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dilly-dahlia · 2 days ago

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i. The Silver Starlet

pairing: Gene x popular!Reader

content: pdh, drill team!reader, opposites attract, suggestive but not explicit, allusions to blackmail, reader is described as having straightened hair, images used are NOT an indication of the reader’s appearance

summary: Gene was always looking for the next person to mess with. The next person to join his gang or blackmail into doing his bidding. But when he set his sights on what he assumed to be the ditzy drill team captain, he didn't expect to fall for her.

total word count: 6.2k

masterlist

The Problem With Popularity masterlist

"Five, six, seven, eight!"

"I was almost on the drill team," Sasha mused, leaning against the bleachers as she watched the Silver Starlets, Phoenix Drop High's drill team, practice. "I was a cheerleader when I was, like, five and my mom kept me in it till I was a freshman. She really wanted me to be a Silver Starlet."

Zenix glanced up from his phone, raising his brows at Sasha. "You were a cheerleader?"

"Yup."

She had never liked it. She didn't like that football season happened during the coldest months of the year and being outside, moving and hopping and yelling at the top of her lungs, made her want to die. It would have been the same if she'd decided to join the Silver Starlets. Practice in the crisp cold mornings and hot afternoons before and after the first day of school. For the whole year.

It sounded like hell.

"Come on girls! We've got a pep rally and game this Friday!"

"I find that hard to believe," Gene said. He leaned against the bleachers beside Sasha, watching the thirty-something girls as they tossed each other into the air and jumped around and practiced high kicks and did very. . . not Sasha things. "You did this?"

"Not this exactly, obviously. I was on a junior cheer team for peewee football, or something." Sasha let out a heavy breath, pushing herself away from the bleachers, glancing at the time on her phone. "It wasn't for me, so I quit. Hey, the bell's about to ring."

Gene waved Sasha off absentmindedly, keeping his gaze on the drill team. Zenix hopped up from the box of football supplies he sat on, pocketing his phone and stretching. "God, I can't wait to go home."

"If you're that unenthusiastic about being here then why did you come?" Sasha asked as she shouldered her backpack. It was a lot heavier than it should've been for the first day of school, but that was the result of not cleaning it out over the summer.

"Because my ISS carried over to this year." Zenix rolled his eyes. "I don't get why the board's so pissed about me bringing a piñata for students to hit. It was just a fun thing for the last day."

"Maybe because you ended up giving another student a concussion with the bat, Zenix."

"Well, maybe if Balto hadn't been pissing me off he wouldn't have been whacked."

"Gene, are you coming?" Sasha called. She and Zenix had walked a couple feet away before realizing Gene wasn't following.

"Huh?" Gene peeled his gaze from where the Silver Starlets were huddled, probably discussing their practice, to look back at Sasha and Zenix. He waved them off. "Nah, I'll meet you inside in a minute."

"'Kay. Usual spot?"

"Yeah," Gene shouted after them. The pair went around the corner of the bleachers, disappearing from his line of sight. Gene followed them with his gaze, lingering where they had turned the corner as he thought.

He was bored. This school year would be shit for him if he had to actually attend his classes (something his mom had gotten onto him about after receiving a threat of court the previous year). If he was forced to go to those classes, he might as well have fun.

And girls from the drill team were the easiest to mess with. Most had light colored hair and very few had common sense. Gene hated to say it, but he was pretty sure ninety percent of them fit some sort of dumb blonde or ditzy girl stereotype.

Gene glanced back out at the field. Most of the girls had grabbed their bags and were beginning to head inside, but there were a few that lingered. One in particular stood on the opposite side of where he stood, hunched over her bag as she drank from her white water bottle.

She lifted her gaze and met his. Her lips curled around the straw of her water bottle and she lowered it from her lips to properly smile and wave at him. Her straightened hair was starting to frizz, but a headband prevented it from falling in her eyes. Her makeup was simply done and done in a way that highlighted her eyes. It was obvious she was already physically exhausted, but she still seemed full with life.

Gene knew who she was, and there was no doubt she also knew who he was. Gene returned her smile, though his seemed more mischievous, and waved to her as well. When she turned her head at the sound of someone trying to get her attention, Gene slipped out from under the bleachers and followed Sasha and Zenix's path.

Y/n L/n. She was a very well liked junior. Very sociable, Captain of the Silver Starlets, the kindest girl anyone would ever meet (as Gene had overheard from multiple students) and her dream was to be accepted into Juilliard's dance program and, hopefully, become a Rockette. She had a hand in practically every extracurricular the school offered to get there, but the drill team was her main focus.

Another small, minuscule detail that had held Gene's attention since he became aware of it was her dating history. She was Laurance Zvahl's ex-girlfriend, but before they started dating it had been rumored that Garroth Ro'Meave liked her. What was interesting to Gene was how close she remained to both boys after her breakup with Laurance. So close, in fact, that there was the odd student here and there that speculated she was still dating Laurance.

Gene knew they weren't. He had eyes and ears everywhere and knew one thing or another about practically every student (and a few teachers) in the student body. If someone wanted dirt on someone else, they would come to him and he would offer it so long as he was given something in return. It was how he knew so much—he exchanged knowledge for knowledge.

It'd be fun, he found himself thinking as he walked across the edge of the football field. If he messed with Y/n, he'd undoubtedly mess with her friends. Laurance, Garroth, Katelyn. There was a long list of popular kids he'd be able to humble when he messed with Y/n.

Not to mention it'd take her preppy, happy go lucky self off the idealistic pedestal she'd been put on. Gene didn't have anything scandalous on her yet, but he'd find something. He always did.

Gene smiled to himself as he pulled the doors open and stepped into the school. He had a new target.

—

"Molly, wrap this around the booth, will you?"

You held out the folded banner to Molly. The blonde nodded, taking the sparkly banner in her hands and recruiting the help of Stephanie, one of the newer Silver Starlets, to help.

You thanked her and blew out a breath, flattening the sparkly, powder blue sheet of plastic on the white table. The iridescent sheet crinkled beneath your fingers as you shifted it before Molly and Stephanie secured the banner around it. You still had to set up the sign that would go over the booth, and . . . God, you hated first day orientation.

You grabbed a small towel from your duffel beneath the table and dabbed at the perspiration gathering on your upper lip and forehead. It was unnaturally hot in the gym, and the thick material the Silver Starlet outfit was made of was not a good match for it. Not to mention the scratchy cowboy hat on your head and heavy makeup. You loved it, but not when you were in a room that would be crowded with freshmen.

Someone placed a pack of six water bottles on the table, and when you looked up you smiled at Laurance.

"Thanks," you said, reaching to break one of the plastic bottles away from the others. You had forgotten your own in the locker room, which was all the way across the gym and behind a booth that had already been set up. You deeply regretted that, so having Laurance bring you cold water was nice. Teony, president of student council, quickly passed by your table to drop off the countless fliers and registration forms for the Silver Starlets. "How's it going? Did you like Brazil?"

Laurance, having been adopted and living in Phoenix Drop practically his whole life, had suddenly harbored a burning desire to know where he was from the previous year. He'd asked Hayden to take an ancestry test, and when he found out his birth parents were in Brazil he begged to take a trip.

