with Seungcheol went. He paid for everything and didn’t make you feel bad for being terrible at bowling. He wasn’t trying to get into your pants and was making genuine questions. He surprised you with flowers at the end of your date and asked when he could take you on another date. You went on a lot more dates after that, there was a picnic date, a trip to the movie theater, a corn maze. 

On your birthday, Sana invited him to your party. Jihoon wasn’t sure what to get you, especially now that he had realized he liked you. He ended up making you a playlist and then burning it onto a CD. But at your party, Seungcheol surprised everyone by showing up with a guitar. He sang you a sweet love song in front of everyone, winning over all of your friends. Jihoon ended up hiding his CD, now embarrassed to give it to you. He couldn’t sing you a song the way Seungcheol did. He didn’t make you hide your face timidly or smile that big. When Sana asked him what he had gotten you, Jihoon said that his gift hadn’t arrived in time and would give it to you a little later.

Now, at the end of the school year, the CD he made for you is sitting on his desk, waiting for the opportunity to give it to you without it feeling like he was trying to steal you from Seungcheol.

The five of you attend the senior graduation. You had told your friends that you were feeling insecure about your relationship, how even though it had been a couple months of going out, Seungcheol hasn't asked you to be his girlfriend. And that he probably wouldn’t since he would be leaving for college. Still, you wanted to support him, so you showed up to the graduation with gifts to give him after the ceremony. To everyone’s amazement, he was the one to surprise you by asking you to be his girlfriend during his graduation party.

As Jihoon watched the romance between you and Seungcheol develop, he couldn’t help but feel many emotions. He loved the happiness that radiated from your smile and the twinkle in your eye whenever you were with him. But at the same time, he couldn’t help the jealousy from creeping in, wishing it was him instead of Seungcheol every time he’d catch the two of you hugging or kissing. He had only recently come to terms with his feelings but had no choice but to watch from the sidelines. He wasn't even upset with Seungcheol anymore, having finally gotten the chance to know him and realizing that he really was a good boyfriend.

Jihoon was determined to be a supportive friend, even if it meant keeping his feeling hidden. He still held onto the CD he created for your birthday, a reminder of his unrequited feelings. For now, he knew the timing wasn’t right to confess his feelings. But maybe one day, the stars would align, and the right moment would present itself.

After junior year ended, and you and Seungcheol officially became a couple, Jihoon’s heart carried a bittersweet melody. The CD, filled with songs that spoke about his feelings, remained on his desk, waiting for the day he could give it to you.

[strawberryfairi]

Synopsis✨: The story of how you catch heavy feelings for the hot photography student, Shuji Hanma…even though you already have the perfect (fake) boyfriend.

Pairings: Photography Student! Shuji Hanma X Dance Major! Black Fem 🤎 Reader (ANYONE CAN READ🧚🏾‍♀️) Content: Drama, lots of denial, angst, sneaky link, lots of cheating, mutual pining, unserious Shuji, controlling parents, forced relationships, romance, fighting, porn with a good plot vibes, intense sexual tension, etc (just find out the rest lol)

w.c: 5k💠 Released: Jan 5, 2024

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4; MISTAKES 错误

3 Days Later Monday

"-What do you think about that?"

Your professor Janette, who happens to be your favorite and previous dance teacher from when you were a little girl, calls you out of your thoughts.

"To be honest...I think I'm tired of thinking." You huff, leaning your head onto your hand propped up by your elbow on the desk.

"You? Tired of thinking?! Something's going on." She says in faux shock.

"I hope nothing else goes on." You grumble under your breath, but still loud enough for her to here.

"Wanna talk about it?" She suggests with a concerned brow.

"Ugh, I don't even know where to start! So obviously homecoming was last week, and the performance was great and all, but afterwards...it's afterwards where everything fell apart. I was supposed to be going to an after party with Ken, and first of all he ditched me to go with his boys instead; he was supposed to be my ride! I ended up having to get an Uber and then when I get there the first thing I see is some girl kissing my boyfriend!"

She gasps, hovering her mouth over her hands, eyes wide as saucers.

"Exactly! Exactly! But wait, it gets worse. So, I obviously confronted him and he's all trynna play it off like "Oh I didn't know she was gonna kiss me" on some it's not a big deal typ'a time. Then I just got upset and I kinda left and just sat out in the back near the pool by myself. But little did I know, I actually wasn't by myself, and there's some super fine, random guy just there. So...long story short, I ended up also kissing this guy and...some other..particular..things." By the end of your rant you're looking up at your professor with anxious, glossy eyes, fiddling with your hands in your lap.

She's absolutely speechless, just sitting there processing everything you said.

"You both need to talk; immediately. I think you two need to just sit down with nobody else around, and just lay everything out. Clearly there's some..disconnects here, so the sooner you both talk and are honest with each other, the easier it'll be to move forward." She explains in a sincere, almost motherly tone.

You huff, groaning as you run your hand over your face. "Well the thing is we talked the next day, and it didn't really go well..."

Flashback

"I heard you were in some guy's car last night outside the party. Anything you wanna tell me about that?" Ken's voice is stern and low, looking you dead in the eyes as he spoke. The two of you are sat in his dorm suite, the both of you across from each other at the coffee table in his 'living room' area.

You were practically shaking like a maraca, trying to think fast before he gets even more suspicious of you. "I was just lookin' at the pictures he took from the halftime show. He's one of the student photographers." You explain with as calm a tone as possible.

"That better be it." He crosses his arms over his chest, leaning back in his chair across from you.

"Why are you suspicious of me cheating when you're the one that actually got caught kissing someone else?!" Your brows furrow, a heavy ton of sass dripping from your words.

"Watch it." He warns, narrowing his eyes.

"Watch what exactly, Ken?" You match his energy perfectly, attitude skyrocketing as you go from nervous to angry.

"That mouth. You always talk crazy when you get angry." He grits out, jaw clenching tightly. You weren't phased, not even a little.

"No, I don't talk crazy when I'm angry. There's nothin' crazy about anything I just said! The only thing crazy is how you thought you were doin' something interrogating me when you're not even in the clear your own damn self! So before you try to come at me talkin' bout "watch it", you need to watch yourself first. I already caught your ass once." You snap, making sure he really saw the anger in your eyes before you got up from the chair, grabbing your tote bag and heading out of his dorm suite.

End Flashback

"Ah, I see. Maybe it was a little too soon to have that conversation. There's still some emotions hovering around the situation. Maybe just give it some time, think about what you wanna say, and more importantly what you wanna do moving forward with the relationship. To me, it seems like there's a slight rift right now between you two." Janette says, her tone soft and comforting like a parent. She is a parent, of two grown kids.

"A slight rift? There's always been a rift, and it's never been slight. You know our relationship has never been genuine; it's our parents that want us to be together." You sigh. "To be honest we were better as friends." You add somberly.

"I remember, but you're twenty years old now, an adult! It's about time for you to make a decision on your own about your relationships. If you want to be with Ryuguji then be with him, but if you don't you should make it known as soon as possible." She urges.

"I don't know what I want right now, though! Like I said before, I'm..just too tired to think." You huff, a defeated tone in your voice.

"Well, let's change the subject! You're gonna be auditioning for "The Gypsy", yes?"

"Ohh...I uhhh..." You say playfully, acting like you were hesitant about it.

"Riiiight?" Janette raises a brow, leaning in towards the desk.

"I will, I will, and I'll shoot for lead too; I already knew you were gonna ask that." You chuckle, waving her off playfully.

"Perfect! I know you'll get the lead for sure. You're one of the best dancers we have at this school, and I'm not just saying that. It's true."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

2 days Later

Almost a week. It's been almost a full week and you're so exhausted. The unrealistic hopes that what happened between you and Hanma going away within a few days after was now long gone.

You felt utterly defeated, your mind betraying you any chance it could get.

It's the flashbacks. The damn flashbacks were killing you, along with your good for nothing imagination. You knew this would happen, and of course Hanma had warned you himself that it would happen, you just wanted to believe you could endure. Believe you could force it away over time.

But then, in moments like these when you're back in your dorm suite after a full day of classes and practice, a part of you fights back, not wanting to forget. For a moment, you actually go and give your mind the freedom to wander, stripping out of your regular clothes and into your pajamas, laying on your back on your bed. You wonder what it would've been like if you two hadn't stopped, dangerous scenarios popping up after the thought. Your hands roam all over your body, breathing turning heavy as you envision his piercing eyes gazing into yours from on top of you.

No no no! Stop!

The little angel on your left shoulder yells, forcing your body to freeze. This is so extremely wrong, but uuugh, the way he made your legs shake! Hesitantly your hands continue, shakily playing with your hardened nipples. You want him so bad, almost need him. The pain of never having found out what his dick feels like inside you was overwhelming.

You really wanna know! It's points like this where you just wanna text him "please come over" so you two can finish what you started. You remove your hands, clenching your thighs together as you facepalm.

"Gosh, I'm such a freakin' mess." You whisper.

Suddenly, your phone buzzed on the pillow next to you. With a long, dramatic groan you flip over onto your side, grabbing your phone while reading the new notification.

Shuji Hey doll You free to shoot tomorrow?

Your heart thumps anxiously in your chest as you reread the messages. Tomorrow?! That's so soon! You hesitate, thumbs hovering over the glowing keyboard on your phone. Is it really a good idea to do this? The whole forgetting about what happened thing has proven to be a complete failure, and you definitely didn't forget that this shoot is supposed to be with you half naked.

At the same time though, wasn't this supposed to be about helping a fellow creative student? A collaboration? Maybe a more professional setting will make it better; much easier to be around him. You've already agreed what happened homecoming night was just a one time thing, so it shouldn't be an issue...ideally.

Finally, you decide to text him back after a good three whole minutes.

Y/N Yeah Tomorrow's fine

Shuji Perfect I'll pick you up at 6

Y/N Ok bet

Your heart pounds anxiously in your chest as you lazily throw your phone back on the pillows next to you.

"Tomorrow's gonna be a long ass day." You murmur to yourself. Then, as if it's just one thing after the next, a few heavy knocks sound from your door. "Heeey babe, it's me!" Ken calls from the other side. You mutter a low "shit", Gathering yourself up out of bed and over to the door outside your bedroom.

"Hey Kenny." You smile softly, stepping aside to welcome him inside. You'd forgotten he'd said he wanted to come over later today. The two of you head over into your bedroom.

"Baaaabe! You already goin' ta sleep?" He asks weirdly, wrapping his arms around your waist for a hug.

"Not really, I'm just tired from today. What's goin' on?" Your brows furrow a bit in confusion but you brush it off, patting his back a bit.

"Nothin', just wanted ta come see my girl. 'S like we haven't talked in forever." He says, leaning forward a bit wobbly and brushing his lips onto your forehead.

"Well..we haven't talked in a while." You look to the side, pulling away and sitting down on the edge of your bed. Ken follows after you like a stray puppy, sitting next to you on your bed.

"I didn't mean'ta act like that the other day, sweetie. I just-...I was real mad. I don't wan' some other guy ta come steal you 'way from me." He explains, slightly slurring his words as he spoke.

You pause, looking him up and down suspiciously for a second before continuing. Since when does he call you sweetie?

"Uhh, it's fine Ken, that's over now." You reply tiredly with a simple shrug, brows slightly furrowed.

"You're so different now! Wha happened, you-..you don' love me no more? Have you ever even loved me?" He whines, pouting like a child.

"Are-are you drunk?!" You suddenly ask, finally connecting the dots. He's so touchy, and he's not talking normally at all.

"Jus' a lil crossed; 's fine." He shrugs lazily, leaning his head down on your shoulder.

"It's fine?! You said being intoxicated was a special occasion thing for you! Since when do you get crossed this much?!" Your brows furrow in bewilderment, pushing away from him.

"Babyyyy, I ain't come here to get bitched at." He groans, rolling his eyes yet he leans in towards you anyways, attempting to kiss on your neck. You scoff, mouth dropped in shock at his choice of words.

"Uh uh no, I'm not doing this. You need to get out." You shake your head, pushing him away from you and heading to your door.

"The fuck is your pro'lem?! I jus' got here!" He scrunches his face up in annoyance.

"Ok?! And now you're gonna just leave!" You argue, pointing out the door. "Get outta my room, Ken! I'm not about to sit here and deal with you like this. This is ridiculous!"

Shocked couldn't even begin to clear up how you were feeling. Ever since Homecoming night you swear Ken's swapped bodies with someone else. Before, he would rarely drink, and now all of a sudden he's getting crossed, and on a week day at that! As an athlete he can't be playing around with stuff like this, it can get real complicated real fast.

"The only thing ridiculous is you! You think you're sooo better than me-

"What?!" You throw your hands up in bewilderment.

"You walk 'round here like you're better than everyone; better than me! I know you wish you could leave me, 'cause...y'think I don' deserve you." He says bitterly. "You'd run faaaar 'way, soon as you get a chance!"

You blink a few times, taking in what he just said. How's that little saying go? A drunk man's words are a sober man's thoughts? You weren't an idiot, you knew full well that's how he really felt. It was just a shock to hear he feels like you think you're somehow better than him. Better than him at what exactly?

"I'm only gon' tell you one more time, Ken. Get..out." You grit angrily, pointing once more out the bedroom door.

"There you go again, being the 'boss girl', tellin' me what to do." He rolls his eyes, leaning back against the wall your bed is up against.

You huff angrily, trying to keep your composure and aggressively slam your door shut. You walk over to the nightstand by your bed and pick up your phone. He wants to act up, then you got somethin' for him.

8 Minutes Later

A knock on your door finally gives you that sense of relief you were waiting for. After Ken refused to leave, you went and whipped out your big guns. Your best friend Keisuke Baji. You lead him to your bedroom, opening the door to reveal Ken sitting there on your bed still, mumbling about what the hell ever.

"Please get him. Before I kill him and go to jail." You huff, pointing at your boyfriend.

"Shit, I don't know if I'll be any better." He responds with a shrug as he walks in your room.

"Who the fuck is this?! You cheatin' on me?!" Ken outbursts, fists balled as he finally gets up from the bed. Well...that's a start.

"Get your ass outta her room, Ryuguji." Kei says sternly.

"You're not talkin' to me..." He shakes his head, stepping up close to Kei. You watch, getting a bit nervous as Kei's jaw clenches tightly, looking over at you as if asking for permission for something.

"Ken, he's just here to help get you out of my room. I already asked you to leave like a hundred-

"You fuckin' my girl, lil bitch?" Ken completely ignores you, rudely shoving Keisuke with as much aggression as he could muster.

"Ok", Kei nods slowly with a dry chuckle, "And see, I was gonna be nice."

"Y'all, do not fight in my room!" You warn annoyedly. This is really turning into a mess for absolutely no reason. You weren't trying to call your friend here to get him into a fight, he was just supposed to help as backup. You should've known though, Keisuke ain't the type to just let somebody talk or act any kind of way towards him, or you for that matter.

Out of nowhere, Keisuke throws a punch right to Ken's face, making you gasp and hover your hands over your mouth.

And that was it, the fight officially started.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It took about five minutes for them to finally cut it out, and for Ken to get the hell out of your room, of course not without yells and curses at you for cheating on him and whatever the hell other accusations he threw towards you. You asked for Keisuke to stay with you for a bit, as you just wanted someone to talk to. So he obliged of course, sitting with you at the edge of your bed.

"What the hell is goin' on with you guys? You got a lot to fill me in on; I already didn't see you at the Homecoming party at all. What's happening?" He questions, brows furrowing.

You sigh, the kind of sigh where it sounds like you've been carrying the weight of the world on your back.

You tell him everything, well, not everything but just enough. From losing your anklet to Ken leaving you, to Ms. Butterfly Tattoo, all of it.

"Damn. All that happened that one night? And this is how he's been ever since?" He furrows his brows, scratching his head as he processes your story.

"Yup. I'm starting to think he's probably been getting himself mixed up with getting crossed more often than he let's on, because he was talking about it at the party like it was just any other thing along with tonight when he came over." You explain.

"You know what? He's getting crossed more because he's starting to lose his shit. That's why he feels like you think you're better than him. You don't fold under pressure like a bitch, getting drunk or high to ignore it all the time. You know what you want and you're always going after it no matter what, but Ryuguji? He's a fuckin' mess and he knows it. Let's be real, he's only playing football because his dad wants him to; he's the damn coach!" He rants.

"Yeah...about that, his dad I mean, there's something I've never told you about me and Ken..." You trail off nervously.

"What?" He says barely above a whisper.

"Well, the only reason me and Ken are even together...is because our parents are making us date each other. They thought it was the perfect plan-

"The popular quarter back with the popular dancer." He nods slowly, connecting the dots.

"Exactly, and you already know my mom's 'part of the administration of the school. It's the perfect topic of conversation amongst her and those...bougie folk she mingles with at meetings and events." You roll your eyes bitterly.

"So...you've never actually loved him?" Kei asks, raising a brow.

"I-..I mean we were kinda friends way back before we dated; we were cool-

"But you never loved him though." He presses.

"....No." You shake your head wearily.

"We both kinda just...forced ourselves to love each other? Acting like a couple though we really don't care about each other like that." Your voice shook a little as you ball your hands into little fists.

"Ahhh, kid." He frowns, pulling you over by the back of your neck to rest your head on his shoulder. You sniffled, starting to tear up as once again the pain and weight of your fake relationship fell on you.

"He's right Kei, I don't really wanna be with him at all! If I could, I'd leave him. He's just not my type!" You ramble, wiping your eyes yet the tears just keep falling.

"I don't know if you really wanna hear it but...I mean shit, you're twenty. You can't just let your mom dictate who you're with." Kei says softly, wrapping his arm over your shoulder.

"You don't understand. If I try to go against her, she'll pull me out of the school! I won't be able to dance." You mutter, shaking your head.

"Are-..are you serious?!" He gawks.

"She threatens me with that all the time. At this point I barely even talk to her 'cause all she does is bring up me and Ken's relationship and how my grades are; how many teachers I'm networking with. She doesn't give a crap about me personally anymore. You know, she wasn't even at the homecoming game?" You sob a little, getting his shirt sleeve wet with your tears.

Kei's eyes widen at your words. As a kid who's mom views him as her whole world, it was hard for his mind to even begin to wrap around this. He couldn't understand even if he tried. His mom was all he had, they were tight like glue. He couldn't imagine what it must be like to have a mother that doesn't bother to want what's best for her daughter.

"I remember when she wasn't this way. That's why you always see me wear the anklet she gave me when I was younger at my performances. It's like I can pretend she's there with me watching me perform; the old her before my dad died..."

💠

The day ended so fast, you were almost disappointed. You'd spent every hour mentally preparing yourself for this exact moment yet you still didn't feel ready.

Walking down the block and around the corner from your dorm building you spot Hanma in his black Dodge Hellcat right where he said he'd be. To say your heart was pounding would be an understatement, it was attempting to jump right out of your chest. It felt like no matter how much effort and energy you put into pushing away all sexual thoughts of him, it was useless in this moment.

You open the door and sit in the passenger seat, placing your duffel bag in the back.

"Hey doll." He says with that low, sultry voice, looking over at you as you buckle your seatbelt.

"What's up?" You respond, a light, shy smile on your face. He starts driving off, heading over to his place. "How's it been goin' "forgetting" about what happened?" He asks smugly, a little too smugly in your opinion. You could see from a mile away what he was trynna do, and you weren't about to get played.

"I'm not really sure what you're talkin' about actually. Guess I must'a forgot." You answer innocently, smiling cheekily before you turn to look out the window.

"Real funny." He mumbles, turning his gaze back to the road. You chuckle lightly to yourself, feeling proud that you were able to shut him down so quickly.

The rest of the way is fairly a short ride, he lives pretty close to campus at a nice looking apartment building. He leads you up to his place, a nice, surprisingly spacious studio apartment. It's a modern style, and the ceiling is high, very fitting for his tall stature.

"Okaaay! This is really niiiiiice!" You compliment, looking around with your eyes in satisfaction. It's also clean, another aspect of his apartment you weren't really expecting. But then again, he is doing a photoshoot, there has to be space.

"Thanks." He chuckles in amusement. "Come on." He adds, snapping you out of your daze as you follow him into his bedroom.

Wait hold up.....

Why his bedroom though?!

You feel the nervousness sink back in instantly, walking into his room. Hanma has a whole set up going on, with all kinds of expensive looking equipment, and some colored light panels of red, blue, and purple.

"We're gonna shoot in here. You can get changed in the bathroom there." He instructs, pointing to his connected bathroom as he starts getting his camera ready by his laptop hooked up to some sort of USB cord. You nod, heading into the bathroom with your duffel bag to change.

For the shoot you chose the only lingerie you had, a white full lace teddy set. It's a halter style, with a deep plunge in the front that reaches three inches below your breasts, (yet the support is actually amazing) and a pair of matching lace stockings that go up to your mid thighs.

This was meant to be what you wore the night of Homecoming with Ken, but of course, that never happened. So at least it'd get put to use now. It's easy to put on and does wonders to flatter your body, bringing out your shape and flat, toned stomach. You slip the teddy on along with the stockings, looking yourself over before grabbing your mascara and body glow potion. Your hair is already in the style you wanted for the shoot, a big and undefined, picked out afro.

Is this too much or too little?

You take a second to quickly hype yourself up in the mirror, not wanting to take too long, then make your way out shyly. There's music playing from a medium sized speaker he has sitting on his dresser. Hanma's just tipping and tapping away at all the tech stuff near his laptop before he hears you step out of the bathroom. You give him a bashful smile, leaning against the doorway.

"Uuum, is this fine?" You mutter, fiddling with your hands behind your back. He fully stops what he's doing, turning towards you, his piercing eyes dragging up and down your body. You were cold upon stepping out of the bathroom but now it feels like it's one hundred degrees with his eyes on you like this. It takes him a while to say anything, so you tell yourself it's because he's debating if the outfit goes with his vision and nothing else.