Laurance nodded, leaning against the table. "Yeah, it was really nice there. I was able to meet Luiz and Eloísa."

His birth parents. You met his gaze and smiled at him after organizing the fliers and sign up sheets on your table, straightening your posture. "Really? How were they?"

"They were . . . Nice." Laurance sounded almost hesitant. He was careful with his next words, choosing them thoughtfully. "It felt weird, though. I didn't know them and they didn't know me and it was just . . . Weird."

You nodded. You weren't sure what the full story of Laurance being put into the system was, but you could understand what he was saying to a degree. You related it to meeting a family member you'd never met in your head. Though his situation was probably vastly different.

"Are you gonna talk to them anymore at all?" you asked. He nodded.

"Yeah. I downloaded WhatsApp and got their numbers. So did Hayden, so we'll probably talk more."

"That's good. At least you can build a relationship from there." Laurance hummed. You gave him a once over, noticing he was still in his typical school uniform. "Shouldn't you be wearing your game gear, soccer captain?"

Laurance's lips curled up, clearly glad for the change in topic and mention of his new title. He saluted to you before pushing himself off your table. "You are correct. I was waiting until it got closer to the start of orientation before I did, but I guess it's close now." Laurance glanced up at the large game board on the wall, taking note of the time. "Yeah. Well, I will see you at lunch, Dancing Queen. You have B, right?"

You rolled your eyes. Dancing Queen was the stupid nickname Laurance had given you the first time saw you running drills when you had started dating. He'd used it to talk about you one too many times, and now that's how most Silver Starlet events were advertised.

"Yes, Laurance. I have B Lunch."

"Cool. So does Garroth. We'll see you then." He waved to you before pivoting on his heel and running to the boys' locker room.

You rolled your eyes again and shook your head before looking back down at the table. You rapped your fingers against the crinkly table covering, wondering what was missing.

The table was set. Molly and Stephanie had set up the banner meant to go above the booth while you were talking to Laurance. You were dressed. Your makeup was done and your hat was on. You'd added body shimmer to your collarbone and legs in the locker room. Fliers and sign up sheets were organized. Someone (probably Donna) had left her pompoms on the front corner of the table.

A lightbulb went off in your head. Coach Geter had given you a bottle of glitter confetti her daughter had made. You reached down into your duffel and grabbed it, scattering the silver and blue and lavender stars across the table.

You still felt like you were missing something, but you couldn't think of anything else. You shrugged it off after a moment, deciding that if it was something detrimental then you would recall it sooner or later.

Teony had swung by again. Well, she really slid beside you to hand you two foldable chairs before wishing you luck and walking off to the student council booth. That's how you knew it was starting soon—Teony was practically bouncing on the balls of her feet.

You took a deep breath, waiting for the freshmen to start trickling into the gym.

—

Gene let out a puff of smoke, resting his wrist against his knee. Sasha laid on her stomach in front of him, scrolling on her phone. Zenix wasn't with them. As soon as Mr. Sanders, one of the school's AP's, spotted him, he'd dragged Zenix to the ISS room. Wherever that was.

The point: only Gene and Sasha were sitting in the shaded area outside the gym.

"You know Y/n?" Gene's question broke the comfortable silence between the two of them. Sasha let her phone fall into the grass and stared at him for a moment before responding.

"Obviously. She's in my homeroom." Sasha blinked at Gene. It reminded him of a cat. "Why?"

"Curious."

Sasha raised a brow, adjusting so she could prop the weight of her head against her hand. "Why?" she repeated. Gene huffed.

"I just thought she'd be fun to mess with."

Sasha was almost even more appalled. Her eyebrows rose so high they disappeared behind her bluntly cut bangs. "Y/n? As in Y/n L/n? Y/n L/n as in the single nicest, sweetest, brightest girl in school."

"Precisely."

Sasha scoffed, lifting her phone back up and turning her attention to it. "That's ambitious even for you, Gene. You have nothing on her."

"Yet," he corrected, a sly smile playing at his lips. "I'll find something."

"Good luck because there's nothing to find. She really is as nice and perfect as she appears at school."

"And you know that how?"

Sasha exhaled, thinking as she typed away on her phone. "We had English together last year and got paired up a lot. We worked in the maker space and she really was one of the best people I've met."

"So you're friends with her?"

Sasha hummed, crinkling her nose. "Acquaintances, really.”

"So you can start a friendship with her. Bring her around every now and then and it'll all fall into place."

Sasha laughed again, glancing at Gene. "You're funny."

"It'll be easy, Sash." Gene rolled his eyes, inhaling another puff of smoke before blowing it out. "She's one of the drill girls. She's probably all . . . Ditzy and what not. She'll be easy to manipulate."

"Sure." Sasha pushed herself to her knees, lifting her arms to stretch and pop her back. "We have B Lunch, right?"

"Yeah," Gene mused. He watched Sasha lift herself to her feet and stretch again. She grabbed her bag and hoisted it onto her shoulders.

"I'm gonna go get food. I'll meet you at the lounge, 'kay?"

Gene hummed in acknowledgement, grabbing his phone from where it sat beside him and scrolling through Instagram. He didn't watch Sasha go back inside the gym, instead choosing to rest the cigarette between his lips as he searched your name in the search bar.

He found your account immediately. Followed by dantes_infernoes, laurmanz and 157 others, it said beneath your URL. He didn't know who the 157 others might have been, but he could take a guess at a couple.

He clicked on your profile. He didn't follow, you—not yet, anyway—he just clicked through your highlights and scrolled through your posts. You didn't post much about yourself. Most of it was about an upcoming Silver Starlets performance or someone else. The only post mostly centered around you he saw on your profile was a homecoming post from last year. Most others were of scenery or taken with friends.

Laurance was on your arm in most of the homecoming pictures. When Gene looked at the comments, he only found three (from Laurance, Katelyn, and your mom) and saw the words comments on this post have been limited.

Interesting. None of your other posts had that.

Gene looked at the clock. First Day orientation was ending soon, and after lunch he'd only have two and a half hours of the school day left. He doubted he'd have any classes with you, seeing as you were a junior and he was a senior, so if he wanted to do anything today he'd have to do it now.

He pushed himself off the floor and snuffed his cigarette out on the brick wall before dropping it in the grass. He pocketed his phone and made his way to the gym doors.

You'd be in there, right?

—

You watched as your younger sister tried, and failed, to take the table covering off the foldable table without getting the confetti on it everywhere.

Julie failed miserably, and you snickered as she trudged across the gym and returned with a broom and dustpan. She picked the confetti up as you finished folding the plastic covering.

"You can go to lunch after," you said, nodding to the gym doors. "I'll take your trash and stuff."

Julie sighed, her shoulders falling. "Can't I eat with you and your friends?"

You exhaled, tilting your head at her. "Julie."

"I'm serious, Y/n! I haven't talked to anyone and I'm scared because what if they know I'm here on scholarship?"