"Yeah, it's perfect." He finally replies, his eyes making their way back up to meet yours. "Come on, we're gonna start in this doorway right here." He nods towards the bedroom door, his tone going serious.

With a small smile you mutter a short "K', following behind him.

The door to his bedroom is wide open, leading to the rest of the apartment which he went and turned all the lights out to make it dark, aside from the red light that'll be used as the background color. You stand in the doorway, waiting patiently as he hangs his camera around his neck from the strap. His hands grab your shoulders, sending an invisible shiver down your spine that you ignore, turning you around to face the doorway.  "Put your hands here", He starts, taking your hands and placing them on the doorway. Then without speaking, he lifts your chin, making you tilt your head all the way back. "Now arch your back and put this leg forward." He instructs, watching you position yourself how he asked.

"Yeah, like that." He nods, stepping back while preparing the camera. You stay in position, the nervousness starting to go away just a little bit as you get into "character". He takes two test shots, looking them over from the little screen on the camera. "That's perfect." He grins, going back in and taking a few more, changing angles every now and then. He walks back up to you, allowing you to finally move out of the pose, before he starts to position you again.

Your whole body goes hot as he stands closely, towering over you. The fact that you were just wearing  lingerie in front of him had you so nervous, and beyond excited, yet you knew not to let your mind wander too far. "Lean back against the frame, and bring your hips out like this." He says, putting his hands on your hips and pulling them outwards where he wanted. "Arms up." He murmurs like a whisper, his hands sliding along yours arms, lifting them above your head. Unconsciously you suck in a breath, trying to keep your heart steady as you look up at him. His eyes meet yours instantly and you swear your legs almost give out, he still makes you fold with simply looking at you.

Then, your eyes betray you, flickering down to his lips unintentionally. You look away, heart pounding in your chest. Hanma lets out a barely audible chuckle, a knowing look on his face as he steps back from you, getting his camera ready. He goes back to snapping more pictures, going back and forth shooting then looking at them briefly.

"I wanna try purple light this time." He says after taking the last picture.

"Ooo ok!" You beam.

He switches the color panels, swapping the red for the purple as you wait patiently. Goosebumps start to form along your arms and chest as you watch him move the red panel over to the other side of his bedroom.

The next few poses were a bit more challenging for you, and not because they're difficult, but because they required your legs to be fully opened facing the camera. It was easy to hide being soaking wet when your head was turned from the camera and your eyes are averted, and your body facing away. But when you're sitting on a wooden chair, legs spread wide and facing directly in front of the camera...things start to get a little embarrassing. You hoped and prayed that he couldn't tell, that the place was dark enough for the wetness pooling around the crotch area of your teddy not to show. This whole thing was becoming unbearable, it's just too erotic of a setting.

You do about three more poses with the chair before going back to standing poses. Hanma comes over to you once more to reposition you. You look up at him, a dangerous decision, just as he looks down at you, placing his hands low on your hips. He guides you to the center of the doorway. "Spread your legs a little." He instructs in a hushed voice, using his foot to open your legs, gazing intensely into your eyes all the while. He pauses for a moment, his hands on your hips slowly gliding up your body, passed your sides and grazing the sides of your breasts just a bit, taking your arms to lift them over your head. Your breath becomes heavier, chest visibly rising and falling as you feel yourself get lost in his light, golden brown eyes.

He did that on purpose, he had to have. He looks over you, eyes landing and resting on your nipples that quickly harden underneath the thin layer of white lace. You notice exactly where he's looking, your face heating up as your head shifts downwards in embarrassment. Hanma lifts your head back up by your chin with a finger, moving in closer towards you, nearly touching.

"You're killin' me right now, y'know that?" He hums seductively, his pretty eyes sucking you in.

"What do you mean?" You ask innocently, your voice quiet and timid.

"You know exactly what I mean, just look at you. Standing in front of me with this sexy little outfit on." He says lowly, giving you butterflies all throughout your stomach. "I wanna fuck you so bad, angel. Been thinkin' about it this whole time." He purrs, snaking an arm around your waist and pulling you right up against him. You gasp, blinking a few times going speechless as you process what he just said while bringing your arms down out of the pose he put you in.

[xiaolin-revival]

Headcanons for Clay (please note that I haven't watched Chronicles, only Showdown):

Bi-romantic grey-ace.

Being called stupid (especially due to his accent) is one of his biggest pet peeves. He's actually quite intelligent, though he's not exactly studious most of the time. Still, if something captures his interest (like animals), he'll read about it in his spare time.

He's slow to truly anger, but if you betray him, he's slow to forgive, too. (This is why he's so hard on Jesse and Raimundo.)

When he first started getting inklings about his Wushu element, "It's Chinese in origin," didn't cross his mind, and he went to Native groups on college campuses to see if they knew anything about it.

He can feel earthquakes, even way deep down, and it took quite a while before they didn't alarm him every time he felt a tremor.

He's fluent in Spanish.

Before becoming a Xiaolin warrior, he had interest in becoming a vet or environmental biologist.

Clay does a barbecue for the temple every year for the occasion of the Super Bowl. He and Rai get into an argument every year about which sport is the real football. He doesn’t care much about the halftime or commercials, and uses that time to tackle/wrestle with people, or to make more snacks.

He is completely unbothered by the myriad of smells that livestock produce. (He is also unbothered about smelling like them, himself.)

He shaves once a week, on Sundays, and he gets pretty scraggly by Saturday. He’ll shave in the middle of the week for special occasions, but then lets it all grow out until the following Sunday, so sometimes there’s more than a week’s growth on his cheeks and chin. His facial hair is light brown. Also, he uses an old fashioned barber’s kit, with the hand-mixed foam and the straight edge razor. Not even replica old-fashioned. It’s a shaving set that’s been passed down a few generations. His grandpa called the blade ‘Elizabelle,’ but Daddy Bailey did no such thing, and neither does Clay. Out loud.

Cooking for people is his biggest love language.

His earliest memory is toddling about on the ranch, then sitting down in the mud and playing with it.

He and Omi's favorite movie to watch together is Shanghai Noon.

He can (and does) make sandballs that functions like snowballs.

His parents got divorced when he was little, and while he loves his mama dearly, he also resented her for a long time for leaving. He had to split his attention between watching Jesse, learning how to work on and run the ranch (which, let’s face it is a tough and isolating job), going to school, and then coming into his powers. It was a lot to put on the shoulders of a boy.

Being the Dragon of Earth, Clay is the most balanced of the team, and it shows in how stable he is, in general. Level-headed, calm, full of that stoic cowboy advice. But it also shows in how he balances his love of meat and being a rancher with his love of animals. His love of one does not diminish his love of the other, even though those two parts of him seem like they might be at odds with each other.

Thanksgiving might not be a holiday celebrated in every country in the world, but you’d better believe that Clay makes an entire Thanksgiving feast for the Temple on the fourth Thursday of every November. Turkey with apple stuffing (on the side), ham, pork ribs, garlic mashed potatoes, corn on the cob, candied yams, non-candied yams, string bean casserole, French beans with slivered almonds, cranberry sauce, heaps of bread rolls, and at least five varieties of pie. He’s always willing to add to the menu, but you will have to strike him dead before he ever removes anything.

Clay does not have a typical "athletic build". He’s a strongman, a lumberjack, a quarterback. His core is ripped, and it’s padded with fat, and he can bench press all the other monks at the same time. As an adult, this just becomes more pronounced. He would win at caber toss.  He would give John Henry a run for his money. Strong of chin, thicc of build.

How Clay addresses non-blood women and girls: “Darlin’“ - I know you, I like you, we’re close. “Li’l lady” - We’re friends, but not necessarily close. (Will sometimes call close friends this, just so he’s not too repetitive.) Also used for younger women/children, even if he doesn’t know them well. “Ma’am” - We’re strangers / I don’t like you / I don’t trust you. Also used for older women.

His affinity to Earth goes beyond control of the element. He's also an environmentalist and is against oil drilling and fracking (despite being a Texan). He wants the Earth to be whole and healthy, and that goes for her waters and air, too.

Hey hello? Amazing. Just amazing. Hey if you got more or an idea for Clay's arc once I post the plot intro, keep em coming please.

[shnu-rock-san]

Taranee as a backup dancer at Super Bowl Halftime Show 2023

Well, I recently decided to participate in a drawing contest on the theme of "Guardians: 20 Years Later", and I finally chose and drew this art with Taranee, where I reflected my headcanons about her future activities and rebellious appearance (a little unobtrusive piercings and a bold haircut modification)🔥

Twenty years later, Taranee is on the dance floor with celebrities like Rihanna, specifically in this case at Super Bowl Halftime Show 2023. Tiktok introduced me to this masterpiece a few months ago and I couldn't stay indifferent, especially to the fire part of the song Rude Boy. The backup dancers in this performance, in general, vibed in their own excellent way and helped a lot with Rihanna, who couldn't actively move due to her pregnancy, I followed them with rapt attention! Seriously, I'm ready to worship whoever came up with this gorgeous choreography. It reflects me so much.

I don't know how many times I've re-watched and re-listened to this performance, my individual respects to the backup dancers!

All of these were actually my heads for Fashion AU, but I think it would work for the canon universe too. I even wanted to put Cedric (who's the choreographer in the AU, yeah XD) as an easter egg in the art, but it didn't fit, unfortunately. Let him be the one who "came up with this gorgeous choreography".

[tame-a-messenger]

They have gotten nicer to each other, but it's most likely because they just got used to each other. That's about it. Not everything becomes romantic.

I deeply enjoy seeing them both on screen because I'm a fan of their humour and energy, which is why I like following this pairing, but it strikes me that shippers aren't considering that there are often very simple explanations for things.

(God, this is sounding rude isn't it? I'm not trying to be!)

-> The eating joke: could be any number of things, but sounded like a throwaway reference to an inside joke

-> I don't... see the heart eyes? Damien's always been soft and sweet with people (except when he lets himself be more snarky and sarcastic like we all suspect him to be off-camera). It's only noticeable now with Angela because their original dynamic was more mean-sibling-rivalry.

-> her knowing about that taxidermy Butterfree (I think it was a Butterfree) is really just... stuff you talk about with coworkers. 'oh what's going on?' 'I got this cool thing! *insert long monologue about it*)

-> we know he's been on her podcast, that he's shared his mushroom concoction with her for what was have ostensibly been some kind of throat issue she might have had (or just for a taste). they've been nice and friendly off-camera for a long time. plus, smosh doesn't seem the kind of place that's too big on actual rivalry.

Another big thing is... obviously it's not a good idea to assume another person's sexuality here, but given the thing with Rowan and Angela and Arasha in the revenge LDT episode, I highly doubt Ang is totally straight. So we might never know what she identifies as (and it's not our business to), but assuming they're both cisgendered heterosexual people is just as bad.

Attributing changes on each other is also hard to do, because Smosh not only records videos weeks in advance to their publish date, but also puts up videos in different orders (evidenced by everyone's hair being wildly different sometimes between uploads). So, for all we know, we're seeing X change in them now, which might have been shot before Y incident or Z dialogue.

All this to say that sometimes, the simplest answer really is the answer. i.e. they've just gotten to know each other more and have phased into a more chill interaction style. It just... is a bit uncomfortable to see so much romantic shipping about them when a lot of the thought process is assumptions.

I'm making assumptions too! I acknowledge that! But I just thought it might be a good idea to consider the other angle of things.

Anyway bye, everyone buy the AnthonyIsDead VOD to see Angela and Chanse's halftime show, and hope we get more Damien in videos.

Can't wait for Sword AF 2!

I think you might have misinterpreted my last couple posts.

I think every person that has brought up ANY of the instances has always said they see that it is probably just a coworker thing? and it's not that deep.

Yeah it did sound like a bit of a throwaway joke, but what a weird throwaway?? because really, they could be related?

I fully disagree with the "I don't… see the heart eyes?" you must be blind if you DONT see it. heart eyes don't just mean something 'romantic', it's literally in the NAME "heart-eyes" it just means you can see the love they have for the other person. Damien and Shayne give heart eyes sometimes! it's not a romantic thing all of the time. and yes, they absolutely do give each other heart-eyes.

The butterfree thing was more of a "oh okay! she remembered somehting about him and brought it up! how sweet" it was very obvious it was a 'thing you tell your co-workers' thing

"given the thing with Rowan and Angela and Arasha in the revenge LDT episode, I highly doubt Ang is totally straight." What in Gods glorious world are you talking about??? I literally re-watched that (Let's Do This) episode because I didn't understand what you meant, and what?? the only thing I can think of Angela talking about her orientation is in this video (click me!) where she says she's been on dates and only uses he/him pronouns. (she still is probably under the umbrella, she was recently in a queer woman play(?) but that could just mean Demi or Ace or another identity under queer)

ALSO nobody was assuming she's cis hetero?? and it doesn't matter?? I like them as just them? I don't need either of them to be anything else then themselves.

I think if seeing people talk about shipping on tumblr is making you so uncomfortable you should block the tag.

Majority of the askes I get the Anon always alludes to it "not being that deep". like in the last couple, they kept putting "(delusional)" in their ask, so I think they're pretty aware.

Some of your points came off a little weird Anon but I think I understand your intentions. I think we agree that Damien and Angela are just good co-worker friends, I just love their dynamic and watching them interact <3

YAY SWORD AF DAY!!! LETS GOOOO

[mr-independent]

Let's keep it rolling babes, EP 5 The Lassos

--....why? Would they lower the door to the entrance to the club??? Ted's not insanely tall that's just weird

-- ah yes the appearance of Oklahoma, such a great trope in the show. Also Ted's 'constant optimism' is why we love him. Like yes it means he masks his anxiety with this...veneer of cheer almost. Honestly? Relatable. I can see now why my old boss says I remind her of Ted too much to enjoy the show lmao.

-- Ted literally sees himself as a character in a cartoon. He did the whole sunset run across the field to see his family without any care for how long it actually is. To borrow terms from the Our Flag Means Death fandom, Ted is slowly but surely muppetifying the entire cast one by one. He was the OG muppet and he's infecting them. And Yes Beard is Sam The Eagle why do you even need to ask

-- the fucking. Henry playing darts in the bar just like Ted used to when his dad was drinking ❤️‍🩹

-- y'all just know that Ted insisted against Michelles protests that they didn't need a hotel, that they could bunk with him in his fucking full-sized bed bc hes afraid theyre gonna disappear if he doesn't hold on with both hands and holy hell their whole episode is just. Hurting my heart.

-- Nate's dad was a cartographer. Nate's dad made the map to ask out his mom. ❤️.

-- it really uh. Says something that Michelle and Ted's couples therapist was the one who recommended Ted should give her some space, and then later we learn that when Michelle moves on its with that same therapist which is uh. Not great, actually. Can't blame Ted for getting super upset about that, that's an absolute shit situation actually.

-- Jamie's clearly hurting from Keeley breaking up with him, Ted's hurting from Michelle basically saying it's over, and neither of them are good at processing their emotions so predictably it only gets worse from there. Gotta say that's some star fucking writing there, how the plotlines overlap and impact their emotions and their backgrounds feed into this fundamental...misunderstanding? Butting of heads for sure.

-- Ted really must be in amazing shape. He outran half the footballers - professional runners! - a few episodes ago, he ran half the pitch to see his son without breaking a sweat, climbed an amount of stairs that a seasoned pro footballer called impressive without even getting too out of breath....he's damn fit

-- Ted monologues to himself to work out his problems and no one can convince me otherwise (see: the changes marriage metaphor halftime speech)

-- ok more of a personal note I've never heard English commentators cover football before watching this show (yes i understand this makes everything about me more confusing, esp given the mix of slang and the typing and spelling style, I'm an enigma what can I say?) But they treat it less like a job and more like a podcast than I'm used to. I enjoy it, but it feels weird and made up

-- Michelle finds it so fucking hard to hurt Ted even unintentionally, even to benefit her and her son, which is kinda a theme here. Ted's crafted this persona (which yes had become in a sense his true self but that's a whole other essay) that makes it nearly impossible to get hurt because everyone is so reluctant to do anything mean to him so when people are unfazed by this (see: Jamie) he's so caught off guard? It's almost sad how he's made himself so impervious to hurt by making himself so much more vulnerable to it and vice versa, he's just an exposed nerve that can't be cut and it's almost painful to watch

[mill3nniumforc3]

2023: A Year in Review: Part 1

Here we are, 11 years in a row! I started this in November, and it's now February. Things got pretty crazy at the end of the year and I just didn't have time between work, being sick with a "mystery illness" that wasn't COVID or the flu, and trying to take care of myself.

Grab your popcorn and a drink, because this is going to be a long one!

January

We left off on Ohio State losing to Georgia, me missing the ball drop for the first time in YEARS, and Russell kissing me. Was I drunk? Maybe a little. I had to work on January 1, so I couldn't go too crazy.

My department was still managerless at UGS, so Kathy and Wendi were in charge. They asked me if I could start working earlier shifts on Sundays (10-6 had been my shift for MONTHS). I said I would prefer not to open, but 8-4 would be doable since I lived 30 minutes away.

And because the cost of eggs skyrocketed thanks to the bird flu, I made it a habit to check every egg carton before loading it into the car. This became something everyone did.

January 27 was me and Russell's fifth anniversary. We didn't have the time or money to do anything huge for it, so we went to dinner at Olive Garden. I was very happy about it since our first date was at an Olive Garden. January 27th was also my paternal grandfather's 91st birthday. Whoooo!

Oh, and Tee FINALLY got her car back after crashing it in October, meaning we had two cars again.

February

Kathy announced that she was the new manager. I was probably the only one to try and be supportive, but I think we all knew that it was an impending disaster.

We actually had plans for Super Bowl Sunday this year! We went to Russell's best friend Monkey's house. I provided dessert, ready to cheer on Philadelphia because I hate Kansas City. It was a good game to watch, even though Philly lost. The commercials and halftime show are better than the game itself anyway.

My dad's birthday was on February 13th. I called him and talked for a little while.

We didn't do anything for Valentine's Day because Russell had to work.

Tee decided to do an early trade-in with her lease on February 18th. She went from a blue 2020 Nissan Rogue to a gray 2023 Nissan Rogue. While she was working on the paperwork, Russell took me to the used car lot to look at the cars, since it was about time I got my own. I found a gray Nissan Kicks that I liked, and we asked the salesperson about buying it with my credit, income, and having Russell cosign. He said it'd probably work and to come back another day since the dealership was technically closed.

February 19th was Sean's birthday. I made him a birthday card that I got everyone to sign (including Caleb, and he seemed surprised that I included him) and bought him mini cupcakes. Gotta go all out for my favorite coworker!

On February 23rd, we went to the dealership again. The Nissan Kicks I liked was still available, so we went to purchase it. It was so exciting to finally have a car that was mine!

Also, the month of February was warmer than normal for some reason. We had a funny conversation about it at work where Isaac said the weather seemed hurricane-like. I pointed out that we had dandelions in February, so I wouldn't be surprised if we had a hurricane too.

March

Lilli got fixed on March 10th. I thankfully had the day off, so it was easy to drop her off and pick her up in a timely manner. When we went to pick her up, she was drowsy from the anesthesia still and acted like she was in pain. 30 minutes after she came home, she was acting like herself again. Silli Lilli...

March 12th was Sugar's 4th birthday. She got extra treats and a car ride.

On March 23rd while I was at work, I got a text from my mom telling me my paternal Grandpa was in the hospital after having a "possible mini-stroke." I ended up leaving 30 minutes early because I was so upset, and I was on edge for the next two days.

The afternoon of March 25th, my mom texted me again. Grandpa got released and there was no sign of stroke on the MRI. THANK GOD!

Monkey got married to his long-term girlfriend Lakyn on March 25th. Russell was a groomsman, so we spent the night of the 24th apart. It was tough because I sleep so much better when he's next to me. The next day, Tee and I drove to the wedding. We parked at the hotel we were staying at, checked in, and then walked to the venue (which was only a little ways down the road, and in the heart of UGA- that's important). Russell was outside to greet people to the wedding, and I was very happy to see him again. We hung out for a little bit before it was time to take our places for the ceremony. I had to educate Tee on wedding etiquette when she tried to sit on the aisle. "You don't sit on the aisle unless you're immediate family." She got all huffy with me, but I didn't care. The ceremony itself was beautiful, minus the nearby frat houses playing loud music (Sex on Fire by Kings of Leon was playing in the middle of a serious part, and I had to stop myself from laughing. I later learned from Russell that everyone in the wedding party had to refrain from laughter too). Monkey made everyone laugh during his vows when he read the lyrics to Never Gonna Give You Up at the end. The reception itself was pretty mid. The food was ok, the drinks were lackluster (it was a cash bar outside of the signature cocktails and White Claws), and the DJ only played songs that Lakyn picked (which wasn't necessarily a bad thing, but it seemed unfair to Monkey that the songs he wanted were left off the final playlist). The reception also ended at 10pm, which seemed like a waste because that meant people only danced for 90 minutes (and a chunk of that time, the sound system went out so we were singing our own songs). They apparently were going to head downtown for an after party, but we opted not to go.

March 26th was Muffin's 10th birthday. He's officially an old man.

April

April 1st was my 29th birthday! I spent it at... you guessed it, work! It wasn't that bad though. Sean bought me doughnuts, Wendi bought me chocolate chip muffins, and the day wasn't too busy. My parents also flew down to Atlanta to see me and spend a few days with me. We went to my favorite Mexican restaurant for dinner and had ice cream cake at my house.

I had to work on April 2nd, but because it was a Sunday, I was off at 4pm. After I was off, we went to the mall (mainly because I needed a new pair of work shorts and JCPenney is the pair that works the best) and had dinner at Red Robin.