You deadpanned. "With how loud you're being they definitely will." You had meant for it to be a lighthearted jest, but the panic that speared across Julie's expression made you rethink. "It's not a big deal that you got a scholarship, Jules. Lots of people did."

"None of your friends did . . ."

That's not the point, Julie." You crossed your arms, leaning back against the table. "Find some of the robotics kids and talk to them. I'm sure they'd love to be your friend."

"But what if they're stinky?"

You glared at her. "Then you have no right to complain about not having friends. Now go to lunch. You only have a couple minutes left now."

You rolled your eyes when she begrudgingly turned and sulked her way out of the gym. You loved her with all your heart, but Jesus.

The two of you didn't have the same lunch anyway, so it's not like she could have sat with you.

You sighed, looking back at the drill team booth. The plastic covering was now folded and ready to use for another event, but the banner hanging above the table was still up. And unfortunately, Molly and Stephanie had already left for lunch, leaving you to take it down by yourself.

Lucky you.

It was only after you found yourself standing on a chair, terrified of falling, and awkwardly holding the weight of the banner that you realized this was a two person job. Most everyone else had already cleaned up their booths and the ones that hadn't were in the locker rooms changing back into their school uniforms, so you were basically stuck unless you could figure out how to do this yourself.

You cursed under your breath, taking your hat off with a hand you managed to free and tossing it down. It landed on the floor, but you didn't care. You'd pick it up and dust it off in a moment.

"Need any help?"

You hummed glancing down to where the voice came from. Gene stood there. He was fairly tall, taller than you, so you found it amusing that you were looking down at him.

Now, you knew Gene. You were dating Laurance during his whole Shadow Knight phase and were practically an eyewitness to some of the bad, not to mention illegal, things he did. All reason pointed to you refusing his help, but . . . Well, how long were you really willing to hold up this banner by yourself?

"Yes, please," you said, glancing up at the other side. It looked like it would topple over and rip the fabric in half any moment. "Can you grab that side and unlatch it?"

Gene nodded, taking one long stride to the other side of the table. He reached up, hands wrapping around the pole, and lifted it from its confines. You did the same on your side, and Gene stepped closer to you and held out his hand to steady you as you stepped down from the chair.

You thanked him, letting go of his hand and handing him the pole in your other. "Hold this for a second?"

Gene complied, holding both metal rods together. You reached up and properly folded the banner, trying to stand even higher on your tiptoes to wrap it around itself.

"Watch your head," you warned, after which Gene slightly ducked to avoid being hit by either the banner or you. Once you had the fabric wrapped around the rods like a roll, you smiled at Gene. "Thank you so much, I can take it from here."

Gene returned your smile, though the way his lips curled made you think his intent was malicious. "No, I insist on helping. What else can I do for you?"

"Um . . ." Your eyes slightly widened, like an owl's, and you glanced around. There was one or two small things, but you could do that on your own. But you didn't want to seem rude by refusing his help . . . "Help me with the table?" you suggested.

He nodded, and you set the banner and rods down to help him turn the white table on its side and fold the legs in. You pointed him to where it should go, and once he lifted it you took hold of the banner and rods again.

You'd come back for the plastic sheet and your hat. But if Gene saw you were gone from the place, he'd probably go on with his day and you wouldn't have to talk to him again.

Clearly, your logic was flawed. It wasn't long before you felt the weight of the back half of the banner being lifted, and when you turned you saw Gene following behind you. He had your hat and the iridescent sheet in his other hand, and he flashed you another smile. You returned it with another tentative one of your own before turning your head and accepting your fate.

You knocked on the door to Coach Geter's office. It was locked, of course, and she was eating lunch so you were surprised by how fast she opened it. She didn't normally like being taken from any off time she had.

You beamed at her. Geter took note of the banner in your hands and pointed to an empty corner in the office before turning back to her computer.

"See you later, Y/n," she called after you once you and Gene walked out. You smiled and waved at her before fully closing the door.

Gene held your silver and blue cowboy hat out to you. You met his gaze as you tentatively took it, holding it against your stomach.

"Thank you," you said, smiling sweetly at him. "And thank you for helping me take down the booth. I was scared the banner was going to rip and then you just . . . appeared."

Gene nodded, leaning against the wall behind him. "It's not a problem. I'm always one to help someone in need, especially a pretty girl like you."

You hummed, though it was more of a courtesy than an actual response. You got told you were pretty all the time—it was all people ever noticed—but you doubted the sincerity when Gene said it. Laurance had told you how Gene worked. He would always butter up his victim by complimenting them and pretending to be clueless about what he knew.

"Well, thank you anyway. I appreciate it."

You pivoted on your heel to walk away, but Gene's voice stopped you. "I didn't get your name."

You chuckled, turning your head back to him. "Don't pretend you don't know who I am, Gene. I certainly know who you are."

His eyebrows raised. He'd hoped you'd play along. "What if I really didn't know your name?"

You rolled your eyes. "Please. You used to be friends with Laurance. I'm fairly positive he talked about me, not to mention Coach Geter literally just said it. Besides, even if Laurance didn't or you didn't hear, it'd be crazy if someone like you, who knows everything about everyone, didn't know my name."

He smirked, but this one had no malicious intent. He seemed amused. "Touché. Well, I will see you later, Y/n."

You hummed again, hoping that you wouldn't see him again for the rest of the school year. You didn't say anything else as you walked away. You only turned back when you reached the locker room doors, and you saw that Gene had already left. You watched for a moment as Laurance crossed the gym, jogging to reach the cafeteria before it got too full for B lunch.

You shrugged to yourself, letting the door slam loudly behind you as you entered the locker room.

—

"It was so weird," you said to Katelyn, tucking your undershirt into your skirt. "He didn't seem nearly as bad as people make him out to be."

"That's because he was trying to get you," Katelyn said. She sat on one of the benches in the center of the room, scrolling on her phone as she waited for you to finish putting on your uniform. "That's how Laurance got indoctrinated to join the Shadow Knights last year."

You exhaled, looking into the mirror on the inside of your locker to wipe off any remaining red lipstick. "I know that, but . . . I don't know. It was just a weird encounter." You grabbed your backpack and shouldered it, closing your locker and clicking the lock shut. "Oh, and do not tell Laurance. I don't need him up my ass about this."

"Whatever you say." Katelyn glanced up at the sound of your locker shutting, pocketing her phone and standing with you. She walked in front of you and held the door to the gym open for you, and the two of you kept walking side by side. "I won't tell Laurance, but that's not to say someone else—say, Gene—won't tell him. You know he likes starting drama."

"Oh, my God. You're talking like my mom when she found out I was dating Laurance. 'Boys are nothing but drama and only want to impregnate you.' It's not that serious, Katelyn. We talked for less than five minutes. I mean it's not like I'm going to date Gene."

Katelyn laughed, holding the gym door open for you again. You stepped forward, thankful for the long sleeves and fleece tights of your uniform because of how cold the school hallways were. "Whatever. Your mom knows what's up."

"Says the girl approaching her one year with her boyfriend."

"Jeffory's a good guy." Katelyn playfully hit your shoulder. "He would never impregnate me, plus my dad likes him."