I was off on April 3rd, which was surprising because I'm almost never off on Mondays. My parents picked me up from my house and we went to walk around the park. After walking around for a while, we went to get something small to eat for lunch and then hung out in their hotel room for a little while. When Russell was off work, we met up with him and Tee for eat dinner at Loretta's (a local restaurant that serves homestyle food). After dinner, I said goodbye to my parents, but not for very long, since Moira's wedding was coming up.

Not much else happened in April, except April 26th was my paternal Grandma's birthday.

May

On May 4th, I got into a freak accident at work (medical TW: mentions of blood and swelling) I was unloading and staging the fulfillment center deliveries in the cooler. Suddenly, I collapsed. Even though I was fully aware of what might've happened (I tripped over a dolly that got underfoot), I was out of it when the impact happened. The very first thing I noticed as soon as I came to was I was tasting blood. I quickly ran my tongue around my mouth, and when all my teeth were still in and none felt loose, I breathed a sigh of relief and stood up. I knew I had to tell Kathy what happened. I was afraid she was going to be mad because we were pretty busy, and while she wasn't happy that I got hurt during a busy time, she made sure I took care of myself. The blood I was tasting was because my lower lip busted open (I either bit it when I fell or the lid on the container hit my face hard enough) and Kathy said my teeth looked fine. She gave me some paper towels to press on my lip to stop the bleeding and sent me to the meat department to get a bag of ice. Unfortunately, because I was probably hyped up on adrenaline and got up immediately after the fall, I didn't notice that my left knee was swollen to the size of a softball, and didn't realize it was bad until I drove home from work. I got home and I couldn't move my knee, so Russell had to help me out of my car and upstairs.

On a lighter side, apparently, Burberry got outside and nobody noticed. After Russell had me upstairs in the living room, he went to let Sugar and Lilli outside. When he opened the door, he saw a cat and said, "Hey, you look like Burberry!" When the cat let himself inside, Russell realized and shouted, "Hey, you ARE Burberry! When did you get outside??" He was soaking wet because it had been raining, but Burr didn't seem upset about it at all.

I showed up to work the next day wearing my knee brace. Kathy noticed it and asked if it was from the accident. I said yes, and Kathy asked why I didn't tell her my knee hurt. I mentioned that I didn't even notice that it hurt until I got home. She asked if I wanted to file for worker's comp, but I declined since it wasn't a big deal (and I was afraid I was going to get in trouble for some reason).

May 16th was Russell's 32nd birthday. I was off on his birthday, so we spent it together. It was also Lemmy and Rufus's 2nd birthday.

On May 19th, Kaitlyn (a family friend) graduated veterinary school with her DVM. I was so happy and proud, and very excited for her, because she had talked about wanting to be a vet since we were kids.

June

June 2nd was my mom's birthday. I called her and we talked for a while.

Lilli got her first haircut on June 13th. We got her the typical schnauzer cut, and while I thought it was cute, Russell thought it made her look like a boy. We picked a different cut for her to get from now on.

June 13th was the start of our long adventure. Russell dropped me off at work and picked me up afterwards since we planned on leaving immediately after I got off (I got off at 7pm- that's important). I placed a mobile order at Chipotle for dinner, filled my car with gas, and picked up my dinner before we hit the road. We planned to spend the night in North Carolina, about an hour north of Charlotte. We figured we'd get there by 10:30-ish, but with all the construction on I-85 in South Carolina, we ended up getting there closer to midnight. We were ready for bed when we got to the Sleep Inn.

We got up decently early on June 14th, since we still had a long ways to go to get to New Jersey. We got breakfast at Sheetz (my idea!) and topped off the tank at Kangaroo (gas was cheaper there) before starting our long journey. The trip was pretty dull and boring. When we got to Virginia, we finally got to hop on I-95. We passed King's Dominion, and Russell joked that we should've gone there instead of Six Flags. After getting past Richmond, we stopped for lunch at McDonald's. Russell got the Grimace Meal so we could try the Grimace shake, and neither of us liked it that much. The aftertaste reminded me of Fruity Pebbles, but the initial taste was pretty gross. After lunch, we got back on the road. The GPS had us bypass Washington, D.C., but the traffic was still a nightmare anyway. We were close to the Ronald Reagan Airport, so I kept calling out the different airlines I saw as they were taking off and landing. Once we finally made it out of D.C., we were on route to Baltimore. When we got there, the GPS had us get off the highway to avoid an accident. We drove past the Ravens stadium, and I flipped it off because I'm a Steelers fan. We also drove past the Orioles stadium and I wanted to flip it off too (a guy two grades below me in school played for them and deleted everyone on Facebook afterwards. I later learned he got released because he sucked HAHA), but there people next to us at that point and I didn't want to get shot. We then drove through shady backroads until the GPS had us get on I-95 again. Before leaving Maryland, we stopped at the rest stop called Maryland House to use the bathroom and get something to snack on since the McDonald's wasn't filling. When we got to Delaware, we hopped on I-295, which took us straight to New Jersey. We needed gas again after we got into New Jersey, so we stopped at Wawa. It was an experience having a gas attendant fill my car. While we there, we decided to get dinner. Once getting our food, we made our way to the Best Western for the evening. The one thing we noticed was that it reeked of weed because it's legal in New Jersey.

I woke up in the middle of the night on June 15th with my stomach hurting. I'm not much of a fast food eater to begin with, so all that grease in my stomach made me feel like shit. I got out of bed, sat on the toilet, and drank some water, convinced that I was going to vomit. After sitting for a while, I started feeling better. I laid down to go back to sleep until Russell's alarm went off. We went to get the free breakfast in the hotel, and since I still felt a little queasy, I opted to just eat some vanilla yogurt and granola. After breakfast, we made our way to Six Flags Great Adventure. As much as we were looking forward to being there, we were slightly disappointed that the top two rides in the park were closed (El Toro had been out of commission for almost a year and Kingda Ka had an incident a week before we got there. What sucks is El Toro reopened two days later). The park was busier than we had anticipated since many schools were taking field trips there, so we got Flash Passes to ensure we could ride everything. The food was very lackluster and there was next to nothing for me to eat, so I ended up having cheese fries for lunch. We saved the rides we expected to be the worst for last, which worked out well since Green Lantern hurt so bad! Nitro, Jersey Devil, and Medusa were the top 3 that I rode. Also, we got stuck on Houdini's Great Escape, which was not fun, especially since some Karen sitting by us kept asking someone to call for help. I kept telling her that the ride operators knew we were in there and would get us out as soon as they could. Her young child wasn't even panicking! We left the park around 4pm, and got dinner at Denny's. I got a veggie burger and fries. After dinner, we went to the hotel to relax for the night.

We woke up decently early on June 16th to go to Ocean City, Maryland. We drove out of New Jersey and to Pennsylvania to get breakfast at Bob Evans, and then made our way down. We had to drive backroads in Philadelphia because the bridge collapsed on I-95, but we eventually found our way back to Delaware. After driving through Delaware for a while (I never realized how long Delaware actually was since it looks so small on the map), we stopped for lunch at... McDonald's, surprise surprise. We took our lunch to go this time so we could continue the drive. We made it to Ocean City around 3pm, and I called my mom to let her know we were in the city so she could stand outside and show us where the condo was. We followed the GPS to park the car, and my mom was standing on the top floor of the condo (it was thankfully only three floors high lol). We grabbed our luggage out of the trunk of my car and walked upstairs. My mom showed us where our room was, and we dropped off our bags. The view of the beach from our condo was amazing. We relaxed in the condo for a while until we wondered what was going on for dinner. My mom reached out to Moira, and she suggested we got dinner at BLU Crabhouse & Raw Bar as a "rehearsal dinner" since it was by their hotel. Me, Russell, and Bridgid rode in my car while my parents rode by themselves (I think they intended to pick up Fiona and Zach, but they didn't want to go since they spent all day driving from Cleveland). We got Blu Crab Dip as an appetizer, and I got the Crab Cake Sandwich as my entree. I also got a Dirty Banana as a drink, and it was delightful. After dinner, me, Russell, and Bridgid stopped at Food Lion to buy a gift card for Moira and Adam. I was tempted to get an inappropriate card for their wedding, but chose to be normal and got a wedding card.

We woke up the morning on June 17th and, when we allegedly had no plans for breakfast, me and Russell went to McDonald's because they had bagels. I asked if anyone wanted anything, and at first everyone said no, but once I had my shoes on, my dad asked for a large coffee and Bridgid asked for an Oreo Frappe. I asked my mom if she wanted an unsweet tea, but she said no. After we came back with our breakfast and started eating, my mom said Moira wanted to meet up for Wedding Day breakfast at The Dough Roller. I mentioned that I could probably eat again since the bagels aren't necessarily filling, so we went to breakfast. I chose to get the Cheese & Egg Sandwich because pancakes didn't sound good for some reason.

Part 2 live now on my blog! Stupid character limit smh.

[theroguequeenaniki]

Superb Owl 2024

And I actually watched some of it??? And I watched the entirety of the Overtime??? And that was STRESSFULL!!! But THEY DID IT!!! Lol.

And yes, I cared more than usual because of Taylor (& I did wear Taylor merch lol), but I was also rooting for the Chiefs b/c of my dad, just like last year lol

And I can't believe Usher brought out Teeny-Bell for the Halftime Show! That was crazy! Lol. XD

It's funny that I actually watched like half the game b/c we went to our family Super Bowl party and ate (we had burgers, chips & queso (& salsa but I didn't get any), tres leches cake, and tea as usual lol) & then left as usual like right as the game was starting lol (So I watched the game alone, which I think was better lol).

And I also made a goofy tweet about our cat because my dad named him Kelce after Travis Kelce. Lol.

[minsinclair]

Or Else It Does Not Care

ᐊ Chapter Three ᐅ

Bea barely even spares a glance at Selene, keeping her gaze leveled on Poppy. "Wish me luck, babe?" she echoes Ford. Poppy bites back a laugh. "Good luck," she says nicely, playing along. Bea's grin grows wider. "Won't need it," she says cockily, "but thanks."

They debut on Kickoff Day.

"Why do we have the Kickoff Party a week before our actual Kickoff Day?" Bea asks as they climb the stands. Their arms are linked, and Bea is irritatingly tall, so Poppy is mostly focused on trying not to tip over.

"Why don't you ask the girl who planned it?" she quips. "Oh, wait."

"You're a riot," Bea says, completely deadpan, and before Poppy can respond, "Look alive."

"Ohmygod!" Chloe's shriek pierces through the air. "You guys are here! Together!"

Beside her, Veronica swings her phone around, training it on Bea and Poppy. "There they are, Veronicats," she narrates. "Boppy in the flesh."

"Alright, you two." Bea waves her free hand in front of the camera, voice dripping in fake humility. "Show's over."

Chloe purses her lips in a dramatic pout, but Veronica aims the phone away agreeably. Bea helps Poppy take a seat, then huddles on the bleacher beside her.

"You guys have to be in a stream sometime," she says, still half talking to her viewers. "The Cats are obsessed. You could stop by this week," she hints.

Bea flounders, trapped. Alright, Poppy thinks, maybe not so agreeable.

"Whoa," Ford exclaims as he approaches, Redhead Bea in tow. "Queens of campus alert." He reaches past Poppy to pound his fist against Bea's. "Congrats on making it official."

Bea smirks, shooting Poppy a smug grin. "Thanks."

"So it was Bea who made the first move?" Chloe asks, hungry for details.

"Didn't Poppy basically jump her after the Person to Watch gala last year?" Veronica asks, eyes not leaving her phone.

"Jump how?" Chloe demands. She turns to Poppy, eyes wide. "Jump how?"

"Okay," Bea interjects, saving Poppy from having to answer. She turns to Ford. "Shouldn't you be on the field?"

"Just dropping off my girl," he explains, then plants a loud, smacking kiss right on Redhead Bea's cheek. "Wish me luck, babe."

"Good luck!" Redhead Bea chirps. Ford's face splits into a stupid, lovestruck grin. He practically floats to the field. Poppy tries not to gag.

Redhead Bea climbs daintily over the bleachers, taking a seat next to actual Bea. She leans forward, staring at Poppy with glittering eyes.

"I wanted to congratulate you two, too," she says earnestly. "I know I haven't been here for very long, but it's pretty obvious you two really care about each other."

Poppy chokes, her face going red. Next to her, Bea smiles graciously.

"Thanks, Selene," she says, and in that moment, Poppy hates her.

Because for a second, she sounds completely genuine.

Right. Of course Bea had to be a good actress.

------------------

Poppy zones out for the first half of the game. The little armored Alphas run back and forth across the field and she rests her chin on Bea's shoulder, half playing it up for the audience and half just taking advantage of a warm body to lean against to fight off the unseasonable cold. Bea must pick up on her discomfort at some point, because she shrugs out of her big canvas jacket and drapes it across Poppy's shoulders like a blanket.

How chivalrous, Poppy wants to tease, but there are far too many prying eyes and ears around, so instead she just says thanks and curls into the warmth.

At halftime, Bea gently shrugs Poppy's head from her shoulder. Veronica and Chloe are standing, shaking out their limbs in preparation for the Zeta Dancing Queens' halftime performance. Redh- Selene shuffles closer as the Zetas get ready to leave, and Poppy eyes her with silent distrust.

"You guys are gonna be great!" Selene jams two thumbs up towards Chloe and Veronica, who largely ignore her. Undeterred, she turns to Bea, smiling brightly. "Good luck!"

"Thanks." Bea barely even spares a glance at Selene, keeping her gaze leveled on Poppy. "Wish me luck, babe?" she echoes Ford.

Poppy bites back a laugh. "Good luck," she says nicely, playing along.

Bea's grin grows wider. "Won't need it," she says cockily, "but thanks."

And then without warning, she dips down and presses a quick kiss to Poppy's cheek.

Heat erupts in Poppy's chest, a red flush spreading up her neck and across her face. Bea pulls back, almost looking a little flushed herself, staring dumbstruck at Poppy for just a millisecond before spinning on her heel and practically pushing Veronica and Chloe over the bleachers and down the stairs. Poppy watches numbly as the three tumble onto the field to join the rest of the Zetas.

"You two are sweet," Selene observes.

Poppy doesn't respond.

------------------

"I think it went well," Bea says after the game.

They're back in the faux-privacy of Poppy's room, Poppy picking through her closet and Bea finishing her makeup in Poppy's vanity mirror. The rest of the house has been pregaming since the Thoroughbreds retook the field for the second half, but Poppy had reasoned that she and Bea should probably keep their heads on straight for the night. Or at least until everyone else was already drunk.

"These people run anonymous blogs just to gush about us," she replies boredly. "They're not exactly hard to impress."

Bea shrugs. "We're not going for impressive." She pokes through Poppy's various makeup products, squinting at the labels on the tubes. "We're going for believable. Speaking of which, you could stand to look a little less miserable all the time."

Poppy throws an annoyed glance over her shoulder. "I do not look miserable all the time."

"Mm." Bea doesn't sound convinced. She picks a tube of mascara, holding it up for Poppy's inspection. "Can I use this?"

Poppy waves a hand. "Use what you want." She pulls a lacy black shirt off its hanger, hesitating for a split second before taking her own shirt off. She keeps her back towards Bea as she dresses, movements quick and jerky as she pulls the top over her head. It's not like it's weird. Bea has seen her before, and she's seen Bea, so. It wouldn't be weird, if Bea happened to see her again. Not at all.

Still, she doesn't turn around until she's fully dressed.

Bea is still sitting at the vanity, prodding gently at her eyes with the mascara wand. She keeps blinking when it gets too close to her eye, and Poppy realizes that mascara isn't really in Bea's usual arsenal. Not that she can remember, anyway. Bea's eyelashes are, for the most part, lush enough without it.

Bea blinks into the wand again, leaning back and squinting into the mirror. Poppy breathes in deeply, keeps the breath there for a minute, then sighs.

"Let me," she says, and pulls the chair away from the vanity. Bea doesn't protest as Poppy tucks one knee into each side of the chair, effectively straddling Bea's lap. She straightens, peering ever so slightly down at Bea. Bea peers right back up, completely at ease.

We've had fun, haven't we? she had asked.

Poppy tilts Bea's head away with one hand, fingers keeping a gentle tension at her eyebrow to keep her lashes from fluttering. She runs the tiny brush through Bea's lashes in one fluid swoop, then repeats the motion on the other side.

"This isn't your usual," she comments offhandedly. "Dressing up for someone tonight, Farmsville?"

"You," Bea breathes easily. "Duh."

Poppy hums disinterestedly, but something about this - the warmth of Bea's thighs under her own, the cool feeling of breath against her chest - is making her palms clammy. She pushes herself off the chair, dropping the mascara back onto the vanity without care as she retreats to the bed to put on her shoes.

"Thanks," Bea says, a little late.

"Whatever," Poppy responds, hoping her voice sounds less shaky than she feels. "Just... stop trying to stab your eye out, okay? Veronica will give you lessons if you're really so inept."

Poppy's makeup rattles as Bea returns the mascara to its place. "Be mean all you want, Pops," she says. "I'm still gonna thank you."

Poppy doesn't know what to say to that. Luckily (maybe), Bea stands before the silence can stretch too far. "Ready?" she asks, offering Poppy her hand. Poppy takes it, and Bea laces their fingers.

"Let's go show these bitches what a real couple looks like."

------------------

something's definitely happening and poppy does NOT have the emotional intelligence to understand what. + i did write this before the selene is x reveal & i'm not sure whether or not that will come into play in this fic. for now just pretend it's not canon in this universe.

tags / @camren-jenlisa-is-real @hallowdiamond @iamsimpforpoppy @louvmin @save-me-the-last-dance

ᐊ Prev. / Next ᐅ

[oftenderweapons]

Dirty ABCs | Jungkook and Candy

Let’s celebrate birthday boy with early NSFW alphabet!!! LET’S GOOOOO

Pairing: Jungkook x reader/OC (Candy)

Wordcount: 2.1k

Genre: headcanons

Rating: 18+. Minors, do not interact.

Here’s my masterlist, enjoy!

Trigger warnings: switch!jk, switch!candy, swearing. Unprotected sex (penetrative and oral — REMEMBER TO USE PROTECTION AND GET CHECKED REGULARLY), double penetration, quickies, creampie, cockwarming, cum eating. Marking, biting, scratching. Masturbation, boobjobs. Mention of mommy kink. Public foreplay, semi-public sex, exhibitionism. Degradation, praise kink, dirty talking, edging, sensory deprivation, overstimulation, multiple orgasms. Predator/Prey dynamics. Choking. Bondage. Toys (vibrators, cockrings, sex swing… 👀). Mild torture (?). Platonic spanks.

Beta read by my better half, @joheunsaram

Aftercare: Jungkook likes cuddles and pillow talk after sex. He’s very traditional about it. He enjoys how vulnerable he feels and how tender Candy is towards him. He really enjoys the softness of it all, and most importantly being babied. He wants tiddies and a nap. Candy is all about spoiling her boyfriend after he’s burnt out and satisfied. She loves how pliant and open he feels afterwards, how easy it is to connect with him and just let him vent about his worries.

Body part: Another tiddie man. He just loves how soft and relaxing it feels to rest his head on Candy’s breasts. He also loves her hair and how good it always smells. He lives to nuzzle into her neck and breathe her in. Candy loves Jungkook’s back. It’s the sexiest thing ever and she likes watching his back muscles flex when he’s fucking her. She also loves his waist, so dainty and feline. And of course his eyes. She could stare into his loving dark irises for hours. They’re so expressive.

Cum: Inside. Jungkook always wants inside. Her mouth is a close second, but if given the chance he wants to sink deep into her and bathe in the scent of her while sheathed in her warmth. It feels natural and romantic and loving. There’s no other place he would want to be other than inside her, all the time. Candy is okay with anything he wants. Watching his peaceful, serene expression after he’s fucked her hard and has found his orgasm inside her is ultimately one of the reasons why she loves having sex with Jungkook.

Dirty secret: Jungkook had been secretly nursing a mommy kink for a while. It did pop up once during one of his and Candy's little encounters, but it's not something he feels ready to face. He is so ashamed of it. Candy is really into Jungkook being her whiny, subby, precious good boy. She only wants to spoil him rotten all the time. However she can't stop thinking about all the girls out there willing to give up a lung to have a one night stand with him. Sometimes she just wishes she could dominate him in public. Tie him up, ride him raw till he's dry.

Experience: Jungkook has had only one partner, with whom the sex felt pretty awful. He didn't really think he was into it or could go that wild before he and Candy started sleeping together. Candy is fairly experienced. She has had three or four short term relationships. Maybe a couple flings.

Favourite position: Jungkook can't pick just one. Well, actually yes: missionary, but with Candy's legs pressed together and thrown over his shoulder but also spread apart, her knees pressed to her shoulders. Candy really likes it when he picks her up and fucks her against the wall, or when he gets really creative. That usually entails lots of laughing and joking and communicating.

Goofy: maybe. It depends. If they're making love, then I do see Jungkook getting emotional and Candy brightening the mood with cute jokes and compliments. They do tend to be goofy when they're together, but usually not during sex. It's either a very emotionally raw moment or vicious fucking.

Hair: Jungkook shaves. He's a neat freak and shaves. He does so religiously. Candy is not that consistent, sometimes she shaves, sometimes she trims. Depends on the mood.

Intimacy: it's very demure but it's there. You wouldn't notice it because the moment Jungkook enters beast mode, it's pretty much degradation and overstimulation all over the place. But it's there too! It's in the mere fact that he trusts her enough to forget how to be civil and decent and just unleashes himself all over her. For the first ten times or so it's shy and attempted, he tiptoes around the very edge of control, but once she tells him she loves him, he goes all out and never stops. He explores and pleases. That's his nature. Candy is the one that grants intimacy the most. He knows he can go wild because she's his anchor, keeping things loving and gentle and tender even through the storm. Now, once Jungkook subs though… intimacy galore. Little touches and small kisses and endless tight hugs. Her first goal is to make him feel safe. And that happens through intimacy.