You hummed in faux disbelief, scrunching your nose and looking over at your friend. "I don't know . . . You guys got kinda freaky at the movies that one time."

"Oh, my God, that was one time and we just made out!"

The both of you burst out laughing and dropped the subject there. You spent the rest of your walk to the cafeteria comparing schedules, finding out you had four (technically five, if you included athletics despite being on different teams) classes together.

The school lunch was always something to marvel at. It was significantly better than the provided lunch at your public school in Scaleswind or any other lunch you'd ever had. Though, good food was a given since Phoenix Drop High was a privately funded school.

And the good food was was free to you. Thank the Lord for scholarships.

You led Katelyn to the circular table Laurance and Garroth had commandeered and sat next to her. Seven of the eight seats at the table were taken, and the empty one was next to you. Dante, who had been previously sitting by a timid boy with white hair, swiftly switched to the empty seat beside you.

"Watch this, Travis." Dante turned to you, a flirty smirk playing at his lips. You raised your brows expectantly as you speared your fork through the pasta on your plate, waiting for whatever idiotic thing he was going to say. "Hey, baby, are you a freezer? Cause I wanna stick my meat in you."

"OH MY GOD."

"EW!"

"Dante Lars Accardi!"

"You are fifteen!"

"What is wrong with you?"

You coughed, shoving Dante away from you so hard he fell out of the seat.

"Do not talk to me ever again," you said, shaking your head. You reached beneath you for your backpack, unzipping the main compartment and digging around for something you'd made just in case something like this happened.

You pulled out a decorated jar. There was a pink ribbon wrapped around the lip and you had bedazzled it to say 'd-bag jar.' Garroth saw what it said and giggled.

"You actually did that?" he asked, nodding to the jar.

"Yes! Because I had a vision of the future and saw this happening." You uncapped the jar and set it on the table. "Fifteen dollars in the jar, Dante."

"What?" he yelled.

"Fifteen dollars," you repeated more firmly, motioning to the bedazzled jar. Dante heavily sighed, grabbing his wallet. "New rule guys; any time anyone says anything like are you a freezer cause I wanna stick my meat in you"—you side eyed Dante as he begrudgingly put a ten and five ones into the jar—"or does something a douchebag would do, you have to put money in the jar."

Katelyn laughed, but your proclamation was met by groans from Laurance and Garroth.

"When I said we should get a dirt bag jar last year I meant exclusively for Dante," Laurance groaned.

"What do you mean exclusively for me?"

"Take a guess."

"No," you said, recapping the jar and shoving it back in your bag. "It's for everyone now because I'm tired of him trying to ask me and the drill team girls out"—you pointed at Dante before moving to point at Garroth and Laurance—"and you two need to stop leading girls on just because you're hot. It's mean."

"I think it's a great idea," Katelyn said, shrugging.

"Only, because you'll never put money in it," Garroth said, rolling his eyes. "This is a rigged system. Us guys are going to end up putting more money in the jar."

You shrugged. "Maybe you shouldn't say and do jerky things."

"What are you even gonna do with the money at the end of the year?" Laurance asked.

"I was thinking we like split it among us at the end of the year or donate it," you replied, picking up pasta with your fork and putting it in your mouth.. "We'll figure it out later."

"Watch us forget about this halfway through the year," Katelyn said, chuckling softly.

"Probably," you mused. You glanced up, expecting to meet the gaze of someone you knew but instead locking eyes with the black-haired girl. You smiled sweetly at her. You had seen her with the white haired boy during the first day orientation. She was probably friends with someone else at the table. "Hi," you said to her awkwardly after a moment. "Sorry about . . . That."

She smiled at you. "It's okay. Garroth kind of warned me something like that would happen."

You hummed, glancing at Garroth. So she was one of his friends. "I'm Y/n," you said, returning your gaze to her.

"Aphmau," she said. She motioned to the white-haired boy sitting next to her. "This is Travis."

"We met Aphmau this morning and decided to invite her to sit with us," Laurance said, motioning to himself and Garroth. "And turns out Travis and Dante were already friends, so it worked out."

You hummed and turned back to Aphmau, holding her amber gaze. "Do not fall for these lunatic's smooth words and romantic gestures, Aphmau. It will end badly."

Your tone was joking, but you were speaking from experience. It wasn't that you regretted dating Laurance, you simply regretted the things that happened while you were and the effect you let it have on you. You regretted the notes that fell out of your locker and the mean words you read in your DMs and the snide comments you overheard, even if they weren't your fault.

You didn't want that to happen to anyone else.

"What?" Laurance exclaimed. "I'm not that bad. You literally dated me!"

You hummed, side eyeing him. "Seriously, it's not worth it, Aphmau. The girls here can be mean."

Aphmau let out a strained breath of amusement, glancing between you and Laurance. "Are you two . . ."

You immediately shook your head. "No. We were last year, but we ended it mutually."

A look you could only describe as relief crossed Aphmau's face, and you knew already that you were too late to warn her about the problems that came with dating someone like Laurance or Garroth. The problems that came with dating Dante, even. The popular boys that had practically every girl wrapped around their fingers.

Aphmau hummed, and let the subject drop there. She kept conversation going, though, by asking other questions about the school as a whole. Travis jumped in with a comment or question of his own every now and then, but the rest of the lunch hour was spent simply getting to know the new freshmen.

You walked with Aphmau to her sixth period when the bell signalling lunch was over rang. You found out you had the same class as her (art, along with Garroth and Laurance) and sat with her at one of the tall tables. The four of you spent most of the period talking, since Mr. Smith led a fairly self guided art class.

You departed from the group for seventh period English. You knew Katelyn had the same class you did, so you waited for her outside the door so you could pick seats together. It took a moment, since her sixth period was practically across the campus, but you nearly ran into a silver-haired girl when you gave up on waiting and decided to walk into the class.

"Oh, Sasha!" you said, smiling at her. She looked up and returned your smile with a genuine one of her own when she saw you.

"Hey," she said. You knew Sasha was affiliated with Gene, but you liked her. Even with Laurance breathing down your neck about how terrible of a person she supposedly was, you considered her a friend. "Looks like we have English together again."

"Yeah." You nodded. Lucky for you, there was a group of three seats open. You set your bag in one to save it for Katelyn. "Katelyn has this class, too, but she's basically in another world right now." You laughed, settling into the desk beside Sasha.

"I don't think I've ever actually talked to Katelyn," Sasha said, setting her bag beneath her desk and leaning forward. She ran a hand thorough her straight hair. Her purple eyes were lined with dark eyeliner and she wore black lipstick. That paired with the paleness of her skin made you think she looked like a hauntingly beautiful ghost. "I don't think she likes me."

You shrugged. "Katelyn doesn't like a lot of people. I'm sure once she gets to know you she will."

Sasha smiled kindly. "That's good to know.”

Katelyn strolled into the class not long after. You moved your bag to beneath your desk so she could sit in the empty seat, and she greeted Sasha with a somewhat hesitant greeting.

It wasn't long until you were out in the field again, working with Hannah to straighten her legs when she did a high kick. You were thankful when practice ended you could finally go home. You could use the sleep after the long day.