Jack off: These two? Really? No, you didn't understand. If Jungkook has even a remote chance of cumming inside her, there's no way he's masturbating. He will 300% ignore his instincts until he can have her. And it's pretty difficult for Candy not to be in the mood — or not to get into the mood, if need be. She's also not one for masturbating. She does it only when he's not available, be it because he's abroad or he's too busy. But he's always her first choice. Generally speaking it might happen that he's not in the mood and she decides to take a quick shower and deal with it herself, but usually he's joining her after a couple minutes, his mind changed, a bunny smile on his face as he winks and hops in.

Kink: First and foremost, cockwarming. Creampies shortly after. Candy has a thing for marking him, especially scratches down his muscular upper back. Their kinks depend on who's domming: if it's Jungkook, there's plenty of degradation and high chances of predator/prey dynamics. He gets very horny if Candy plays hard to catch, and he discovers it accidentally, after Candy stole the last serving of his favourite snack. Useless to say, the snack was forgotten and they fucked on the floor. Candy likes choking (receiving) and pretty much anything Jungkook is willing to try. She can't wait to try double penetration with him, she's just waiting for him to open up about the topic. When domming, she's into sensory deprivation, bondage, praise kink and edging, especially when boobjobs are involved, since JK is particularly sensitive about the topic. As long as she has him whining and begging below her, she's ready to try anything.

Location: Well, the bedroom is the place of choice for most occasions. Not always though. The shower is a strong opponent. If they do get naughty outside of their home, it's usually in quite private places too. Hotel rooms. Club or restaurant bathrooms. Foreplay in the lift and on the dance floor — mostly Candy rubbing herself all over Jungkook. Well, they did get nasty in a cave once, but that's another story.

Motivation: as I said, playing catch with Jungkook is always a good way to get him in the mood. He's extremely weak for breasts, so anything regarding those is a hot topic too. Candy often wears loose/low neck shirts and leans over, offering him a glimpse of her lack of bra. Low neckline and no bra usually means "please, fuck me across the living room, thank you" in Candy language. While for Candy, watching Jungkook work out or just get sweaty and flirty is a total panty snatcher. You'll find her bent over, ass up, ready for the take.

No: Jungkook doesn't like receiving degradation. Memories of his ex make him uncomfortable with that. Other than that, he strongly opposes to anything that involves hardcore domination. He can be a dom, but he's extremely sensitive about what he does and some acts are a bit too aggressive for his opinion. Candy hadn't tried anything unconventional before Jungkook, and so far all her past no's have turned into hard yes with Jungkook. She's still exploring her limits.

Oral: Jungkook? Hell yes. He likes receiving but he by far prefers giving, especially when Candy is domming or directing him. He could do that for hours, and his love for the act almost rivals that of our local kitty cat Yoongi. His true joy is being rewarded going for multiples with his head between Candy's thighs. Especially if he's cum inside her. Not too fast though, he needs some cockwarming first. Candy is a true fan of giving head. She especially likes doing so when Jungkook is in a subby and bratty mood. Listening to him getting vocal about his appreciation is always the greatest compliment to her, and also an excellent way to discipline him when he gets cocky.

Pace: Fast. Hard. That's all there is. If he's setting the pace, it's outright demonic, hitting at least 74bpm (it's Kiwi by Harry Styles in halftime). Yes, he can go slower, usually when he's in lover boy mode or even better, when he's trying to show Candy who's the boss. Slow, lazy rolls of his hips reaching unknown depths. If Candy's on top/domming it's all about it being intimate, calm, relaxing even. She wants Jungkook to explore a sensuality he is too rushed and forceful for. Through her slow and steady approach she helps him embrace a more feminine and spiritual sexuality that borders on the psychological and tantric.

Quickie: yes. Hard yes. He is the best with quickies. Just get it over with so they're both relieved and they can chat about their day while he's still inside her. There's not much to say. Just yes.

Risk: they prefer avoiding it, however they're young and experimenting, therefore they do sometimes get a bit past the safety line. The biggest risk for them is doing anything where they could be spotted, therefore they're really subtle and overall not too explicit about anything happening in a semi-public context. Except, that one time while they were on holiday, of course. And that other time in which Candy almost jerked him off in a restaurant before blowing him in his car.

Stamina: Insane. Jungkook's stamina is more about endurance rather than control. He can make Candy cum five or six times while he cums twice and is more than glad. He can go for two consecutive rounds without breaking a sweat. For himself he's usually more than happy with a round of foreplay and one of fucking, but if he's determined enough, he can last one more. He usually doesn't push himself that far though, he does when he's been deprived for long enough.

Toy: Although toys aren't usually a part of their sex life, they do use them every now and then. Vibrators, vibrating cockrings, oh! And their sex swing, of course. That's what they use the most, yes.

Unfair: If Jungkook is in hard dom mode, he is very unfair, plenty of teasing and taunting matched with mockery and degradation. He can keep Candy on her toes for a full hour, giving her small reprieve every here and there. Candy is also equally torturous: if she's domming, she's not done edging him until he's whining, sobbing, begging and possibly crying.

Volume: Normally, Candy is very quiet however, Jungkook always goes the extra mile to make her moan and whine, especially if he's eating her out. Jungkook can be especially eloquent with his sounds: grunting and groaning are typically for his dommier side, while whining and whimpering are usually for his subby one. Moaning is all over the place. Consider also a good amount of murmuring and mumbling some dirty talking. Not too much though.

Wild card: Jungkook likes his hair being combed during aftercare. Candy always relaxes while he speaks loving words to make up for the degradation and mockery. She could fall asleep while combing his hair, she's just that tired and comfortable. Also! When he installed the sex swing in their room, he decided it was a good idea to have permanent hooks on the ceiling, mask them with fake plants. Crackhead.

X-Ray: Jungkook has a nice cock. Not too long, not too thick but it has an upward curve that makes stuff interesting. He's probably around six or seven inches. Candy has objectively nice breasts, full, round, truly well structured. And she has a nice ass too, Jungkook likes squeezing it when she throws her leg on top of him during cuddles. He also spanks it a few tens of times a day — not in the sexual way tho, but more in that encouragement/comradery way he has learnt with the guys.

Yearning: Jungkook can go without sex for a long time. I'm talking about a month and more. It's not a priority for him, except right after he and Candy sleep together for the first time, when he needed to get rid of the high. With him, everything is very inconsistent: one week you're having sex every day, and the following one, he's just all about the cuddles and fluff. Candy is up for anything, however she prefers having sex at least once or twice a week. Both feel safe to initiate without fearing being denied. For them, arousal is very easily built through playing and bantering.

Zzz: both take a while to fall asleep after sex. Plenty of time for pillow talking and cleaning up, though they prefer doing so very pragmatically. Any time spent apart during aftercare is a waste to both of them: they just want to talk things out, relax, bask in each other's warm presence.

[xamaxenta]

BASICS OF MARCHING BAND

Submitted by @liferockingitout

okay so, this is probably gunna be long as shit but here's what's up with American Marching Band(s)

Most people start playing their assigned instrument in the band in freshman year of high school, around age 13-14 (or earlier, my specific school system started us playing in 6th grade around age 11-12, but we didn't learn marching until high school). There's also an unofficial encouraged system of buddying up young musicians with older kids (so freshmen, 14-15 years old, get buddied with an older teen who might be a junior or senior, ages 16-18). There's no real division of ages in the band as a whole (no all-freshmen bands, no all-senior bands, etc) unless you're talking like a really preppy private school where all the kids are snobby rich kids. This means that younger musicians get mentors who are closer to their maturity but have a ton of experience. This also applies to the color guard (the flag people), whom are mostly female performers and rarely a male or two thrown in if they tried out. The buddy system is applied via "sections"-as in, the trumpet section older kids will buddy up with younger players within the trumpet section. You don't get a flute player buddied with a tuba player, or a snare drum player buddied up with a clarinet, for example. You buddy up with people who play the same instrument as you.

Marching "season" is in the fall and winter, during American Football season. Most school marching bands, for college and high school, perform before a crowd during a football game's halftime (this show, called a program, is usually a fairly intricate thing that combines playing upwards of 6 songs while marching in various ways. I can break down the specific ways a person can march, the body movements, even the types of steps and stops, and how they keep accurate time while marching but it's super specific vocabulary involved). The program, if performed early in the season, is usually still not complete so a band will only perform part of it. Most programs last maybe 15 minutes tops. The program is taken to actual competitions, where different schools within your division inside your region of the state you live in play their programs ones after the other in a football stadium (usually a college football stadium, rarely a large high school stadium). These competitions are judged according to a lot of criteria that I won't go into detail about, but basically it's how well the band as a whole plays, how well the band as a whole marches and keeps time, how well the band as a whole 'looks', and how well individual musicians who are picked at random by judges perform.

During actual football games, the job of the band when they're not performing during halftime is to basically be a second hype squad behind the cheerleaders. The band, in their bleachers (either an allocated section of the seating around the stadium, or their own dedicated bleachers behind a goalpost on the ground), play different instrumental arrangements of popular songs or cheer-songs that the cheerleaders then encourage the crowd to cheer/sing along to. The band will also shout/cheer their own cheers and songs when not playing and will react to the game along with the crowd. The band is usually released sometime in the 4th quarter of a football game to start doing instrument maintenance, put instruments away into cases, take off parts of or their entire marching uniform, and generally allowed to go home or rejoin friends/family in the regular seating to watch the final bits of the game.

The uniform of the band usually comes in two parts. There's a set of overalls of a solid color (usually black or white, less common is yellow or blue, rarely green or red), and a jacket that goes over the torso. The jacket is the overall aesthetic/design of the uniform that most people know. Almost always a hat or helmet is part of the uniform but wearing it is only required when the band is in formation (either marching in a parade, marching onto or off of a field, and during a performance). For the drummers (tom drums are the single babies, snares are the quad/4 set, and bass drums are the big guys who stand sideways) their uniform also includes a special harness worn over the overalls but under the jacket that holds their drumset in place while they perform. Due to the harness, they also have "crab march"/march sideways, which is completely diffemarching in a parade in which case they march normally.

Any questions?

[bookofbolden]

You're so... bubbly. And encouraging. How are you able to remain that way in this kind of town? A lot of the people I've spoken with are kind of grumpy all of the time, or just plain dangerous. You've made me laugh more than I thought I ever would again. But I can't thank you because apparently that's not good.

[pm] You think I'm cool? That's a first. I think you're cool, too. Actually, I'm really happy that you responded to my post. I think dance is about as extensive as my work out routine gets, but it works. I used to be a huge Lady Gaga fan - I think her Superbowl halftime show was the first and last time I actually sat through more than ten minutes of football. I didn't want to miss a single thing so I watched most of the second quarter before she started performing.

That's so nerdy I love it <3 You were out there making people look hot! I'm a good singer, but I was never into any of those clubs. I did cheer a bit, but that's a diff thing. BOTH of those are great and oh boyyy, same here. Calm me a basic girly but I love Hamilton. I put Lin to shame with my rapping skills. Did you see the OGs? I'm sooo jelly. NICE! love that movie.

[pm] People with bad taste, obvi. That's so cool. You're so cool actually. I forgot cool people existed when I got here. Thank you for reminding me. Do you work out? :) sounds like a fun activity to do together. Yup, we're #bornthisway as LG would put it. Probably how you were born with your vibe detector.

[allthemenofmydreams]

Back Home with a Trophy & a Baby- Ben Chilwell

It was the week of the champions final, Ben was busy with training and some interviews. But in his free time at night, he would lie next to me and always lay his head on my growing belly and talk sweet words to our baby.

I was 8 months pregnant, and we still didn't know what sex our baby was. We wanted it to be a surprise, even though we were dying to know. When the team reached the Champions League final and found out that it would be played in Porto. Ben and I started having little arguments on whether or not I should attend the final. Due to my condition, I was not recommended to get on a plane, especially when you are at a stage where the baby could be born at any moment.

The day before he left we had another little talk. We still hadn't decided if I would attend the game or not. Although the doctor had given us green light for me to attend the game because everything was under control and it wasn't a long flight. According to him, the baby was going to stay in my belly for a couple more weeks, but Ben wasn't so sure. He feared that maybe I would start having contractions during the flight or, worse, that the baby would want to be born while he was at the game.

I was in the kitchen making dinner when he got home.

"I think you should stay," Ben said, placing a flight ticket and the game pass over the table. "I will be more relaxed if you stay, but I will also feel at ease knowing that you are in the stands supporting me, so... I let it up to you".

I walked and stood in front of him, placing my arms around his neck and playing with his hair. I looked him in the eyes and said

"I'm going to be fine, I mean we're going to be fine." I took his hand and placed it on my belly so he could feel the baby move.

Ben smiled and kissed me on the forehead.

"I know, I just can't help but worry about you two".

"How would you feel if I thought about it over the next few days, and let you know what I've decided?"

"I'm fine with that." He smiled and then said, "what's that smell?"

"Oh, I made your favorite food because I was craving it," He laughed and walked over to the stove to serve himself a plate.

"Let's have dinner then"

In the morning, Ben got up early for a final training session at Cobham before leaving for Portugal.

"Please, let me know what you decide Y/N, whether you go or stay¨ Ben said, taking his things and placing them in the back of the car.

I was in my pajamas standing in the door frame leading to our garage watching his movements. It was very early, but I had to say goodbye to him and wish him good luck because, whether I was going or not, it was very likely that I would see him after the game.

"We're staying, so don't worry. The baby and I want you to stay focused." Ben came over to me and kneeled, placing his hands and forehead on my belly.

"I'm going to get that win and bring that trophy home so when you grow up I can tell you about that great day."

Pregnancy hormones and Ben's words made me cry. He stood up and looked me in the eyes.

"I know I'm going to see you in a couple of days, but I don't want to leave without saying thank you"

"Thank you for what?" I asked, confused with my voice shaking from crying.

"For making me the luckiest man alive, because you are an extraordinary woman who is doing a great job with our baby. I can't wait to have him or her in our arms."Ben placed his hands on my cheeks and put his forehead on mine, "I love you so much Y/N, thank you for being my support, I don't know what I would do without you"

"I love you too Ben, thank you for all you have done for us, and for showing us not to give up and work on our dreams, I know you are a great team and you are going to win. I don't need to wish you good luck, because that victory is already yours." I gave him a soft and deep kiss. Whenever Ben plays away I get a little touchy, even though I know he'll be back in a day or two.

We hugged one more time before he got in the car and drove away.

I walked into the house and saw the tickets on the table. Even when I had told Ben that I would stay because I didn't want to worry him and needed him to keep the promise he had made to our baby before he left. I told the Footballer a little white lie.

The next day, I got dressed in comfortable clothes, grabbed my suitcase, and called an Uber to take me to the airport.

As we took off, I remembered that I hadn't told Ben about my change of plans. After a couple of hours, we landed, everything under control and the baby still in my belly. It was a safe and quiet flight and I slept through it. On the way to the hotel, I was thinking about how to communicate to Ben that I was not in London but Porto.

After checking into the hotel and settling into my room, I sent a message to Ben.

Y/N Babe, I need to tell u smth

He replied almost immediately.

Benjamin Please don't tell me the baby is born

I laughed at his worries.

Y/N Nop, baby still on my belly

Benjamin Phew! then what's it?

Y/N You won't believe me, but we're here

Benjamin Here? where? He didn't understand

Y/N Porto.

I replied straight to the point.

It's been 5 minutes since I told him I was in Portugal and he still doesn't answer my message. I don't know whether to worry. Maybe he got annoyed. A couple of minutes later my cell phone showed an incoming call from Ben, and as soon as I answered I heard his voice.

"It was that a joke y/n? because if it was..." I interrupted him.

"It wasn't a joke Ben, I'm here in Portugal. I'm at the hotel"

"Oh my god! you're such a liar, why didn't you tell me?"

"Because I changed my mind at the last minute, everything went so fast that I forgot to tell you."

"I can't believe you did it... "

"Are you mad at me?" I asked out of the blue. I couldn't deal with the feeling of guilt for not telling him.

"What! no, I'm not mad. I'm actually glad you're here."

We kept talking for a little longer until we had to end the call because of his pre-match duties.

It's Saturday morning, game day. I sent a text to Ben wishing him good luck and that I would see him later to celebrate. Later I was already in the stands waiting for the game to start. The opening ceremony gave me goosebumps. It was unbelievable. I was glad I was at the game and didn't miss this special day; because I couldn't have lived knowing how everyone was talking about this special day and I didn't get to see it.

The teams took to the field and lined up in front of the sideline for the anthem once again. I noticed that Chelsea's number 21 was discreetly looking for me. When he found me, he signaled to let me know he had seen me. The signal was to run his hand through his hair, so the fans wouldn't go looking for the person he had waved at. Which made it a special moment between us.

The stadium erupted in cheers and celebrations when Kai scored the goal that gave us the lead. I screamed and celebrated as I had never done before. We were winning. A few minutes before the end of the first half, I felt a liquid running down my legs, had I peed?

In the bathroom, while wiping myself, I realized that it wasn't pee, but that my water had broken. I tried to stay calm and not panic; there was still halftime left to play. I took a deep breath, adjusted my dress, and went back to the stands.

The referee added 7 minutes. My nerves were clutching my stomach, plus the baby was also nervous because I could feel it moving. When the ref blew the final whistle I let out the breath I didn't know I was holding, it was the longest 7 minutes of my life.

Everyone in the stands was celebrating, the boys and Ben were hugging each other. They couldn't believe it. I was so happy celebrating and watching the awards that for a moment I forgot my water had broken. It was a little pain that reminded me that the baby could be born at any moment.

When they allowed the families to enter the field, Ben came for me. The huge smile on his face and the medal around his neck made me emotional. As soon as he was near we hugged and both burst into tears. I was so proud of him, I still couldn't believe he was Champion of Europe.

"You did it!" I told him wiping the tears that were running down his cheeks "I told you you would be a champion, I am so proud of you".

"I still can't believe it, I'm over the moon," he smiled and kissed my temple "Thank you! Thank you for coming and being here with me"

"I couldn't miss this day for anything in the world"

"I'm glad you didn't miss it"

We continued celebrating until the guys went back to the locker room to get ready for the celebration party.

We had just arrived at the place when I started to feel stronger pains. I didn't want Ben to miss the party, so I tried to mask them with the breathing exercises I had been taught in my prenatal classes. But I couldn't take it anymore and doubled over in pain.

"Babe, you okay?" Ben asked, kneeling next to me. I shook my head.

"I think the baby is coming," I said, inhaling and exhaling. "at halftime my water broke".

"What? Why didn't you tell me before?" his voice sounded worried.

"Because... at that moment... it didn't hurt." my voice cracked in pain.

"We have to go to a hospital" he took out his cellphone and asked for an Uber to the nearest hospital.

When we arrived, the nurses attended to me quickly and took me to a room. They asked me a couple of questions, luckily they spoke English. Ben filled out the paperwork for my admission, while we waited for the doctor. As soon as he came in and checked me over and said.

"This baby is ready" what! but it was still a couple of weeks before I was due. "Get things ready for delivery and call the pediatrician."

All the nurses started moving quickly and I started to freak out.

"Calm down," Ben said, taking my hand and kissing me "It's going to be okay, I'm with you."

"Okay," the doctor said, "on my signal, you're going to push as hard as you can, okay?", I nodded.

"You can do it, sweetie, now it's your turn to bring our trophy into the world."

"Now!" the doctor said.

After pushing three or four times, I heard our baby cry.

"Congratulations! It's a boy," the doctor said. "Do you want to cut the umbilical cord?" he asked, looking at Ben, and Ben nodded. A nurse handed Ben a pair of scissors. Watching him cut the cord was the most beautiful moment.

As soon as it was cleaned up, they took the baby away to check that he was healthy and strong because he had been born a couple of weeks earlier. strong because he had been born a couple of weeks before.

"You did great Y/N," Ben said, kissing my lips "he is going to be fine".

Ben texted our family and the lads at Chelsea to let them know that everything had gone well and that the baby was healthy.

A couple of hours later a nurse came in with our little boy in her arms and handed him to me.

I couldn't believe that this little human being had come out of me.

"Look at him, he is as handsome as his daddy," said Ben next to me, I let out a little laugh.

"I know, he's going to be a little heartbreaker."

"I don't know which one of you two I should thank, but you have certainly made this day unforgettable" Ben's eyes were covered with a couple of tears, he was over the moon, "I'm a double champion, I won a title and a baby".

"Who knew you were going to come home with a trophy and a baby," I laughed.

Our baby was still very small but I did not doubt that he was a clone of Ben.

Since everything was under control and he was a healthy baby, the next day they let us go. So our little guy came out dressed in a Chelsea onesie that the team sent us, plus other essentials for Ben and I that we didn't have because it was all unexpected. They also sent us the baby seat so we could take him home.

We didn't know if taking a newborn on a plane was a good idea, but we couldn't stay longer in Portugal. Luckily, the doctor said there was no problem, as our baby was healthy and could handle a couple of hours on the plane. At the hospital they helped us with the paperwork so we didn't have any problems when we arrived in London.

I was glad we were going back to London with the rest of the team because then Ben could still celebrate with them. The kids and families watching us were excited, all wanting to meet little Ben.

"Congratulations, Dad," Mason said as soon as he saw his teammate.

"Thanks, buddy," they hugged. "Would you like to be his godfather?"

Mason smiled and said.

"No need to ask."

When we found out I was pregnant, we spent more time wondering who was going to be our baby's godfather rather than thinking about names. We both agreed it would be Mason since he was a close friend of both of ours.

As soon as we landed we went straight home. We wanted to rest and assimilate everything that had happened over the weekend. I was glad that our baby was born early because Ben was able to be present at the birth and enjoy our boy for a couple of days before he left for his international duties.