Julie had already been picked up. You had texted your mom to let her know practice had finished and were now waiting on the bleachers to see her car lights pull up. You scrolled through your phone, thinking back to the offhanded comment you had made to Laurance, Garroth, and Aphmau in Art.

"I think I'm gonna try being more active on Instagram this year," you'd said. "Try to preserve memories."

Because of that, you spend the better half of the next fifteen minutes scrolling through your camera roll for a photo of the drill team. You found one with you and four other girls (the lieutenants) looking out at a football field and decided to use that.

You heard a car horn honk, and when you looked up you saw that your mom had rolled down the car window to wave to you. You smiled and stood up, running across the field with your bag to reach the car.

"How was school?" she asked, driving off once you secured your seatbelt.

"Good," you said. "I think Julie hates it, though."

Your mom laughed. "She definitely has . . . strong feelings about it. She told me that no one likes her, but you know how she tends to over exaggerate things."

You nodded. "I know. She's worried kids are gonna find out she's here on scholarship."

"Don't they know you are?"

"Yes! And once they find out she's my sister, they'll immediately know she is, too." You rolled your eyes, leaning against the center console to lightly press the top of your head to your mom's upper arm. "Oh, well. You can only do so much, I guess. What's for dinner?"

"Dad ordered Chick-fil-a to congratulate Julie for getting a scholarship and you for making Silver Starlet Captain." She smiled at you.

"Is he gonna be home tonight?" you asked, lifting your head. You mom shook her head.

"He will later. He's out fixing an AC unit right now."

You hummed. Your mom noticed the saddened tone and glanced over at you. She removed her right hand from the steering wheel and took hold of yours, running her thumb over your knuckles. "He'll be home tomorrow morning for sure. He said he wanted to drive you and Julie to school."

You nodded. "Okay."

She gave your hand once last squeeze before returning her hand to the wheel. The rest of the car ride was silent, only the soft sound of pop music coming through the car speakers.

i unfortunately cannot help but make chapters not long i guess

TAGGING: @garrothswiferealnotfake @wasting-away-on-the-internet @mellozhi @pushingdaisies1 i tagged anyone who showed an interest in this idea; if you’d like the be removed or notified whenever i update this story comment or DM to let me know!

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absolutebl · 2 days ago

Text

This Week in BL - In which we all feel the collective meh

Organized, in each category, with ones I'm enjoying most at the top.

Feb 2025 Week 4

Ongoing Series - Thai

The Boy Next World (Sun IQIYI) ep 8 of 10 - so the premise is such fun! It's like "if the red thread was a multiverse." I guess that makes it a 4th dimensional red tapestry? All the parallel world Cirs interconnected via a shared dream world and trying to manifest their relationships with their respective Phus via interference from the ones who have figured it out. I like it. Makes me wonder if the mastermind Cir lost his Phu and that is why he's so vested in fixing the relationship in all the other timelines. That said this was a relatively boring episode with Cir mostly in the hospital and lots of plot talking. Yet still fun because of this premise. Especially at the back end.

ThamePo (Fri YT) ep 12 of 13 - Nice to see Po being savage to his ex, his first major OGT. Bit of a sadsack of an episode though. Looking forward to next week.

Perfect 10 Liners (Sun YT) ep 18 of 24 - I love these two together so much I can’t stand it. Also the bathroom trope scene was particularly lovely. Great lighting in that bathroom.

Flirt Milk (Sat YT) ep 6 or 10 - This show is not good. The seme is overly aggressive, but I still like the sides. The more time we spend with anyone but the leads, the happier I am.

Ossan‘s Love Thailand (Mon YouTube) ep 8 of 12 - I don’t even have the energy to get annoyed that they put my beautiful Thor in a terrible wig. This show has already stretched my annoyance to the max, no more fucks to give.

Ongoing Series - Not Thai

Secret Relationships (Korea iQIYI) ep 1 of 8 - Stars Wei's Kim Jun Seo. Adapted by Cradle Studio (Kakao). This displaying all signs of a classic Kdrama: Office setting, love triangle, lead suffering for his self-actualization. And as a result I absolutely love it. This one was entirely made for me. I love a lead suffering because of his situation. I love that all the boys are interested. I love that there’s lingering crushes and long-standing misunderstandings. Everything about this appeals to me.

Eternal Butler (Taiwan Fri Gaga) ep 11 of 12 - Queer robots are the best robots. Also, have I mentioned recently that I love a good butt slap? Very underutilized move in BL. Thank you Taiwan. Wow Kevin’s English is perfect. I mean i expect the best of Taiwan but this is the best. (Inquiring minds want to know if it is all those international competitions he flexed at?) Also perfectly kinky.

FC Soldout (Korea Thurs iQIYI) ep 7 of 8 - New boy is very sus. But I like him for it. Adore the sides! Must be so novel for an idol to have someone tell him he actually needs to eat. Wild. How gay is this damn football team?

Fight for Love (Vietnam YT) ep 4 - it’s perfectly serviceable. Which seems to be a lot to ask of Vietnamese BL right now so... yay!?

Impression of Youth (Taiwan Weds Viki) ep 8 of 9 - Well, hello side couple. That was very nice. Thank you Taiwan. Meanwhile, I'm over here idly wondering if Will Wen could be persuaded to pull a hat trick and appear in a Thai BL and a KBL as well as this one - since he apparently speaks most major BL languages fluently.

The stuff dreams are made of.

Heart Stain (Korea Weds IQIYI) eps 7-8 end - this classic love triangle KBL had a classic separation in the final eps, nobody is surprised. But 4 years is a long time to pine.

Conclusion:

This was a serviceable high school KBL, based on the love triangle standards for which Kdramas inevitably wave the last flag. It was mildly enjoyable if you don’t mind a triangle, certainly earnest, if somewhat forgettable with a lackluster ending. 7/10

Checkered Shirt (Korea YT) ep 4 of 8 - This episode was very rough going. How annoying. But also now realistic. Not that I want realism in my BL.

Exclusive Love (Taiwan Fri Gaga) ep 4 of 12 - this is all a lot darker than I thought it was going to be from Taiwan. Although it still remains primarily just very weird. Also not enough of the second couple in this episode.

Teenager Judge (Vietnam Sat YT) ep 20 end - well it was the final episode last week so here we go! <rant>

Judgement

An interesting premise with two decent couples that failed to commit to the BL side of the equation and thus got mired in a never-ending commentary on bullying. The show could’ve been 8 eps and covered exactly the same material. The entire relationship arc (stepbrothers, my FAVORITE, argh) hinged on lack of communication. And that’s just the beginning of the mire of frustrating flaws. An all round bummer of a show, because the chemistry was decent. This is not a romance and there is no happy ending so don’t expect one. I wasted my damn time and I’m mad about it. Don't make the same mistake. 3/10

It's airing but......

Gelboys (Thai Weds iQIYI) ep 1 of 7 - I’m giving this show a pass. It’s just too far out of my wheelhouse. I don’t have patience right now.

Sashes and Hearts (Pinoy YT) - Philippines is doing Drop Dead Gorgeous only all gay boys queening their asses off. I'm wathing this only if I feel like it.

The Last Time (Thai WeTV) trailer - from 2024, not sure about this one, looks dark. Since it's also difficult for me to get hold of I am giving it a pass until I know about the ending.

A Perfect Match (Taiwan iQIYI) - A not very well regarded Taiwanese sports BL from earlier this year picked up for rerelease. Anyone watched it and like it? Not sure if I should bother.

In Case You Missed it

End of 2024 wraps are here (last chance to read):

2024 Trend Report

MY BEST & WORST BLs of 2024

Best Kisses (and sex scenes) of 2024

BL's 2024 Quirky Awards

2024 Awards - Quick Picks

Next Week Looks Like This:

Upcoming March 2025

3/2 Last Meal Universe (Thailand Sun ????) 10 eps - Trailer. An alien who has come to destroy earth instead falls in love with Thai food and then the Thai boy who cooks it - realistic, actually.

3/12 My Golden Blood (Thailand Weds YouTube) 12 eps - Trailer. GMMTV taking on Weds nights and midweek discourse (they hope) with this hotly anticipated vampire series. I happen to find Joss watchable but this looks very bad and also very Kissable Lips. But at least Thailand is finally giving us the trashy gay vampires we richly deserve? Just realize we don't deserve much.

3/12 Lost in the Woods (Thailand Weds Gaga) 7 eps - Announced for 2023, adapted from a novel of the same name. Fifa just graduated high school and travels to a remote province to take care of his grandma, before starting uni. There he meets Chief Hem, a forest ranger.

3/20 Top Form (Thailand Thurs WeTV) ?? eps - Trailer Adaptation of a Japanese manga. Boom (Chains of Heart) opposite Smart (Don't Say No). Actor recognized as the "The Sexiest Man of the Year" has his first-place position usurped by newcomer. But while he sees them as rivals, turns out the new kid has other ideas. I'm super excited for this but hate watching on WeTv so gonna be a challenge.

3/28 Heesu in Class 2 (Korea Fri ????) 10 eps - Adaption of the comic by Lily, about a shy unpopular boy with a secret crush on best friend who somehow also ends up his school's relationship counselor. Supposed to have completed filming in 2022, the fact this has been in dev hell since then somewhat mitigates this being my most anticipated BL of 2022. I still kinda doubt we are actually getting it but new stills have been released (so something got filmed in the last 3 years).

2025 Line Up

BL Announced for 2025 - PART 1

BL Announced for 2025 - PART 2

20 BLs Announced for 2025 That I'm Really Excited About

GMMTV 2025 Line Up - My Totally Biased and Wildly Flawed Feels

THIS WEEK’S BEST MOMENT

Got nothing. Another unmemorable week.

(last week)

The tag BLigade: @doorajar @solitaryandwandering @my-rose-tinted-glasses @babymbbatinygirl @babymbbatinygirl @isisanna-blog @mmastertheone @pickletrip @aliceisathome @urikawa-miyuki @tokillamonger @sunflower-positiiivity @rocketturtle4 @blglplus @anythinggoesintheshire @everlightly @renafire @mestizashinrin @bl-bam-beyond @small-dark-and-delicious @saezurumurmurs

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trappezoider · 2 days ago

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Hi! You were the first Hogwarts Legacy fan artist I came across and I wanted to say how much I love your works 🥰

I recently saw an ask about which program you use to create your pieces which got me wondering... 👀 do you have any tips to share with aspiring digital artists trying to learn how to properly add shading/lighting?? I'm happy with my pieces during the flat colour stage, but every time I attempt shading/lighting or other methods of adding texture/definition/perspective, it always looks "off" to me 🤔 so my WIP folder is huge rn.

Thank you in advance for any advice you're willing to share 🙏😊

Hiya there!! Thank you so much for this ask!! First of all, I gotta say how wonderful it is that you're excited about art and want to learn more about it. I just had a chat with a friend about this but I think art is such a fun, vast hobby, full of endless possibilities, and whenever people want to get into it and learn, it's just wahhhhh. Fills my heart with joy and makes me bounce :D Now, full disclaimer, I am not an art teacher so my say on the matter is not that of a professional. I struggle with these things myself as well but I'm really happy if any of my advice can help a fellow artist. Keep in mind that works for me might not work for you, and "good art" is highly subjective. But I understand that achieving that fine balance between knowing how to imitate life and then being able to recreate that imagine in your head on an empty canvas is something a lot of artists want. That's hard af though. But you can't have success without failure, that's why we have so many WIPS xD Lucky for us, our brains and hands are amazing at learning. Eventually those WIPS might become actual realised works. Crying, praying and manifesting for us both xDDD Now, if you're struggling with shading and lighting, I suggest doing value studies. Perhaps take black and white photos with a striking relationship between shadow and light, then try to replicate that without colour picking. Try to observe the whole picture, without paying too much attention to the details at first, Make your brush strokes large especially when sketching out the initial shapes. You can give yourself a time limit of say, 5-60 minutes, for each study, but I wouldn't go over a 1,5h hour limit. I recommend using fairly simple images, with less textures and where shapes are the main character so to speak. Then when you think you're ready, you can do the same thing but this time choose coloured images but still use only white/black. Excercises like these help me a ton when I feel like I wanna update my skills. Doing art is a never-ending learning curve but I feel like that's what makes it so stimulating hehe Below is an example of one value study I did recently. I don't do these often but I know I probably should xD I always just do colour studies nowdays cause that's something I'm most interested in observing at the moment :D But this is just an example of what you can do if you want to learn shading in particular. Now it doesn't need to be perfect, it's just practice that may help you get used to values and how they interact with each other on the canvas.

You can also do colour studies if that is something you're interested in. Those might be a bit more challenging but as long as you keep each study short and use simple images (like literally just an image of an egg on a table or something xD), it shouldn't be too intimidating. Sorry for such a long reply xD I hope you have lots of fun and get all the possible enjoyment from making art! So happy for you!!! Wishing you all the motivation, success and inspiration in the world!!!

#art #ask #advice

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timeisjustasocialconstruct · 16 hours ago

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Instead, there were lights.

Bright, colorful lights, shining around him like bursting stars.

His hands were not holding onto cold, unforgiving metal. In its place, there were another pair of hands, warm and soft in their touch, holding onto his.

Beyond it all, there were the eyes, the ones Miles had sworn he had forgotten already looking right into his, and a voice that didn’t fit his memories anymore but couldn’t be anything else either, whispering just two words.

It’s you.

my take on a scene from a fic How To Undivorce Your Husband by @varpusvaras

Go read it, it's really great! It has all the good stuff - Narumitsu in their Bratfeen era and the usual chaos that occurs when those two are concerned, accidental marriage, (not so)fake relationship (which comes after the marriage), canon-typical amount of ✨️trauma✨️ and so much more.

This took quite a lot of time to finish (mainly because I suck at time-management) but I enjoyed every second of it. I didn't have that much fun creating in a long while!

Also, this fic was my first exposure to the Ace Attorney (if we don't count some occasional memes and such things that I came across on this hellsite) and it actually got me into the fandom, so it has a special place in my heart.

#when you want to practice watercolour painting and the inspiration strikes so you end up doing a scene from a fic #seems like i am yet another victim of the gay lawyers brainrot #(not that i'm complaining)#ace attorney #narumitsu #miles edgeworth #phoenix wright

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coyote-with-a-keyboard · 2 days ago

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would you ever write a Hosea x younger male reader, around Arthur’s age, with gunplay? very generic but i cannot get the thought out of my mind… need that old man whimpering shyly, trying to not make much noise….!

a/n: brainworms and a breakup have been haunting me lately yall but now I really wanna write this so

Minors DNI

tipsy. Yah, that’s what he could say he was- just tipsy, a rare thing for Hosea to be in the fist place. He was usually a healthy drinker, a small shot or flask he’d sip on here and there. It’s much harder to control his drinking when he’s thinking about you now isn’t it?

a new member, half his age at best and recently had saved him from a petty death in a botched mission. You had lugged him over your shoulder like a sack, and he hadn’t been quite able to get it out of his mind

you acted a lot like a younger Dutch, shiny pistols and a sharp tongue.. but there was something calmed in your tone, something more possessive in your grip. More controlled he supposed. It was getting to him badly. It made him yearn, made him ache, made him want.

he hadn’t planned on bothering you about it, not ever. He wasn’t young or pretty or fast paced or anything he was years ago- not by his standard anyway. He had planned to sit and let it simmer down until it was gone, but alas you seemed to have other plans when you slid up behind him, man-handling him onto sitting against your chest with his legs draped over your lap in one fluid motion.

he almost let out a yelp before he whipped his head around to catch a glint of your face, his heart pounding in his chest so hard he thought it might burst out of him.

you didn’t make a single sound as you seemed to look around for any other camp goers, before your hand trailed up his shirt and popped each button out of place, your voice low as you hummed out little tempting compliments as if to convince him he should be doing this.

He squirmed in your hold, words coming out breathy and muttered. Sure he was drunk, but just sober enough to know you had just gotten back from some errand by the dirt under your fingers and your gun still shining in the dimmed light on your holster. He laid pliant when you kissed as his neck, leaving hickeys down his collarbone. Too afraid to say some half-excuse and actually make you pull away.

he bit down on his lip to not make some pitiful sounds that his body begged him to let out while your hands slid his worn pants down, clearly careful and precise as to not make a sound. It didn’t help much though, truly unable to stop himself from whining like a dog

he heard the click of your bullets falling out of your pistol before he saw your gun in your hand, a surge of adrenaline filling his head as he heard five distinct clicks, unsure if you had shot one earlier or just left one in for the fun of it as the tip of your barrel pressed up against his lips. A silent command to suck on it to stop his groans and whines.

he opened his mouth the slightest bit, letting out a choked sound when the cold metal pressed against his tongue and made his teeth hurt when you adjusted it in your steady hand. He was so hyper focused on it that he failed to notice that you were undoing your belt all the while until he felt the head of your cock pressing against his hole, breathless muffled sounds flowing out of him as you slid in inch by inch. It hurt with no prep, but it was a sting he had gotten used to longer ago then he’d like to admit to any living soul

he was already hard as he could be, pre dripping down from him as you managed to manhandle him properly down onto the rough ground to properly thrust into him, fixing the awkward position. He suckled on the barrel of the gun, reveling in the taste of it as his eyes rolled back Witt every buck of your hips into his warm walls, his body clenching around you and his hands staying behind his back to resist scrambling to grasp onto you. His eyes hazy looking and tears making his eyelashes all the more noticeable as he looked up at you with pure lust.

it didn’t take long for him to reach his max, spent as sticky cum covered the lower half of his chest, mixing with the small amount of sweat that was beginning to accumulate on him, letting his lips pull away from your pistol with a wet sound as he licked up the bottom of the barrel, eyes making contact with yours in a way that was meant to egg you on and tease you, to which it clearly worked.

It didn’t take any longer for you to hold him steady down on the ground, painting his insides white with your orgasm, before pulling out slowly and tugging your pants and chaps back up, not a word exchanged as you wiped the spit off of your gun and shoving your hat over his messy hair while he got up, already leaving off to your tent by the time he was sat up and had caught his breath

#coyotes_hoard #mlm drabble #mlm smut #rdr2 smut #hosea matthews x male reader #hosea smut #rdr2 hosea #hosea matthews #top dom reader #sub hosea #sub bottom character #bottom Hosea #Gunplay #male top reader #sub character #gun play

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0pawprint0 · 2 days ago

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I kinda ramble in response to this I’m super sorry, it made me have lots of thoughts /pos

My hope is that they aren’t cowards and give us a NB Yuu for at least one manga. I actually want the twist to be that Diasomnia’s Yuu is the NB one. I feel like they won’t do it, but I’d love if they would.

It’s incredibly weird to me that people are acting like Yuuka isn’t literally just a woman with short hair. I love all of the diverse designs for the Yuus. We’ve got a big, buff man for Heartslabyul, a sporty short-haired girl for Savanaclaw, a plus sized guy for Octavinelle (he’s my beloved), and a gyaru girl for Scarabia!

Each Yuu matches up with an element of that book. We’ve got Yuuken, who is strong and helpful. His appearance alone is the opposite of Riddle. Yuuka is a sporty girl, fitting to the Savanaclaw arc, which centers around sports. Plus, we know that in the Savana, women are respected, which is an interesting thing for Leona’s arc here. Then for Yuuta, he’s plus sized and works at his family’s restaurant, which goes against Azul. Azul is trying to hide his past self, but here’s Yuuta, living as he is. Azul has to face someone who looks like he used to. Then for Yuuna, well, she’s very similar to Kalim! A cheerful, ditzy girl who loves to have fun! And another Kalim for Jamil to face. Each Yuu’s design is important to the story they’re in.

Are these people going to have the same energy if we get a feminine man for Pomefiore? Or maybe even better, we’ll get a completely average, maybe even not conventionally attractive man, for Pomefiore. What will these people think then? It’s kinda wild to me people would have such a heteronormative attitude towards this series when there’s so much diversity within it. Twst doesn’t shy away from diversity at all. The characters (besides Epel and likely Vargas) are all pretty open with femininity. Yuu in the game doesn’t have a listed gender. Lilia is our bicon. And just pay attention to everyone else. Characters proudly wear feminine fashion and makeup.

So to look at Diasomnia and go "IT BETTER BE A GIRL YUU!" is so odd to me. Because MalleYuu can still VERY MUCH BE A THING if we have a masc/NB Yuu. People should also remember that even though there’s a lot of "Malleus forgets this isn’t otome" moments, the game is still ultimately not an otome and… I hate to shatter dreams here… but the game isn’t gonna end in romance.

Basically, my point is people looking at this game with such a hetero mindset is super strange to me. Because there’s a lot of queer elements in the game, even if it’s not outright stated. Yana is someone who likes to have lgbt+ characters in her works, so to look at the game in such a heteronormative light is weird to me lol.

And your point about the masc audience is so true. Often in fandoms like these that are made up majority of fem people, being a masc or NB person can almost feel alienating. Like we aren’t welcome in these kinds of fandoms sometimes. I’ve had this issue with fanfics, especially. Fanfics are saturated with stories catered to fem people, especially when the MCs are guys. It’s hard to find stories for masc/NB people in general, much less when the MCs are guys. And if we (I’m a transmasc agender person, they/it btw) ask, we get told to make our own or basically "too bad." I could write a whole essay on this alone (and I might one day!), but yeah-

Also, to say Yuuka is masc just to fit in the boy’s school ;;;;;;; what an odd thing to say. Yuuka is just a lesbian, guys /j. But no, she just happens to be a masc woman and I think she’s beautiful. She and Yuuna just have different styles and that’s literally it. And not to be rude, but all these people being like "finally a Yuu who accepts femininity!" are giving pick-me. Like they sound EXACTLY like the people who think transmascs and afab NB folks are only trans to reject femininity. But again, as a NB person, that’s the perspective I have. And to those people… lots of us are still pretty feminine! We aren’t rejecting femininity! I literally love "girly" shit. People just like different styles and that’s okay! Wait until they find out that Yuuna’s clearly gyaru inspired look is actually rooted in protest against the beauty standards from back in the day.

Twst is such a wonderful game, and this is why I adore it so, so much. It’s full of diverse, wonderful characters all with their own stories and to be so bent about that aspect is forever a strange thing to me. All of the Yuus are wonderful in their own ways. I love each of them. To compare them with negative intentions makes no sense.

Sorry for such a long ramble! I got "lost in the sauce" as they say.

And also, Twst, come on… give me an official NB Yuu (slides them a dollar and a ring pop). Kinda hope anime Yuu is genderless! But that’s a topic for another time haha.

Ahh these are the sort of topics I don’t know how to word well in English , so forgive me if I have roundabout explanations for things 😆 this is a bit of a vent, I apologize again for any mistaken words on anything 💦

But I guess I’m just a little disheartened by the EN fandom- particularly with the whole manga Yuu situation. I adore all the Yuu’s, I love all the Yuu OCs that this amazing and creative fandom has designed.

But I’m seeing an…over exaggeration? Or pedestal put onto the Scarabia Yuu, Yuuna Oujou, and the way some people have discussed the manga Yuu’s have made me a little uncomfortable.

I’ve seen some people be like “finally! A girl Yuu for the manga!” Or “finally! A Yuu who presents herself as a woman!” (This is way different than a celebration of a femme Yuu btw).

? Yuuka, the Savanaclaw Yuu, IS a woman. Some people have been claiming that she’s “hiding her gender” in the all-boy’s school, or “downplaying” her gender, and how they’re so happy that Yuuna is “unapologetically a woman.”

But Yuuka, even in her previous world, has ways presented as a bit more masc- a very bifauxnen, cool girl type of character who is resolute in her strength because of her judo experience. A translation of the manga I read even has her referring to herself as a “ordinary school girl.” It’s just her own personal style of presenting herself. She also exercises in a sports bra! The only troubles she has is the troubles ALL Yuu’s have: that they’re magicless and aren’t meant to be here at this school and this WORLD.

And frankly, it’s uncomfortable that I’ve seen so many people in the fandom act as if feminine style is the only valid way to present as a woman, the implications that Yuuka is not a woman from the way she chooses to dress or cut her hair.

I’m so so happy that people find joy in a very femme presenting Yuu- I love Yuuna just as much! But when the conversation begins turning into…implying femininity is the only way to be/present as a woman, that’s not…it just feels awful. Yuuka was our first girl Yuu, Yuuna is the second. They present differently, but neither of them ever once worry about having the “hide” their gender. Please celebrate Yuuna’s style if that’s what you mean, instead of the “true girl” Yuu.

And on another note, there is the very popular and so far very likely theory of a “boy-girl” pattern in the manga Yuu’s- especially since all the Yuu’s so far have been the opposite gender as the Disney villains of each dorm. Meaning, the theory is that a male Yuu is likely for Diasomnia.

And I’m seeing a very vocal crowd dismissing the idea of male Yuu in the Diasomnia arc, that they want a girl, they’d hate a male Yuu, “Malleus forgot it’s not an Otome so it has to be a girl Yuu!”, they want a girl to be with Malleus “because [we] want Malleyuu.”

And again. It just feels so…alienating. Malleus and Malleyuu personally isn’t for me, but I’ve spent many years hopping around Otome and romance games in the past, and male and NB fans of these genres are frequently told that they don’t belong in the fandom, that these games cater to women.

But most conversations bringing up the possibility of romance games bringing in he/him, they/them or even customizable pronouns for the player are often shut down in most community spaces. Games like TWST, with an ambiguous MC and individual interactions with a character of your choice (ie the home screen voicelines)- or even games like Obey Me or the Arcana, are a rarity have made me really happy and feel really comfortable in the fandoms. Even if the game’s audience is mostly women, the MC/Yuu has *always* had an open identity.

So…the concept that Malleyuu is only WANTED by a portion of the fandom ONLY it’s a girl Yuu just brings back those same feelings again. Of course you may have whatever Yuu you want in your own personal Malleyuu ship!! But one girl Yuu can never represent the whole fandom, one male Yuu can never represent the whole fandom. So it’s strange there’s this complete outcry at the idea of a boy, and in turn of non-het Malleyuu ships in the fandom.

The manga and the Yuu’s have never shown a romantic relationship towards any character- any fanservicey moments still remain from the game, no matter the Yuu it’s aimed towards. And not just from Housewardens- all the characters have their bits of fanservice! But it never goes farther than that in the main story especially.

With the reveal of Yuuna, the EN fandom has been celebrating the diversity and openmindness of the world of twst, and how customizable your Yuu’s truly are. Yuu is…you! Yuu can be whoever you want. But it all falls apart when a portion of the fandom see Yuuna as the only valid girl Yuu, when the mere idea of a male Yuu for Diasomnia or for Malleyuu is bashed and hated.

Or you know what- the idea of male or even NB Yuu is bashed entirely every single time there’s a damn announcement for the manga. A while back, the Scarabia manga announcements were mistranslated in English, and the gender ambiguous language for Yuu was accidental turned into he/him (which turned out to be Yuuna). And the level of vitriol I saw over the idea of a male Yuu was so fucking disheartening. And now it’s happening all over again with a future Diasomnia manga.

Is the manga and their Yuu’s really a celebration of diversity in the EN fandom? It doesn’t feel that way, at all. Perhaps I’m just being self centered about this, but I’ve found myself increasingly upset about how vocal these two issues have been, and I wish some people could be more mindful about it

Apologies for my incoherency in this vent 💦💦💦💦💦 this is NOT hate toward Malleyuu or Yuuna fans as a whole- or towards anyone in fact. This is just a vent and a slight critique just certain parts of the fan bas

#twisted wonderland #twst #pawprint rambles #posted on my main because it feels right #if people respond to me tho #I’ll prob respond back on my side blog

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